Mr Vilfand, the head of the Russian Federal Agency for Hydrometeorology and Environment, said on Aug. 18 that the loss of his country's economy from heatwave, drought and forest fires is estimated to 15 billion dollars (of course, it is much higher - KC).
A delay in sowing winter crops complicates the situation with the harvest 2010. All that leads to an increase in food prices. According to wholesalers, the value of the basic food basket - bread, cereal, milk - increased more than twice in new contracts in Russia. Producers refer to drought and predict further price increases.
There'll be also no river fish for Russians this year. According to local media outlets, because of heat, a mass death of fish in the Volga River, and in many other rivers in central Russia has been registered. Algae began to proliferate spontaneously in Russian river waters, and fish got trapped in these natural nets and died. So there'll be also no river fish in the coming years.
The situation with fish is close to critical, and the situation with game was officially called disastrous in Russian hunting reserves. More than a half million hectares of Russian lands were subjected to major changes this year. Birds fled from parched water, animals left forests due to fires, forage reserve dried.
Thus, the abnormal heat brought long-term (!) changes in flora and fauna of central, northern, western and southern Russia, Russian experts point out. It means the in the following years, Russians will have neither fish nor meat (no fodders), nor milk, nor game.
Like this year, Russians will have no bread or other agricultural crops also in subsequent years. At present, the soil in Russia dried up at a depth of 250 cm. The dry-up continues. And in coming years, the drought inside Russian soils will remain, making them sterile, even if it rains.
Department of Monitoring
Kavkaz Center
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