The Institute of Contemporary Development organized a round table discussion titled “Russian Environmental Policy”.
 
The discussion’s participants included Stanislav Ananyev, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation; Mikhail Malkov, the head of the ‘Federal Centre for Ecological Programs’ Federal State Unitary Enterprise; Vladimir Tsirkunov, the task team leader of the ‘Russian Environmental Policy’ project of the World Bank; and other experts.
 
The participants of the round table discussed the World Bank report, the research for which was conducted by a group of Russian and international experts. The document focuses on the effectiveness of the national system of environmental management. According to the report, the quality of the environment in Russia leaves much to be desired, and it poses a serious danger to the health and the life quality of a considerable part of the population and of every ecosystem.
 
The experts concluded that Russia has to develop a more proactive environmental policy, an effective system of environmental management, and an efficient institutional structure.
 
The research specified a number of key areas in which overhaul is necessary: the restoration of an effective process of ecological expertise; the simplification of an inefficient system of authorizing licenses and dumping permits; and the improvement and refocusing of the environment monitoring system.
 
The participants suggested several measures that may improve environmental policy.
 
Based on the results of the discussion, the Institute of Contemporary Development will improve upon the research, taking into account all of the suggestions, and form a working group to adjust the report after considering the opinions of representatives of the government, businesses, environmentalists, local communities and other interested parties. The final document will be submitted to the Ministry of Natural Resources and to the Public Chamber for discussion.