«IF IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO INCLUDE A SOIL SCIENTIST IN THE DELEGATION, PLEASE SEND A PHYSICIST OR A CHEMISTER»: SOVIET PROJECTS FOR TRANSFORMING NATURE AND THEIR PRESENTATION ABROAD

Abstract

The article deals with Soviet projects for the transformation of the natural environment and their presentation abroad. These projects were aimed at “conquering the elemental forces” of nature and introducing the lands located in the arid regions of the USSR into agricultural circulation. The most famous of these projects was the turn of the Siberian rivers, designed to solve the problem of lowering the Aral Sea level. The attempts of the Soviet authorities to transform the natural environment aroused great interest abroad, especially in the United States, where in the 1950s a similar project was being developed to turn the flow of northern rivers. Interest in these projects made them a showcase for Soviet scientific diplomacy. Only the project of turning the rivers of the north of the European part of the country came to practical implementation in the USSR, which was supposed to replenish the Volga water taken during the creation of the “Volga – Chogray” and “Volga – Don 2” canals. Initial interest in Soviet projects for the transformation of the natural environment abroad began to give way to anxiety. Soviet scientists and experts in the field of land reclamation themselves were divided into two camps – supporters and opponents of the turn of the rivers. The former motivated support for the project by saying that this is the only way to meet the needs of a planned economy. The latter called the project an ecological disaster, and over time their voices sounded louder. The impossibility of implementing the project of diversion of the rivers and presenting its advantages abroad led Soviet scientists to concentrate their attention on combating desertification and secondary salinization of soils. These developments were used abroad in the creation of irrigation systems in third world countries financed by the Soviet authorities.