The Ecology Committee reviewed amendments to the Federal Law "On Specially Protected Natural Areas"

Svetlana Khodneva, State Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation, presented the report.
"The discussion was heated. Over the past five years, various bills partially regulating these issues have been introduced in the State Duma, but they have not found support. The Russian government proposed its own mechanisms, but not all of them were supported," said Dmitry Kobylkin, Committee Chairman.

The bill received proposals from regions, the Presidential Administration, the Security Council, federal agencies, public organizations, and nearly 1,500 citizen appeals. Representatives of the scientific and expert community, including Sergei Naidenko, Director of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution, and Vsevolod Stepanitsky, Co-Chair of the Expert Council on Nature Reserves, also presented their findings.

Many questions arise regarding the placement of federally significant sites and changes to the boundaries of specially protected natural areas.

The proposals and comments on the bill totaled 18 pages. They cover all the issues discussed at the meeting. After lengthy discussions, the deputies reached the following decisions:

1. Invite the Minister of Natural Resources to the plenary session to speak on this bill.

2. The Russian Ministry of Natural Resources is recommended to submit all draft regulations before the second reading.

3. All committee comments must be taken into account when finalizing the bill for the second reading.

Currently, Russia has approximately 12,000 specially protected natural areas, 341 of which are of federal significance. These include 112 nature reserves and 72 national parks. These protected areas occupy approximately 13% of the country's land area. Preserving this reserve while simultaneously enabling economic development and ensuring security is a balancing act.