Illegal logging in the Irkutsk region: historical and legal aspects of the problem

Introduction: the article considers the historical and legal aspects of illegal logging on the example of the Irkutsk region. An analysis of the statistical data of the Ministry of Forestry of the Irkutsk Region demonstrates a significant number of detected cases of illegal logging in the region (over the past five years, the region has been the leader in terms of illegal logging of forest plantations), which threatens the conservation of Siberian forests. This fact emphasizes the relevance and practical significance of the study. Materials and Мethods: the source base of the research is represented by archival data, in particular materials of the Russian State Historical Archive, normative legal acts that have lost their legal force (legal monuments), current normative legal acts, as well as statistical data of reports of the Ministry of Forestry of the Irkutsk region. The methodological basis of the research is the use of general scientific (systemic, analytical) and private scientific methods of cognition (logical, historical-legal, comparative-legal). Systematic and analytical methods made it possible to consider a set of measures to protect forests from illegal logging undertaken at the state level in the Russian Federation not as a set of restrictive legal norms, but as a system of measures aimed at preserving the forests of the Irkutsk region. The logical method helped to establish causal relationships between phenomena based on inductive research methods (methods of similarity, difference, residues and related changes), was used, for example, to identify links between the economic development of the Irkutsk region and data on illegal logging. The historical and legal method was used when considering the formation of a system of forest protection measures, comparing legal norms in historical retrospect. The use of the comparative method revealed general trends in combating illegal logging in Russia, showing the ineffectiveness of forest protection policy on the example of the Irkutsk region. The statistical method made it possible to process, analyze and consolidate information characterizing quantitative indicators of illegal logging in the Irkutsk region. The Results of the study: analyzed statistical data on quantitative indicators of illegal logging in the Irkutsk region for 2016-2022, considered the existing methods and means of combating them, identified the main directions in solving the problem of illegal logging, allowing to stabilize the situation in the fight against "black loggers" in the Irkutsk region. Findings and Conclusions: legal norms regulating the issues of illegal logging in Russia, as well as law enforcement practice in the forestry sector (on the example of the Irkutsk region) show the ineffectiveness of the measures taken. To solve the problem, an integrated approach is required, including both the improvement of legislation in the forest sector, and changes in the organization of forest protection and its technical equipment.