Altai nature, plants and animals. Tape forest of the Altai Territory What forests are in the Altai Territory

Forest ecosystems occupy 28% of the Altai Territory and are very diverse in terms of the composition of rocks, productivity, structure and age structure. The forest fund lands located on the territory of the region amount to 4434.0 thousand hectares, including the forested area - 3736.0 thousand hectares, of which the area of ​​coniferous plantations is 153.0 thousand hectares with a total timber reserve of 535.0 million cubic meters with an average forest cover of 22.5%. The average stock of plantings per hectare is 143.0 cubic meters. The predominant species of the forest fund are soft-leaved plantations - 59.0%, the share of conifers is 41.0%.

In accordance with the peculiarities of forest growth and economic conditions, the intensity of forestry, the role and significance of forests, the forest fund of the Altai Territory is divided into four forestry regions - belt pine forests, Priubskie forests, Salair ridge forests and foothill forests. Among the tree species growing in the Altai Territory, birch (34.4%), pine (29%), aspen (20%) prevail, as well as spruce, fir (8, 10%), larch (2.7%) , cedar (1%), other species and shrubs (4.8%).

Which breed forms the most valuable plantings in the region?

Most of the pine forests are located in the strip and obskoe forests. Growing in different soil and climatic conditions, pine forests are confined to the places of ancient watercourses on thick sandy river deposits. Pine forms the most valuable and productive plantations of the Altai Territory. Within the region, Scots pine grows on dry and sandy, rich chernozems and bog soils. Root system pine and its anatomical and physiological features make it an exceptionally valuable tree species in silvicultural terms, capable of forming plantations in such extreme conditions where none of the other species can grow. The silvicultural qualities of pine include drought resistance, the ability to tolerate excessive moisture, wind resistance, growth rate, as well as a variety of uses of its resources.

What are "ribbons" and how are they unique?

The forests of the region are represented by unique tape-like pine forests, formations of this kind are not found anywhere else in the world. On the territory of the Ob-Irtysh interfluve there are five pronounced pine strips: the northernmost - Burlinskaya or Aleuskaya, 90 km south of it - Proslauho-Kornilovsky selection and Kulundinskaya tape, even lower by 30 km from Kulundinskaya - Kasmalinskaya and Barnaulskaya ribbons.

The Burlinskaya and Kulundinskaya ribbons stretch for 100 km from the Ob River to the Kulundinskaya depression, located in the center of the Ob-Irtysh interfluve. The next two ribbons - Kasmalinskaya and Pavlovskaya - begin in the ancient floodplain of the Ob River and stretch almost 400 km to the southwest in narrow parallel ribbons. On the border of the Altai Territory and the Republic of Kazakhstan, these ribbons merge with Loktevskaya, forming a vast island of forests (Srostinsky Bor), and then, in the form of a kind of delta of an ancient river, they reach the Irtysh, where they merge with its terrace sands. The width of the ancient runoff hollows is different: 6-8 km - in the north, 20-60 km - in the south, at the place of their confluence.

In the northern part of the belt pine forests grow pine forests, a birch forests- in pegs. In the south, they are large pine forests. Birch splits are rare.

Fact

According to all the canons of geographical science, here, in the steppe zone of the Altai Territory, there should be no forests. Not only did the pine forests invade the steppe expanses of the south of the West Siberian Lowland, they still have unusual shape of its distribution - the forests stretched out parallel to each other in ribbons of different lengths. That is why they got this name. The famous German traveler and naturalist of the 19th century. Alexander Humboldt was so amazed by the pine forests he saw that he tried to give his own explanation for this phenomenon. Currently, scientists adhere to the hypothesis that pine forests grow on sandy deposits in the hollows of the water flow of a huge ancient reservoir that existed near 10 thousand years ago.

There is a legend that tells how the god of the winds examined the earth and saw beautiful girl Aigul. The beauty charmed the god of the winds, he grabbed the girl and went with her to his heavenly dwelling. Aigul's tears fell down, and where they broke on the ground, lakes appeared. Aigul also lost the green ribbons with which she tied her wonderful hair. In those places where the ribbons fell to the ground, forests appeared.

by the way

In the area of ​​the location of the tape drills, two state protective forest belts: Rubtsovsk - Slavgorod, 257 km long with a total area of ​​6142 hectares, and Aleisk - Veselovka, 300 km long with an area of ​​6768 hectares.

Ob, Salair, foothills

To the east of the Kulundinskaya steppe, the Predaltaiskaya forest-steppe stretches. The Ob River divides the Pre-Altai forest-steppe into two unequal parts: on the left bank, occupied by a wavy plain of the Priobskoye plateau, and the right bank, where the Biya-Chumysh Upland precedes the spurs in the northeast Salair ridge, and in the south - foothills of Altai.

In the northeast of the region, the Biisk-Chumysh Upland is limited by the spurs of the Salair Ridge (up to 590 m above sea level). Ridges Salair ridge strongly smoothed and rounded. Exit to the day surface of stony rocks differs only in individual peaks. it area of ​​growth of aspen and fir forests, which is determined rather humid climate and the spread of loamy soils.

South of the Predsalair forest-steppe, one or two ledges, 350-600 m high and with individual ridges up to 1000 m, rise foothills of Altai... Altai foothills are occupied mainly forest-steppe, but the slopes of the higher ridges are covered with mountain forests... In the southwest, they mainly consist of plantations fir, birch, larch, in the eastern part, which is more humid, are represented by deciduous and dark forests.

Forests not located on the lands of the forest fund

On the territory of the Altai Territory there are also forests located on lands of other categories, namely:

• on the lands Ministry of Defense Russian Federation - 12.6 thousand hectares;
• on the lands of specially protected natural areas under the jurisdiction Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources(Rosprirodnadzor) - 41.4 thousand hectares (state nature reserve "Tigireksky");
• on the lands of urban settlements (urban forests)- 10.0 thousand hectares.

What areas of the Altai Territory are rich in forests?

All forests are located on the territory 59 municipal districts of the region... The distribution of forests in the region is extremely uneven, and an indicator of this is the forest cover of the territory. If average forest cover of Altai Territory - 26.3%, which indicates a sufficient specific weight of forest plantations in the total balance of lands, this cannot be said about a number of municipal districts in the steppe part of the region, which are clearly lacking in the protective role of forests. In municipal areas, forest cover ranges from 1% ( Annunciation, Pospelikhinsky, Kulundinsky, Slavgorodsky, Ust-Kalmansky) up to 62.1% ( Zarinsky, Soltonsky). Above average, there is a forest cover in the southwestern regions of the territory: Uglovsky - 33.9%, Volchikhinsky 41.7%, Mikhailovsky - 25.9%. This is due to the fact that in this part of the territory the belt pine forests are wider and significant areas of forests are concentrated in them.

Very uneven forest cover in the Priobsky district. The largest share of forests takes place in Trinity district- 46.1%, as well as in Pervomaisk- 42.0% and Talmensky district- 38.1%. This is due to the distribution of the Verkhne-Ob massif along the right bank of the Ob river. With distance from the river, the forest cover decreases: Virgin— 8,4%, Petropavlovsk district- 2.9%. The forest cover in the Altai-Sayan mountain-taiga region ranges from 21.5% to 38.6%. In the Altai-Sayan mountain-forest-steppe region, the highest forest cover is noted in Solton district - 53.6%, Krasnogorsk - 41.6%. At the same time in Soviet district it is equal to 3.7%.

The forest cover of the Altai Territory by forestry areas is either optimal, or close to optimum... At the same time, due to the uneven distribution of forests across the territory, a number of steppe regions are experiencing great inconvenience due to insufficient forest areas and, in this regard, their low environmental protection effect.

Three forest-growing subareas

There are some differences in geomorphology, soils, composition and productivity of forests, as well as climatic features, give grounds for isolation within West Siberian subtaiga forest-steppe region three forest-growing sub-districts: tape pine forests, Priobskie pine forests and Salair ridge.

Woody vegetation tape burs It is represented by unique in nature narrow strips of pine forests and isolated small groups of birch plantations among dry steppes.

To the north of the belt pine forests, a separate forest area along the Ob River is located Priobskie Bory... Forests in Priobskie pine forests are represented by relatively large tracts island highly productive pine forests and birch-aspen small-mass tracts, located mainly in low saucer-shaped depressions. Pine forests are located mainly on the third and fourth sandy terraces of the Ob River, where they form relatively large massifs. These are the so-called fresh, or "sweaty", Priobskie bora. The Ob region is dominated by sod-podzolic and medium-podzolic sandy and sandy loam soils, which are favorable for the growth of woody vegetation. Pine plantations growing on them achieve high productivity. Often found in Priobskie pine forests admixture of larch and Siberian spruce.

