Vladimir Putin's address:
Good afternoon friends, colleagues,
Vasily Peskov, a man known and loved by many in Russia, turned 80 yesterday. He planned to be here today, but unfortunately he is not feeling well. Still, I'd like to once again congratulate him on his 80th birthday and to wish him a speedy recovery.
I'd like also to thank Moscow State University for allowing us to meet today in one of the university's buildings. This is a good hall, stylish even. Thank you very much.
During a meeting of the Russian Geographical Society several months ago we decided to revive this organisation, which was established back in the 19th century.
Our goal is to turn the Russian Geographical Society into a major venue for discussing ways to achieve our priority objectives of maintaining and deepening our geographical knowledge as well as knowledge of our natural wealth and the ethnic and cultural heritage of the country. We must turn the Geographical Society into an intellectual venue and an organising centre for research in all related spheres.
I believe that the Russian Geographical Society can make a big contribution toward achieving many of our current goals, including the comprehensive development of territories, infrastructure, the rational use of natural resources, and spreading environmental knowledge.
Today we will discuss the first project to be carried out with help from the Geographical Society.
First, we intend to start, or rather to continue work on a programme to preserve the unique ecosystem of Lake Baikal.
In my opinion, all the parties concerned could contribute to this programme, including experts, the general public, and international organisations.
The programme is aimed at collecting objective information about the current condition of the lake and determining the most rational ways to reduce the harmful impact on its ecology.
As you know, we went to the lake last summer with many of our colleagues. We took a look around the lake and discussed the research projects under way there.
The pulp and paper plant located near the lake is a high-profile issue. This debate began long ago, because the plant was opened in 1968. That's a long time.
Of course, all these problems merit our serious attention. You know that we want to protect the lake. When we were building a pipeline to the Pacific Coast, we made a decision, based on our scientists' data, to move its route 400 kilometres away from the water intake. We spent a lot of money on the project; we didn't scrimp, and we don't regret having done it.
On the other hand, we should create conditions for the sustainable development of the region and the city of Baikalsk with a population of 14,000 people.
We should address this issue calmly, without undue emotion. We need to take additional joint efforts and pay more attention to this problem.
Second, we will focus on one more important project. It concerns the protection of Arctic fauna, which is very fragile. Unfortunately, the population of polar bears continues to decline. In fact, these bears have become an endangered species. The polar bear must be protected, not only in zoos but also in their natural habitat.
Next, Russian school students traditionally have participated widely in international exchange programmes and various intellectual competitions. Both school and university students are involved. See, the rector is nodding his head in agreement... We are aware of our students' success at these international venues. And we will do our best to form a strong team for this year's International Geography Olympiad in Taiwan. We plan to hold a similar event in Russia in 2015.
Fourth, the Geographic Society should also have a role in educating the public. To accomplish this, we have set up a special Media Council. It will focus on educating the public about the incomparable natural beauty of Russia, the unique ecosystems of its European part, the Caucasus, the Extreme North, Siberia and the Far East, and also about the rich culture of the ethnic groups living in Russia.
Moreover, in November of 2009 I issued a special instruction on measures to be taken to increase the number of popular science programmes and films and shows on geography, the environment and tourism. The demand is out there. I'm confident that there will be demand for this among nearly all audiences.
And lastly, the Russian Geographical Society is a public organisation that is not financed by the budget. This is why we have formed a Board of Trustees, which will raise funds for the society's programmes and rally support for its initiatives in general. I have had a look at the programmes that will be presented today. They are not at all expensive; in fact, they will cost very little. But their effect on the country and society could be huge.
For the Board of Trustees to work as effectively as possible, we have reserved chairs on it for representatives of government organizations and business.
I hope that no one will consider their membership on the board to be a mere formality. The Geographical Society will be grateful to you for your help in achieving its goals.
This can be a financial contribution as well as organisational support for the work of the Geographic Society's local divisions, individual research, or public education projects and programmes.
If we are going to revive Russian Geographical Society, then we should also revive its traditions, including the tradition of patronage, which made possible many geographical discoveries in the past.
For many centuries, different groups in society have supported the study of our native land, and this support has earned them esteem. The names of Ryabushinsky and Sibiryakov went down in Russia's history primarily because of their contribution to geographical studies. They would have been forgotten otherwise.
I hope that their example will inspire today's patrons of science. Many of them have responded positively to our appeal, and I am grateful for this. Ultimately, everyone will benefit from such civic responsibility.
Thank you.
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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's closing address:
Ladies and gentlemen,
That concludes the enjoyable part - awarding grants. I'd like to wish our grant recipients success in their work. Let me repeat, this is really just the beginning, the first steps. I'm sure this work will be carried out on a larger scale, and that it will be productive, interesting and useful. And we will do what we can to expand it.
There were a few issues raised today that I'd like to draw your attention to once more.
