NEWSWATCH: “In Russia, The World’s Largest Lake Takes On The World Bank and Mongolian Power Build-Up” – Forbes/ Kenneth Rapoza
“The biggest fresh water lake in the world is under attack … again … this time from Mongolian power companies with help from the World Bank looking to build two hydroelectric dams that draw from an important Russian river. … the World Bank held public hearings in Russia to discuss environmental impact studies around Lake Baikal in Russia, moving two mid-sized hydroelectric dams in Mongolia on Selenga River flowing into Lake Baikal another day closer to fruition. Lake Baikal is a UNESCO World Heritage site, so anything going up there now requires United Nations oversight. * * * … the leader of [a] UN-based expert taskforce on hydro power … [says] ‘Baikal as we know it will cease to exist but very few seem to care. As long as the rest of the world sees it all as just a Mongolia-Russia squabble, Baikal is in danger’ ….”