On the eve of the autumn elections of the head of Kamchatka, the current governor of the region, Vladimir Solodov, reported on the successful development of the region to the president of the country. However, apart from successes, there are also problems. Kamchatka’s development strategy as an ecologically protected area has been forgotten. Work on one of the gold deposits, which the governor of the region promised to close, has been extended for another 10 years.
Some ambiguities
In February, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Kamchatka Krai Governor Vladimir Solodov in the Kremlin. Recall that in September of this year, the head of Kamchatka expires his term of office. The Governor shared with the President of the country the successes and achievements of the region.
Noting fishing and tourism as the main industries feeding the Kamchatka Territory, Vladimir Solodov also spoke about mining. “We have already formed the best cluster in the Far East for training personnel for the mining industry within the framework of the Professionalism project,” the governor of the region said, and noted the successes of the gold miners.
However, Kamchatka has not only successes, but also problems in the field of gold mining. In particular, TSG Asacha JSC (formerly Alarm Glow), which had previously violated environmental laws for many years, will continue to mine gold in the region until 2034. And this is despite the agreements that Vladimir Solodov himself confirmed, stating in the media that TSG Asacha would reclaim the Asacha deposit after completion of work there. This means that the surrounding area will finally breathe a sigh of peace and will gradually recover. But that didn’t happen. Of course, regulation of subsurface use is a federal prerogative, but regional authorities should not forget about their own words and decisions.
As noted by Sergey Shakhmatov, co—chairman of the Russian Ecological Party “Greens”, executive director of the open environmental platform “Russian Greens”, the most environmentally dangerous method of gold mining is when waste technologies and settling ponds are used to clean and process rocks with water, as well as the use of cyanides in rock purification: “99 percent of the pollution of all our Siberian and Far Eastern rivers is caused by such gold processing. This is a constant problem, an eternal theme of pollution of all components of the environment, and especially of water bodies,” the ecologist recalls. TSG Asacha had problems with this for many years, for which fines were imposed.
What is Kamchatka’s priority?
Back in 2020, Argumenty Nedeli reported that this gold mining company (formerly known as Disturbing Glow) had been polluting Kamchatka’s rivers and soil for years, but the numerous fines were cheap. Local environmentalists were convinced that what was happening was a consequence of the authorities turning a blind eye to the situation. “Everything depends on those people who are in power. There should be no untouchables,” Sergei Mylov, chairman of the Interregional Public Organizations Environmental Safety and the Anti—Corruption Commission, noted back then.
When the leadership of the region changed, Vladimir Solodov came to power in Kamchatka, a lot changed. Finally, the aspirations of environmentalists have been heard. Vladimir Solodov intervened in the situation, and Yuri Trutnev, the plenipotentiary representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Far Eastern Federal District, flew to Kamchatka personally, made sure that all complaints about gold miners were fair, terrible damage was being done to the environment, and instructed to deal with violations. By the way, back then, environmentalists estimated that now Kamchatka nature will be cleansed of the consequences of violations during gold mining for another 150 years. But now it turns out that it’s another 10 years longer, because gold production at the Asachinsky deposit has been extended for a decade.
“For me, the state of nature, world heritage, and high status are priorities. Kamchatka is truly a world heritage site. And the status of a world heritage site under threat is a fairly serious reputational assessment in the world community, when a negative assessment is given to the efforts of the authorities to preserve nature. Given the work we are doing, I would consider it unfair to receive such a status,” the head of the Kamchatka Territory said just a couple of years ago. At that time, there was a question of preventing UNESCO’s claims and the removal of Kamchatka’s protected status. After all, Kamchatka volcanoes, among others, are included in the list of specially protected natural heritage sites. However, two years have passed, and this has been forgotten.
“The government should think about expediency”
Is it worth pinning hopes on gold miners that they will feed the region, while forgetting about other obligations, including social ones? I think Vladimir Solodov should remember what he promised earlier.
“Of course, Rosnedra has the authority: the business came, submitted the documents and received or extended the license. It seems that the regional authorities have nothing to do with it. But there should still be a greater degree of political expediency. What the region gets for the economy and social sphere is one thing. And on the other side of the scale is the ecological potential, the minimization of environmental pollution and the development of ecotourism as an industry. It is necessary to ask the question, if this gold mining production remains, what will Kamchatka’s economy lose in terms of ecology and impact on natural objects? We need to sit down and count — through joint efforts, business, public organizations and the authorities,” believes Sergey Shakhmatov.
“It needs to be measured seven more times and cut off once, as they say, to understand whether Kamchatka needs this gold mining. It is clear that there is a gross product and jobs — this is beneficial for the region. But we still need to find a middle ground between preserving the environment and the benefits for the region’s economy. Nevertheless, Kamchatka is not an industrial region. This is primarily the development of fishing, tourism and resort industries,” the expert recalls.
According to the ecologist, it is important for Vladimir Solodov not to forget about these promises: “I think it is important for the current head of the region to be consistent to the end. If you have already chosen a regional development line in which the economy is based on ecotourism, then let’s follow it. The regional development strategy has obviously been outlined and approved, and it would be short-sighted to deviate from it.”
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