The Ministry of Economic Development will allow cutting down forests for ski resorts

To achieve this, changes will be made to the legislation.

The Ministry of Economic Development plans to eliminate gaps in domestic legislation that prevent the creation and operation of ski resorts in Russia. Developed by the Ministry bill involves introducing amendments to the law “On the Fundamentals of Tourism Activities in the Russian Federation” and the Forest Code.

The authors of the document note that despite the significant number of ski resorts in Russia, there is still no legal regulation of their activities. To rectify the situation, it is planned for the first time to introduce the concepts of “ski resort” and “ski resort operator” into the law on tourism activities. This will make it possible to make changes to the regulations relating to the operation of such resorts.

The innovations that are planned to be introduced into the Forest Code of Russia will have to contribute to the creation and development of complexes for skiers. We are talking, in particular, about the right of operators of complexes to carry out the necessary clear cuttings and the obligation to subsequently carry out compensatory reforestation. This should ensure the possibility of building ski resorts in forests with the infrastructure necessary for their operation (ski slopes, cable cars, snowmaking systems, etc.).

It is also planned to make changes to the law on the transfer of land from one category to another. It states that it is prohibited to change the categories of forest land areas on which recreational infrastructure is created, i.e. You can create resorts in forests, but you cannot change the status of forest lands. Numerous restrictions associated with such lands create certain difficulties for the creation of such complex recreational complexes as ski resorts. The adoption of the new law will make it possible to make an exception for them: they will be allowed to change the status of forest fund lands.