On January 11, 1917 (December 29, 1916, old style), the first camp was formed to restore the sable population on Lake Baikal. Russian Empire Barguzinsky Nature Reserve. This date became the starting point for the protected history of our country. The team of the Kronotsky Nature Reserve congratulates its colleagues on their professional holiday!
Over the course of a hundred years, the reserve community has done a lot: the populations of endangered animal species such as bison, sables, and sea otters have been restored; implemented modern technologies, allowing to effectively study and protect nature without causing disturbance to the inhabitants of protected areas; unique ones are open geographical features, new species of animals and plants were identified. Every year since 1997, January 11 is celebrated in Russia as the Day of Nature Reserves and National Parks. Employees of specially protected natural areas spend this day at work - protecting, studying and promoting wildlife.
Great results have been achieved by the employees of the Kronotsky State Nature Reserve, which manages the Kronotsky, Koryaksky nature reserves and the South Kamchatka Federal Nature Reserve named after T. I. Shpilenko. Over the years of systematic work in cooperation with law enforcement agencies and the local population, poaching has been virtually eliminated in protected and adjacent territories. Together with representatives of leading research organizations in Russia and the world, government and business, ambitious projects are being implemented, large-scale Scientific research, environmental festivals and actions. Every year, world professionals from the film industry and natural photography, media representatives of various levels come to the protected areas and tell the whole world about the unique Kamchatka.
All this was achieved thanks to the talented leadership of a dedicated conservationist, professional and enthusiast Tikhona Shpilenka. An ideological inspirer and co-author of major environmental and environmental education projects, a man of modern views, he supported the endeavors of young specialists and respected the experience of senior colleagues.
“We have a lot of work ahead in the territories under our jurisdiction, the implementation of important environmental projects in cooperation with the reserve community country systems, – noted Roman Korchigin, acting director of the Kronotsky State Nature Reserve. – Tikhon Igorevich Shpilenok set a high bar for himself and the entire team in the development of nature reserves in Kamchatka and Russia. We will try not to lose momentum and will continue to actively work for the benefit of wildlife».
For the entire anniversary year 2017, declared in Russia as the Year of Specially Protected Natural Areas and the Year of Ecology, a huge number of environmental activities are planned: regional, all-Russian and international. One of them is the All-Russian flash mob in in social networks“Congratulate your protected island on the 100th anniversary of the conservation system.” It starts on the holiday, January 11, and will last until the end of the year.
You can create a greeting card addressed to any protected area on the website reservedlesson.rf project “All-Russian Reserve Lesson”, dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Russian reserve system. The project is being implemented by the EcoCenter “Reserves” within the framework of the “Movement of Friends of Protected Islands” program with the support of the Moscow Public Relations Committee, State Budgetary Institution “Mospriroda”, ANO “Your Nature”, the Ministry natural resources and ecology Russian Federation and the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.
Few people are lucky enough to see these forests, steppes, arctic tundra and subtropical mountains.
One hundred years ago, in one of its last decrees before the collapse of the Russian Empire in 1917, the Governing Senate of Tsar Nicholas II approved a plan to close big piece Siberia for the public.
The move was a desperate attempt to stave off the looming extinction of the Siberian sable, an ermine-like animal whose pelt was so valuable it was traded almost as hard currency.
But, in addition, this decree, one of the last in the history of the Russian Empire, formed the basis for the creation of a unique system of nature reserves, which now cover an area the size of France and have received a higher conservation status from the UN than any others in the world.
The very name “reserve” comes from the word “commandment”, that is, a sacred order, covenant.
Unlike Western national parks, which are organized to protect natural world for the sake of people, Russian nature reserves were created for science and for conservation environment.
© WWF Russia Igor Chestin
These reserves were completely closed to people, leaving untouched landscapes forever for wildlife ecosystems and the scientists who study them.
The result is a series of large-scale open-air “laboratories” that are collecting extensive knowledge about weather patterns and wildlife populations that could be key contributions to understanding climate change and factors influencing biodiversity.
Today, many, if not all, of them have buffer zones, where tourist information centers sometimes appear, which you can visit if you are lucky enough to get permission. In some places they allow you to walk along strictly marked paths.
