The Soviet Communist Party and the
Government of the USSR instituted an ex-
tensive anti-pollution program to save
the waters of Lake Baikal, which contains
one-fifth of all the fresh water on earth.
A resolution of the Council of Ministers
and the Central Committee of the Com-
munist Party ordered purification facilities
in a huge cellulose plant on the lake's
shores and forbade further paper plants
on a river that empties into Baikal. The
issue takes on special significance in the
U.S. because capitalist news agencies
have gloated that the first socialist land
has pollution problems too, so don’t blame
capitalism. Our correspondent in Moscow
interviewed some leading figures in the
USSR on this vital matter.

By Mike Davidow

; MOSCOW
+ every major industrial country,
the Soviet Union has a serious
problem of water pollution. I decided
to examine it and my first stop was at
the Soviet Academy of Science.

Andrei Voznesensky, an academician
in charge of water pollution, met me.
I asked him if he spelled his name the
same way as the famous poet Voznesen-
sky. He smiled. ‘‘I not only spell it the
same way, but I gave him the name,”
he said. ‘I am his father.’’ We spoke
a bit about his son, then we got to dis-
cuss the problem of pollution.

The first thing that struck me, after
we talked a while, was that the USSR
has a pollution problem, but does not
have a pollution crisis. This fact applies
to almost every situation and emphasizes
the contrast between life in the Soviet
Union and life in the U.S.A. The prob-
lems are big enough, they certainly are
not minimized, and serious water pollu-
tion exists in some regions. But the sit-
uation is steadily improving.

The ‘basic reason the battle against
water pollution is being won lies in
the all-out cooperation of the Govern-
ment, the Communist Party and the peo-
ple. That combination is functioning en-
ergetically on every score.

Measures for combatting water pollu-
tion are an integral part of the Five-
Year Plans of all industries and enter-
prises. Thus, Voznesensky said, before a
new enterprise can be put into opera-
tion it must pass a careful inspection
to ensure that it has the necessary sci-
entific anti-pollution equipment applic-
able to its specific conditions regarding
the water supply.

Voznesensky said there are cases
where the date-of operation of a plant
was postponed because the tough inspec-
tion commissions were dissatisfied with
the measures taken. I asked Voznesensky
how much money was spent on anti-
pollution equipment regarding water. He
said he could not give the total expen-
diture because it varied from industry
to industry. He did say it was ‘‘a very
great sum,” and in some cases, as in
chemical and paper plants, it comes to
about 14% of the total cost of construc-
tion.

@

The Soviet approach to combatting
pollution is the same as its approach to
fighting disease: prevention is the main
concentration.

Voznesensky repeatedly emphasized
that no single measure or piece of equip-
ment, no matter how effective, can re-
solve the complicated problem alone.
He said the Soviet struggle against
water pollution was directed at reduc-
ing industrial usage of water and even
more at reducing the quantity of noxious
substances in water. Voznesensky said im-
portant achievements were being regis-
tered.

He pointed out that one of the Soviet

Union’s biggest chemical fertilizer com-.

plexes employs a process which has
eliminated the discharge of dirty water

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY,

NOVEMBER 12, 1971—PAGE 8

Pollution
in the
USSR:

Prevention

is the

cure

into the river. Similarly, a large oil re-
fining plant in Gorky now discharges
absolutely clean water cleared of all
noxious elements. Success in such cases
anywhere are rapidly applied every-
where.

Voznesensky said the cleaning of dirty
water can also be highly profitable, and
he noted that chemical elements ex-
tracted by a number of plants from
polluted water netted those enterprises
considerable profits. :

“In many cases they paid for the
expenditures .made by the factory for

Baikal’s Beasties

‘anti-pollution equipment,”’ he said.

Voznesensky said that stress was also
being placed on a factory’s use of ‘“‘the
same water twice,’”’ thus considerably
curtailing the quantity of clean water
polluted.

Voznesensky noted that the Soviet
Union, which has 11% of the world’s water
resources (first place), nevertheless
faced serious water problems. About
75-80% of its water resources are concen-
trated in Siberia and the north, areas
which are sparsely settled. Some 15%
of its rivers flow into internal seas
(Caspian and Aral), which do not find
their outlets into oceans. Water taken
from such rivers can reduce the level
of the seas and increase the amount of
salt deposits,’ thus diminishing the food
supply for fish. Finally, the water flow
in many rivers is very erratic and un-
equal.

The Soviet Union has performed en-
gineering miracles to artificially redis-
tribute its vast water resources, taking
water from well-supplied areas and feed-
ing it to places in need of water.

