A local forest management body will be established in Tbilisi for the first time to ensure the maintenance of 12,000 hectares of forests. The announcement was made during the presentation of the city’s environmental protection measures for the next four years, led by Tbilisi Mayor and Georgian Dream mayoral candidate Kakha Kaladze and Deputy Mayor Andria Basilaia.
Deputy Mayor Basilaia highlighted that the creation of the management body is part of the plan to oversee the maintenance of forests within the capital. He added that the project to rehabilitate the slopes of Mtatsminda and adjacent forest areas will be completed next year, with the territory being transferred back to the city.
“We believe that it is the right time to establish a special body that will rehabilitate this territory and, in stages, manage an area of approximately 100 hectares in the coming years,” Basilaia said.
Mayor Kakha Kaladze emphasized the importance of urban greening over the past eight years and pointed to ongoing work on the Mtatsminda slope.
“I would say that the Mtatsminda slope is the lungs of the city. A certain part of the slope has been rehabilitated, and appropriate greening work has been carried out. This requires maintenance, therefore, a new body will be established to ensure the upkeep of these forests,” Kaladze said.
