Photo Courtesy of Igor Shpilenok
Kamchatka at a Crossroads: A Salmon Sanctuary Faces Big Oil
The Kamchatka Peninsula sustains a critical salmon sanctuary in a far corner of the world. Every year, millions of Pacific salmon return to the peninsula to spawn—supporting rich biological ecosystems, diverse indigenous cultures, and a healthy fisheries economy. Yet Kamchatka’s wild places are at great risk. Oil and gas companies have recently gained oil development licenses around Kamchatka. Exploratory drilling in the Okhotsk Sea will begin on June 4, 2008. This development path could trade away 25% of Russia’s fishery resources for 1% of the nation’s oil. Your help is urgently needed. Local citizens in Kamchatka have voiced their opposition to oil and gas development and need the international community’s support. Please help save Kamchatka wilds and the Okhotsk Sea from proposed oil and gas development. Go to http://www.kfem.or.kr and www.pacificenvironment.org/kamchatka to get involved.
The Kamchatka-Korea Connection A significant portion of Korea’s seafood is caught in the Okhotsk Sea and surrounding waters. Yet Korea is financing proposed oil drilling in this region and jeopardizing one of East Asia’s most valuable areas for commercial fishing. The first exploratory oil drilling on the Kamchatka Peninsula this summer will be conducted by a joint venture between the Russian state oil company Rosneft (60%) and the Korean Consortium KKS (40%). The Korean National Oil Corporation (KNOC) holds 20% of the total project shares, and the South Korean government is investing in the KNOC venture, despite considerable problems with the project.
Biodiversity at Risk With about 400,000 people inhabiting an area about twice the size of the Korean Peninsula and with only two main roads, Kamchatka boasts a wilderness of pristine ecosystems and wild rivers. The region is spawning habitat for about one-quarter of the world’s Pacific salmon—a primary food source for many animals. Kamchatka and its coastal waters support brown bears and endangered species, such as Steller’s sea eagles and North Pacific right whales. The region also provides valuable rearing habitat for Kamchatka king crab and boasts the largest pollock spawning grounds in the Far East region.
Threats to Kamchatka Indigenous Peoples The Kamchatka Peninsula is home to over 20,000 representatives of indigenous peoples, including Itelmen, Koryak, Even, Kamchadal, and Aleut peoples. For many, traditional fishing, hunting, and reindeer herding are still essential for cultural survival and fulfilling subsistence needs. Oil spills and onshore infrastructure development could cause significant impacts to Kamchatka’s indigenous communities. Company development plans indicate that an onshore pipeline will be constructed through the traditional territories of the last surviving Itelmen indigenous peoples.
Trading Away a Fisheries Economy? Oil development not only endangers Kamchatka’s rich biodiversity, it also promises severe impacts to the local and regional economy. The long term value of Kamchatka’s renewable fishery resources grossly exceeds the short term value of potential oil and gas development. Western Kamchatka supplies approximately 25% of Russia’s commercial fisheries, a yearly harvest of about 1,120,000 metric tons of fish. Over half of Kamchatka’s jobs are in the fisheries industry.
Oil and Fish Don’t Mix As evidenced by the December 2007 Samsung-Hurbeit oil spill off of Korea’s west coast, oil spills can have severe impacts to fisheries and local communities. Oil and gas development around Kamchatka and Okhotsk Sea waters could also have devastating consequences, including damages to Ramsar sites designated as Wetlands of International Importance, traditional indigenous communities, and key fisheries habitat. Rosneft’s poor environmental safety record on Sakhalin is also a serious concern. The Okhotsk Sea’s harsh Arctic conditions further increase the likelihood of oil spills and resulting damages to the fishery.
Get Involved For more information on how to take action, visit http://www.kfem.or.kr/ and www.pacificenvironment.org/kamchatka. Or contact Sibyl Diver at Pacific Environment, sdiver@pacificenvironment.org, 415-399-8850 ext. 308 and Choony Kim at KFEM, international@kfem.or.kr, 82-2-735-7000. Sources: E.I. Shirkov, E.E. Shirkov, and M.Yu., Dyakov, Kamchatka State Technical University, 2004. O.A. Chernyagina, V.G. Lesovoi, V.E. Kirichenko. Magadan, Far East Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, 2005. E.I. Shirkov, E.E. Shirkova, A.M. Tokranov, A.S. Avdeev, L.V. Egina. Kamchatka Press. 2002. S.A. Sinyakov, Kamchatpress 2006. Brodsky, L.S. Rosneft presentation materials, 2008. www.raipon.org