But access to the heart of these reserves is still prohibited, meaning only foresters and scientists will be able to see some of Russia's most stunning landscapes.
Success and disaster
Over the past century, the condition of the reserves has changed. Lenin, a passionate lover of traveling on foot, greatly expanded them; Stalin - reduced; After the collapse of the Soviet Union, there was again a period of rapid expansion, but new problems also emerged. Recently, new trade opportunities have emerged with China, fueling demand for rare species valued in Eastern medicine and prompting illegal hunting of tigers, bears and dozens of other species.
Multimedia
Exploring Arctic Wildlife
The Atlantic 10/26/2017Today there are 103 reserves in Russia, from the tiny Prioksko-Terrasny reserve south of Moscow, the center of the European bison breeding program, to the vast Great Arctic Reserve, which stretches 16 thousand square miles (approximately 4,169,000 hectares) along the coast of Siberia. Along with hundreds of other national parks and protected areas, they form one of the largest systems of nature reserves in the world.
However, environmental organizations still have to fight poaching.
Saiga, a critically endangered antelope species, used to roam the steppes around the Caspian Sea in herds of tens of thousands of individuals. In the 1970s, its population was 850 thousand animals, but now it has dropped to only a few thousand.
The Volga and Caspian sturgeon populations were nearly wiped out as a result of overfishing and caviar poaching in the 1990s. Now, however, their numbers have stabilized after a nine-year export ban that was in effect from 2002 to 2011.
The problem of illegal trade has recently begun to be discussed marine mammals, including killer whales and beluga whales, which are sold to foreign zoos.
But there are also areas in which significant progress has been made.
The sable that Nicholas II's Senate wanted to save is no longer on the endangered species list, the Caucasian red deer has reappeared on the slopes of the Caucasus Mountains, and the European bison, once virtually extinct, is returning to forests across the country - thanks in large part to protection. provided by nature reserves.
Last count Amur tigers, estimated at 480-540 head, showed a small but noticeable improvement. Meanwhile, previously the population was moving towards almost inevitable extinction.
The main success was the Land of the Leopard project, a new national park created in 2012 by combining and expanding three protected areas in Far East.
Over the past five years, the livestock Far Eastern leopards, one of the rarest and most endangered species on the planet, has grown from about 30 to 80 individuals, raising hopes that its previously almost certain extinction can be averted.
“The system of natural reserves is one of the things that Russia should undoubtedly be proud of,” says Igor Chestin, one of the prominent Russian figures in the field of nature conservation, who began working in protected areas at the end of the Soviet era.
Threatened
At the forefront of the fight against poaching are government inspectors or foresters: these men and women work in low-paid jobs, patrolling nature reserves and guarding sometimes the most remote corners of Russia.
It's a solitary, difficult job, but it attracts everyone from professional scientists and local residents looking to make a career to idealists who love nature and escape crazy city life, says Vsevolod Stepanitsky. former head department responsible for nature conservation in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of Russia.
But, he warns, this alone is not enough for one of the most difficult jobs - serving as a game warden who fights against poachers.
“Not everyone likes to apprehend criminals. It's hard. You have to like the adrenaline,” he says. “Loving nature is very good, but here you still have to enjoy the hunting process.”
This is a job whose success largely depends on the passion and determination of the employee.
“We need a lot of knowledge and skills,” says Alexander Yurkov, a ranger at the mountainous Caucasus Biosphere Reserve, when asked what it takes to do the job.
Among other things, you must be an experienced horseman and know how to shoe a horse: the terrain here is too rugged for motorized vehicles, so Alexander and his colleagues patrol the rocky mountains and dense forests on horseback as rangers, forest rangers and policemen rolled into one.
In addition, you must understand “what you can and cannot do in the forest,” comments Valery Derevianko, another ranger from the same reserve.
“You're always going to have to ask yourself, 'Okay, is this where I can go?' Do I need to dismount? Is this path safe?"
Context
Yle: Enormous positive changes at the Russian-Finnish border
Yle 09/22/2018Jyllands-Posten: Putin is changing his image: from bear killer to nature-loving cowboy
Jyllands-Posten 09/01/2018 Le Monde 07/28/2018Nature saves a Karelian village
Sveriges Radio 10/10/2017Nature shows us who's boss
Die Welt 07/27/2017Does not work in remote forests where the weather changes sharply cellular and there is no rescue service, you always take risks. Inspectors in the Caucasus Nature Reserve go on patrols only in groups of three, says Alexander Yurkov. “This way, if someone is injured, the second person will stay with the victim, and the third can go for help,” he explains.
