Environmental management

Environmental management

Home Exam

26/11/2012

Total pages: 17

I could hardly separate Agenda 21 from the Sustainability Concept, thus I have provided a combined answer for questions N1 and N2.

1.        Describe how Agenda 21 is applied in your country

2.        Make evaluation of sustainability of your country. Give practical examples

Agenda 21 is a non-binding, voluntarily implemented action plan of the United Nations with regards to sustainable development. The document is a product of the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) which was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. It covers the main sustainability issues which were urgent 20 years ago and are still remain significant for the most countries in the world. The importance of the Agenda 21 was reaffirmed at the Rio Conferences in 1997, 2002 and 2012. Moreover they have recognized that with the advent of the globalization and the issues of poverty eradication, climate change, environmental protection, hazardous waste management, conservation of biodiversity, control over pollution, protection of the human rights and environmental (environmentally friendly) education and technologies are on the peak of importance.  

The implementation of Agenda 21 was intended to involve action at international, national, regional and local levels. Some national and state governments have legislated or advised that local authorities take steps to implement the plan locally, as recommended in Chapter 28 of the document. The Study prepared by the Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future in January 2012 assessed the success of the Agenda 21 and claimed that “Agenda 21 (and the original Rio Earth Summit more generally) brought the concept of sustainable development into common parlance if not making it a household phrase”.¹ Moreover the study noticed that Agenda 21 has influenced on the language of subsequent international agreements and documents (such as WTO).

Unfortunately speaking about implementation of Agenda 21 in Russia I would like to argue with the study, described above. The Russian Federation (The former Soviet Union) is a member of the United Nations since 24 October 1945. Thus our country took part in all the United Nations Summits and is aware about the UN sustainability activities as well as about Agenda 21. Sustainability concept address most of the Russian national problems, especially in the social sphere, such as poverty and inequality, however most of the country’s population even do not know what sustainability mean and which spheres it covers. Under the population I understand simple citizens, those people, which are not connected with the Governmental bodies, either with much polluting industries, such as oil and gas. What does it mean, you may ask? Why did I pay so much attention to the history of the sustainability concept? Let me try to explain my point of view.

During our course we have paid much attention to sustainability on the macro level as well as on micro level – in our families and houses. One significant problem which was diagnosed is lack of information and lack of sustainability products on the Russian market. During 25 years since the concept of Sustainable Development was established (the United Nations Brundtland Report, 1987) and 20 years since Agenda 21 was adopted, our Government couldn’t organize a framework which will bring the understanding of the concept to every house in our country. According to Russian mentality I may assume that the government thinks that what is non-binding – that is not important… Waste sorting and alternative energy usage are still far-far away from Russian realities, income inequality and the gap between the richest and the poorest has reached 16.5 times in 2011, according to the Russian newspaper Kommersant.² The usage and the Governmental promotion of the LED lams is one of the fir st signs of sustainability in our country, moreover some Russians still could not understand why do they have to buy these expensive bulbs instead of the conventional incandescent bulbs. Education and dissemination of information on specific sustainable topics should be in my opinion the first step towards sustainable development in Russia. Education is one of the most powerful tools for providing individuals with the appropriate skills and competencies to become sustainable consumers. We could hardly speak about sustainability in the international level if most of the Russian population is not aware of the concept. And I am very proud to be the part of this first step, because in the nearest future thanks to our exchange program I might explain the Russians what can they do on the way to Sustainable Development.

Although Russian legislation provides a great variety of environmental and ecological laws such as Federal Law “On the Environmental Protection” N 7-FZ, "On Air Protection" N 96-FZ, “On Production and Consumption Waste" N 89-FZ were edited several times there are still lots of gaps in these legislation, the penalties are usually incomparable with the harm and simply it is very often impossible to identify the violations in time on the huge territory of the Russian Federation. Here it is impossible to address one more sustainability issue, especially actual in Russian Governmental and legislation field – corruption. No country is entirely free of corruption. But if corruption is deep enough it can hinder economic growth and good governance, and decay the fabric of society. Corruption is an obstacle to sustainable development, with the potential to enlarge economic gaps and breed organized crime. Unchecked corruption leaves little room for democracy to flourish; little room for freedom to expand; little room for justice to prevail.

In discussing sustainable development it is not possible to avoid questions of justice, chief among them being how to achieve an equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens between states. Justice is at the forefront of the mainstream definition of sustainability by the Brundtland Commission as „development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This formulation highlights intergenerational environmental justice, however also implicit in the reference in the „needs of the present‟ is the notion of intragenerational environmental justice. The Brundtland Commission emphasizes this second component throughout Our Common Future in calling attention to the essential need of the poor.

