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Fire in Tsaghveri Forest, Borjomi Region, Raging for 24-days and Counting

September 9, 2008

Gulo Kokhodze, Tsaghveri

Even though the main fire centers in Tsaghveri Forest have been extinguished, tree trunks and rot are still are burning. The cost of fire control cost the Borjomi Municipality budget 2, 106 040 GEL.
 
Russian helicopters threw incendiary bombs in Borjomi Gorge on August 15th which kindled fire that is still not fully under control. The fire consumed Likani, a forest reserve first, and then torched the forests of Papa and Tsaghveri villages. The fire was easily extinguished in Papa and Likani. However, the representatives of local and central governments with the support of the local population have been struggling with fire till now.

Irakli Ghvaladze, Minister of Environmental Protection examined the forest from a helicopter. He said that presumable damage equals 2 billion Euros. Unique trees and the tree species that were placed in the Red Book have burned. The unique Utkhovari species has been destroyed as well. The Minister said the territory would be declared an ecological disaster.

The fire has spread from branches to the roots in the last few days. The roots are burning in the ground on a one meter depth. This makes the process of extinguishing fire most complicated. Helicopters and fire engines are using the water from dammed Gujarula River, Borjomi Gorge to localize the fire. One helicopter fills up 70 buckets of water each trip to dump on the fire. One large container “bucket” takes three tones of water. But if the wind is blowing, neither helicopters nor forest rangers are able to do anything to bring it under control. “If the rain does not come we will not be able to completely extinguish the rain,” stated Gocha Mamatsashvili, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection.

Zurab Talakvadze, head of Counter Fire Division of Emergency Management Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia stated that if the temperature raises or wind starts blowing, the fire might start spreading again.

The flora and fauna on 1,000 Hectares of land has already been destroyed. Tristan Tsutskiridze, head of Borjomi Municipality Sakrebulo (the body of local self-governance) speaks about ecological threats and economical losses: “If one eco system is damaged this will damage another viable ecosystem. It is impossible to renew the severely damaged eco system in a short period of time. The fire will change the climate and the Borjomi resort will be affected by the fire several years later even more.”

Specialists state that it will take at least two centuries to renew the burned forest.

 

 

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