Ecological Society - Green Salvation

The Ecological Society “Green Salvation” was addressed by a group of citizens living in the city of Almaty on Raiymbek street. The people were concerned that their rights on favorable environment were violated because of construction of a State veterinary laboratory (contractor – “Almatyenergoresurs” LLP) which was taking place on the territory of their private land lots next to their houses.

On June 1, the Specialized Interregional Economic Court of Astana City made a decision on the lawsuit about inactivity of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and about admitting as invalid the Head sanitary inspector’s conclusion on reduction of the sanitary protection zone of the “Karachaganak Petroleum Operating B.V.” enterprise. The lawsuit was mounted by Ecological Society “Green Salvation” on June 19, 2008, in order to protect lawful interests of the residents of Berezovka village, West-Kazakhstan oblast.

April 30th, Specialized Interregional Economic Court (SIEC) of Astana city organized on-site hearings in Berezovka village, West-Kazakhstan oblast. The lawsuit about inactivity of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and admitting the Head sanitary inspector’s conclusion on reduction of the sanitary protection zone to be invalid was mounted on June 19, 2008, by Ecological Society “Green Salvation”, in order to protect interests of the village residents.

Kazakhstan’s State Agency to Combat Economic Crimes and Corruption has filed a claim of more than $700 million against the consortium Karachaganak Petroleum Operating (KPO), which is developing the Karachaganak Field.

The first ever lawsuit filed by NGOs against the Government of Kazakhstan has received a continuance. The Review Board of the Supreme Court satisfied the complaint filed by the public association “Zhasil Dala” and the Ecological Society “Green Salvation” with its decision to continue to review the case regarding relocating the residents of the village of Berezovka.

Light, heat, hot water – all these comfort life components can be abundant and absolutely free, and there is no need to even burn coal for that. Don’t you believe it? Come and check yourself at the New Energy course organized by the Center of biophysical ecology of Kazakh national university named after al-Farabi. The course is organized for schoolchildren from the town of Balkhash since 2004.

September 10, 2009, Review Board of the Court of Astana city held hearings of a complaint for review submitted by the Ecological Society “Green Salvation”, Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, and Public Association “Shanyrak”. The lawsuit was mounted to protect interests of the citizens of Berezovka village (West-Kazakhstan oblast).

Two years ago, September 10, 2007, Specialized Interregional Economic Court of Almaty City made a decision about liquidation of an illegal dumpster located on the territory of Ile-Alatau national park to the south of the alpine ski-resort Chimbulak. Lack of control of the Akimat of Almaty City and Almaty City Territorial Department on Environmental Protection over the conditions of the natural environment was declared to be inaction! So far the court decision has not been executed; some of the constructional and domestic wastes are still there, and the site remediation works have not been even started yet.

Ecological society “Green Salvation” was addressed by the citizens of Almaty. During a walk on the territory of Ile-Alatau National Park in the area of Big Almaty Lake and its water-protection zone, they noticed several illegal dumps.

It is hard to believe, but the facts are convincing. July 15, 2009, the Supreme Court made a decision* that… not all of the statements of the Aarhus Convention have an obligatory status and not all of them shall be applied directly! But only a year and a half ago before the Third meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention, the opinion of the Supreme Court** was the opposite. It fully matched the opinion of the General Public Prosecutor and the Ministry of Environmental Protection: the Convention has an obligatory status and has a priority over laws of Kazakhstan and shall be enforced directly!

May 26, 2009, a coalition of the US non-profit organizations published a report “True cost of Chevron”. The document was made as an alternative to the annual meeting of Chevron stakeholders which took place in San-Ramon, Ca. The report contains negative facts of Chevron activities in different parts of the world, including Kazakhstan. Chapter devoted to our country describes consequences of the activities of the company and its partners at the deposits Tengiz and Karachaganak and includes a history of a struggle of Berezovka village citizens for their right to live in a healthy environment.

In August 2008, the Ecological Society “Green Salvation” asked the company Karachaganak Petroleum Operating B.V. (KPO) for the results of its environmental monitoring in 2002-2008. According to the Environmental Code of the Republic of Kazakhtan, the public has the right to receive such information from users of natural resources.

