A delegation of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) has expressed satisfaction with progress made on environmental issues as part of the preparations for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, said UNEP expert Herve Lethier.
However, environmental protection programs require careful planning and concerted efforts by everyone involved, including the organizers, regional and municipal authorities and the general public, Lethier told RIA Novosti on Wednesday.
The UN expert mission visited Sochi from October 18 to 22 under an agreement with the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee. On October 18 and 19, the delegates discussed environmental issues during a round table attended by representatives of Russia's Natural Resources Ministry, the state-run corporations Olympstroy and Russian Railways, the Sochi National Park, the Caucasus Biosphere Reserve, the Sochi Public Council, the North Caucasus Environmental Watch, the Russian Nature Protection Society, the Russian Geographic Society, NGOs, and investors.
On Wednesday, the UNEP experts visited the Olympic Park, the car-and-rail road between Adler and the Alpica Service mountain resort, and the village of Nekrasovskoye. They also met with local residents.
"Ensuring that the Games are green is not just the responsibility of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee," Lethier said. "Everyone should contribute, from workers to executives and decision-makers in regional and municipal governments, as well as the people in the city, because all of Russian society will be involved in the Games."
Mr. Lethier said the main function of the Organizing Committee is to "promote coordination among everyone helping to prepare for the Olympics." He also highlighted the role of the public in addressing environmental problems.
"This is not my first visit to Sochi, and I always try to meet with local residents when I come. I have seen how our dialogue has improved with each trip," the UNEP official said.
During Wednesday's meeting with Sochi residents, Lethier discussed the environmental problems in the Mzymta Valley, where the car-and-rail road is being built. Lethier noted the importance and difficulty of taking a systematic approach to managing water bodies and resources, such as water supply, the protection of fish populations, sewage water treatment and the condition of the river bed. However, he added that there are solutions, and experts are now working to find them.
"We found out yesterday that the Olympstroy corporation is revising its comprehensive assessment of the Olympics' impact on the local environment," he said. "This is an important move, which will allow you to set your priorities for the next stage of work."
Lethier stressed that the environmental programs included in the preparations for the 2014 Olympic Games should be forward-looking and cannot be expected to produce immediate results. He said the priority should be to protect the environment and repair damage "using any means possible," as well as to promote environmental awareness.
UNEP specialists are working jointly with the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee under the Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 5, 2009, and within the framework of the environmental support for the XXII Olympic Winter Games and the XI Paralympic Games in Sochi in 2014.
The Sochi Organizing Committee and UNEP are working together to create interesting projects for the remaining three years until 2014 and to offer interested parties an opportunity to participate in each of the four main elements of the committee's Environmental Program: Games in Harmony with Nature, Climate Neutral Games, Zero Waste Games, and Enlightenment Games.
They are also working in close cooperation with local residents, and they are open to questions and comments from NGO representatives and ordinary people who are concerned about the environment.
SOCHI, October 22 (RIA Novosti's Olesya Mitsenko)
