{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-c03aa079.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-517835be.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='TALKING POINT Protected forests threatened by hunt for Xmas trees' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54bd23d8eafeecae131e3d' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54bd23d8eafeecae131e3d' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nTALKING POINT Protected forests threatened by hunt for Xmas trees\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003e1. Wide of Riga main square2. Close up Christmas tree at the square3. Wide of Christmas tree market4. Mid shot Christmas tree seller showing tree branches to a woman5. Wide of car with Christmas tree in the trunk riding on the road6....\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003e1. Wide of Riga main square\u003cbr/\u003e2. Close up Christmas tree at the square\u003cbr/\u003e3. Wide of Christmas tree market\u003cbr/\u003e4. Mid shot Christmas tree seller showing tree branches to a woman\u003cbr/\u003e5. Wide of car with Christmas tree in the trunk riding on the road\u003cbr/\u003e6. Close up car trunk with Christmas tree\u003cbr/\u003e7. Close up stub from a cut fir tree in the woods\u003cbr/\u003e8. Wide of forestry inspector walking in the fir tree wood\u003cbr/\u003e9. SOUNDBITE (Latvian) Juris Kruminsh, chief forestry inspector of Riga region:\u003cbr/\u003e\"This happens every year when the Christmas and New Year season is coming. People were told once that every person could cut a tree for himself, but nobody explained to them where, in what forest exactly they could do that. This forest belongs to Riga regional authorities and you cannot cut fir trees here.\" \u003cbr/\u003e10. Cutaway inspector walking near fir tree stub\u003cbr/\u003e11. SOUNDBITE: (Latvian) Juris Kruminsh, chief forestry inspector of Riga region:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Last week, for example, we caught two people and took them to the forestry administration where they paid all the fines. As they say, ignorance of the law is no excuse.\" \u003cbr/\u003e12. Wide of woman buying Christmas tree branches at the Christmas market\u003cbr/\u003e13. Mid shot pan zoom out woman taking branches and leaving\u003cbr/\u003e14. SOUNDBITE (Latvian) Janis Blums, Christmas tree seller\u003cbr/\u003e\"I think it is not right to cut down fir trees in forests around Riga. As for the private forests, people should decide for themselves whether to cut them or not.\" \u003cbr/\u003e15. Close up tilt up Christmas trees at the market\u003cbr/\u003e16. SOUNDBITE (Latvian) Diana, Riga citizen, voxpop:\u003cbr/\u003e\"We usually go as far from Riga as we can to the place where it is allowed to cut trees. My family and I go there beforehand, one or two weeks before Christmas, and we never chop trees in places where it is forbidden.\" \u003cbr/\u003e17. Wide of Christmas tree market\u003cbr/\u003e18. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Leonid Zenkovic, Riga citizen, Voxpop:\u003cbr/\u003e\"We usually agree with the forest inspector beforehand and go to the place where we can cut a tree. Here (at the Christmas market) the fir trees are too expensive.\" \u003cbr/\u003e19. Wide of big Christmas trees in Riga centre\u003cbr/\u003e20. Close up trees\u003cbr/\u003e21. Close up night shot of clock on the tower\u003cbr/\u003e22. Wide night shot people walking in Riga central square, Christmas tree with flashing lights \u003cbr/\u003eLatvian authorities gave people something to cheer about when they invited them to cut their own Christmas trees for free - only to be chased away by forest rangers.  \u003cbr/\u003eA Riga forestry agency said this week a state body had invited residents to cut their trees from forests 50 kilometres (30 miles) or more outside the capital, but instead people had descended on protected areas around the city. \u003cbr/\u003eThe authority was quoted by news agency LETA as saying that rangers in charge of forests around Riga had been struggling to keep people away to protect the few fir trees that grow there. \u003cbr/\u003e\"This happens every year when the Christmas and New Year season is coming. People were told once that every person could cut a tree for himself, but nobody explained to them where, in what forest exactly they could do that,\" Juris Kruminsh, the chief forestry inspector of Riga region said.\u003cbr/\u003eDespite the majority of Riga citizens claiming that they travel far from the city to cut their Christmas trees, the numerous stubs from chopped fir trees around Riga demonstrate the contrary.\u003cbr/\u003eThe forestry inspector says people chop fir trees in forbidden areas every day.\u003cbr/\u003e\"Last week, for example, we caught two people and took them to the forestry administration where they paid all the fines. As they say, ignorance of the law is no excuse,\" Kruminsh said.\u003cbr/\u003eThe illegal choppers, if they are caught, have to pay a fine of between 70 and 700 euros, but so far this hasn't scared them away. \u003cbr/\u003eHundreds of cases of illegal chopping were registered in forests around Riga, LETA news agency reported. \u003cbr/\u003eThe most common Latvian legend about the first Christmas tree involves Martin Luther and his walk through a forest in Riga, where he spied the stars shining through the prickly boughs of an evergreen tree.\u003cbr/\u003eSupposedly, Martin Luther brought the tree home and decorated it with candles to simulate the effect of stars.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='action-container flex justify-between'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' aria-label='Read more description' class='rp-full-description' type='button'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cspan 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