All these forests are under the influence of two opposite ecological factors - the proximity of groundwater and the aridity of the steppe and forest-steppe air-temperature regime.

Even further north, along the border of the Novosibirsk and Kemerovo regions, plantations grow Salair ridge... In Salair, despite its low height, the zonation of the vegetation cover is expressed in relief. The Predsalair foothill plain is covered with birch-aspen forests alternating with natural meadows... Closer to the watershed, the prevailing aspen and fir-aspen forests... The grass cover is distinguished by its high height and powerful development. In areas occupied by forests, gray forest and soddy-podzolic soils, as well as mountain-forest gray soils, are widespread; on the western slopes of low mountains - loamy and heavy loamy; in the east - thin loamy-crushed stone on bedrocks.

In the south and south-west along the border with the Republic of Altai, widespread mixed forests foothill Altai... The area of ​​the foothill forests of the Altai Territory is included in the Altai-Sayan mountain-taiga region of the South Siberian mountain zone.

The foothill forests have been developed by humans over the past 150-200 years, and at present, the indigenous forest types are practically not preserved. Only in remote, inaccessible places for technology, you can find plantings cedar and fir... Secondary Forests of the Foothills composed of birch, fir, aspen, along the valleys of numerous rivers - thickets of willow... In the lower part of the forest belt of the northern and western foothills along river valleys grow island pine plantations.

And if the ribbon pine forests and the Priobskie pine forests are typically plain forests, the forests of the Salair Ridge grow at an altitude of 250-500 meters above sea level then forests foothill Altai are spread up to 1800 m above sea level and are typically mountain forests... Between these 4 large massifs there is a large number of birch pegs with an area of ​​0.1 to 5 hectares. They mainly occupy the forest-steppe. The intercolumnar spaces are plowed up for fields, and the unplowed areas are covered with steppe vegetation.

Based on materials from the "Forest Plan" of the Altai Territory, Barnaul, 2011

Fact

V XVIII century with development silver smelting production wood was harvested in "tapes" for burning charcoal... Historians write that logging for charcoal burning was carried out using clear cut, and thousands of hectares of pine plantations were cut down without following basic rules. Modern forestry has also not passed the sad pages. Severe fires have repeatedly wiped out thousands of green hectares from the face of the earth. Forests of the region began to "come to life" only after 1947, when a special Decree was adopted on the restoration of the belt forests of Altai and Kazakhstan. Gradually, the area occupied by conifers began to increase, reaching in 2013 - 700 thousand hectares.

Numbers

4 out of 5 tape pine forests existing in the world grow in the Altai Territory

10 thousands of years ago, according to scientists, in place of modern "tapes" were ancient reservoirs

700 thousand hectares due to large-scale reforestation activities in 2013 reached the area of ​​pine forests occupied by conifers

Materials on the topic "Forest resources of the Altai Territory"

Yesterday, April 9, Oleg Peregudov, head of the Altayles forest holding company, photographed a long-tailed owl. We managed to make good shots in the evening in a spruce forest not far from the village. Southern city of Barnaul. As Oleg said, at first he heard the hooting of an owl and decided to see where she was sitting. Taking a camera, an amateur researcher discovered a long-tailed owl in a tree. At first the bird was alert, but after a few minutes it calmed down and began [...]

On the eve of the Day of Forest Workers, the employees of Les Service LLC (part of the Altayles Forestry Holding) together with the students of Klyuchevskoy high school No. 1 held a large-scale sports and environmental campaign. The event was attended by about two hundred schoolchildren along with their teachers. Viktor Karmash, Forest Service engineer, told the participants about the need to preserve forests before the start of the action.

View on the website Altapress.ru

From September 2-4, in the village of Pavlovsk, Pavlovsky district, the best forest firefighters, fellers, hydraulic manipulator operators and other specialists of the forest industry will be determined. About 500 participants will measure their strength both in professional nominations and in sports and creative competitions. The previous Olympics were held in 2011. The organizers are the Union of Forestry Organizations "Altailes" (a non-profit organization) and the forest holding company "Altailes".

A twenty-minute film about the activities of the forest holding company "Altayles" is a large-scale project, work on which began in the spring of 2015. For the film, only fresh footage was used, many of which were made using a quadcopter, that is, from a height of 50-70 meters above the ground. The goal is to show the viewer what the unique ribbon and Obb pine forests really look like, which the company has preserved and [...]

The fund of fishery reservoirs of the region includes about 2,000 water bodies with a total area of ​​112 thousand hectares. Salt lakes, which have an annual production limit of Artemia's crustacean cysts in the amount of 300 tons, occupy an area of ​​99 thousand hectares. Of the 38 species of fish living in the waters of the region, 12 species are used for fishing.

Sushi bioresources

The Altai Territory has such a variety of zonal and especially intrazonal landscapes that this could not but affect the number and species diversity of flora and fauna. Each of these landscapes has its own, in varying degrees, a special world of animals and birds, plants.

Plants

Of the 3000 plant species growing in Western Siberia, in the Altai Territory - 1954 species of higher vascular plants belonging to 112 families and 617 genera. The flora of the region includes 32 relict species. These are Siberian linden, European hoof, sweet bedstraw, giant fescue, Siberian brunner, floating salvinia, water walnut and others. The Red Book of Russia includes 10 species of plants growing in the region: Siberian kandyk, Ludwig's iris, Zalessky feather grass, feather grass, feather grass, Altai onion, steppe peony, nest flower nest, Altai gymnosperm, Altai stellofopsis. 144 plant species are included in the Red Data Book of the region. These are rare species, endemic, reducing their range, as well as relict. Species richness flora the edge is due to a variety of natural and climatic conditions.

The vegetation cover on the territory of the region is subject to strong anthropogenic influence, especially within the steppe zone. The largest areas of the steppes have survived along the forest belts, along the edges of belt pine forests and individual groves, and saline soils.

A significant share (up to 30%) in the flora of the region is a group of weeds found in gardens, fields, vegetable gardens, on road embankments, along river banks, wastelands, and fallow lands. In recent years, runaway plants of the culture have appeared, actively introducing themselves into natural cenoses. So along the banks of rivers and forests, ash-leaved maple and lobed echinocystis are often and abundantly found. The share of alien plants is steadily increasing from year to year, and now their number reaches 70. Among them, plants from Central Asia and Kazakhstan, as well as from North America, prevail.

The useful flora of Altai is rich, numbering more than 600 species of plants, among which there are medicinal - 380 species, food - 149, melliferous - 166, vitamins - 33, dyeing - 66, fodder - 330, decorative - 215. Rhodiola is especially valuable. pink, safflower raponticum, forgotten penny, evading peony, tall elecampane, etc.

According to preliminary estimates, the region is characterized by more than 100 species of lichens, 80 species of bryophytes, about 50 species of macromycete fungi. Among these objects there are also rare ones included in the Red Book of Russia.

Of the nearly 2000 species of vascular plants found in the Altai Territory, 144 species are included in the Red Book.

In early spring, when it is not yet so hot, the low yellow hornheads bloom, desert beetroot, clawed buttercup, coppice crumbs. Occasionally come across dark purple hazel grouse and valerian tuberous. Later, in the middle of summer, feather grass blooms. Long panicles sway in the wind, giving the impression of running waves. Due to the plowing of the steppes, the number of its population has greatly decreased.

A wide strip of steppe and forest-steppe vegetation in the middle part is broken by several strips of pine forests. They are unique, not found anywhere else in the world. natural formations, confined to the bottoms of ancient hollows of the flow of melted glacial waters, lined with blown sands. A shrub layer is developed under the pine canopy, which is especially rich when approaching the Ob valley. Here grow flat-leaved bluehead, common meadowsweet, meadow rank, medicinal sweet clover, common bedstraw, grayish Veronica.

In the mountainous part of the region, altitudinal zonation is manifested in the distribution of vegetation. The types of this zonation, the degree of its severity and altitude limits reflect, depending on the position, the features of either Western Siberia and Central Asia, or Mongolia and the mountains. Southern Siberia... It is no coincidence that N. Roerich called Altai the heart of Asia, the center of four oceans.

The steppe belt is most developed along the northern and northwestern slopes of Altai; its individual fragments are widely found inside the mountainous country on the flat bottoms of river valleys and intermontane basins. The height of the steppe areas increases to the southeast of Altai, where peculiar tundro-steppes dominate at heights of more than 2,000 m. There are steppe areas on the southern, well-warmed slopes of the ridges.

On the chernozem, chestnut and chernozem-meadow soils of the belt, a forb-cereal herb cover is developed, interspersed with thickets of caragana, meadowsweet, honeysuckle, and wild rose bushes. The higher the steppe areas rise, reflecting the growing continentality of the climate, the poorer the vegetation becomes.

