100 Billion Russia
RussiaCan Earn 100 Billion Dollars from Rational Use of Forests Duma
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ITAR-TASS,4 February 2003
By Robert Serebrennikov
Moscow — Parliamentary hearings on “Ecological problems of Russian forests” will be held at the State Duma lower house on Tuesday. Their participants will discuss the development of the forest economy, issues of improvement of forest legislation and protection of forests from fires.
Russia can earn up to 100 billion U.S. dollars annually as against the present eight billion from rational use of forests, chairman of the Duma Committee on Natural Resources Alexander Belyakov said in an interview with Tass on Tuesday.
A reform of the forest economy is an important state affair, he emphasized. At the same time, Belyakov opposed adoption of a new version of the Forest Code, suggesting that substantial addenda and changes be made in present forest legislation.
He proposed that a state forest electronic exchange be established so as to record all commercial deals with timber.
