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Table of content:
FIRES IN MOSCOW REGION - NEWS FROM TURKEY
The estimation of damage caused to people's health by the constant
smoke in the Moscow air during the summer 2002 has been done by
health-officers. The results of the estimation, however, have been
recently published in Turkey, in Kemer city, on the forum "Medical and
Environmental Safety, Rehabilitation and Social Support of People".
According to the data of "MosComEcoMonitoring" (environmental
monitoring institution of Moscow Department on Nature Management and
Environment Conservation) during all the period of smoke formation
there are three hardest events were observed on September 5, 8 and 17.
The abundance of suspended particles in the air in these periods of
smoke was 1 to 1,5 milligram per cubic metre.
The inevitable consequences of the constant smoke formation are:
increasing death-rate (including death of cardiovascular diseases);
increased number of cases of lung diseases, asthma, pneumonia,
respiratory infection, cardiovascular diseases (in particular,
ischemic disease); acute cardiac infarction, and also increased
frequency of diseases of upper and lower respiratory tracts.
The question is: who is responsible for harm caused to people health
and life.
The only ones who must be responsible to suffered citizens, are those
numerous officials, who convinced people through mass-media that smoke
doesn't produce any harm to their health and life.
Wrong information about smoke impact coming from officials prevented
people from undertaking adequate measures and to reduce the risk of
intoxication. The lesser a bureaucrat understands the matter of fact,
the more categorically he asserted that the smoke is harmless.
The suits against the officials brought in court by injured people
should be for them a good lesson: they should "comment" something only
when they are competent in estimation of the problem.
October 23, 2002
The Environment and Human Rights
A.Fitin,
The Scientific Centre on Ecological Toxicology, Moscow
E-mail: fitin@km.ru
ARE THESE THE LAST HOURS OF THE DANUBE BIOSPHERE RESERVE???
IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED!
On October 22, 1 pm Kiev time, alarming news regarding the fate of the
Danube biosphere reserve came. The struggle for the reserve came to
its crucial point.
According to information leaked from the Ministers Cabinet of Ukraine,
the Minister of Transport has used its personal influence on the
Ukrainian presidet Leonid Kuchma to pass to him directly (without
approval of the Ministers cabibnet) draft decree on the reserve. The
draft states that 5600 ha should be withdrawn from the reserve
territory for ship canal construction. It is also planned to construct
cargo loading facilities.
All this will irreversibly destroy these unique European wilderness
wetlands!
Kuchma may sign this decree in the nearest future.
The only way to prevet this is to launch massive fax attack, starting
today.
Ukraine wants to enter Europen Union and NATO- so the environmetnal
community should show tha there is no way for governmet to violate its
own legislation and international agreements, as Danube reserve is a
UNESCO and Ramsar site.
THE FATE OF THE DANUBE RESERVE AND ITS INHABITANTS DEPENDS ON YOUR
ACTION!!!!!
For telegrams
President of Ukraine, Kuchma Leonid Danilovich.,
01220. Kiev, Administration of the President of Ukraine, str.
Bankovaya, 1,
For fax 8-10-380-44 ---291-61-61
Secretary phone: 8-10-380-44---226-20-77
Shaparenko Sergey,
President of the Council Environmental Group "Pechenegy"
(13, Zabaikal'ski Lane, Apt. 6, Kharkiv, Ukraine 61105,
pecheneg@ic.kharkov.ua)
Vladimir Boreyko,
Kiev ecological and cultural center
(Raduzhnaya str. 31-48, 02218 Kiev, Ukraine,
tel\fax + 038 044 433 52 62,
kekz@carrier.kiev.ua; borey@alfacom.net)
BACKGROUND
To protect the Danube delta ecosystems several years ago the Danube
biosphere reserve was created. It is located in the Ukrainian part of
the Danube delta. On February 2, 1999 it was awarded international
biosphere reserve certificate.
