222893e

TRANSBOUNDARY WATER MANAGEMENTImage: Evgeni KozyrevRecognizing human beings as part of the ecosystem is a key component of natural resources managementrelatively large number of water tsars, as well as masters of mountainpeaks, and all their names are unknown. However, accordingto some ethnological data, a considerable number of names reflectthe physical properties of water.Notably, shaman categories and concepts formed by natives livingnear the lake further intensified the parameters for perceiving thesurrounding space. The creation of myths by Siberian indigenouspeoples and their shamanistic culture as a whole prove the currentopinion of scientists on the joint process of developing the areaaround Lake Baikal. When Russians came to the area, the spiritualpart of the lake’s perception did not change but was transformed tosome extent. In Siberian Russian-speaking folklore stories, legends,and songs, Baikal, called the ‘Holy Sea’, is presented as an epic hero,personifying the beauty and strength of Siberia.Hence, nature plays an important role both in Mongolian andRussian cultures and a traditional way of life is built on great respectfor the environment. Until recently, there was a taboo against livingon the shores of the Holy Sea. In the Republic of Butyatia thereare 111 water monuments, including three glaciers, 61 springs, tworivers, 33 lakes and 12 waterfalls. A 5.7 million km 2 area of LakeBaikal’s basin in Mongolia (18.9 per cent of the overall protected areain the country) has ‘protected’ status. The Mongolian Governmenttook the responsibility of enlarging the network of protected sites onLake Baikal and included a few more in 2011. At present, there arefive specially protected nature sites, 10 national parks, four naturereserves and four monuments of natural and historicalheritage along the Selenga in Mongolia. 2In the twentieth century, the Russian and Mongoliangovernments concluded a number of transboundaryagreements aimed at the preservation of natural resourcesfor people living around the Baikal region. In 1995,the bilateral agreement ‘On Conservation and Use ofTansboundary Water Resources’ was signed. Prior to this,agreements signed in 1974 and 1988 were enforced. In2000, an agreement between the Academy of Sciences ofMongolia (ASM) and the Russian Academy of Sciences(RAS) on scientific cooperation was signed. Within theframework of the agreement, the Mongolian water ecosystemstudy programme was adopted. In July 2001, the 4thMeeting of the Authorized Representatives of the Russianand Mongolian Governments in Ulan-Bator approved aprogramme of joint ichthyologic research on fish reservesin the Selenga river within Mongolia and Buryatia.Mongolia and Russia exchange information on aregular basis. In 2006, joint planning of water basinmanagement was discussed. In 2008, a broadenedlist of pollutants was made, with agreement that thedumping of pollutants should be controlled by bothparties. In 2011, a meeting was held in line with theagreement ‘On Conservation and Use of Tansboundary[ 83 ]