Putin Bans Wastewater Discharge Into Lake Baikal

On Monday, the Kremlin announced that President Vladimir Putin has banned the discharge of untreated sewage into Lake Baikal, the world's largest freshwater reserve.

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Before September 1, authorities must develop criteria for the creation of infrastructure for the processing and disposal of industrial and consumer waste during the construction and operation of tourist facilities in the Baikal ecological zone.

With an age of over 25 million years and a maximum depth of almost 2,000 meters, Baikal is the natural habitat of nearly 2,000 animal species.

This Russian lake surpasses the combined volume of water in the five Great Lakes of the United States and Canada.

The hydrology in the area is also unique as over 300 rivers flow into Lake Baikal, on whose northern and southern coasts many hot springs emanate. During summer, the water temperature along the bank reaches up to 17 degrees Celsius.

In addition to protective measures for the world's largest lake, Putin instructed Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin to allocate at least US$6.5 billion to the "Ecology" project, which will be responsible for shutting down 50 polluting facilities between 2025 and 2030.

The Russian leader also called for the restoration of forest areas around cities and industrial centers and the development of natural areas for the protection of rare and endangered animal and plant species.