Now this valuable territory is under threat. Ministry of Transport of
Ukraine plans to construct a deep-water navigation canal "The Danube -
The Black Sea". The Ministry of Transport of Ukraine insists on
pursuing a variant which passes through an the Bystroye Estuary of the
Danube Delta, which is located within the specially protected area of
the Danube Biosphere Reserve. The Danube Reserve is part of the UNESCO
bilateral biosphere reserve "Delta of the Danube". Construction of a
canal according to the mentioned project will cause a degradation of
the significant part of the reserve, killing one of the most valuable
natural territories. The reserve is valuable breeding and feeding
ground for birds, many of which are endangered species. 16 of the
species inhabiting the resereve are on European Red list, 70 - on
Ukrainian Red List. The reserve is also a Ramsar site, one of the 200
biodiversity rich wetlands of the world.
At www.seu.ru/projects/eng/dunay you will find more details about the
reserve itself. You can also find some photos from the Danube
biosphere reserve to see the birds, inhabiting this wildlife habitiat
in the center of Europe.
KOLA PENINSULA NOT TO CREATE NEW RESERVES
Within next two years on the Kola Peninsula (NorthWest of Russia) new
specially protected areas will not be created.
Mr. Yakovenko, the deputy minister of natural resources told that to
the representative of the Biodiversity Conservation Centre (BCC) on
the press conference devoted to the Day of the Natural Reserves'
Employees.
The deputy minister has referred to a rule, according to which
creation of new especially protected natural areas takes place under
the initiative of regional authorities, but there wasn't appropriate
initiative from Y. Evdokimov, the Murmansk region governor.
Because of inactivity of the governor, the timber branch of the
Murmansk region industry has enormous losses.
One of most important conditions of access of the Russian timber
industry to the West-European markets, which are very sensitive to
environmental abuses, and competitiveness of its production there
became for Russian timber manufacturers the necessity to observe the
requirements of sustainable use of forests. In particular, a number of
the Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian timber industry companies, including
such recognised world leaders, as Stora Enso, UPM Kymmene, Metsalitto
have announced the moratorium on preparation and purchase of wood from
a lot of forest plots in Karelia Republic and Murmansk region.
This moratorium is stated until the steps for conservation of forests
of high environmental value (including most valuable massifs of
old-growth forests) would be undertaken and especially protected
nature areas would be created. According to the data of Biodiversity
Conservation Centre, on the European North of Russia about 10 percent
of such forests are remained. These are territories, where the nature
has kept in its primeval appearance, without any signs of human
activity.
Old-growth or "virgin" forests are genetic deposits, storehouses of
ecosystems in their ancient view. Russian loggers should have precise
map showing where it is possible and where is impossible to cut trees.
As a result of systematic work of environmental organisations with the
forest sector of Murmansk region industry, the timber manufactures
made a step unprecedented for Russia. This May the CEOs of five
largest enterprises of Murmansk region timber industry have addressed
to the governor Y.Evdokimov with the petition. They called for
creation of especially protected areas to preserve the forests of high
environmental value. The timber industry enterprises, which CEOs have
signed the petition (Priroda, Polaria, Ogni Kairal, Severmurmanles,
Alakurttinsky timber industry complex) provide together more than
two-thirds of all volume of timber cutting in Murmansk region.
In the address to the governor they have pointed to that the
negligence by preservation of old-growth forests in the region has
already created the certain problems to the enterprises of the forest
industry and these losses can increase.
The activity of the enterprises of Murmansk forest industry, despite
of the sharp recession of production volumes (as a result of economic
crisis in 1990-es), stays serious influence factor of the
socio-economic situation in Kola and Kandalaksha areas of Murmansk
region. The forest branch of economy is the basic employer in that
region. And one of main conditions for forest sector to be able to
work is the stable export of its production on the West-European
market.
In the Murmansk region the social stability is directly depend on
creation of new especially protected areas. The projects of creation
of these areas are already prepared by the Institute of North
Industrial Ecology Problems of the Karelia Science Centre of Russian
Academy of Science and are approved by NGOs. First of all, they are
the Kutsa National Park and "Lapland Forest", proposed for creation by
the Kola branch of the BCC.
The loss of the West-European markets, which are always
environmentally sensitive, threatens Murmansk area with social
catastrophe. It seems, that neither the local governor, nor the
Ministry of Natural Resources is anxious with that problem. If
preliminary agreements on creation of new especially protected areas
would be implemented on the official level, for Western companies it
would be enough to solve the problem.
