http://ecoinfo.bas-net.by/ecology-belarus/ecology_news_in_Belarus.html

№ 5 (32), May, 2016

MINSK, BELARUS

THIS ISSUE:

Belarus, Russia to create new trans-

boundary nature reserves ............ 1

Belarus, Russia to step up coopera-

tion in subsurface exploration ..... 1

Ecologists from Belarus, Moldova,

Russia, Ukraine discussing biodiver-

sity protection in Chisinau............. 2

World's oldest Terek Sandpiper lives

in Belarus .......................................... 2

Life after Chernobyl ....................... 2

Leaving good marks ...................... 3

Union State to increase financing

of Chernobyl mitigation activities

........................................................... 4

UK allocates $4m to Belarus

on Chernobyl projects in 2015 ..... 4

Kindness is always highly appreci-

ated .................................................. 4

Native people on their native land

........................................................... 4

Chinese ambassador to Belarus:

The entire mankind feels the pain

of the Chernobyl catastrophe .... 5

Belarus ratifies rocket fuel

recycling memorandum with

OSCE ................................................. 5

To feel with heart ............................ 5

Foreign investors invited to build

fuel pellet factory in Belarus ......... 6

To Visa-free entry to Augustow Ca-

nal to enhance its tourist appeal 6

Genes to explain ............................ 6

BELARUS, RUSSIA TO CREATE NEW TRANSBOUNDARY

NATURE RESERVES Bela-

rus and Russia in-tend to cre-ate new transbound-ary nature reserves as part of the action plan on coopera-tion in envi-ron ment a l protec t ion between the Belarus ian N a t u r a l Re so u rc es and Envi-ron ment a l Protect ion Ministry and the Russian N a t u r a l Re so u rc es and Environment Ministry in 2016-2017, the press service of the Belarusian Natural Re-sources and Environmental Protection Ministry told BelTA.

The action plan was signed in Moscow during the meeting of Belarusian Natural Resources and Envi-ronmental Protection Minister Andrei Kovkhuto and Russian Natural Resources and Environment Minister Sergei Donskoi.

Belarus and Russia have agreed to step up cooperation in many areas. In particular, they will work together to protect atmospheric air, the ozone layer in the atmosphere, rare and endangered wild animals and plants. Close attention will be paid to

forming an opti-m a l h ab i t a t for the Europe-an bi-s o n . Be larus a n d R u s s i a w i l l s h a r e the best practices in the applica-tion of l a w s t h a t regulate environ-m e n t a l p ro tec-tion and

nature management, the organization of ecological control and oversight, and adaptation to climate changes. The sides will cooperate to preserve the landscape and biological diversity, including in the transboundary context and other spheres.

The meeting of the two ministers took place as part of the international expo and forum Ecotech. During the plenary session on challenges and capabili-ties of green technologies with regard to the economy the Belarusian Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Minister delivered a report on Belarus' pro-gress in assimilating green economy principles.

BELTA, 3.05 .2016

SUPPLEMENT

TO THE DIGEST“GREEN BELARUS”

ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION CENTER

"ECO-INFO"

CENTRAL SCIENTIFIC LIBRARY NAS BELARUS

BELARUS, RUSSIA TO STEP UP COOPERATION

IN SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION Belarus and Russia will step

up cooperation in the field of subsurface exploration, Bela-rus' Minister of Natural Re-sources and Environmental Protection Andrei Kovkhuto told reporters following a joint meeting of the nature minis-tries of Belarus and Russia in Moscow, BelTA has learned.

The Minister noted that the Belarusian and Russian geologists have long cooperated in joint sub-soil exploration. “At the meeting, we decided that these projects will continue. Cooperation in the field of exploration of subsoil will be intensified and may be based on the unified system of registering

the deposits and, possibly, a pro-gram of joint action which will result in the strengthening of co-operation both in terms of discov-ering new mineral deposits and also in the use of production and processing technologies,” the Min-ister said.

Andrei Kovkhuto said that Belarus is interested in Russia's experience of and Russian technol-ogy in geo-exploration and mining.

The Minister also said that the meeting reviewed the progress in the implementation of the Belarus-ian-Russian intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in pro-tection and rational use of trans-boundary water bodies. “The is-

sues of water resources are very important including in the context of the climate change. We need to study the impact of human activi-ties and industry on surface and underground waters in order to ensure an uninterrupted water supply to the population,” the Minister said.

According to Andrei Kovkhuto, the meeting also discussed ecolog-ical tourism, specially protected natural areas and a number of others issues, which will be the subject of cooperation between the two ministries in the coming years.

BELTA, 17.05.2016

Green Belarus Green Belarus

News & EventsNews & Events in Belarusin Belarus

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Independent environmental researchers, national agencies, and representatives of non-governmental organizations from Belarus, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine are meeting in Chisinau on 11-13 May to evaluate the capa-bilities of the Emerald Network sites in their countries for the sake of preserving European biodiversity in the long term, BelTA has learned.

The evaluation efforts will focus on all habitats and all species (except for birds) in the continental bio-geographical region that spans the territory of the four countries.

Participants of the meeting will also discuss a draft conclusion on the sufficiency and compliance of the suggested Emerald Network candidate sites for the sake of protecting habitats and species.

The Emerald Network is a regional environ-mental protection network of areas of special con-servation interest. It has been launched by the Council of Europe as part of the efforts to imple-ment the Convention on the Conservation of Euro-pean Wildlife and Natural Habitats (the Berne Convention).

