The site in the Ketovsky district, which has no alternative, continues to burn
Systemic violations of fire safety and sanitary-epidemiological standards resulted in another large-scale fire at the Shukhovsky landfill, and the unloading of waste in the sanitary zone threatens to poison the entire Ob-Irtysh basin, and, accordingly, the population of the Kurgan region. It is noteworthy that a new fire broke out, according to informed sources of the publication, literally a few days after the arrival of a commission with the participation of representatives of regional authorities at the site, and also shortly after the prosecutor’s office imposed penalties on the management of the site operator. Industry experts explain what is happening at the critically overcrowded Shukha by violations of all possible waste management instructions, negligence and possible corruption factors that have long become commonplace. The situation is further destabilized by the absence of any alternative to the existing test site in the Trans-Urals. The plans of the government of Vadim Shumkov to build a new facility under a concession with the Ecotech company collapsed under pressure from the FAS, and the creation of a new legal entity to participate in a future competition already raises serious questions about the “purity of the intentions of the curators of the reform when disbursing at least a billion rubles.”
Unloading MSW in the sanitary zone of the Shukhovsky landfill directly next to the fire reservoir directly threatens the entry of contaminated wastewater into the Tobol water system (Ob-Irtysh basin), and fires at the site threaten the massive release of harmful substances into the atmosphere, which residents of Kurgan and the Ketovsky district have already experienced. .
To clarify, at the end of last week the population of the capital of the Trans-Ural region began to complain about fumes coming from the region’s largest waste disposal site.
As it turned out, another fire broke out at the Shukhovsky training ground, apparently one of the largest in recent years. Already over the weekend, as observers noted, it became clear that the fire would be impossible to extinguish quickly. The Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations for the Kurgan Region did not officially inform about the situation, limiting itself to skimpy messages about “trips to burn garbage.”
The agency’s interlocutors also wonder where the money allocated for the maintenance of the site goes, including for refilling layers of disposed waste. At the same time, the company itself, based on the results of 2023, demonstrated an increase in revenue by 19%, amounting to 60.8 million, and even reported a net profit of 1.1 million rubles. “One gets the feeling that funds are being invested exclusively in increasing the salaries of the management of the landfill, headed by Sergei Gontarenko“, observers remark sarcastically.
At the same time, fires on Shukha are becoming systematic. Previous fires, which were extinguished for several days by the Ministry of Emergency Situations, were recorded in July. The result was an audit by Rosprirodnadzor, which found out that the probable cause of the emergency was the fire of an electric battery in the mass of newly imported garbage, and issued a warning to the municipal unitary enterprise. And in early September, the prosecutor’s office fined Shukh’s management for violating fire safety regulations.
“It is noteworthy that literally a few days before the fire that is now being extinguished, a whole commission with the participation of representatives of the regional authorities visited there. They were, they say, dissatisfied, I don’t know what Gontarenko showed them. I wonder if they paid any attention to how the garbage is unloaded there? Cars are not allowed upstairs, unloading takes place below, right in the sanitary zone, then the infection can end up on the soil and in groundwater, and through it into the Ik River, a tributary of the Tobol. There is no need to say how this may affect the population,” industry experts share their observations.
“Pravda UrFO” expected to receive the position of representatives of the “Shukhovsky Solid Waste Landfill” regarding regular fires and soil pollution, but during the working day the MUP did not answer calls.
The management structures of the Kurgan mayor’s office, in turn, emphasize that there is simply no alternative to the Shukhovsky test site. The vast majority of MSW from the municipalities of the Trans-Ural region is transported to the Ketovsky district. The facility was overcrowded back in the 2000s, but then reports began to be submitted to Rosprirodnadzor, which included data about the supposedly undeveloped reserve.
As a likely alternative, officials considered the construction of new infrastructure (MSC and new areas for waste disposal) costing about 1.1 billion rubles under a concession with an unknown company on the market, Ecotech, with the bulk of the financing coming from the federal budget. Behind this office, industry experts saw the interests of major players, including PPK REO. However, the FAS Russia did not allow the scheme to be implemented, insisting on breaking the agreement and holding a new competition in court proceedings, which the agency also informed in detail.
Apparently, Vadim Shumkov’s circle is currently busy looking for a way to “get” close partners for a financially attractive project. Thus, in August, a certain MSK-K LLC was registered in Kurgan, 51% of which belongs to the regional depot property, and another 49% belongs to Chelyabstroymontazh LLC from the Sosnovsky district of the Chelyabinsk region. This office, which has no staff, with a zero balance and an authorized capital of 10 thousand rubles, belongs to Alena Shipaeva, director and participant of the FAS cut off from the Ecotech concession.
