Skis are standing near Sochi – Newspaper Kommersant No. 225 (7426) of 12/05/2022
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As Kommersant discovered, Gazprom has returned to plans to significantly expand its resort in the Sochi mountain cluster. This follows from published tenders with a total initial price of 193 million rubles. Thus, the company is studying the possibility of building three mountain resorts – Tabunnaya, Aishkho and Pear – with a total area of 16,000 hectares. According to the maps of the projects, they can be located on the territory of the Sochi national park and reserve, as well as the Caucasian Reserve (under the protection of UNESCO). Ecologists remind that construction on protected lands is now strictly prohibited, and argue that new resorts can cause serious damage to nature.
LLC “Gazprom design” published three tenders with a total initial price of 193 million rubles. They involve, in particular, the collection of data to analyze the capacity of existing ski resorts in Sochi, to study the volume of their tourist flow and the engineering capacity expended. In addition, the performers are expected to develop a technical report on digital modeling of avalanches, as well as to prepare a master plan for three new resorts – Tabunnaya, Aishkho and Pear. In particular, the company asks to develop overview maps of the future development of the resort, including the location of cable cars, slopes, food points, and calculate the economic feasibility of the project. According to the attached maps, the Grushevy resort is planned to be located in the Sochi National Park, the Aishkho resort in the Sochi reserve, and the Tabunnaya resort in the Caucasian reserve.
Greenpeace Russia expert Mikhail Kreindlin recalls that according to the current legislation, it is strictly forbidden to build any infrastructure in the reserves, except for the one aimed at providing the most specially protected natural area (SPNA). “Until recently, it was possible to allocate a so-called biospheric polygon there, where other construction is allowed,” the expert says. “But in the summer a law was passed that prohibits the allocation of such polygons. Therefore, I do not understand how they (Gazprom.— “b”) are going to implement it all. “If tourism involves the construction and development of the territory, then this can lead to the destruction of nature,” explains Natalia Danilina, director of the Zapovedniki eco-center and president of the Zapovednoe embassy foundation. “And in a reserve of this rank, any violations are unacceptable. Only limited and sparing visits are allowed there. And tourist resorts don’t do that.” Mr. Kreindlin recalled that the UNESCO World Heritage Committee had repeatedly declared the inadmissibility of construction on the territory of the Caucasian Reserve. Recall that back in 2016, Gazprom considered the possibility of expanding its ski resorts to the territory of the Caucasian Reserve (see Kommersant dated December 15, 2016). However, these plans were never realized.
Kommersant asked the administration of the Krasnodar Territory to comment on Gazprom’s plans to build resorts. But they answered that this topic is under the jurisdiction of the federal Ministry of Natural Resources. In turn, the ministry told Kommersant that back in 2020 it had signed a cooperation agreement with the Caucasus Nature Reserve, the Sochi National Park, Gazprom Invest, the Krasnaya Polyana resort, Skypark and the Rosa Khutor resort. Within the framework of this agreement, a “functional planning concept for the development of Sochi resorts” is being developed. According to representatives of the ministry, the issues of “locating objects of the mining and tourism industry” on the territory of the Krasnopolyansky settlement district and the village of Aibga in the Adler district within the borders of the Caucasian Reserve, as well as the Sochi National Park and the Sochi Reserve are being worked out. “The main function of the Pear Ridge is ecological tourism using prepared hiking trails,” the Ministry of Natural Resources assures. “Such infrastructure does not affect the migration routes of ungulates, practically does not create a disturbance factor for animals, does not change the landscape and does not fragment habitats. At the foot of the southern slope of the Aishkho Ridge, it is planned to create eco-villages that will become the center for organizing ski tours and off-piste skiing without the use of cable cars.”
At the same time, the environmental department stated that only the Aishkho and Pear resorts were agreed on in the concept. “No information was received by the Ministry of Natural Resources about the creation of the Tabunnaya resort, there were no agreements on this resort,” the Ministry of Natural Resources emphasizes. The officials also added that the approval of the concept “is not the basis for a permit for construction on the territory of protected areas of federal significance and registration of land rights.”
“The development of a master plan involves a preliminary study of construction prospects, including an assessment of the necessary approvals,” Kommersant was told in the information department of PJSC Gazprom. “At this stage, the consent of local authorities or the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation for the preparation of such a document is not required.” The company did not say which facilities are planned to be built.
It is very difficult for an investor to conduct any activity in a nature protection zone; in fact, the implementation of any objects is possible only through targeted coordination with the Ministry of Natural Resources, warns the head of the “Natural Code” (advises businesses operating in a “non-urban” environment) Marina Nenarokova. Sergey Romashkin, the general director of the Dolphin tour operator, points out that the Gazprom resort has a strong hotel core, which attracts tourists who come to relax in the mountains, but the tracks themselves, due to their short length, are more focused on beginners. The construction of new slopes in itself is a prerequisite for the development of any resort and attracting new guests, the expert believes, although the creation of a single ski area would be more significant from the point of view of the entire mountain cluster: “Now, in order to move from Gazprom to Krasnaya Polyana “or Rosa Khutor, skiers have to go down and get along the road, for most of them this causes irritation.”
Ski resorts in the Sochi mountain cluster are traditionally popular with tourists. According to Travelata.ru, this direction forms 26% of sales of organized tours for the winter season 2022/23, the average check is 62 thousand rubles. In addition to Gazprom’s infrastructure, the Krasnaya Polyana resort also operates in the Sochi mountain cluster, where there are 11 accommodation facilities for 2.83 thousand rooms for 6.5 thousand people, according to the company’s website. The total length of the slopes is 30 km, last year the resort was visited by 1.2 million people. The Rosa Khutor resort is also located here, 27 accommodation facilities are available on the territory of the resort, the total length of the slopes is 105 km. Last year it was visited by 1.8 million people.
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