The damage from the melting of permafrost in the Russian Arctic may exceed ten trillion rubles by 2050, according to a study by a team of permafrost scientists, ttelegraf.ru reports.
"According to experts, the minimum amount of damage from permafrost melting done to residential and industrial buildings and structures may exceed 7-10 trillion rubles, excluding linear structures of oil and gas companies and future investment projects in the northern territories of the Russian Federation. This is an average figure for various scenarios by 2050, taking into account only the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation," said director of the Institute of Permafrost Studies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Mikhail Zheleznyak.
According to Anatoly Brushkov, one of the co-authors of the study, head of the Department of Geocryology at Lomonosov Moscow State University, in order to minimize damage, it is necessary to implement a program for background and geotechnical monitoring of permafrost. Background monitoring is currently being conducted by Roshydromet.
"It is necessary to overcome bureaucratic and regional barriers, therefore, the development and adoption of a federal law on permafrost is relevant. The law should provide for the federal executive authority in the field of permafrost monitoring, its territorial bodies and subordinate organizations, the interaction of local governments, legal entities, enterprises and organizations, including financial and insurance companies," he noted.
Alex Shishlo, Editor in Chief of the European Bureau, Rough&Polished
