The large-scale clean-up of uninhabited Vilkitsky Island in the Kara Sea will begin in 2018, involving international environmental expeditions, Deputy Governor of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Area Alexander Mazharov said in an interview with TASS.

"Next year we will launch a full-scale clean-up of Vilkitsky Island. <…> I do not know yet which countries they (expeditions. ‒ Ed.) will be from," Mazharov said as quoted by the agency. According to Mazharov, a competition is under way among applicants for participation in the expedition, with an average of 20 people competing for one spot. The organizers will give preference to those who have already participated in similar projects, for example, in the clean-up of another Yamal island ‒ Bely.

"We need trained people. We need to keep in mind the peculiarity of the psychological state, this is a closed space, it is very risky. Bad weather in the summer, storms are constant, plus 7-10 degrees Celsius," the deputy governor said. Women cannot participate in the expedition.

The biggest expense for such expeditions is transporting people to the Arctic islands. "The helicopter transfer there and back costs 2.5 million rubles. And if you get there by ship, then it takes five days," said Mazharov.