Requirements were added to Baikal – Kommersant

UNESCO expressed concern about “the numerous proposed and approved amendments to legislation (RF.— “b”)”, which will weaken the standards for acceptable impact on the ecosystem of Lake Baikal, and urged Russia not to approve such changes. It is, according to the organization, “about the facilitation of clear-cutting and the further development of infrastructure projects, including tourism projects and transport infrastructure.” UNESCO also outlined a number of requirements aimed at preserving the Baikal ecosystem. Environmentalists believe that non-cooperation could lead to the inclusion of the lake in the list of World Heritage Sites in Danger.

The UNESCO World Heritage Center has compiled a list of requirements for Russia, the fulfillment of which will help to avoid adding Baikal to the list of endangered sites. It is published on the 46th page of the draft decisions to be adopted during the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee in Riyadh, which starts in September. Similar proposals are made for a number of World Heritage properties in the run-up to committee sessions based on data that member countries of the Convention on the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage and “third parties” (most often NGOs and environmental activists) provide to UNESCO.

Baikal was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List on December 5, 1996. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee recognized it as an example of an outstanding freshwater ecosystem, the oldest and deepest lake in the world, which contains 20% of the Earth’s non-freezing surface water. The status of the territory of the world natural heritage is the highest of the nature protection, a kind of status of a reserve of planetary significance. The World Heritage Site is not only the lake, but also the coastal zone. “Lake Baikal” covers an area of ​​about 8.8 million hectares.

The document states that on March 30, 2023, the World Heritage Center sent a request to the Russian authorities for additional information “in response to concerns from third parties about legislative amendments that weaken environmental standards in order to facilitate clear-cutting and further develop infrastructure projects, including tourism projects and transport infrastructure.” We are talking about amendments to the laws “On the Protection of Lake Baikal” and “On Ecological Expertise”, which at that moment were only submitted to the Parliament, and in July 2023 were already adopted by the State Duma of the Russian Federation in the first reading (“Kommersant” spoke in detail about , what discussions caused the adoption of the document on July 12, 2023). However, “at the time of writing, no response had been received.” Because of this, UNESCO asks “to submit to the World Heritage Center no later than the end of 2023 an overdue study of the impact of legislative changes on the site” and calls on Russia “not to approve any changes that weaken the site’s protection regime.”

The document again draws attention to the danger of fluctuations in the water level in Baikal by more than 1 m, as this leads to erosion of the coast and flooding of coastal areas. In this regard, there is a request for detailed information on all existing and planned development projects in special economic zones (SEZ) of Baikal. Separately, UNESCO called on Russia to provide an environmental impact assessment (EIA) of measures to rehabilitate the former Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill and a concept for the development of the former site of the mill. At the same time, the committee asks to suspend the implementation of all these measures until a joint mission of the World Heritage Center and the International Union for Conservation of Nature to Baikal is organized. According to the Russian proposal, which UNESCO “takes into account”, the mission should take place after November 25, 2023.

Russia should submit a full updated report on the measures taken and the state of the “safety of the site” by February 1, 2024. “The urgent conservation needs of this site call for a broad mobilization of efforts to preserve its Outstanding Universal Value, including possible inclusion on the World Heritage in Danger List,” the committee concluded.

“If the amendments to the legislation on Baikal are adopted in the form as they are now, you can be sure that the issue of including the lake in the list of objects under threat at the session next year will become very acute,” said a member of the expert council in a conversation with Kommersant. Mikhail Kreindlin on the reserve case. “This threatens Russia with reputational losses, not to mention the fact that the Baikal ecosystem will be seriously damaged.”

The Ministry of Natural Resources told Kommersant that so far all draft UNESCO decisions are undergoing a “comprehensive assessment.” They also reminded that in 2022 it was already planned to conduct a joint monitoring mission of UNESCO and the International Union for Conservation of Nature on Baikal. “International experts had to assess the possible negative impact on the lake, but the event was canceled by foreign partners the day before,” the ministry said.

The State Duma Committee on Ecology, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection has already read the document and informed Kommersant that they “share UNESCO’s position on the importance of preserving Lake Baikal” and “the need to prepare a comprehensive program for the sustainable development of the Baikal natural territory.” “This program should ensure a balance between the environment and the quality of life of local residents. It will take at least two years to create it. The pressing issues need to be resolved now, the rest should be worked out in detail, ”said Elena Panova, head of the apparatus of the Duma committee. She also noted that “the amendment of legislation is primarily related to the solution of environmental and social problems” and “amendments obliging EIA in the SEZ have already been formed and are being discussed.” Ms. Panova is confident that the relevant departments will send all the information necessary to UNESCO on time, and promises that “if there is a need, the deputies are ready to join this work.”

Recall that earlier the Russian Foreign Ministry announced Russia’s desire to fully participate in the UNESCO heritage convention. In a conversation with Kommersant, they stressed that “the mechanisms of the convention have proven their effectiveness and relevance.” “The brand of a world heritage site not only helps to preserve objects recognized as a universal heritage, but also has a scientific, educational and socio-economic impact, for example, in the tourism industry,” the Foreign Ministry is sure.

Polina Yachmennikova