Technological and methodological assistance to National Forest Inventory of the Russian Federation (GIL RF)
Statistical forest inventory Forest management planning Timber volume assessment Tree stem profile measurement, timber assortments Carbon in terrestrial ecosystems

The project consists in supplying complete technology and providing expert services at determining the methodology and processing the data of the Russian National Forest Inventory (NFI). The Russian NFI is an extensive project covering the whole surface area of the country. The inventory is not entirely in its infancy – the Institute for Forest Ecosystems Research (IFER) became involved in the process at a time when part of the data had been already collected.

The impulse for the elaboration of the NFI in Russia was the implementation of the new Forest Act two years ago that fundamentally transformed the conditions in the Russian forest management; furthermore, large-scale commercial leasing of forests has been launched (not only for felling but also for recreational and other purposes). As a consequence, it was necessary to set up a system of thorough control over the forests condition.

The first contact with the task submitter (ROSLESINFORG – Russian State Enterprise for Forest Inventory) took place in September 2007 and since then all of the project-related IFER work has been very intense. The project implementation can be divided into five stages:



  • delivery of the actual technology for forest inventory and data processing;
  • adaptation of some technology features to the specific needs of the Russian party;
  • employee training in ROSLESINFORG branches;
  • assistance with determining the inventory methodology;
  • independent quality inspection of the data collection and processing.

As of September of 2008, the first part of the measuring sets delivery was completed successfully. Until now, a series of trainings for data processing were held in Russia and the Czech Republic, and independent inspection and methodological assistance have been continuously in progress.

IFER considers the whole project as one of the most demanding in terms of its scope, duration, language requirements, methodology, and technology. The projects realization is additionally characterized by the need for coming to terms with the specifics of the Russian environment, such as entirely different dimensions – huge areas, distances, and difficult accessibility – and another way of thinking and work habits of the local people.