Fish Resources Management Issues Have Been Discussed in Udora District of Komi
The participants of the conference held in Koslan within the framework of the Model River Mezen project got familiar with the project implementation progress and intermediate results, discussed the pressing challenges of the Mezen fish resources management, and above all, the potential participation of the local residents in this management.
The conference was organized by the Model River Mezen project Working group, Silver Taiga Foundation, and the administration of the Udora municipal district. As for the participants, in one format or the other the conference was attended by the interested residents of the Udora district, activists of the Interregional Public Movement “Komi Voytyr”, indigenous people community “Udorachi”, AgroUdora Cooperative, as well as the representatives of the Institute of Biology of the Komi Scientific Center, Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Komi Republic, FSBI “Komirybvod”, and Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Komi Republic.
On the eve of the conference, a round table discussion was held in Koslan. Its participants discussed the feasibility of establishing the District Public Fishery Council: what functions should and can be performed by such Council, how the rural settlements should be represented in such Council. Besides, they got acquainted with the experience of similar public structures in other regions, including the Mezen district of the Arkhangelsk region. Then the initiative of establishing the public fishery council was brought up for discussion in the conference and supported by its participants.
The conversation at the conference was focused on several topics: what the Mezen fish resources condition is and what main factors are causing the ichthyofauna degradation, according to the specialists; what conditions are required for the ichthyofauna restoration; what prospects for the development of the organized fishing on the Mezen are; why the initiative of establishing the Interregional target program on conservation and reproduction of the Atlantic salmon in the Mezen river cannot be implemented so far…
The Silver Taiga Foundation ecologists Nikolay Shilov and Nikolay Shuktomov presented the results of the first years of the Model River Mezen project implementation, as well as the findings of the sociological survey conducted among the population of three districts near the Mezen to the conference participants.
The GIS-specialist Alexander Borovlyov introduced the conference participants to the work on the study of the logging impact on the watercourses condition. Alina Robertovna Vaneeva, the Head of the district branch of the Interregional Public Movement “Komi Voytyr” and a member of the Model River Mezen project Working group, reported on the outcome of the round table discussion devoted to establishing of the public fishery council of the Udora municipal district.
Besides, the conference participants could not but address the new Fishing rules introduced for the Northern Fishery Basin. This information was presented by Natalya Ivanovna Vurdova, a state inspector of the Department of state control, supervision and protection of aquatic bioresources in the Udora district. A specialist expert of the Department of aquaculture and fishery of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Komi Republic Ivan Nikolaevich Lapin raised the issues of subsidization, lease contracts execution, etc. relevant to the local fishermen, but primarily for the members of the AgroUdora Cooperative.
Here are the first impressions of the conference participants:
– The number of participants was not high, although the issues of high importance for the population were raised – Albert Vasilyevich Loginov, the Chairman of the Udorachi Community and a member of the Model River Mezen project Working group says. – For example, there were no representatives from Vashka. I don’t think that this illustrates a lack of interest in the topic. It is rather an omission on the part of the organizers. However, any movement, any initiative aimed at addressing our problems, is beneficial. I think that both the discussion at the conference and the initiative of establishing the public fishery council were useful. The participation in the public council will at least teach the villagers to protect their interests, which is already a good thing.
Alina Robertovna Vaneeva, the Head of the district branch of the Interregional Public Movement “Komi Voytyr” and one of the most active members of the Model River Mezen project Working group:
– Unfortunately, I haven’t noticed any interest on the part of the district administration. Although a lot is being done within the framework of the project in our district – including continuous consulting and organizational support of AgroUdora, outreach and awareness-raising work, and pupils’ expeditions… As for the ordinary local residents, regretfully, only few of them are ready to accept the responsibility: apparently, people are used to the idea that decisions should be made by somebody at the top. It seems to me that the project needs to be focused mainly on the preparation of its core group – to concentrate on individuals, but not on the whole population. Among others, the work should be conducted with the heads of the rural settlements – in my opinion, they should have grasped this opportunity. However, for the time being, there is no interest on their part.
The Silver Taiga Director and the conference lead Yury Pautov has also paid attention to the lack of interest on the part of the district administration.
– I do not understand such absence of interest, given that the topic is particularly relevant for the rural district. Unfortunately, however, this lack of interest is simply striking the eye. Of course, a certain group of interested and motivated people, actively cooperating with us has been formed during several years of the project implementation on the Udora. We would like to see this group expanding and only then we’ll be able to talk about the real participation of local residents in the river resources management. Besides, it is important to promote cooperation and exchange of experience in the river management organization with other districts – primarily, with the ones near the Mezen, in the Arkhangelsk region. The steps in that direction have also been made within the framework of the project. These and many other project initiatives need to be formalized, so that upon the project completion there would be no need for pushing and support from outside, so that the people living on the banks of the Mezen would feel the need and interest in the sustainable, legal, and fair river management and would have the desire and ability to exercise this interest.
RESOLUTION OF THE CONFERENCE “THE MEZEN FISH RESOURCES MANAGEMENT: PARTICIPATION OF THE POPULATION” (village Koslan, December 9, 2015).
Having heard the reports and presentations of the participants, the conference states that the Mezen fish resources condition and, above all, the state of such important resource as the Atlantic salmon needs an integrated study and elaboration of measures for its conservation and restoration.
The conference supports the initiatives of the Model River Mezen project and notes that such project streams as the promotion of the sustainable river resources management organization, an outreach and awareness-raising activity, spawning grounds monitoring works, a launched study of the large-scale logging impact on the river condition are highly relevant and in demand for the society. It is also positive that partnership relations are being established and developed between different stakeholders, promising initiatives of the local residents (tourism development, organization of the joint river management – AgroUdora Cooperative) are supported in the course of the project implementation.
At the same time, the conference considers that the goals and objectives, declared under the Model River Mezen project, are long-term and to achieve them the project initiatives implementation needs to be continued at least for the next 5 – 6 years.
The conference has approached the inhabitants of the Udora district, all the stakeholders with a proposal to promote the development of the conscious attitude to using the Mezen fish resources – with the aim of their conservation and further sustainable management.
The conference considers it important to develop cooperation between the districts of the Mezen basin:
– on organizing the public support of the Atlantic salmon conservation in the Mezen river;
– on sharing the river management experience;
– on developing the territorial public self-government and supporting the local initiatives aimed at the sustainable management organization and development;
– on holding the interregional meetings devoted to the river management issues, as well as other joint activities aimed at the conservation of fish stocks and their sustainable management
The conference supports the initiative of establishing the Public fishery council of the Udora district under the district branch of “Komi Voytyr”.
Adopted on December 9, 2015, village Koslan, Komi Republic
The photos are made by Sergey Davydov
