21.12.2011 | News
NEFCO has released a new video, which highlights environmental pollution from the nickel mining industry and wastewater treatment facilities in the Kola Peninsula in Northwestern Russia.
Sulphur oxide and heavy metal emissions from the Kola Peninsula smelters have been one of the main subjects of international environmental cooperation in the Barents region.
In 2003, NEFCO co-financed a study which identified a number of so called environmental hot spots in the Russian part of the Barents region. The study, which was commissioned by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme, identified the cupro-nickel smelters at Nikel and Zapolyarnyi as some of the worst hot spots in the Barents region. NEFCO, the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) and Norilsk Nickel have been trying to find a lasting solution to this problem.
Inadequate wastewater treatment facilities in Murmansk have also has been identified as one of the region’s environmental hot spots. In the near future, partly as a result of significant investment from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development together with NEFCO, up to 70 per cent of the city’s wastewater will be treated at the refurbished plant.
“With the help of this video we want to demonstrate that, despite enormous environmental challenges in the Barents region, international cooperation is beginning to make a difference”, says Communications Manager, Mikael Sjövall, from NEFCO.
Two previous NEFCO videos on YouTube have by 21 December generated over 8,800 clicks.