ENSURING FI RE SAFETY IN FORESTS DURING TOURIST TREKKING TRIPS AND LOCAL LORE EXPEDITIONS WITH SCHOOLCHILDREN AND STUDENTS: REGULATORY AND LEGAL ASPECTS

Abstract

The article discusses the issue of fi re safety in forests during tourist trips involving active forms of travel with schoolchildren and students. The relevance of the study is determined by the increased risk of forest fi res due to anthropogenic impact in the context of climate change.The aim of the study is to characterize the regulatory and legal aspects of ensuring fi re safety in forests during tourist trips and local lore expeditions with schoolchildren and students. The relevant provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Environmental Protection”, the Forest Code of Ukraine, the Rules of Fire Safety in the Forests of Ukraine, the Instructions for Conducting Tourist Sports Trekking with Schoolchildren and Students, and a number of other regulatory and legal acts on the subject of the study were analyzed. As a result of the study, the imperfection of the current regulatory and legal framework for fire safety in forests was revealed. It has been found that many explanations and guidance recommendations published in media sources regarding fire safety during recreation in forests contain incomplete information, are not fully consistent with the current regulatory framework, or even contradict it. A situation has arisen where the tourist and local history movement, which widely practices the use campfires of during trips, does not fit within the framework provided for by regulatory and legal acts. Gaps in the regulatory framework for fire safety in forests, the lack of necessary qualified explanations, and the insufficient level of methodical support for children’s and youth tourism pose a potential threat to both forest fire safety and the safety of young tourists and local lore enthusiasts. Recommendations have been made to improve fire safety by improving and supplementing the regulatory framework.