Dalnegorsk

Dalnegorsk (English) Дальнегорск (Russian)
-  Inhabited locality  -
250px Street scene in Dalnegorsk
Dalnegorsk
Coordinates: 44°32′N 135°31′E / 44.533°N 135.517°E / 44.533; 135.517Coordinates: 44°32′N 135°31′E / 44.533°N 135.517°E / 44.533; 135.517
	Coat of arms
Administrative status
Country	Russia
Federal subject	Primorsky Krai
Municipal status
Urban okrug	Dalnegorsk Urban Okrug[citation needed]
Mayor[citation needed]	Viktor Koloskov[citation needed]
Statistics
Population (2002 Census)	40,069 inhabitants[1]
Time zone	VLAST (UTC+11:00)[2]
Founded	1899[citation needed]
Dialing code(s)	+7 42373[citation needed]
Official website

Dalnegorsk (Russian: Дальнего́рск, lit. far in the mountains) is a town in Primorsky Krai, Russia. It was formerly known from its founding in 1899 as Tetyukhe (Russian: Те́тюхе; Chinese: 野猪河; pinyin: Yĕzhūhé; literally meaning "river of wild boars"), until it was renamed in the 1970s as part of a campaign to change any Chinese-derived placenames in the Primorsky Krai.

History

The settlement of Tetyukhe was founded in 1899, with the founding of a lead and zinc mine by Swiss immigrant Julius Brynner. Brynner's son Boris maintained the right to mine on the site until 1931, one of the longest-running private enterprises in the Soviet Union. Boris Brynner's son Yul Brynner later became a famous actor in the United States.^[3]

In 1930 the Tetyukhe was designated an urban-type settlement. The settlement was renamed in 1972, along with the Tetyukhe River which was rechristened Rudnaja, from the Russian word Ruda meaning ore. Town status was granted to Dalnegorsk in 1989.

Economy

Most population of the town are employed by two industrial enterprises: JSC Bor and JSC Dalpolimetal.

Established in 1965, Bor is the world's largest specialized chemical enterprise. Due to the unique deposits of commercial minerals found in the district and the high technologies Bor successfully operates in the world market and is included in the list of Russia's 40 most prospective enterprises. 75% of its production is exported to the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Japan, Australia, South Korea, China, and other countries in Europe and Asia.

Dalpolimetal (established in 1897) produces 58% of Russia's lead; Rudnaya Pristan has a large smelting plant. Two thirds of its production is exported to Japan, China, and Korea.

Despite the highly-developed industrialization of Dalnegorsk, over 90% of the territory under its jurisdiction is covered with Korean Pine and mixed broadleaf forests which attract nature tourism enthusiasts. However, Dalnegorsk residents suffer from serious lead poisoning from an old smelter and the unsafe transport of lead concentrate from the local lead mining site. This led the Blacksmith Institute to declare Dalnegorsk and neighboring Rudnaya Pristan as one of the 10 worst polluted places on earth.^[4] However, according to Anatoly Lebedev, leader of the ecological NGO BROK, this inclusion is questionable.^[5]

Transport

Dalnegorsk is connected by road to Vladivostok (517 km). The nearest railway station (Chuguyevka) is located 198 km from Dalnegorsk. The nearest sea port in 35 km from the town at Rudnaya Pristan.

Politics

On October 19, 2006, three days before the elections, Dmitry Fotyanov, the mayoral candidate from the United Russia party who came second in the initial round of elections,^[6] was gunned down with Kalashnikov assault rifle fire.^[7] The weapons were located by the police in a minivan that was blown up near the offices of the local newspaper soon after the murder.^[8] The run-off election was called off as both remaining candidates agreed to stand down.^[6] The United Russia party called Fotyanov's death a "political murder".

Alleged UFO incident

Mount Izvestkovaya, also known as Height 611, is located in Dalnegorsk. It is the place of the Height 611 UFO Incident of 1986.

References

1. ^ Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2004-05-21). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек (Population of Russia, its federal districts, federal subjects, districts, urban localities, rural localities—administrative centers, and rural localities with population of over 3,000)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis2002.ru/ct/doc/1_TOM_01_04.xls. Retrieved 2010-03-23. 
2. ^ Правительство Российской Федерации. Постановление №725 от 31 августа 2011 г. «О составе территорий, образующих каждую часовую зону, и порядке исчисления времени в часовых зонах, а также о признании утратившими силу отдельных Постановлений Правительства Российской Федерации». Вступил в силу по истечении 7 дней после дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Российская Газета", №197, 6 сентября 2011 г. (Government of the Russian Federation. Resolution #725 of August 31, 2011 On the Composition of the Territories Included into Each Time Zone and on the Procedures of Timekeeping in the Time Zones, as Well as on Abrogation of Several Resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation. Effective as of after 7 days following the day of the official publication).
3. ^ Mining history of the town on the website of Dalnegorsk (Russian)
4. ^ Website of Blacksmith Institute
5. ^ Regnum New Agency. Ecologists of Primorye Territory (Russia) surprised at listing Rudnaya Pristan among the most polluted places in the world
6. ^ ^{a b} Mosnews.com News. Contender's Murder Leads to Canceled Elections in Russia's Far East
7. ^ ITAR-TASS. Mayoral candidate killed in Dalnegorsk
8. ^ BBC News. Election murder in Russian town

External links

• Official website of Dalnegorsk
• Giant Crystals of the Dalnegorsk mines