BELTA, 11.05.2016

ECOLOGISTS FROM BELARUS, MOLDOVA, RUSSIA, UKRAINE DISCUSSING BIODIVERSITY PROTECTION IN CHISINAU

WORLD'S OLDEST TEREK SANDPIPER LIVES

IN BELARUS

LIFE AFTER CHERNOBYL April 26th, 1986 was a breaking moment

in the history of three republics: Belarus, Ukraine and Russia; they were directly affect-ed by the Chernobyl nuclear power station disaster. Not only millions of residents of the suffered territories realized the reality of nu-clear energy: the whole world saw what scales a nuclear tragedy might produce if something goes wrong. In the first years after the acci-dent, the affected states independently settled problems related to social and medical conse-quences and Belarus — despite hard times and limited possibilities — was also among those who relied only on themselves. In thirty years of after-Chernobyl life, the country has not only recovered from the catastrophe but man-aged to achieve an absolutely new level of development.

Disaster on a sunny day

The Chernobyl nuclear powers station‟s catastrophe affected almost a quarter of the Belarusian territory: over 3,000 cities and villages and twenty percent of the country‟s popula-tion. Around 25 percent of Belarusian forests were contam-inated with radiation and the total damage in thirty years of the struggle against the disaster consequences makes $235bln for the country.

In the beginning, scales of the catastrophe were not viewed as so much terrible. However, when the truth was rea-lized, Belarus mobilized all resources to protect people in the affected zone. The General Secretary of the Trade Unions‟ Confederation — Vladimir Shcherba-kov — attended a special session in Gomel devoted to the problem. He said, “To li-quidate consequenc-es of the catastrophe, many material resources were attracted and a great number of people were involved. Programmes — approved in the first years after the disaster — worked efficiently in the late 1980s-early 1990s. A programme aimed at estab-lishment of radiation scientific-practical medical centres was also efficient. However, after the USSR collapse, the affected countries had to solve prob-lems independently.”

The Chernobyl catastrophe affected many Belarusian districts — mostly in Gomel and Mogilev Regions. Thousands of people had to leave their houses forever as radiation left them no choice. The state offered support to those settlers — providing them with free accommodation and a possibility to start their life at a new place. Much money was injected into medicine to help people, rehabilitation of contaminated lands and producing of ecologically friendly food. Life was going on: time, science and state investments have done their job. This decade, Belarus has at last outlined a new vector: from overcoming and rehabilitation of contaminated areas to sustainable development of regions via comfortable business doing, establishment of new production facilities and improvement of the social sphere. To achieve this, the state is ready to pro-vide preferences.

At present, the fear, despondency and loss of the early 1990s on post-Chernobyl territories are no longer common. The frightening uncertainty has transformed into clear and transparent stability.

Owing to rehabilitation actions, the contaminated areas of Belarus have got their second breathing. People do not longer leave them for the search of a better life. New enterprises and being built here; young families come to bring up children. Everyone knows: the black date is in the past. It is remem-bered but people no longer look into the past, view-ing themselves as victims of the tragedy. On the contrary, everything is being done to return the life course into the previous calm mainstream when every day is open for new discoveries rather than a desire to pack up bags and go somewhere farther.

Health is a priority

Human health remains a priority of the Belarus-ian state and, with this in mind, the country injects as much as possible into the development of medi-cal sphere — focusing on the future. In December 2002, the Republican Research Centre of Radiation

Medicine and Human Ecology began its functioning in Gomel — concentrating on problems, achievements and scientific studies in the field of people‟s „post-Chernobyl‟ life. The disas-ter happened three decades ago and the Centre‟s Deputy Director — Anzhelika Zharikova — comments on whether any changes in focuses are ob-served, since initially, the Cen-tre‟s mission was to medically control health of all residents of the affected territories. The official notes, “As before, the Centre is a head organization in Belarus to render medical aid to affected population. This in-volves over 1.5mln people who

are subject to dynamic examinations and preven-tive observation. Several groups of the primary registration are in focus: liquidators, evacuated people, those living in the zone but leaving it, chil-dren of liquidators and residents of exclusion zones, as well population of the territories subject to regu-lar radiation control. We pay major attention to these categories.”

Ms. Zharikova explains how the scheme of action operates in connection to a certain territory. The obligatory health issue is to pass a regular preventive examination which enables doctors to trace changes in a human organism, while diagnos-ing a disease in its initial stage. The accumulated information is endlessly being analyzed to promptly correct the medical avenues of the sphere. Speak-ing of the key result in the decades of rendering „post-Chernobyl‟ aid, the doctor notes, “We‟ve succeeded to achieve sustainable indicators of disease incidence among the affected population against similar indicators of the country‟s non-contaminated areas. Regarding the initial morbidity, these indicators in Gomel Region are lower than the figures on the nationwide level. No tendency for a growth is registered.”

Of course, three decades is a minor period for radiation and nobody would dare to speak of the consequences of the radioactive damage to Bela-rusians‟ health. Accordingly, scientific studies at the Centre continue, with major focus made on advanc-ing. If there is even a small chance to forecast the appearance of disease, Gomel‟s scientist-doctors take as much effort as possible.

Importantly, science truly matters in this field. Belarusians use the most advanced global achieve-

ments and their own developments. Accordingly, new directions are actively developing and the Republican Research Centre of Radiation Medicine and Human Ecology focuses not exclusively on Belarus: as planned in the past, citizens of the neighboruing Russian and Ukrainian territories come. Last year, the Centre‟s specialists helped patients from over 20 CIS and non-CIS states to recover their health: all of them chose the Gomel clinic instead of other destinations.

Vetka life

The disaster became a true shock for Gomel Region‟s Vetka District: 18,000 citizens remained in the area instead of 48,000. Most villages were resettled and forests were fenced behind an alarm-ing sign: „Attention! Radiation!‟ Even now, these stop blocks are found in Vetka District. However, they do not look frightening now: they rather re-mind us of the past — warning that rules must be met and caution is necessary. Only then anyone would feel safe.

