The Government of the Russian Federation plans to expand the area of the Utrish reserve by more than 1,330 hectares by assigning to its territories the lands of the forest fund and the water fund - the adjacent waters of the Black Sea. Thus, the area of the reserve, taking into account the expansion, will increase by 1,330.76 hectares and will amount to 11,338.76 hectares. As a result, Utrish will be a single natural complex and will become a single protected area with the largest protected area of the Black Sea within the borders of the Russian Federation.
As Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Victoria Abramchenko explained, the expansion of the reserve will help preserve the ecosystem, develop ecological tourism, and increase the tourist attractiveness of the region and the country as a whole.
She stated that one of the main problems of the reserve within its current borders is the small size of the territory, which does not allow effectively preserving the most rare natural complexes of dry subtropics and underwater ecosystems of the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, unique geological, hydrological and geomorphological objects.
Another problem for the reserve, according to the Vice Prime Minister, is the anthropogenic environment. This is the location between the coastal cities of Anapa and Novorossiysk, the proximity of other settlements, which are intensively used by tourists during the holiday season, as well as transport hubs.
