On March 4, 2022, the IX All-Russian Festival of Nature “Pristine Russia” will commence in Moscow. This year, the majority of the exhibition will focus on ecology and the preservation of Russia’s natural resources.
“While strolling through the exhibition halls, visitors will see the diverse and magnificent nature of Russia. The photos will narrate incredible tales about the wildlife, transporting them to locations rarely touched by humans. They will uncover the hidden lives of well-known animals and rare species found in the Red Book of Russia, as well as the human impact on the environment. The breathtaking landscapes of remote and rugged yet strikingly picturesque places in our country – Chukotka, the Far East, the Sea of Japan and the White Sea, Baikal – captured by the country’s top photographers, will deeply move anyone who appreciates beauty,” – a brief description of the project.
The exhibition will also feature the section “Restoration of disturbed ecosystems”. This is a project by the state corporation Rosatom, the same company that has been handling the disposal of waste from Usoliekhimprom for the past two years. Well, how does…
Therefore, the photos depict the elimination of significant sources of accumulated environmental damage and human-induced impact on the environment in the Irkutsk region, where the Federal Environmental Operator is executing two restoration projects: at the industrial site of the former Usoliekhimprom in Usolye-Sibirskoye and at the territory of the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill in Baikalsk.
The photographers face no criticism, but Rosatom…
How can you discuss something that hasn't been accomplished yet?
It's worth noting that the responsibility for handling the waste from two large closed plants was transferred to Rosatom in 2020. The reclamation project itself will be carried out by a subsidiary of the state corporation Alexei Likhachev – Federal Environmental Operator, which has terminated several contracts.
The contractors for the reclamation of the Khimprom site received a positive evaluation of the project from the state experts only on January 22, 2022. In other words, it took two years to finalize it. During this period, the waste remained on the plant's premises. Moreover, throughout this time, local residents have been living in a state of emergency declared in 2018.
It's important to mention that in two years, Rosatom has not disposed of a single gram of waste, only shifting it from one container to another. At the end of 2021, numerous violations of the current legislation were uncovered during the waste disposal at Usoliekhimprom and other highly complex sites of accumulated environmental damage: the BPPM, the Krasny Bor landfill, and the city dump in Chelyabinsk.
The actions of the “Federal Ecological Operator” in handling waste of I – IV classes are being carried out without a license, which is punishable under Art. 171 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. FEO lacks its own technological solutions, design specialists, and cost justification, while a significant portion of the funds allocated from the federal budget are being transferred to subcontractors with unacceptably low qualifications and reputation.
All this proves that FEO is not able to competently cope with the task. After all, he had never even had experience working with chemical waste. The company specializes in radioactive.
Therefore, the participation of Rosatom in such a prestigious festival is very doubtful.