Feather grass, wheatgrass, fescue, bluegrass grow here. The outward nondescriptness is somewhat diversified by yellow alfalfa, Siberian sainfoin, Siberian adonis, sticky cinquefoil. Among the plants of the stony steppes of the mountain slopes, there are feather grass, astragalus, asters, carnations, and wormwood. Most of the summer, the steppe areas are monotonous and dim. Only in spring, for a short time, the steppe is transformed, decorated with a multicolored herbaceous dress.

The more severe the conditions, the more adapted and outwardly coarser and tougher the plants become. In the Chuya depression, wormwood, fescue and Potentilla dominate. Common are pebble feather grass, desert grass, sedges, astragalus. Plants are undersized, flowers, as a rule, are small, many of them have thorns - everything indicates a lack of moisture and a strong influence of cold.

Forests occupy about half of the area of ​​the mountains, being the main type of their vegetation. The nature of forests is not the same and depends on the conditions of moisture and heat supply. In Salair and near Lake Teletskoye, dark forests dominate, the northeastern and western outskirts of the mountains are occupied by dark coniferous taiga, and the low mountains of northern Altai are occupied by pine forests. As we move into the depths of the mountains, dominance in the stands passes to larch.

Inside the mountainous area, the forest belt is often interrupted, steppe areas appear on the southern slopes, and alpine vegetation in the upper part. Through the Salair black forests, the mountain taiga merges with the plain western Siberian. The lower border of the forest belt in the north is 400-600 m, while the upper one changes quite significantly: in the ridges surrounding Lake Teletskoye, 1800-1900 m, in Central Altai, 2 100-2 200 m, and in the southeast, individual massifs rise up to 2450 m. They consist mainly of Siberian fir, Siberian cedar, Siberian larch, Scots pine, Siberian spruce.

The most common is larch, adapted to both severe frosts and poor soils. Some specimens reach a height of 20-30 m, in girth - 2-3 m. Giant larches are especially impressive among green meadows and fields. There are good park larch forests, light, with low shrub undergrowth and rich forbs. Larch is a long-liver and a great lover of light. Its wood is extremely durable, difficult to process.

Pine forests are confined to low mountains with its dry valleys and sandy soils. The pine does not rise above 600-700 m.

The decoration of the Altai forests is cedar - a tree species with many advantages, which have long been appreciated by man. Cedar wood with a pleasant pinkish tinge has high resonance qualities and is used to make musical instruments. There is a cedar in the needles essential oils, carotenes, vitamins. No less valuable are sap, pine nuts, for which the cedar is called taiga breadfruit... Nuts are the food of many birds and animals, and are widely used by humans.

The black taiga is characterized by the predominance of Siberian fir, aspen, bird cherry, mountain ash, viburnum in combination with tall grasses. Representatives of the relict flora meet here. This is a fragrant woodruff with modest white flowers and whorled leaves, a European hoof with hoof-shaped dark green leaves, a woodcutter with soft hairy leaves and lilac flowers, a Siberian brunner with large, conspicuous heart-shaped leaves on long petioles and pale blue flowers, like forget-me-not. The ground moss cover is poorly developed.

Dark coniferous forests of cedar, Siberian spruce, Siberian fir usually cover the northern slopes of the mountain ranges. Here grow mosses, shrubs, dwarf shrubs - honeysuckle, blueberries, lingonberries. Larch forests dominate in Central Altai, where along river valleys and slopes they form park thickets without undergrowth, with closed grass cover, dominated by grasses (reed grass, Siberian bluegrass, hedgehog, meadow foxtail, etc.). On the northern slopes, where there is more moisture, undergrowth of Siberian rhododendron, medium meadowsweet, Altai honeysuckle is developed under larch trees.

Meadows are widespread in the forest belt, confined to sufficiently humid leveled areas, clearings and fires. Significant areas of alpine meadows in Central and Western Altai. On subalpine meadows, maral root, varifolia thistle, white geranium, and bathing suits are common. Alpine meadows have low grass cover. Common watershed, large-flowered gentian, Bellardi cobresia. The combination of simultaneously blooming orange lights, blue catchments, dark blue gentian and snakeheads gives the alpine meadows an extraordinary colorfulness.

The upper altitudinal zone of mountain vegetation is represented by various tundra groups - gravelly herbaceous, moss-lichen, stony, shrub, in which large-leaved birch, alpine bison, John's bison, whole-leaved lagotis, cold gentian are common.

In general, within the region there are about 3 thousand species of higher plants: medicinal, food, fodder, poisonous.

The group of medicinal plants used in the pharmaceutical industry includes about 100 species. However, in traditional medicine, this list is much broader. In the steppe zone, they collect Ural licorice, spring adonis, marshmallow, elecampane high, creeping thyme, sandy immortelle, multifilament buckwheat, lanceolate thermopsis, wormwood.

In the forests grow tall elecampane, marsh white lake, golden bullock, oregano, Maryin's root peony, Lobel's hellebore, St. John's wort, medicinal burnet. In the coastal strip of reservoirs, marsh calamus, marsh wild rosemary, three-leafed watch, yellow egg-pod, and a real one are common in the coastal strip of water bodies.

The maral root, Rhodiola rosea, and thick-leaved bergenia are confined to the highland zone.

Many plants can be used for food during summer hikes. Among them are sorrel, young nettle, young leaves of quinoa, dissected hogweed, honeydew softest, runny, young (hare cabbage), bracken fern, dandelion leaves and roots, etc. The best known among food plants are wild garlic (flask), slug onion. Some plants (wild mint, thyme, peppermint) can be used for seasoning. Leaves of lingonberry, black currant, oregano, wild strawberry, leaves and inflorescences of meadowsweet, leaves of fireweed (ivan-tea) are suitable for making camping tea. In Altai, tea made from dry badan leaves has long been known.

Travelers should also remember about poisonous plants such as henbane, hellebore, wrestlers, and raven's eye. Poisonous milestones, omezhnik, speckled hemlock, and hand-warp are found along the banks of water bodies. And many medicinal plants, used without reliable enough knowledge and doctor's recommendations, can have a negative effect on the body. The first warning when meeting most poisonous plants is the beautiful, often bright color of flowers and fruits.

Botanists' research has revealed more than 100 plant species found only in Altai. These are the so-called endemic species that arose here in the process of evolutionary development. The southeast of Altai is especially rich in endemics. The famous botanist P.N. Krylov noted that in the recent past this area served as an arena for glacial processes, which is why the formation of flora continues here.

In addition to the endemics of the Altai proper, such as the Altai bather, alpine edelweiss, subalpine violet, purple bather, in the Altai there are endemic species with a wider Altai-Sayane range. Together with them, the total number of endemic species, according to A.V. Kuminova, reaches 212.

Intensive use of vegetation also leads to depletion species composition and to a decrease in the size of the population certain types... Botanists have noted 120 plant species in need of protection. In recent years, the thickets of Rhodiola rosea (golden root), safflower raponticum (maral root), spring staroduba, water walnut (chilim), and Ural licorice have significantly decreased. Venus shoes, orchis, lyubka, kandyk, tulips, fry (lights, swimsuits), peonies, lumbago, St. John's wort have become a rarity.

Among the plants included in the Red Book of the USSR, in Altai there are: large-flowered slipper, real and spotted slipper, Altai wolf, water walnut, Altai woods, single-leaved guldenstedtia, Siberian kandyk, Siberian and tiger iris, feather grass, curly lily Altai, leafless caper, Maryin's root peony, steppe peony, hazel grouse, etc.

Most of us don't know what these plants look like. Therefore, it is important to get acquainted with them in reference books and herbariums, to meet with experts during preparation for the trip. In Barnaul there is a botanical garden of Altai University, where many rarities of the plant kingdom of the region are collected. Visit him before setting off. It is advisable to find a place in the backpack for a small book by IV Vereshchagina "The Green Miracle of Altai", published by the Altai Book Publishing House.

And most importantly - do not tear (do not destroy!) The flower, branch, grass you like. It must be remembered: the resources of the plant world are not endless, we are all responsible for the flowering carpet of Altai herbs, taiga cedar splendor and lush greenery of deciduous forests to remain for future generations.

Animals

The region is home to about 100 species of mammals, more than 320 species of birds, 7 species of reptiles, 6 species of invertebrates and 7 species of amphibians. The rivers and lakes of the region are inhabited by 35 species of fish.

The Red Book includes 134 species of animals in need of protection. Most bird species - 82. About half of them are listed in the Red Book of Russia (Demoiselle crane, Saker falcon, ptarmigan, eagle owl, etc.), 10 species are included in the IUCN Red Book (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources). It is extremely rare species, such as, for example, bustard, burial ground, peregrine falcon, as well as those with a category zero (probably extinct) little bustard and thin-billed curlew.

