How to save Belovezhskaya Pushcha?

By Alexander Vinchevsky, website "Your Country's Tomorrow", February 15,2011

Until now the National Park "Belovezhskaya Pushcha" possessed a set of the most powerful in Belarus and prestigious international titles. Today Belovezhskaya Pushcha faces to be listed in a List of World Heritage in Danger. While a new director is looked for the conservation area, the website "Your Country's Tomorrow" learns whether it is possible, after a decade of management by sacked Nikolai Bambiza, to renew a European Diploma for the National Park, and at the same time to get an economic income.

The forest was never lucky with directors

Nikolai Bambiza has left a post of the director of the National Park "Belovezhskaya Pushcha" on January, 13th "because of transfer to other employer". The ex-head has already occupied an armchair of the deputy chief of management of innovative development of BelAgroPromBank, and there are problems with appointment of the new director in the National Park: nobody wishes to be responsible for the forest exhausted with economic activities.

Belovezhskaya Pushcha is a rest of the European primeval lowland forest. Across all Europe it has been cut down and has remained only here. The forest approximately is equally divided between two countries, but in Poland unfortunately only a very small part of the forest is protected. The Belarusian part is much richer than Polish part on various ecosystems and species as it is located lower and had more wetlands in the past. But we are losing it.

And all because the Belarusian part of Belovezhskaya Pushcha, unlike Polish one, was never lucky with directors. From twenty heads, since 1939, it is objectively possible to devote a good word to activity of only a three: P.P.Semashko, S.S.Danaurov and S.B.Kachanovski. The majority of directors, without penetrating into problems of the primeval forest, tried to squeeze from it as much profit as possible.

Nikolay Bambiza, for example, has introduced in the National park technologies of usual forest enterprise. In 2007, as "The Belarusian Green Portal" writes, the revenue of the National Park was 25.63 million dollars. From them 13.47 million dollars are own incomes. Almost half (47.2 %) of own income was made by profit on woodprocessing.

Now, when the place of the general director is vacant, the forest has a chance of rescue. Much depends on the one who will occupy this armchair.

The quantity of threats steadily grows

Recently the National Park possessed a set of the most powerful in Belarus and prestigious international titles. It is important: the more regalia, the more attractive territory is for tourists. It is important especially for foreign ones.

In 1992 the National Park "Belovezhskaya Pushcha" has been included into a World Heritage List by UNESCO. But very few people in Belarus know that the status was granted not only to a part of the strictly protected zone on the border with Poland, but to almost all territory of the National Park (87,606 hectares).

However, according to reports of experts of UNESCO, since 2002 the quantity of threats to the Belovezhskaya Pushcha's forest steadily grows. The majority of them are anthropogenous.

The administration of the National Park actually ignored recommendations of the World Heritage Committee (2009) and now Belovezhskaya Pushcha faces to be listed in the List of World Heritage in Danger where Belarus will appear in neighbourhood with developing Asian and African states with civil wars.

In 1993 the National Park was awarded by UNESCO with a status of Biosphere Reserve, and in 1997 it has been awarded with the European Diploma. It is necessary to notice that in Europe only 60 of 43 thousand specially protected natural territories are holders of this Diploma.

In 2009 experts of the Council of Europe, having considered administration reports on performance of recommendations of the Council of Europe on forest preservation, have actually withdrawn the Diploma back.

Whether is it possible to renew action of the European Diploma? It is possible, and it is rather simply to make it. National and foreign experts, and the public of Belarus want to see concrete steps on preservation of the ancient woodland. Whether will it bring in this case the income? And it is possible too. A difference is that at the yesterday's approach, the forest basis - century trees and natural structure of the forest for which restoration centuries will be necessary - was destroyed for momentary benefit. At the correct approach it is possible to receive the income from the untouched basis, showing unique wood and its fauna to visitors from every corner of the globe.

Five advices about Belovezhskaya Pushcha forest's rescue

1. Under recommendations of the Council of Europe and the Committee of World Heritage of UNESCO, scientists of Belarus have created a Management Plan for the National Park for 2009-2012. This Plan was discussed with the public and has been approved by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection and by the Presidental Department of Affairs (which supervises the National Park's administration), but till now is wonderfully ignored. At least, in the last two years it has not been presented to the public any annual report on its implementation though initially such reports were planned. This Plan is worth to be taken as a basis for activity. A priority should be given to restoration of a hydrological regime of the forest which has seriously suffered from drainage in the Soviet times. According to experts, it will help prevent degradation of forest stands, to reduce epidemics of harm insects and illnesses, and to restore forest biodiversity.

2. To increase the strictly protected zone to 76 thousand hectares, as it has been planned in the Management Plan. This step will seriously limit artificial intervention in the core area of the National Park and, it is known, the nature manages better. In this way almost the entire area of World Heritage Site will be strictly protected and the quantity of threats will strongly decrease.

3. To separate the Experimental Forest and Game Ground-Enterprise "Shereshevskoe" and a timber mill in the village of Kamianiuki from the National Park as these structures can’t contribute to the purposes of the National Park on preservation of unique ecosystems. If the management of the National Park will not be interested in profitable functioning of the listed enterprises, their negative influence on the forest will sharply decrease. The National park will stop spoiling its image with inviting hunters from every corner of the globe.

4. To transfer a "Father Frost Estate" from heart of the Belovezhskaya Pushcha's forest and the strictly protected area on the wood edge, for example, on the Tsar Glade or to the place of the former village of Plianta. By the way, it is one of the recommendations of the Council of Europe. Development of the Estate inside of the strictly protected area was an error. And errors should be corrected and it is better earlier, than later.

5. To invite the interested public for participation in decision-making process on preservation of Belovezhskaya Pushcha. To include representatives of non-governmental organizations in the advisory council of the National Park as it was done, for example, in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The public can help the Park with solution of some problems, but also can involve necessary resources for preservation and restoration of Belovezhskaya Pushcha.

Alexander VINTCHEVSKI,
chairman of the NGO APB-BirdLife Belarus, expert of international organizations and foundations

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