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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Siberia Establishing Nature Reserves

Compiled From Wire Services

The vast Siberian republic of Yakutia is setting aside 270,000 square miles - twice the size of Japan - for nature reserves in hopes of saving the Siberian crane and other endangered species.

Polar bears, walruses and reindeer will be among the wildlife protected in a system of national parks and other reserves stretching into the arctic.

“Yakutia is a unique place, with a vulnerable Arctic ecosystem,” Mikhail Nikolayev, president of the republic that makes up one-fifth of Russia, said Tuesday.

The campaign aims to correct “mistakes made in previous years (that) have left us with a heritage of severe environmental degradation,” he said.