The two peninsulas, which are located on the northern coast of the Kola Peninsula only few kilometers from Norway are experiencing increasing pressure from tourists and should be better protected, the regional Committee on Industrial Develoment and Environment concludes.
The committee now recommends that the unique coastal areas become the centerpiece of a new environmentally protected park. The establishment of the park, preliminary titled the Rybachii and Sredny Park, will be included in a regional planning document on the establishment of protected lands in the period until 2018, Regnum reports.
An estimated 119260 hectars of land will be included in the new park, the Committee proposes. With the regulations following the park establishment, local tourism can be better organized and the unique nature preserved, the Committee members believe.
In addition to its unique nature, the peninsula also has a unique history. In the pre-revolutionary period, the peninsula housed villages of Norwegian settlers. During the 2WW the area became the center of fierce fighting between Nazi German troops and Soviet soldiers, who despite heavy losses never gave up control of the area.
