Polar Fund presents the results of the Taimyr expedition

(Rough&Polished) - In the run-up to the Polar Explorer’s Day celebrated on 21 May, the Federation Council was presented with the results of the large scientific expedition to the Taimyr and the Norilsk Industrial District (NID) carried out in 2021 by the Artur Chilingarov Fund of Polar Research (Polar Fund) and supported by Nornickel.

During the presentation, Mr Chilingarov noted the importance of scientific research (akin to the Polar Expedition) for the sustainable development of the Arctic Zone.

The expedition involved both laboratory and on-site studies, engaging more than 70 experts from ten research institutions who were split into research groups based on their scientific background, spanning such areas as hydrology, geomorphology, zoology, botany, chemical analysis, soil science, mapping and geographic information systems, etc.

As was previously stated by Fedor Romanenko, PhD in Geography, who headed the Polar Expedition, the mission was to collect up-to-date, full, and reliable information based on comprehensive expedition research about the current state and pollution of the components that make up the ecosystem and the part of the Pyasina river water basin affected by the HPP-3 fuel spill in Norilsk to an extent that would enable an objective assessment of the accident’s consequences (including the long-term ones) for the Norilo-Pyasinskaya water system biogeocenosis.

Based on the findings, the researchers assess the state of the ecosystem in the NID and part of the Taimyr as satisfactory. “We discovered no contaminated fish in Lake Pyasino and the upper reaches of the Pyasina River, while the Nadezhdinsky Stream and the Daldykan River valleys still have traces of contamination with petroleum products,” said Georgy Kazhukalo from Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Efim Brodsky, Doctor of Chemistry and Head of the Analytical Ecotoxicology Lab at A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution (Russian Academy of Sciences) assessed the content of petroleum products in some fish samples as relatively low, at 0.1–0.5 µg/g in most samples, which is close to the detection limit determined based on chemical noise. The researchers identified no harmful pollutants in the samples and no traces of petroleum products in most of them.

According to Nornickel’s Senior Vice President for Sustainable Development Andrey Bougrov, “that was a huge effort”. “As regards contaminants in water courses, we revealed residual low concentrations, and we will keep working to eliminate them. Awareness of our social responsibility is what guides the initiatives we support. We need to implement ecological projects, reduce our impact on the environment and monitor air quality. We have very ambitious plans in this area,” said Andrey Bougrov.