The Parliament of Georgia Adopts Amendments to the Forest Code in Third Reading

The Parliament of Georgia has adopted, in its third reading, the Law of Georgia on Amendments to the Forest Code of Georgia. The ongoing forestry reform led by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture aims to strengthen forest protection, improve sustainable forest management practices, and enhance forest control, monitoring, and enforcement mechanisms.

 

As part of the National Forestry Agency reform, forest protection is being significantly reinforced. To combat illegal logging, more than 1.7 million hectares of forestland will be divided into 903 protection sectors, each assigned to a single forest ranger with personal responsibility.

 

To strengthen enforcement capacity, the Agency will recruit 499 new personnel, including 401 forest rangers. As a result, the average area assigned to each ranger will decrease from 10,000–15,000 hectares to approximately 2,000 hectares. Notably, the salaries of forest rangers were doubled in January of this year.

 

 

The state is introducing an entirely new model of forest protection and monitoring aimed at eliminating illegal logging and forest degradation. Forest monitoring is being fully digitized through the adoption of modern technologies. To ensure more effective state oversight, forest rangers are being equipped with tablets, body-worn cameras, radios, and camera traps, significantly enhancing both field protection and internal control mechanisms.

 

Alongside strengthening forest protection, active efforts are underway to restore forest ecosystems. During the 2025–2026 reporting period, restoration activities have already been carried out on 1,722 hectares, while an additional 2,600 hectares are planned for restoration this year. Under the country's 10-year forestry strategy, forest restoration measures will be implemented across 51,000 hectares nationwide.

 

The adopted amendments also introduce an additional mechanism for timber harvesting by enabling the granting of forest use rights for timber production through a competitive auction process.