On current and upcoming events
### It is possible to sign a petition "No to new protected nature areas without providing fair compensation!"
### We are looking for a tree with a story!
### Bat Night. 15 July at Ķemeri National Park, 28 July in Lielstraupe and 29 July in Dundaga
### Baloži Peat Museum Railway excursions for the 2023 season
### A study on horticulture and its impact on the surrounding environment by scientists from ten countries (including colleagues from Daugavpils University) – we invite you to support it by participating in the survey:
### When planning your summer activities, it may be useful
https://majaskafejnicas.lv/
https://majaskafejnicas.lv/
### Hunters' Festival “Minhauzens 2023” in Mētriena. 4 and 5 August, when all hunters' paths will lead to the Mētriena open-air stage.
On matters of national importance
European Union (EU) member states have reached an agreement on the European Commission's (EC) proposal regarding the allocation of EU emergency support to 27 member states for a total sum of 330 million euros, of which 6,796,780 euros have been granted to Latvia.
The government has approved regulations prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture (ZM) regarding investments in flood risk reduction infrastructure, establishing the procedures for the implementation and supervision of funding from the European Recovery Fund for the restoration of state-owned polder pumping stations, state protective embankments, and regulated sections of slow-flowing, or potamal, rivers in Latvia.
The Cabinet of Ministers approved a draft order prepared by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development (VARAM) on the allocation of 523,318 euros from the state budget programme “Contingency Funds” to the Augšdaugava Municipality. The financial resources are necessary to cover expenses related to the damage caused during the spring floods of 2023 in the territory of the Augšdaugava Municipality.
Based on information submitted by the Augšdaugava Municipality, as a result of the spring floods of 2023 (in March and April), several roads and a bridge were flooded and damaged in the Augšdaugava Municipality area.
The stability and profitability of grain and rapeseed producing farms in 2023 are being threatened by a combination of factors: investments made in 2022 for the 2023 harvest coincided with a significant drop in grain and rapeseed purchase prices since the second half of 2022, as well as a forecast harvest reduction due to the 2023 spring drought and the sharply increasing imports of third-country grain and grain products into the EU market, including Latvia, and the resulting unfair competition.
The ministry explains that since 2014, the direct and indirect costs of services have increased significantly. Meanwhile, the remuneration for direct service providers is critically low and needs to be increased in line with the Law on Remuneration of Officials and Employees of State and Local Government Institutions.
From 26 June to 7 July 2023, the Radiation Safety Centre of the State Environmental Service (VVD) organised ten-day training courses for first responders in radiation emergency situations.
19 representatives from 9 responsible institutions participated (State Fire and Rescue Service, Fire Safety and Civil Defence College, Emergency Medical Service, State Police, State Limited Liability Company “Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Centre”, Riga City Council Central Administration, etc.), expanding their knowledge on response topics for local-scale accidents.
On industry issues
The wolf hunting season begins on 15 July 2023. The State Forest Service has set a permissible wolf hunting quota of 300 animals. The status of the wolf population in Latvia is stable and hunting does not deteriorate it.
In June 2023, the State Forest Service, while administering the harvesting of timber resources in the forest, issued authorisations for economic activities in 4,556 felling sites.
The goal of the planned project is to promote innovative and economically sound forest management planning for diverse forest ecosystems, especially in urban and peri-urban forest ecosystems, by applying modern methods and the opportunities provided by IT. “This will supplement forest management with a new element that can make forest management more nature-friendly and better at balancing interests,” explains LBTU lead researcher B. Jansone.
In an open tender announced by SIA “Rīgas meži”, a consultant has been found – “KPMG Baltic SIA” – which will henceforth organise the investor attraction and sales process for the “Norupe” sawmill. This is necessary to ensure that “Rīgas meži” exits the roundwood processing business, in accordance with the decisions of the Riga City Council and the company’s supervisory board, as well as the directives of the State Audit Office and the Competition Council.
1.75 million eight-toothed spruce bark beetles, or 43.6 litres of these insects, have been collected in the forests of Riga, the “Rīgas meži” company informed the LETA agency.
On the Nature Restoration Law
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/latvia/lv/ep-l-mumi/2023/j-lijs-2023/dabas-atjaunosanas-akts.html
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/latvia/lv/ep-l-mumi/2023/j-lijs-2023/dabas-atjaunosanas-akts.html
Today, the European Parliament adopted its position on the proposed Nature Restoration Law with 336 votes in favour, 300 against, and 13 abstentions. Prior to this, MEPs voted against a proposal to reject the Commission's proposal (312 in favour, 324 against, and 12 abstentions).
MEPs emphasise that the restoration of ecosystems is essential for combating climate change and biodiversity loss, and also reduces threats to food security.
They stress that the law must not impose the creation of new protected areas in the European Union or block the development of new renewable energy infrastructure, and for this purpose, they are requesting the addition of a new article to the law, which emphasises that the deployment of such installations is in the public interest.
https://www.lsm.lv/raksts/zinas/latvija/11.07.2023-latvija-asas-domstarpibas-par-dabas-atjaunosanas-regulu.a516141/
The “Zemnieku saeima” (Farmers' Parliament) association is one of 17 agricultural and forestry industry organisations that have joined in a call for MEPs to vote against the Nature Restoration Law. It pointed out that adopting such a regulation would cause great harm to the Latvian economy, national economy and rural viability, without achieving climate goals.
