The National Action Programme of the Republic of Belarus for Combating Land Degradation will be developed by 2010

August 6, Horadok / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The National Action Programme of the Republic of Belarus to Combat Land Degradation will be developed by the beginning of 2010, said Valentin Yatsukhno, head of the expert group for the programme development, head of the research laboratory of landscape ecology of Belarusian State University, in a conversation with a BELTA correspondent. The action programme is being created for the rational use and protection of Belarus's lands. "Land is the main economic resource of any state," the interviewee emphasized. According to the expert, the national programme will reflect aspects such as the regulatory framework in the field of land use, scientific and informational, and financial support. Special attention will be paid to improving land accounting and monitoring, and methods for combating land degradation. In 2001, the Republic of Belarus joined the UN Convention to Combat Desertification/Land Degradation and thus undertook obligations to implement tasks of sustainable land use, efficient use and conservation of lands, Valentin Yatsukhno added. The priorities of the national programme are being discussed today in Horadok (Vitebsk region) at the seminar "Protection of Lands/Soils from Erosion and its Reflection in the National Action Programme to Combat Land Degradation". The seminar is being held within the framework of the EU and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) project "Capacity Building in Strategic Environmental Assessment and Implementation of Environmental Conventions in the Republic of Belarus". -0-