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Inquiries and Reports - Russia
Oslo, 2004
Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme
AMAP Report 2004:2
In 1997, the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (‘AMAP’) presented the report ‘Arctic Pollution Issues: A State of the Arctic Environment Report’ ... to the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the Arctic countries (Alta, Norway). This first AMAP assessment was supported by a substantial scientific background document, the ‘AMAP Assessment Report: Arctic Pollution Issues’ ... which was submitted to the First Ministerial Conference of the Arctic Council (Iqaluit, Canada) in 1998. Both of these reports clearly documented the fact that persistent toxic substances (‘PTS’) are transported to, and accumulate in, the Arctic region.
The explanation for this lies in the physical and chemical properties of PTS, which promote their long-range transport by atmospheric, oceanic, and riverine pathways to the Arctic. Due to their low solubility in water and high solubility in fat, they tend to accumulate in lipid-rich Arctic biota species, and to biomagnify in food webs, particularly in long marine food chains. As a result, the upper trophic levels of Arctic food webs are highly exposed to PTS, and certain Arctic indigenous populations, whose lifestyle is based on the consumption of traditional country foods, are subject to some of the highest exposure levels to PTS of any population groups on Earth.
The AMAP assessment provided evidence that, for example, blood levels of some PTS, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (‘PCBs’) and mercury, can be several times higher in residents of Arctic Canada and Greenland than levels measured in residents of industrialized areas of North America. In some cases, PTS intake exceeded World Health Organization (‘WHO’) guidelines, and attained levels comparable to those associated with the potential to cause negative impacts on human health in areas such as neurological development, reproductive health, immuno-suppression, and cancer, etc. Due to the ability of some PTS to cross the placenta, and also to accumulate in breast milk, this raises concerns regarding the potential of PTS to affect the growing foetus and young children, during the most critical periods of human development.
At the same time, it is important to note the benefits that traditional diets provide. For many indigenous peoples, the traditional diet is not only a vital source of nourishment, but also an integral part of their cultural and spiritual identity. Any threat to continued consumption of these foods, including chemical contamination, is not only a potential threat to the health of the individual concerned, but also to the social structures and entire cultural identity of these indigenous peoples.
Preliminary studies in the Russian Arctic have shown that, as in Arctic Canada and Greenland, levels of PTS in biota may be significantly elevated as a result of long range transport of contaminants, and that in some areas this is compounded by local pollution occurring as a result of the heavy industrialisation of the Russian North. Recently, as a result of economic and social changes in Russia following the break-up of the USSR., after years of declining consumption, use of traditional foods by indigenous peoples appears to be increasing again. In Chukotka, the harvesting of walrus in greater numbers, as well as the recent resumption in native hunting of bowhead whales for subsistence purposes, are examples of this trend. However, at the time of the first AMAP assessment, the situation of the Russian Arctic indigenous peoples had not been studied sufficiently to allow a clear understanding of the impact of contaminants on the overall health status of indigenous populations. This lack of information precluded a reliable assessment of the Russian situation with respect to PTS exposure within the circumpolar context. It also prevented the development of adequate measures to reduce the risks to Russian northern populations associated with exposure to PTS.
Representatives of the Arctic Indigenous Peoples Organizations (‘IPOs’), which, at the time of the first AMAP assessment, included the Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (‘RAIPON’), the Inuit Circumpolar Conference (‘ICC’), the Saami Council (‘SC’), and the Aleut International Association (‘AIA’) are permanent participants in the Arctic Council. Deeply concerned by the findings of the AMAP assessment regarding possible impacts of PTS on the health of their peoples, particularly through contamination of traditional foods, the IPO representatives, in collaboration with the AMAP Secretariat and supported by the Arctic Council, took the initiative to launch a special project to address the deficiencies in information identified by the AMAP reports. The aims of this project were not only to assess the situation with respect to PTS impacts on the health of indigenous peoples, but also to develop recommendations to federal and local authorities, to the indigenous peoples themselves, and also to the international community on (a) measures to reduce the exposure of indigenous peoples of the Russian North to PTS, and (b) means to empower indigenous peoples to participate actively and fully in the process of PTS elimination.