Farmer NGOs emphasise that the requirements included in the proposals will negatively affect the Latvian economy as a whole, because they have been developed in a general manner for all European Union (EU) member states, regardless of each country's individual and differing environmental situation.
On the economy
The purpose of the support programme is to ensure the availability of funding for the implementation of business ideas and business development in Latvia, promoting activities aimed at increasing the share of innovative businesses in the economy and fostering entrepreneurship focused on creating high added value in the fields of medium-high and high technology and creative industries, and facilitating export growth in supported companies, thereby contributing to the achievement of the goals of the National Industrial Policy and Latvia's Smart Specialisation Strategy.
A decrease in Latvian goods exports has been recorded for the majority of export groups; however, the driving forces of Latvian exports – the groups of mineral products, wood and wood products – played the decisive role in the export decline in May and the decrease in the value of goods exports in the first five months of the year, informed the Ministry of Finance (FM), which predicts that a significant decline in exports will continue in the coming months as well.
The result for this June is therefore very unusual. To describe the reasons poetically – the price level in Latvia since last autumn was like a stone thrown with a sling, which flew upward for a while due to inertia. Now the energy of the initial push has run out, and the stone is falling downward. The decline will continue in the coming months. In June, there was a downward influence on the price level from all three main cost-of-living drivers to date – housing, food and transport expenses.
The purpose of the support programme is to ensure the availability of funding for the implementation of business ideas and business development in Latvia, promoting activities aimed at increasing the share of innovative businesses in the economy and fostering entrepreneurship focused on creating high added value in the fields of medium-high and high technology and creative industries, and facilitating export growth in supported companies, thereby contributing to the achievement of the goals of the National Industrial Policy and Latvia's Smart Specialisation Strategy.
A realisation is gradually emerging that the politically adopted Green Deal goals are not actually implementable with Europe's current production capacities – it is simply impossible to produce what is necessary to implement these goals in such a short time (for example, cables). And this is another opportunity for Latvia – by reacting to this expected growing demand, to build the necessary solutions (production facilities) here for European supply chains.
On environmental issues
While carrying out monitoring of lesser spotted eagles, environmental expert Uģis Bergmanis noticed a specially protected nightjar in one of the rare bird habitats in the eastern part of Latvia. In the second half of June, when many bird species already have chicks in their nests or they have already reached the ability to fly, the nightjar, also known as the goat-sucker, is still incubating one to two eggs.
LVM senior environmental expert and ornithologist Uģis Bergmanis reports on the most significant bird species discoveries made in 2022, LVM environmental expert Ilze Kukāre talks about plant, lichen, moss and fungi species discoveries, and LVM environmental planning specialist and biologist Mārtiņš Kalniņš speaks about invertebrate, amphibian and reptile species discoveries.
...environmental planning specialist Sandra Līckrastiņa estimates that the number of gladioli in the meadow could be around a thousand. Gladioli are also blooming magnificently in another nearby floodplain meadow on the banks of the Eglona River. At the same time, the specialist reminds us that the plant is specially protected and its picking is not permitted.
Upon learning about a potential little owl sighting, LOB employee and bird surveyor Edgars Smislovs went to verify the rare breeder in Latvia on 8 July, who documented the little owl's nesting site, concluding that a pair of little owls was already caring for their young there.
On the interesting and important
In the category “Woman as a Promoter of Construction”, the main award and laureate status were obtained by LBTU Rector Irina Pilvere for her contribution to commissioning and supporting construction projects, especially highlighting her merits in the restoration of the Jelgava Palace and many other university buildings.
The Public Transport Council has decided to introduce passenger train services from Riga to Liepāja and back every day from 31 July, Delfi Bizness was informed by the Ministry of Transport. The train will run in the direction of Riga in the morning, and to Liepāja in the evening. Due to increased demand from the public, this route will be operated twice on Sundays.
Among a large part of the electorate, the hope for the good remains undying, specifically, that popular representatives locally in the municipality will be somehow more sensible than in the Saeima and the government, which is, of course, cute and even touching, however, this perception ignores the unchanging nature of human beings. If we are talking about human nature and subjective factors – it is clear that Mārtiņa Staķis' withdrawal from Attīstībai/Par! in March 2022 left such bitter feelings for his former political partners that they surely didn't sit idly by – such things are not forgotten, because Staķis entered big politics in their ranks. To put it another way: I don't think Vilnis Ķirsis (JV) was the main opponent and pusher of Staķis towards the exit – although that impression might arise when judging by the information space.
No matter how often the elites of NATO member states say that Russia's attack on Ukraine in February 2022 has opened their eyes and that now everyone will take the defence sector much more seriously, in reality, there is nothing of the sort. The Economist published an expressive text in its 8 July issue about how words and actions differ – if one excludes the USA, Poland and the Baltic states.
Current cartoons
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