However even in Russia the co called Green parties and some active protectionists of human rights have already appeared, but still it is a minority, which is not able to affect Governmental decision-making because. The Russian mentality and the Russian way of thinking should not be underestimated either. Russians do not trust anybody, they can’t rely on the Law of their state, on the police, got used to protect their families and human rights themselves, are very suspicious. Moreover the inequality in Russia is so high that some of the Russians could hardly make ends meet, every day they have to think about the food for their family, thus they do not think about the sustainability. The situation in Russian business is much different: business in Russia, especially international companies operating here have brought Sustainable ideas to our country; however just a few of the population always understand these ideas.

A good example of the Agenda 21 and sustainability concept implementation in Russian is its oil and gas sector. The situation here is much different. Russia is one of the richest natural resource country possessing major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal and many strategic minerals. Russia disposes of 6.5% of oil proved reserves (7^th behind five Middle East countries and Venezuela), and 26.6% of natural gas proved reserves (1^st followed by Iran 14.9% and Qatar 14.3%). By 2005 data, the Federation responsible for more than 12% of world’s total oil production that makes Russia ranked second worldwide after Saudi Arabia (13.5%) and followed by US (8.0%), while in natural gas production Russia posses the first place with its 21.6% share in total. (BP, 2006) The impact of the industry and the consequences of the oil spills are always damaging, especially for the vulnerable nature and its inhabitants as well as for people, living near the oil drills. Speaking about operations in the Arctic Region - the fate of the indigenous population, rare animal spices, fish stock and unique environment fell under the responsibility of the oil and gas companies. Sustainability activities also play a huge role in the company’s image as well as create a competitive advantage. Polluting industries were the first ones who addressed the environmental challenges and recognized their environmental impact. Today such Russian oil and gas companies as Gazprom, Lukoil, Rosneft’ take an active part in solving the sustainability issues. The countries invest in the eco environment technologies, support local communities, poor, disabled people and especially children in the regions of their operation and their home regions. The companies operating in polluting field have to be transparent and caring, to prove it they Sustainability Reports, mostly annual separate reports in accordance to the Global Reporting Initiative and recognize their commitment to the United Nations Global Compact.

I would like to provide several examples of the implementation of sustainability in Russia based on the Gazprom CSR policy. Firstly in the social sphere:

Gazprom for Children

The Gazprom for Children program is the Company’s largest social project. From 2007 to 2012 Gazprom allocated almost RUB 17,8 billion to execute the program.

The program is primarily targeted at:

• creating the environment for harmonious spiritual and physical development of children and teenagers;
• engaging the maximum possible number of children in sports activities, artistic and amateur clubs.

To achieve these targets, Gazprom is resolute to:

• construct and upgrade sports centers and multifunctional outdoor sports grounds;
• engage coaches and instructors, purchase the equipment necessary to establish sports courses, artistic and amateur clubs;
• arrange festivals and sporting events throughout the country.

The Gazprom for Children program is a nationwide project as it embraces 72 Russian regions. 38 Gazprom subsidiaries and organizations take part in the program as well as 50 regional gas companies forming part of Gazprom Mezhregiongaz Group. By now, 714 sports facilities have been built within the Gazprom for Children program including recreation complexes, stadiums, football grounds, swimming pools, playgrounds and children’s camps. Every day these facilities can be used by over 90,000 people to engage in physical training and sports. 101 sports facilities are currently under construction.³

An secondly in the Environmental Protection field:

Gazprom Group takes consistent efforts for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in production processes, participates in specialized studies, conducts emissions monitoring. The Company operates in accordance with the regulations and corporate standards ensuring compliance with the requirements of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol.

Gazprom regularly implements programs for re-equipment and upgrade of enterprises, programs for energy saving and efficient use of associated petroleum gas as well as promotes best existing technologies in resource conservation and environmental protection areas. Gazprom actively participates in gasification of regions and in conversion of motor vehicles to natural gas, thus mitigating the environmental impact.

As part of the Kyoto Protocol, Gazprom has executed the Joint Implementation Project for Efficient Use of Associated Petroleum Gas at Urengoy Oil, Gas and Condensate Field. The Project for Use of Mobile Compressor Stations to Pump Natural Gas Out of Gas Trunkline Sections is being prepared for execution. Both projects have been verified by the international company Bureau Veritas Certification Holding and recommended by the Russian Federation Ministry of Economic Development.

