Modeling of the regional forest sector to improve economic and legal relations in forest management

Abstract

The diversity of the problems of forestry in Russia requires a new common approach to solving them. One option is to conduct a comprehensive study of the factors influencing the development of the forest sector from different perspectives including climate change problem. The general logic of the analysis is based on the premise that the forest economy is in a mutual relationship with the climate change process. One of the major challenges for the future development of the Russian forestry are the insect pests’ outbreaks, which cause forest fires and tree losses on vast territories, especially in Siberia. Economic and legal research on this aspect of forest sector development is still lacking. We suggest to design a new Integrated Assessment Model of the Russian forest sector with a special focus on the regions of Siberia, which will include key components reflecting microeconomic linkages within the sector, the macroeconomic environment, resource base dynamics, climate change trends and international trade. Forecasts made using this model will allow policy-makers to understand in depth both the possible effects of different measures and the effects of exogenous factors, such as forest fires and insect pests.