Preface

The volume includes articles reflecting the results of scientific research on improving the use, regeneration, conservation and protection of forests, creation of new technologies for the chemical processing of wood biomass and bioenergy, increasing forest productivity through the use of non-timber forest resources, expanding functions and benefits of forest ecosystems, and on the development of forest policy, economics and legislation. The research results obtained were discussed at the V PAN-RUSSIAN SCIENTIFIC - TECHNICAL CONFERENCE - WEBINAR "FORESTS OF RUSSIA: POLICY, INDUSTRY, SCIENCE AND EDUCATION", which was held at St. Petersburg State Forest Technical University in the mode of a webinar.

The remote way of holding the conference did not reduce the quantity and quality of the presented scientific reports and the productivity of the event itself; moreover, it increased the number of speakers from various regions of Russia. On the days of the conference, the university celebrated two anniversaries: 100 years of the first department of forest economics in Russia, and 90 years of the Faculty of Chemistry and Technology (today known as the Institute for Chemical Processing of Wood Biomass and Technosphere Safety), which is why some of the reports were dedicated to these events. The published articles reflect results of scientific research on the effect of soil quality on forest productivity and survival rate of planting material, improving the technology of growing seedlings and creating forest plantations, and on the impact of agrotechnical and silvicultural measures on forest productivity.

The results of studies of the chemical processing of wood and non-wood forest resources to create products used in technology, medicine and agriculture are presented. Forest legislation and forest legal relations in the Russian Federation have been analyzed and ways to improve them proposed.

All published articles are of undoubted scientific interest for scientists and forestry experts.

I would like to express gratitude to the authors of the published articles and thank the following university staff: Associate Professor S.V. Tereshchenko; Professor A.S. Alekseev, Associate Professor E.N. Kuznetsov; Professor A.N. Chubinsky; Professor D.A. Ponomarev; Associate Professor I.A. Melnichuk; Associate Professor E.G. Khitrov; and Professor V.Yu. Neshataev.

Vice-rector for academic research,

Candidate of Technical Sciences

Vasily Gedyo