It is important to note that the IPOs consider the elimination of risks to human health from PTS as a key component of their activities, and are active participants in all relevant international negotiations that are concerned with reducing use and environmental releases of these chemicals. Their role in the development and adoption of the Persistent Organic Pollutants (‘POPs’) and Heavy Metal Protocols to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (‘UN ECE’) Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (‘LRTAP’), and particularly in promoting the development of the United Nations Environment Programme (‘UNEP’) global Stockholm Convention on POPs, cannot be overestimated. Due to the current economic situation in Russia, the Russian Federation has yet to become a signatory to the above-mentioned UN ECE LRTAP Protocols, and also has still to ratifiy the Stockholm Convention. The proactive work of the IPOs, and of RAIPON in particular, in such processes, is vital if the major goals of these Conventions are to be realised.
The IPOs initiative, to develop and implement the project ‘Persistent Toxic Substances, Food Security and Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North’, received full support from the UNEP Global Environment Facility (‘GEF’), the Arctic Council, and all the Arctic Countries and International Organizations. Additionally, and of vital importance for the project, it received support from all relevant Federal executive bodies of the Russian Government, the Russian Parliament (the State Duma), and the local authorities in all the pilot regions selected for project implementation. The project formally started in February 2001, although some preliminary studies had already been undertaken in the summer and autumn of 2000.
There are, today, some 30 indigenous minority peoples in Siberia, the North, and the Far East of the Russian Federation, in total numbering approximately 200 000 persons. Eleven of these minorities live in the Arctic region, the combined land area of which is approximately 3.1 million km. Together with five other northern indigenous minority peoples who live close to, or partly within, the Arctic region, the indigenous minority population within Arctic Russia numbers some 67 000. Approximately 75% of the minority population within the Arctic Russia live in rural areas. In addition, the two most numerous groups of indigenous peoples (the Komi and Yakuts), which represent the majority within their territories, have lifestyles that are similar to the indigenous minorities, and hence are exposed to similar environmental risks.
Conditions for indigenous peoples in the Russian Arctic have been steadily worsening over recent years. The effects of economic changes occurring throughout Russia have been felt acutely in the Arctic, with indigenous minorities being particularly affected. According to a report by RAIPON and UNEP/GRIDArendal, the indigenous peoples in northern Russia are on the brink of ‘physical extinction’ ... Health issues, particularly those related to environmental contamination, are a matter of urgent concern, with life expectancy of the indigenous peoples twenty years shorter than that of the average Russian (as low as 41–42 years for men in some regions). Infant mortality is increasing, as is the incidence of disease.
During recent years, Russian Federal authorities have taken a number of steps to address the critical economic, social and health problems affecting the indigenous peoples. In 1992, the President of the Russian Federation issued a special Decree: ‘Urgent Actions on Protection of Habitats and Subsistence Activities of Indigenous Minorities Of The North’. Following from this, the Federal Law, ‘Fundamentals of the State Regulation of Social and Economic Development of The Russian Federation North’, with an Article dedicated to environmental protection and the use of natural resources, was adopted in 1996. The Federal programme ‘Children Of The North 1998–2000’, which was adopted by the Russian government in 1997, also proposed practical steps for improving the situation in the region. Unfortunately however, the critical economic situation affecting the country has meant that these measures have not received the necessary financial support, and, consequently, that they have failed to achieve the desired results. Although the adopted Federal Law ‘On Guarantees of the Rights of Indigenous Minorities in The Russian Federation’ created a legislative framework for improving the existing situation, it is not able to solve problems associated with the lack of the financial resources required to implement necessary remedial actions.
