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Education for Sustainable Development: Russian-Swedish Project

RUSSIAN SUSTAINABILITY NewsLETTER
Special Issue. August 2012
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This issue includes...
Editorial. On the eve of the Year of Environmental Protection in Russia Protection of Lake Baikal London ­ Sochi: A green relay race Congress of the Russian Ecological Party "The Green" Problems for the Shtokman project Arctic Sunrise at the Prirazlomnaya platform Walruses on Kolguev Island Meeting of the Public Council under the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment Georgy Sedov memorial plaque Russia-US talks Appointment at the Ministry of Natural Resources Book on geo-ethics II International Geographical Congess

Editorial. On the eve of the Year of Environmental Protection in Russia
On August 17, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on conducting the Year of environmental protection in Russia. According to this decree, next year, 2013, has for the first time in Russian history been declared the Year of environmental protection. The purpose of this campaign is to "ensure the right of every person to a healthy environment". In pursuance of this decree, the Government of the Russian Federation has been instructed to develop and adopt a plan for major events in the country for the Year of environmental protection. The executive authorities of the Federation have been recommended to implement the necessary measures. What this "plan" is and which the "necessary measures" will be is not explained in the decree. Neither have there been any related official comments in the wake of the decree. Nor was it an event for the media, just like, for that matter, everything that in recent years has had to do with environmental policy. We believe, however, that the very decree is a momentous event inside the country. First of all, it should be interpreted as a reaction of the Russian state to the results of the two most important conferences for global environmental policy: Stockholm +40 and Rio +20, in which Russia practically did not participate or participated somehow indistinctly. Something similar has happened before. Thus, the Soviet Union did not participate in the UN conference on the environment in Stockholm in 1972, but it is certainly not a coincidence that immediately after it, the country established a modern infrastructure of national environmental policy, and greatly increased the real greening of the economy. It seems that something like this could happen this time as well. Why not, if the current year is the Year of Russian history in which there has been much of value and relevant to the present. But in any case, a sign has been given to the world and the country: nature protection is proclaimed a national priority. In conjunction with a number of other actions of the Russian leadership in this area, this means greater opportunities for the country's transition to a green economy and for implementing the environmental imperatives of sustainable development. The understanding of the importance of these features as a unique opportunity in the history of modern Russia is growing in the professional ecological community. Whether it will be used - the near future will tell. Yuri Mazurov, Moscow State University jmazurov@yandex.ru

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Protection of Lake Baikal
The Federal Target Program (FTP) "Protection of Lake Baikal and the socio-economic development of nature areas for the period up to 2020" developed by the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has been approved by the Government. The FTP draft was presented by Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation Sergey Donskoy, on August 16, 2012 at a meeting of the Russian Government. According to Donskoy, the program will significantly reduce the pollution of the water of Lake Baikal and the surrounding areas. By building and upgrading 62 wastewater facilities, discharge of polluting wastewater into Lake Baikal will be reduced by 70%. The Minister stressed: "To achieve the goals of the Program, we plan to address the challenges of eliminating past environmental damage, reducing current negative impac t and improving environmental monitoring of the Baikal natural territory. In addition, there is a set of measures for the conservation of biological diversity, minimizing natural risks specific to the region and the development of ecological tourism." According to the draft federal program, rehabilitation of 80% of the Baikal natural territory from the effects of waste from past economic activities will be achieved through the elimination of the consequences of industrial production at six sites. This includes the elimination of the negative impact of accumulated waste at BPPM, for which has been allocated about 3 billion rubles of th e total funding of the program. The work to eliminate wastes of past industrial activity at the Dzhida plant will continue. "To solve the problem of unregulated waste accumulation, there are plans to by 2020 build 49 different sites for recycling and disposal of waste across the area, so that up to 80% of the waste will be recycled, or placed in equipped landfills. In order to reduce the risks it is planned to construct and equip 24 firechemical plants, which by a quarter would reduce the average area of fires at Baikal PAs. Construction of 170 km of bank protection will increase the security of the population from emergencies by 22%," said Donskoy. As part of the program it is planned to reconstruct hatchery plants, and to build and equipment 68 cordons and 14 research stations, which will ensure preservation of a proportion of species of plants and animals listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, as well as to increase the reserves of valuable fish species in the lake by 44%. A significant result will also be 100% coverage of the environmental monitoring of the Baikal natural territory. The program is scheduled to last eight years, with a total funding of 58 billion rubles. 43 percent of the money will go to measures to reduce the level of contamination by different waste, and 20 percent to reduce the discharge of pollutants. That means more than half of the funds will be spent on protecting Lake Baikal from human impact. The basis for the development of the FTP is the Federal law on protection of Lake Baikal, as well as a number of regulations and orders of the President and the Government of the Russian Federation. The draft program was discussed in the framework of the Baikal Economic Forum in 2010-2011, and in 2012 at a meeting of the Interdepartmental Commission for the Protection of Lake Baikal with representatives of environmental organizations. "Given the high level of public interest in the topic, as well as its importance, all the results of the program will be submitted to annual review by the Interdepartmental Commission for the Protection of Lake Baikal and the Public Council under the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia, with the participation of international experts to assess the effectiveness of the work," said the Natural Resources Minister of Russia.
Source: Press Service of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation .

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London ­ Sochi: A green relay race
The organizers of the Olympic Games in London have not fulfilled all the promises given to the environmentalists, but these games are still the greenest Olympics in history. The greatest success the organizers of London 2012 have achieved in the reduction of CO2 emissions in the construction of facilities. The main environmental setback of London 2012 is failure to fulfill the promise of having its own source of renewable energy. This source was supposed to provide 20% of the energy required fo r the complex. Another promise - a 50% reduction in emissions during operation of facilities - the British are gradually fulfilling, however not so much by reducing the energy intensity of the objects themselves, but rather because of compensatory measures. Thus, they have invested in energy efficiency of the neighboring buildings, mostly houses. According WWF forecasts, Sochi 2014 will not take away London's honorary green status. In the case of the Sochi-2014 one should not talk about how green the Olympics will be, but rather about what will possible to restore when they are over. This is due, in particular, to the fact that the site for the Olympic Games in Russia was chosen, according to experts WWF, extremely poorly. Unlike London, the Sochi Olympics involve construction on protected lands. Catering to the needs of the Olympic Games, millions of cubic meters of unique Caucasian forests have been cut down. "The same thing is happening in the area of waste management. The initially declared construction of a plant for processing of solid waste, has then magically transformed into an incineration plant, the construction of which, in turn, had been explicitly forbidden by President Dmitry Medvedev at the suggestion of WWF," says Igor Chestin, Director of WWF Russia. However, nobody came back to the issue of recycling the waste, and it is now supposed to be taken away to another district of the Krasnodar region outside of Greater Sochi. This solution to remove waste from Sochi is only for now, in preparation for the Olympics, but after the games it will be too luxurious. From the environmentalists' viewpoint, the main priority for Sochi-2014 is the large-scale nature rehabilitation program, calculated to last for at least 5-10 years after 2014. Even the Government of the Russian Federation has agreed with the need for such a program at a number of meetings this year.
Source: Press Service of the WWF Russia.

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Congress of the Russian Ecological Party "The Green"
On August 10, 2012 the I (XVII) Congress of the Russian Ecological Party "The Green" was held in Moscow. The congress considered the question of the party's prospects of participation in the upcoming federal and regional elections. The congress approved the party's republican list of candidates to the State Council of the Republic of Udmurtia of the fifth convocation, the regional list of candidates for deputies to the Legislative Assembly of the Penza region of the fifth convocation, and the republican candidate list for the Parliament of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania ofthe fifth convocation. The congress delegates expressed the conviction that successful party activities are impossible without close cooperation with prominent public and political figures of the country, people who have great authority among the people, associations, public authorities at all levels, research and business organizations, youth organizations, regardless of their religious and political beliefs, that share the views on sustainable development of the Russian Federation. In this regard, there was support for the party's Central Council's suggestion to create the Political Council of the Political Party "Russian Ecological Party The Greens". Chairman of the Political Council of the party was unanimously elected Honorary Scientist of the Russian Federation, A Malyshevsky, for years the head of the Public Council under the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources.