Moreover, in cooperation with Mitsubishi Corporation and Nippon Oil (Japan) Gazprom Neft has executed the Joint Implementation Project for the efficient use of associated petroleum gas at the Yety-Purovskoye field in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. The project is approved by the Russian Federation Ministry of Economic Development. Gazprom VNIIGAZ conducts greenhouse gas emissions monitoring at Gazprom’s facilities.⁴

Based on the Gasprom’s example we can see that sustainability has already reached our country and is already implemented in Russia, however it is more an exception than a rule.

I have already mentioned the governmental role on the way to Sustainability, however in the modern World with the advent of the private authority and Global Governance the role of the Transnational Corporations should not be underestimated.⁵ With the advent of globalization modern governances, as well as the Russian Government, are facing a lot of problems and are not able to cope with some of them, thus transnational corporations have started to address Global problems. In 1999, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan asked business leaders to join a Global Compact with the goal of fostering ten fundamental principles in the areas of human rights, labor standards, environment, and anti-corruption. The UN Global Compact illustrates the capacity that international institutions to create platforms for self-regulation and deliberation between corporations and civil-society actors concerning global social and environmental challenges. In the area of HIV/AIDS, for instance, firms are being pushed into performing roles that the public sector is unable or unwilling to perform.

To sum up I can say that the era of sustainable development has already reached our country; unfortunately not everybody is aware about it. However it is important to mention that polluting industries and Global corporations operating in Russia already implement CSR principles. I think that for Modern Russia close collaboration of the government and corporations is necessary and one very important thing that they need to undertake is to disseminate information about the idea of the sustainability and also make people understand that the Soviet times are far away and that the corporations today could be more influential in solving the environmental and social problems.

3.        Describe environmental programs executed in your country.

I live in Saint-Petersburg and I love my Native city, so I am going to tell about environmental programs, executed in my city.

The Committee for Nature Use, Environmental Protection and Ecological Safety of Saint-Petersburg is responsible for the implementation of the City policy in the field of environmental protection and ecological safety. The main objective of the policy of the St. Petersburg City Administration in the field of environmental protection and ecological safety is to maintain and raise the quality of life of citizens, to stabilize and develop the economy without increasing the environmental impact, to transit from elimination of the consequences of pollution to its prevention.

The environmental protection and safeguarding of ecological safety are among the top priorities of the city management. Each sectoral and territorial governmental body of the City Administration, which is responsible, within its competence, for various issues related to environmental protection and ecological safety, takes part in the implementation of the environmental policy of St. Petersburg. The coordination of activities with the Government of Leningrad Region, federal environmental bodies, businesses and NGOs is also essential for the implementation of the environmental policy.

The first program which I would like to describe is the famous “Ecomobile”.

Since May the first of May, 2010 the Committee on Natural Resources, Environmental Protection and Ecological Safety (hereinafter the Committee) starts the regular free of charge collection of hazardous waste from the population using a mobile point of reception - "Ecomobile". A hazardous waste include commonly used in everyday life things like spent mercury lamps (fluorescent and energy saving), mercury thermometers, old batteries, discharged accumulators, and other devices that contain substances of the 1st and 2nd risk classes.

In 2009, in the period from 5 to 13 December in the municipality “Chernaja Rechka» (№ 66) and "Ozero Dolgoe» (№ 68) of Primorsky district 772 units of hazardous waste were collected during nine days via “Eco-Mobile”. This raid allowed to identify the need for such an environmental services for the citizens, to define the most suitable place for the collection of waste and time of collection, and to adjust the existing capacity in the city’s hazardous waste management.

Specialists of the Committee appreciated the positive outcome of the December 2009 raid, and admitted that a mobile station "Ecomobile” has a good chance to collect hazardous waste than a permanent one.

The raid of the "Ecomobile" in the end of 2009 confirmed the importance of the dissemination of the information among the population on the possibility to get rid of hazardous waste in an environmentally friendly way. Moreover the hazardous waste collected during this project would be treated correctly and reused if possible. That is why since April 2010 the Committee the local government and the population are informed about the importance of the hazardous waste treatment and about the exact places of the “Ecomobile” stops, dates and timing. Today the citizens can find this information on the official web site of the Committee http://infoeco.ru/ecomobile/ and even on the most famous Russian network http://infoeco.ru/ecomobile/, where the citizens may also ask questions.

Thus, the Committee organized management system of hazardous waste which was generated in households and apartments of St. Petersburg. The purpose of this system is to reduce the negative impact on the environment by significant reduction of the amount of hazardous substances which get directly into the environment.