In recent years, Vetka has flourished and does no longer resemble the town it was once. New accommodation is being built and new enterprises open. The First Deputy Chairman of Vetka District Executive Committee — Valery Zholudev — tells us with pride, “The most powerful poultry is now being built in Gomel Region. In line with the project, 24 henhouses are to be launched, in addition to our own processing workshop. The first stage of the object will become operational later this year. More-over, 140 new jobs are to be offered. At the mo-ment, construction of a major milk-commodity complex and a pig farm is almost complete — providing another 140 jobs.”

The district is developing — as seen from points of the economic growth. Truly, people‟s wellbeing could hardly be possible without new production facilities. Each new successful company ensures citizens‟ financial stability and confidence in the future. Our talk with Mr. Zholudev continues:

Did you born in Vetka District?

No, I came from Grodno Region. In 1988, I was sent to the horse plant in Vetka District‟s Staroe Selo, as a young specialist.

Did you agree? You knew of the Chernobyl disaster…

I agreed but was confident that would return home after two years. However, I got used to this land. I married and my children were born here. After many years, I‟ve realized: it‟s probably no better place for life in the world.

What about radiation?

I can comment. Radiation is on closed territo-ries, behind fences. It is reducing here as well since radionuclides are being split. As regards residential areas, life here is even better than in clear regions. I own a large house where my family feel comforta-ble. I have a job which brings me satisfaction and pleasure. If I would be proposed to move some-where else — I wouldn‟t go; you may either believe me or not…

While walking along Vetka‟s narrow streets — which little resemble city avenues, there is an im-pression that the town is small and homish. Howev-er, this adds a special atmosphere: anyone would love to make a stop here — breathing wonderful local air.

Belarus-Magazine, 17.05.2016

The world's oldest Terek Sandpiper (Xenus cinereus) lives in Belarus, BelTA learned from public organization APB-BirdLife Belarus.

“On 13 May, specialists of a bird banding station in Turov discovered a Terek Sandpiper when checking the nets in the evening. This bird is rare for Belarus (there is even a monument to this

bird in Turov). But it is precisely this bird that has become perhaps the rarest: it had a 17-year-old ring on its leg. This makes it the oldest Terek Sandpiper in the world,” APB-BirdLife Belarus said. During its life the bird flew about 200,000km. Until now the known maximum was 16 years. That record was registered in Finland.

Employees of the Research Center for Biore-sources of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, who are working at the banding station in Turov this season, examined old records. It turned

out that the Terek Sandpiper was ringed in a meadow near the village of Zapesochie on 21 June 1999. The ornithologists had an encounter with the bird in 2005 and 2011. The fourth meeting took place in May 2016 and made the bird the oldest Terek Sandpiper in the world.

Terek Sandpipers nest from Finland to Chu-kotka. The bird winters in East Africa.

BELTA, 17.05.2016

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On 26 April 1986, an accident happened at the Chernobyl power plant near the Ukrainian town of Pripyat. Explosions destroyed the cas-ing of the nuclear power plant’s reactor and the resulting fire lasted 10 days, sending a radioactive cloud over most of Europe. Around 70 percent of the radioactive fallout rained down on the territory of the Republic of Belarus. According to official reports, 31 people died im-mediately and 600,000 ‘liquidators’, involved in fire fighting and clean-up operations, were exposed to the high doses of radiation. Based on the official reports, more than 8mln people in Belarus, Ukraine and Rus-sia were exposed to the radiation. Nearly 23 percent of the Republic’s total area was con-taminated, heavily affecting lifestyles and economies in 21 regions.

The Chernobyl accident has significant social consequences. A lot of small towns and villages near the station had disappeared with hundreds of thou-sands people evaquated in the safe places and emigrated to permanent residence in other districts. The catastrophe had enormous economic conse-quences. According to some estimates, the sum necessary to overcome the consequences of the technogenic accident makes up more tham two hundred billion dollars. Missed profits and investment opportunities are estimated at US$ 13.7 billion.

During the first four years after the Chernobyl accident the Soviet authorities decided to largely deal with the consequences of the explosion at a national level. Without Soviet support, the United Nations and its partners sought ways to provide emergency support, which included assessing the nuclear safety and environmental conditions of the contaminated area, and diagnose the various medi-cal conditions that resulted from the accident. The UN also focused on raising the awareness of the area‟s inhabitants, teaching them how to protect themselves from radionuclides found in the environ-ment and agricultural products.

Many count the year 1990 as a crucial point in the United Nations involvement in the Chernobyl recovery. The Soviet Government acknowledged the need for international assistance. As a result, the General Assembly adopted Resolution 45/190, which called for „international co-operation to address and mitigate the conse-quences at the Cherno-byl nuclear power plant‟. This Resolution also entrusted one of the Under-Secretary-Ge-nerals with the task of coordinating the Cher-nobyl co-operation and called for the formation of an Inter-Agency Task Force. The Quadripartite Coordination Commit-tee, which consists of ministers from Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, as well as the United Nations Chernobyl Coordinator, became part of the coordination mechanism at the ministerial level. In 1992, a year after the Task Force was es-tablished, the Department of Humanitarian Affairs, which came to be called the Office for the Coordina-tion of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in 1997, began to coordinate international co-operation on Cherno-byl. To expedite financial contributions towards the Chernobyl activities, the Chernobyl Trust Fund was established in 1991 under the management of the OCHA. The OCHA began to manage a range of di-verse tasks and responsibilities from strategy formu-lation and promotion to resources mobilization, advocacy and channelling donors‟ contributions. Since 1986, the United Nations organizations and major Non-Government Organizations and Founda-tions have launched more than 230 different re-search and assistance projects in the fields of: health, nuclear safety, including the construction of the Shelter, socio-psychological rehabilitation, eco-nomic rehabilitation, environment and production of clean foods and information.