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"We have not changed course. What has changed is the vector of society's development, the time has changed. And the leadership of the country sees the need for social forces, political parties, that are truly independent," "Green" leader Anatoly Panfilov told Interfax. A Panfilov noted that "The Green" as a political force and as a movement have a long history that allow them to form their own views on many issues. "We have our own course, our vision of the country's development. Where necessary, we will take a constructive approach, and somewhere we will be in the opposition. And, of course, we aim to go to the Duma," said the leader of "The Green." He stressed that the plans of the party so far do not includes participation in mass actions of non-system opposition. "Of course, we're not prepared to go to Bolotnaya - we need to maintain and expand the party. Our position is not with sticks and stones: we are for a constructive opposition and cooperation," explained the head of "The Green". Among the flagship projects of the party he mentioned cooperation with Rosprirodnadzor in creating public inspection in the field of environment. "The work started recently, hands are missing. But I think that after the October regional elections, we will get to this across the country. If we can gather 5-6 thousand inspectors it will be a powerful force, but more importantly, that issue will be resolved with Rosprirodnadzor, there is already such a view," said the president of the party.
Source: Web site of Rosprirodnadzor and Interfax

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Problems for the Shtokman project
"Gazprom" has admitted that the giant Shtokman project in the Barents Sea has been put on hold indefinitely: the costs are too high, states the newspaper "Vedomosti". When oil prices fall, a similar fate may await another project of the gas giant - Prirazlomnoye. "The situation with the development of the Shtokman field is quite natural: Arctic hydrocarbon projects are too risky, expensive, and therefore already economically unreasonable, if not murderous," says Vladimir Chuprov, head of Greenpeace Russia's Arctic program. At a meeting between environmental organizations and Gazprom units in 2011, Greenpeace questioned the economic viability of the Arctic project and urged the company to think about alternatives: biomass, biogas, energy efficiency. Modernization of the gas industry alone can provide 40-50 billion mЁ of gas, equal to the volume of gas that is expected to be produced in the first phase of the Shtokman field. In 2012, Greenpeace experts analyzed the risks associated with the development of the Arctic shelf , and came to the conclusion that the damage caused by any major oil spill cannot be compared to the possible gains from extraction. As the situation at Shtokman has shown, the risks are indeed high, and the investors obviously do not want to take hasty decisions. "If oil prices fall, the fate of the Shtokman field likely awaits also the development project of another field in the Barents Sea - Prirazlomnoye, the development license of which is owned by a subsidiary company to Gazprom," predicts Chuprov. "The cost of oil production at the Prirazlomnoye is about $ 30 a barrel, not counting the tax on mining and customs duties. If the cost of oil on the market is 100 dollars a barrel, the profitability of the project will be zero, and at a fall in prices to $ 50-60 the project loses all meaning." Even at the peak moment this oil field will produce less than 7 million tons per year, which is less than 2% of what is now being produced in Russia. Actually, in 2030 the entire Arctic shelf will provide, at best, about 3%, or about 13 million tons of oil annually. 4


"Russia now needs something quite different: an alternative energy scenario, energy -efficient technologies and renewable energy sources. For this, our country has a huge potential. At least 60 million tons of oil and gas can be saved through energy efficient technologies - these are the official figures of the state program for energy efficiency by 2020. Unfortunately, however, investments and tax incentives do not go to this, but to initially expensive, and relatively small projects," Vladimir Chuprov is convinced. Apparently, the first persons of the country are also beginning to realize this. "For us it is obvious - such ambitious objectives as the ones we set for ourselves, can only be addressed in th e new model of economic growth, the driver of which should be not raw materials, but powerful, high -tech, manufacturing business..." said the then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin at the congress of All-Russian public organization "Business Russia" in December 2011. In other words, saying no to oil and gas development of the Arctic shelf, which is a Greenpeace demand, will actually help the country to move forward: to reduce the federal budget's dependence of oil and gas revenues, and move to a new, high-tech model of economic growth. Gazprom has tried for almost 10 years to start development of the Shtokman field. Together with its partners Total and Statoil, Gazprom created Shtokman Development and planned to start production in 2013. However, the timing has shifted several times, and it has now been postponed indefinitely.
Source: Web site of Greenpeace Russia