In addition to birds nesting in Altai, the Red Book of Altai Territory includes species that appear during spring-autumn flights (small swan, white-fronted goose), as well as occasional migratory (curly and pink pelicans, flamingos, black crane, griffon vulture, etc. .).

The woods are inhabited by a chipmunk, flying squirrel, otter, ermine, and sable. There are also moose, musk deer, almost everywhere - brown bears, lynx, wolverine, badger. Marmots, ground squirrels, jerboas live in the steppes, you can meet a steppe ferret, fox, wolf, hares, white hare and brown hare live in the Kulunda steppe. Muskrat is found in the Ob reservoirs, the river beaver lives in almost all upland, plain rivers.

There are many predators among forest birds, the most aggressive are hawks (goshawk and sparrowhawk), nocturnal birds such as owl and eagle owl are widespread. On the shores of the lakes, you can see the Demoiselle Crane and the Common Crane. On the river banks there are numerous sandpipers, white wagtails, and river terns. The rivers and lakes of the region are rich in fish, pike, ide, burbot, sterlet, perch, dace, chebak, ruff are found in them.

There are 17 species of mammals in the Red Book. These are mainly insectivores and rodents (long-eared hedgehog, jerboas) and bats (there are 9 species of them, including the pointed-eared bat, which is included in the Red Book of Russia). Two representatives of the weasel family entered here - an otter and a dressing (also included in the Red Book of Russia).

The Red Book includes 26 species of insects. These are, among other things, relict butterflies - variegated askalaf, unpaired mother-of-pearl, as well as endemic of Western Altai, possibly extinct at the present time, Gebler's ground beetle, etc.

In addition to birds, mammals and insects, the book includes 3 species of reptiles (takyr roundhead, multi-colored lizard, steppe viper), 2 species of amphibians (Siberian salamander, common newt) and 4 species of fish - lenok, which apparently disappeared from the rivers of the region, endemic species Siberian sturgeon, nelma and taimen.

In addition to the main part, the Red Book of the Altai Territory includes 30 species that require special attention. These are, for example, musk deer, gray goose, small gull, quail, carpenter bee and other species.

The objects of hunting are several dozen species of animals, representatives of four orders of birds.

The formation and development of animal resources in the region takes place under conditions of increased anthropogenic influence. A decrease in the bioproductivity of pastures due to overgrazing, water and wind erosion of soils, and deforestation lead to a change in animal habitats and a decrease in the number of squirrels, marmots, otters, musk deer, Siberian mountain goats, etc. Snake eagles, squirrels, and bustards have disappeared partially or completely. From year to year, the number of waterfowl decreases, with the exception of the gray goose. The number of small mustelids, field and upland game is decreasing due to changes in the feeding and nesting conditions of their existence. Intensive development of the resources of ungulates, and first of all the elk, requires a decrease in its production, increased protection and control over production, and in some areas, a complete ban on hunting.

Currently, in the Altai Territory, the initially natural landscapes have practically not been preserved, all of them are affected by economic activity or the transfer of substances by water and air currents. The region currently lacks both active reserves and National parks... There are 33 reserves on the territory of the region. Their total area is 773.1 thousand hectares, or less than 5% of the region's area, which is significantly lower than the average for Russia and is not enough to maintain landscape and ecological balance in the biosphere.

In 1997-1998, the production of wild boar - 7, bear - 11.

The population in 1998 was: elk - 10930, wild boar - 430, roe - 11000, bear - 500.

The number of rare species: Snow Leopard- 39-49 pcs., Pallas' cat - 250-350 pcs., Gazelle - herds of 4-5 individuals, Altai mountain sheep - 370-470 pcs.

Each of the landscapes of Altai is characterized by a certain species composition of animals.

The least rich fauna of the steppe and forest-steppe plain parts of the region. Rodents prevail here: red and bank voles, red-cheeked ground squirrel, steppe pika, large jerboa. After the plowing of virgin lands, the field mouse became especially numerous. Large mammals include wolf, fox, steppe polecat, white hare, corsac, badger, sometimes hare, and elk can also be found in pegs.

Of the birds, after plowing virgin lands, rook, magpie, hooded crow, jackdaw predominate; Of the small passerines, most of all are the skylark, yellow wagtail and black-headed mint. Numerous and varied waders roam in swamps and along the shores of water bodies, ducks, gray goose and gray heron nest. There are many ducks, coots on the lakes, grebes are common, especially grebes. Numerous colonies of gulls (herring, gray-gray, lake) are also often found there.

Much richer animal world plain forests. They are inhabited by various species of shrews, voles and mice. Chipmunk and teleut squirrel are numerous. Typical forest dwellers are the mole, hedgehog, weasel, ermine, Siberian weasel and badger. Hare and fox are common, wolverine, wolf, lynx and brown bear, beaver, roe deer and elk are less common.

The world of small forest passerine birds is colorful and diverse: tits, warblers, warblers, redstarts, blackbirds, forest pipit, finches - chaffinch, tap dance, yurok, lentil, spruce crossbill, goldfinches. Common are the cuckoo, nightjar, woodpeckers - black, great and small variegated, three-toed, and twist-necks. Of the small predators, the most common are the falcons - the hobby, the merlin and the red-footed falcon. There are hawks - goshawk and sparrowhawk, black kite, buzzard, uplifted owl, long-eared owl, less often - eagle owl. In the plain and foothill zones of Altai, the gray crane is not uncommon. Of the reptiles, the common snake, the viper, the pallas shitomordnik, the quick-witted and viviparous lizards are characteristic. There are few amphibians: they are mainly sharp-faced and grass frogs, gray and green toads.

Burrowers are characteristic of the Altai mountain steppes: red-cheeked and long-tailed ground squirrels, Altai and Mongolian marmots. Voles are numerous among small rodents. Dahurian and Mongolian pikas are common along stony placers on the outskirts of mountain steppes. In addition, the Chuya steppe is inhabited by the jerboa, the Dzungarian hamster and the tolai hare, which does not change color in winter (there is very little snow on the semi-desert landscapes).

The species composition of birds is very small: larks - field and steppe, wheatears - pleshanka and dancer, steppe pipit, hoopoe, steppe harrier, kestrel. However, the fauna of the Chuiskaya steppe is distinguished by a much greater diversity and originality: these places are characterized by fire, Indian mountain goose, herring gull, black-throated loon, black stork, whooper swan, Altai gyrfalcon, griffon vulture, black vulture, bearded lamb. Only here are the bustard, saja, thick-billed plover, and pemez found.

The world of mountain dwellers is especially diverse. This is facilitated by the variety of natural conditions in the region. 62 species of mammals, more than 260 species of birds, 11 species of amphibians and reptiles, 20 species of fish live here.

The fauna of mountain forests is made up of almost all species found in lowland forests. These are the flying squirrel, the chipmunk, the sable, the bats - the whiskered bat, the Siberian pipe-nosed bat, Ikonnikov's bat, the red nocturnal bat and the long-eared bat. There are numerous ungulates that feed on trees and shrubs - elk, red deer, roe deer, musk deer, much less often reindeer are encountered.

Large predators include the brown bear, lynx, wolverine, otter and badger. Small carnivores from the weasel family, feeding on mouse-like rodents, are common: weasel, ermine, saltwort, Siberian weasel and American mink. Burrowing insectivores are found everywhere - mole, shrews. Numerous Asian wood mouse; humid habitats are preferred by water and dark voles.

Among birds, jays, jays and nutcrackers are found everywhere in the forests of Altai. In the taiga zone, important commercial chicken species are also widespread - capercaillie and hazel grouse. In the foothills, along the edges of the forest, the black grouse is common.

Few species of animals are adapted to the harsh conditions of high-mountain open landscapes. These are Siberian ibex, argali (mountain sheep), snow leopard (irbis) - a beautiful and very rare predator. In the summertime, the Alpine belt is visited by marals, bears, wolverines; there are also ermine, pika, narrow-headed and alpine Siberian voles, foxes, and white hares.

Of the birds in the lower part of the alpine belt (shrub tundra), the common partridge, black-throated thrush, polar bunting, bluethroat. The red-backed redstart and Altai snowcock live almost near the snow.

The rivers of the plains and foothills are inhabited by pike, ide, burbot, sterlet, perch, dace, Siberian roach, ruff, bream, gudgeon. During the spawning period, nelma and sturgeon rise here. In lakes and oxbows in river valleys, crucian carp and tench predominate.

