WWF HAS ACHIEVED A BAN ON LOGGING ARKHYZ FORESTS

WWF-Russia revealed the fact of 25 ha of forest from the «Arkhyzskiy» Natural Sanctuary were auction for logging. The area of potential logging could be almost 10,000 ha. After that WWF-Russia issued an official appeal to the Republic Government and the Ministries on necessity to extend the ban on logging.

Three days later, the Head of Karachay-Cherkessia give an order to extend the logging ban until December 31, 2022. The updated document was signed by the Republic Government at December 17, 2019. According to WWF-Russia, this document is more stringent, because in new edition selective felling of old trees is also prohibited. In addition, auctions for the sale of 25 hectares of forests for logging were declared invalid.

«We are glad that the Republic Government has satisfied our appeal and extended the ban on logging. It's the right decision. It will conserve unique nature of the region and will maintain its tourist attractiveness. We look forward to effective communication with regional authorities, including extension of this document in 2022», - Elena Cherkasova, Forest Officer of Russian Caucasus Ecoregional Office, WWF-Russia commented.

The "Arkhyzskiy" Natural Sanctuary was established in 1967 to conserve and restore populations of rare and endangered species of Red Data Book’s plants and animals, and to conserve the landscape with natural vegetation and wildlife. Mountain tourist trails and ecological trails of the Arkhyzskiy Sanctuary are popular tourist destination.

Logging in this area can lead to soil degradation, water pollution, destruction of landscape and habitats for many species of plants and animals, including Persian Leopard and Caucasian Bison.