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Arctic Sunrise at the Prirazlomnaya platform
Greenpeace International's action at the Prirazlomnaya platform in the Pechersky Sea began on August 24 in the morning, when six activists from "Arctic Sunrise", including Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo climbed onto the platform wall and held on to it for 15 hours. "Here and now at Prirazlomnaya we are acting on behalf of more than half a million people who have joined the global movement for the preservation of the Arctic," said Kumi Naidoo. This is not the first time Kumi Naidoo is personally involved in actions against drilling in the Arctic shelf. In June 2011, he climbed the derrick of British company Cairn Energy in Greenland with the demand to disclose the emergency plan and stop the work. For Cairn Energy, the attempt to detect expected deposits of resources offshore Greenland ended in failure and the company has folded the project. Now the race for Arctic offshore resources has been entered by the giants Shell and Gazprom, a subsidiary of which (OOO Gazprom Neft Shelf) holds the license to develop the Prirazlomnoye field in the Barents Sea. The platform with the same name was towed to the drilling site in August last year. The leadership of Gazprom Neft Shelf promised to begin drilling this summer, and start commercial oil production early next year. If successful, Gazprom Neft Shelf will be the first company producing oil in the Arctic shelf. However, the Prirazlomnaya operator's spill response plan adopted in 2007 expired in July 2012, and a "corrected (revised) plan", as is stated in a letter "has not been submitted" to the Ministry of Emergency Situations. "When it comes to the plans of Shell, which is preparing to produce oil offshore Alaska, and the plans of Gazprom, the question is not whether or not there will be spill, but of when it will happen. The only way to prevent an oil disaster in such a unique region as the Arctic is to prohibit any drilling here," says Kumi Naidoo.

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Under a steady stream of cold water hoses, activists from Germany and Finland chained one of the boats to the platform's mooring rope, not allowing the ship to approach it. However, "Anna Akhmatova" continued the maneuver - the boat capsized and the activists fell into the icy water. Photo by Denis Sinyakov / Greenpeace

On Monday, August 27, the action continued: activists stood in the way of the vessel Anna Akhmatova, not allowing the new shift of workers to climb onto the Prirazlomnaya platform and continue to prepare for oil production offshore. All night Greenpeace International shuttled between Prirazlomnaya and the passenger vessel Anna Akhmatova serving it, continuing their peaceful protest against drilling in the Arctic shelf. At dawn, boats with 10 activists from eight countries again stood in the way of the vessel Anna Akhmatova, not allowing it to dock to the platform. "With this peaceful protest we want to head off the potential disaster that is not ruled out if the platform will become active," says Kumi Naidoo. "Greenpeace's actions are directed against the company's dangerous plans to drill in the Arctic, and not against the workers, who, as we all, are hostages of the oi l industry. Greenpeace launches actions around the world to protect the Arctic from Gazprom, Shell and all corporations that rush to take advantage of the effects of the climate crisis and are willing to risk the well-being of the planet for their own profit. Until we see action on the part of companies and governments, we will continue our actions around the world." Five days later, the Greenpeace campaign was completed, but the fight for the Arctic continues. On August 31 Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo appealed to Putin in an open letter, urging the Russian leader to protect the Arctic from destruction.
Source: Greenpeace's web site

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Walruses on Kolguev Island
For the first time the formation of walrus rookeries on a sand spit at Kolguev Island has been documented. The work of the WWF Polar Bear Patrol on Kolguev Island has provided valuable information on the distribution of the Atlantic walrus subspecies listed in the Red Book of Russia.
Since early summer 2012, patrols from the national Nenets village Bugrino not only observe the polar bears, but also track the emergence of walruses in the vicinity of the island. Photo: Pyotr Glazov/ WWF Russia

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"Thanks to the work of the patrols we have received valuable information a bout the seasonal distribution of Atlantic walruses," says Viktor Nikiforov, Program Manager for WWF Russia's Bear Patrol. "It is obvious that, along with Vaigach Island and the islands in the Nenets reserve, Kolguev plays an important role in the preservation of walruses in the southern part of the Barents Sea, where experts estimate some 2,000 animals are living."
Source: Press Service of the WWF Russia.

