Significant changes have been taking place in our country in recent years. The Russian civil passivity has been replaced by unprecedented activity, including in the field of ecology. And the most striking example of this was the so-called "Shies Case".
What is Shies?

Shies is a station of the Northern railway, there are marshes around the station. Рreviously, a road made of logs led to it, but in 1971 it burned down. Then the village was decided to close, and its residents moved to the nearest localities. Now no one lives there, but there are many villages and villages within 20-40 km from the station.
How did it all start?

In July 2018, forest was cut in the Shies area. The builders told the local population that a railway will be built on the cleared territory, which will bring waste from Moscow to the new enterprise.

A few days later, employees of the Shies station were informed that by the end of August, 56 cars with garbage from the Moscow region would arrive there. Regional officials did not confirm this, and in Urdom organized the first rally against the construction of the landfill was held on August 26, 2018. The composition of waste from the Moscow region in the end did not come to Shies, but in October, the transport Prosecutor's office confirmed that it was really going to send.
According to the plan, the landfill was to occupy 300 hectares of land and could annually receive up to 500 thousand tons of solid household waste from the capital for 20 years.

How did the population react?

The population of Arkhangelsk opposed it, expressing their negative attitude with numerous protests.

Actions against the landfill were held in different parts of the country. Protesters came to Shies from different parts of the region and since there was no place to live there, the activists set up a tent camp.

The largest event was held in Arkhangelsk on April 7, 2019. This was not the first rally, but the most massive: according to various sources, from three to ten thousand people turned out for an uncoordinated rally.
After the rally, the police began to detain activists, and many received fines. Many activists wear yellow vests similar to the "yellow vests" movement in France, which began in late 2018. In Cheese the protesters used the yellow and orange vests to go over the railroad tracks.

What is the reason for the protests?

First, opponents of the landfill talked about possible harm to the environment.
Secondly, they considered it unfair that garbage from Moscow and the Moscow region would be imported to the region.
Third, one of the main complaints of the protesters is that the regional government "did not consult anyone" and "did not ask anyone".
All this is supported not only by activists. For example, the head of the toxic program "Greenpeace of Russia" Alexey Kiselev believes that"self-construction is taking place in Shies". He notes that in order to agree on the construction, it is necessary to hold public hearings.

How did the authorities react?

Local authorities did not support the creation of the polygon. Back in August 2018, Urdomsky deputies wrote an open letter to the Governor of Pomerania, in which they asked not to build anything.

Alexander Kravets, Chairman of the Council of deputies of the Urdomskoe municipality, said that the Governor had decided to build it bypassing local officials.
The Governor of the Arkhangelsk region, Igor Orlov, spoke for the first time about the construction of the landfill in October 2018. In a conversation with journalists, he called the ecotechnopark in Shies "experimental" for the entire region. Later, he repeatedly said that the landfill will not harm the ecology of the area, will create new jobs, and also noted that " the Arkhangelsk region is faced with the task of implementing the most modern technology for recycling garbage with minimal burial."

In response, activists repeatedly demanded that Orlov be dismissed.
On may 16, 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin commented on the situation in Shies. He said that decisions on garbage removal to certain regions can not be taken to the detriment of the residents of these subjects:
"Moscow can't get overgrown with garbage, it's a city of ten million. But there is no need to create problems in other regions, either. In any case, it should be in a dialogue with the people who live there."

How did the Shees case end?

Since the end of 2018, there have been regular rallies in Arkhangelsk and other Russian cities, as well as clashes between eco-activists and workers from a garbage construction site.

On March 27, 2019, the deputies of the Arkhangelsk regional Assembly of deputies voted against holding a referendum on banning the import of garbage from other regions to the territory of the Arkhangelsk region. near the Shies station, there was a collision between eco-activists on duty and workers from a garbage construction site. The authorities detained participants of the rallies in large numbers, and many were awarded fines.

On April 25, 2019, the Arkhangelsk regional court declared illegal the resolution of the Arkhangelsk regional Assembly of deputies against holding a referendum on banning the import of garbage from other regions to the territory of the Arkhangelsk region.

After a series of rallies with a large number of people-more than 10 thousand, on January 9, 2020, the Arbitration court of the Arkhangelsk region on the claim of the Urdoma administration recognized the construction of The shies landfill as illegal.

The Shies case, in my opinion, showed that by joining forces, people can achieve justice. Residents of the Arkhangelsk region have protected their interests by preventing the construction of a landfill. However, it is not clear what to do with the garbage of Moscow and the Moscow region. And which region of Russia will be forced to accept this unpleasant "surprise" from the capital on its territory?

Sources:

https://www.vedomosti.ru/opinion/articles/2018/12/10/788816-arhangelsk-protiv

https://www.interfax.ru/russia/661426

https://novayagazeta.ru/articles/2019/11/13/82711-moskva-uhodi