You must love doing this work, but loving nature is not enough. City romantics, according to both men, rarely stay here for long.
Vsevolod Stepanitsky, former employee Ministry, believes that the complex profession of a forester does not enjoy the respect it deserves.
Salaries at all levels are low: an experienced huntsman receives a little more than 18 thousand rubles per month. Beginners earn only 12 thousand.
The worst thing is, argues Vsevolod Stepanitsky, that the level of training is very different and that the Russian public does not particularly respect this profession.
“The main problem is that we do not have a single agency like the US National Park Service,” says Vsevolod Stepanitsky. He resigned from the ministry in April, frustrated by what he calls a lack of political will to create such an agency.
“In countries where there are real services dedicated to this matter, for example, in the USA or countries South America, the people who work there are proud of it. When there is no prestige, no respect, no decent training, it is difficult to motivate people.”
Leopards in danger
Vsevolod Stepanitsky is one of several officials working in the field of nature conservation who quit for Last year due to excessive bureaucracy and the department's apparent indifference to the need for reform.
This mass exodus worries many environmentalists, who are concerned about the lack of real scientists in the field. higher levels government controlled.
“Many people in this government tend to believe that the only real professions are economists and lawyers,” Igor Chestin said during an interview at the Russian headquarters of the World Conservation Fund in Moscow. - Why is everything so bad? Because decisions are usually made during interdepartmental meetings at the level of deputy ministers.”
“If there is no person in the ministry who understands and can explain why this or that species is important or why this or that reserve should not be touched, the ministry has no opportunity to insist on help or fight some bill that could harm,” he added.
It was about a fierce struggle over the fate of a World Natural Heritage site called Western Caucasus, which includes a number of protected areas, including the Caucasus Nature Reserve.
Russia has promised to expand the boundaries of this World Natural Heritage site as part of its bid to host the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi - and this step was also decisive for a project that was supported by the World Conservation Fund and even Vladimir Putin himself: “Leopard Restoration in the Caucasus.”
But these plans were shelved so that two ski resort, one of which is owned by state giant Gazprom, and the other by Vladimir Potanin, one of richest people Russia could expand their slopes and infrastructure into valleys that were originally intended for protected areas.
Now Igor Chestin fears that the resorts are planning an attack on the reserve itself: such a project will require changes in legislation at the highest government level.
The organizers of this project were actively supported by allies in the government, who believe that the development of the tourism industry in Sochi is more important than saving a few animals.
But Igor Chestin says conservationists also have their allies in government, and both sides are trying to persuade Vladimir Putin to side with them.
Vertical of power
Relationship Russian President with nature conservation are somewhat schizophrenic.
He is well known for his love of being photographed with large predators, and he has at times used his influence to support conservationist efforts, including the now-threatened Persian leopard reintroduction project.
But he often sides with industry on issues such as oil drilling in Arctic regions and has a penchant for controversial construction projects (such as the 2014 Sochi Olympics). He has even been accused of some of his David Attenborough-style performances being fake for the camera.
Igor Chestin, a canny diplomat whose organization carefully balances alternately challenging and collaborating with the Russian government, says the president's support was critical to the Persian leopard reintroduction program and that the Land of the Leopard national park in the Far East never would have been created without the personal participation of Sergei Ivanov, the former chief of staff of Vladimir Putin.
© Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation. Nikolay Zinoviev Kronotsky Nature Reserve. Kamchatka brown bear
Vsevolod Stepanitsky agrees with this. After Vladimir Putin visited the Kronotsky Nature Reserve in Kamchatka in 2010, he says, the then-prime minister quickly convened a council to resolve a number of issues raised by his staff.
To put it bluntly, he adds, the Kremlin's use of wildlife for PR is a quid pro quo, and Russian conservationists should take advantage of it without any qualms.
"Not very often in Russian history the country had a leader who truly loved animals,” he said. “We have to take advantage of this while we can.”
InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the InoSMI editorial staff.
