Water Rich Belarus Pumps Polluted Water to Citizens

By Ekaterina Miliaeva

MINSK, Belarus, April 18, 2003 (ENS) - Soon after the mains pipe bringing water to Zaozerje froze and burst, a large puddle appeared in the village.

The water in the puddle was dirty and smelled unpleasant. A local sanitation expert proclaimed it unfit to drink.

But for the people of Zaozerje, the puddle left behind by the ruptured pipe in their village was now the only source of water.

“Yes, the water is cloudy and has a swampy smell,” says a villager. “But we don’t have any choice. We have to prepare food, and give our cattle water.”

Belarus has some of the largest fresh water supplies in Europe.

In theory, the country’s vast lakes and underground reserves mean there are 3,600 cubic metres of water for each Belarusian – more than in many western European countries.

One of the numerous lakes in Belarus (Photo courtesy Belarus Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

At the root of the problem is the crumbling infrastructure of rusty pipes that serves Belarus’ water needs. The pipes develop leaks – and eventually burst – usually because they are not repaired after freezing up in wintertime.

Even in towns and larger villages that have purification facilities, the water comes mixed with dangerous bacteria, microbes and chemicals from the soil, let in by leaks in the pipes.

Olga Gordeichik, a housewife in Minsk, received a nasty shock when she bought a water filter for her home. Within months of installing the filter, it became clogged with “a black, sticky substance.”

Other city dwellers, like Tatiana Reviako, a housewife from Grodno in western Belarus, have resorted to drinking bottled water despite the strain this puts on the household budget.

Reviako complains that she still has to use tap water for cooking.

A recent survey by the BelaPAN news agency revealed that 35 percent of Belarusians rated the quality of water they received as "bad." Only 17 percent said they were satisfied with the water’s purity.

Their government, however, is keener than ever to tap the country’s fresh water reserves to sell in foreign markets.

Alexander Rachevsky, who heads the international department in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, told reporters, “Belarus could provide high quality drinking water for a significant part of Europe. In the future, the country could become a major exporter of valuable mineral water.”

And Rachevsky’s colleague at the ministry, Vladimir Panasenko, insists the state is not ignoring domestic water needs.

Panasenko, who heads the water resources department in the Ministry, told reporters that money is being invested in the construction of purification systems. He said, “I personally drink water from the tap, as it meets all sanitary standards. There are only two types of pollution, and they are caused by high levels of iron and nitrates.”

The state recently launched a program to monitor water purity.

Belarus village (Photo courtesy Mission Belarus)

Dranchuk believes the purification systems are chronically underfunded and do not clean the water of heavy metals, phenols and nitrates – many of which have entered the soil through agricultural fertilisers and industrial waste dumps.

He also blames corroded old pipes for contributing to the high pollutant content in the water.

“Iron, copper and lead get into the water from the pipes. These pipes must be replaced with new ones, which would be made of non-corrosive materials, but the state has no money for that,” said Dranchuk.

In terms of industrial waste, the biggest culprits polluting the water table are believed to be two fertilizer factories in the towns of Soligorsk and Gomel.

Analysts claim that the waste from this industry – piled high next to the factories – has polluted an area of at least 20 square kilometers.

However, the real damage may be greater. When washed away by rain, chemical waste can contaminate underground water reserves for years.

The danger to health is greatest in the villages, where life is difficult and expectations are lower.

Pensioner Maria Lapina, from the village of Belichi near Minsk, said, “Some people came from the capital, checked our wells and said our water is bad. But I have been drinking this water all my life, and I’ve lived to be 70 with no problems. Let the young ones think about water, but we’ll finish our lives as we are.”

Another villager, Ivan Sakovich, said. “So what if the water is dirty? It’s good enough that we have it. Who will help us? The president? He is in Minsk and he has other things on his mind.”

{Published in cooperation with the Institute for War and Peace Reporting. Ekaterina Miliaeva is a pseudonym for a journalist in Minsk.}