The meeting participants considered proposals to improve legal and customs regulation in the timber industry, submitted by the Council's working group.

Mr Zubkov said the legal framework regulating the sector's operation is fairly comprehensive and effective for the implementation of the sector's Development Strategy. The key legal acts in this sphere are aimed at improving the structure of timber production and timber and paper exports, at making the sector more competitive.

The mechanisms for raising investments in the sector are legalised. "This helps to make timber projects more attractive for investors and to expand capacities for manufacturing products with high added value," Mr Zubkov said.

At the same time, it is expedient to set differentiated prices of timber depending on various factors, to establish companies and plantations to guarantee raw feed for wood-processing facilities, to set lease payments in harmony with the amounts of resources used, and to use the estimated annual cut unused in the previous years.

The Council members also discussed the preparations for the 2009 forest fires season. An analysis of the previous seasons, Mr Zubkov said, suggests there has been no improvement.

"The area affected by fire in 2008 was twice as large as in 2007, and the frequency of fires increased by 56%. Forest fire statistics exceeded the past five years' average," he said.

The main reason for the dangerous trend, according to him, was insufficient effort put by the regions into preparations for the fire season, lack of interregional exchange of fire forces and equipment, as well as shortage of financial and other resources.