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Russia Scraps Lake Baikal Protection For Siberia-Pacific Pipeline
Moscow (AFP) Apr 13, 2006 Russia's parliament Wednesday scrapped legal environmental protection for Siberia's Lake Baikal to facilitate construction of a controversial pipeline linking Siberia to the Pacific Coast. In a surprise vote, the State Duma lower house of Parliament amended Russia's water resources code, which originally protected the zone around Lake Baikal. The Duma had adopted the code in a final reading last week and transferred it to the upper house of parliament, but deputies from the pro-Kremlin United Russia party unexpectedly called a new, unplanned Duma reading Wednesday. An overwhelming majority of deputies -- 330 against 98 -- then voted to repel the protection, in a move sharply criticized by independendent and left-wing lawmakers. "The government is lobbying on behalf of oil groups and other monopolies," said independent deputy Vladimir Ryzhkov. "With this vote, we are helping to destroy a unique lake," said Communist deputy Viktor Ilyukhin. Environmentalists warn that the route for the pipeline, which would skirt the northern shores of the world's largest fresh-water lake for dozens of kilometers, poses a major threat to the pristine environment of Baikal, which is classified by the United Nations as a World Heritage Site. In addition to regular pipeline malfunctions, the area around Lake Baikal is prone to earthquakes. A strong earthquake could rupture the planned high-pressure pipeline and lead to massive spillage of crude oil into the lake, experts say. Activists opposed to the route say a rally last month in the Siberian city of Irkutsk drew more than 5,000 people and included public addresses against the pipeline project by key regional politicians.
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Water Supply Cut To Chinese Villagers After Toxic Spill
Beijing (AFP) Apr 12, 2006Water supplies for hundreds of residents in eastern China were disrupted following a chemical spill in a local river, state press said Tuesday. A truck loaded with 11 tons of hydrochloric acid overturned in Zhejiang province Monday afternoon and most of the chemicals on board were spilled into the Xilugang river in Panfeng town, Xinhua news agency reported. |
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