For example, the great Kara Kum
canal carries water some 500 miles from
the Irtysh river. Voznesensky noted that
with the introduction of new industrial
processes new types of pollution were
appearing. Thus, a constant challenge
is being posed requiring constant ad-
vances in anti-pollution methods.

I then went to Boris N. Bogdanov,
chief of the Ministry of Agriculture’s
Department of Nature Conservation, Re-
serves and Hunting. The New York
Times had carried a story by Bernard
Gertzman, its Moscow correspondent,
that presented a bleak picture concern-
ing water pollution in the Soviet Union.

Gertzman’s story was based on an ar-
ticle by Bogdanov in a recent issue of
the journal, ‘‘Agricultural Economy.”

One of the chief functions of capital-
ist press correspondents here is to be
on the lookout for self-critical articles
in the Soviet press. I showed the Times
article to Bogdanov.

He smiled as he listened to the trans-
lation. He commented on it, saying the
apparent intent of the Times article was
to show American readers disturbed by
the water pollution crisis in the U.S.,
that the problem exists equally in a so-
cialist country like the Soviet Union.

Bogdanov pointed out that the purpose
of his article was to focus criticism on
a number of weaknesses and added:
“Now I’ll give you the picture which

operation making daily tests | i

Construction of plants on Bai

the New York Times article 40.

- deal with.” Like Voznesensky, ©)

Bogdanov categorically stated pi
have already passed by the critical s
in pollution and the general situa!
steadily improving.”’ fee
He cited as an example progres
the Ukraine where 80 percent of §
polluted water was now be
fied. Gertzman had casually i
this information at the end of his!
Bogdanov stressed that ad
like those made in the Udraine, W°) jm
predominant features in sti
Union’s fight against water PO” gil
-Moreover, he emphasized such P vide
“was typical all throughout the
Union.” As evidence of similar PP i)
Bogdanov pointed to the SU

" struggle waged against pollution

Baikal. ° ;

Bogdanov told me that by decisit
the Soviet government, extensV’
expensive measures were taken 1
tect the lake and its environs cat
lution. He said, ‘‘an efficient purl
system covering an area of MU
of thousands of hectares was cols F
at great cost.”

An elaborate laboratory sett?

factory on or near Lake Baikal®

are prohibited, Bogdanov Pp0
as Voznesensky had earlier. 7”
said that many of the curren D
pollution problems were ©

SuwSs8 zo
ae

‘as a result of understandable pgm,

during the period of the Nadal ‘inf
when the Soviet Union was fig#
its life. f fi ti
He recalled that thousands 9 - og
ies were transported from cities FR
Leningrad and other threatened i
the East. ‘‘The factories opel”.
out roofs. The issue was exIS', 4d)
pollution.” Bogdanov paused i
“Our inherited difficulties C¥ jo¢M)
plained and justified. But ca" © 9
your country?” i {hen
The problems of pollution
viet Union largely arise ff : ip
constructed during the wal a 4
urgent restoration period, he nV
Following an extensive + 0)
cussion in 1960, an intensive 9 josh

(
8
]

viet government and Communit’ agi
This included not only the bull.
pollution measures in new P™ giitah
ferred to but the re-equipPine 4d
factories with such protection.

stated that the Soviet governmne hs
to have purification equipment 1
in all old plants in the cours?

9th Five-Year Plan, 1971-1975. 44

Comprehensive anti-pollutio? silo
were adopted by the recent
the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Pa

Bogdanov noted that soviet ince
vides for severe penalties: 5+
stiff fines and imprisonment, (
tion of anti-pollution legisi@a™
regulations. fl

Bogdanov pointed out protect
preservation of the nation § wy
natural resources were basic’ id
anteed by Lenin’s decree 0”
of the first laws enacted by
born socialist state.

The decree took Jand-out of
of the landlords and capitalis®,
ist Russia, placed it in the ham
farmers, and ended unrestrait
of nature by greedy profit-seeke,

He noted that the recent e
gress of Soviet collective fa
adopted model rules which f
sponsibility on the farmers @
teeing proper utilization of 4”
natural resources at their disP” 5e0p

. Bogdanov pointed out ©
character of the Soviet Union tot
tion efforts. More than 30 m}
citizens are members of volut qf
servation associations. Enf0 ely 4
well’as inspection are larg?) j
hands of area committees WP 0
members of organizations, tes
trade union leaders, Party “15:
Komsomol leaders and scientis

=