It is common knowledge that water is essential to life. Without it, we simply cannot exist. This is why treating our lakes, rivers, and seas as sacred is not a matter of ancient tradition or abstract morality, it is a matter of survival. Polluting a single water body is never a “local” problem. Through the water cycle, toxins and waste travel across borders, poisoning ecosystems, harming human health, and destabilizing entire regions. In short: what happens to water in one place eventually affects us all.
Today, the water pollution crisis in the Finnic territories of the Russian Federation is reaching a breaking point. From Karelia to Komi to Mari El, rivers and lakes that once sustained communities and cultures are now becoming conduits of disease, degradation, and destruction. What follows is a closer look at three regions on the frontlines of this crisis.
Karelia was once celebrated for its crystal-clear lakes. Today, even its most treasured waters show alarming signs of decline. In Lake Munozero, for example, three decades of monitoring reveal rising chloride and sodium ions, higher phosphorus levels, and an overall increase in chemical stress. The fingerprints of wastewater, agricultural runoff, and unchecked industrial activity. If left unaddressed, these changes threaten to rob one of Karelia’s best sources of drinking-quality water of its purity.
The situation is made worse by acute disasters. A recent mass die-off of farmed trout in Impilahti Bay illustrates how quickly things can spiral: decomposing fish release nitrogen and phosphorus into the water, fueling algal blooms that choke oxygen out of aquatic life. Add to this the constant stream of industrial and municipal discharges, and Karelia’s freshwater ecosystems are under siege.
But pollution here doesn’t stay put. It flows downstream, from Lake Onega into Lake Ladoga, through the Neva River, and finally into the Baltic Sea. HELCOM reports that the Neva is the single largest source of nutrient inflows to the Gulf of Finland. The result? A worsening cycle of eutrophication, toxic algal blooms, and oxygen-deprived “dead zones.” Simply put, when Karelia’s lakes are poisoned, the Baltic suffers — and with it, millions of people across the region.
And when Karelia’s lakes are poisoned, the Baltic suffers — and with it, millions of people across the region.
In the Komi Republic, the story is written in oil. The region’s Soviet-era pipeline network, corroded and poorly maintained, has turned into a constant source of spills. In May 2021 alone, a LUKOIL-operated pipeline leaked 100 tons of oil, with nine tons flowing into the Kolva River — a tributary of the Pechora. This was not an isolated incident. Since 2011, LUKOIL has been fined for at least nine major spills in Komi, polluting land and waterways that cover more than 21 hectares.
The consequences are devastating. Local wildlife is poisoned, indigenous communities lose access to clean water, and pollutants travel downstream through the Pechora Basin into the Barents Sea, carrying the crisis into international waters. Each new spill is not only a local tragedy but also a violation of the global community’s right to a healthy environment. The cumulative impact demands urgent action: modernization of infrastructure, strict enforcement of environmental laws, and international oversight to hold polluters accountable.
The Volga River is one of Russia’s most vital waterways, a lifeline for millions. Yet in Mari El, this lifeline is being poisoned. The MARBUM pulp and paper mill in Volzhsk has become a notorious source of pollution, releasing hazardous substances like mercury, lead, nickel, and phenol into both air and water. Residents have reported toxic yellow clouds drifting across towns, sometimes as far as Kazan and Tatarstan. People complain of headaches, nausea, and respiratory problems, but authorities have been slow, and often unwilling, to respond.
The mill discharges over 45 million cubic meters of poorly treated wastewater every year. The consequences are not abstract statistics: between 2014 and 2020, cancer cases in the Mari-El Republic rose by 5,500, and the number of children living with disabilities grew by 2.5%. Today, Mari-El has the second-highest rate of child disabilities in Russian Federation’s Volga Federal District. This is not just an environmental issue; it is a human rights emergency. Prolonged exposure to toxic chemicals threatens neurological, cardiovascular, and reproductive health — stealing futures from children and communities alike. And because the Volga flows into the Caspian Sea, this disaster does not stop at regional borders.
From Karelia’s lakes to Komi’s rivers to Mari El’s Volga, the story is tragically the same: pollution is killing our waters and in doing so, it is killing us. These are not isolated “environmental” problems. They are violations of the most basic human rights: the right to clean water, the right to health, and the right to live in a safe environment.
When corporations and authorities allow rivers to be poisoned, they are not just neglecting ecosystems, they are endangering communities, destroying livelihoods, and burdening future generations with irreversible damage. The crisis in Finnic territories under Russia’s control is a warning to us all: if we continue to treat water as disposable, we will soon find that life itself has become disposable.
Water connects us. Its pollution knows no borders. That is why urgent action, local, national, and international, is needed now. Protecting water is not charity, it is not politics, it is survival. And survival is a right no one should have to fight for.