The collected waste will be recycled for the reuse on the SPb GUP "Ecostroy" and unrecyclable waste will be safely buried at the specialized range of St. Petersburg GUPP "Polygon" Krasny Bor".⁶

Other projects in the field of environmental protection actively implemented in Saint-Petersburg are water management and wastewater treatment projects. St.-Petersburg’s monopolist Vodokanal St. Petersburg supplies potable water to the citizens - over 5,000,000 people, and to the city companies and organizations. Vodokanal also provides wastewater services to the citizens and companies: the volume of treated effluent was 816.266Mio. m3 in 2011. The length of sewer networks – 8245.58 km, the length of tunnel collectors – 232.17 km. Moreover, Vodokanal operates the city fountains and fountain complexes; it is in charge of rehabilitation, capital repairs and operation of public toilets.

SUE “Vodokanal of St. Petersburg” is implementing the following major projects:

The Neva Untreated Wastewater Discharge Closure Program

This program envisages, among other things, the completion of the extension of the Northern Tunnel Collector, and the modernization of the Northern and Central Wastewater Treatment Plants to comply with the requirements of HELCOM (The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission) regarding enhanced removal of nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater. The program is financed from the municipal and federal budgets, Vodokanal’s own funds and raised extra-budgetary funds.

The project of the construction of the Northern Tunnel Collector was approved in 1989 by the order of the Council of Ministers of RSFSR. The city’s demand for a new, 12 km long section of the Tunnel Collector was dictated by the need for transportation of wastewater from residential houses and industries of Primorsky, Kalininsky, Krasnogvardeisky, partially Nevsky and Central districts to the Northern WWTP in Olgino. Originally, the period for NTC extension construction was estimated as ten years. However, from 1993 to 2000 the construction has been suspended due to the lack of financing. In 2001, allocation of funds from the St. Petersburg budget began aiming to maintain the construction works, but these funds were not enough for the planned large-scale works. In 2005, a new stage of the collector construction began. The first line of the NTC extension was put into operation in autumn 2008. It enabled us to connect direct discharges in the amount of 90,000 cubic meters per day to the sewage system and reach the level of 88% of wastewater treatment. Further connection of direct discharges to the NTC allowed to reach the level of 91% wastewater treatment by the end of 2009, 93% - by the end of 2010, and 94% - by autumn 2011. The extension of the NTC is a system of very complex engineering facilities: two lines of main tunnels with length of 12.2 km each and external diameter of 4m each laid at a depth of 40-90 m; dozens of inlet and distribution chambers; many kilometers of connecting micro-tunnels. Besides, the NTC includes a unique facility - flow regulation unit; it is a powerful pumping station which regulates velocity of the wastewater stream through the collector to prevent silting. The completion of the direct discharges closure in the NTC service area will ensure treatment of 95% of wastewater.

To increase this value up to 98% it is necessary to construct a tunnel collector along Robespiera embankment, close direct discharges of Petrogradsky district, construct a collector in the area of the Okhta River, and build wastewater treatment plants in the towns of Lomonosov, Metallostroi and Molodezhnoe.

Modernization of the city water treatment plants

In 2010, the construction of a new 350,000 m3/day water treatment block K-6 was completed at Southern WTP. In early 2011, the supply of water from the new block to the citizens began. The distinctive features of the technological solution used in the designing and construction of K-6 block are as follows:

• preliminary ozonization of water with small ozone doses to ensure surface oxidation of humic compounds and improvement of their further coagulation,
• coagulated water precipitation in the lamellar clarifier for more effective removal of suspended solids compared to traditional sedimentation tanks,
• filtration of water on dual-bed filters filled with granular activated carbon and quartz sand for better removal of dissolved organic matter, including oil products.

The flush water produced at K-6 Block is treated with the release of sludge, which is disposed separately to prevent the Neva water contamination. All water treated at K6 Block is disinfected with sodium hypochlorite and ammonium sulfate, then by UV-lamps.

In the coming years new blocks at Main and Kolpino Water Treatment Plants will be built. Moreover, construction of a new block at Main Water Treatment Plant l (capacity - 500,000 cubic meters per day) and Kolpino Water Treatment Plant is planned.

Creation of water supply management system

St.Petersburg is the Russia’s first city to create an innovative water supply management system. With such system,parameters of water supplied to the network can be adjusted automatically, and water consumption data can be received online. In 2010, the results of a pilot project of creating such a system within the area of Uritskaya pumping station - the territory with the population of about 140,000 people - were summarized. Under this project, the modernization of 12 pumping stations was carried out and the existing pumping equipment was replaced with energy-efficient equipment. State-of-the-art valves - automated air valves, shock-proof valves - were installed; "control points" were determined and on the basis of their readings the output pressure is automatically adjusted. Water quality monitoring devices were installed in the networks. Advanced high-precision water meters with online data transfer capability were installed in the networks and on the consumer side. The water supply management system project in the Uritskaya area gave good results. The energy consumption reduced by almost 43 per cent. The unaccounted-for water reduced by 39 per cent. The number of network breakdowns reduced by 32 per cent.