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Meeting of the Public Council under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment
The Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation Sergey Donskoy on August 2 held a regular meeting of the Public Council under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry, the Russian office of the UNDP, the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), Lomonosov Moscow State University, Gubkin State Oil and Gas University, the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, the All-Russian Society for Nature Conservation, WWF Russia, the Russian Association of public associations of hunters and fishermen, and other academic and non-governmental environmental organizations. During his speech, Donskoy highlighted the importance of the role of the Public Council in solving environmental problems: "Economic development is accompanied by an increase in the level of environmental impact, the topic of "green economy" is being raised at all levels, including the government. In light of this, the involvement of experts is necessary." In the course of the Council, presentations were held by the deputy directors of the Department of state policy and regulation in the field of environmental protection and ecological safety at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Victoria Venchikova and Nikolay Nefedyev, and also the rector of the Russian State Hydrometeorological University Lev Karlin. V Venchikova reported on the progress of work on the draft Federal Law on amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation to improve the system of regulation in the field of environmental protection and the introduction of economic incentives for economic agents to introduce the best technology. She noted that adoption of the bill will not only reduce anthropogenic pressures to levels of environmentally friendly world technologies, reduce the consumption of natural resources and improve the ecological situation in the country, but also to upgrade existing facilities, increase their competitiveness, and reduce unnecessary administrative barriers to business. N Nefedyev in his report described the work on the draft of the state program of the Russian Federation, "Environmental Protection (2012-2020)", stressing that the document addresses major challenges to reduce the overall human impact on the environment, conservation and restoration of biodiversity in Russia, improving the functioning of the system of hydrometeorology and environmental monitoring, as well as the organization and maintenance of works and research in the Antarctic. In particular, by the year 2020 it is expected to reduce the number of Russian cities with high air pollution by 2.7 times, and by 13% increase the area of protected areas. Following the meeting, the Chairman of the Public Council Nikolay Kasimov said that the development of a clear mechanism of interaction between the experts and the Ministry will continue in the near future and the parties will conduct fruitful work for the improvement of Russian legislation.
Source: Press Service of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation .

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Georgy Sedov memorial plaque
On August 27 a memorial plaque in honour of the 100 year anniversary of Georgy Sedov's expedition to the North Pole was unveiled on the building of the Northern Hydrometeorological Agency (AHEM) on the Sedov Embankment in Solombala in Arkhangelsk.
Georgy Sedov - Russian hydrographer, Arctic explorer, explorer and discoverer of the Arctic, organizer of the expedition to the North Pole, which started from Arkhangelsk. Its preparation was carried out in Solombala. On August 26, 1912 the ship St. Foka left the Solombala raid and was moored at the pier fence. The residents of Archangelsk organized a solemn farewell to the expedition. Photo by the press service of the Northern Hydrometeorological Agency

In 2012, the leadership of the Solombala territorial district initiated the installation of a memorial plaque to G. Sedov, as a tribute to the feat of the scientist, who gave his life for the idea of the glorification of the Fatherland, and the officer, who served Great Russia. The honour to open the memorial plaque was given to the mayor of Arkhangelsk Viktor Pavlenko and veteran explorer Anatoly Shumakov. "The people of Arkhangelsk remember their heroes," said the mayor of Arkhangelsk. "Our city is the first port of Russia, and most of the expedition began from here. 100 years ago, G Sedov explored the Arctic and knew that Russia would grow with the development of fields in the northern seas. Such people we need to remember, to honor, and show as an example to the younger generation." Honorary Polar Researcher Anatoly Shumakov noted that "among the Russian Arctic explorers, the most remarkable is G Sedov; he made a great contribution to the development of the Arctic. First of all, he made the hydrographic description of the Kolyma river mouth, he improved the description of the islands of Novaya Zemlya, he created a program that provided year-round development and habitation of seafarers and explorers in the northern lands. During these 100 years, the Arctic is gradually opening its pantries, starting with the Norilsk Combine, and ending with large reserves of gas and oil. Our North Sea route, I think, will soon be a common sea route for the passage of vessels from Europe to Asia. Now we set our hope to young researchers, scientists of SAFU, who will continue the glorious tradition of Arctic exploration and creation of comfortable living conditions for the northerners." This summer, the first scientific and educational expedition "Arctic Floating University" was launched from Archangelsk, organized by Roshydromet and the Northern (Arctic) Federal University. During 40 days it covered 5000 miles. On board the research vessel of the North UGMS "Professor Molchanov" students of the Northern (Arctic) Federal University received training and practice, and unique survey data of the White and Barents Seas were obtained. To the grand opening of the Sedov plaque came members of the Arctic Floating University expedition , Solovetsky cabin boys and staff of the Northern Hydrometeorological Agency. The memory of Arctic explorers and conquerors was honoured with a minute of silence. In the year of the 100th anniversary of the Arctic expeditions of G Sedov, G Brusilov and V Rusanov a scientific conference will be held in Arkhangelsk on September 12-13 at SAFU, with the title "History of the study and development of the 8


Arctic - from the past to the future." The conference will bring together leading scientists from Russia and foreign Arctic researchers.
Source: Press Service of the Northern Hydrometeorological Agency