Visit of Helen Clark, the Administrator of the UN Development Programme, the Under-Secretary General of the UN in Vetka, April 2015

Over time it has become clear that the task of environmental and health recovery cannot be sepa-rated from the task of development. Since 1988, the global community, led by the United Nations, launched and successfully implemented around 80 various assistance, development, and research initia-tives focused to advance socio-economic develop-ment, promote safe living, and restore a sense of community self-reliance. In 2001, the UNDP, and its regional director for the three affected countries (Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus), became part of the coordination mechanism for Chernobyl co-operation. In the following year, the United Nations announced a shift in strategy, with a new focus on long-term developmental approach, as opposed to emergency humanitarian assistance.

After 30 years of rehabilitation activities, sus-

tainable social and economic development coupled with sound and plain information on how to live safely on the affected territories still has an im-

portant role to play in mitigating the conse-quences of the Cherno-byl disaster that had lowered the quality of life in the affected regions of Belarus.

The new approach to Chernobyl recovery was first recommended by a 2002 UN Report entitled „Human Consequences of the Chernobyl Nuclear Accident. A Strategy for

Recovery‟. The report emphasized the need to shift from traditional humanitarian assistance delivered in response to an emergency to a more long-term goal, involving developmental area-based approach to tackling problems of the affected population while ensuring continuous provision of primary health care, radiation monitoring and economic development.

The UN designed strategy for Chernobyl affected regions is based on the assumption that local com-munities are in urgent need for better economic and social development, a restored sense of community self-reliance, and the information required to over-come stigma and fears, associated with radiation and „contaminated‟ label.

With the help of the UN agencies and other international partners, affected regions of Belarus managed to undertake a transformation from a humanitarian aid recipient to a reliable partner with good potential in successfully implementing long-term local development polices in the regions, mak-ing them a more attractive environment for life.

Implemented by the UNDP „Strengthening part-nerships and resource mobilisation mechanisms to mitigate the negative consequences of the Chernobyl disaster‟ project (2003-2004) was shaped to identify information needs of the population living in the Chernobyl-affected geographical area of Belarus. Sociological and interactive surveys covered more than 2,600 respondents from various social groups and local communities in the affected areas. The surveys implemented recommendations of the new Chernobyl approach focused on local people as key actors into undertaking rehabilitation and develop-

ment activities.

Launched in 2003, the UNDP led „Co-operation for Rehabilitation‟ (CORE) Programme (2003-2008) was the first large-scale, multi-partnerships initiative that targeted the improve-ment of living conditions in four Chernobyl affected districts by reach-ing out to the people themselves, helping them to contribute to formu-lating the specific individual and common project proposals. The initiative was designed as a coordi-nating instrument for the implemen-tation of various projects in four

priority areas: health monitoring and healthcare services, the social and economic development of contaminated rural areas, education and cultural heritage and radiological quality control.

The CORE aimed to create sustainable liveli-hoods, enhance economic, social and cultural devel-opment while empowering local communities and encouraging partnerships.

Under the motto „Together We Can!‟ the CORE Programme helped to ge-nerate 191 local project proposals featuring 146 initiatives with total budget around US$9.0 million that were included into the Programme and successfully implemented.

The CORE Programme was the first initiative to demon-strate benefits of active involve-ment of the communities in the Chernobyl affected areas in the process of rehabilitation and development. Such a pro-active model of participation helped local people to change their attitude and behaviour to social and economic environment in the districts, and motivated to contribute efforts and resources to revive growth and development. The Programme had also influenced the emotional environment of local communities by inspiring self-confidence and belief in a positive change and resilience.

As co-operation with local administrations and the scope of local communities‟ involvement in the rehabilitation process expanded, an innovative for Belarus Area-Based Development (ABD) approach was applied in 60 community driven project initia-tives that became a driving force for positive chang-es in social and economic environment in four Cher-nobyl-affected districts of Gomel Region. The initia-tives mobilized more than 11,000 local participants and generated around US$ 3.0 million. The initiatives that are a product of „Combat the Negative Effects of the Chernobyl Disaster in Belarus‟ project (2008-

2010), financed by European Union and implemented by the UNDP, promoted social mobilization practices and good gover-nance among state and non-state actors in the targeted communities

Participants of the experiment on cultivation of ecologically clean agricultural products in Stolin District of Brest Region

The projects fuelled up pro-active participation of local communities in addressing existing challeng-es in education and culture, consumer societies, health, municipal services, labour and employment, sports and local tourism, emergency response. Apart from this, the project also conducted first in Belarus large-scale thyroid screening. More than 600 people, including 150 children undertook medical examina-tion for thyroid cancer in Mozyr District of Gomel Region.

In order to make good decisions, people on the affected territories needed sound information. Cher-nobyl/ICRIN (International Chernobyl Research and Information Network) project (2009-2011) designed to meet the priority information needs of affected communities in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine and aimed at translating the latest scientific information about the consequences of the Chernobyl accident into accurate, practical advice that will help people live safely on the affected territories. The project was a joint effort of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), UNDP, UNICEF, and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Dissemination of scientific data and findings in plain language, accessible to non-specialists, helped dispel widespread misconceptions and fight stigma that afflicts the Chernobyl-affected regions. The ICRIN project activities featured dissemination of information through five rural information centers as well as education and training events for teachers, medical professionals, community leaders and the media.

The efforts of Belarus in mitigation of the conse-quences of the Chernobyl catastrophe with specific local solutions responsive to needs of the Chernobyl-affected communities received further support within the framework of „Enhancing Human Security in the Chernobyl Affected Areas of Belarus‟ project (2010-2013). The initiative targeted enhancing smallhold-ers‟ businesses, promoting healthy lifestyles among vulnerable populations, improving prevention and treatment of breast cancer, sprea-ding of knowledge in radiation safety in five affected districts of Belarus.