In 2017, the Russian nature reserve system celebrates its centennial anniversary. In the history of our country’s conservation work, during this considerable period of time, various interesting and sometimes tragic periods have been noted.
For the first time, the most clearly and clearly formulated principles of the commandment were V.V. Dokuchaev is still in late XIX century: "... Only that which has a future is what is done in accordance with nature, without, if possible, violating its normal current life, and what, so to speak, follows from local zonal conditions and needs».
At the beginning of the 20th century, the development of nature reserves in Russia was stimulated, on the one hand, by the active movement of scientists - naturalists, among whom was the founder and first director of our Caucasian Nature Reserve - Kh.G. Shaposhnikov. And on the other hand, the existence of national parks in the United States, which were, as it were, a model for the Russian environmental community.
In March 1908, speaking at the Club public figures Petersburg, the famous biologist Andrei Petrovich Semenov-Tyan-Shansky expressed the idea of creating forest reserves: “ Significant untouched forest areas must be converted in advance, as has been done in many places in North America, into protected areas, into national parks in which the taiga in its inviolable form would forever be preserved».
In the same year, professor at Moscow University G.A. Kozhevnikov, in his report “On the need to establish protected areas for the protection of Russian nature,” proclaimed, in fact, a manifesto of the reserve system, in his report at a meeting of the All-Russian Acclimatization Congress in Moscow. " To be able to study nature, we must try to preserve it in its primitive integrity in the form of its most typical formations».
It is in the spirit of these ideas, with the filing of a petition by H.G. Shaposhnikov and with the direct support of members of the Imperial Academy of Sciences, prominent scientists N.V. Nasonov, A.A. Byalynitsky-Birulei, President of the Academy of Sciences, raised the issue of creating the Caucasian Nature Reserve. As a result, a petition was submitted to the highest name, and in 1909 Nicholas II approved the Interdepartmental Commission: “... to develop measures to protect the Caucasian bison" A regulation on the reserve was developed, and in fact this was the first experience in developing a regulation on a specific state reserve. However, as is known, the Caucasian Nature Reserve itself was established much later...
In December 1916, the Minister of Agriculture submitted a proposal to the Senate: “... on the establishment of the Barguzinsky hunting reserve in the Transbaikal region, Barguzinsky district..." Thus, the first reserve in Russia (for now a hunting reserve) was established by law. In the same year, the Kedrovaya Pad nature reserve was established in the Primorsky Territory.
In 1920–1930, during the formation of the Soviet state, the basic ideas of nature conservation were formed. The first decrees of the Soviet state “On land” and “On the socialization of land” removed from the agenda the most difficult issue that had always stood in the way of the creation of nature reserves - the issue of property rights. This became the main legal basis for organizing the future nature reserve system of Russia.
The beginning was made by the establishment in 1919, in the delta of the Volga River, of the Astrakhan Nature Reserve. In 1920 the Ilmensky Nature Reserve was created, in 1923 the Crimean Nature Reserve defended its right to exist, and in 1924 the Caucasian Nature Reserve was officially established. By the way, the history of the creation of the Crimean reserve, as well as the Caucasian reserve, goes back to the end of the nineteenth century, since these reserves were created on the lands of former royal or princely hunting reserves.
In 1929, the First All-Russian Congress on Nature Conservation took place, at which a turn from nature conservation as such to nature management in the interests of socialist construction was proclaimed. On the one hand, this turned reserved science away from basic research to more applied areas. On the other hand, one way or another, it served as an incentive to create new reserves. Among others, in 1932 it was formed Altai Nature Reserve, in 1934 - Kronotsky, in 1936 - Teberdinsky Reserve. These reserves today are biosphere reserves, i.e. standard corners of wild nature.
In the mid-1930s. In many reserves, truly scientific teams were formed, in which many bright researchers worked, who later became famous scientists. For example, in the Caucasus Nature Reserve at that time a whole galaxy of talented zoologists emerged: A.A. Nasimovich, V.P. Teplov, I.V. Zharkov, S.S. Donaurov.
