Apparently the level of pollution is six times higher than it should be in the Arctic! Now Prime Minister Putin calls for a major clean-up of the area.

He explained that this scrapheap in the ecologically sensitive area is the result of the reduction of military cooperation since the collapse of the Soviet Union. 40,000 to 60,000 tons of used lubricants and plane and car wreckage have been piled up there for years. Putin asked for international cooperation in the effort to preserve the area for the highly endangered polar bear, and to do everything to avoid a rise in temperature of more than 3-4°C.

“This should be done in partnership between the state and the private sector. But the state should take the first steps – to reveal the nature and the significance of the danger, to understand how to utilize waste products,” Putin said.

Originally, contamination of the Arctic was mainly blamed on leaks where dangerous chemicals polluted a rather small and localized area. Today scientists agree that actually pollutants from around the world are carried northwards through rivers, ocean currents and atmospheric circulation. Reduced sunlight, extreme temperatures and ice coverage slows down breakdown of the pollutants; contamination is therefore extremely high in concentration. If contamination ends up in the ocean, it could threaten the area of the North Atlantic, Norwegian Sea and possibly the Bering Sea, which have important fisheries.

Even if the environment there still appears pristine, high levels of heavy metals, organic pollutants, and radiation (from Chernobyl) are found there. This can become an issue even for human’s consummation, as contamination is picked up by algae which are eaten by fish. Thus, contamination ends up on our plates!

Last but not least it is expected that a  large portion of the remaining global endowment of oil and gas resources are to be found in the high northern latitudes of Russia, Norway, Greenland, United States, and Canada.

Prime Minister Putin has visited one of the islands of the Franz Josef Land archipelago in Russia’s far north, and now has made the clean-up of the area a high priority.

“Arctic hosts our naval bases, as well as aviation patrol routs. There are also economic interests, natural recourses. The Shtokman gas deposit is 300 kilometers away from the Barents Sea coast. Major transport communications of the Northern Sea Route are here,” the Russian premier said.

Recently, Russia has moved environmental issues to the forefront of its agenda; efforts for the establishment of a low carbon economy include increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy, improve forest law, and work for harmonizing its chemical legislation with Europe.

Hopefully serious measures are taken right now and every effort is made by the global community to save this sensitive and important area for future generations.