Tbilisi Mayor to Increase Fines for Illegal Tree Felling

(TBILISI) – Newly-elected Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze plans to increase fines for illegally cutting down trees within the city limits.

Kaladze said the city’s natural ecology is being destroyed by illegal construction projects, particularly near the banks of the Mtkvari River that bisects the Georgian capital. The construction crews cut down dozens of trees in the process and severely alter the natural landscape of the city

The move is part of Kaladze ambitious plan to drastically increase the number of green areas in Tbilisi, which in recent years has suffered from a spike in pollution and poor air quality.