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BROC Report 1

BROC Report 1

Consulting and supporting local groups' activities to stop destructive forest use in the area of the proposed South-Primorsky National Park

REGION: Primorsky
DISTRICT: Shkotovsky, 80 km East from Vladivostok
DATES OF RIDES: February 27th - March 1st, 2003
PARTICIPANTS:

Artur Romanenko (BROC)
Roman Fadeev (BROC)
Serguei Markov (Forest Inspection)
Nikolai Serebrennikov (NGO Noosphere)

The ride was conducted in the most biodiverse and recreationally valuable forest in the Sikhote-Alin. The site is one of the most attractive tourist sites in this densely populated area. Last year, in part thanks to our joint campaigning with locals and officials, we succeeded in stopping "salvage" logging in the area. The salvage operation, claimed as necessary in order to provide firewood for locals, was in fact taking place in order to prepare commercial timber extraction in the restricted zone. During our ride we found some felling in the area, again justified by the need for firewood. BROC and local activists decided that while the official process of creating the natural park is going on, we need to conduct more intense media campaigns to explain details and specifics of the natural park status. We decided to continue working also with the Forest service to look for more realistic methods of getting firewood for local needs without involving commercial firms. Our findings and updates on our campaigning efforts were discussed on our TV show and in some newspapers.

Ash log on a reserved area of South Primorye ParkPhoto © BROC

Purpose

To strengthen the position of the local NGO in its efforts to reconcile local subsistence needs and the need to meet conservation goals to protect highly biodiverse forests.

Introduction

During the last 4-5 years all anti-poaching and illegal logging inspections, both official and non-government, are being conducted along this general trail, along which most Primorsky timber is going to China via a large network of timber depots. This process created quite a strong illegal empire of timber trade, controlled by militia, local administrators, forest services and/or legalized Chinese entrepreneurs. This empire gradually involved even some inspectors, thus making the system pirate-like, while pirates became partial managers of shady businesses themselves. Under new regional administration, a quantity of those depots was reduced from about 90 to only 17, which stayed legally permitted to wholesale timber and make up customs documents for export. Also, during the last 1-2 years the forest service stopped delivering transport certificates, used here in Primorsky for about 5 years to control timber flows on the roads. Frequent falsification rendered them useless. Instead, they changed the form of the logging license, increasing its safety, and kept trying to insist on its official checking by the customs procedure. This is always a problem, since it may be done only on a federal level of State Customs Committee, which is quite conservative.

Logs on a reserved area of the Natural ParkPhoto © BROC

Findings

BROC discovered that the local NGO is increasingly aware of civil rights as regards the protection of the forest environment and protected area, and they are relying on the legal approach instead of civil disobedience in response to logging operations conducted with the support of municipal officials in the reserved forest on the steep slopes, destroying the water balance of the area. We discovered that instead of logging for so-called municipal needs (firewood) logging of restricted species on the very steep slopes is taking place. The logging is taking place in an area where a mountain skiing resort is planned. There are allegations of a series of other legal violations. As a result of our findings, we came to an agreement to continue the collection of documents on this resort and to publicly compare them with the process of creation of the natural park and its key recreational goals. Simultaneously, BROC decided to broadcast the experience of Noosphere's battle.

Recommendations

  • Present the report of our ride to the Regional forest service, law enforcement agency (Militia) and environmental protection institutions.
  • Present the experience of Noosphere to the other districts at the TACIS workshop in Novopokrovka in July 2003.
  • Organize broad media (mainly TV-radio) campaign in favour of the South-Primorsky Natural Park.
  • Continue legal consulting of NGO Noosphere and analysis of logging documents.

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