Environmental body tightens control over illegal extraction of boxwood trees across Georgia
Destruction or cutting of the tree’s branches is punishable by law in Georgia, with individuals fined between ₾500-1000 ($196.1-392.2) for their destruction. In cases where damage exceeds ₾1000, legal proceedings can also be launched. Photo via des.gov.ge
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The Environmental Supervision Department of Georgia on Monday announced incoming restrictions on extraction of boxwood trees.
Making the public service announcement ahead of the Palm Sunday religious holidays, in which boxwood plays a symbolic part for parishioners, the Department said its crews would place areas where illegal extraction and sale of the trees had been high in recent years under “particular monitoring”.
The Colchian boxwood tree is an endangered species on the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature - a system for classifying species at high risk of global extinction.
Destruction or cutting of the tree’s branches is punishable by law in Georgia, with individuals fined between ₾500-1000 ($196.1-392.2) for their destruction. In cases where damage exceeds ₾1000, legal proceedings can also be launched.
The Department also said those marking the religious holiday could instead purchase the trees at private nurseries and artificially cultivated plantations operating using certificates of origin issued by local self-government bodies.
Hunting of migratory birds is prohibited throughout Georgia starting today, after the Environmental Protection Ministry’s Department of Environmental Supervision announced the incoming restrictions on Tuesday.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Sunday highlighted the important role and active involvement of society in raising awareness about autism, on the day celebrating the World Autism Awareness.
The Georgian Government Administration, as well as the country’s Parliament, on Saturday joined the global environmental campaign Earth Hour.
Tbilisi City Hall is working to launch an application enabling residents to post information about issues of infrastructure throughout the capital and receive updates on works for solving them.
The Environmental Supervision Department of Georgia found 730 cases of illegal hunting and violation of hunting regulations across the country over the past two years.
Orthodox Christians in Georgia are celebrating Palm Sunday, which marks Jesus' entry into Jerusalem and is commemorated by a feast on the Sunday before Easter.
Georgia's State Sub-Agency Department of Environmental Supervision on Monday said nine illegal sawmills had been identified last month in the western Georgian regions of Imereti and Samegrelo.
The Georgian National Forestry Agency on Monday said it was tightening control over illegal tree felling and sale ahead of the holiday season.
Illegal forest felling, violations of forest legislation, transportation of timber and violations of technical regulations by sawmills were among environmental infringements identified by state supervision across Georgia over the past year.