Asia

Problems of Forest Degradation And Deforestation in the
Bryansk Region
By Dr. Zhirina L.S., Markin O.V.
Bryansk Non-Governmental Organization "VIOLA"

The forest is a natural complex that influences soil-formation, climate, hydrological conditions essencially. It is one of the strongest accumulators of the animate matter in the biosphere, it determines the level of exchange of the oxygen and the carbonic acid. Before active inteference of a man 50 percent of the surface of dry land had been natural woodlands, and in the 20th century as a result of felling and fires the area of the forest of the world reduced abruptly to 28 percent.

The territory of our region is 34,9 thousand square km, 31,2 of which the forest occupies. The total area of the woods is 1173,3 thousand ha, among which coniferous and deciduous-coniferous woods occupy 50,8%, deciduous woods-6,8%, low forest-42,4%.

According to the biospheric role woods of the region are subdivided into two groups . The woods of the first group are situated along rivers and shores of lakes ,near towns and along large metalled roads.It appllies to the category of protective woods. It is prohibited to fell them. The second group is protective-working. Here one can fell woods but in such a way that the process of self-renewal goes on.

The woods of the region are notable for high productivity. On the average the annual increase of wood is 2,9 mln m³ anually. The total reserves of wood are 118 mln m³.

The Bryansk region is unique in the botanical-geographical respect. On its territory there is a northern-eastern boundary of the ordinary hornbeam (the Novozybkov region,forestry of Sofiev), i.e.the typical representatives of eastern European deciduous woods,there are northern borders of the natural habitat of Acer field and Euokymus european (the Sevsk district ,forestry of Hinelsk, i.e.the typical representatives of western European deciduous woods.

In the subzone of deciduous-fir woods the main forest- formation wood species are Quercus robur. There are also Acer platanoides and Cordete lime-tree, Birch and Asp. Side by side with the wood tier there is also a tier of shruberry or undergrowth.

In the grass we can observe the combination of the kinds of fir and deciduous woods.

In the 15th-18th century these woods were well spread in the northern-eastern districts of the region. Nowadays they are completely felled, and the rest of them look like small massifs .On the place of the native forests ther appeared secondary woods Birch and asp are light-requiring trees. They grow very quickly. But the duration of their life is not large-80-150 years.Fir and oak renew quickly under the curtains of birch and asp,but the latters take prevailing position, and only in 100-150 years on the plaace of birch woods deciduous-fir woods restore. But restoration is effective, if a man promotes this process.

In the north and north-west of the region dark coniferous fir woods are spread. Picea abiec prevails, and there are no deciduous wood species. In the non-thick undergrowth buckthorn and rowan grow. Fir woods have remained as not large sections. On their cleared space ther appear birch and aspen woods.

The deciduous woods are spread in the southern-eastern disstriccts of the region. There prevail ...In the thick undergrowth there prevail Quercus robur, Acer platanoides and Acer field, Cordate lime-tree.

The area of the forest fund of the Bryaansk region is 795,3 thousand ha.Coniferous woods occupy 51%,woods with hard leaves-6%,woods with soft leaves-43%.Age structure is characterized by prevalence of young growth(22%) and plantations of average age(47%).

The average age of plantations is 50 years.

The area of specially protected woods is 1609 ha.Woods,having scientific or historic significance(11013ha) and especially important wood massifs(512 ha)form part of them.Besides another valuable plantations are distinguished.They are reserves,monuments of nature ,constant sections with growing wood seeds ,standard plantations on the area of 46710 ha.

The area of plantations of artificial origin is 276,1 thousand ha.They occupy 24,7% covered with forest lands.

Among the main reasons promoting degradation and deforesting of the territory of the Bryansk region.We can name the following reasons:radioactive pollution of wood lands after the Chernobyl accident,wood fires,illegal felling woods,throwing of harmfull matters into the atmosphere.

The Chernobyl accident resulted in radioactive pollution of a lot of wood lands of the Bryansk region and also in degradation of the forest.

Table 1. The Dynamics Of the Areas Of Woods Polluted By Radionuclides In the Bryansk Region.
<The html version of this figure still under construction>

According to the table we can say ,that the area of pollution became smaller in 1995 than in 1991 by 57,8 thousand ha.Decrease of the pollution was owing tonatural decay of radionuclides:caesium-134 and caesium-137 and transision from the polluted wood plantations to clear areas.

Woods,playing the most important protective role in the stabilization,absorption ,redistribution and self-purification of ecological systems from radionuclides,are characterized simultaneously by high sensitiveness and radiation influence in comparison with other phytocinoses.Forest is a barrier in the way of secondary distribution of radionuclides.In view of radiation pollution of woods the method of keeping forestry has changed nowadays.All the kinds of activity are prohibited in the woods with density of pollution more than 15 ku/km2 ,except antifire forest protective woods.

Another reason of degradation of woods of our region is incongruity between the usage and renewal of wood resources,what we can see after the example of interregional forestryof Kletnya

Table 2. The Usage And Renewal Of Wood Resources On the Territory Of Kletnya District.(fund materials of the district agricultural administration)
<The html version of this figure still under construction>

According to the table we can see ,that they fell trees considerably more than transplant.It reveals insufficiency of measures aimed at the renewal of wood resources in the region.

