The Karelia Regional Nature Conservancy SPOK has appealed to the audit firm NEPCon and to the Russian office of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) to suspend the Forest Management Certificate issued to OOO Medvezhegorsky LPKh until the issue of preserving High Conservation Value Forests leased to the company has been resolved. NGO SPOK explained that in February 2011, OOO Medvezhegorsky LPKh received an FSC Forest Management and a Chain-of-Custody Certificate, but the timber company has abrogated its responsibility to preserve High Conservation Value Forests by declining in writing to exclude logging in the planned Specially Protected Natural Areas on the Zaonezhsky Peninsula. According to the nature conservation organization, this step on the part of OOO Medvezhegorsky LPKh represents significant non-compliance with FSC Certification standards and requires suspension of the company’s certificate.
Last summer OOO Medvezhegorsky LPKh officially reported to ROO SPOK that it cannot uphold the moratorium on logging timber in the planned SPNAs in Zaonezhe, which are included in Karelia’s Land Use Plan. This moratorium was in effect in 2011 and the first half of 2012.

Appendix 1 to the letter of the NGO “SPOK”.

Appendix 2 to the letter of the NGO “SPOK”.