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Russia-US talks
On August 17, representatives of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Russia held talks with a delegation from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. The parties discussed issues related to the implementation of joint projects in the framework of the Working Group on Environmental Protection of the Bilateral Presidential Commission. The Russian delegation was headed by the director of the Department of International Cooperation Nuritdin Inamov, the American one by the head of the department for environment, science, technology and health care of the U.S. Embassy Jonathan Kessler. The Russian Ministry informed the American partners of the work undertaken by the Ministry on the reform of environmental legislation, and the work within Russia's accession to the Aarhus Convention, the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (Espoo Conv ention) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The participants of the meeting discussed issues of cooperation in the field of forestry and national parks, as well as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The sides noted the progress made in the elimination of past environmental damage. During the talks, the sides discussed prospects for the transboundary protected area Beringia (Chukotka). The draft decree on establishment of the Beringia National Park is being considered by the Government of Russia. Following the meeting, it was decided to hold the second meeting of the Working Group on Environmental protection of the Bilateral Presidential Commission in Moscow at the end of 2012.
Source: Press Service of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation .

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Appointment at the Ministry of Natural Resources
Yuri Gagarin has been appointed Director of the Department of state policy and regulation in forestry at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The corresponding order was signed by the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation Sergey Donskoy. Yuri Nikolayevich Gagarin was born on August 25, 1962 in the town of Semyonov (Nizhny Novgorod region). In 1988, he graduated from Mari Polytechnic Institute with the qualification Forestry Engineer, in 1996 he completed his postgraduate studies. Doctor of Agricultural Sciences, Associate Professor. From 1986 to 1993 he was first a forester, then director of the Pervomaisky Forestry (Republic of Mordovia). From 1993 to 2000 he served as chief engineer and chief forester of the State Committee of the Republic of Mordovia on forestry. From 2000 to 2004 he led the State Forest Service of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Protection of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in the Republic of Mordovia. In 2004-2007 he served as head of the Forestry Department of the Ministry and head of the Department for strategic development and legal matters of the Federal Forestry Agency. From 2004 to 2011 he was the head of the Forestry Department, Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of the Nizhny Novgorod region. In 2011 he moved to the non-profit research organization International Forest Institute, where he was CEO. Prior to his appointment to the 9


Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, he served as senior fellow at the Center for Ecology and Productivity of Forests at the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Press Service of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation .

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Book on geo-ethics
The publishing house Geoinformmark"in Moscow has published the monograph "Geoetika: theory, principles, problems" by N Nikitina. The book gives a systematic presentation of the main provisions of geo-ethics, analyzes its status, and considers its place in modern scientific knowledge. Special attention is paid to the development of moral foundations of relations "man - inanimate nature" arising from scientific studies of the Earth and its mineral resources, practical geological prospecting, extraction and use of natural resources. Based on the analysis of the essential characteristics of mineral resources (non-uniform distribution, limited, finite, belonging not only to the existing, but also to future generations) geoethical principles are developed along with how to use them. The concept of "geoethical imperative" is for the first time introduced as a key principle. The book isolates the issue of value of inanimate nature and the need to preserve geodiversity. It is found that the key moral categories of geoethics are fairness and responsibility. Also described are possible applications of existing ethical concepts of justice in the study and use of mineral resources and the use of income from them within the state, between states and between generations. Special emphasis is put on analysis of the responsibility for the preparation and management decisions in the use of mineral resources at three levels - the state, the enterprise, and the staff. Mechanisms re developed for the implementation of the mining industry's social responsibility for decisions in the field of mining economy and its social and economic consequences. In the opinion of the author, geoethics will be the moral basis of subsoil use in the future. The book was presented at the 34th International Geological Congress (5-10 August 2012, Brisbane, Australia).
Source: Press service of Rosnedra

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XXXII International Geographical Congress
From August 26 to 30 the 32nd International Geographical Congress was held at the University of Cologne (Germany) under the auspices of the International Geographical Union, IGU. It was attended by geographers from 80 countries. According to the organizers, the Congress was attended by over 90 people from Russia. The largest delegation was the one from the geographical faculty of Moscow State University, led by Dean Academician N Kasimov - more than 30 people. During the Congress, a representative of Russia was elected President of the International Geographical Union's for the first time: Professor Vladimir Kolosov, head of the Laboratory of Geopolitical Studies, Institute of Geography of RAS. (http://igu.igras.ru/aboutkolosov.html). The main topics of the presentations and discussions of the Congress were geographic education, globalization processes, sustainable development and environmental management.
Source: Web site of the geographical faculty of Moscow State University

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RUSSIAN SUSTAINABILITY NewsLETTER, August 2012

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