Conservation status will not be removed from shihans - the Ministry of Environment RB

UFA, 10 December 2015. /Bashinform News Agency, Gulfiya Akulova/. The Ministry of Nature and Environment of Bashkortostan on its official website reports that there is no any legal grounds for withdrawal of the protected area status from shihans (limestone hillsides) -Toratau and Yuraktau mountains. Explanations of the environmental department relate to the publications in the media, where the recent revocation of the nature monument status from at once six sites was mentioned.

There was a duplication of the status of specially protected areas: of the republican level and more stringent federal level, representatives of the Ministry commented on. Six natural monuments including Kapova Cave, were located within the boundaries of specially protected natural areas of the federal level, namely, on the land of the South Ural Reserve, "Shulgan-Tash" reserve and "Bashkiria" National Park. The Ministry of Environment RF has decided to preserve these monuments of nature in only one quality: federal specially protected areas.

"Toratau and Yuraktau Mountains are not part of the federal protected areas and are separate protected areas of republican importance as natural monuments. Due to the fact that natural sites have not lost their value, there are no legal grounds for withdrawing their status", it is stated in the press release of the department.