Forest Club model projects and sites

Issue 8-9, Nov. 1998

How far is the country from its past? It is not far because main ways for problems solving are the same. They try to overcome the crisis by old recipes - great construction projects. Subjects of federation long for so-called development but do not care for what is developing and what for. The more heavy activity and expense – the better. The Bashkiria situation is one of examples.

In August 1998 president M.G. Rakhimov decreed to close down the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the Ministry of Ecological Security of Bashkortostan Republic (RB). Then the recurrence of Ishtuganovskoe reservoir project began. This project has been stopped in 80s by efforts of public. That time it was proposed to bay the river Belaya in the place it leave the mountains. During the crisis the Cabinet of Bashkortostan decides to refine upon technical and economical foundation of the project and to begin design efforts. The project becomes more amplitudinous. Now it is planned to build a chain of three power plants. It means Flooding on 80-90 km of watercourse, three banks and communications in the heart of ancient mountain forests and thus full destruction of unique piece of nature.

The main official pretext of building Umaguzinskoe reservoir is the acute problem of water supply in the region. The chain of reservoirs will accumulate nearly two km3 of high water and slowly unsluice it during the mean water. Besides this there will be hydroturbines with average yearly making of energy by 127 million kilowatt-hours.

There are some objections from the point of view of common sense. The electroenergy itself cannot be the main purpose of building because in the time of economical decline it will not pay.

So the main purpose is hydrological regime regulation. For saving 55 km² of cultivated bottom land from floods they will drown wild lands of world nature conservation and recreation importance. But the battle with high water is unlikely be successful because the storage is insufficient.

To raise the water level on ten or more santimeters is possible. But there will be some other problems for example water quality. Beloretsk, which is upstream of future reservoir, is a serious source of water pollution. The reservoirs will become cesspools of Beloretsk. Hazardous substances will concentrate in it and at intervals it will go down. It is the way of solving the problem of water supply of downstream towns Sterlitamak, Salavat, Ishimbay, Meleuz.

What are the true purposes of building?

It's curious that on the elections of 1998 the only alternative of working president was the minister of forestry (distant relation of president Rakhimov) Rif Kazakkulov. Soon after the election in 1998 Rakhimov decreed to close down the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the Ministry of Ecological Security of Bashkortostan. A part of nature conservation functions (f.e. the protected areas control) are passed to Ministry of Forestry, now Ministry of Forestry and Natural Resources. And in August they “recall” about Umaguzinskoe reservoir.

Last year there was not enough money for repair and reconstruction of Nugushskaya hydroelectric plant (that are 10 km to the North from the place of action). It looks strange in the circumstances of crisis and pressure for money for more necessary things it was decided to regulate slightly the Belaya River and to give to Sterlitamak agglomeration some polluted water. Local administrations haven't asked for that some of them were against the project. But the design efforts are going on and the project will start soon. It will cost 30 million dollars minimum.

It looks like the aim is to “launder” budget money and to give to the Ministry of forestry access to 80 km2 of ancient forests. And there will be a jumping-off place for reclamation of other places in mountain Bashkiria.

Situation in the end of October 1998

Designers begin to work without waiting for prescription from the Cabinet. The road service is improving the roads. They began to build the causeway on Belaya. It is considered to break rocks near Kuznetsovskij village and to open new roads on both sides of river. In the nearest time one nest of imperial eagle, one nest of spotted eagle, a colony of windhover -Falco naumanni (globally rare species Red lists of IUCN, Russian Federation, Republic of Bashkortostan) one nest of golden eagle, one nest of serpent eagle, two nests of peregrine falcon, three nests of eagle-owl (Red lists of Russian Federation and Bashkortostan) and three hibernacles of bats with population over 1000 individuals will be destroyed. The chief engineer Michail Morozov from “Uzhhyprovodkhoz” institute is known as engineer of notorious Ishtuganovskoe reservoir.

Umaguzinskoe reservoir project will be ready in the end of December 1998. It will be ecologically expertized in a month. Under favorable (for the project) auspices in the end of winter they begin felling and in the spring is the beginning of building. An interesting detail is the methods of reservoir bed cleaning with napalm using. It is future spring.

The price of the great building

If Belaya is damed the list of losses will be really great. It is the most valuable lands not only in Bashkortostan and not only Russian Federation. This territory is one of the most valuable in Europe. The National Park “Bashkiria”, Zapovednik “Shulgan-tash” and more than ten monuments of nature are located here. This territory is Key ornithological territory of international importance and it is proposed as World Heritage object of UNESKO in the nomination “Bashkirian Ural”

Here are some of characteristics of the endangered territory:

• Considerable areas of ancient and old-grought forests are located there. The forests along the river are in water protection area and they have not been cut for quite a long time.

• On the adjacent areas is the core of population of Bashkirian wild hive bee. This is the main plce in the world where the phenomenon of wild hive beekeeping is preserved.

• There is most dense nesting population of Falco peregrinus in Europe, and it is the biggest populatin in Europe (1% of Europe population).

• There is about 130 nesting pairs of Bubo bubo, it is 1% of Europe population. The population is also very dense.

• The biggest in European part of Russia nesting groups of Aquila chrysaetos, 20 pairs, Circaetus gallicus, 15 pairs are located there. The biggest in Ural group of Pandon haliaetus is nesting in this territory. All species are in red list of RF.

• Also species of world importance (Haliaetus albicillia, Aquila heliaca, Aquila clanga, Circus macrorus, Falco naumanni)

• Only in this place the Belsk population of Hucho taimen is wintering. Over 100 bears are wintering in dens.

• There are concentrated many karst caves where are hibernacles of one- third of Ural population of bats of seven species. Also the world famous caves Kapovaya and Kutuk-Sumgan will be under the water.

All this will be destroyed when building the reservoir. The hydrological regime will change unpredictably. The chain of resevoirs will become the delayed-action mine because of complicated geological structure.

After the raise of water level in the lowest part on the 60 meters ground-water also will raise. The karsting will activate and new caves will appear. The microearthquakes are also possible. The unpredictability of hydroological regime have already played its role in breaking the dam of small Tirlandskij pond. In the case of small amount of water there were victims. But if the dum of Umaguzinskoe reservoir is breaken the tsunami will be eight-floor house hight.

What is going on now?

Due to absense of towns near the future objects there is no protest from local people. Only public and scientists of Ufa and Meleuz are acting against the project. A hundred of bears deprived of wintering can protest in the future, but authorities can hardly notice this.