By the end of the 1930s, there were already 27 state reserves in the country, which conducted a total of about 200 scientific topics, subtopics or scientific activities. At the same time, there was a strictly established system for reviewing reports and manuscripts. Among the reviewers were not only staff members of the reserves, but also prominent scientists, including academicians. In general, we can already talk about the formed reserve system of this period as a certain scientific school that trained many specialists.
In 1939, a project was developed to expand the network of state reserves, which included more than 20 designed objects in various landscape zones. Special attention was given to the north of the European part of the country, Siberia and the Far East.
However, the Great One intervened in all these plans and affairs. Patriotic War. Many reserve workers - researchers, security guards - were mobilized to the front, most of whom did not return. Some reserves fell into the zone of hostilities and occupation. According to reports, in 1942-1943 alone, during the occupation, 1,726 deer, 2,050 roe deer, 47 aurochs, 323 chamois were killed in the Crimea and the Caucasus, and more than 100 buildings were destroyed. True, in fairness it must be said that the reserve’s employees also received permission to shoot animals. In particular, in the Caucasus Nature Reserve, in the report of L.I. Sosnina, mentions obtaining permission to shoot 820 ungulates for the needs of the Red Army.
But at the same time, throughout the entire period of occupation and fighting in the Caucasus, in the Caucasus Reserve, a small group of remaining employees, among whom were women and children, selflessly guarded and protected a small herd of bison, which had just been brought to the reserve before the war, as part of an experiment on restoration of this unique species in the Caucasus.
In 1944, when the Soviet Army drove the Wehrmacht military machine out of the country, in many reserves, despite the fact that they were not yet staffed staffing tables, and many employees did not return from the front, work began to restore the reserve regime and the destroyed economy. And the victorious year of 1945 was marked by the organization of two nature reserves - Moscow and Darwin. The Moscow Nature Reserve was planned even before the war, and the Darwin Nature Reserve came into operation even before the Rybinsk Reservoir was completely filled.
The total damage caused to the reserves by military actions was estimated at more than 30 million rubles.
However, the most tragic period for the reserves was the period from the late 1940s to the early 1950s.
In August 1948, the infamous session of the All-Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences took place, which was marked by the complete triumph of the “teachings” of Michurin-Lysenko. And at the beginning of 1950, A.V. was appointed to the post of head of the Main Directorate for Nature Reserves under the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR. Malinovsky. It was with the arrival of this man that the Russian conservation system suffered the most severe damage. In one of his first speeches A.V. Malinovsky said the following: “... The question is posed as follows: reconsider the number of reserves, their direction, their tasks, and maybe liquidate some of them...» ( General meeting GUZ, July 7, 1950). These and other speeches essentially declared the collapse of the country's conservation system. During 1951-1952. 22 reserves were liquidated, and those whose area exceeded 100 thousand hectares had their territory greatly reduced. For example, such reserves as Altai and Kronotsky were liquidated - today these are biosphere reserves included in the World Natural Heritage List!
The Caucasus Nature Reserve was “lucky” - it was not closed, but its area was halved. The unique mountain ranges of Dzitaku, Aishkha, Lagonaki and others were transferred to economic zone- the former protected land was now occupied by loggers, geologists and shepherds... Fortunately, this state of affairs did not last long, and already in 1955 108 thousand hectares were returned to the reserve, and by March 1959 the area of the reserve had already increased to 252 thousand. ha.
In 1958 – 1959 It was possible to restore a number of liquidated nature reserves, including Altai and Kronotsky.
In 1960–1970, the reserve system underwent a number of changes, but still there were more creative events. In 1962, a new “Regulation on state reserves", according to which reserves were defined as: " areas of land and water that are of special scientific or cultural and educational significance..." And although some sections of this provision contained clauses that contradicted the principles of conservation, for example, it was allowed “ sanitary fellings, thinnings" and so on. But in general, this Regulation, in fact, gave rise to the revival of the reserve system, which was violated in the middle of the 20th century. In total, during this period, about 20 new reserves were created, including such well-known today biosphere reserves as: Volzhko-Kama, Baikal, Far Eastern Sea, Taimyr.
In the 1980s - 1990s. Russia's conservation system developed further, and the beginning of this period can be considered the so-called “the period of the great leap”, since more than 30 new reserves were created in the eighties alone. Almost the same amount was created in the 1990s. During these years, such well-known biosphere reserves as the Central Siberian, Shulgan-Tash, Daursky, Komandorsky and a number of others were established.