Now, the water supply management system is being created within the Southern zone of St. Petersburg - with the population of about 1.5 mio people. In the future, the system will be extended throughout the whole city. 

Improvement of sewage sludge treatment and disposal technologies

Today, all the sludge produced by wastewater treatment is burnt at three sludge incineration plants. However, in the previous years (before the plants emerged) sludge was disposed to special landfills. In particular, the area of Severny landfill in Novoselki is about 83 ha.

To eliminate the negative impact of sewage sludge landfills on the environment, a sludge recycling project was designed on the basis of Geotube technology. . With this technology, special geotubes (filtration geotextile containers) are used where sludge is treated with chemicals. As a result, sludge is disinfected, dewatered and stabilized; odor is removed too. A harmless, odor-free substance is produced, which can be used for preparation of artificial soils.

In 2010, Vodokanal began sludge treatment at Severny landfill. It is expected to process all sewage sludge accumulated in the landfill by 2017.

Water and Sewerage Reconstruction and Development Program in the southern suburbs of St. Petersburg

SUE "Vodokanal of St. Petersburg" has begun to implement the Water and Sewerage Reconstruction and Development Program in the southern suburbs of St. Petersburg. The Program covers:

1. Reconstruction of wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in the town of Metallostroy increasing its capacity to 120,000 m3/day.
2. Construction of a 30,000 m3/day WWTP in the town of Lomonosov including an influent sewer.
3. Reconstruction of water treatment plant (WTP) in the town of Kolpino increasing its capacity to 250,000 m3/day.

The projects described above will create new prospects for industrial and housing development in the neighboring areas, put a stop to discharge of untreated wastewaters into the Gulf of Finland and ensure the quality of treated effluent as required by the regulations.

It is decided to implement these projects using a project financing mechanism where three special-purpose companies are established to act as Client and Operator. Currently, three special-purpose companies (SPC) are established and registered for the purpose of implementing the above projects:

1. LLC “South-Eastern Treatment Plants of St. Petersburg”

2. LLC “Western Treatment Plants of St. Petersburg”

3. LLC “South-Eastern Water Utility of St. Petersburg”

The sole founder and owner of 100% shares in the SPCs is SUE "Vodokanal of St. Petersburg". The SPCs will raise funds, reconstruct or build (acting as Client) and then operate (acting as Operator) the plants. The Program actions will be financed with the SPCs’ own and raised funds.⁷

4. Describe the process of ISO 14000 certification for any real enterprise

Since the 1990s, Sony sites throughout the world have sought certification under ISO 14001, the international standard for environmental management systems. Acquisition of ISO 14001 certification at all sites was completed in fiscal year 2000. Since then, Sony has expanded this effort, establishing an environmental management system that integrates Group headquarters with overseas environmental departments, business units and sites, while taking advantage of the management systems already operational at each business site, and acquiring integrated ISO 14001 certification for the entire Sony Group in fiscal year 2005.⁸

The process of certification implemented in the company included internal audits and document review and consists of several stages and steps:

Stage 1: Pre-Audit Review

Under the ISO 14000 Certification Scheme, a document review should be conducted. The document review focuses on the planning aspects of the environmental management system. The objective of the pre-audit is to ensure that the scope of analysis covering the entire EMS is conducted.

 Stage 2: Environmental Management System Audit

The objective of the audit is to confirm that the EMS of the Sony’s site conforms to all requirements of the ISO 14000 standards. The site was required to conduct one internal audit and management review prior to the audit.

Surveillance Audit

During the three years validity period of the certificate, annual surveillance audits will be conducted to ensure that the company continues to comply with the requirements of ISO 14000. In some cases additional external audits could be conducted.

Continuous Registration

A full reassessment for the renewal of certificate is conducted every three years.

5. Describe and evaluate risks attributed to your country

Climate change in Russia

Russia produces a significant portion of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions and is therefore an important country in the international climate negotiations. The Kyotoprotocol did not come into force before it was ratified by Russia. Nevertheless, Russia's positions in the coming climate negotiations are an open question. Russian science and public has taken a more sceptical position to man-made climate change then the rest of the world, school education is weak and it is very little public information available about climate change. Since the county is rich on oil, gas and coal, fossil fuel is a priority together with maintaining its nuclear capacity.