The Russian Federation actively participates in circumpolar monitoring and assessment activities conducted within the framework of AMAP. In this, they provide significant contributions of data and information needed to complete the Russian component of the AMAP circumpolar assessment. Due to financial constraints, however, studies during the first phase of AMAP (1992–1997) concerning the impacts of environmental contamination on human health were restricted to a limited area of the Russian North, and were essentially lacking for the eastern part of the region. Activities under the ‘Persistent Toxic Substances, Food Security and Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North’ project have contributed significantly to the assessments conducted during the second phase of AMAP (1998–2002) ... and have assisted in the elimination of gaps previously identified with respect to geographical scope and knowledge.
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The main conclusion of the first AMAP assessment ... clearly stated that the well-known benefits of breast milk and traditional food definitely out-weighed the risks to human health risks from contaminants. The social, cultural, spiritual and physical health of Arctic indigenous peoples depends on the collection and consumption of country foods. The consumption of local fish, meat, wild greens and berries is important in providing the necessary dietary intake of most nutrients, vitamins, essential elements and minerals. Based on these conclusions, the AMAP assessment recommended that:
These basic conclusions and recommendations have received full acknowledgement and support within the framework of this project. At the same time, a number of important findings made during the period of project implementation have promoted the development of conclusions and recommendations specific for Arctic Russia, and for the objectives of the project.
1. A close partnership has been successfully achieved between researchers and indigenous organizations and communities in accordance with internationally recognized practices, as well as effective co-operation in developing remedial actions to reduce health risks resulting from the contamination of the environment and traditional food sources. The project has been implemented with the active participation of the Russian Association of the Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and Far East (RAIPON) and its regional branches. RAIPON representatives acted as equal partners with the scientific teams in all project activities and phases, including the development of project recommendations. Achieving the project objectives would not have been possible without close collaboration with the Russian executive authorities, and particularly the administrations of the regions where the project was undertaken.
2. Project implementation has enhanced the position of the Russian Federation in international negotiations to reduce the use of PTS, and empowered RAIPON to participate actively and fully in these negotiations. The signing of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants by the Russian Federation, the active role played by RAIPON, in line with other International Organizations of the Arctic Indigenous Peoples, and the full-scale participation of Russian federal executive agencies and RAIPON in the development and implementation of the Arctic Council Action Plan to eliminate pollution in the Arctic are good, but not the only, indicators of attaining relevant project objectives.
3. The existing system in Russia for statistical reporting of environmental releases do not cover most persistent toxic substances, and in particular, those covered by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.
In this respect, it is recommended that new forms of state statistical reports on industrial atmospheric emissions, waste water discharges and solid wastes, be developed and approved, which should be adequate for the requirements of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants and other international treaties and agreements aimed at the limitation of environmental and human health effects of persistent toxic substances. In this, it is recommended that experience gained in the development and use of registers for emissions of contaminants and transport be used.
4. From experience gained during project implementation, existing data and information on PTS pollution sources available to federal and local environmental and human health authorities does not adequately reflect the actual situation in the Russian Arctic regions. Studies and surveys within the project framework have documented the environmental impact of unknown local PTS sources. In particular, there is evidence of relatively fresh environmental releases of contaminants such as DDT and PCB.
Taking into account the objectives aimed at implementation of the Environmental Doctrine of the Russian Federation and the Fundamentals of the State Policy in Chemical Safety, it is recommended that a source inventory system be developed and implemented in the Arctic administrative territories inhabited by the indigenous peoples, that covers both former and current releases of PTS from all economic activities.
5. PCBs can be considered as one of the most serious environmental and human health risk factors for the areas covered by the project, which cannot be adequately explained by long-range transport and existing information on local sources. According to the Russian PCB inventory, 53 000 out of 180 000 tonnes of PCB produced in the former USSR, were used for the production of paints, varnish, lubricants and other products, ie, they have been used in open systems. Although this type of PCB use could not be taken into account by the inventory, it is likely that some of the PCB- related problems mentioned above also resulted from contamination from such sources.