Around 2,190 rural smallholdings received ex-pect and advisory support on livestock growing, crop planting, production of radionuclide free products, product marketing. The project designed and tested mechanisms for providing small loans and micro credits to the rural residents as well as piloted a group co-operation for agriculture produce, rural market access. Thirteen monitoring and information centres for radiation control and safety helped local populations to consume clean milk and other food products, as well raised public awareness on secure living in the affected areas.

More targeted efforts in the health dimension of the human security pillar went through the organized self-support groups of pregnant women and new mothers and introduced breast cancer screening system.

This year, the UNDP wraps up its primary coordi-nating role in post-Chernobyl recovery and rehabili-tation and moves to a supporting role to facilitate sustainable development in the affected areas. Nev-ertheless, the UNDP in Belarus will continue to be involved in further activities in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and priorities on

global, regional and national levels.

At strategic level, the UNDP will continue to assist in formulating the Post-2016 Strategy of inter-national co-operation on Cherno-byl. It will also continue work on knowledge sharing: sharing the experience that was collectively accumulated of overcoming complex consequences of a nuclear disaster in a broader UN context, including 2030 Sustain-able Development Agenda and Sendai Framework of Disaster

Risk Reduction, which is crucial not only for the region, but for the entire world.

At local level, the UNDP will focus on creating new partnerships for innovation and investment in the affected regions in order to highlight the utmost priority of peoples‟ prosperity as a result of efforts to overcome crises and emergencies and achieve sus-tainable development.

We will also build on our experience of success-ful implementation of Area-Based Development in Chernobyl-affected areas, and focus on cultivating local community initiatives in the framework of the ongoing Local Development project, funded by the EU.

Belarus-Magazine, 17.05.2016

Thanks to you all!

LEAVING GOOD MARKS

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The Union State will raise the financing of the activities aimed at mitigating the Cherno-byl impact, Belarus Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov told reporters after the session of the Union State Council of Ministers in Mogi-lev on 12 May, BelTA has learned.

“We have approved the program of joint ef-forts to mitigate the consequences of the Cherno-byl disaster within the framework of the Union State. We have agreed to increase the budget

financing of these measures,” Andrei Kobyakov noted.

In his words, the sides arrived at a decision to provide comprehensive medical aid to certain cate-gories of Belarusian and Russian citizens affected by the Chernobyl disaster. This matter is especially relevant in the year when the 30th anniversary of the Chernobyl catastrophe is marked. Such healthcare services will be provided by three big specialized medical centers, namely the Research

Center of Radiation Medicine and Human Ecology of the Belarusian Healthcare Ministry, the Medical Radiology Research Center of the Russian Healthcare Ministry, and the All-Russian Center of Emergency and Radiation Medicine of the Russian Emergencies Ministry.

BELTA, 12.05.2016

UNION STATE TO INCREASE FINANCING OF CHERNOBYL MITIGATION ACTIVITIES

NATIVE PEOPLE ON THEIR NATIVE LAND It was pouring with rain that day in Go-

mel and since early morning there was the feeling that nature was remembering the sad date: the 30th anniversary of humankind’s largest man-made catastrophe

The accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant didn‟t occur in Belarus and, although we were in no way to blame, our country took the brunt of the impact: around 70 percent of the radioactive substances fell here. Around 25 percent of Belarus was contained within the affected area. In the first few years after the tragedy, no one knew what to do and where to move to. After the collapse of the USSR, the young Belarusian state was virtually left alone to cope with the Chernobyl disaster. There were many sceptics who predicted the country would fall into chaos. Many brave and determined people have, however, managed to survive the trials; they‟ve not only restored the affected lands but turned them into well-kept towns and villages, blooming gardens and arable fields. This is not a metaphor but reality. Moreo-ver, the rehabilitation and development of the affected areas are under the personal control of the President who visits these lands annually. This time, Alexander Lukashenko paid a working visit to the Yelsk District.

Bad weather does not stop the hardworking Polesie residents. Dobryn agro-town is busy with field workers; local villagers were planting corn on the day the President came. Winter crops were already in evidence. Owing to the latest scientific technology, workers in the affected areas have learned to produce meat and milk which are even cleaner than in neighbouring districts. Mr. Lukashenko has encouraged them to use more organic fertilisers instead of chemical additives. Environmentally friendly products are highly val-ued all over the globe.

A strong industrial base will contribute to social development. Dobryn is an excellent exam-ple for many district centres in this respect — a fact appreciated by the President. Mr. Lukashenko is keen to ensure that all agro-towns and especial-ly district centres will look similar to Dobryn in the next five years. Young people will then feel pride in their town and will be less likely to leave. A deep moral sense is rooted in these plans. It would have been a betrayal to leave the land which has been producing food for people for centuries. Of course, it was not easy for the state to revive the regions affected by radiation. Mr. Lukashenko quoted some figures outlin-ing the damage caused to the country‟s economy by the Chernobyl catastrophe which is estimated at about $235bn. The international community‟s assistance has been and remains small — accounting for around 1-2 percent of Belarus‟ domestic spending (which has already exceeded $22bn). This of course is without calculating the immeasur-able amount of heroic work done by locals and volunteers.