Nuclear-waste and accidents risks

The first generation nuclear reactors have reached their designed lifespan. The oldest existing Chernobyl-type RBMK-1000 unit of Leningrad NPP and the oldest model of VVER-440 power unit of Kola NPP reached their designed lifespan in 2003. The first generation reactors create a higher probability of nuclear accidents, and should be closed at the planned expiry date. They should not be granted permits for prolonged operation. Necessary funds for decommissioning must be established, and the preparation of decommissioning started.

By-products of nuclear weapons production caused permanent damage near Tomsk and Krasnoyarsk in southern Siberia, and near Chelyabinsk in the Ural Mountains. Fallout from the 1986 explosion at Ukraine’s Chernobyl’ nuclear power plant affected Russia primarily in Bryansk Oblast (see Chernobyl’ Accident). Less well-known than the Chernobyl’  disaster were accidents at the Mayak nuclear weapons production plant near Chelyabinsk in 1949, 1957, and 1967, which together released significantly higher emissions than Chernobyl’ The Soviet military tested nuclear weapons on the islands of Novaya Zemlya in the Arctic Ocean, which was their second testing site after Semipalatinsk (now Semey), Kazakhstan. Nuclear reactors and wastes were dumped into the Barents and Kara seas of the far north, and in far eastern Siberia. Dumping of nuclear wastes in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) continued until 1993. The disposal of nuclear submarines and nuclear waste is still a problematic issue. Although a number of nuclear submarines have been decommissioned, many are still docked at Russian ports as a result of a lack of money and facilities for storing nuclear wastes.

Risk of land and water degradation

Land and water resources experienced severe degradation during the Soviet period. Some areas, such as the Kuznetsk Basin on the Tom’ River in southern Siberia, the industrial belt along the southern portion of the Ural Mountains, and the lower Volga River, were degraded beyond repair. Chemical fertilizers and airborne pollutants have contaminated some agricultural areas. Soil resources have also been adversely affected by mismanagement. Broad areas of land in southern Russia suffer from erosion. Wind erosion has affected the more arid parts of the North Caucasus, lower Volga River basin, and western Siberia. Pollutants released into rivers have accumulated in lakes and seas with limited water exchange, including the Caspian Sea, the Sea of Azov, and the Black Sea. A toxic layer of hydrogen sulfide covers the Black Sea, due in part to organic compounds from agricultural byproducts and untreated sewage. Many Russian cities are not equipped with adequate sewage treatment plants. Inadequate or nonexistent wastewater treatment contributes to the degradation of rivers and lakes.

Many hydroelectric dams were built during Soviet times on Russia’s major rivers. A series of dams on the Volga River has significantly slowed the river and decreased the volume of water it can carry; the decline in the flow of the Kuban’ and Don rivers has been even greater. The rivers therefore retain even more of the pollutants that are discharged into their waters. In addition, many of the dams do not have properly functioning fish ladders, so many fish do not make it past the dams to their spawning grounds. As a result, the numbers of sturgeon and other fish have been greatly reduced

Deforestation and destruction of forests

Forests in more accessible parts of the country suffer from deforestation caused by extensive logging. The rate of deforestation has increased in the Ussuri region in extreme far eastern Russia because of the activities of foreign logging operations. Some large stands of undisturbed forests are protected in Russia’s extensive network of national reserves and parks. Adequate funding for park rangers and other personnel is lacking, however, and poaching (illegal hunting) of endangered animals such as the Siberian tiger has increased as a result. Airborne pollutants have caused damage to vegetation in many areas of Russia. Copper, cobalt, and nickel smelters emit huge amounts of sulfur dioxide in the northern Siberian city of Noril’sk and on the Kola Peninsula in northwestern Russia. Winds spread these contaminants across northern Europe, where the pollutants have caused widespread destruction of Scandinavian forests. They have also affected large areas of forests in the Kuznetsk Basin and the southern Urals.

6. Describe environmental legislation adopted in your native country

The Constitution of 1993 set the overall framework for environmental management in Russia by formulating governmental functions in this field; the need for environmental protection and responsibility of the current generation to the future ones, as well as the obligation of the government to protect the environmental quality in the domestic and foreign relations. Over the past 20 years, Russia has enacted complex and strict environmental legislation that in many cases meets or exceeds commonly accepted international standards; however, the enforcement of this legislation has been uneven.  Russia is continuing to develop its legislation and currently has new draft resolutions in the State Duma.

