Under the auspices of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia (MEPA) and Standing Committee on Agriculture of the Parliament of Georgia, the Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus) had been intensively working for previous years on formulation of Windbreaks National Policy Document and shortly afterwards on creation of appropriate legal framework. Final stage of this process has been resulted in development of Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) of the Draft Law on Windbreaks – initiated and supported by the MEPA, Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Adoption of the above new legal framework will contribute to increased soil fertility and crop yields in the mid and long-term periods, while short-term impacts might occur during post-pandemic period in terms of favorable conditions for additional job places in rural areas and especially for prevention of vulnerable population from adverse impacts caused by land erosion and degradation. With this regard, the Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus) would like to express its gratitude towards all stakeholders, including the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia (MEPA) and Standing Committee on Agriculture of the Parliament of Georgia, governmental agencies, international organizations, local authorities, farmers and large group of experts, whose contribution was invaluable in the lengthy process of development, review and final clearance for the said framework documents.
