Wolves’and’Gold:’Adap/ng’to’Climate’Change’and’Industrial ... · 2014. 11. 5. ·...

Wolves  and  Gold:  Adap/ng  to  Climate  Change  and  Industrial  Development  in  Sakha  Republic,  Siberia,  Russia    

         Dr.  Trevor  K.  Fuller,  SUNY  Oneonta  Department  of  Geography;  Drs.  Antonina  Savvinova  and  Viktoria  Filippova,  North  Eastern  Federal  University  

Introduc/on  •   Human  Geography  

•   Indigenous  popula/on  •   Evenk  •   Yakutsk  (pop.  ~280,000)    

•   Natural  Resources    •   Diamonds,  gold,  iron,  oil/gas  •   ~20%  of  Russia’s  gold  •   ~50%  of  Russia’s  diamonds  •   ‘Rare  Earth  Minerals’  

•   Kha/styr  Village,  Sakha  Republic  • Popula/on  =  1,600    • Subsistence  lifestyle  • Fisheries,  Hun/ng,  Reindeer  Herding  • Timber  industry  

Objec/ves  •  Preliminary  field  research  to  gather  Evenk  percep/ons  of  climate  change  and  whether/how  local  villagers    have  implemented  adap/ve  strategies  in  dealing  with  local-­‐scale  climate  adjustments.  

•  Assess  Evenk  responses,  strategies,  and  coping  mechanisms  regarding  the  industrializa/on  of  their  homeland.  

Methodology  Open-­‐ended   interviews   were   conducted  with  a  snowball  scenario  whereby  villagers  r e c omm e n d e d   o t h e r   p o t e n / a l  par/cipants.   A   total   My   colleagues   from  North   Eastern   Federa l   Univers i ty  conducted   preliminary   fieldwork   and  established   contacts   in   July   2014.   In  September   2014   we   visited   residents   of  Kha/styr  village.  Interviewees  included  the  village   mayor,   the   cultural   ac/vi/es  coordinator,  as  well  as  several  residents.  In  addi/on   to   open-­‐ended   interviews,   a  survey   was   also   distributed   to   residents.  Ques/ons   revolved   around   industrial  development   and   observa/ons   regarding  climate  change  in  the  region.        

Findings  Residents   spoke   more   oden   of   issues   with  industrial   develoment   rather   than   climate  change   specifically.   While   some   residents  spoke   of   increased   flooding   frequency   and  intensity.,   more   residents   had   a   nega/ve  percep/on   of   industrial   development   in   the  region.  In  both  1998  and  2001  the  Aldan  River  flooded   much   of   the   low-­‐lying   areas.   This  fostered   the   development   of   a   ‘new   village’  for  Kha/styr  residents  further  upland  from  the  village’s   exis/ng   site.    However,  financing   for  this   reloca/on   program   have   run   out.     Also,  reindeer   herds   have   been   affected   by   lower  amount   of   snowfall   which   allows   for   greater  preda/on   by   wolves.     Fisheries   have   been  impacted  according  to  residents.    Addi/onally,  residents   reported   that   the   area   has   been  even   colder   in   recent   years   with   increased  winds.     Recently,   gold   mining   industries   are  contes/ng   legal   rights   to   land   management  currently  held  by  Evenk  people.          

Conclusion  Preliminary   inves/ga/on   revealed   some  residents   held   percep/ons   that   more   recent  changes   in   weather   palerns   are   related   to  climate   change.     The   town   has  worked  with  the  Russian  government  to  relocate  a  por/on  of   the   ‘old   village’   residents   to   the   more  elevated   ‘new   village’.     The   Evenk   tribe   has  secured   an   unprecedented   legal   recogni/on  by   the   Russian   government.   The   document  includes   a   map   delinea/ng   the   area   of   land  over  which  the  Evenk  tribe  has  legal  claim.    It  remains   to   be   seen   whether   the   Russian  government   (and   industry)   will   recognize   its  legal  rights.    Con/nued  research  is  needed  to  monitor   future  adap/ve   strategies   as  well   as  the   legal  claim  of  Evenk  people  to  their   land.  However,   a     preliminary   finding   is   that  residents  are  more  concerned  about  changes  induced  by   local   industrial  development  than  by  larger-­‐scale  climate  change.  

Acknowledgments  SUNY  Oneonta  Faculty  Research  Grant  from  Grants  Development  Office  at  SUNY  Oneonta  Residents  of  Kha/styr  Village  for  their  hospitality  North  Eastern  Federal  University  

Sakha Republic is 1/6 of Russia’s land area.

The Aldan River flows into the Lena River, one of Russia’s largest rivers

“It is necessary to obtain permission to enter through the territory of the pipeline” (resident)

“Last year I lost ¼ of my reindeer herd to wolves” (resident).

If it were an independent country, Sakha Republic would be the 8th largest country in the world.

The Aldan River flows into the Lena River, one of Russia’s largest rivers

The laws do not protect us. Industrial enterprises, prospecting cooperatives cheat, they take our reindeer meat but do not pay the money (resident).