Court orders DP "Forests of Ukraine" to demarcate boundaries of Hrofa reserve

Court ruling on protected area

The Zakarpattia District Administrative Court issued a ruling in favour of representatives of the Specialised Environmental Prosecutor's Office of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. It was established that the State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine" must prepare and approve a land management project, as well as physically establish the boundaries of the Hrofa landscape reserve of national significance.

This was reported by the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Prosecutor's Office in its official social media channel.

History of establishment and current status of the site

The Hrofa landscape reserve was established back in 1996. The main purpose of its creation was to preserve the unique cedar-spruce primeval forests and typical mountain landscapes of the Prylimnian Horgany range. Despite the site having a 30-year status as a protected object, its actual boundaries have not yet been marked on the ground or secured with appropriate information signs.

Risks of undefined boundaries

As noted by the prosecutor's office, the absence of officially defined boundaries creates a threat of violation of the protection regime. This may lead to damage to the natural complex, particularly through illegal logging. Since the reserve lands are part of the state forest fund, and the permanent forest user is the "Carpathian Forest Office" branch of DP "Forests of Ukraine", this enterprise is obliged under current legislation to prepare land management documentation and establish the boundaries of the protected object in the field.

Characteristics of the Hrofa territory

The reserve is located in Kalush Raion of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, in the Horgany mountain massif, near the headwaters of the Limnytsia River and its left tributaries. The total area of the protected territory is 2,533.8 hectares. Within the reserve boundaries lies one of the highest peaks of the Horgany range — Mount Hrofa, with an elevation of 1,748 metres.

The flora is represented primarily by spruce forests, with mountain pine and cedar also present. Among the species listed in the Red Book of Ukraine are the Martagon lily, common valerian, and other rare plants. The fauna includes the Eurasian lynx, wildcat, alpine shrew, Carpathian newt, as well as birds — the honey buzzard and the capercaillie.