The best managers of Housing and Utility in the Northwest were awarded in Murmansk
On 5 and 6 October 2017, the 7th Russian-Norwegian Days of Cross-Border Cooperation were held in the Murmansk Oblast. The attention of the participants was focused on the development of international cooperation in the field of environmental protection and implementation of environmental projects.
Evgeny Kotov, Chief Engineer of the Paz HPPs Cascade of TGC-1, presented the report on the long-term cooperation experience of Russian and Norwegian experts and ecologists from Finland on regulation of water resources of Lake Inari.
"The plants of the Cascade are the important element of our unique international cooperation: the resources of Lake Inari in Finland are used in electricity generation at Russian and Norwegian HPPs. The long-term trilateral relations are underlined by close collaboration, ensuring the reliability and safety of HPPs, on which the energy supply of border regions depends, and by overall efforts to preserve the environmental conditions and biological diversity of one of the largest bodies of water in Europe and of the Paz River. Our cooperation has lasted since 1959 and it is an example of the balance between industry and environment," said Evgeny Kotov.
When planning the operating mode of Russian and Norwegian power facilities, the method of environmental regulation is used: the change in the water level of Inari is as close as possible to the natural one. Every week, energy and environmental experts coordinate water discharge schedule, discuss inflow forecasts and water consumption plans.
"The results of this coordination are reflected in the environmental reports: the increase of the fish stocks and of the area of fortified lake shores is registered," added Evgeny Kotov. "Scientific researches prove that the climate is changing, and this factor is also taken into account during the interaction. Today, the crucial task is to introduce amendments to the Regulations on adaptation to the new environmental conditions and reduction of environmental risks."
Reference
The trilateral agreement On Lake Inari Water Management by Means of Kaitakoski HPP was signed in 1959 between the governments of the USSR, Norway and Finland. The subject of the agreement was water level control in Lake Inari, located on the territory of Finland, and in the Paz River, flowing out of the lake and passing through the territory of Finland, Russia and Norway.
The river has seven hydro power plants, five of them are combined into the Paz HPPs Cascade of TGC-1 and the rest two are the part of Norwegian energy industry. The Paz Cascade allows for electricity export to Norway and Finland.