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Greenpeace and WWF once again voiced to the IOC representatives their joint position regarding environmental issues of the Olympic Games in Sochi and emphasized that it is urgently necessary to exclude most valuable natural areas of the Sochi National Park: the buffer zone of the Caucasus State Nature and Biosphere Reserve that is a part of the Western Caucasus World Heritage site, and the area of the Grushevy Ridge from the plans of construction of Olympic venues and facilities. At the meeting the two environmental watchdogs provided the IOC with maps and conclusions of Russia’s leading experts proving the enormous conservation value of the above areas, as well as a list and maps of alternative sites where relocated Olympic venues can be built.
From the very start of Sochi’s road to being a host-city of Winter Olympics, Russian environmental NGOs have opposed plans to build Olympic venues in high conservation value areas, but their dialogue with those taking decisions seemed to be failing. Only in February 2007 at a meeting with Vice Premier Alexander Zhukov, the sides worked out an agreement to start a state environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the construction plans and to change these after the IOC would have decided where the 2014 Olympic Games would take place.
After Sochi won the Olympic host-city competition, all reasons to leave Olympic venues in the buffer zone of the Caucasus Nature Reserve and the Grushevy Ridge disappeared and on August 14, 2007, the Coordination Council for implementation of the Federal Target Program “Development of Sochi as a Mountain Climate Resort in 2006-2014 decided to consider in three weeks alternative locations for the bobsleigh route, a facility that is most complicated for relocation. If there is a viable alternative for the bobsleigh route, relocation of accompanying facilities will create no problems.
Following up on this decision, the Federal Service for Environmental Supervision (Rosprirodnadzor) gave an order to regional experts to evaluate the conservation value of the Grushevy Ridge. When this was done, their evaluations confirmed the conclusions of the state EIA that no land development should take place in the area of the Grushevy Ridge. Experts from Greenpeace and WWF in cooperation with the “Transparent World” non-commercial partnership prepared descriptions of several alternative sites for the bobsleigh route based on the IOC technical criteria and space images of the territory.
“Unfortunately, some representatives of the Olympic movement both in Russia and abroad keep on insisting that relocation of Olympic venues is impossible. But they don’t give any arguments in support of that”, said Igor Chestin, Director of WWF Russia. “This is why we sent letters to the International Federations of Bobsleigh and Tobogganing with a request to confirm the possibility to build a bobsleigh route in the alternative locations suggested. A similar request was one of the topics of our today’s meeting with the IOC”.
“We do believe that international sports associations understand that conservation of the unique nature of the Western Caucasus is a serious matter, and will be able to promptly come up with the final alternative location of the bobsleigh route. By this they will demonstrate to the whole international community that, for example, the International Olympic Committee not with their words but with their actions ensure safety of highest conservation values areas on our planet”, said Mikhail Kreindlin, High Conservation Value Areas Program Coordinator of Greenpeace Russia. “Under the Olympic Chart, it is one of the primary functions of the IOC to make sure that Olympic Games do not damage the environment”.
For more information, please, contact:
- Mikhail Kreindlin, High Conservation Value Areas Program Coordinator, or Zhenya Belyakova, press secretary of Greenpeace Russia at +7
495 626 5045;
- Igor Chestin, Director of WWF Russia, at +7 495 727 0939
Additional information:
The uniqueness and vulnerability of the area where construction of the bobsleigh route has been planned, was underlined by leading Russian scientists and, in particular, experts of the state Environmental Impact Assessment Commission that evaluated the Federal Target Program “Development of Sochi as a Mountain Climate Resort in 2006-2014”. This EIA was carried out upon order of the Russian Federation Government in April 2007.
The future of the World Heritage property “Western Caucasus” is under constant scrutiny of international community. The state of conservation of this property was discussed by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee at its 31 session held in Christchurch, New Zealand, on June 23 – July 2, 2007. The Committee ruled to send a joint monitoring mission of World Heritage Center and IUCN experts to the Western Caucasus. If these experts decide that preparations for the Winter Olympics in Sochi pose a threat to the World Heritage property “Western Caucasus”, the World Heritage Committee may decide to transfer this property into the List of World Heritage in Danger already at its next 32 session in 2008. This decision will mean that a gross violation of the International Convention for protection of UNESCO World Natural and Cultural Heritage has been committed. Indirectly the International Olympic Committee will be also held responsible for this violation as a respected international organization that has failed to take proper steps to prevent any damage to a UNESCO World Heritage property.
