2021

Winter on Forest Roads

In order to facilitate access to forest massifs in winter and to be able to perform the planned works, JSC “Latvia’s State Forests” (LVM), if necessary, removes snow from forest roads, as well as carries out other road maintenance works in winter. First of all, the forest roads which are used to transport timber or on which forestry activities take place are cleared.

Removal of snow from forest roads begins when the thickness of the snow cover reaches 15 centimetres. “Our contractor is sent a task that must be completed within a certain time frame and in accordance with the set quality requirements. The task shows specific roads, as well as contains a map with their locations. The planning of winter works is very complicated, since there is often a thick snow cover on one side of the county, while it is thin on the other side,” says Indris Stulpāns, Executive Director LVM Forest Infrastructure.

Forest roads are significantly different from general roads; therefore, their cleaning technique is also different. For the most part, forest roads are narrower than state and municipal roads, which makes it more difficult for drivers to change road with other traffic participants. Therefore, it is very important to first clear road pockets and turning areas from the snow. Snow on the carriageway is pushed into a ditch, which can best be done with a powerful tractor equipped with a snow shovel.

If winter is rich in snow and roads are covered with snow, a special type of road maintenance, called grooving, is used – a machine equipped with special knives mills longitudinal grooves in the snow or ice. They improve traction between the vehicle and the road surface.

“Cooperation with local governments is of key importance in snow-rich winters. In order to clear forest roads from snow so that locals can move freely, we urge local governments to cooperate. Some municipalities have already concluded agreements with LVM and remove snow to ensure mobility of people regardless of whether forest management works are taking place in the specific area or not,” says Indris Stulpāns.