In mountain rivers, the species composition changes dramatically: taimen, lenok, grayling, char, minnow, dogfish, variegated and Siberian sculpin live here. In the upper reaches of small mountain rivers, grayling, char and minnow are found. In Lake Teletskoye, 13 species of fish were recorded, of which two species - the Teletsky whitefish and the Pravdin whitefish - live only in this reservoir. In the numerous mountain reservoirs in the south of the Altai Territory, mainly Osman lives.

The species composition of the Altai entomofauna is very diverse. Travelers who come here should remember that some insects (mosquitoes, ticks) pose a real danger as vectors infectious diseases... Currently, ten species of ixodid ticks have been identified that are capable of carrying the pathogens of tick-borne rickettsiosis and tick-borne encephalitis. Therefore, before going on a trip, you should get the necessary vaccinations.

During the period of greatest danger of a tick bite (May - early June), elementary precautions must be observed: have appropriate clothing that prevents ticks from entering the body, systematically examine yourself and your comrades.

The maximum danger of infection is characteristic of the indigenous dark coniferous and deciduous forests of the low mountains of Altai and Salair with their rich herbaceous vegetation.

The development of the natural resources of the region is accompanied by a reduction in the areas suitable for the habitation of animals, and, as a consequence, their number is decreasing, the species composition is becoming poorer. On the territory of the region, 6 species of mammals and 34 species of birds are recorded, included in the Red Book of the USSR. These are argali, gazelle, snow leopard, red wolf, dressing, manul; of birds - Altai snowcock, black stork, mountain goose, osprey, steppe eagle, Demoiselle crane, etc.

If you look at the map of Russian forests, the forest area of ​​the Altai Territory is extremely small - only 3.36 million hectares. Forests are located in four distinct areas. First of all, these are unique in nature - tape burs that have no analogues in the world. Their area is 1.1 million hectares. Priobskie pine forests occupy an area of ​​0.84 million hectares, the forests of the Salair ridge, the so-called "Black Taiga" - 0.58 million hectares, and mixed forests of the Altai foothill zone - 0.83 million hectares. The average forest cover of the Altai Territory is 21%. All forests of the region are unique in their own way, they perform important nature protection and conservation functions, their role in the natural complex not only in Siberia, but in Russia is very important. They are historically intensively conducted forestry and, above all, felling.

Despite the seeming, at first glance, homogeneity, these are completely different forests, differing, first of all, in terms of growth and origin. It is these circumstances that have left their imprints on the species composition, stability and productivity of the plantations growing in them, and, accordingly, on an individual approach to forestry for each of these forestry areas. Without a doubt, it is necessary to conduct forestry on a scientific basis for competent and professionally trained specialists in various fields of activity.

The belt forests of the Altai Territory stretch in the Ob-Irtysh interfluve in parallel stripes from north-east to south-west and occupy an area of ​​1.1 million hectares.

The northernmost belt, Alleuskaya, has a length of 110 kilometers, with 25 passing through the Novosibirsk region. The width of the belt is 5 - 7 kilometers, and the Burla River flows along it, in the floodplain of which there are pine forests and areas of deciduous forest.

To the south of the Aleeu ribbon, Kulundinskaya stretches for 120 kilometers with a maximum width of up to 8 kilometers. The Kulunda River flows through most of the belt. There are many forest lakes in the tape. Kasmolinskaya, 200 kilometers long, flows 30 kilometers from the Kulundinskaya forest strip, and parallel to it, 10 kilometers away, the largest strip - Barnaulskaya - 220 kilometers long. The width of these belts is from 5 to 10 kilometers. In the area of ​​Volchikha, the Kasmalinskaya and Barnaulskaya belts join together, forming a pine massif 45 kilometers wide. From the eastern part of this massif, pine forests in one ribbon up to 25 kilometers wide go to Kazakhstan, and the southwestern part of the Volchikhinsky pine forest passes into Mikhailovsky, and even further north - into the Klyuchivsky pine forests. The continuation of the Altai belt pine forests are the forests of Kazakhstan, which consist of separate massifs of various sizes and shapes.

In the Semipalatinsk region of Kazakhstan, there is the Loktevskaya belt 40 kilometers long and about 5. It used to be 80 kilometers longer and extended to Rubtsovsk. Between the Aleusskaya and Kulundinskaya strips, there are three small pine groves in the Bayevo area and around them a large number of birch groves. It is assumed that here, along the tributaries of the Kulunda River, there was previously another small tape 70-100 kilometers long.

Band burs are unique natural phenomenon on Earth, and their origin is associated with the last, third glaciation. With the general warming of the climate and the beginning of the melting of huge masses of ice, the glacier began to retreat to the north. Glacier-loaded waters rushed back along the left tributaries of the Ob, towards the Irtysh. They carried with them a mass of sand that was deposited in the river beds. As the glacier retreated to the north, water flows moved. At first, the waters flowed along the current river Barnaulka, later - along Kasmalea, and even later along Kulunda and Burle. In places of these streams, thick deposits of sand formed, on which pine forests began to grow in the form of separate ribbons.

The vast territory of the belt pine forest differs sharply continental climate and lack of precipitation. If in the extreme south-west in the Topolny area there is 250 milliliters of precipitation per year, including no more than 200 in the warm season, then as we move to the northeast, the amount of precipitation increases, and in the Barnaul area, 450 millimeters of precipitation falls, the climate becomes more humid, and forest conditions are much better. In summer, however, dry winds are frequent.

Very few tree and shrub species are able to grow in such extreme climatic conditions - these are, first of all, pines, shelyuga willow, broom, acacia (in the lowlands), birch near the water. The unique ecological properties of pine forests are fully manifested in the pine forests. Growing on loose sands, pine plantations do not allow them to move under the influence of the wind, they keep the sand, which heats up on hot summer days sometimes up to 70 degrees. That is why foresters rely on pine when laying out new tracts. They take special care of the seeds every year.

So, pine is the dominant tree species in the belt forests, it occupies 82 percent of the area, but the participation in the composition of plantations in different parts of the belt turns out to be different. So, in the Barnaul region, the plantations have 68 percent of pine, in Volchikha - 85, and in the extreme south of the region - near Topolny - almost 97 percent. At the same time, the participation in the composition of deciduous species decreases from 30 to three and, mainly, birch.

And in terms of productivity, pine forests differ very much, and the bonitet class is an integral indicator of forest productivity. In the conditions of the place of growth, pine forests reach I and even Ia class of bonitet, and in the worst - V class. So, on average, for all pine forests of the pine forest, the bonitet class is equal to II, 6, at the same time in the Barnaul forestry it is equal to I, 8, in Novichikhinsky - II, I, in Lebyazhensky - II, 3, and in the south, in the Topolinsky forestry - III, 1 class of bonitet. In a word, with the advance to the south and with the deterioration of forest vegetation, the productivity of pine forests decreases, but remains higher in comparison with the plantations of birch and aspen under the same conditions.

The pine of the pine forest bears fruit almost daily, and its self-seeding often appears in large quantities. However, the climatic conditions of the growing season are so unsatisfactory that in summer months pine shoots almost completely die. They are better preserved in the cones of the shade of mature trees. Pine self-seeding develops better under the canopy of birch and aspen than under pine. Near the belt pine forests, the humidity of the air and soil increases in comparison with the steppe by 20-25 percent, and the amount of precipitation over the summer rises by 30-50 millimeters.

The preservation of the belt pine forests and the restoration of individual belts of great soil-protecting, agronomic and climate-regulating importance of this unique natural monument is a matter of national importance. Meanwhile, there is cause for concern. As a result of forest fires and excessive felling, especially for the needs of the mining industry, the belt forests were extremely upset. The forested area accounted for only 63 percent, while burnt and wastelands occupied 21 percent of the area; mature and over-mature plantations accounted for only 8% of the area. Such a state of forest forests was 45 years ago, and now the area covered with forest is 78 percent, burned-out and wastelands occupy 2 percent, and mature and overmature stands - 21 percent of the area. These indicators indicate that a tough stance was maintained with respect to the belt pine forests, both in terms of preserving them from fires, and in restoring forests in numerous areas of burnt-out areas.

The division of forests into three groups provides for the difference in the types and volumes of forest use. In the forests of the first group, reforestation felling can be carried out in order to obtain ripe timber while preserving the water protection, protective and other properties of forests and to improve the forest environment. In the reserves and other forests included in the first group, only maintenance felling and sanitary felling are allowed.

In the forests of the second group, final felling can be carried out, that is, it is allowed to harvest wood in forests with mature and overmature stands, provided that valuable species are restored to preserve the protective and water-protective properties of the forest.

In the forests of the third group, final felling is concentrated under the condition of efficient and rational forest exploitation. All methods and types of felling, depending on forest groups and protection categories, are provided for by the Fundamentals of Forestry Legislation of the Russian Federation.

