Lake Baikal as a natural World Heritage site: recent issues of protection under international law

Abstract

The year 2021 marks the 25th anniversary since the inclusion of the Baikal lake into the UNESCO World Natural Heritage List. It was in this same anniversary year in the period from 9 to 17 September 2021 that a unique research program took place on the Baikal Lake - the first Mendeleev environmental expedition. One of the tasks of the expedition was to familiarize the participants with the international legal protection of the lake as the World Natural Heritage site. Following the footsteps of the expedition the purpose of this present article is to determine the role of the mechanisms of the 1972 World Cultural and Natural Heritage Convention in the preservation of the lake Baikal. The present work was carried out using such general scientific research methods as personal observation, analysis, synthesis and comparison, as well as the use of specific legal research methods such as the formal legal method and comparative legal research. Conclusions highlight the important role of the 1972 Convention in preserving the unique ecosystem of the lake Baikal. Environmental issues that in the future will only grow in importance include such issues as: the need of carrying out various environmental impact assessments, the need to find solutions to the extremely challenging problem of toxic waste from the former Baikalsk Pulp and Paper Mill liquidation, and issues related to the international cooperation on the hydropower projects, such as the ones on the Selenga River in Mongolia. It is suggested there is a need to study further the potential of international legal protection of the World Heritage sites and the applicability of such a potential in order to solve the challenging issues of protecting the World Heritage Site “Lake Baikal”. Keywords: environmental law, the World Heritage Convention 1972, lake Baikal, World’s natural heritage, Мendeleev environmental expedition.