Main Geographical, SocialEconomic and Ecological Indicators of Russia and the Current System of Envi

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Main Geographical, Social-Economic and Ecological
Indicators of Russia and the Current System of
Environmental Management

• Area total 17,075,200 sq km land 16,995,800
  sq km water 79,400 sq km coastline 37,653
  km. Area - comparative approximately 1.8 times
  the size of the US.
• Natural resources wide natural resource base
  including major deposits of oil, natural gas,
  gold, diamonds, coal, and many strategic
  minerals, timber, different marine resources
  note formidable obstacles of climate, terrain,
  and distance hinder exploitation of natural
  resources.
• Natural hazards permafrost over much of Siberia
  is a major impediment to development volcanic
  activity in the Kuril Islands volcanoes and
  earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula spring
  floods and summer/autumn forest fires throughout
  Siberia, Far East and parts of European Russia.
• Population 142,893,540 (July 2006 est.), in 2.0
  times less than in the US. Population growth
  rate -0.37 (2006 est.).
• Life expectancy at birth total population 67.08
  years male 60.45 years female 74.1 years
  (2006 est.).

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• Environment - current issues air pollution from
  heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric
  plants, and transportation in major cities
  industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution
  of inland waterways and seacoasts deforestation
  soil erosion soil contamination from improper
  application of agricultural chemicals scattered
  areas of sometimes intense radioactive
  contamination groundwater contamination from
  toxic waste urban solid waste management
  abandoned stocks of obsolete pesticides.
• Environment - international agreements party to
  Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
  Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental
  Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
  Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
  Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
  Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
  Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
  Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
  Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not
  ratified Air Pollution-Sulfur 94.
• Administrative divisions 7 Federal Districts
  with in total - 88 territories (48 oblasts 21
  republics 9 autonomous okrugs 7 krays 2
  federal cities and 1 autonomous oblast).
• Economy - overview Russia ended 2005 with its
  seventh straight year of growth, averaging 6.4
  annually since the financial crisis of 1998.
  Although high oil prices and a relatively cheap
  ruble are important drivers of this economic
  rebound, since 2000 investment and
  consumer-driven demand have played a noticeably
  increasing role.

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• Strong oil export earnings have allowed Russia to
  increase its foreign reserves from only 12
  billion to some 180 billion at yearend 2005.
  These achievements, along with a renewed
  government effort to advance structural reforms,
  have raised business and investor confidence in
  Russia's economic prospects.
• Nevertheless, serious problems persist. Economic
  growth slowed to 5.9 for 2005 while inflation
  remains high (11). Oil, natural gas, metals, and
  timber account for more than 80 of exports,
  leaving the country vulnerable to swings in world
  prices.
• Other problems include a weak banking system, a
  poor business climate that discourages both
  domestic and foreign investors, corruption, and
  widespread lack of trust in institutions. State
  control has increased in the past year with a
  number of large acquisitions. Most fundamentally,
  Russia has made little progress in building the
  rule of law, the bedrock of a modern market
  economy.
• Unemployment rate 7.6 plus considerable
  underemployment (2005 est.). Population below
  poverty line 27.8 (2005). Poverty line 2602
  rubles (96.4) per month. 69.6 of working
  population has income per person below 7000
  rubles (259) per month.
• Household income or consumption by percentage
  share lowest 10 1.7 highest 10 38.7
  difference in 22.8 times (2005).

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• Industries complete range of mining and
  extractive industries producing coal, oil, gas,
  chemicals, and metals all forms of machine
  building from rolling mills to high-performance
  aircraft and space vehicles defense industries
  including radar, missile production, and advanced
  electronic components, shipbuilding road and
  rail transportation equipment communications
  equipment agricultural machinery, tractors, and
  construction equipment electric power generating
  and transmitting equipment medical and
  scientific instruments consumer durables,
  textiles, foodstuffs, handicrafts.
• Oil - production 9.15 million bbl/day (2005
  est.). Oil exports 5.15 million bbl/day
  (2005). Oil - proved reserves 69 billion bbl
  (2003 est.). Natural gas - production 587
  billion cu m (2005 est.). Natural gas - exports
  157.2 billion cu m (2005 est.). Natural gas -
  proved reserves 47.57 trillion cu m (2003).
• Exports 245 billion (2005 est.). Exports -
  commodities petroleum and petroleum products,
  natural gas, wood and wood products, metals,
  chemicals, and a wide variety of civilian and
  military manufactures. Imports 125 billion
  (2005 est.). Imports - commodities machinery and
  equipment, consumer goods, medicines, meat,
  sugar, semi-finished metal products.

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The Current System of Environmental Management (a
structure of the RF Ministry of Natural Resources
- MNR)

• MNR

Minister
Collegium
Advisers
Deputy Minister for Natural Recourse Use
Deputy Minister for Environmental Protection
Depart-ment of State Policy
Department of Economic and Finance
Department of Science and Informational Systems
Department of International Cooperation
Legal Depart-ment
Department of State Policy in Environmental
Protection
Federal Agency for Supervision on Environmental
Management
Federal Agency for Forest Recourse Management
Federal Agency for Mineral Resource Management
Federal Agency for Water Recourse Management
Regional departments in 88 territories of the
Russian Federation
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Russian Far East
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Russian Far-East A Gateway of Russia in
Asian-Pacific Region

• The Far Eastern Federal District of the Russian
  Federation (Russian Far East RFE) more that
  two-third the size of the United States. The RFE
  covers 6.63 million sq. km, or 40 of Russian
  territory. The Republic of Sakha alone is twice
  the size of Alaska. Includes 10 territories of
  Russia.
• Ecologically there are four main vegetation
  belts (1) Arctic tundra grows in a thin belt
  along the Artic Ocean coastline (2) Tundra grows
  farther south (3) Taiga, the large mass of
  boreal forest that forms the heart of RFE (4)
  Conifer-broadleaved forests grow below the taiga
  zone along the Sikhote-Alin Mountain Range.
• Natural Resources (1) a huge RF reserve of coal,
  oil and gas (2) gold and silver reserves (3)
  the worlds second reserve in diamonds (4) major
  supplies of platinum and palladium (4) other
  important metals iron, tin, antimony, tungsten,
  mercury, lead, and zinc (5) an important RF
  reserve of forest (timber) resources (6) marine
  resources about 80 of Russian reserves (crab,
  pollock, salmon, herring, flatfishes, shrimp,
  scallops, sea cucumbers, seaweed, and sea
  urchins).

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Russian Far-East A Gateway of Russia in
Asian-Pacific Region

• Economic importance of RFE in the Russian
  Federation
• About 75 of Russian fish and marine production
• Virtually all of Russias diamonds and tin
• About 50 of the countrys gold
• About 10 of all timber production and 30 of log
  export
• About 25 of Russian platinum
• About 14 of coal production and 40 of the
  countrys
• total reserves
• Almost 50 of all lead
• More than 90 of fluorspar
• A growing percentage of Russias oil and gas
  production
• and exports
• A very important marine and railroad
  transportation unit of
• Russia in economic cooperation with the
  countries of the
• North-Eastern and Asian-Pacific regions.

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Russian Far-East A Gateway of Russia in
Asian-Pacific Region

• Major environmental issues and problem areas