Sochi Akhshtyr villagers complain about absence of water and poor ecological state of the district (+video)
On May 25, about 60 residents of the village of Akhshtyr held in Sochi a rally in the format of a meeting with Igor Vasiliev, the leader of the local branch of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) and the assistant to the State Duma Deputy Sergey Obukhov. The reason for the meeting was the absence of any official response of the authorities to multiple local residents' complaints about the absence of water supply and bad ecology.
"The problems began in Akhshtyr during the preparation for the Olympics and have aggravated after it, when the village, located next to the Mzymta River, lost its water supply whatsoever. At our meeting residents decided to appeal to the State Duma Deputy Sergey Obukhov, since the Sochi level authorities either cannot or don't want to solve the problem," Igor Vasiliev told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.
"The Mayoralty held two public meetings in February and April, but things are still there. Water not only disappeared from wells; they stopped bringing it in car tanks. For almost a month people are without drinking water. We gather rainwater for washing and bathing, and buy bottled drinking water. There are just 140 villagers in total, and we feel completely forgotten," said Alexander Koropov.
According to the lawyer Alexander Popkov, under the City Statute, the administration is obliged to provide free drinking water to townspeople, until the water line is provided.
"This is the duty of the Mayoralty – to provide residents of the city and the villages included into the Large Sochi with uninterrupted housing and utility services. Residents should not run around and look for water tanks, especially in view of the fact that water disappeared from wells due to violations of the environmental legislation by builders of Olympic facilities whose actions had not been controlled by any authority, including the Mayoralty," Alexander Popkov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.