From the very start of Sochi’s road to being a host-city of Winter Olympics, Russian environmental NGOs have opposed plans to build Olympic venues in high conservation value areas, but their dialogue with those taking decisions seemed to be failing. Only in February 2007 at a meeting with Vice Premier Alexander Zhukov, the sides worked out an agreement to start a state environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the construction plans and to change these after the IOC would have decided where the 2014 Olympic Games would take place.
After Sochi won the Olympic host-city competition, all reasons to leave Olympic venues in the buffer zone of the Caucasus Nature Reserve and the Grushevy Ridge disappeared and on August 14, 2007, the Coordination Council for implementation of the Federal Target Program “Development of Sochi as a Mountain Climate Resort in 2006-2014 decided to consider in three weeks alternative locations for the bobsleigh route, a facility that is most complicated for relocation. If there is a viable alternative for the bobsleigh route, relocation of accompanying facilities will create no problems.
Following up on this decision, the Federal Service for Environmental Supervision (Rosprirodnadzor) gave an order to regional experts to evaluate the conservation value of the Grushevy Ridge. When this was done, their evaluations confirmed the conclusions of the state EIA that no land development should take place in the area of the Grushevy Ridge. Experts from Greenpeace and WWF in cooperation with the “Transparent World” non-commercial partnership prepared descriptions of several alternative sites for the bobsleigh route based on the IOC technical criteria and space images of the territory.
“Unfortunately, some representatives of the Olympic movement both in Russia and abroad keep on insisting that relocation of Olympic venues is impossible. But they don’t give any arguments in support of that”, said Igor Chestin, Director of WWF Russia. “This is why we sent letters to the International Federations of Bobsleigh and Tobogganing with a request to confirm the possibility to build a bobsleigh route in the alternative locations suggested. A similar request was one of the topics of our today’s meeting with the IOC”.
“We do believe that international sports associations understand that conservation of the unique nature of the Western Caucasus is a serious matter, and will be able to promptly come up with the final alternative location of the bobsleigh route. By this they will demonstrate to the whole international community that, for example, the International Olympic Committee not with their words but with their actions ensure safety of highest conservation values areas on our planet”, said Mikhail Kreindlin, High Conservation Value Areas Program Coordinator of Greenpeace Russia. “Under the Olympic Chart, it is one of the primary functions of the IOC to make sure that Olympic Games do not damage the environment”.
For more information, please, contact:
- Mikhail Kreindlin, High Conservation Value Areas Program Coordinator, or Zhenya Belyakova, press secretary of Greenpeace Russia at +7
495 626 5045;
- Igor Chestin, Director of WWF Russia, at +7 495 727 0939
Additional information:
The uniqueness and vulnerability of the area where construction of the bobsleigh route has been planned, was underlined by leading Russian scientists and, in particular, experts of the state Environmental Impact Assessment Commission that evaluated the Federal Target Program “Development of Sochi as a Mountain Climate Resort in 2006-2014”. This EIA was carried out upon order of the Russian Federation Government in April 2007.
The future of the World Heritage property “Western Caucasus” is under constant scrutiny of international community. The state of conservation of this property was discussed by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee at its 31 session held in Christchurch, New Zealand, on June 23 – July 2, 2007. The Committee ruled to send a joint monitoring mission of World Heritage Center and IUCN experts to the Western Caucasus. If these experts decide that preparations for the Winter Olympics in Sochi pose a threat to the World Heritage property “Western Caucasus”, the World Heritage Committee may decide to transfer this property into the List of World Heritage in Danger already at its next 32 session in 2008. This decision will mean that a gross violation of the International Convention for protection of UNESCO World Natural and Cultural Heritage has been committed. Indirectly the International Olympic Committee will be also held responsible for this violation as a respected international organization that has failed to take proper steps to prevent any damage to a UNESCO World Heritage property.
