On Monday, 13 December, YABLOKO leader Sergei
Mitrokhin will visit Anapa and the Big Utrish reserve located
near the city. YABLOKO calls on journalists to join him and
visit this unique territory, which is threatened with total
destruction, owing to the planned construction of a state
residence and highway.
The Big Utrish reserve was created to protect unique relict
landscapes and juniper-pistachio forests, and also the habitats
of rare species of animals and plants. This is one of the
most significant protected natural territories of Russia.
The territory's reserve named Novorossiya was recognised as
one of the global centres for plant diversity. This year the
Russian Government issued a decision to establish the Utrish
reserve here.
Despite this fact, however, the safety of this unique territory
is now at risk. This is due to plans by the Administration
of the RF President to build in the very heart of the reserve
a new state residence (the project is entitled a "sports
and recreation complex"). Implementation of this project
will destroy the most valuable natural features of the reserve
– the district of the Utrish relict lagoons.
In addition, there are plans to build two highways, which
will splinter the small territory of the most valuable part
of Utrish, which has not been affected to date by any business
activities.
There has already been one illegal attempt to lay one of these
roads under the guise of the construction of "forest
fire roads" in 2008-2009. At the time it proved possible
to stop the construction thanks to a campaign of radical civil
resistance conducted by campaigners from the Environmental
Watch on North Caucasus and the Movement "Let's Save
Utrish!"
The YABLOKO party has always paid significant attention to
environmental issues, campaigning in particular for the preservation
of Utrish. Now there are concerns that there will be further
attempts to build the access road to the state residence on
the territory of the reserve. Consequently Sergei Mitrokhin
will visit the reserve, further to a request from the Environmental
Watch on North Caucasus that YABLOKO actively works with.
During the visit the YABLOKO leader will visit the environmental
post of the Movement "Let's Save Utrish!" Campaigners
from the movement have been keeping a watch on the territory
of Utrish to prevent the resumption of the construction work.
On the eve of the visit, Sergei Mitrokhin will visit Krasnodar
on 12 December to participate in a meeting, including a concert,
and also participate in a demonstration to protect Utrish
and the environment in the city of Krasnodar. The meeting
will start at 11:30 at the square opposite the Aurora cinema.
The meeting is being organised by YABLOKO, the Environmental
Watch on North Caucasus and the Communist Party of the Russian
Federation.
During the visit Sergei Mitrokhin will be accompanied by Andrei
Rudomakha, coordinator of the Environmental Watch on North
Caucasus, and Andrei Filominov, deputy coordinator of the
Environmental Watch on North Caucasus. They are both members
of the Green Russia coalition.
See also:
Police detained YABLOKO's
activists during an action in defence of the national park.
Press Release, December 5, 2010
Protection
of Environment
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