By the beginning of the 2000s, there were more than 100 different reserves in Russia, which reflect the nature of various regions and regions, landscapes, flora and fauna. And today this is truly the golden natural fund of the country, which allows, with a high degree of probability, to track trends in natural changes and, accordingly, analyze and predict the impact of man on Mother Nature, and not only our country!
Published based on materials from F.R. Shtilmarka
“History of conservation in Russia (1895 – 1995)
Barguzinsky State Natural Biosphere Reserve. Photo: Sergio Tittarini
A 100-year history
Today in Russia there are 103 state nature reserves, 47 national parks, 67 federal reserves. In total, there are more than 12 thousand specially protected natural areas (SPNA) in the country. different levels and categories.
This year it is planned to add 6 more national parks, 2 state nature reserves, 2 federal reserves.
Among them are the Khibiny and Ladoga Skerries national parks, known, perhaps, to any person at least a little interested in the problem of protecting wildlife in Russia. All this is thanks to the ongoing conflict for many years, either fading or flaring up again, around their creation.
Thus, the project of the Ladoga Skerries National Park appeared back in 1989. However, the creation of protected areas was constantly shifted for one reason or another. Meanwhile, the anthropogenic load on the Ladoga region, including the territory where it was planned to create a national park, was steadily growing: this included massive deforestation, the construction of granite quarries, and the emergence of elite dachas and recreation centers... Irresponsible tourists also made their contribution leaving behind mountains of garbage.
Of course, industrialists and the officials who support them, with an area of about 80 hectares, without a fight. Even despite the orders of higher authorities, including the presidential decree.
But still, despite everything, the efforts of ecologists and local residents led to the fact that on January 29, 2016, Rosprirodnadzor of the Russian Federation approved a positive conclusion of the environmental assessment for the national park project.
True, not even a month passed after this, when the head of the Republic of Karelia, Alexander Khudilainen, proposed to withdraw from the future protected area an area of 3,750 hectares on the shore of Lake Ladoga “to create socially significant facilities,” under the guise of which, apparently, for Rosneft employees. . To which the Ministry of Natural Resources gave its consent in February last year. It was only thanks to active public protests that these plans were stopped.
The fate of another unique corner of nature – the Khibiny Mountains – is very similar. The Kola Wildlife Conservation Center has been campaigning for the creation of a national park there since 1997. And for the first time the idea to organize protected areas in this territory appeared 100 years ago - in 1917.
Subsoil users are opposed to environmentalists - in the Khibiny there are deposits of apatite-nepheline ores, which serve as raw materials for the production of mineral fertilizers. Licenses for their development were issued to CJSC North-West Phosphorous Company (NWPC). The Federal Agency for Subsoil Use also saw benefits from mineral extraction alone. According to the department, the creation of protected areas could ruin the mining industry of the region. Fortunately, in 2016, the NWPC and environmentalists came to a compromise, and so far nothing threatens the planned national park.
Of course, if the territories of the northern Ladoga region and the Khibiny Mountains are finally protected with the status of a national park, this will greatly help protect their unique nature from encroachment.
The same applies to the rest of the protected areas planned for creation this year. By the way, in addition to new specially protected areas, it is planned to expand existing ones. It's about about the Russian Arctic National Park and the Caucasian State Natural Biosphere Reserve. In the next 8 years, their area is expected to increase by 18%.
Will status help?
However, the status of protected areas, even of federal significance, is not always able to protect against aggressive human invasion.
Indicative in this regard is the example of the same Caucasian Biosphere Reserve: part of its territory, as well as some other unique natural corners of the Krasnodar Territory, were brought into private and. Neither active public action, nor the law, nor even the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site helped.
Another similar example is the Arctic Nature Reserve Wrangel Island, also a World Heritage Site. In 2014, the Ministry of Defense began and then conducted large-scale military exercises. By the way, it was during the construction of this very base that a shocking incident occurred when a cook fed an explosive package to a polar bear. In addition, the licensed areas of Rosneft intersect with the protected zone of the reserve.
Unfortunately, there are no guarantees that similar stories will not be repeated in the future.
