UNESCO to protect Sochi nature reserves from 2014 Olympics

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee on Natural Heritage and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) intend to dispatch an official expert mission for evaluating the condition of the "Western Caucasus", Russian object of the World Natural Heritage located in the vicinity of Sochi. This is mentioned in the official decision of the Committee 31-st session held in Christchurch (New Zealand).

The decision was taken after considering the materials submitted by Greenpeace of Russia. Ecologists inform the Committee members about the large-scale construction planned in the buffer zone of the "Western Caucasus" (which was recently prohibited by Russian laws, however, the legislation has been changed in order to legalize the occupation of unique nature reserve territories).

The official delegation of Russia urgently requested the Committee not to touch the "Western Caucasus" issue. However, thanks to the information submitted by Greenpeace, the Committee decided to consider it.

"...the Committee final decision is not very strict. This seems to be connected with the fact that the experts do not wish to exert influence on the International Olympic Committee in the process of passing a decision on the venue of the 2014 Olympics," says Roman Vazhenkov, program manager on specially protected natural territories, Russian Greenpeace.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is to announce the venue of 2014 Olympics at its session in Guatemala on June 4, 2007. According to the results of the IOC evaluation commission report, Sochi takes the third place among the three remaining candidate cities, Austrian Saltzburg is number two, while South Korean Pyeongchang is the leader.