Takac: Police Launch Criminal Investigation, Infested Wood Being Extracted Urgently
The police have already launched a criminal investigation regarding the failure to address the bark-beetle infestation in Banska Bystrica region, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Richard Takac, who filed a criminal complaint in this connection in May, told a news conference on Monday.
Banska Bystrica, June 17 (TASR) - The police have already launched a criminal investigation regarding the failure to address the bark-beetle infestation in Banska Bystrica region, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Richard Takac (Smer-SD), who filed a criminal complaint in this connection in May, told a news conference on Monday.
At the same time, Takac confirmed that intensive processing of infested wood has begun in order to prevent bark beetles from spreading further and that water-retention measures are now being introduced in order to protect the inhabitants of the village of Cierny Balog (Banska Bystrica region).
"We've taken immediate measures that will halt the spread of the infestation and enable us to remedy the situation caused by the idleness of previous managements. We've managed to increase the extraction and removal of infested wood significantly. This is a basic prerequisite for halting the spread of bark beetles, which is already threatening 10 million cubic metres of spruce in the Polana area," stated Takac.
The minister said that 50,000 cubic metres of infested wood was processed in January, but 70,000 more cubic metres of such wood has been created recently.
"The only chance to save Polana is to remove all dead wood and affected trees from the afflicted areas as quickly as possible," stressed Takac. He believes that the bark-beetle infestation can be prevented from spreading further in four to five months thanks to the introduction of urgent wood extraction.
According to state-run forestry company Lesy SR general director Tibor Menyhart, an infestation in the Upper Hron area covering some 400,000 cubic metres of wood was inherited at the beginning of the year. The company is managing to process 70,000-80,000 cubic metres per month with maximum effort. It's deployed 105 working groups to remove the infestation.
Foresters plan to plant new trees in mixed forests, which are more resistant to bark beetles, early next year.