Within the framework of the Russian National Action Plan on implementation of the Stockholm Convention, it is recommended that a special section on the rehabilitation of PCB-contaminated sites, including land and housing be developed and implemented. With respect to this issue, special attention should be paid to land and settlements inhabited by Arctic indigenous peoples, taking into account their lifestyle and social vulnerability.
6. A significant proportion of total global PTS in the Arctic environment, is determined by their long-range transport. For example, the pesticide, Mirex has not been produced and used in either the USSR or Russia. However, levels of Mirex in the blood of the indigenous population residing in the Russian Arctic, particularly in coastal Chukotka, are found at clearly detectable levels, albeit lower than in some other parts of the Arctic, such as Arctic Canada. At the same time, the validity of long-range atmospheric transport and deposition estimates is limited by the scarcity of data on remote sources, and a lack of comprehensive source inventories.
It is recommended that the Government of the Russian Federation, in cooperation with the other member countries of the Arctic Council, take active measures in the international arena to ensure the reduction, and in the future, the full elimination of environmental and human health threats from global PTS. In particular, it is recommended that the Russian Federation ratifies the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, and joins the Aarhus Persistent Organic Pollutants and Heavy Metals Protocols of the UN-ECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution.
7. Environmental aspects of human health, particularly those associated with PTS exposure of indigenous peoples, are closely linked to the economic and social status of indigenous families. In this respect, a significant reduction in the effects of PTS on human health cannot be successfully achieved without improvement in the economic and social conditions of the Russian Arctic indigenous peoples.
It is recommended that, the National Plan of Economic and Social Development of the Northern Territories of the Russian Federation, which, it is envisaged, is to be developed or reconsidered following the Meetings of the State Council Board of the Russian Federation and of the President of the Russian Federation with the representatives of the northern territories of the Russian Federation in Salekhard, 28–29 April, 2004; should fully address improvements to the social and economic conditions of the Russian Arctic indigenous peoples. This action should be undertaken with the full involvement of the indigenous peoples.
8. In general, PTS levels in the natural environment and biota of the Russian Arctic are at moderate levels compared to other Arctic regions. This presents a means to significantly reduce PTS intake by indigenous peoples without intervening in their basic traditional lifestyle and cultural identity, through the implementation of protection and remedial actions, including improvement of sanitary conditions in the indigenous settlements and by implementation of household and dietary recommendations developed as a result of the findings of this report.
As a follow-up to this project, it is recommended that the Russian federal executive human health and environmental authorities, in close collaboration with the Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and Far East and regional and local administrations, develop a set of practical activities aimed at achieving, in full acknowledgement and respect of the traditional lifestyle and cultural identity of the Russian Arctic indigenous peoples, a significant reduction in their PTS intake. These measures, which should be an integral part of the National Plan of Social and Economic Development of the Russian Northern Territories, should include actions required at the federal, regional and local levels, taking into account the circumstances of each area. More specific regionally-based recommendations, addressed to the indigenous peoples should be presented in special publications in Russian.
9. The levels of human exposure to PTS in the Russian Arctic, specifically to HCB and HCH, and, in some cases, also to DDT and PCB, is one of the highest reported for all of the Arctic regions. In some cases, exposure has been shown to exceed levels assessed for residents of territories, which are internationally recognised as disaster areas, such as the Aral Sea region, due to long-term use of persistent pesticides. In the areas of the Russian Arctic studied, practically every indigenous family consumes a significant amount of traditional food. Families with low incomes rely to a greater extent on the local, fat-rich traditional diet. As a consequence, low-income indigenous families are at greater risk of exposure to POPs.
It is recommended that the human health authorities and administrations of the territories of the Russian Arctic inhabited by indigenous peoples, in close collaboration with the regional branches of RAIPON and in full acknowledgement of the importance of the traditional diet for nutrition and preservation of the national and cultural identity of the indigenous peoples, as part of their lifestyle, develop appropriate targeted measures to reduce PTS intake with traditional food, based on specific recommendations, the improvement of social and economic conditions and the raising of awareness about existing problems.
