Tatarstan welcomes spring with a large-scale environmental campaign: from clearing rivers to releasing Red Book falcons
Today, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Tatarstan Azat Ziganshin spoke at a briefing in the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Tatarstan. The event was dedicated to the start of the sanitary and ecological two-month period and environmental work plans for 2026 within the framework of the national project "Environmental well-being".
The head of the department stressed that this year's two—month event is of particular importance - it is held within the framework of the Year of Military and Labor Valor, announced by the President of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov.
"It may seem that ecology and military prowess are far from each other. But this is not the case. They are united by their love for their Homeland: respect for history, for the work of older generations and for the land on which we live. For us, nature protection is our labor front, a contribution to the preservation of the heritage that we inherited from veterans," the minister said.
This year, the focus will be on memorials, military graves, and parks named after heroes. Many municipalities have already started cleaning without waiting for the official start. The results of the 2025 two-month period were announced at a briefing by First Deputy Minister Ilnur Gubaidullin.
"Last year, during the two-month period, the supervisory authorities identified 3,890 violations, including 1,362 unauthorized landfills. Administrative measures totaling 6.4 million rubles were applied," Ilnur Gubaidullin said.
He stressed that 350 thousand residents took part in the clean-up, 8.5 thousand pieces of equipment were involved, 334 thousand cubic meters of waste were taken to landfills.
Tatarstan citizens are active not only in eliminating landfills, but also in identifying unauthorized waste disposal sites. The Republican public Environmental reception received 582 applications in the first three months of 2026, which is 2 times less than in the same period last year.
Helicopter flights and commission detours along railway lanes are traditionally planned during the two-month period.
At the end of the report, Ilnur Gubaidullin stressed that the two-month period coincides with the beginning of the flood period. This year, due to the large amount of seasonal precipitation, this issue is particularly acute.
"It is important to prevent contamination of water protection zones and deterioration of flood water quality, as well as to eliminate the accumulation of waste and storage of pesticides in areas prone to flooding during high water," said the First Deputy Minister.