Tourism is destroying protected areas
Another acute problem facing the Russian nature reserve system is the development of tourism in protected areas.
Let's look at the example again.
On December 21, interregional public hearings were held in Irkutsk on projects for the development of the Baikal Natural Territory (BNT), which includes the Barguzinsky Nature Reserve, the oldest in Russia, celebrating its 100th anniversary, the Baikal-Lena Nature Reserve, the Pribaikalsky National Park, as well as a number of other protected areas. .
Based on the results of the event, the document “Principles and approaches to the development of BPT” was formed. However, it would seem fundamental principle– the preservation of the unique ecosystem of Lake Baikal is not included in the document, although it still contains points that address environmental issues. But it talks about “balancing the solution of socio-economic problems, improving the quality of life of the population and protecting the unique ecological system of Lake Baikal on the principles of sustainable development, balancing the interests of the local population and external interests (investors, tourists, etc.).”
True, the last principle set out in the document speaks of the balance of “social, economic and environmental development goals.” But, again, if we turn to specific examples even within the borders of the same BNT, it becomes clear how this balance is maintained: here and there over the years, successful and not so successful attempts to alienate the territory for the purposes of “socio-economic development” have periodically occurred. Moreover, this is not happening just anywhere, but on the territory of one of the most unique natural objects not only of the country, but also of the world, which is already suffering from a large number - from forest fires and black loggers to the plans of neighboring Mongolia to build a hydroelectric power station on the rivers feeding the lake. In order to understand the harm that tourism causes to the nature of the Baikal region, it is enough to look at the experience of one of the most popular areas among visitors - Olkhonsky, in which the construction of tourist centers and crowds of tourists did not leave a living place along hundreds of kilometers of coastline.
But it was precisely with the opening of the Baikal Reserve tourist visitor center under the slogan “Let’s open Reserve Baikal together!” On January 11, the 100th anniversary of the creation of the first reserve in Russia, Minister of Ecology Sergei Donskoy launched the Year of Specially Protected Natural Areas.
Unfortunately, this is not an accident - in an interview at the end of last summer, Donskoy said: “ National parks and the reserves are currently visited by 2 million people. Our task is to focus on building infrastructure in these territories so that in the next five years we can double the number of visits to these territories.”
Moreover, sometimes the Ministry of Natural Resources does not even notice illegal tourist activities in the territories of nature reserves. Apparently, in order to double the number of visits.
Well, so that there is no doubt that tourism or “socio-economic” development is a higher priority activity for protected areas than nature conservation, the State Duma decided to adopt in the summer of 2016, which was opposed not only by ecologists and the active public, but also Russian Geographical Society. “This amendment creates a threat to the entire system of specially protected natural areas, since for the first time it allows for the possibility of an actual reduction of territories and a weakening of the protection regime for reserves,” says a joint statement by Igor Chestin, director of WWF Russia, and Alexander Chibilev, vice-president of the Russian Geographical Society. “The fact that the amendments were attached to a bill from a completely different area the day before its adoption suggests that they were lobbied for in the interests of specific companies.”
What lies ahead?
Also, in addition to tourism and industry (by the way, another example of how both of these forces destroy nature at once), we should not forget about such a common problem for the entire forest fund of the Russian Federation as forest fires, the situation with which is literally catastrophic. Moreover, after the adoption of the new Forest Code, there are not enough resources, either material, technical, or human, to somehow cope with the elements. Thus, according to the Siberian Federal University, in Siberia alone forest fires are recorded annually on an area of up to 17 million hectares! Nature reserves are also burning. For example, on the territory of the Baikal-Lena Nature Reserve, which burned last summer, the fires were completely extinguished only by .
Black loggers along with poachers are also adding to the troubles for Russian protected areas.
Therefore, of course, the creation of 10 new protected areas is very healthy and correct, however, if current trends continue (and there is no hope for the opposite yet), then such actions, from the point of view of nature conservation, will become increasingly meaningless less and less.
The Day of Nature Reserves and National Parks 2017 is a special day, because this year we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the nature reserve system. In this regard, on this very day, the all-Russian action “Sacred Lesson” and a flash mob on social networks “Congratulate your protected island” will start.