10. The highest PTS exposures and associated health risks are documented for the coastal areas of Chukotka, where the traditional diet of the indigenous population is largely based on marine mammals and fish. This corresponds to previous information obtained concerning the Greenlandic and coastal Canadian indigenous populations.
It is recommended that, in the development of practical follow-up measures, special attention should be paid to the situation in the Chukchi AO, taking into account both, the social and economic status of the indigenous peoples in this region of Russia, and the health risks associated with PTS intake. On the basis of data obtained within the framework of the project, the coastal areas of the Chukchi AO are of main concern with respect to human health risks.
11. Indoor and occupational sources of PTS, including contamination of dwellings, are likely to be a significant contributor to blood contamination among indigenous peoples of the Russian Arctic. It was found that all of the houses of indigenous people studied during the targeted surveys, were contaminated by POPs, mostly by PCB and DDT. Levels of indoor PCB contamination correlate to levels of PCB measured in the blood of indigenous families living in these houses.
It is recommended that remedial action to remove PTS contamination from the houses of indigenous families, should be an important and urgent action, aimed at improving the social and economic status of indigenous communities.
12. It was found that the labelling of chemicals produced and retailed for household protection against insects and rodents, often does not correspond to their actual chemical composition, and that these chemicals sometimes contain toxic substances in high concentrations, particularly DDT and PCB.
It is recommended that proposals for amendments to the Federal Law “On safe handling of pesticides and agro-chemicals” be developed, to ensure implementation of strict and efficient control measures over the production and trade of pesticides and other chemicals for private use, particularly those used for protection against insects and rodents, which would ensure a complete ban on the use of PTS in these chemicals.
13. In a number of cases, home-made local food contains higher levels of PTS contamination than raw products obtained from the natural environment. It has been shown that additional contamination of food by PTS can take place when food is stored, processed, and/or cooked in a contaminated household environment.
It is recommended that the local human health authorities, in close collaboration with regional branches of RAIPON, work out an efficient action plan to improve sanitary conditions in indigenous houses. These measures should be integrated with communication with indigenous families and efforts to raise awareness about the health risks associated with contamination of home-processed food.
14. POP concentrations measured in blood serum are highly dependent on age. This phenomenon may reflect past exposure to POPs. The number of breast fed children has also been found to be a significant determinant of POPs serum concentrations in women. Serum concentrations of lipophilic contaminants are reduced by an increase in parity. Statistically significant associations have been found between blood concentrations of total PCBs (Arochlor 1260), lead and a number of non-specific reproductive and developmental health effects such as the prevalence of low birth weight, premature births, stillbirths and major structural malformations. Serum concentrations of total PCBs in maternal blood also appear to be associated with impacts on newborn sex ratios. In contrast with both national and global statistics, female babies of indigenous mothers with elevated POP blood concentrations, have a higher risk of low birth weight and other adverse outcomes of pregnancy when compared to male babies.
It is recommended that the Russian human health authorities implement internationally recognized levels of concern for PTS blood concentrations. It is further recommended that dietary safety advice based on the benefits of traditional food are made an important component of prenatal care and of family planning strategies for the indigenous communities at risk.
15. A close correlation between PTS levels in blood and breast milk has been documented for indigenous women of the Chukchi AO.
It is recommended that the international and Russian national health and environmental protection authorities develop recommendations for the assessment of human PTS intake, based on levels of these contaminants in blood and breast milk, taking into account the advantages and drawbacks of using these indicators for different groups within the population.
A full copy of the Report Persistent Toxic Substances, Food Security and Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North is available online via the AMAP website at <http://www.amap.no/Resources/PTS_project.htm> .
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URL: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/AUIndigLawRpr/2005/15.html