Fortunately, the people of Belarus did not succumb to panic. According to the state pro-grammes, the systematic work on decontamina-tion, building of sewage treatment plants, thou-sands of kilometres of pipelines and water supply systems, over a hundred thousand houses and flats, about five hundred schools, kindergartens, health centres and sports facilities is continuing. This policy is a matter of respect — not only for neighbouring Russia and Ukraine; it is studied by many experts from the countries using nuclear

technology. For example, the Republican Research Centre for Radiation Medicine in Gomel is visited by American and Japanese doctors — to learn from our experience. Instead of areas covered with weeds, foreign guests are welcomed by wonderful landscapes where people can work and live com-fortably. Moreover, they feel safe here and local marriage offices are the best confirmation: they register an increasing number of births. In Dobryn alone, two sets of twins were born last year. This

is the best argument in favour of the Government‟s policy in reha-bilitating the Chernobyl territo-ries. “As I was informed by Vladi-mir Dvornik [Chairman of the Gomel Regional Executive Com-mittee], your increase in birthrate is 2-3 percent more than the region in general. This means people have decided to live here. In this five-year period, we‟ll completely gasify district centres and agro-towns, in addition to major settlements,” the President said.

Participation in the final concert of the Renais-sance creative marathon was the final chord of the President‟s working visit. Mr. Lukashenko was presented with a symbolic 30 metre „Circle of Life‟ rushnik — made by weavers from Neglyubka, of the Vetka District. According to them, it will help to protect our country from wars and disasters. Mr. Lukashenko expressed gratitude to the people for their love of our native land and the desire to improve it.

The Minsk Times, 4.05.2016

Modest heroes of Chernobyl

UK ALLOCATES $4M TO BELARUS ON CHERNOBYL PROJECTS IN 2015

In 2015 the UK allocated nearly $4 mil-lion to Belarus for the implementation of projects to mitigate the impact of the acci-dent at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipoten-tiary of Belarus to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Ambas-sador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Ireland Sergei Aleinik said in an interview to the RTR-Belarus TV channel, BelTA has learned.

“Britain is ranked third in the number of chil-dren the country welcomes for recuperation un-der the assistance program. Apart from that, the total financial aid last year made up almost $4 million. The aid was allocated for the implementa-tion of socially important and humanitarian pro-jects in Mogilev and Gomel Oblasts of Belarus,” said Sergei Aleinik.

The Ambassador noted that Belarus and the UK enjoy long-standing humanitarian coopera-tion. “Sensible conservatism, common sense and

reasonableness of the British people go in harmo-ny with the feeling of compassion with people who seem to be geographically far away. Years-long efforts of more than a dozen of charitable humanitarian organizations of the UK, which provide assistance to Belarus in the mitigation of the Chernobyl impact, testify to the fact,” Sergei Aleinik added.

BELTA, 2.05.2016

KINDNESS IS ALWAYS HIGHLY APPRECIATED There are many kind people

who help us in overcoming the consequences of the catastro-phe at the Chernobyl nuclear power station

The President welcomed the UN Under-Secretary-General, and Administrator of the UN Develop-ment Programme, Helen Clark, and the Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, Cihan Sul-tanoglu, at the Independence Pal-ace. The guests have been good friends to Belarus. The Chernobyl topic in the UNDP Belarusian pro-gramme is one of the key areas for discussion. The work has been ongoing since 1991 and a great deal can be said of the results. Their work is highly appreciated by us and has been recognised by the President‟s award of Frantsisk Skorina orders to his guests.

The Chernobyl tragedy is our tragedy; howev-er, the experience gained in our response to it has enriched the whole world. We‟re sincerely grateful to everyone for their assistance, but this is nothing compared to what we have done on our own. Since

the moment of the acci-dent, Belarus has spent a sum equivalent to 25 annual budgets to deal with the consequences. So, if it were not for the catastrophe we would have been twice as rich. However, it‟s important that we overcome our attitude towards the problem, looking for solutions rather than seeing it as an unmiti-gated disaster. We‟ve refused compensation to every individual who suffered but we have directly sent funds for

the development of specialised medicine and reha-bilitation of the affected regions.

The major outcome spoken of by the President during the meeting is that today we see a future for the lands that recently seemed lost forever. This is worth its weight in gold. At the solemn ceremony at Minsk‟s school #130, unveiling the memorial plaque to honour the Secretary of the UN

first humanitarian mission in Belarus, Ruth Waller, Helen Clark said that the Chernobyl-affected regions are being socio-economically restored. Ms. Clark is among a few international officials who personally attended the contami-nated areas after the catastrophe at the power station. She made one more important point, first at the school and then at the international conference, entitled Thirty Years After Chernobyl. From Emergency to Revival and Sus-tainable Socio-Economic Development of Affected Territories. She emphasised that, without interested constructive interaction with the country‟s leader-ship, the UNDP‟s activity in Belarus wouldn‟t be so successful. Understand-ing the global importance of the conse-

quences of incidents similar to Chernobyl is imper-ative and it‟s for this reason that we are willing to share our experience. The knowledge of Belarusian specialists and technology, developed by us, was also used after the accident at the Japanese Fuku-shima nuclear station.

The Minsk Times, 4.05.2016

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The Chernobyl catastrophe is a pain for the entire mankind. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Belarus Cui Qiming made the relevant statement during the presentation of the book Chernobyl Pain on 4 May, BelTA has learned.

The book's publication has been timed to the 30th anniversary of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The head of the Chinese diplo-matic mission noted: “The book is kind of a history of memory, of the deeds and heroism of the Bela-rusian nation.” Cui Qiming stressed that Belarus had done a great deal to overcome consequences of the greatest tragedy of the 20th century — the disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

“The Belarusian nation has demonstrated genu-ine heroism and has stood up to this tragedy,” said

the diplomat.

The Ambassador said he deeply respected the Belarusian nation and those, who had been directly involved in the cleanup operations. According to Cui Qiming, Belarus has accumulated invaluable experi-ence of dealing with consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. “It represents a great contribution to the development of the mankind,” noted the Ambassa-dor. He drew attention to the importance of rehabili-tating the afflicted territories, which the Belarusian government pays close attention to and spends a lot of money on. China supports Belarus in this difficult process of minimization of the tragedy's conse-quences.

