27 November 2000

New Chief of the Russian Aerial Forest Fire Protection Service Avialesookhrana appointed

The First Deputy Minister of Natural Resources has assigned Mr. Nicolay Alekseevich Kovalev to the new Chief of Avialesookhrana. The appointment is effective since 8 November 2000. Mr. Nicolay A. Kovalev graduated in 1978 at the Siberian Technological Institute, Faculty of Forestry, Krasnoyarsk. In 1979 he qualified as Pilot Observer after attending aerial fire management classes in Pushkino, Moscov Region- Between 1978 and 1979 he served as an instructor of helirapellers crews. Between 1979 and 1982 he served as Chief of a sub-base (subdivision) of Krasnoyarsk air base and between 1982 and 1986 as Deputy of Chief of Krasnoyarsk airbase. Since 1986 until his appointment to Chief of Avialesookhrana he was Chief of the Krasnoyarsk airbase. Mr. Kovalev has been rewarded with the Order of Courage and several other decorations.

Nicolay A. Kovalev
(GFMC photo taken at the UN conference Forest, Fire,
and Global Change, Shushenskoe, Russia, August 1996)

Nicolay Kovalev is well known to the international fire specialists. Back in 1991-92 he supported the first contact with Western fire scientists and provided statistical data that were published in International Forest Fire News (IFFN No. 7 – August 1992). In 1993 he supported the first international fire experiment in the frame of the Fire Research Campaign Asia-North (FIRESCAN). In 1996 his organization supported the United Nations International Conference Forest, Fire, and Global Change, Shushenskoe, Krasnoyarsk Region.

The Global Fire Monitoring Center on behalf of the international family of forest fire managers and scientists congratulates Nicolay Kovalev for his appointment and wishes all best success in consolidating and expanding the work of Avialesookhrana.

Former Chief of the Russian Aerial Forest Fire Protection Service Avialesookhrana appointed to Chief of the Forest Service

On 2 October 2000 the Minister of Natural Resources appointed Mr. Nicolai A. Andreev to the position of Chief of the Department of Exploitation and Restoration of the Forest Fund. Until his appointment Nicolai Andreev served as Chief of the Russian Aerial Forest Fire Protection Service Avialesookhrana.

Mr. Nicolai Alekseevich Andreev was born in 1937, graduated as a forestry engineer at the Leningrad Academy of Forestry in 1959 and as a pilot observer classes in 1960. In the following years he served as pilot observer, chief of Kostroma subdivision, and deputy chief of the Russian Aerial Forest Fire Protection Service Avialesookhrana. Since May 1973 he served as Director of Avialesookhrana. Nikolai Alekseevich has received the title of Honored Forester, one decoration and several medals. The new forest administration which he will be chairing is presented in the organizational diagram below.

The Global Fire Monitoring Center on behalf of the international community of fire specialists congratulates Nikolai Alekseevich for this assignment and wishes all the best success for the future of forest protection in the Russian Federation.

Organizational setup of the new forest administration in Russia
(Source: Avialesookhrana, translation by A.Eritsov and GFMC)

The Aerial Forest Fire Protection Service (Avialesookhrana) of the Federal Forest Service of Russia reports the state of fire in the 2000 fire season to the GFMC. The latest report is from 3 November 2000:
Up to 1 November 2000 a total of 17,899 fires occurred in forests under the control of the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia, burning a total of 880,066 ha of forest (thereof 67,258 crown fires) and 277,539 ha non-forested areas.
During the day of 1 November 2000 a total of 7 fires burned 22 in Evreski Autonomni Okrug and Promorski Krai.

Latest News on the Reorganization of the Forest and Forest Fire Service of Russia, from the Russian Environmental Digest (REDfiles by Transboundary Environmental Information Agency)
REDfiles is a compilation of the week’s major English-language press on environmental issues in Russia. This news is from the REDfiles.

World Bank Freezes $60 Million Loan for Russia’s Forest Projects (Interfax Russian News, 12 July 2000)

Environmentalists Denounce World Bank Forestry Loan to Russia (Agence France Presse, 12 July 2000)

Environmentalists Urge World Bank to Stop Lending to Russia (Bloomberg, 11 July 2000)

World Bank Loans Raise Ire of Russian Environmentalists (Press Release of Pacific Environment and Resources Center, 11 July 2000)

Huge Increase in Illegal Logging this Year (BBC, 14 July 2000 )

Prominent Russian Culture Figures Call on Authorities to Restore Federal Environmental Protection Agency (Interfax News Agency, 19 July 2000)

Environmentalists sue Over Russian President’s Decree (United Press International, 22 August 2000)

World Bank to Release $ 60 Million Forest Loan in Russia (Interfax News Agency, 31 August 2000)

CEE Bankwatch Network and Pacific Environment and Resources Center (World Bank, 21 September 2000)

World Bank Approved Loan To Abolished Unit Russian Forest Service Funding (Financial Times, London, 27 September 2000)

State Forest Service to Manage Russian Forests as part of Natural Resources Ministry (Interfax Russian News, 4 October 2000)

Forestry Cooperation with China (British Broadcasting Corporation, 6 October 2000)

Two And Half Million Russians Back Environmental Protection Referendum (Interfax Russian News, 27 October 2000)

Earlier comments on the reorganisation of the Federal Forest Service of Russia and the consequences on forest fire protection capabilities were released by the BALTEX FIRE 2000 (6 June 2000 and 7 June 2000) and the GFMC statement The Future of Forest Fire Protection in Russia. Latest news from Moscow indicate that final decisions on the fate of former Federal Forest Service personnel will be made next week. A decision about the future of Avialesookhrana is not expected before the end of the current, sever fire season.

The translated wording of the the resolution (decree) of the Russian government concerning the abolishment of the State Forest Committee has been made public (non-official translation). Additionally two translated articles from Lesnaja Gazeta (Forestry Gazette) of 15 July 2000 are of interest.

For more details on fire in the Russian Federation, Mongolia and China: See IFFN Country Notes. Scientific details on fire in the Russian Federation are provided by the Fire Research Campaign Asia-North (FIRESCAN) report.

Bibliography on fire in ecosystems of boreal Eurasia:
One of the results of the first international fire science conference in the Russian Federation (1993) was the publication of a monograph on fire in boreal Eurasia, including some selected contributions on boreal North America. The literature cited in the monograph contains numerous publications which in many cases are not easily accessible. To facilitate literature search the bibliographical sources are provided by topic (chapter).
Goldammer, J.G. and V.V.Furyaev. 1996. Fire in Ecosystems of Boreal Eurasia. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, 390 p.

Top
Back

24. November 2017/by GFMCadmin