The natural resources of the Vitebsk region can become a resource for ensuring employment of the population

June 16, Vitebsk / Sergey Kochetov - BELTA /. The use of natural resources of the Vitebsk region for food production can become a resource for ensuring employment in rural areas. This opinion was expressed in a conversation with a BELTA correspondent by Tatyana Yasiulina, chief specialist of the regional committee for natural resources and environmental protection. According to 2008 data, the biological reserves of mushrooms in the region were estimated at 12 thousand tons, and exploitable reserves at 6 thousand tons. For berries, these figures were 15.1 thousand tons and 7.6 thousand tons, respectively. At the same time, the development of these types of natural resources is slow for various reasons, there is potential here to intensify raw material procurement, organize processing industries, and, consequently, create new jobs, Tatyana Yasiulina noted. In 2008, over 150 economic entities were involved in the procurement of wild mushrooms and berries in the region, including organizations of the regional consumer union, forestry enterprises, and individual entrepreneurs. They procured and purchased 395.47 tons of mushrooms from the population, which is only 6.5% of the exploitable reserves of this natural raw material. Primarily, commercial enterprises were involved in mushroom procurement (they procured 354 tons). About 14% of the procured amount was processed into finished products, the rest was sold without processing. Enterprises and organizations work more actively with berries, of which over 2.5 thousand tons were procured, which is 34% of the exploitable reserves. In particular, consumer cooperation enterprises and organizations procured over 1 thousand tons. 66.5% of the procured berry volumes were processed into finished products. Permits for the right to special use of flora objects (for the procurement of berries and mushrooms) are established by decisions of local authorities based on data on biological and exploitable reserves of these natural raw materials in the region. The cancellation of limits on the procurement of mushrooms and berries by local authorities since 2006 by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection provides an opportunity to intensify work on the use of Vitebsk region's natural resources for the production of tasty products, Tatyana Yasiulina believes. -0-