Batmunkh Luvsandash

Determined to protect his homeland from mining, Batmunkh Luvsandash’s activism resulted in the creation of a 66,000-acre protected area in Dornogovi province in April 2022, abutting tens of thousands of acres already protected by Batmunkh and allies. Home to Argali sheep, 75% of the world’s population of endangered Asiatic wild ass, and a wide variety of endemic plants, the protected area forms an important bulwark against Mongolia’s mining boom.

Minegolia

Mongolia is a large and sparsely populated nation—with numerous nomadic and semi-nomadic communities—whose economy has traditionally been driven by agriculture and herding. After the collapse of the Soviet Union—a major financial benefactor—Mongolia capitalized on its vast deposits of gold, copper, zinc, uranium, and coal to kickstart its stagnant economy. Beginning in the 1990s, direct foreign investment and an accompanying explosion in mining exploration transformed the country into an extractive hub, launching the nickname “Minegolia.” Today, minerals account for 23% of Mongolia’s GDP and the total mineral reserves are valued at US$1-3 trillion. Chinese demand for copper and coal makes up more than 90% of the country’s exports. 

The environmental impact of the mining boom has been substantial. In a country that is exceptionally arid, averaging fewer than 15 inches of rain annually—and under two inches per year in Dornogovi province, mining operations are extremely water-intensive and use substantial amounts of groundwater. Multiple academic studies warn that groundwater resources will be insufficient for both mining and drinking water within 5-8 years. 

Additionally, climate change is causing lakes and rivers throughout Mongolia to dry up, forcing herders to leave traditional grazing grounds. This is coupled with the effects of mining on the landscape, which fragments wildlife habitats, erodes grasslands, and pollutes already-scarce water sources for wildlife and herders. 

Located in the southeastern corner of the Gobi Desert, the sandy dunes and underground springs of Dornogovi—once explored by famed Italian merchant Marco Polo—support tremendous biodiversity. The region is home to wild camels, Argali sheep, and 75% of world’s endangered Asiatic wild ass, as well as 300 species of native plants. 

The East Gobi region (including Dornogovi) has Mongolia’s highest number of active mines, which are routinely developed without formal environmental impact assessments. Nearly 10% of Dornogovi’s total land area is currently within active mining concessions. What’s more, the patchwork approach to granting mining concessions causes severe habitat fragmentation and conflicts with local herders. The presence of heavy trucks and equipment on the region’s dirt roads has also caused significant dust pollution, helping to speed up the desertification process.

A Friend of the Desert

Born to a nomadic herder family on the vast, windblown steppes of Dornogovi, Batmunkh Luvsandash, 81, grew up with a profound understanding of the East Gobi Desert’s unique geography and wildlife. He spent his career working on construction and mining projects as an electrical engineer, and his experience taught him that, once irreparably damaged, nature cannot recover. In the last two decades of the country’s mining bonanza, Batmunkh has grown alarmed at the destructive impact on both wildlife and herder communities. 

A Meticulous Plan

In 2015, the Mongolian government issued mining exploration licenses for a vast area around the base of Dornogovi’s culturally sacred Hutag mountain, spurring Batmunkh into action. He resolved to safeguard his beloved lands and decided that an official protected area would be the best strategy.  

Applying his engineering background and deep knowledge of the region, Batmunkh spent several months surveying the desert on foot, covering the longer distances by vehicle. Using natural features such as streams and mountaintops to demarcate boundaries, he drew maps by hand to delineate zones that he believed should be protected. Growing up in Dornogovi, Batmunkh had learned which areas have the highest concentrations of wildlife and vegetation, so his proposed boundaries were far from random. He also collected information from state agencies and research institutes to bolster the scientific rationale for the protected area. 

Unbeknownst to Batmunkh, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) had been assisting the Mongolian government in identifying critical regions for biodiversity protection and had used a Geographic Information System (GIS) to map the same areas Luvsandash was seeking to protect. According to Tsogtsaikhan Battsengel, a GIS technician with TNC Canada: “One day, Luvsandash showed up in the local government’s office with a map of the land he wanted to protect. Everyone was amazed because his hand-drawn map was nearly identical to the GIS model we had created.” Soon thereafter, Batmunkh regularly traveled from his rural home in Dornogovi to TNC’s offices in Ulaanbaatar, where he shared maps and data with local staff to collaborate on identifying areas with the highest concentrations of wildlife.

To strengthen his case for the protected area, Batmunkh researched Mongolia’s constitution and laws on environmental protection and land rights. He also met regularly with state agencies in Ulaanbaatar; maintaining strong relationships and working in concert with government officials was a key part of his campaign. Batmunkh’s goal was to create a protected area that forbade extractive industries and allowed traditional herding and livestock practices to continue. Stressing the importance of balancing development with conservation, and guided first and foremost by science, he submitted the proposal for the protected area to the local government and members of parliament in spring 2020. In order to bolster his case, Batmunkh cited various Mongolian laws protecting sites of cultural, historical, sacred, and environmental importance. 

In April 2022, Batmunkh’s dedication paid off: Authorities approved a 66,000-acre protected area prohibiting all extractive activities within its boundaries. The protected area is also geographically close to three others, totaling 205,600 acres, for which Batmunkh secured protections between April 2019 and September 2020. The protected area safeguards vital habitat for the endangered Asiatic ass and other wildlife while preserving a centuries-old way of life for his community, empowering locals to continue stewarding the land. Today, rangers—often drawn from the local herder communities—now regularly patrol the protected area.