    The people of the Republic of Kazakhstan express great concern for the planned “Moinak Electricity Transmission Project”, prepared by the joint stock company “Kazakhstan Electricity Grid Operating Company” (KEGOC). According to this plan, construction is proposed for two 220 kV overhead transmission lines (OHTL), which will connect the Moinak Hydro Power Plant on the Charyn River (Raimbek District, Almaty Oblast) with acting electricity grids. It is planned that OHTL will cross through the territory of the Charyn and Altyn-Emel national parks. KEGOC has applied for project financing from the World Bank.
   An open letter with the demand to make changes in the project in order to move OHTL away from the borders of national parks, was supported by 85 citizens and different organizations in Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Russia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, who care about the fate of these unique corners of nature. The Ecological Society Green Salvation thanks everyone who supported the letter!
    On May 19, the letter was sent to the President, the Parliament, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Forestry and Hunting Committee, and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
    On June 1, the Minister of Agriculture, A. K. Kurishbaev, responded to an open public letter regarding the Moinak Electricity Transmission Project. According to the Minister's letter, published on the official blog, “the Forestry and Hunting Committee proposed that “Energostroiproekt” Ltd., which is selecting and coordinating the route of the overhead transmission lines (OHTL), consider the possibility of constructing OHTL outside the boundaries of the Altyn-Emel and Charyn national parks” (letter #25-02-09-25/2611 from 05/20/2009).

On June 10, 2009 the Board on Civil Affairs of the Astana City Court considered appeals by Green Salvation, the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights, and the NGO “Shanyrak” and by the Chief State Sanitary Doctor. The case was submitted on behalf of the residents of the village of Berezovka (Western Kazakhstan Oblast).
In their appeal, submitted on May 14, the plaintiffs requested the that “the decision of the Specialized Interregional Economic Court (SIEC) of Astana City on April 30, 2009, regarding the failure of the government and ministries to act, be overturned as illegal, and the case sent to be considered on the grounds of its legal requirements by another judge.”

On April 30, 2009 the Specialized Interregional Economic Court (SIEC) of Astana City issues its decision regarding the lawsuit by Green Salvation, the Kazakhstan International Bureau on Human Rights, and the republican NGO “Shanyrak”. The suit was filed on behalf of the residents of the village of Berezovka (Western Kazakhstan Oblast).
The plaintiffs’ demands were satisfied in part. The Court declared the conclusions of the Chief State Sanitary Doctor № 07-2 of Jan. 16, 2004 regarding the Dec. 25, 2003 amendments to the project “Sanitary-Protective Zone of the Karachaganak Oil and Gas Condensate Field”, to be illegal. This means that the previous regime for the sanitary-protective zone (five kilometers, rather than three) was reinstituted. The plaintiffs’ remaining demands were left unsatisfied.

On February 12, the Ecological Society “Green Salvation”, the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, and the Nationwide Public Association “Shanyrak” issued a complaint to the Appellate Board on Civic Affairs for the Astana City Court. The complaint was submitted in connection with the fact that, on January 30, the judge of the Almaty District Court of Astana City decided that the case falls under the jurisdiction of the… Specialized Interregional Economic Court of Astana City!

The Uralsk Environmental Public Prosecutor’s Office has reported the results of its check regarding the compliance of the company Karachaganak Petroleum Operating B.V. with environmental legislation in 2007-2008. The company continues to ignite gas flares and dispose of wastes at levels exceeding legal norms. The scale of the damage inflicted on the environment is estimated at nearly 4 billion tenge (US $26.7 million).

The Ecological Society Green Salvation presents the first section of the Citizen's Guide to Defending the Right to a Healthy Environment, - "Defending the Rights of Citizens Given “Point” Development" (in Russian).

The polluting of Almaty’s air by automobiles and industry has become a true disaster. In 2008, emissions of polluted matter totaled 237,116 tons, of which 47,016 tons were discharged by stationary sources, including the “Teployelektrotsentral-2 power station” and individual housing sector.

