In April this year, the Government decided to conduct a national forest inventory – sample and statistical surveys of the forest fund of Ukraine. This will allow to obtain reliable data on the quantity and quality, condition and dynamics of the state’s forests, their resource potential, etc.
European countries have long conducted a national forest inventory over a 5-year cycle. As a result, the obtained data on the state and quality of forests become the basis for the development of strategies for the development of the forest industry and the formation of effective forest policy in the context of climate change.
In Ukraine, the Ministry of Environment and the State Forest Agency have established an appropriate regulatory framework for conducting a national inventory, and the National Forest Inventory Center at the Ukrderzhlisproekt State Agency is functioning.
How is the inventory?
In July, the first surveys of forest inventory sites began. For this purpose, 8 inventory and 2 control groups were formed, which completed this year’s stage of inventory work in October. Areas in different natural and climatic zones were surveyed on the territory of one oblast. A total of 909 sites were surveyed in 2021.
Of them:
Sumy region – 219 plots;
Kyiv region (excluding the Chornobyl zone) – 232 plots;
Ivano-Frankivsk region – 236 plots;
Cherkasy region – 163 plots;
The Nikolaev area – 59 sites.
Currently, the National Inventory Center processes the collected data and classifies inventory plots to form a list of plots for 2022. We expect to survey 4.5 thousand forest inventory plots in 2022.
In general, the forest survey will last for the next 5 years, after which the information received will be analyzed for another year and a final report will be prepared. In 5 years, 30 specialists from 15 teams will collect more than 50 names of indicators from 18,000 forest areas where trees have important environmental and economic characteristics.
Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine
