Governments should work on implementing modern technologies and strengthening responsibility for fires: results of an international audit on forest protection

Implement modern monitoring technologies for timely detection and response to forest fires, modernize firefighting equipment, and strengthen legal liability for violations of fire prevention requirements - these and other recommendations are provided to the governments of Ukraine, Georgia, and Lithuania in a joint report by the Accounting Chamber, the State Audit Office of Georgia, and the National Audit Office of Lithuania on the results of a parallel audit of forest fire prevention.

The audit was initiated by the secretariat of the EUROSAI Working Group on the Audit of Funds Allocated for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, chaired by the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine. The purpose of the audit – assessment of the state of forest management and the effectiveness of forest fire prevention and response measures in these countries.

The national audits were carried out under separate programs without defining common questions and assessment criteria, however, the SAI experts came to certain common conclusions that may be useful both to the governments of the countries that participated in the audit and to other European countries suffering from forest fires.

In general, Ukraine, Georgia and Lithuania have different degrees of risk and causes of forest fires: for Ukraine, this problem is exacerbated by Russian aggression, in Georgia the intensity of fires is increasing due to improper use of agricultural land, arson and climate change; in Lithuania, the risk of forest fires, although the lowest among these three countries due to a cooler and wetter climate, is still a challenge.

It was found, in particular, that national forest conservation strategies meet international goals and requirements for forest fire prevention, but their implementation is complicated by insufficient coordination between institutions and the lack of data systems on the state of resources integrated into the general system for monitoring the occurrence of forest fires and combating them. As a result, resources for combating fires are used inefficiently, and the actions of different fire-fighting bodies are not coordinated. Among the key issues that need to be addressed is the outdated infrastructure of fire departments.

So, in many regions of the countries studied, the level of forest protection remains insufficient, and insufficient planning for prevention and preparation for possible fires increases the risk of significant losses in the future.

The SAIs of Ukraine, Georgia and Lithuania have formulated joint recommendations for the governments of these states, which should contribute to combating forest fires and improving the level of forest resource management. Among them:

- improving coordination between institutions for more effective emergency preparedness and a clear division of roles and responsibilities between agencies to avoid duplication of functions;

- using modern monitoring technologies such as satellites and drones for timely detection and response to forest fires;

- transparency of data collection for proper decision-making on fire prevention measures;

- modernization of machinery and equipment for effective firefighting;

- strengthening legal liability for violations of the rules and stricter sanctions for arson and other actions;

- restoration of damaged forests by financing special programs in fire-affected areas, etc.

The audit report, after approval by all parties, will be sent to the governments of all participating states, and will also be published on the website of the Accounting Chamber.

For information.

The national audit of the effectiveness of the use of budget funds allocated to forestry and hunting management, protection and preservation of forests in the forest fund of Ukraine covers the period 2020-2022 and the first half of 2023. The corresponding Report and decisions were approved in March 2024.

The audit found that during this period the state suffered 20.3 billion UAH in losses due to fires and 845.7 million UAH in damage due to illegal felling of trees. At the same time, the situation is complicated by the reduction in the number of foresters and the weak work of collecting compensation from violators, since damage in the amount of UAH 731.0 million was caused by unidentified individuals.

Also, as of July 1, 2023, the war caused damage and losses to the forest fund, its enterprises and institutions in the amount of UAH 1.2 billion.