The implementation of a gold mining project in the buffer zone of the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve entails a number of environmental risks that must be considered comprehensively. This mainly concerns the attempt to shift the borders, according to the page on the reserve«s website dedicated to this project.
The gold mining project was presented to the regional government by LLC ZRK Glukhoye, which is currently conducting geological exploration there. The materials mention that one of the priority conditions for implementing the project will be:
changing the boundaries of the buffer zone of the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve;
amending the Regulations on the buffer zone;
removing certain specially protected forest areas (SPFA).
This is necessary, according to the project initiator, for the placement of a quarry, processing facilities, infrastructure and transport corridors. The reserve«s position is simple: they will try to prevent interference in the ecosystem.
“The development of a quarry in the upper reaches of the Kolumbe tributaries — one of the main water arteries of the reserve — will inevitably lead to irreversible changes in ecosystems: pollution of watercourses, degradation of habitats of rare plants and animals, disruption of migration routes of large mammals, including the Amur tiger. Blasting operations, the constant presence of machinery and people in close proximity to the protected area, light and noise pollution will destroy the very pristineness for which the reserve was created,” the statement on the organization«s website says.
In their opinion, industrial mining in the buffer zone is inadmissible without comprehensive, independent and scientifically based expertise.
“The Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve is not standing aside from what is happening. Our work is built within the framework of the law and relies on scientific research and monitoring. We intend to continue systematic scientific research and assessment of the state of the reserve’s ecosystems, paying special attention to the territories adjacent to the «Glukhoye» site. This is fundamentally important for several reasons,” the specialists’ statement says.
The website states that the work, which involves the removal of forest plots for the quarry, production sites, roads and power lines, will entail the felling of taiga forests, including areas of old-growth vegetation dominated by cedar. They will also trigger the loss of habitats of rare and disturbance-sensitive species.
The road that will need to be built will disrupt natural animal movement routes and disrupt the genetic connectivity of species.
“It is especially dangerous for large mammals with large home ranges, including the Amur tiger. If the project is implemented, the connection between the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve and the Udege Legend National Park will be disrupted. This corridor is of fundamental importance for the conservation of the Amur tiger and other large mammals,” the reserve noted.
It is noted that the gold deposit is located in the upper reaches of the rivers — tributaries of the Kolumbe. Most of these water arteries flow through the reserve, supplying water to its inhabitants and local residents. In the villages of Melnichnoye and Roshchino, as well as among the Old Believers from Dersu and the Udege from Dalny Kut, fishing is an important part of life and a source of income.
In 2017, during exploration of the deposit, violations in the composition of aquatic organisms and the condition of rivers were recorded. Six years later, the composition of hydrobionts had not recovered, which indicates the inevitable death of rivers during mining.
The project was first discussed in late December 2025, when LLC ZRK Glukhoye approached the government for assistance. In late January it submitted the work plan. Territory surveys at this stage do not pose risks to nature. Mining is expected to begin within 4 years — in the second quarter of 2030; if construction proceeds, production should already be operational.
LLC ZRK Glukhoye has existed since 2021 and is based in Yekaterinburg. The company«s general director is Sergei Semin. The ultimate owner of the company is Irina Savelyeva, who owns a number of enterprises in Sverdlovsk Oblast. For 2024, the organization incurred losses of 455,000 rubles (approximately $4,600 at current exchange rates).
Currently, the company is moving its legal address from Yekaterinburg to Vladivostok; participants in the Glukhoye project will work either in Vladivostok or in the Krasnoarmeysky Municipal District. Initially, in 2022, the license for geological study was obtained by the company Vostok Invest, which in 2024 was acquired by LLC UVM Recycling (now UVM Invest). As a result, LLC Vostok Invest was renamed to LLC ZRK Glukhoye.
