An official initiative has created a threat to endangered plants on the Lago-Naki plateau.

The majority of online voting participants opposed the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources' proposal to change the protection regime for endangered plants. The bill would ease restrictions on resort construction on the Lago-Naki plateau and threaten the local flora, environmentalists noted.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," in February, the Supreme Court of Adygea rejected the claim of the Social and Ecological Union demanding the revocation of the transfer of forest lands on the Lago-Naki plateau for the construction of the "Lagonaki" ski resort. Environmentalists say 9,950 trees are planned to be cut down there, and the planned work will destroy the landscape.

The environmental project "Earth Concerns Everyone" called for a vote against a bill approving rules for the collection (harvesting) of plants and mushrooms listed in the Red Books, the Activatica project reported on March 1.

"By law, rare species are not subject to economic use: they cannot be collected, sold, or used in commercial or economic activities. Furthermore, disrupting or degrading the habitat of Red Book species is also prohibited," the activists stated, noting that the last day of voting is March 2.

The draft Russian government resolution "On Approval of the Rules for the Collection (Harvesting) of Plants and Mushrooms Listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, the Red Books of the Subjects of the Russian Federation, and the Rules for Issuing Permits for the Circulation of Plants and Mushrooms Listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, the Red Books of the Subjects of the Russian Federation" was prepared by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and published on the Federal Project Portal. Regulatory legal acts.

As of 11:59 PM Moscow time on March 2 (the end of voting), 2,889 people had voted against the project and eight had voted in favor, a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reported. (Voting required a "Gosuslugi" account or registration on the portal.)

Valery Brinikh, head of the Adygea branch of the All-Russian Society for Nature Conservation, Evgeny Vitishko, head of the Krasnodar regional branch of the Green League, and an ecologist who asked that his name and position not be published, commented on the project to "Caucasian Knot."

The new rules pose a threat to endangered plants, noted Valery Brinikh. "First and foremost, there's the threat of these regulations being abused for the commercial harvesting of endangered plants, and the threat of their being cut down for construction," he stated.

Evgeny Vitishko agreed that such regulations pose a threat to all endangered plants, not just those in specially protected natural areas (SPNAs). He called the adoption of such a regulation unprecedented. "It's truly unprecedented to propose removing federally protected plant species regardless of the goals and objectives," he noted.

As an ecologist, speaking anonymously, noted, this innovation is especially significant for protected areas, since the creation of protected areas presupposed the presence of endangered species in these areas.

Experts also suggested that the decree is being adopted to facilitate the construction of resorts in specially protected areas. Thus, Valery Brinikh suggested that the resolution is being adopted for the construction of a resort in Lago-Naki.

I assume this is being adopted to lift construction restrictions in Lago-Naki.

"I assume this is being adopted to lift construction restrictions in Lago-Naki, since otherwise it would be impossible to build there," he noted.

According to him, there are no proven methods for replanting endangered plants. Moreover, given the rocky soils in Lago-Nako and the deep root systems of many plants, especially trees, they will inevitably be damaged during replanting.

The developers' interest is clearly visible

For his part, Evgeny Vitishko found it difficult to name the specific construction projects this project is intended for, but agreed that it "clearly demonstrates the developers' interest." Speaking about the plant species that could be harmed by the implementation of the introduced regulations in Lago-Naki, he named the wild orchids growing there.

According to an environmentalist who spoke on condition of anonymity, similar construction projects are planned in Altai and the Caucasus, the most notable of which is the resort Lago-Naki.

It's impossible to replant such trees – there's no such technology in Russia or anywhere else.

"There are trees there that are hundreds of years old. And how can they be replanted – especially in such terrain? You can replant a flower, which will then wither, but you can't replant such trees – there's no such technology in Russia or anywhere else. The same goes for mushrooms – how will you replant the entire mycelium?" - he said.

Speaking about the protest vote on the Federal Portal of Draft Regulatory Legal Acts, Valery Brinikh believed that it was unlikely to have any impact. "Even if a majority of 'against' votes are recorded there and 'yes' votes aren't inflated in the final hours, 99 times out of 100 no one will pay attention to it," he said.

Yevgeny Vitishko is also pessimistic on this issue. He noted that while the state previously listened to the opinions of the environmental and scientific communities, everything has changed since the adoption of the law on the establishment of a biosphere test site on the territory of the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve.

There is pressure to allow the construction of military and other facilities in protected areas.

"There is pressure now to allow the construction of military and other facilities in protected areas, which will ultimately "will lead to the destruction of previously formed environmental legislation," he said.

An ecologist, speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed a different opinion about the role of voting. He noted that a "no" vote in such cases carried weight during discussions. "The authorities, if they didn't even go along with it, postponed such projects for better development," he said, without giving an example.

As a reminder, on March 28, 2023, the Russian Minister of Natural Resources approved the boundaries of the Lagonaki Biosphere Reserve, located in Adygea, intended for the development of tourism in the Caucasus Nature Reserve. Environmentalists in Adygea demanded that the construction of a mountain resort on the territory of Lagonaki be prevented, pointing out that the development would cause serious damage to the plateau's flora and fauna, including dozens of endangered plants. In addition, development plans for the reserve's protected zone contradict the law.

Back in July 2021, environmental activists protested the construction of a mountain resort in the Lagonaki Plateau. Adygea authorities are refusing to engage in dialogue with opponents of the resort's construction, and federal authorities have failed to respond to scientists' appeals due to the threat to the unique natural site, they stated. On June 1, 2024, the Russian Cabinet of Ministers announced that Adygea would receive over 500 million rubles to complete construction of a highway to the Lagonaki Plateau.