Law on Forests.

This Law regulates forestry. Its purpose is to promote economically, ecologically, and socially sustainable management and use of the forest by ensuring equal rights, inviolability of the ownership rights, and independence of economic activity of all owners or lawful possessors of the forest, and determining equal obligations; and to govern the conditions for the management and alienation of the State forest land. The Law provides that forest management may not be in contradiction with the requirements specified in the spatial development planning documents. The Law applies to persons for which forest land is in the ownership or lawful possession; and persons whose rights are determined and obligations imposed by this Law and other laws and regulations governing forest management and utilisation. The Law further provides for right of access to a forest; tree felling; utilisation of forest non-wood values; forest reproductive material; forest regeneration and afforestation; forest protection; information regarding forests, and a forest management plan; protection of nature in a forest; parks and forest parks; deforestation; forest administration by the state; scientific research forests; and liability for violations of the laws and regulations regarding forest management and utilisation. The Ministry of Agriculture shall, at least every five years or upon request of the Cabinet for evaluation of a specific situation, draw up a report for the Cabinet on achievement of the objectives formulated in the Forest Policy. The report shall include information regarding the following: (a) the assessment of the forest as a capital and its changes; (b) the conservation of biological diversity in the forest environment; and (c) the conformity with the interests of the public and forest owners in the use of social values of the forest. The Cabinet shall issue forest protection regulations by determining: (a) the forest protection measures, the procedures for and time periods of their implementation; (b) the procedures for determining and revoking the situation of mass proliferation of forest pests or the spread of diseases; and (c) the procedures for controlling conformity with the requirements for forest sanitary situation.