I spoke about Lake Baikal in my opening address and would like to invite all of you to take part in the project on exploring its ecosystem. This is a very important issue. It has been a longstanding issue in both Soviet and Russian society. Obviously, it merits further study. As I mentioned, we are treating Lake Baikal with care and we won't spare any money to protect it.
I'm referring to the pulp and paper mill, an issue that is being widely discussed. I think some people are actually exploiting the issue for their own purposes, but this is beside the point. I'd like everyone to understand that this isn't about expropriation or profit making. Certainly not. This is a complex problem. Let me remind you that the mill has been operating since 1968.
When we visited Lake Baikal in summer, I spoke with researchers from the Academy of Sciences. I asked them what impact the mill has had on the lake, on its ecosystem. Thankfully there have been no changes for the worse. This does not mean that there are no problems. There are problems, but we should look at them with greater care and seriousness, without politicising the issue.
Take the discharge of sewage, for example. In 2008, the corresponding figure for the mill was 27.4 thousand tonnes, for the city of Ulan Ude - 34 thousand tonnes, the Irkutsk water and wastewater treatment plant - 106 thousand tonnes, the Gusinoozersk industrial centre - 442 thousand tonnes, and the Gusinoozersk water and wastewater treatment plant - 348 thousand tonnes.
As for air pollution, the mill released 4.3 tonnes of emissions into the atmosphere; the corresponding figure for Ulan Ude's thermal power station is 21.3 tonnes, for Severobaikalsk - 28.5 and for Angarsk - 221 tonnes.
We should study every aspect of the problem. Take agriculture, for example. Chemicals used on farmland gradually make their way into the lake.
We should take a serious, responsible and statesmanlike approach to the problem and discuss it without any hysterics or commotion. We should look at the region's socio-economic development. After all, people live there. The government shut the mill down. We did this to force its owners and managers to take the problem seriously.
As a result, the region experienced socioeconomic decline. It's not just about the mill. The mill is one link in a whole chain that also includes transportation, timber production, and so on. The social welfare network began falling apart instantly because all links of this chain are interconnected. Obviously, it is important to take a careful and statesmanlike approach to the issue.
It goes without saying that environmental protection should be a priority. Those who opened the mill in 1968 did not take the environment into consideration. We did not open it, but people are working there now within an established system. Something has to be done about it. A study will be conducted to determine what should be done and how. This is the purpose of the grant awarded here on this stage today.
Regarding the Arctic conference, recently Arctic exploration has caused a lot of noise. You know how the flag was put up at the North Pole and the response this caused among our neighbours. Their response was completely unjustified, completely. Nobody should prevent anyone from putting a flag on the North Pole. Let countries put up their flags if they can.
We are operating under the rules formulated by the United Nations in compliance with current international maritime law, and we are ready to continue working with all of our partners there.
The decisions taken in compliance with international law are based on scientific studies. One of the grants will be spent on scientific research. We are convening an international conference to discuss all related problems calmly and in a spirit of goodwill. We must listen to each other as good neighbours rather than scare each other with non-existent problems.
The work done on fauna and the polar bears is closely related to this issue, as I have already stated.
Now, with respect to the media council, we have very little information about our own country. Sometimes it seems like we are receiving more information about Russia's environmental protection, geography and mineral resources from research done by foreign experts on foreign money. We have enough specialists of our own. As I said in my opening address, it will not cost much to fund these efforts. Honestly, we are talking about kopecks.
Of course, I understand the business community and big business in particular, and I know about the work the budget involves. A kopeck here and a kopeck there can add up because there are many problems, but this project must be made a priority, without a doubt.
I hope that the project "Russian Geographic Navigator" will be as successful as the project "Faces of Russia" and the series of films about the history and culture of the Turkic peoples. I know that the VGRTK network is planning to show the "Faces of Russia" and I think it has already added it to its schedule. I hope this will be continued.
It is very important to study the Turkic peoples. I have said this repeatedly. In this country they are mostly Muslims, and it is important to understand and show that representatives of Islam in Russia are an organic part of Russia. Our Muslims are not immigrants like in Western Europe. They are Russian citizens. It is very important to show the multiethnic development of our country, our deep roots of co-existence, and how we built this country together. This will allow us to understand who we are today and how we should develop in the future.
Obviously, this is all-important - television projects, the "Russian Geographic Navigator," films and so on. It is equally important to preserve our historical heritage. I am referring to the archives of the Russian Geographic Society. Few people have seen them - I know some materials were brought from St Petersburg. They are enormous, very interesting and I'd say unique. It goes without saying that we should pay special attention to this. We must take care to preserve theses materials and make them available to anyone who wishes to see them in our country and to foreign experts.
Finally, I'd like to express my hope that our initiative will not be limited to Moscow. I hope it will be taken up in the regions and cities where local authorities will provide adequate administrative and financial support.
Thank you very much.