Mongolia’s Minister of Environment and Green Development, Sanjaasuren Oyun, discusses her country’s commitment to environmentally friendly practices.
European Times: What are your ministry’s main goals?
Sanjaasuren Oyun: The ministry was created by the new government almost a year ago to strengthen Mongolia’s environmental protection. Mongolia has a long nomadic tradition and its people know how to live in harmony with nature. I believe that this traditional lifestyle can be complemented by new, clean, renewable energy. The government recently created a number of incentives for companies investing in clean technology, renewable-energy or water-management projects, and we have set penalties for companies which pollute. We are also promoting water-recycling in the South Gobi mining areas, and we are creating more national parks.
European Times: Why is Mongolia focusing so much on environmental protection?
Sanjaasuren Oyun: During the transition years Mongolia was concentrating on building a free-market economy and did not implement strong environmental standards. The result was that many mines have caused environmental problems. We believe growth and environmental protection can work together. Our goal is to promote a clean-energy mindset. Mongolia’s first wind farm recently went into production and this is an important step forward for the country. Along with wind energy, solar energy has huge potential here. Mongolia’s current government has the political will to support renewable energy.
European Times: Are you concerned that new environmental regulations will slow down mining investment?
Sanjaasuren Oyun: Many exploration projects are continuing in the mining sector. In any case, we want to diversify the economy so that it is not too dependent on mining, which now accounts for 90% of Mongolia’s exports. We see a lot of export potential in the agriculture and energy sectors.
European Times: What are some of your ministry’s current projects?
Sanjaasuren Oyun: We are trying to find solutions to Ulaanbaatar’s air pollution, much of which is caused by the Ger district 200,000 household stoves that use raw coal. We are replacing polluting systems with clean ones. We are also dealing with the city’s water pollution and want to form a public-private partnership for a waste-water treatment facility. The Tuul river-cleanup project is under way and we started investing in rehabilitating the abandoned mining sites. We have signed bilateral agreements to reduce CO2 emissions and we seek international cooperation in managing our forests. We intend for Mongolia to maintain the highest environmental standards.
