Russian Railways has today announced that they have taken the decision, in partnership with environmental organizations including Greenpeace Russia and the World Wildlife Fund, to build an overpass to help preserve and enhance the unique natural habitat in the region. The environmental measures being carried out by Russian Railways are a further demonstration that the preparations for Sochi 2014 are at the heart of the development of environmental protection initiatives in Russia.
In preparation for the Games, Russian Railways is constructing the combined road and rail link between Adler and the Alpika-Service mountain resort and will build the overpass on the second section the combined road between the first and second tunnels.
This innovative architectural construction will enable a significant area of land to be re-cultivated, including the planting of box plants and other rare varieties of trees and plants. The overpass will also ensure that the largest area in which box plants grow is left intact and the chance of soil erosion in the area is significantly reduced.
Dmitry Chernyshenko, Sochi 2014 President and CEO, said:
“We are continually working with our partners involved in the preparations for the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games to ensure we preserve and enhance the region’s unique natural environment.
“The overpass is a significant illustration of our committed to limiting the environmental impact of the construction of new infrastructure and facilities by setting areas aside to compensate for any loss of habitat caused by development.
“We are implementing a range of measures to ensure we limit our environmental impact, such as completing an environmental impact survey for each construction site, frequent inspections to ensure compliance with environmental laws and the measurement of air pollution, while the majority of developers employ in-house professional ecologists to oversee this work.”
The actions being taken are part of Russian Railways commitment to following the recommendation of Russian environmental experts, as well as protecting plants on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.
A study of the planting undertaken to compensate for any plants removed during the construction process has found that the survival rate of replanted box plants is a significant 70%.
In partnership with the Gorlesekol federal research institute for mountain forest protection, the replanting of many rare plants and trees has been carried out in the Veselovsky forest area, including cladodes (ruscus aculeatus), box (buxus colchica), ruscus colchicus, staphylea colchica, walnut family (juglandaceae), and conifers (taxus baccata).