Ecologists! They sent me a release and a few info to post. Further, please, find them.
BIG INTERESTS AND MONEYS…THE RIGHT OF PEOPLE AND SAFETY ISSUES
The Lena river is not just a blue line on the map of Russia. And the “East Siberia – Pacific Ocean” Oil Pipeline (ESPO) crossing of the river is not just another hydro-technical construction on one of the biggest Siberian rivers.
But the ESPO underwater crossing of the river Lena is nothing but an oil “bomb”. We call it this way, because the effect of oil spills on this river – one of the biggest and clearest rivers in the world, which nourishes the area compared to the size of the European Union – can be as destructive as bomb effect. Such situation is a result of non-responsible and quick profit oriented attitude of giant corporation, Transneft’. The company’s managers rely on speedy schedule and economy issues when weighing the alternatives – to spend up to 40 % more money on the project or to save the river they have probably not even seen with their own eyes.
That is why it is now the public initiatives of the republic are striving to save the Lena river from oil spills in future. Why would such disasters happen?
The method of the ESPO oil pipeline crossing had been changed without open public discussion: neither the government nor the people of the republic were informed of the Transneft’s decision to change from the micro-tunnel to the trench method, which then was approved by the state ecological expertise.
According to the various regional scientific data, the chosen place for the pipeline to cross the river have many dangerous factors, which can lead to oil spills in future if the pipeline will be done in trench. These are: possible ice jams, some big stones from inflowing river Olyokma; washing of soil and salt cavities under the pipes, etc.
Deformation of the pipes in the trench can cause oil spill disaster:
- according to the projected calculations, the massive oil spill will elapse about 83333, 3 cu. feet of oil into the river;
- counting the average width of the river, 0,97 miles, this amount of oil will make about 500 miles oil front and the polluted oiled water will reach Yakutsk, the capital town, in 4 days in summer;
- the company-customer of the project Transneft didn’t imply any alternative water supply for the settlements downstream in case of such oil spills;
- owing to the high toxic oil components such oil spill will do much harm to the fish, birds and to all living creatures inhabiting the bottom, the water and the banks. And the river is the major source of drinkable water and fish supply for numerous indigenous settlements downstream.
That’s why the leading scientists, ecologists from Yakutia and Russian Far East are addressing the government of Russia in urge to switch the method of river crossing for the tunnel.
Moreover, the construction of the pipeline is being done with abundant violations of technical and juridical regulations. Thus, the controlling work by the Ministry for nature protection and Technical Survey Department of the Sakha republic in the year of 2007-08 has found 97 violations of regulatory technical inscriptions and 86 violations of the nature protection laws.
The Save the River Lena Action is initiated by the Civic Coalition “Our homeland – Yakutia”, which then formed the Organizing Committee of the Action and Public Council of the Action. The Save the River Lena Action is out of the politics and commercial PR, this is a civic action.
The Action will be on till the government of Russia and the company-customer Transneft’ will reconsider the ESPO oil pipeline major crossing (at least, the additional sub-crossing) for tunneling. The Action is a set of informative, educational and agitation activities, which are held with various frequency and with different people involved. Later on, this Action will also be a part of public ecological monitoring of the Lena river.
The major activity within the Action is collecting the voices of all people who wish to give their voice to support our petition for the government of Russia to change the method of the river crossing from trench to tunnel.
Not long ago the Organizing Committee sent letters to the Presidents of Russia and Yakutia, asking them to take into account the voices of some 14 thousand people who signed the petition to change the ESPO oil pipeline river crossing for tunneling. But no answer yet from Moscow. And the last session of Yakutia’s government on August 22 didn’t show real consideration of the proposed public suggestion to make the river crossing safer.
Will the authorities and government of Russia and the Sakha republic not remain in history as those people who let “the oil bomb” kill the mighty river owing to their ill-thought actions and non-sustainable policies?
The organizers of the Action are still positive in their will to turn the government into the balance between mere economy and sustainable development of such industrial projects.
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THE EAST SIBERIA – PACIFIC OCEAN OIL PIPELINE PROJECT (ESPO)
The capacity of the pipeline: up to 80 mln tons of oil per year.
The ESPO construction stages: the first stage comprises: Tayshet (Irkutsjaya oblast) – Skovorodino (Amurskaya oblast). The overall capacity of the first stage is up to 30 ml tons of oil per year.
The extension of the ESPO in the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic: the extension goes from Ust-Kut up along the north-eastern left bank of the Lena river to the Talakan oil field (1 part of the extension); then it turns from the town of Lensk to the east and comes to the town of Olyokminsk where it crosses the Lena river and reaches the town of Aldan (3 part); from there it drops down south to the town of Neryungry and exits the territory of republic in the village of Tynda, Amurskaya oblast (2 part).
The length of the first stage of the project is about 1200 miles, and more than 800 miles out of that goes in the territory of the Sakha republic. As various specialists state, the construction of the new route of the project will face many difficulties of various origin: technical ordeals due to harsh climate, complex geology and relief (permafrost and multiple kinds of soils).
The engineering plans for the first stage of the project include construction of about 300-400 new transportation routes.
Besides the linear parts (the buried pipes) the projected construction includes 7 oil-pumping stations, numerous electricity and communication services, autonomous diesel power station, the unified controlling system and sea oil filling terminal in the Primorsky krai on the Pacific coast.
The cost of the first stage is about 11 mln USD.
The construction of the ESPO oil pipeline system is funded by open joint-stock oil company Transneft with its own resources and loans (Sberbank loan is 146 mlrd rubles, and release of debt securities (total sum is $500 mln and 700 mln euro).
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THE LENA RIVER CROSSING OF THE ESPO OIL PIPELINE
The ESPO oil pipeline project has about 270 crossing of various water streams, including the major water route, the Lena river. The underwater crossing is projected to be built near Solyanka village, not far downstream from Olyokminsk town.
The method of the crossing had been changed without open public discussion: neither the government nor the people of the republic were informed of the Transneft’s decision to change from the micro-tunnel to the trench method, which then was approved by the state ecological expertise.
Together with the approved method of crossing (the trench), the chosen place for the pipeline to cross the river adds risks for the possible oil spills in future as there are the following dangerous factors – high possibility of earthquakes in the area of crossing; ice jams at the spring break-up period (up to 40 feet high and 44 miles long ; the existence of geological shatters under the Oyokma and Lena rivers’ beds; the Olyokma river can drag up big stones to the trench crossing place; and also the washing of soil and salt under the buried pipes, which may cause their deformation, and thus, oil spills.
Special construction techniques
Open Cut River and Stream Crossings (open trench method)
This crossing method involves excavating a trench across the bottom of the river or stream to be crossed with the pipeline. Depending on the depth of the water, the construction equipment may have to be placed on barges or other floating platforms to excavate the pipe trench. If the water is shallow enough, the contractor can divert the water flow with dams and flume pipe to allow backhoes, working from the banks or the streambed, to dig the trench.
The top of the pipe must be 3,3 ft below the non-washable bottom level. The duration of work for this kind of river crossing systems is 10 years.
Utility Tunneling and Carrier Pipe
This construction method involves excavating the ground at the leading edge of a shield or boring machine and erecting a lining system from within the excavated space. The minimum size is approximately 48 inches in diameter, which is the size required to allow personnel access to erect a liner from inside the opening. The lined tunnel acts as a host for the installation of the carrier pipe system which is grouted in place.
The top of the pipe must be 16,6 ft below the non-washable bottom level. The duration of work for this kind of river crossing systems is 100 years.
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