January 11 - 100 years since the creation of the first reserve in Russia
100 years ago in 1917, on this day, the first Barguzinsky Nature Reserve in the Russian Empire was created on Lake Baikal to restore the sable population. From this day on, the entire history of the creation of reserves and national parks in Russia has been recorded.
Over the 100 years of existence of nature reserves and national parks in Russia, populations of endangered animal species such as bison, sables, and sea otters have been restored; modern technologies have been introduced to effectively study and protect nature without disturbing the inhabitants of protected areas; Unique geographical objects were discovered, new species of animals and plants were identified.
Cupid will kick off the anniversary events. The Day of Nature Reserves and National Parks of Russia and the Year of Ecology declared by the President of the country will be opened by the exhibition of photographs “The Protected Necklace of the Amur”.
The exhibition covers five regions:
- Amur Autonomous Region,
- Jewish Autonomous Region,
- Transbaikal region,
- Khabarovsk region
- Primorsky Krai.
The exhibition presents 92 photographs from 23 federal protected areas of the Amur basin, giving an idea of the animal and flora these protected areas.
An All-Russian flash mob “Congratulate your protected island on the 100th anniversary of the protected system” has been announced on social networks. The promotion will begin on January 11 and will last until the end of the year. On the website zapavnyurok.rf, everyone can create a postcard with a congratulation addressed to any protected area.
Reserve lesson + flash mob
Since childhood, each of us remembers the famous words of the writer Mikhail Prishvin: “To protect nature means to protect the Motherland.” Russia is a country in which many “protected islands” exist and operate - nature reserves, national parks, and nature reserves. How many protected natural areas are there in Russia? Where did the unique system of preserving the network of reference natural objects begin? How was this system built and strengthened, what ups and downs did it experience, what scientific ideas underlay it? Where is the nearest protected area, what is its uniqueness, what objects of wildlife and cultural heritage are there, what rare species of animals and plants live there, what is its history, what kind of people work there, what do they study and what can they teach? What's happened biosphere reserves, what is their importance and special mission?
The answers to all these and many other questions will be learned in detail by participants in the unique action “All-Russian Reserve Lesson”, which starts January 11, 2017, on the date of the 100th anniversary of the Russian nature reserve system.
This project was developed by the Environmental Educational Center "Reserves" within the framework of the Movement of Friends of Protected Islands Program with the support of the Moscow Public Relations Committee, State Budgetary Institution "Mospriroda", ANO "Your Nature", as well as with information support from the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia and the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia. The idea of implementing the Reserve Lesson was also supported by the Russian Schoolchildren Movement, the Russian Geographical Society, the Green Movement of Russia “ECA”, the Ecosystem Association and the Researcher OOD.
“Reserve Lesson” is a school of environmental knowledge for schoolchildren of different ages. The duration of one lesson is 45 minutes, it can be carried out as a separate independent lesson, or be included in the number of subjects in the natural science cycle (biology, geography, the world), and humanitarian (history, social studies, literature). The universality of the program is that employees of protected areas, teachers, activists of the movement of Friends of Protected Islands (SAI), and volunteers can join the action and conduct classes.
In one lesson of 45 minutes, it is only possible to start a story about the Russian reserve system and the nearby “protected islands”, so the organizers of the event recommend conducting not one, but a whole series of classes and inspiring children to implement projects for the benefit of their protected area (perform research papers By current topics, organize environmental campaigns and educational events, volunteer work, etc.).
Flash mob “Congratulate your protected island on the 100th anniversary of the protected system”
Simultaneously with the “All-Russian Reserve Lesson” project, a flash mob action “Congratulate your protected island on the 100th anniversary of the reserve system” is starting.
Everyone is invited to make a postcard or a congratulatory photo, which are published on their pages on social networks (VK, Facebook, OK, Instagram, etc.) with the same hashtags:
#friends of the protected islands
#reserved lesson
#reserved Russia
#100 years of the conservation system
#(hashtag of your protected area)
The website zapovednyurok.rf has created the ability to generate such a postcard.
How to make a congratulation as part of a flash mob?
Anyone can congratulate several protected areas on their centenary, and, if desired, even all of them. The same creative task is given to all children participating in the All-Russian Reserve Lesson. The goal of the campaign is to collect as many congratulations as possible!
(Visited 14 times, 1 visits today)
