The objective to increase the forested area of the country by 145,000 hectares is a very ambitious one and requires financial and logistical efforts, Dumitru Galupa, director of the Institute of Forestry Research and Management, stated in a debate centering on the Moldovan-Romanian cooperation in forestry. According to him, the national afforestation program also requires the growing of saplings resistant to extreme weather conditions.

The director of the Institute for Forestry Research and Planning noted that the problem of lack of forests dates back two centuries, in historical Bessarabia. The problem must be solved quickly to ensure the good growth and development of agricultural crops.

“The first document on the afforestation of Bessarabia was in 1823. At that time, the forested area occupied 6% of the territory. Later, this problem appeared periodically because what we have is insufficient to create a balance between conditions. It goes to the weather conditions needed for the development of agricultural crops. We need to balance the less beneficial influences of these climate changes. Periodically, programs for the extension of forested areas have been worked out. The goal to ensure an increase of 145,000 hectares of forested land during such a short period of time is ambitious. There is a need to concentrate the efforts. It also goes to financial efforts and technical means, to the need to provide the necessary saplings,” said Dumitru Galupa.

According to the national afforestation program for ten years, the authorities aim to increase the forested area by 145,000 hectares. The ambitious program is financed with state budget funds and with funds provided by the development partners. Dumitru Galupa noted that to ensure a higher afforestation rate, it is necessary to grow drought-tolerant saplings.

“The experience of the first two years shows that the people started to implement this program with elan. We hope that we will be able to move forward. This program will also lay the foundations for a private sector in forestry. Currently, Moldsilva has 930 hectares of nurseries. The growing capacity is 60-70 million saplings, but we need not only saplings with bare roots, but also seedlings with protected roots that resist climate change. The first period is very important for creating a healthy root system that increases saplings’ resistance to high temperatures,” said the expert.

The public debate entitled “Moldovan-Romanian cooperation in forestry” was the seventeenth installment of the project “Double integration through cooperation and information. Continuity”, which is supported by the Department for Relations with the Republic of Moldova of the Government of Romania.