General Environmental Legislative Framework. Federal and Regional Legislation

Pursuant to the constitution of the Russian Federation, environmental protection falls within the joint competence of the Russian Federation and its constituent entities; therefore, Russian environmental legislation is enacted at both federal and regional levels.

The main federal laws regulating environmental protection are Federal Law No. 7-FZ, “On Environmental Protection,” dated 10 January 2001 (the “Environmental Protection Law”), and Federal Law No. 174-FZ, “On Environmental Expert Review,” dated 23 November 1995 (the “Environmental Expert Review Law”).

The Environmental Protection Law:

• sets out the fundamental principles of Russian environmental regulation,
• provides an overall framework for environmental management, and
• imposes general environmental protection requirements related to the construction and operation of various facilities that may be harmful to the environment.⁹

Both the Environmental Expert Review Law and the Environmental Protection Law require the performance of an environmental impact assessment (“EIA”) prior to the implementation of a project that may have an impact on natural resources. Both laws further provide that the construction and operation of various facilities are permitted only after the receipt of a positive report from the unified State Environmental Expert Review (“SEER”) with respect to the relevant project documentation and proposed activity.

The EIA evaluates the possible adverse environmental impact and ecological consequences and endeavors to develop measures for decreasing or preventing such adverse impacts. A positive SEER conclusion is an essential precondition for financing and implementing any project that may have an impact on the environment. Russian environmental legislation at the regional level comprises various standards and procedures related to environmental permits and approvals that largely fall within the regulations established by the federal laws. In most cases, the regional legislation simply provides additional details with respect to the federal laws rather than set forth entirely new region-specific regulations.

Water Code

The Water Code of 16 November 1995 is in effect until 1 January 2007, but on 3 June 2006 the President of the Russian Federation signed a new Water Code. Its adoption was preceded by many debates and the code seems to be one of the most controversial pieces of environmental legislation in Russia. The new Water Code contains seven chapters comprising 69 articles. Currently, it is difficult to assess the Water Code  in general, but, clearly, it marks the shift in management approaches since focus is put on replacing public (administrative) means of regulation with civil ones. In comparison with the previous version, the requirements of the Water Code have become more declarative which, in fact, illustrates a trend in the most recent environmental legislation of Russia. In consequence, there is a greater need for developing the secondary legislation that might cause important delays in the implementation of the Code. 

Land protection legislation

Land regulation in Russia is one of the most politicized segments of regulation, eclipsing even debates around radioactive waste import and protection of Lake Baikal. Recently passed legal documents include several laws governing issues of ownership and its delimitation, information support for the protection and use of soils, procedure for their use, protection of agricultural land, its utilization, etc. Most importantly, the new Land Code of 25 October 2001 was enacted. These legal acts required amendment very soon after their entry into force in order to make the legal provisions more realistic, clarify the language or address mistakes in the definition of the objectives of legal regulation. At they same time, they provided for many environmental duties, restrictions and bans that are generally consistent with the requirements imposed in the European legislation.

Other special laws

In Russia, most numerous are the legal acts laying the rules of conduct in a specific area or affecting a particular activity or specific environmental impacts (e.g. the protection of Lake Baikal, activities at especially hazardous production facilities, waste treatment, etc.). Since 2000, a number of issue-specific laws have been developed and enacted:

• Federal Law “On the Territories for Traditional Use of Natural Resources by the Aboriginal Small Peoples of the North, Siberia, and Far East of the Russian Federation” passed in 2001. The law introduced the very concept of “territories for traditional use of natural resources”. Its goals go beyond environmental protection – first, protect the aboriginal habitat and traditional lifestyle of small peoples; second, preserve and develop their original culture; and third, conserve biodiversity in the territories for traditional use of natural resources. Implementation of this Federal Law has been faced with certain difficulties, the main one being that the authorities slowly delimitate and have legally registered the territories for traditional use of natural resources. 
• Federal Law “On Fishing and Conservation of Biological Water Resources” of 21 December 2004;
• Federal Law “On Earmarked Environmental Programmes for Rehabilitation of Radioactively Contaminated Areas” of 10 July 2001; Federal Law “On Social Protection of Individuals Exposed to Radiation as a Consequence of Nuclear Tests at Semipalatinsk Testing Ground” of 10 January 2002, and Federal Law “On Social Protection of Individuals Engaged in Work with Chemical Weapons” of 11 October 2000. For a number of reasons, society perceives the requirements of these laws either as non-enforceable and reducing the level of benefits for the persons affected by accidents or engaged in hazardous work, or as posing high risk for environmental quality and human rights to favourable environment and protection of health (e.g. allowing import of radioactive waste), or as breeding grounds for corruption and abuse by governmental officials; 

Federal Law “On Quality and Security of Foodstuffs”  of 2 January 2000: although the law set the requirements for the quality and security of foodstuffs for the first time in Russia, it is very declarative and obsolete compared to international benchmarks.

