Victories

• Under public pressure the decision was taken to move oil pipe line away from Baikal lake. That was president Putin who gave the instructions to “Transneft”. Greenpeace collected 14 thousand signatures across Russia to protect Baikal which is cited in the World Heritage List of UNESCO. We have organized well-known cultural workers to appeal to president Putin. Despite authorities resistance Greenpeace together with other non-governmental organizations conducted in Moscow the meeting to protect Baikal. Meetings took place also across Russia – from St.Petersburg to Vladivostok. Thanks to Greenpeace activities Baikal topic was brought to international level. Thus UNESCO world heritage committee addressed premier-minister M.Fradkov and president Putin requesting to move pipe line away from World Heritage area.

• Greenpeace organized ice expedition to Baikal. During this expedition we assessed population of Baikal seal – 82 thousand animals. There was no considerable decrease in population versus last year, although it is quite possible that population will be ageing as hunters primarily kill baby seals.

• During broad information campaign “baby food without transgenes” Greenpeace collected more than 15 thousand signatures to prohibit transgenes (or GMO) in baby food. Fifteen major baby food producers that control more than 70% of the market, declared themselves ready to join moratorium on GMO in baby food. During “civil G8” in Moscow president Putin declared importance of the problem.

• Greenpeace collected 17 thousand signatures under appeal to President of Russia not to let pass new Forest code. Let us remind that this law allows to privatize forests, to conduct felling in natural reserves and parks, it also limits public access to forests and abandons felling permits so called forest tickets.

• Greenpeace developed unique map of last wild forests of the globe. The map shows clearly that less than one quarter of all forests of the globe have stayed intact nowadays. They are disappearing 1000 times faster than before humans.

• 200 schools from Ryazan, Tula, Lipetsk, Orel and Belgorod regions took part in Greenpeace project “Let’s restore our forest”. 182 schools created nursery forests under school patronage. Following Greenpeace initiative the project turned into a national movement “Let’s restore our forest”. More than 300 participants from 33 regions have already joined it.

• 5 timber enterprises (Solombala woodworking plant, Seguezh pulp and paper milk) signed moratorium on felling in intact forests of North-West of European part of Russia and Far East.

• Greenpeace developed easy and cheap way to make houses warm in winter. We applied our technique in three schools, one children’s house, one ecological centre and several apartments.

• 1 billion of Greenpeace instructions how to install water utility meter was published and distributed. This fact as well as series of lectures resulted in 5 times more water utility meters installed in Lyanozovo only (one of Moscow districts).

2005
• As a result of the joint efforts of Greenpeace, the Ministry of Natural Resources, Buryat Regional Department at Baikal, a resolution was issued to stop illegal construction of the oil pipeline of Transneft company along the northern shore of Baikal. The UNESCO committee pointed out inadmissibility of the pipeline passing through the territory of the UNESCO World Heritage site – “Lake Baikal”, demanded a report about Baikal, and proposed to send UNESCO and IUCN experts to monitor the situation at the site in view of the pipeline’s construction.
• Due to the joint efforts of Greenpeace and the Confederation of Consumer Societies (KonfOP) a law came into force on labeling food products which contain GE ingredients (GMI).

Thanks to active campaigning of Greenpeace and other non-governmental organizations consideration of a new draft of the Forest Code in the Sate Duma was suspended until the autumn. President Putin ordered that recommendations of non-governmental environmental organizations be taken into account for further development of the document. Greenpeace twice issued and sent the draft of the Forest Code with its comments to the local forestry administrations (leskhozes) and forestry experts, so that Russian citizens could learn what to expect if the current draft of the document is passed.

2004
• With the support of Greenpeace the all-Russian movement “Kids for Forest Restoration” was launched. Its coordination centers are in Moscow, Veliky Novgorod, Arkhangelsk, Cheboksary, Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Irkutsk, Vladivostok, and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. The aim is to involve schoolchildren from rural schools, who restore forests in treeless areas, as well as all those who want to join the project.
• On the initiative of Greenpeace Russia and the center for expertise “EKOM” in Saint Petersburg the city law “On Protection of Green Areas” was passed.
• According to the results of our research, as well as official responses to Greenpeace from food producing companies, the “Consumer’s Guide Book” was issued with lists of companies using GE ingredients and the lists of foods they produce.
• The map “Forests of Russia” was published, which shows the territories where forests are most affected by the economic activity. It was prepared by Greenpeace Russia in cooperation with the Institute for Space Research, the Center for Environmental Issues and Forest Productivity of the Russian Academy of Science and Global Forest Watch.
• Due to efforts of non-governmental organizations, including Greenpeace Russia, the natural ecosystem of the Vrangel Island reserve was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list.
• Greenpeace Russia won a case in the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on revoking the governmental decree, according to which 33.222 hectares of land were withdrawn from the Sochi national park and included in the Sochi republican state nature preserve, where for many years elite hunting seasons have been organized for Russian officials under the pretense of necessity to control the animals’ populations.

