Year: 2017, Number: 1, Pages: 3-18
Primorsky Kray was peacefully annexed to Russia in 1860. Settling uninhabited land, establishment of settlements, the allocation of the pioneers-settlers for agricultural land covered by forest, deforestation, plowing of the land resulted in the depletion of forests and scarcity of forest materials for state construction projects already in the late nineteenth century. Forester, M. Paluszkiewicz in 1886 and forestry auditor A. Vozdvyzhensky in 1890 explored the southern part of Primorsky Krai and found the lack of wood for construction of buildings and ships and the need to preserve and restore forest resources. Well-known entrepreneur and naturalist M. I. Yankovsky has proposed to restrict uncontrolled felling of forests, hunting and fishing. The Military Governor of the Primorye region Pavel F. Unterberger 19 may 1896 established sanctuaries on the territory of four forest districts. In the refuges was banned hunting of Sika deer and red deer. It was the first protected areas in Primorsky Krai. The Governor N. L. Gondatti 11 June 1911 adopted the "Rules on the manufacture of customized hunting in forests and on state lands the Priamursk General Governorship", and new sanctuaries. Forester T. L. Grodecki in 1912 offered to stop deforestation in the district, "Kedrovaya Pad" and organize on the territory the nature reserve for the preservation Black- abies and broadleaved forests in the river basin Kedrovaya. Primorsky Forest Society meeting, supported the proposal of T. L. Grodecki on 16 June 1916. In a Memorandum to the seaside forest companies on the organization of the reserve of the Amur Governor-General N. L. Gondatti put the following resolution: "Recognize the formation of reserves necessary...". However, the case for the organization of the reserve "Kedrovaya Pad" was not completed due to the 1917 revolution, regime change and intervention of Japan and US troops etc. Only July 26, 1922, the Provisional Amur Government approved the organization of the Reserve "Kedrovaya pad". New archival materials about the organization of the first Russian Far Eastern Nature Reserve «Kedrovaya Pad'» are given.