The Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office said assisting nature preservation organisations in the Far East remains a priority for the organisation. Thus, it will continue funding security and fire safety systems at the Land of the Leopard National Park, as well as research.
Successful work to prevent poaching and the development of the ecotourism infrastructure have led to a growth of the Far Eastern leopard population, Mr Ivanov said. In a relatively short time – over five years – their numbers have gone from 30 to 80. At the same time, however, there is a growing risk of leopards damaging livestock farms in the region. Therefore, a decision was made to insure farm owners.
One of the consequences of the growing numbers of the Far Eastern leopards is their free migration across the territories of the Russian Federation and into China. Mr Ivanov noted that authorities in China intend to create their own national park on the territory bordering on Russia to expand the rare predator’s habitat.
In the course of the meeting, Mr Ivanov also spoke of the opening in late March of the first ecological tunnel in Russia – the Narva tunnel in Primorye Territory. Built as part of the programme to preserve the Far Eastern leopard, this tunnel would make it possible for local residents and visitors to drive through the territory of the preserve without crossing the wild cat’s migration routes.