Despite the fact that Soviet development in the North is still remembered with awe and admiration, the USSR wasn’t particularly meticulous when it came to protecting the fragile northern environment. A part of Russia’s heritage in the Arctic includes waste, metal scrap yards, sunken vessels, and spilled oil. How does the country address these issues?
The Fourth Season of the Clean Arctic project has recently commenced. This federal initiative serves as a solid example of how ‘spring cleaning’ should be conducted in the region.
In 2017, it was estimated that 102 objects required cleaning following the Soviet development of the North. Among these were ship dumps in the Murmansk Region, oil pollution on the Franz Josef Archipelago, and various scrapyards.
The great distances, difficult logistics, and overall expense of transportation make cleaning the Arctic regions very challenging. We must also consider that most waste did not originate from households but consists of bulky items. Many locations exclude the possibility of using heavy machinery.
Such is the case with an upcoming cleaning on Cape Chelyuskin, the northernmost point of Eurasia. The scrapyard consists of approximately 40,000 empty barrels for fuel and lubricants and is said to be the ‘hardest challenge’ for the environmental project. The inaccessibility of this territory necessitates the use of a quad bike with a trailer to transport the barrels.
The expedition is expected to last for two months. It should be noted that such an operation also requires an icebreaking vessel and a helicopter.
By rough estimation, throughout the duration of the Clean Arctic project, 12,000 tonnes of waste have been removed from the Arctic. Overall, the project has demonstrated many successful moments and can provide positive experiences for carrying out other environmental projects:
One of the most positive aspects is the language of the programme’s publicity. The advertising campaign appears to be targeted not at those who are consistently involved in environmental protection; rather, it offers a chance for people to travel and spend time in the Arctic, following expeditions to the most remote areas of Russia. Volunteers are also referred to as the ambassadors of the Clean Arctic.
As of now, the project has achieved a remarkable figure in its competition. According to the organisers, there are 40 people volunteering for each vacant position. Six thousand volunteers have already participated in the project.
A notable development is the expeditionary nature of the programme. Work in remote locations is carried out with future prospects in mind. In other words, the volunteers ‘re-develop’ the Arctic to restore housing and bases for future projects. This will facilitate both environmental purposes and the overall development of the Arctic region.
Last, but certainly not the least factor, is the work on different scales. There are large projects, such as the aforementioned cleaning at Chelyuskin, but there are also smaller initiatives, like the incinerator in the small Yakutian town of Deputatsky. The machinery is said to have solved a ‘global problem in a small town’ and helped to eliminate waste dumps in just one year.
The Editorial Board of the Arctic Century
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