Depending on the prevailing direction of use, forests can be divided into protective (first group and other protective plantations), raw materials (operational second and third groups) and hunting (reserve and others not used for raw materials and natural protective purposes).

The quality of forests is largely determined by their natural composition. Forests with a predominance of conifers are of the greatest economic value. They are more durable than hardwoods, produce high quality wood and are generally more environmentally friendly. The qualitative composition of Russian forests is very high. Up to 80% are non-conifers and only 20% are deciduous. In the European part of the country, the proportion of conifers in the forest fund is significantly lower (63.5%) than in the Asian part (up to 74.2%).

In the total reserves of coniferous wood in the country, larch occupies 42%, pine - 23.5, spruce - 18.8, cedar - 11.4%. The distribution area of ​​larch is from the Urals to the Pacific coast. In Siberia and, on Far East the main reserves of pine and cedar are concentrated, while spruce and deciduous forests are concentrated in the European part of the country.

The total allowable cut, i.e. the number of mature and over-mature forests intended for felling, is about 1.4 billion m3 in Russia. In areas with a high population density, the allowable cut is fully developed, and in some places even with an excess, while 90% of the total allowable cut is used extremely poorly, since in the overwhelming majority of forests are located in remote areas, far from communication routes.

The total annual increase in wood in the forests of Russia is 830 million m3, of which about 600 million m3 - in coniferous forests. The average annual increase in timber stock per hectare in the European part of Russia ranges from 1 m3 in the north to 4 m3 in the middle zone. In the Asian part, it ranges from 2 m3 in the south to 0.5 m3 in the north, which is explained by the harsh climatic conditions, the high age of plantings and the consequences of forest fires (a high fire hazard due to weather conditions develops primarily in the Irkutsk region, the Republic of Sakha and Krasnoyarsk Territory).

Since the forest is a system of components interconnected with each other and with the external environment: raw materials of woody and non-woody plant origin, resources of animal origin and many-sided useful functions - and the effect of the use of individual components manifests itself in different ways and in different spheres of the national economy, then the economic the assessment of the forest should be presented as the sum of the effects from the use of all types of forest resources and utilities for an indefinitely long period of use. Methods for assessing all types of forest resources and forest utilities have not been developed enough, therefore, in a simplified way, the economic assessment of a forest is expressed in terms of one resource - wood.

Forest resources act not only as a source of raw materials, but also as a factor in providing the necessary constant environment for society.

2. 2. The value of the timber industry in the national economy of the Altai Territory

Altai Territory is occupied southern part Western Siberia and includes four natural zones: steppe, forest-steppe, low-mountain taiga of Salair and mountain taiga of Altai. About 28% of the Altai Territory is occupied by forest ecosystems, which are very diverse in the composition of rocks, productivity, structure, and age structure.

The importance of forests can hardly be overestimated, and the main thing is to stabilize the gas composition of the planet's atmosphere, which ensures the normal course of all life processes in the animal world and humans. Forests serve as a source of wood and non-wood resources, the special value of which lies in their renewability. The role of forests in preventing water and wind erosion of soil, in regulating the climate and water balance of the territory is invaluable.

The growing demand for forest resources can be met from year to year only by increasing productivity forest ecosystems, and this is the main task solved by forestry.

All forestry activities are aimed at solving three main tasks: protecting forests from fires and harmful insects; reproduction and use of forests.

In the forestry sector, the formation of the main component of wood has been going on for many decades, however, even in the period between the “harvesting of the main harvest”, people have long imagined the forest as a testing ground for the diversity of annual human economic activities in the forest.

Altai, like many regions of Western Siberia, in the development of many industries, including forestry, logging and woodworking, owes much to the Peter the Great's reforms and the Demidov pioneers. The deposits of mineral raw materials and the forest wealth of Altai gave impetus to the development of mining and copper-smelting production.

The Altai forest has faithfully served post-revolutionary Russia, suffice it to say that the thousand-kilometer Tursib was built on Altai sleepers.

During the Great Patriotic War and in the postwar years, the wood of the Altai forests and the products of its processing were used to restore dozens of factories and factories evacuated from the west, to develop the industrial and production potential of the region and the Central Asian republics.

Having become a separate branch in the post-war years, forestry has gone through a difficult path of development and enterprises conducting forestry have become centers of forest culture.

The forest fund of the Altai Territory occupies a total area of ​​436.4 thousand hectares or 26% of the entire area of ​​the region, of which there are 3 827.9 thousand hectares of forest land. The forested area is 3561.5 thousand hectares or 81.6% of the total forest area (according to the forest fund accounting as of 01.01.98). The forest cover of the Altai Territory is 21.1%.

Forest cover varies by district from 54.6% to 1 percent or less. The highest percentage of forest cover is in the Zarinsky district - 54.6%, in the Talmensky district - 52.9%, in the Troitsky district - 45.4%. Less than one percent of the forest cover is in Tabunsky, Slavgorodsky, Pospelikhinsky districts.

The total timber stock is 395 million m3, the share of burnt areas in the total forest area is 0.141%, the share of felling in the total forest area is 1.08%.

Forests are unevenly distributed. They are mainly located in the northeast and east of the Altai Territory. On sands and sandy soils in the floodplain of the river. The Ob and along the river beds, unique ribbon forests stretch for hundreds of kilometers. Large areas of mountains and foothills are occupied by taiga massifs.

Forests of the 1st group occupy 2918.9 thousand hectares. Group 2 forests occupy 818 thousand hectares. Group 3 forests cover an area of ​​625.6 thousand hectares.

According to natural and forestry conditions, role and significance in the forests of the State Fund, 4 forestry areas are distinguished:

Ribbon-pine forest - forests of belt-pine forests, all forests are classified as "especially valuable forest areas", the total area is 1123.5 thousand hectares, including the area covered with forest - 880.1 thousand hectares;

Priobsky - the forests of the Ob region are classified: the total area is 837.7 thousand hectares, including the forested area - 661.1 thousand hectares;

Salair - includes the forests of the Salair black taiga, the total forest area is 583.3 thousand hectares, including forest-covered - 515.6 thousand hectares;

Foothill - foothill forests of Altai, the total area of ​​forests is 836.3 thousand hectares, including 646.6 thousand hectares covered with forest.

The predominant species in the forests of the Altai Territory are conifers - 54% (including cedar - 1.9%), small-leaved - 46% (see Appendix No. 2). Average age Goslesfond forests - 66 years, including coniferous - 80 years and deciduous - 48 years. The timber stock of the entire forest fund is 494.85 million m3, including the State Forest Fund - 400.08 million m3.

The average annual growth reaches 6.5 million m3, of which conifers account for 3.5 million m3 and deciduous trees - 3 million m3 (see Appendix No. 2).

The allowable cut for the main use is 2040 thousand m3, including for coniferous farming - 331 thousand m3.

The intensity of forest use is decreasing annually, since 1994 gtys. m3, in 1995 gt. m3, in 1996 gt. m3, in 1997, 3 thousand m3.

The forests of the Altai Territory are divided by fire hazard classes into 5 classes. The forests of the 1st and 2nd class of natural fire hazard include, mainly, tape forests (middle class 1.8) and Priobskie forests (middle class 2.6), in which a large number of coniferous plantations of dry forest types, conifers young growth and forest crops.

As a result of the intensive exploitation of forests, especially the massifs of the Ob, the areas of young coniferous stands have decreased, the areas of mature and over-mature stands have increased, and a dangerous phenomenon of the replacement of conifers with less valuable deciduous trees has emerged. In close connection with it, standard housing construction, the production of furniture, matches, plywood, fiberboard and particle boards, etc., have been widely developed.

First of all, the forest provides commercial timber. The economic value of wood is very high, but to the greatest extent it is used and used in construction, industry and transport, in agriculture and communal services. Wood is easily processed, has a low specific gravity, is quite durable, and its chemical composition makes it possible to obtain a wide range of useful products from it.

But at the same time, the forest is a source of many products for various purposes. These non-wood products of plant and animal origin serve the multilateral needs of the population. Forests have great potential for food and forage resources, the most valuable of which are stocks of various varieties of nuts. The forest produces mushrooms, berries, birch and maple sap, and medicinal plants. These resources can also be harvested in significant volumes, although the unevenness of their territorial concentration and large fluctuations in yield from year to year affect the degree of their economic use. In addition, the forest is a habitat for numerous animals of commercial importance.