One more reason of degradation of woods is fires.In 1996 in the woods of the region 194 wood fires on the area of 118 ha were registered.The average area of fire was 0,61 ha.In comparison with 1993 the number of fires increased .144 fires were registered in1993.And fires of radiation woods promote secondary distribution of radionuclides on the territory .This can result in radiation pollution of clear wood lands.

In the 17th century on the territory of our region the old-believers founded their own settlements.They settled in the south-west of the region,i.e.on the territory of maximum radiation pollution and founded new handicraft settlements,i.e.large villages.Later some large villages grew in towns.In 1781 the village Surazhichi,for example, was renamed as chief town of Surazh.Zibkaya became chief town of Novozybkov in 1809.

Both at that time and nowadays their life is closely connected with forest.Owing to bad social conditions of life in the villages they are forced to heat their houses with radiation firewood, what results in the secondary distribution of the territory. Woods,situated near large industrial centers suffer from harmful throwing .Best of all maple,poplar,oak,birch,pine absorb sulphureous gas from the atmosphere;pine,ash,maple,apple-tree absorb compounds of nitrogen; maple,alder-tree,asp-tree,fir absorb carbon monoxide;chestnut,lime-tree,poplar-tree absorb compounds of lead.

Possible solutions:

It’s necessary to realize principles of steady codntrol of woods for prevention of deforesting and degradation of woods.Steady control of woods in Russia is purposeful,long-term,economically profitable interrelation of a man with lands of state wood fund.These interrelations can be accompanied by natural and anthropogene transformation of the structure of wood fund and periodical withdrawal of wood production with the help of various machines and mechanisms.Steady control of woods considers,that interaction of a man with forest on the basis of the usage of market and non-market wood products mustn’t result in degradation or disappearance of woods as ecological systems.

It’s necessary to know criteria,i.e.strategic directions of practical activity,for achieving steady control.

The first criterion is supporting and conservation of productive ability of woods.
The purpose is to have system of long- term estimation of the state of woods on the basis of keeping forestry and fulfilling the complex of necessary work for guaranteeing activityconcerning conservation and supporting the productivity of woods in Russia.

The second criterion is supporting admissible sanitary state and vital capacity of woods.
The purpose is to reveal influence of anthropogene factors on woods and to get data about tendencies and scales of this influence on the state of woods in Russia.

The third criterion is conservation and supporting protective functions of woods.
The purpose is to support and to strengthen protective functions of anti-erosive woods on the territoty with broken and mountainous reliefs, on the slopes of ravines wood belts,woods on the flying sands, lands of agricultural usage.

The forth criterion is conservation and supporting of ecological variety of woods and their contribution to the global carbon circle.
The purpose is to support structure and composition of woods,guaranteeing conservation of viable propagating kinds;long-term prognosis of the speed of accumulation of wood-biopulp and dead wood for estimation of the role of Russian forests in the global processes of rsgulation ,contained in the atmosphere,carbon and climatic changes

The fifth criterion is supporting socio-economic functions of woods.
The purpose is the combination of economic advantages from the exploition of wood resources and practical activity according to their conservation and steady control.

The sixth criterion is instruments of wood policy for conservation of steady wood control.
The purpose is to improve,reveal and use legal mechanisms of wood resources usage,usage of functions and features of Russian woods,having social, economic, historic,cutural and other values for the population and the state.

Thus,the interaction of the state wood department with social organizations,teachers,puples,students,scientists and other people,not indifferent to problems of wood richness of our country,is necessary for prevention of deforesting and degradation of woods.

It’s necessary to hold conferences attraacting to all the interested parties with the purpose of revealing wood problems and the ways of their getting over.

It’s necessary to develop a system of school forestry,that will be able to help puples to form the ecological consciousness and methods of its practical usage. In particular,it’s necessary to hold all-school ecological conferences,seminars,competitions,devotedto wood problems and also to practical activity according to making wood nursery,collecting seeds,etc.

With the help of social organizations it’s necessary to appeal to managers og large industrious enterprises,i.e.sources of pollution of the environment,with the purpose of reducing harmful throwing into the atmosphere by way of arrangement of purifying constructions.Through social organizations it’s necessary as well to institute control over the pollution of the environment.

By way of mass media it’s important to appeal to local population,giving ecological information about wood and cosequences of illegal felling them.

It’s necessary to strengthen measures on antifire wood security.For example, it’s possible to prohibit movement of vehicles along all the non-planned wood-roads,to establish water belts not less than 3 meters wide along allowed roads crossing wood massifs, to prohibit smoking in the forest and usage of the open fire,to equip all the vehicles with antifire facilities.

Thus ,the significance of the forest is great and various.Besides having various economic importance the forest is a great geographic factors, it influences all the types of landscapes very much. The role of the forest is well reflected in the motto of the International Congress of forestry specialiasts (India,1954):"Forest is water,water is harvest,harvest is life".

back to UC Process