Mikhail Karpachevsky, the head of the BCC Forest Program considers the
main problem is that in spite of such evidence of the problem, the
federal officials don't see any advantages in creation of especially
protected areas and are not going to undertake anything.
For further information:
The Biodiversity Conservation Centre,
Lubov Yakubovskaya, the press secretary
Ph.: +7 (095) 124-50-11;
URL: http://www.biodiversity.ru, http://www.forest.ru
FORESTS OF MOSCOW REGION NEED PRESIDENT'S PROTECTION
The group of Russian scientists and public figures (academicians and
popular singers) have addressed an open letter to Vladimir Putin, the
President of Russian Federation. They expressed concern over increase
of cutting down of the forests in Moscow region for construction
purposes.
The public figures emphasised in their address to the President that
large-scale fires destroyed the "green belt" of forests around Moscow.
But not only natural disasters are guilty of forests destruction. For
example, in some prestige areas of the region the most valuable
species of trees are cut down to built summer residences and cottages.
The cutting down of valuable forests is the real disaster. The
hydrological state of rivers is broken, ecosystem of river banks
suffers, they are shalowing and polluted, the habitats of animals and
plants, many of which are rare, are destroyed.
Building in the areas of forest massiffs, deprives people of
opportunity to have a rest in forest and to breathe the fresh air. It
caused more problems last summer went smoke from forest fires burning
in Moscow outskirts went easily to the city.
In the present state of affairs destruction of forests around the
capital is violation of the constitutional right of people on clean
environment, the scientists in their letter. The state bodies don't
take real action to stop this riunous practice.
KARELIA: RULES OF FOREST USE TO BE CHANGED
In September, 2002 the Parliament of Karelia Republic approved several
documents, which contain poposals on changing of forest use system in
the republic.
The representatives of timber industry sector, in particular, Vasily
Preminin, CEO of "Segezha Pulp and Paper Mill" (Segezha PPM)
joint-stock company, said: "If in national forest policy of Russia the
ideas stated by the Karelian deputies, scientists and representatives
of timber industry would be embodied, the state income from use of
unique forest wealth would increase minimum twice".
Now only one half of all the needs of largest Karelian timber
enterprises, Kondopoga and Segezha PPM, are provided with local raw
material. According to estimations given by V.Preminin, potential
wood-cutting area in Kareliya can increase up to 17 millions cubic
meters per year. But to reach that it is necessary to change the rules
of forest use. The changes proposed by the Parliament, according to
the statement of the project advocates, also would allow to solve
environmental problems.
They say, that according to scientists estimation "the changing of
forest use regulations would allow to increase intensity of forest
resources renewal in two times, and the efficiency of forest use in
more than three times".
Abstract of the article by V.Preminin, "Segezh Pulp and Paper Plant"
joint-stock company (available in Russian):
http://gov.karelia.ru/Karelia/950/16.html
PROFESSORS DISCUSSED PERSPECTIVES OF FOREST CERTIFICATION IN RUSSIA
At the end of October 2002 the Moscow Sate Forest University together
with NGOs Greenpeace Russia, WWF Russia, Electrolux company and GFA
Terra System auditor company conducted the workshop "Voluntary
Certification by the Forest Stewardship Council Plan: Education and
Practice".
The seminar was devided in two parts - theoretical and practical. In
the theoretical part the materials concerning the main regulations of
the system of Forest Stewardship Council's voluntary certification,
legislation on forest certification, standards and preparation of
preliminary audit and also academic curicculum and work programs on
voluntary forest sertification were presented.
The practical part was devoted to realization of preliminary
estimation of forest use and management in the Schelkovo experimental
timber enterprise (Moscow region) to the requirements of the standards
of Forest Stewardship Council. The objects of estimation should be
especially protected areas, sanitary logging done by the
subcontractors and workers of timber enterprises, quality of forest
restoration.
Among the participants os the seminar there were professors and
lectors of forest universitites of Russia and CIS and certification
centres of Arkhangelsk and Krasnoyarsk regions.
By the information of Andrey Ryjkov,
e-mail: ryjkov@mgul.ac.ru.
Additional information on certification (in Russian):
http://www.forest.ru/rus/sustainable_forestry/certification
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