International Regulation

Russia is a party to most of the major international conventions and treaties in the sphere of environmental protection. 

• Convention on Biological Diversity (1983),
• Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer (1985),
• Montreal Protocol on Substances Depleting the Ozone Layer (1987),
• Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes   and Their Disposal (1989),
• Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (1991).

Pursuant to the Russian constitution, if the provisions of any environmental regulation established by an international convention or treaty and/or those established by the Russian federal or regional laws contradict, the provisions of the international convention or treaty prevail.

Environmental Regulation

In Russia any activity that may have an adverse impact on the environment is subject to issuance of a special permit or license, establishment of limits with respect to the amount of such impact/pollution, payment of a fine for negative impact, and imposition of liability in case of violation.

Environmental Permits

Environmental permits allow an enterprise to conduct activities that may have a negative impact on the environment. They comprise:

• permits for general use of natural resources (e.g., a subsoil license or water use agreement): have limited transferability (i.e. they may be transferred to another entity only if the transferee meets certain criteria set by law and obtains the prior consent of an appropriate government authority); and
• permits for specific negative impact on the environment (e.g., hazardous waste management, operation of hazardous production facilities): are usually not transferable.

An environmental permit may not be issued with respect to certain specially protected areas of high ecological importance, such as state parks and nature reserves, wildlife reserves, botanic gardens and areas designated for recreational or health purposes; activities that may cause pollution in such areas are strictly prohibited. 

Permits for General Use of Natural Resources

• Water Use - The right to use bodies of water that are under federal or regional ownership can be granted either on the basis of a water use agreement or a decision of the relevant authority to grant use rights for a body of water, depending on the designated purpose of the water use.
• Subsoil - A subsoil use license is generally issued by the Federal Agency for Subsoil Use and certifies the right of its holder to use subsoil within certain boundaries, on certain terms and for certain purposes. Typically, the exploration license is granted for up to five years (10 years for offshore), while the production term may be as long as is required (as evidenced in the feasibility study) for the full rational use of a deposit. The Subsoil Law does not expressly provide for the combined exploration/production term. However, in practice, a combined license may be issued for 25 years. The Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources Use oversees state control of subsoil management. Failure to comply with the terms of a subsoil license can lead to penalties, suspension or revocation of the subsoil license, with further termination of subsoil use rights.
• Continental Shelf - Russian legislation sets out different types of permits for continental shelf activities (e.g., permits for laying underwater cables and pipelines; for creating artificial islands, installation and structures; and for drilling operations).
• Forests - In order to use forestland, companies are generally required to enter into a forest plot lease agreement with the state authorities that own such land. In addition, each forestland user must prepare a forest development plan with data on the type of forest, planned volumes of forest use, actions aimed at the protection and rehabilitation of the forest, and actions relating to the construction and use of facilities that are not related to the establishment of forest infrastructure.

Permits for Specific Negative Impact on the Environment

• Air Pollution – The right to emit hazardous substances into the atmosphere requires a permit that sets out the maximum permissible emission levels of the applicable hazardous substances. In certain cases (e.g., during the commissioning of a facility), a company may operate under a permit that temporarily allows it to emit in excess of the established maximum permissible emission levels.  The air pollution permits are issued by federal or regional authorities, depending on whether the relevant source pollution is subject to regional or federal environmental control.
• Waste Treatment – The collection, transportation and/or disposal of waste requires:

• a positive report of the federal state expert review with respect to project documentation for waste treatment facilities;
• the issuance of a waste management license or the conclusion of a services agreement with a specialized company that has a waste management license;
• the establishment of limits for the amounts of waste disposal; and
• with respect to certain types of hazardous waste, the receipt of a passport of hazardous waste that specifies the class of hazardous waste in accordance with the established classifications of hazardous industrial waste.

In certain cases, small and midsize companies can be exempted from some of the above obligations provided they regularly submit a report to the relevant authority regarding their generation, use, decontamination and disposal of waste.

• Hazardous Industrial Facilities - A company operating flammable, explosive or chemically hazardous facilities must be licensed by the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Supervision. The companies that operate hazardous industrial facilities are also required to have adequate insurance in place so that they can pay for damage that might be caused in case of an accident. In addition, putting a production facility into operation requires a permit from the state authorities responsible for construction (i.e., the Ministry of Regional Development and the relevant regional or municipal bodies).