Environmental assessment in the Russian Federation: evolution through capacity building

The Russian Federation environmental assessment (EA) system comprises state environmental review (SER) undertaken by state authorities and assessment of environmental impacts (OVOS)undertaken by the developers. Despite significantprogress in the 1990s, integration between SER and OVOS, screening and scoping provisions and alignment with international approaches were often seen as problematic. These issues were addressed in the EIA Regulations issued in2000. However, the system immediately came under a major threat resulting from the closure of the Ministry of Environment. Supported by capacity-building efforts and strong networking,the Russian EA community has deflected this threat and enrolled various stakeholders into supporting EA, which now encompasses SER and OVOS components. Activities at regional level were a key element in these efforts.