It is common knowledge that water is essential for life. Without it we simply cannot exist. That is why careful attitude to our lakes, rivers and seas is not a question of ancient traditions or abstract morality, but a question of survival. Pollution of one body of water never remains a local problem. Through the water cycle, toxins and waste are transported across borders, poisoning ecosystems, damaging human health and destabilizing entire regions. In other words: what happens to water in one place ends up being a problem for everyone.
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Today, the water pollution crisis in the Finno-Ugric territories of the Russian Federation has reached a dangerous line. From Karelia to Komi and Mari-El, rivers and lakes that have fed people and supported culture for centuries are turning into sources of disease, degradation and destruction. Below we give examples of those lands that have found themselves on the front lines of this catastrophe.
Karelia has always been famous for its transparent lakes. But today even the cleanest of them are giving alarming signals. For example, in Lake Munozero, part of the Konchezersky system, for three decades of observations there has been recorded an increase in the concentrations of chloride and sodium, an increase in the level of phosphorus and, in general, an increase in the chemical load. This is a direct consequence of sewage, agricultural runoff and uncontrolled economic activity. If we don't intervene, the region risks losing one of the best sources of drinking water.
The situation is exacerbated by acute environmental disasters. The recent mass slaughter of trout farming in Impilahti Bay showed how quickly a crisis can unfold: decaying fish release nitrogen and phosphorus, stimulating the rapid growth of algae that crowd out oxygen and kill all life. Add to this the constant flow of industrial and municipal discharges — and Karelian ecosystems are literally under siege.
But pollution doesn't stay here. It flows downstream: from Lake Onega to Lake Ladoga, then down the Neva River to the Baltic Sea. According to HELCOM, the Neva is the largest source of nutrients in the Gulf of Finland. The result is obvious: a worsening cycle of eutrophication, toxic algae blooms and dead zones without oxygen. In other words, when Karelia's lakes are poisoned, the Baltic suffers, and with it millions of people throughout the region.
In the Komi Republic, history is written in oil. Soviet pipelines, corroded and worn out, have become a constant source of spills. Only in May 2021, there was an accident on a pipe of the company «LUKOIL»: about 100 tons of oil leaked out, nine of which went into the Kolva River — a tributary of the Pechora. And this is far from an isolated incident. Since 2011, «LUKOIL» has been fined at least nine times for large spills in Komi, which polluted more than 21 hectares of land and water bodies.
The consequences are catastrophic. Wildlife is poisoned, indigenous peoples are deprived of access to clean water, and pollutants flow through the Pechora Basin into the Barents Sea, spreading the disaster to international waters. Each new spill is not only a local tragedy, but also a violation of the world community's right to a healthy environment. The cumulative damage requires urgent action: modernization of infrastructure, strict compliance with environmental regulations and international control over corporate activities.
The Volga is one of the most important rivers in the region, an artery of life for millions of people. But in Mari-El, this artery is turning into poison. The Volga pulp and paper mill «Marbum» has become a notorious source of pollution, releasing hazardous substances into the air and water: mercury, lead, nickel and phenol. Residents report poisonous yellow clouds covering the surrounding villages and reaching even Kazan and Tatarstan. People complain of headaches, nausea and breathing problems, but authorities are reacting sluggishly and often prefer to turn a blind eye.
The company discharges more than 45 million cubic meters of poorly treated wastewater annually. The consequences are expressed not only in numbers: from 2014 to 2020, the number of cancer cases in Mari-El increased by 5.5 thousand cases, and the number of children with disabilities increased by 2.5%. Today the republic ranks second in terms of child disability in the Volga Federal District. This is not just an environmental problem — it is a human rights crisis. Prolonged exposure to toxins undermines the nervous, cardiovascular and reproductive systems, depriving children and entire communities of a future. And as the Volga carries its waters into the Caspian Sea, the scourge does not stop at the region's borders.
From the Krell Lakes to the rivers of the Komi and the Volga waters of Mari El, the story sounds equally tragic: pollution is killing our waters, and with them, us. These are not «environmental» problems in the narrow sense. It is a violation of basic human rights: the right to clean water, the right to health, the right to a safe environment.
When corporations and authorities allow rivers to be poisoned, they are not just destroying ecosystems. They jeopardize people's lives, deprive them of their livelihoods, and shift the burden of irreparable damage to future generations. The crisis in the Finno-Ugric territories under Russian control is a warning to everyone: if we continue to treat water as something expendable, very soon life itself will be expendable.
Water connects us. Pollution knows no boundaries. That is why action must be taken immediately: locally, nationally and internationally. Protecting water is not charity, it is not politics. It is a matter of survival. And survival is a right that no one should have to fight for.