SKOPJE, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Macedonian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Tuesday informed it would soon request to lift full ban on movement in forest areas.
"A partial ban in place would allow access to forests for the staff of the Macedonia Forests public enterprise, stakeholders managing protected areas and organized tours of tourists," the Ministry said in a press release.
Since two weeks ago, Macedonia has imposed a full ban on movement in forest areas due to the fires that spread in different regions of the country.
A full ban continues to be in force in the western Macedonia municipalities of Makedonski Brod and Caska, where a state of emergency has been declared due to the massive wildfires.
The Agriculture Ministry said in the statement that 56 wildfires were reported only in August while data revealed that 4,000 hectares of forests areas have been destroyed by fires.
The damage caused by 22 forest fires is estimated at one million euros (1.17 million U.S. dollars). Initial analyses show that some of the wildfires have been deliberately set by arsonists, while others have broken out due to negligence, according to the Agriculture Ministry.
