![\"People](\"https:\/\/wp-assets.futurism.com\/2019\/09\/flee-russian-town-snow-black-300x158.jpg\")
<\/div>Escape<\/h2>
Residents of the Russian town of Kiselyovsk have a simple request for Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau: let us in.<\/p>
That’s because the town, infamous for gray-black, coal-polluted snow has proven inhospitable for residents who now seek status as environmental refugees, according to CBC News<\/em><\/a>. But because of complicated legal technicalities — fleeing pollution is seen differently from escaping climate change<\/a> — experts say they don’t stand much of a chance.<\/p> About 80 percent of Kiselyovsk’s population lives near an open-pit coal mine, according to Motherboard<\/em><\/a>. As a result, the town’s water and food are highly contaminated. Cancer and tuberculosis are common, and the life expectancy has plummeted as toxic dust blankets the region.<\/p> All in all, it makes Canada look great. “We chose Canada because the climate there is similar to our region,” an exodus organizer told a local newspaper, per CBC<\/em>. “So that they [Russian authorities] wouldn’t say that we just wanted to move to warm countries.”<\/p> The residents have publicized their plea for asylum through a series of YouTube videos<\/a>. But Canada typically doesn’t welcome environmental refugees, especially when other parts of Russia remain hospitable — a stance that Queens University law professor Sharry Aiken told Motherboard <\/em>she finds outdated in the face of an increasingly-inhospitable planet.<\/p> “There is no question,” Aiken told Motherboard<\/em>, “that our laws and policies will need to adapt to this new reality.”<\/p> READ MORE: <\/strong>Residents of a Siberian Town With Black Snow Are Pleading for Asylum in Canada<\/a> [Motherboard<\/em>]<\/p> More on refugees: <\/strong>New Research: Climate Change Causes Migration and Conflict<\/a><\/p> The post Residents Are Trying to Flee Russian Town Where Snow Turned Black<\/a> appeared first on Futurism<\/a>.<\/p> Link: Escape Residents of the Russian town of Kiselyovsk have a simple request for Canada\u2019s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau: let us in. That\u2019s because the town, infamous for gray-black, coal-polluted snow has proven inhospitable for residents who now seek status as environmental refugees, according to CBC News Continue reading Toxic<\/h2>
<\/strong><\/p>Unlikely<\/h2>
Residents Are Trying to Flee Russian Town Where Snow Turned Black<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"