87 Scientists Urge Putin to Halt Logging Proposal Threatening Lake Baikals Ecosystem

A collective of 87 Russian scientists has urged President Vladimir Putin to intervene against a contentious bill that would permit clear-cutting near the shores of Lake Baikal, as reported by the Kommersant business newspaper on Tuesday, referencing their unified letter.

This summer, the government reportedly approved long-delayed amendments that permit so-called sanitary logging in the Baikal region—an action intended to mitigate damage caused by fires, pests, and various threats. The scientists assert that their concerns were consistently overlooked during two years of discussions.

In July, two environmental committees from Russia’s lower house, the State Duma, called for a revision of the bill before lawmakers were set to vote on the proposed amendments.

In their correspondence, the group cautioned Putin that this legislation might incentivize the intentional burning of healthy forests for financial gain, compromise soil stability, and contaminate the UNESCO-protected lake. They argued that allowing the extraction of logged wood from Baikal’s protected region would essentially commercialize the forests, while artificial reforestation efforts could exacerbate soil erosion and lead to nutrient runoff into the water.

Furthermore, the letter criticized provisions allowing the development of tourism facilities across more than 4,000 hectares (10,000 acres) of the protected area, as well as the removal of Baikal’s water conservation zone from its ecological safeguards. The scientists warned that this would pave the way for development along the shoreline.

It is unclear when the letter reached Putin; however, it included signatures from 29 prominent members of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In July, media reports indicated that members of the academy had expressed «increasing concern» in a separate letter directed to State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin.

Russia’s Ministry of Natural Resources informed Kommersant that the bill preserves Baikal’s “highest protective status” and prohibits commercial logging, contending that reforestation would mitigate erosion and that the amendments are necessary to construct protective facilities and utilities for local residents.

Experts, however, remain doubtful, warning that the use of heavy machinery, soil runoff, and “forest amnesty” conditions could harm Baikal’s ecosystem. They note that the bill’s ambiguous land reclassification system seems to favor development over conservation efforts.

UNESCO, which designated Baikal as a World Heritage site in 1996, expressed concerns earlier this year regarding the “uncertain legal protection” of the lake. A petition on Change.org opposing the bill has gathered over 115,000 signatures.