Chairman of the Veterans of Chernobyl Commit-tee Vladimir Kamenkov told those present how the fourth edition of the book Chernobyl Pain had been

created. The previous editions were timed to the 15th, 20th, and 25th anniversaries of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The fourth edition is an expanded one but even then it has not been able to contain all the materials.

It is worth noting that the book offers docu-mentary recollections of the cleanup workers, who retell the events that occurred 30 years ago.

The Embassy of China in Belarus and Cui Qim-ing personally have helped a lot with the book's publication.

Representatives of the parliament, government agencies, and Chernobyl cleanup workers also made speeches during the presentation.

BELTA, 4.05.2016

CHINESE AMBASSADOR TO BELARUS: THE ENTIRE MANKIND FEELS THE PAIN

OF THE CHERNOBYL CATASTROPHE

BELARUS RATIFIES ROCKET FUEL

RECYCLING MEMORANDUM WITH OSCE Belarus has ratified the memorandum of

understanding between the Belarus govern-ment and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on the joint project for disposing of the stockpiled re-serves of liquid rocket fuel components. The text of the document was posted on the Na-tional Legal Internet Portal, BelTA has learned.

The memorandum was signed in Minsk on 16 June 2015. Belarus still has over 408.7 tonnes of AK-27i rocket fuel oxidant that was made in 1984 and earlier, nearly 194 tonnes of TG-0.2 rocket fuel that was made in 1989 and earlier, and about 96 tonnes of TM-185 product that was made in 1985 and earlier.

A considerable part of these reserves has passed their expiry date. The reserves are sup-posed to be disposed of by 3 December 2016. The

OSCE is ready to provide assistance in the pro-cess: offer services of experts and consultants, including consulting firms or organizations. The OSCE will also provide equipment, machinery, techniques and so on. “The OSCE will provide as much assistance as possible through the search of necessary financial resources for the implementa-tion of the project,” the document reads.

BELTA, 16.05.2016

TO FEEL WITH HEART Belarus is located at the geographical

centre of Europe, at the terrestrial and aeri-al crossroads. However, until now, it has not

been inves-t i g a t e d fully, many of its secret places re-m a i n i n g hidden to the human eye. Bela-rus will always be mysterious, capable of surprising us, and, natural ly , few have seen it f r o m above. One such is journal ist and pho-tographer S e r g e y

Plytkevich, who flew over, taking photos of landscapes, which he now shares with Bela-rus magazine.

The most distinctive sites show the true origi-nality of our country, such as the gothic style 16th century church in Synko-vichi, and Lida Castle, which was home to Lithua-nian dukes in the 14th century. Just imagine how many wars have taken place on our lands, yet these constructions have survived and remain a tourist attraction.

Zaslavl‟s ancient castle and church, dating from the 16th century, werebuilt in Renaissance style. First denoted as Protestant, the church later became Catho-lic, and then housed a museum in the Soviet times. Importantly, the building remains and isevidence of the centuries-old history of Belarus.

Scientists say that water has a deep memory of mankind and the Earth, since it was from there

that life emerged. Sometimes, of course,water takes away life. Belarusians living in Polesie are often flooded, as depicted in Sergey Plytkevich‟s photo, where a whole village is cut off, catastrophically! Of course, the sight is also beauti-ful . As Mr . P ly tkev ich notes,“During major flooding, many Polesie villages can be compared to Venice. There aren‟t any gondoliers but peo-ple get about using dugouts or wooden boats.”

Another photo shows a village as a green oasis among ploughed fields, demonstrating how human effort can trans-form land, to produce harvests. Belarusian diligence is famous worldwide. Naturally, elks and storks are the original ancient inhabitants of Belarusian woods and fields. In Mr. Plytkevich‟s photos,they appear at an unu-sual angle. It seems that the elk is breathing heavily, while the stork is just on the point of raising its wings and flying away. The photogra-pher managed to photograph them without being seen, so they appear completely relaxed, in their natural habitat.

Koziany wildlife preserve‟s marshes are „mystical‟ and „fantastic‟ notes Mr. Plytkevich, comprising many small lakes.

Looking at his shots, you can‟t help but think of a certain poem by Ya-kub Kolas:

Oh, native land, beautiful edge!

Lovely corner of my ancestors!

There is nothing lovelier in the world of God

Than these light coasts,

Where silver rivers are streaming,

Where pine-forests drone,

Where buckwheat smells of honey,

Grain fields are talking;

These boundless giants

Your bogs, lakes,

Where open spaces contemplate the noise of spring waves...

There are such „artistic‟ fields in Rossonshchina

Riftur Publishing House recently released an album of Mr. Plytkevich‟s photographs, entitled Unexpected Belarus,and containing over 200

aerial shots, taken over the years, of Belarusian natural and man-made sights.

He tells us that his first album, My Belarus,was pub-lished in 2001, followed by the release of his tourist directories, sets of postcards, and further al-bums: Belarusian Exotic, Unex-pected Belarus, Wildlife at the Centre of Europe, and Planet Bela-rus. “With each edition, I‟ve tried to convince my compatriots and

foreign visitors that our country is not just unu-sual but exotic. I‟ve had the chance to observe wildlife in a way that most people don‟t and have long dreamed of shooting our land from a bird‟s eye view. Even during my carpentry studies in Polotsk, I had the desire to connect my life with the sky. I could have become an air traffic con-troller!”

He continues, “I first released Unexpected Belarus in 2005 but this, second, edition features some new shots. I hope that readers of Belarus magazine will be intrigued and enjoy the „flight‟ over the centre of Europe!”

In fact, the book has been published not only in Belarusian but in Russian, English, and Ger-man, allowing an even wider audience to enjoy learning about our beautiful heritage.

