Almost 400 State Forest Service employees, or the vast majority, have signed a letter to the country's highest officials, calling for an end to what they believe are rushed reforms within the service. The letter emphasises that the Director General of the Forest Service, Aina Stašāne, is implementing ill-considered and economically unjustified reforms that will destroy the forest monitoring system.

The employees' concerns were voiced to Latvijas Radio by Ilze Kalniņa, an engineer at the Riga Regional Forest District and head of the local trade union branch: "We are very worried that the system is being built without listening to our opinions as professionals. Above all, we are most outraged by the potential 'non-patrol' system in the State Forest Service, given that knowing one's own territory is considered every forester's priority in this job. This relates both to the monitoring of forest health and to fire protection during the summer period, which is to a very large extent also based on the foresters' capabilities, and they are now also appropriately equipped based on their knowledge of their territory."
Photo: Eric McLean