On 18 August, the government approved amendments to several forestry sector regulations aimed at reducing the administrative burden, simplifying existing procedures, and making more effective use of the data available in the State Forest Register and of modern technological capabilities.
In future, when determining whether a stand qualifies for final felling based on diameter, data recorded in the State Forest Register may be used, provided the forest inventory was carried out after 31 December 2025. This means forest owners will no longer have to repeat measurements already taken during the forest inventory and submit them to the State Forest Service (VMD). This will also strengthen the role of certified forest inventory specialists in determining diameter. If the forest inventory was carried out before 31 December 2025, or if a dispute arises, diameter will be determined using the measurement methods set out in the regulations. The VMD will continue to carry out spot checks of stands' compliance with final felling conditions, based on an assessment of risk factors.
State Forest Register data will also be used more widely in identifying unproductive stands, reducing the need for time-consuming field measurements. The identification of stands damaged by the eight-toothed spruce bark beetle has also been simplified – basal area measurements will no longer be required. A stand's status can instead be determined using a simplified criterion – if the proportion of spruce freshly damaged by bark beetle exceeds 20% and these spruces are evenly distributed throughout the stand.
The administrative burden will also be reduced in the preparation of felling sites. It will no longer be mandatory to mark the boundaries of a felling site in the field if they can be clearly identified and do not coincide with the boundary of another property or of a protected area where restrictions on tree felling apply. A sketch of the felling site can also be prepared and submitted to the State Forest Register, reducing the amount of information it must include.
The amendments also aim to reduce the number of cases in which a forest owner has to submit information on the same stand twice – both in the report on forestry work carried out and in the forest inventory data. In certain cases, the report may be treated as equivalent to forest inventory data, thereby reducing the administrative burden while also improving the quality of State Forest Register data.
Remote sensing data will also be used more widely to update information in the State Forest Register. This will make it possible to obtain certain forest characteristics using modern technology, reducing the need for repeat field measurements and making forest management processes more efficient.
The amendments to the "Regulations on the Felling of Trees in Forests" and the "Regulations on Forest Inventory and the Circulation of Information in the State Forest Register" will enter into force on the day after their publication in the official journal "Latvijas Vēstnesis".