The forest fund of Moscow and the region is extremely important for people, because it neutralizes the multi-ton emissions of harmful substances produced by countless megalopolis enterprises. At times, developers manage to draw up documents for the construction of buildings that affect forest and even protected areas, and then scandals erupt between contractors, officials and caring citizens. This time, the Khimki forest was at the epicenter of attention and confrontation, through which the Moscow – Petersburg (M-11) highway was nevertheless built.
A bit of forest history
The first written mention of this forest is dated to the 14th century. Being in close proximity to Moscow, it acts as the last defensive line of the capital during the wars. So, in 1608-1609. Khimki forest helped the army of Vasily Shuysky defeat the units of False Dmitry 2: sneaking through the thick thicket, the soldiers suddenly attacked the enemy and turned him into shameful flight. During the Patriotic War of 1812, abundant vegetation served as a reliable shelter for partisan detachments. 1941 was also no exception - the forest had to endure harsh tests: oak forests were cut down to make anti-tank hedgehogs .
The flora and fauna of this forest is rich and diverse, relic plants grow here , as well as pines, spruce, larch, hazel, linden, primroses, lilies of the valley, medunits, swimsuits and many others, natural biosystems have been created - oak groves and high bogs. In addition, species listed in the Red Book of the Moscow Region grow. This natural filter protects the city of Khimki and its residents from industrial emissions from enterprises in the capital and the Moscow region, has a beneficial effect on the health of patients with tuberculosis, therefore, tuberculosis hospitals are located in the vicinity of the forest.
Conflict: key actors
From the beginning of the approval of the project for laying a toll highway, the Khimki forest was at the epicenter of a powerful confrontation. On the side of the opponents of the construction of the highway were public, political (Yabloko, Just Cause and others), environmental organizations (more than 40, including Greenpeace), musicians (Yuri Shevchuk), who were united in the Khimki Forest Defenders Movement. The movement was headed by Evgeny Chirikov.
A lot of scandalous events are connected with the construction of the route, including attempts on the life and health of the most active forest defenders and an attack on the city administration of Khimki (unknown people threw stones and fires at it). In late summer 2010, Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev decided to suspend the construction and organization of public hearings on the problem.
Eco-defense in defense of Khimki forest
At different times from 2007 to 2010, rallies and protests were held in Khimki and Moscow, activists of the movement sabotaged the construction site, repeatedly appealed to various authorities, including the President of the Russian Federation, and involved experts and human rights activists in assessing the situation. As a result, the decision on construction was nevertheless approved and implemented, however, with certain amendments and a compensation package.
Despite the fact that the project, according to which the route through the Khimki forest nevertheless ran, was implemented, the efforts of environmentalists did not remain wasted: the width of the clearing was reduced - from initially assumed to be 3 km to 100 m; minimized the length of the route - 8 km of a straight, like an arrow, section; trees were planted on 500 hectares of area instead of cut down 100 hectares; allocated an unprecedented amount in the history of the Russian Federation for the payment of compensation for environmental damage - 4 billion rubles.
Pros and cons
In addition to the main project for the construction of a motorway through the Khimki forest, there were 10 more alternative options that provided for the passage of the road through the villages of Vashutino and Molzhaninovo. According to these projects, about 50 houses in these settlements were subject to demolition. The inhabitants of the villages, of course, did not like this situation, and they expressed their protest.
The city of Khimki itself was divided into 2 camps: some residents were for construction, others were against. Some opponents of the new highway, such as, for example, expert in the field of road construction Mikhail Blinkin, consider the existing route option not the best one from the point of view of solving the transport problems of the capital, however, the quality of the road and the implementation of the project deserve attention - this is the first European-level highway in Russia .