The impact of the current practice of dumping water from reservoirs located on the Volga River on the ecological situation and biological resources of the region was discussed today in Kazan at the All-Russian Scientific and Practical Conference
On February 13, the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Tatarstan hosted a scientific and practical conference "The impact of the current practice of dumping water from reservoirs located on the Volga River on the ecological situation and biological resources of the region" in support of the national project "Environmental Well-being".
The conference was held pursuant to the instructions of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan, R. N. Minnikhanov.
The conference was attended by representatives of the Volga Environmental Prosecutor's Office, the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Tatarstan, the territorial bodies of Rosrybolovstvo and Rosvodresursy, environmental authorities of the subjects of the Russian Federation, academic and university science, enterprises of the real sector of the economy.
The conference discussed the impact of the Volga-Kama cascade of reservoirs on biological resources, conservation and replenishment of aquatic biological resources, the impact of the annual spring special access to the lower Volga on water level regimes in the Kuibyshev and Volgograd reservoirs and the possibility of optimizing the annual spring special access to the lower Volga in order to reduce its negative aspect.
Minister of Ecology Alexander Shadrikov addressed the participants of the conference with a welcoming speech. He noted that about 60 million people live in the Volga and Kama basins, and a comprehensive, integrated approach is needed to preserve this unique aquatic ecosystem. The Volga is not only about its beautiful water surface and aesthetics, but also about global environmental and economic issues. "The state of water, flora and fauna, water intakes to provide drinking water to a huge number of people, shipping, cargo transportation, energy, fishing – all these are important industries that depend on the state of the river and affect it," the minister stressed.
Optimal and objective regulation of the water level in reservoirs is a key moment to minimize the negative impact on the environment. In his report, Alexander Shadrikov elaborated on a number of factors that negatively affect water resources. These are the issues of the functioning of the Nizhnekamsk reservoir, which, having been commissioned in 1979, is still being operated at a non-design level. This leads to the erosion and gradual destruction of coastal defenses, creates difficulties in ensuring the depth of shipping lanes on the Kama River and the operation of the Nizhnekamsk hydroelectric power station. "Sudden drops in the reservoir level lead to erosion and gradual destruction of the shores, activating exogenous processes. "The coast is being reshaped. No one has considered this economy yet, when the coast collapses with sudden fluctuations in sea level. Coastal protection work needs to be carried out there, people need to be resettled, and shipping lanes need to be cleared. Once again, no one considered this economy! And this is a huge expense," said the head of the Ministry of Ecology of Tatarstan.
He said that back in the 2010 low-water year, the Republic faced the need to participate in the process of regulating the regimes of the reservoirs of the Volga-Kama Cascade. Thanks to the development of the Gidrokascad software package, Tatarstan has the opportunity to predict changes in reservoir levels under a given regime of discharge costs of hydroelectric power plants.
A number of departments of the Republic of Tatarstan, as well as individual federal agencies, actively use the Hydro-cascade complex in their work free of charge.
"Unfortunately, since May 2024, the Russian Hydrometeorological Service has banned access to the data of the hydro posts. We have never taken the initiative to open it for us. We contacted Roshydromet on this issue, and they offer to purchase data on a paid basis. I do not understand the position of Roshydromet. This data should be publicly available," Alexander Shadrikov said.
He recalled the low-water year 2023, which was difficult for Tatarstan and all regions of the Volga region, when, due to the extension of the fisheries shelf, the Kuibyshev reservoir was not filled by the beginning of autumn.
Combined with the low water content of the year, this led to a shortage of water resources both in the Kuibyshev reservoir and in the regions of the Lower Volga.
The decrease in water levels during the summer-autumn period of 2023 had a negative impact on both the ecosystem of the reservoir and economic activities, including water management, shipping, tourism, and mining.
The issue of low water becomes relevant due to its repeatability. According to forecasts, in 2025, the level of water reserves in the snow is 62-64%, which is comparable to 2009.