The useful functions of the forest are very diverse. Water protection and soil protection occupy an important place among them. The forest regulates spring floods, the water regime of rivers and soils. It has a positive effect on river, lake and ground waters, improving their quality, clearing them from various harmful substances. A change in the microclimate in fields protected by forest belts contributes to higher (15-25% higher) yields

The use of forests for social needs - recreation and health improvement of a person, improvement of his living environment - is becoming increasingly important. The recreational properties of the forest are very diverse. The forest produces oxygen and absorbs carbon dioxide: 1 hectare of pine forest at the age of 20 assimilates 9.34 tons of carbon dioxide and gives 7.25 tons of oxygen. The forest absorbs noise: the crowns of deciduous trees reflect and dissipate up to 70% of sound energy. The forest humidifies the air and weakens the wind, neutralizes the effect of harmful industrial emissions. It produces phytoncides that kill pathogenic bacteria, has a beneficial effect on the human nervous system.

CHAPTER 3. The structure of the timber industry complex and the importance of the forest sector in the economy of the Altai Territory

3.1. The structure of the timber industry complex of the Altai Territory

Industries related to the procurement, processing and processing of wood raw materials are combined into a group with a common name - the timber industry, it is also called the forestry complex

The timber industry is the oldest in Russia and the Altai Territory. There are about 20 branches, sub-branches and industries in it. The most significant are logging, woodworking, pulp and paper and wood chemical industries.

The importance of the timber industry in the economy of the Altai Territory is determined by significant reserves of wood, but forests are unevenly distributed by the fact that at present there is practically no such sphere of the national economy where wood or its derivatives are used. If at the beginning of the twentieth century. 2-2.5 thousand types of products were made from wood, then in early XXI v. the industry's products include over 20 thousand different products.

The following sectors are distinguished in the structure of the timber industry complex:

· logging, sawmill - the main areas of sawmilling: Kamen-na-Obi - Kamensky timber-wood processing plant, Topchikhinsky district;

· furniture production - Barnaul, Biysk, Rubtsovsk, Novoaltaisk, Zarinsk, Slavgorod;

· standard housing construction - Topchikhinsky district, Kulundinsky and Mikhailovsky districts;

· Pulp and paper industry - Blagoveshchenka;

· chemical and mechanical processing of wood - Shipunovsky district.

Sawmill industry is located mainly in the main logging areas and at the nodes of transport routes, at the intersection railways and rafting waterways. The largest sawmills are located in Barnaul.

Furniture manufacture concentrated mainly in the largest cities of the Altai Territory, influenced by the consumer factor.

Standard house building is located in Topchikhinsky district, Kulundinsky and Mikhailovsky districts.

The most important branch of chemical wood treatment is pulp and paper industry. Various grades of paper can be made from sulphite pulp with added wood pulp. Various grades of paper are produced (for banknotes, capacitor, cable, insulating, photosemiconductor, paper for transmitting images at a distance and fixing electrical impulses, anti-corrosion, etc.) From some types of paper, yarn is obtained for the manufacture of twine, twine, coarse fabrics, burlap, also paper for wrapping and bitumen pipes. Technical grades of paper and cardboard are widely used for the production of corrugated cardboard, book bindings, in the auto and electrical industry, radio engineering, as an electrical, thermal, soundproof and waterproof material, for filtering diesel fuel and air purification from harmful impurities, for insulating power cables as gaskets between machine parts, in the construction industry for the production of dry plaster, roofing materials (roofing felt, roofing felt), etc. When processing highly porous paper with a concentrated solution of zinc chloride, fiber is obtained from which suitcases, containers for liquids, helmets for miners are made and so on. Waste from sawmilling and mechanical processing of wood, as well as lower-quality wood of small-leaved species, are widely used as a feedstock for pulp and paper production.

Pulp production requires a lot of heat, electricity and water. Therefore, when locating pulp and paper mills, not only the raw material, but also the water factor, and the proximity of the power supply source are taken into account. In terms of production scale and economic importance, the second a place among the branches of wood chemistry after the pulp and paper industry belongs hydrolysis industry... During hydrolysis production, ethyl alcohol, protein yeast, glucose, furfural, carbon dioxide, lignin, alcohol stillage sulfite concentrates, thermal insulation and building boards and other chemical products are produced from non-edible plant materials. As a raw material, hydrolysis plants use sawdust and other waste from sawmilling and woodworking, crushed wood chips.

Chemical and mechanical processing of wood includes the production of plywood, particle board and fiberboard. Plywood is processed mainly from the least scarce hardwood species - birch, alder, linden. Several types of plywood are produced in Russia; glued, facing, thermal, fire-resistant, colored, furniture, decorative, etc. There is a plywood factory in Barnaul.

The role of the raw material factor in the distribution of the branches of the forest industry is enhanced by the integrated use of wood, on the basis of which a combination of production arises. In many forest areas of the Altai Territory, large timber industry complexes have arisen and are developing. They are a combination of logging and many timber industries, linked by a deep and comprehensive use of raw materials.

3.2. Timber sector in the economy of the Altai Territory

The timber industry has always been one of the important sectors of the economy and determined the development of the socio-economic component of the regions, increasing the foreign exchange reserves of the state due to the export of timber.

The forestry sector plays a significant role in the economy of the region and has great importance for the socio-economic development of more than 50 administrative regions, and also ensures the development of close cooperation of Altai with the countries of the Asian region and neighboring subjects of the Russian Federation.

Modern forestry should ensure the integrated and rational use of resources and useful properties forests, carrying out measures for the protection, protection of forests, their reproduction, preservation of biodiversity and increasing the sustainability of forest ecosystems.

The use of forests for timber harvesting by the organizations of the Union is currently insufficiently effective. The free stock of timber for harvesting is about 0.9 million m3 and is represented mainly by hardwood.

In 2007, the development of the estimated volumes for all types of felling amounted to 83%. At the same time, coniferous wood was harvested, which led to the accumulation of mature and over-mature deciduous wood, and this, in turn, can lead to negative environmental consequences.

The main reason for the low level of development of the allowable cut of hardwood is the lack of production facilities for deep processing of low-grade timber. The existing production facilities for the processing of wood raw materials are fully loaded and there are reserves for mechanical processing there is no wood. Lack of capacities for chemical and mechanical processing does not allow using in full the calculated cutting area of ​​soft-leaved species and felling waste from logging in coniferous stands in the amount of 1.8 million m3.

Losses of forests from forest fires, pests, industrial emissions and illegal logging remain high. Over the past 10 years, forestry workers of the Altai Territory have created forest plantations on an area of ​​57.1 thousand hectares and measures have been taken to promote natural forest regeneration on an area of ​​12.1 thousand hectares. At the same time, as a result of insufficient financing of reforestation activities in the areas covered by large forest fires in 2007, 42.5 thousand hectares of burned areas remain treeless areas, and artificial reforestation is carried out mainly at the expense of forestry organizations' own funds, which does not allow an increase in annual volumes. planting of forest crops, as a result of which the restoration of burnt areas is stretched for many years.

The strategic goal of forestry development is to create conditions that ensure sustainable forest management, compliance with the principles of continuous, multipurpose, rational and sustainable use of forest resources with modern high-quality forest reproduction and their preservation of ecological functions and biological diversity.

To achieve the strategic goal, it is necessary to solve the following tasks:

· ensuring the rational use and reproduction of forests;

· creation of new directions in the use of wood raw materials based on advanced technological solutions;

· the formation of growth points in various areas of the forestry complex;

· designation of the goals of long-term ecological and economic development of the forestry complex;

· determination of the main factors and limitations for the development of all types of forestry activities in the long term;

· increasing the intensity of forestry, taking into account environmental and economic factors;

· increasing the competitiveness of goods of woodworking organizations of the region with their further promotion to foreign markets;

· development of a program to restore the production of consumer goods, including souvenirs, children's toys and wood chemistry products.

Deep chemical and mechanical processing of soft-leaved wood (birch, aspen) should become a prospect for a qualitative improvement in the state of forests.

The strategy for the development of woodworking in the forestry industry consists in the transition to an innovative type of production development, in the structure of which the leading role is assigned to high-tech products. Innovative activity associated with the development of new technologies and markets, updating the range of products, increasing the use of raw materials, will dramatically expand the range and quality of goods.

In conclusion, we note that, despite the favorable conditions for the development of the timber industry, the production and trade of timber leaves much to be desired due to a lack of funds. Reforms of the forestry sector of the economy of the Altai Territory cannot be successfully carried out if they are carried out separately in forestry and in the timber industry complex. All the more important is the general understanding that attempts to pull the logging industry out of the crisis, based on increasing export potential, cannot be successful due to the current situation in the world markets. It all depends on the actions of the Government of Russia in relation to the forestry sector as a whole, and not in parts; today, a systematic solution of the issue is required

CHAPTER 4. Problems and prospects for the development of the forestry complex of the Altai Territory

4.1. Problems of the forest sector of the Altai Territory

There is such a concept in ecology - little disturbed forest areas. It is deciphered as follows: large tracts of forests, swamps, copses that have experienced the minimum impact of civilization. These territories could well be the pride of the Altai Territory. Valuable highly productive (capable of reproduction) forest species and many rare species of flora and fauna are preserved there.

