Industry

In recent weeks, the 2023 market situation in the timber industry and the price adjustments to LVM's three-year assortment supply contracts, which affected 2024 deliveries, have been discussed repeatedly in public. db.lv

The state budget accordingly gained 2.6 million euros. The investment climate recovered specifically in the processing of coniferous sawlogs. db.lv

In Latvia the arrangement is such that forest management is determined not by specialists but by legislation, and specialists are forced to work within its framework. It would be much the same if a dentist, while doing their job, had to keep constantly reading Cabinet of Ministers regulations on what they may and may not do and, above all, what they must do and how in each particular case. la.lv

Russia's birch forests are considered the largest in the world, and until 2022 the timber offered by the aggressor state was the main raw material in the international construction and furniture industries. This sector is also a very important source of income for Russia.lsm.lv

Restrictions on the use of wood in large industrial as well as public buildings are being reviewed – in future, wood may also be used widely in structures with a higher fire resistance rating, provided that appropriate fire safety systems are in place.db.lv

Timber panel houses are not only a finished product with very high added value but also a kind of fashion item, in which a great many nuances matter – in design, in manufacturing, and also in the materials used and in operation.db.lv

This year a three-year project was also completed – a carbon calculator for forests. Through Forest Development Fund projects, the centre promotes and implements the idea of planting an additional three billion trees in Europe by 2030.lasi.lv

More than a year ago Jūrmala was hit by a severe storm, but local residents make no secret of their concern that the extensive felling taking place in the municipality's forests is linked not only to the removal of damaged trees but also to the extraction of valuable timber and to future development plans.1188.lv

Official

The procedure for recording waste and its transport passes to the responsibility of the State Environmental Service.kem.gov.lv

Conference

On 10 December, the closing conference of the State Research Programme scientific projects GreenAgroRes and Forest4LV was held in the Assembly Hall of the Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, bringing together scientists, policymakers, entrepreneurs and industry organisations from the agriculture, food production and forestry sectors.lbtu.lv

Science

Alongside the traditionally highly valued pines and spruces, birches are gaining ever greater importance, driven by the development of plywood production and support for new plantings. skontotev.lv

What happens if you try to “persuade” a medicinal fungus that grows in the forest, known for centuries, to grow in a laboratory? Is it possible to replicate a slow and complex process that occurs in nature under controlled conditions, and to obtain from it substances of high biological value? kki.lv

The publication “Meža gadagrāmata 2026” carries an article by journalist Anita Jaunbelzere, “A birch in the forest, it is not so simple – plant it and there it will be!”, offering readers an extensive conversation with Kaspars Liepiņš, leading researcher at LVMI “Silava”.silava.lv

This summer Pauls Zeltiņš defended his doctoral thesis Comparative growth modelling of genetically improved Norway spruce, Scots pine and silver birch forest stands at the Estonian University of Life Sciences, explaining the growth dynamics of selected spruce, pine and birch stands and their comparative properties.silava.lv

An experimental apiary of 36 hives has been set up on the roof of the Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, equipped with a sensor network recording hive weight, temperature, humidity and ambient environmental data in real time. kki.lv

Jānis Ozoliņš and Dainis Edgars Ruņģis, leading researchers at LVMI “Silava”, talk about current research on Latvia's forests and the animals living in them.lza.lv

Tourism

At the glamping site in the Latvijas valsts meži nature park in Tērvete you can enjoy a romantic break in the quiet of nature or give yourself over to an active holiday with family and friends, while anglers will appreciate the chance to land their biggest catch yet. lvm.lv

Krievkalni is one of the most visited nature sights in Dobele municipality. lvm.lv

Oddities in regional development

Minister for Agriculture Armands Krauze welcomes the decision by Raimonds Čudars, Minister for Smart Administration and Regional Development, to suspend and rework the marine protected areas nature conservation plan drawn up by the Nature Conservation Agency, on the basis of the views expressed by coastal fishers and other parties involved.zm.gov.lv

The new restricted areas planned along the coast are raising legitimate concerns. As Minister for Agriculture I stress: protecting nature is important, but decisions must be based on data and on a serious assessment of the impact on the national economy. They must not place unjustified restrictions on coastal fishers and on the everyday lives of coastal people.zm.gov.lv

The Nature Conservation Agency is cancelling the planned in-person public consultation meetings on marine protected areas in Kolka and Gavieze, in order to review and refine the documents under public consultation in line with the objections voiced at the first two in-person meetings (in Salacgrīva and Ķemeri) and the proposals received in writing. daba.gov.lv

Opportunities

Latvian residents are actively weighing up ways to reduce their energy costs and improve their everyday comfort.kem.gov.lv

Hunting

...on experiences from driven hunts, amendments to the Criminal Law and the Law on the Handling of Weapons. At times the legislators' arguments seem absurd. medibam.lv

On the dogs in the Bauska case, on the shooting of a bear, on the Skaistkalne hunters' festival...medibam.lv

On the same old story

Privatising state-owned enterprises is a blessed idea and it should most likely have been done long ago, and this commentary is by no means against it. This commentary is a call not to try to present the process under a different name in order to make it seem politically acceptable. The government's dilemma is understandable, though. Imagine that you know state-owned enterprises need to be privatised. And you know that politically you cannot tell the public plainly that you want to carry out yet another massive wave of privatisation, because the aftertaste of the “fraud, injustice and inequality” invoked by Roberts Ķīlis is still very much alive.delfi.lv

Soil

The State Plant Protection Service (VAAD) has compiled the latest results of Latvia's soil monitoring, which have been used in preparing the maps. The maps were created using the soil analysis results held by VAAD covering 720,588 ha of utilised agricultural land.vaad.gov.lv

Environmental award

LIFE GOODWATER IP is one of the most significant projects for improving the quality of Latvia's surface waters. Its aim is to reduce pollution in the long term and restore the ecological status of Latvia's rivers and lakes by advancing the implementation of the measures set out in the river basin management plans for the Daugava, Gauja, Lielupe and Venta. lbtu.lv

Environment

In total, 21 habitat conservation plans have been drawn up for 56 habitats of European Union importance, combining the plans into five habitat groups – conservation plans for coastal, freshwater, grassland, mire and forest habitats.daba.gov.lv

To promote nature-friendly orienteering while safeguarding Latvia's unique natural assets, the Nature Conservation Agency and the Latvian Orienteering Federation signed a memorandum of cooperation on 9 December on the sustainable running of orienteering events.daba.gov.lv

LVM has extensive experience in building and installing artificial nests: the first artificial nests were built as far back as 2012. Since then LVM staff have installed more than 140 artificial nests in total, most of them built for the osprey. lvm.lv

Purchases

The new battery-powered electric trains will resemble the electric trains already introduced into service. They will be 2 carriages long, with a low floor and 188 seats, including 24 seats in 1st class. The new trains have a design speed of up to 160 km/h, and 120 km/h in battery mode. sam.gov.lv

Once the Cabinet of Ministers has adopted a decision in principle, the museum will be able to begin implementing the land management project and to agree with the owners on the voluntary buy-out of the properties.lasi.lv

The news in cartoons

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