In 2017, it became known that the Lithuanian Ministry of Environment was proposing the creation of a unified state forest manager. Lithuanian Minister of Environment Kestutis Navickas stated: "Forest management must be improved to make it more transparent and efficient. That is our main goal."

Lithuanian state forests are currently managed by the General Directorate of State Forests and 42 forestry enterprises, which employ 4,000 people, including 1,200 foresters and 800 administrative staff. In other words, the situation in the forestry management sector in Lithuania is the same as it was in Latvia 18 years ago. The goal of the reform is to merge the enterprises and reduce the administrative apparatus. The Lithuanian State Audit Office points out that there is a lack of transparency and efficiency in the state forest sector.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which Lithuania plans to join, also criticises the forestry sector and recommends consolidating forestry enterprises. As is known, OECD recommendations are effectively mandatory if a country wishes to participate in the organisation's work.

In 2017, a provocative film produced by the TV channel Al Jazeera with Lithuanian subtitles was uploaded to YouTube, concerning the operations of AS Latvijas valsts meži and the suspension of its FSC certificate in 2010. At the time, this film was created with the active support of "well-wishers" of the Latvian forestry sector, and it is now being used to interfere with the Lithuanian forestry sector reorganisation plan.

Formally, the person who made this so-called film a topical issue and posted it on YouTube is “Klerkas Klydzia”; the profile from the social network Facebook can be seen in the image below.

It is absolutely clear that the purpose of this information is to prevent the improvement of sustainability, consolidation, and transparency in Lithuanian forest management, while simultaneously aggressively smearing the Latvian state forest manager, which has certified all its forests under internationally recognised certification systems. This information can be assessed as a portrayal of our forestry sector as a "failed experiment" that is not sustainable or needed by society. By analysing many previous activities aimed at questioning the successes of the Latvian forestry sector in ensuring sustainable forestry and disseminating blatant disinformation about the situation in Latvia, a familiar, previously seen handwriting is revealed... The efforts to mislead the public are continuing in our neighbouring country as well!

On the other hand, it can be considered a Latvian success story - if the respective representatives are unable to refer to anything more than 7-year-old sources of information.

AS Latvijas valsts meži was the first company in Latvia to be fully FSC-certified as early as 2002. At the end of 2008, the Latvian government decided to increase the felling volume in state forests with the aim of preventing the collapse of timber processing and logging companies. As a result, pressure was also placed on the LVM certification body. The certificate became a matter of reputation – due to pressure from environmental organisations, the certification body had to choose between its own reputation and that of LVM. A report followed, and the operation of the LVM FSC certificate was suspended. It should be mentioned that by 2012, the operation of certificates for all LVM forestry units had been restored, but this time it was done using 3 different certification bodies.

This article is produced as part of the Forest Certification Council of Latvia article series "Green Anatomical Theatre".
Green Anatomical Theatre - We reveal the true essence of things. Disinformation, myths, and the interpretation of facts can have significant consequences for the well-being and sustainability of individuals, companies, and society as a whole - we work, analyse, and prove the true essence of things.