Yelena Dashkevich, the well-known designer, has helped Sergey transform the book into film format. She tells us, “I wanted to make a visual narration: a continuous streaming of shots. It took us almost a whole year to compile, starting with the image of a plane, denoting that a jour-ney is about to take place, through the air. The name Unexpected Belarus prompts readers to anticipate the unfamiliar.”

Mr. Plytkevich continues his travels and promises to share his shots, taken from unusual corners of Belarus.

Belarus-Magazine, 3.05.2016

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The National Agency of Investment and Privatization of Belarus would like for-eign investors to build a wooden fuel pellet factory in Belarus, BelTA learned from the agency's website.

The factory is expected to make 170,000 tonnes of pellets per annum. The project's implementation is estimated to require about $55.2 million in investments.

Premises of the timber and furniture facto-ry Ivatsevichdrev are offered for the project. The project provides for using the enterprise's spare premises to build the factory that will process Ivatsevichdrev's wooden byproducts such as bark, sawdust, and wooden chips. The factory is supposed to be fitted out with a cogeneration ORC plant that will boast an innovative drying technology and will reduce the cost of fuel and energy resources, said Yuri Nazarov, Chairman of the Belarusian timber, woodworking, pulp and paper industry concern Bellesbumprom.

The project's implementation will allow earning $23 million every year. Ivatsevichdrev has already found foreign partners, who are

ready to buy the entire volume of fuel pellets. The logistic schemes have been worked out, too. The main advantages of the project will include the strategic geographical location, the availabil-ity of engineering and transport infrastructure as well as trained personnel and the high demand for the merchandise in Europe.

Fuel pellets are primarily used by cogener-ation plants, boilers in industrial enterprises, and by the private sector. As far as Europe is con-cerned, Italy has the largest number of heating boilers in the private sector — about 740,000. Their number in Germany stands at 125,000. The UK is expected to become the top European con-sumer of this kind of fuel soon.

Experts believe that by 2020 Europe's annual demand for wooden pellets will be as high as 80-135 million tonnes. Only Germany can fully satisfy the domestic demand for fuel pellets at present. Other countries either import pellets or the raw materials to make them.

BELTA, 3.05.2016

FOREIGN INVESTORS INVITED TO BUILD

FUEL PELLET FACTORY IN BELARUS

GENES TO EXPLAIN A recent seminar at the Belarusian Na-

tional Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Ge-netics and Cytology brought to attention the fact that our individual features rely 75-90 percent on DNA, while the rest is the result of our lifestyle, environment and other factors. Development of disease is mostly dependent on geno-type, as is sensibility to drugs. Al-ready, DNA diagnosing is the basis for four medical avenues at the Genetics and Cytology Institute: personalized, predictive, prophylac-tical and envisaging patients’ involvement.

The medicine of the future aims not to treat disease but the patient; with drugs prescribed to suit geno-type. Our country already applies this approach in on-cology and in hepatitis C treatment, using genetic testing to detect whether a drug is likely to be efficient for a particular patient.

The Centre of Genome Biotechnologies, at the Institute of Genetics and Cytology, has been studying patient sensitivity to cardio-vascular drugs — in particular, Varfarin. Doctor of Biological Sciences, Professor Irma Mosse, tells us, “This is a very good drug, efficient

for continuous arrhythmia treatment and use after valve replacement; however, results vary. Three genes help determine dosage by up to ten-fold.” Most people have normal sensitivity to Varfarin but some are extremely sensitive, with fatal conse-quences if even a standard dose is given. In turn, some patients can be treated with increased doses. A similar situation is observed with Klopidogrel, which is also widely used for treating cardio-vascular diseases.

Geneticists are predicting risk of certain diseases emerging, such as diabetes, metabolic syndrome, osteoporosis and stroke, using DNA

data. The most impressive results are con-nected with genetic predisposition to thrombosis, which can lead to miscarriage. It‟s impossible to detect without genetic analysis but twenty percent of pregnancies fail without explanation. The Institute of Genetics has tested 14 genes in over a thousand women who have suffered from unexplained miscarriage, and found that over 90 percent had 1-4 factors for throm-

bosis risk; some even had 6 or 7 unfavourable variants. After special therapy, around 80 have given birth successfully.

Belarus-Magazine, 17.05.2016

VISA-FREE ENTRY TO AUGUSTOW CANAL TO ENHANCE ITS TOURIST APPEAL

The introduction of a visa-free regime at the Augustow Canal will increase its tourist appeal, Grodno Oblast Governor Vladimir Kravtsov told on 30 April, BelTA has learned.

“The Augustow Canal is our asset. We have invested a lot of efforts in its recovery and would like more tourists, including foreigners, to see this place. This, however, needs the creation of the corresponding conditions. One of them is a visa-free entry through the border checkpoint Lesnaya-Rudawka,” said Vladimir Krav-tsov.

Today this border check-point is crossed by water. The plans for the near future includes the introduction of a pedestrian crossing, with the opportunity to cross the border by bike. The next step will be the introduction of a visa-free regime for foreigners visiting the Augustow Canal.

“Along the border there are big international tourist bicycle routes Eurovelo, Greenvelo. From Norway, Finland they are running through the

whole Europe. It would be great to prolong them to Belarus, to the Augustow Canal,” Vladimir Kravtsov said.

In 2015 the tourist spot was visited by near-ly 50,000 people. The facilitation of visiting and staying conditions and the creation of new facilities will attract more tourists to the area. Thus, the Augustow Canal Museum will open in May 2016.

Apart from it, the place is being beautified with leisure areas, additional bicycle routes, extreme travel opportunities.

On 30 April the Grodno Oblast Governor got familiar with the operation of the border check-point Pererov-Bialowieza at the Belovezhskaya Pushcha. The three-day visa-free regime for

tourists was introduced there in the mid 2015. Since then the national park has been visited by more than 6,000 residents of Poland, Germany, France, Canada.

BELTA, 2.05.2016