Russian-German Environmental Information Bureau Russisch-Deutsches Büro für Umweltinformation Sustainable Development in Russia edited by Sergei Bobylev and Renat Perelet Sustainable Developtment in Russia Sustainable Developtment Sustainable Development in Russia edited by Sergei Bobylev and Renat Perelet Berlin–St. Petersburg 2013 Contents Forewords 4 1. Economic, political and institutional frameworks 1.1. Sustainable development and the “green economy” in Russia: the current situation, problems and perspectives | Sergei Bobylev, Renat Perelet 11 1.2. Legal Aspects: The state of legislation and legal practice | Ekaterina Khmeleva 18 1.3. Certifi cation and standardisation | Semyon Gordyshevsky, Yulia Grachyova, Anna Matyagina 22 1.4. Oversight and supervision of compliance with environmental legislation and environmental standards in the Russian Federation: a summary of judicial practice | Nina Popravko 28 2. Economic prerequisites for sustainable development and environmental economics 2.1. The energy sector in the context of sustainable development. Greening of the oil and gas sector problems and perspectives | Alexei Knizhnikov 37 2.2. Energy effi ciency: legislation, state policy and economic and business practice | Yevgeny Gasho, Maria Stepanova 42 2.3. Renewable energy: legislation, state support and business and civil society initiatives | Ivan Yegorov 52 2.4. The industrial sector and problems of economic development | Alexander Shabaldin 63 2.5. The waste management sector: the current situation, legislative framework, regional experience, perspectives and civil society initiatives | Marina Asadcheva, Anna Sycheva 70 3. Sustainable development of cities and regions 3.1. City and regional planning: problems of city growth, urban ecology, perspectives for sustainable urban development and civil society initiatives | Daniyar Yusupov 79 3.2. Greening the transport sector | Ilya Reznikov 85 3.3. Housing and public utilities – the specifi cs of development in the context of sustainable development and the “green economy” | Yevgeniya Kolesova 90 3.4. Sustainable development in the Russian regions: regional inequalities, environ- mental problems and social challenges | Sergei Bobylev, Yevgeny Shvarts 94 3.5. Sustainable development in Siberia: environmental aspects | Georgy Safonov 99 4 4. Environmental information and education in the fi eld of sustainable development 4.1. The state of education for sustainable development in Russia | Maria Zhevlakova 105 4.2. The role of NGOs and civil society in environmental protection | Yevgeny Usov 113 4.3. The spectrum of environmental issues in the Russian media | Olga Dobrovidova, Angelina Davydova 120 5. The politics of environmental conservation and climate policy at the national level 5.1. Forest management, problems of forest protection and the contribution of Russian forests to carbon sequestration | Georgy Safonov 127 5.2. Legal problems of public policy on management and development of specially protected areas in the Russian Federation | Michael Kreindlin 133 5.3. Water resource management, problems of aquatic ecology | Anatoly Shevchuk 142 5.4. The impact of climate change on the Russian economy. Russian policy toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Adaptation to climate change in Russia | Georgy Safonov 152 6. Russia's role in international cooperation on the environment, climate and international development 6.1. Russia as a global energy supplier and Russia’s role in global energy security issues | Sergei Agibalov, Sergei Kondratyev 159 6.2. Russia's role in food security | Dmitriy Shevchenko 165 6.3. UN Action to Address the World Climate Problem and the Role of Russia | Alexei Kokorin 170 6.4. International Negotiations on Other Environmental Issues | Olga Ponizova 175 6.5. Social aspects of sustainable development – problems and strategies: refl ections on the outcomes of Rio+20 | Irina Shmeleva 180 Conclusion 188 About the authors 191 5 Forewords 6 Dear readers, you hold in your hands a study into sustainable development in Russia, published by the German-Russian Exchange Berlin and the Russian-German Bureau for Environmental Infor- mation and prepared by a team of three editors and over 20 authors from diff erent regions of Russia. The study includes a variety of topics, from a review of the political, legal and institutional frameworks for the development of a “green economy” in Russia, to concrete practices of separate waste collection, the development of renewable energy sources and aspects of environmental education. We tried to look at the process of sustainable development in Russia from diff erent perspectives, including the political and economic background, the legal situation, existing practices of sustainable development and how environmental information circulated, including journalism and education on sustainable development. The result is a broad study, which includes a collection of articles written by both theorists and practitioners of sustainable development in Russia. We are happy to see that over the last few years the issue of sustainable development has become increasingly important in Russia. This is evident from the ongoing reform of environmental legislation in Russia, civil society initiatives and new, greener, business practices. And yet, in many ways, the situation in Russia today is far from perfect in terms of sustainable development and green economy. All too often statements made by top offi cials remain only statements, green initiatives developed by civil society groups do not receive state support or are suppressed and new infrastructure projects are developed without ecological aspects being taken into consideration. This is why we feel it is very important to take a systematic approach to understanding the practice and perspectives of sustainable development in Russia, given that the very idea of sustainable development covers so much, including economic, ecological and social components. All the same, considering the vast number of studies into a wide range of social aspects of sustainable development in Russia (including demographics, quality of live and welfare) that have come out recently, we intentionally left such topics outside the scope of this study, so that we could concentrate on environmental-economic issues. International and domestic aspects of climate change are key topics for this collection, from analysis of Russian climate policy at UN talks to forecasts on the impact of climate change on the country’s sustainable development. Finally, in almost every section of the study special attention was paid to issues linked to civil society participation in developing and promoting ideas and practices of sustainable development in Russia. We are confi dent that the study will be of interest to a wide range of readers, both in Russia and further afi eld, so we have decided to publish it in English as well as in Russian. We hope you enjoy reading and are always open to hear your questions and comments. Angelina Davydova and the editorial team 7 “Sustainable Developtment in Russia”, a challenging study with an appealing title, is being published at the right time – namely two years ahead of the 2015 UN general assembly which is expected to decide upon a new set of global sustainable development goals, paving the way for a great transformation towards a more resource efficient global economy. What are the national circumstances for a transition to sustainable development in Russia? How to address key economic, social, political and environmental factors best? Which are the current legal framework conditions, business practices and respective approaches of key stakeholders towards a “green economy” and environmental integrity? More than 20 experts representing science, media and civil society, have made this study possible by contributing with all their knowledge. I believe it is worth reading it! As the world’s largest country hosting immense stocks of natural resources, Russia has an important role to play. Accordingly, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s speech at the Rio plus 20 was internationally followed with great interest, when he pointed to the steward’s role of Russia for globally important forest and water resources – and the country's potential to greening its economy. Sustainably managing rather than exploiting natural resources, maintaining instead of destroying ecosystems, develop collective liability for global commons – these are key elements of a paradigm shift towards sustainable development in Russia and beyond. Sharing respective efforts must not only be an economic burden but can also lead to important benefits. Despite notable improvements since the early nineteen-nineties, Russia’s energy intensity is still very low (three times lower than in the EU) and its potential for improvements is one of the highest in the world. If the government’s energy strategy is successful to increase energy efficiency by 40% by 2020, Russia could almost half its energy consumption – and instead safe its natural gas to sell it on international markets as the perhaps most important energy source to bridge the transition from fossil to renewable energies. If renewable energies like wind, sun and water are promoted in Russia like in China or Germany, additional jobs and income could be generated in rural areas in particular. That could help to develop rural Russia and keep it alive, avoiding further migration to the cities. If atmospheric pollution in urban areas is improved for the sake of air quality, if waste