«The area of the state forest fund has increased to 28 thousand hectares this year. Almost for 20 years, this rate has been under 27 thousand hectares," the head of the Environmental Department of the Agriculture and Nature Ministry Igor Popov noted in the interview to Novosti Pridnestrovya.
At the same time, the Pridnestrovie's forest area amounts to 7.6%, when the rates are optimal, it is 12−15%.
«Our region is sparsely forested. Forest cover percentage amounts to 16.3% in a forest-steppe zone in the North of the republic, in the Dubossary Region — to about 10%, and it amounts to only 3.6% in the south (the Slobodzeya Region). To increase the republic's forest area at least by 1%, it is necessary to bed out forest plantations on the area of 3.6 thousand hectares, i.e. we need to double the area of the woods up to the standard," the representative of the Agriculture and Nature Ministry emphasized.
It bears reminding that the Forrest and Wood Processing industry Worker Day will be celebrated next Sunday. About 300 employees of the republic work at forest industry.
