Meetings in Leshukonye
In February representatives of the “Model river Mezen” project Working group made another trip to the Leshukonsky district of the Arkhangelsk region.
Silver Taiga Foundation ecologist Nikolay Shuktomov, local communities coordinator Valentina Semyashkina, and the deputy of the Udorsky municipal district Council Albert Loginov participated in the meetings with the residents of the rural settlements Yuroma, Tsenogora, Koynas, Vozhgora, and the regional center Leshukonskoye. Most of the meetings attendees listened with interest and understanding to the information about the “Model river Mezen” project implementation progress and difficulties the project Working group had faced, including one of the most significant problems – lack of integrity in the river resources management.
– A trip lasting only one week was full of meetings and continuous dialogues with different people, residents of the settlements and villages near the Mezen, – Nikolay Shuktomovshared his impressions. – During such a short period we managed to talk to several tens of local residents, listened to lots of opinions about the problems related to the river and local population. Notably, the opinions were absolutely different. Some people told that the amount of fish in the river had not decreased and the river had not changed. Others suggested simply waiting – and river resources will restore themselves without any help of the people, but there were just few of such opinions. Most of the meetings participants admitted that the river had grown shallow, fish amount dropped dramatically, and something must be done. People understand that it’s not possible to solve this problem by separate efforts, cooperation is required. Collaboration at different levels is needed: heads and managers, as well as local population. Of course, one trip is like a drop in the ocean. Contacts establishing, permanent exchange of information and opinions are necessary. However, the most difficult steps in this direction are already done.
For the first meeting – in the club of the Yuroma settlement – grown-ups unexpectedly brought kids, pupils of different age. It turned out that they were sent by their teachers having perceived our arrival as an event carried out within the frameworks of the Year of environment protection announced in our country. However, their presence was not for nothing, as they will be the ones who will face deplorable consequences of our current management in the nearest future. Of course, if we will not manage to change our approach to resources management.
As for the grown up participants of the meeting, during the discussion of the unenviable condition of fish resources they talked about many things. They remembered that “in former times there was only one fishing net in the whole village, and now there is one in every house” and stated that “the river has changed: a lot of sand has been drifted; previously a river bottom was permanently deepened by a dredger, but this practice has vanished long ago.” They talked about a human factor and “stealing downstream” (in the lower reaches of the Mezen). There was no common opinion. Everybody mentioned some main reason from his point of view. However, almost all agreed that “everyone got focused on salmon”, that “there is not much white fish left”, that all above mentioned to one extent or another takes place and that “something has to be done.”
Next day another meeting was held in the administration of the Leshukonsky district, this time a small group of interested residents of the district center was involved. A conversation was mainly focused on the organization of fishing grounds. As is known, two of such grounds – for so called amateur salmon fishing – were functioning in the Mezen district already last years. This year “Sevrybvod” organizes one more such ground – this time in the Leshukonsky district (near the village Nisogora). “Sevrybvod” has concluded a contract with an entrepreneur who will organize amateur fishing on this ground. His name is Igor Korbut;he is a game –biologist by occupation. He has experienced the situation on the river firsthand and is convinced that the salmon population reduction is a result of the improper management and therefore “the only way out is the right organization of amateur and sport fishing” requiring not only creation of an infrastructure and well-thought-out control but also monitoring. Both Igor Korbut and former railway engineer Rudolf Fedorovich Titov participating in the conversation agreed that now there is almost no control on the river: “If you fly over the river atnight during the spawning period you’ll see that the entire river is illuminated.” It was also discussed at the meeting that if we want to change the situation decentralization of management is required: “Federal laws do not see us, northerners.”
After the meeting in the district center on the evening of the same day a talk with the residents of one more Leshukonye settlement – Tsenogora – took place. Here the villagers have the same problems as on the Udora. The population of this rural settlement together with all residents of the villages hardly amounts to 600 people. Same as in our villages, there are a lot of people registered according to this address but actually not living there, those who left the village in search of a better life in the district center or Arkhangelsk. The meeting was attended only by nine people including five men. They got interested in our project work and asked questions, including the ones not directly related to the topic, for example, about the roads.
They were discussing the fact that previously there had been district inspectors in the villages and now there were none, that is why control was also missing. “Earlier people made hay in summer – there was no time for fishing. As for today, there are just seven cows in Tsenogora” they, local residents, admit their “contribution” to destruction of the river resources. They think that the situation can be changed by means of “establishing order in protection – downstream and on the spawning grounds.” Former fishing inspector Mikhail Yuryevich Semenov (reduced during the reorganization period)summarized the opinions of the fellow villagers: “It turns out that disorder is beneficial for the state.” A distressing conclusion. However, it leads to a thought that initiative of the population itself is needed, and it hardly makes sense to hope that somebody will come and put things in order.
In this regard rural settlements of the Arkhangelsk region have their own experience – experience in territorial public self-government. For instance, in Beloshchelye on the initiative of the local TPSG a small chapel and a good wooden bridge over the crossing the village stream were built…Head of the local club Anna Popova, one of the TPSG leaders, mentioned during the conversation: “If the territorial self-government had been supported earlier we would have also managed to keep agricultural industry in the village…”
In other villages and settlements of the Leshukonye – Koynas, Vozhgora,Zubovo – people also talked about the rural TPSG… In Koynas, for example, on the initiative of the villagers themselves and thanks to support of the TPSG (in the Arkhangelsk region territorial self-government has been strongly supported for more than one year already) a church construction started – wood was harvested, architectural planning was performed, foundation was made. In the rural library we were told that a lot of local residents took part in the work – of course, mainly these were men and women organized lunch for those working in the forest.
Quite a good conversation with local population was held in Koynas. It was obvious that the meeting participants realized the necessity to change the situation and the fact that in this “reloading” of the mind and attitude to the river resources management local residents should play a key role.
In general, the trip was quite intensive and, hopefully, useful. New meetings and new contacts with interested people will facilitate the development of collaboration of the residents of the districts located near the Mezen – everybody who is concerned about the future of the Mezen.