He stated that on Wednesday, September 15, 2021 during a round table meeting with timber lands tenants.
The discussion touched upon the prospects for the development of the forest complex in the Penza Oblast and the issues of rational use of timber.
The acting governor pointed out the existing problem of inaccessibility of the raw materials for many Penza producers and the inexpediency of exporting roundwood from the Penza Oblast, since there are numerous enterprises manufacturing wood products and using it.
According to Oleg Melnichenko, in order to expand the capabilities of companies and factories using wood as the main raw material and to reduce the cost of production, it is necessary to increase the percentage of wood processing in the region.
"It is necessary to intensify work so that the local raw materials of the forest industry are used primarily by Penza producers, so that the roundwood is not exported outside the region," he explained.
"We should start deep processing of wood on the territory of the Penza Oblast. The situation here is the same as that in the agriculture: we have set a goal to process 70 percent of the products grown by the region's farmers and we should reach this figure within a few years. So let us also establish an indicator here. We should process a certain percentage of the felled forest on the region's territory, and sell finished products. The principle is simple – the higher the level of processing is, the higher the added value gets and the more the gross regional product gets," Oleg Melnichenko concluded.
He also noted the need to increase the timber lands lease terms. In the future, it is planned to sign contracts for a period of more than 30 years, so that to treat the use of the forest carefully and rationally, and not in a consumerist and wasteful way.
The forest should not only be cut down, but also regenerate. The replacement of dead and damaged forest stands by fires with new trees is one of the most urgent issues today. According to the federal Strategy for the forest complex development, 100% of felled or dead forest stands should be restored by 2024.
In October 2021, the third All-Russian campaign for the restoration of forest plantations "Save the forest" will start in the Penza Oblast.