One of the most pronounced negative consequences of the timber industry in the Priobskie pine forests of the Altai Territory is the change in their composition. After clear felling in the 60s and 80s, the area of ​​conifers decreased and the area of ​​birch and aspen forests increased. In the process of felling, coniferous undergrowth was completely destroyed or it was absent in the parent stand. In addition, the change in the species composition was facilitated by large forest fires, after which there was a rapid settlement of burned areas with soft-leaved species. As a result, deciduous stands appeared in the place of growth of conifers. This is clearly seen in the example of the Upper Ob region. If in the 50s of the last century the share of coniferous species here accounted for more than 70 percent of the total composition of plantations, then by the two thousandth year of coniferous plantations remained about 30%.

Such a change in species has led to a sharp reduction in the allowable cut for coniferous farming.

Reforestation measures taken to prevent the change of species, namely the production of traditional pine plantations, did not justify themselves due to the insufficiently high production culture, insufficient care and damage to wild animals - in particular, moose. In such conditions, planting over time turns into low-value deciduous forest stands.

In recent years, in the forestry of the region, chemicals have been used to combat unwanted vegetation. But since the process is expensive, it is applied with difficulty, despite the effectiveness of this event. For further work in this direction, financial resources are needed: on average, costs per hectare range from 6 to 8 thousand rubles.

2. In accordance with the 62nd article of the Forest Code, reforestation on leased lands of the forest fund is carried out at the expense of the lessee. What to do with the restoration of forest areas formed earlier (before the lease), due to natural disasters (forest fires, windblown), economic activities. The tenant's funds are insufficient, federal support is required.

In Article 19 of the LC, it is necessary to introduce direct norms providing for the conclusion of contracts for the implementation of measures for the protection, protection and reproduction of forests in accordance with forest legislation (through forest tenders), as well as requirements for the qualifications of participants in forest tenders (legal and individuals with certain experience in the implementation of the above works).

In addition, the implementation of the contract is envisaged within one year, and reforestation activities cannot be carried out in such a short time. It is necessary to provide for a longer term for the implementation of these measures, so that the forest user has the opportunity and time to grow planting material, create forest crops, carry out maintenance, and transfer to a forested area. Throughout the contract, the contractor must be responsible for the quality of the work carried out.

4. It is necessary to provide for the introduction of technical acceptance and inventory of forest crops. In addition, to control the performers of reforestation, it is necessary to develop guidelines for all types of reforestation activities.

With the disappearance of forests, the habitat of many animals is decreasing. Forests are cut by roads, there are too many settlements, people who are afraid of wild animals. Whole species fall out of the millennial balance of nature near Moscow. Without old forests, with snags, hollow, rotten trees and dead wood, a wide variety of animals and plants cannot exist. For example, some species of bats have disappeared. The degradation of nature is imperceptible, but true. "

4.2. Protection of the forest complex of the Altai Territory

Protection of forest resources is a system of scientifically based, biological, forestry, administrative, legal and other measures aimed at conservation, rational use and reproduction of forests to enhance their environmental, economic and other useful natural properties. [ 1]

Speaking of forests, it is impossible to overestimate their role and importance in the life of the biosphere and humanity inhabiting our planet. Forests perform very important functions allowing humanity to live and develop.

Forests play an extremely important role in the life of mankind, and their importance for the entire living world is great.[ 1 ]

However, the forest has many enemies. The most dangerous of these are forest fires, insect pests and fungal diseases. It is they who contribute to the depletion of resources and often cause the death of forests.[ 1 ]

According to the Forest Code of the Russian Federation, the forest legislation of Russia is aimed at ensuring the rational and non-depleting use of forests, protection and reproduction of forest ecosystems, improving the ecological and resource potential forests, meeting the needs of society in forest resources on the basis of scientifically grounded multipurpose forest management.

Forestry activities and the use of the forest fund should be carried out by methods that do not harm the environment, natural resources and human health.

Forest management should ensure:

Preservation and strengthening of the environment-forming, protective, sanitary and hygienic, health-improving and other useful natural properties of forests in the interests of human health;

Multipurpose, continuous, sustainable use of the forest fund to meet the needs of society and individuals in timber and other forest resources;

Amazing mesmerizing landscapes of virgin nature, carefully preserved by local residents, cultural and historical heritage, which this region is generously endowed with, more and more attracts tourists from other territories and even from foreign countries.

This is a wonderful Altai Territory. The nature of the region is surprisingly rich and multifaceted.

general information

This subject of Russia is part of the Siberian Federal District (southwest). It borders on Kazakhstan, Kemerovo and Novosibirsk regions, Altai Republic. The administrative center is the city of Barnaul.

Until 1991, the region also included the Gorno-Altai autonomous region, but at the moment it is an independent subject of the Russian Federation.

The Altai Territory is presented in more detail below. The nature of the region, the history of its development are of interest to many tourists and travelers who come here. Today, about 120 ethnic groups live in the region. Most of all - Russians (93.9%). Ukrainians, Germans and Kazakhs are well represented here as well.

How did it all begin?

Russians began to populate the Altai foothills and the Upper Ob region in the second half of the 17th century. The development of Altai began after the Beloyarsk and Bikatun fortresses were built here, respectively, in 1717 and 1718, to protect them from the Dzungar nomads.

For the purpose of prospecting for ore deposits in Altai, prospecting parties began to be equipped. It is believed that their pioneers were the father and son of the Kostylevs; later, Akinfiy Demidov, a Ural breeder, took advantage of these results.

Geography, relief

Before we describe the rivers of the Altai Territory, consider it geographical position... The region is located in Western Siberia. In the south and west, its territory borders on the regions: East Kazakhstan and Pavlodar, in the north-east and north - on Kemerovo and Novosibirsk. It borders the Republic of Altai in the southeast.

Territory area - 167850 sq. kilometers. From west to east, the length is 600 km, from south to north - 400 km. The distance from Moscow to Barnaul by direct air route is 3,600 km.

The relief of the Altai Territory is the most diverse. Its territory belongs to two physical countries - Altai-Sayan and West Siberian Plain. Her mountainous area covers a flat surface from the southern and eastern sides. These are the foothills of Altai and the Salair ridge. The central and western parts of the territory are mainly represented by plains - the Kulundinskaya steppe, the Biysko-Chumyshskaya upland and the Priobskoye plateau.

The region is represented by almost all natural zones of Russia - mountains, taiga, steppe and forest-steppe. Moreover, the flat surface is characterized by steppe and forest-steppe territories, with pine forests, gullies, ravines, groves and lakes.

Rivers

Water resources in the region are represented by both underground and surface sources. Most large rivers Altai Territory: Ob, Katun, Biya, Charysh and Alei. Their total number, together with small streams, is 17 thousand. There are about 13000 lakes here, the largest of which is Kulundinskoe (area - 728 sq. Km).

The Ob River is the main waterway. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: Katun and Biya. Its length is 493 kilometers. It should be noted that the basin of this great river occupies an area equal to 70% of the entire territory of the region.

The variety of zonal landscapes of the region contributes to the diversity and species composition of the animal world. There are lynxes, brown bears, and wolverines. Muskrats and river beavers are found in reservoirs. Approximately 90 species of mammals and 320 species of birds live in the Altai Territory.

About 2000 different higher vascular plants grow here (2/3 of the species of all Western Siberia). Especially valuable: Rhodiola rosea, evading peony, red root, maral root, St. John's wort, oregano, Ural licorice, high elecampane.

Forests cover 26% of the region's territory. Altai Territory is rich and beautiful.

Nature

Currently natural landscapes the regions are negatively affected by the results of economic activities. In order to preserve the diversity of fauna and flora, today it is planned to create protected natural areas: reserves, national parks, reserves, natural monuments.

At the moment, there are only 33 reserves on the territory (area 773,100 hectares), occupying 5% of the entire territory, which is not enough to maintain the ecological and landscape balance in the biosphere of the region.

In any case, the Altai Territory is magnificent. The nature of the region is protected by law. Numerous natural monuments have been created. These are the guarded irreplaceable natural objects, representing both scientific and cultural and historical value (mineral springs, caves, waterfalls, geological outcrops, paleontological objects, ancient ancient trees).

In total, there are 100 monuments in the region, 54 of them are geological, 14 are botanical, 31 are water and 1 is complex.

Conclusion

The Altai Territory is beautiful and rich. The nature of the region includes the habitats of rare plants and animal habitats, which are endangered species and are especially protected. Therefore, in the region, a decision was made to create the Tigirek and Kulunda state reserves... Unfortunately, the organization of work in this direction is delayed by the lack of funding.