We are pleased to announce that in 2024 support for separate waste collection in Baikal will continue! The Zabaikalsky National Park in the Republic of Buryatia and the Pribaikalsky National Park in the Irkutsk region will receive 509,460 rubles and 585,000 rubles respectively for the program implementation. The first part of the donations has already been received by the national parks.
In 2024, the Zabaikalsky National Park:
- prefabricated garbage cans for separate waste collection in guesthouses will be purchased;
- mesh containers will be manufactured to avoid excess moisture and unpleasant odor;
- signage on the separate waste collection bins will be updated;
- a solution for the accumulation of glassware waste will be developed and launched in pilot mode;
- maintenance of the eight existing separate waste collection points and environmental education of visitors to the National Park will continue.
In 2024 in the Pribaikalsky National Park:
- will continue to maintain and support separate waste collection points on Olkhon Island, in Bolshoye Goloustnoye and Listvyanka;
- events will be organized to promote separate waste collection among tourists, local residents and schoolchildren on Olkhon Island, in Bolshoye Goloustnoye and Listvyanka.
In addition:
- in 2023, the Foundation sent plastic lids and colored glass collected under the «Trash Free National Parks» program to local workshops, which made souvenirs out of them in the form of Baikal symbols. The received souvenirs have already returned to the national parks and will become gifts for environmentally responsible tourists this summer!
- this year in the Zabaikalsky National Park with the support of the Presidential Grants Fund and the World Around You Fund of Siberian Wellness company will start working on solving the problem of food waste management and bears approaching tourists in the protected areas. We will install pilot waste accumulation sites on the territory of the National Park that are resistant to animal attacks and prevent the spread of food waste odor, as well as conduct a large-scale awareness campaign with tourists and local residents.
The Lake Baikal Foundation has been implementing the «Trash Free National Parks» program since 2019, aimed at systematically addressing the problem of household waste left on the territory of national parks around Lake Baikal. In 2023, the Foundation collected and sent for recycling 2.5 tons of waste, and over 10 tons for the entire existence of the program.
We express our gratitude to FSBU Zapovednoe Pribaikalye and FSBU Zapovednoe Podlemorye for continued cooperation on the program «Trash Free National Parks», as well as to the World Around You Foundation of Siberian Wellness, BARIER and LAB Industries for financial support of the project in 2024.