The KamAZ-based offroad vehicle – mobile laboratory – was demonstrated at the II International Conference “Natural Tourism: A Global Challenge and the Discovery of Russia,” which is taking place these days at the Rosa Khutor Ski Resort, Sochi. According to the representatives of the Pasvik Nature Reserve, this laboratory has been operating there since summer. Nornickel has allocated funds for its acquisition.
The vehicle is stuffed with special equipment to perform scientific work on the road and monitor the environment. «This is the only mobile laboratory in the North-Western region of Russia – an eco-mobile», said the representatives of the reserve.
The car is adapted to work in Arctic conditions, which allows scientists to use the car regardless the conditions. The car overcomes almost any obstacle: a river, off-road, rocky tundra. It is equipped with a GPS navigator, modern photo traps that allow taking photos or videos with target frequency, as well as instruments for air, soil, water examination.
In addition, the car has freezers for storing experimental materials. It is assumed that it will be used both on the territory of the reserve and in other areas of the Kola Peninsula as part of various projects, including international ones. The mobile lab provides a unique opportunity to conduct scientific research on site. It has everything you need for a long stay, you can sleep there and cook, it is equipped with a generator. It is also important that the car makes it safe to stay in the wild, unlike staying in tents.
The eco-car is fully Russian-made. Scientific equipment was selected specifically for the work carried out by the reserve. With the help of the mobile laboratory, seasonal work has already begun on the territory of the reserve, which helps scientists monitor the ecological environment, including taking samples of soil, water, studying the air condition; examining the brown bear population and filming a video about animals, studying the Red Book species of animals and birds.
According to the director of Pasvik, Vladimir Chizhov, the implementation of such projects is impossible without the support of a large businesses interested in sustainable development, preservation of natural biodiversity and concern for the future generation. “The reserve has been cooperating with Nornickel for several years. During this time, we jointly managed to implement a number of unique projects to study the reserve,” he said. Thus, in 2017, in the village of Nickel on the border with Norway, a multifunctional visit center with an area of 800 square meters was opened. It serves as an international dialogue platform for addressing urgent issues of the border areas of Russia, Norway and Finland. Investments in the project amounted to 70 million rubles.
Mining and Metallurgical Company Nornickel, located in the Murmansk Region, is collaborating with another large Arctic reserve, Lapland. Projects have been underway for several decades. The joint work of metallurgists and reserve employees helps to improve the ecology of the region.
The results of studies of the conservation area, based next to the existing Norilsk Nickel production, indicate a stable environmental situation in the Murmansk region. The Pasvik Nature Reserve was created in July 1992 to preserve and study the North pine forests in Europe, vast wetlands, waterfowl and conduct integrated monitoring of northern ecosystems. The reserve has rare species of flora and fauna included in the Red Books of Russia and the list of endangered species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The reserve participates in the work of the Russian-Norwegian intergovernmental commission on environmental protection, the Russian-Finnish commission on border-area water sources, the Russian-Finnish intergovernmental working group on environmental protection, the Europark Federation.
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