The forests of the Moscow region should be transferred from the jurisdiction of the Federal Forestry Agency to regional authorities, said Sergei Shoigu, who has been confirmed as governor, Vedomosti reported Monday.
According to the former emergency situations minister, the Moscow region is the only constituent of the federation in which forests are managed by the agency.
The Moscow region has "more than 2 million hectares of forest that do not belong to it," Shoigu said. "Transfer of the forest area is an absolutely logical decision. I think it will be one of the first steps and should be done fairly quickly."
(MT)