2003
The first publication of the most complete report about an adverse social situation at Minatom's plants, prepared by Greenpeace in cooperation with the Institute of Sociology of RAS. It was sent to the top authorities of the country and regions.

In Saint Petersburg - thanks to Greenpeace initiative - in several districts a separate garbage collection is being introduced. In the yards of the city there are coloured containers for glass and plastic waste, paper and metal in addition to usual garbage containers.

2002
Greenpeace Russia launched the project on reforestation in Central Black Earth Russia. At the first stage more than 60 rural schools from Ryazan, Tula, Orel and Lipetsk regions took part in it, tens of tree nurseries were created.

Due to Greenpeace activities, the RF Supreme Court declared illegal the decree of the RF Government that allowed burying waste from the Hungarian NPP in the Russian territory.

2001
The participants in the International Baikal Camp of Greenpeace cleaned up about 70 kilometres of the coast, having collected more than 2,500 bags of sorted garbage.

"World Heritage" Committee made a decision to include a nominee "Central Sikhote-Alin" into the "World Heritage List" of Unesko. The borders of the nominee "Volcanoes of Kamchatka" were expanded to include more lands.

2000
Having examined materials provided by Greenpeace the Governmental Expert Commission on defining quotas for extraction sea bio-resources, exluded sea urchin (an expensive and popular product in Japan), from the list of the permitted for fishing animals as a species forbidden to extraction in that region in 2000.The state committee of fishery revoked the license issued to Japanese fishermen to extract salmon in the Comandoran Reserve.

Anti-poachering expedition of Greenpeace to Baikal saved lives of some thousands cubs of Baikal's nerpa. The Scientifical-Industrial Council lowered quotas on killing nerpa from 6,000 to 3,5000 animals.

In Zheleznodorozhny (Moscow Region) the first experiment on selective garbage collection and recycling had begun.

Greenpeace supporters participated in organizing subscribtion campaign and collected more than two and a half millions of signatures in support of the first in Russia poll concerning environmental protection.

"World Heritage" Committee made a decision to include a nominee "Curonian Spit" into the "World Heritage List" of UNESCO.

1999
Under pressure from Greenpeace The Government of Moscow and Moscow Parliament (Duma) adopted the first in the country's history law "On Green Plantations' Protection", which main points were developed by Greenpeace.Greenpeace in cooperation with the Biodiversity Conservation Center prepared a map of little-affected forests of the North of European part of Russia.

As a result of Greenpeace's activity Committee on the World Heritage at UNESCO made a decision about including a nominee "Western Caucasus" into the "World Heritage List".

One of the biggest paper-making fabrics in Russia - Svetogorsky - announced that it will follow the principles of Greenpeace about sustainable use of forests and, as a first step, refused from using wood from little-affected forests.

For the first time Greenpeace-Russia achieved official acknowledgement of the facts of testing chemical weapons on humans.

1998
World Heritage Committee of UNESCO included in the "World Heritage List" a nominee "Golden Mountains of Altai" (a unique wildlife territories of the Republic of Altai) proposed by Greenpeace-Russia.

Greenpeace developed and implemented the first in Russia state ecological standart "Chlorine Free".

1997
The report "A Poisoned Cities" was published, it included the most complete information about dioxine pollution in Russia.

The other big companies - UPM-Kummene, MoDo and some others - joined Enso's moratorium on logging.

The Federal Programme "Protection of the environment and population of the Russian Federation from dioxines and dioxine-like toxins" was adopted for the period of 1996-1997.

Participation of Greenpeace in the Commission on checking forestal management in Karelian Isthmus in Leningrad region made possible to discover and document for the first time many violations of the law, causing a great ecological and economical damage to Russia.

1996
In the Supreme Court the case was won about cancelling a part of the President's Decree, which permitted import of the used nuclear fuel into Russia.

The international logging company Enso proclaimed a moratorium on logging original primary forests in Karelia.

UNESCO included two nominees - "Lake Baykal" and "Volcanoes of Kamchatka" - into the "World Heritage List".

Greenpeace in cooperation with the Biodiversity Conservation Center prepared a map of little-affected (original primary) forests in Republic of Karelia and Murmansk region.

More than 80% of the voters participating the poll in Kostroma region said "NO" to the construction of the Kostroma nuclear plant.