One of the polluting enterprises is “Tsentrbeton Ltd” (formerly known as KSMK-3), located on Bokeikhanova Street. The enterprise specializes in storing and selling cement and coal, and producing concrete and concrete products. It began operations in 1998. The surrounding houses and land plots were rendered within the borders of the plant’s Sanitary Protection Zone. Ownership of the enterprise repeatedly changed hands; however the change in ownership in no way led to improvements in the environmental situation.

Following is a brief summary of the lawsuits undertaken by the Ecological Society “Green Salvation“ in 2008.

For the first time, a court in the Republic of Kazakhstan has agreed to review a lawsuit from the public against the government for its failure to act, which has led to a violation of the right of citizens to a healthy environment.

On April 25, 2008, the Office of Compliance, Advisor/Ombudsman (CAO) of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) found the IFC out of compliance with its own regulations for toxic emissions at the Karachaganak Oil and Gas Condensate Field in western Kazakhstan. Six months later, the case remains open with the CAO.

On October 7, 2008, the Ecological Society Green Salvation and Crude Accountability sent a letter to the participants of the meeting of The Greens/EFA and the European Green Party (Paris, October 9-12, 2008) to bring attention to the question of observing the human right to a healthy environment in Kazakhstan.

September 28 – This year marks the 6th annual International Right to Know Day. In more than 40 countries worldwide, representatives of civil society, journalists, and human rights defenders remind citizens about their right to access to information, and about problems related to the realization of this right.

On June 20, 2008, nongovernmental human rights organizations of Kazakhstan signed a Memorandum on joint activities to monitor the Republic of Kazakhstan’s implementation of its obligations in regards to the development of democracy, rule of law, and the observance of human rights and freedoms, in light of Kazakhstan’s forthcoming chairmanship of the OSCE.

On May 9, the Ecological Society Green Salvation and Crude Accountability submitted a joint complaint to the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to protect the rights of Berezovka residents (Burlinsky District, Western Kazakhstan Oblast).

June 10, the participants of a protest action, taking place now in Almaty, appealed to the Third Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention (Riga, June 11-13, 2008). The reason for appeal is the extremely distressing situation in which residents find themselves as a result of the “legal” seizure of land for the purpose of a large-scale residential construction development.

The Ecological Society “Green Salvation” announces the publication of new materials regarding the Republic of Kazakhstan’s implementation of the Aarhus Convention.

This report, in the form of an addendum to the Committee's report to the Meeting of the Parties, has been prepared by the Committee following its review of the implementation by Kazakhstan of the recommendations contained in decision II/5a of the Meeting of the Parties and of the recommendations made in connection with communication ACCC/C/2004/06 adopted by the Committee in accordance with paragraph 36 (b) of the annex to decision I/7 of the Meeting of the Parties. The review was carried out, inter alia, on the basis of the report provided by Kazakhstan pursuant to paragraph 8 of decision II/5a.

On March 26, 2008, Kazakhstan’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of the environmental nonprofit, Green Salvation, in a precedent setting lawsuit seeking access to environmental information about atmospheric emissions at the Karachaganak Oil and Gas Condensate Field in western Kazakhstan. For the first time in its history, the Kazakhstan Supreme Court considered the terms of the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters as mandatory in its ruling.

The Ecological Society Green Salvation received the appraisal report of CAO that responds to the complaint in relation to IFC’s involvement in the Karachaganak Project.

At the18th Meeting of the Aarhus Convention’s Compliance Committee, which took place on November 28-30, 2007, one of the topics for review was the Republic of Kazakhstan’s compliance with Decision II/5 and the Recommendations to Communication ACCC/C/2004/06. Also under consideration was the new information regarding Communication ACCC/C/2007/20, which the Ecological Society Green Salvation submitted to the Committee in May 2007. Below is an excerpt of the meeting report.

The Third Meeting of the Parties to the Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters is planned for June 11-13, 2008 in Riga, Latvia. Kazakhstan, like the other parties to the Convention, must prepare a national report on its implementation of the Convention.

Ecocide is the intentional, intensive destruction and pollution of the natural environment, creating the threat of environmental catastrophe. This is precise characterization of the situation in the Maly Almatinsky Canyon (alongside the City of Almaty), which has developed as a result of the lack of consistent policies to protect the Republic of Kazakhstan’s most valuable natural territories.