ИСТИНА

The transboundary Selenga River flows from the mountainous part of Mongolia through the Republic of Buryatia (Russia) to the Baikal Lake. In recent decades, the river basin experiences increasing technogenic influence, especially in urban and mining areas. Capitals of Mongolia and Buryatia (Ulaanbaatar and Ulan-Ude, respectively) can be attributed to the major sources of urban pollution. Cu-Mo mining and processing plant in Erdenet, as well as gold fields in Boroo and Zaamar present main sources of mining pollution in Mongolia, since W-Mo plant in Zakamensk can be considered as the principal source of pollution in Buryatia.