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Putin urges to work on expanding reserves, national parks in Russia

The president noted that due to its inherent natural advantages, Russia might occupy a special place in the global carbon market

ST. PETERSBURG, June 4. /TASS/. Russia should expand the area of forests, reserves, national parks, and increase the effectiveness of their use, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2021) on Friday.

He noted that due to its inherent natural advantages, Russia might occupy a special place in the global carbon market. In order to achieve this, it is necessary to increase the effectiveness of the use of woods and land, raise their absorbency, the head of state pointed out.

"Specifically increase the area by reforestation, fight forest fires, expand the territories of intact nature: reserves, national parks," the president explained. "Actually, that’s what we’ve been doing. And intend to do in the future, implementing new agricultural resoiling technologies," he added.

According to Putin, here, Russia can achieve "a triple effect at once." First, by investing in forest protection, in land enrichment, the country will increase the ecological well-being of its citizens. "Secondly, we will create jobs in a new high-technology industry of utilization of greenhouse gases. Thirdly, we will provide our own additional factor of the competitiveness of our exporters on external markets," the head of state said.

He noted that this concerns many of those in attendance at the SPIEF plenary session. "I am asking to understand this as a direct message to those Russian companies that are buying or are already thinking about buying carbon units abroad, are planning to do so in the future," Putin noted. Instead, he thinks it is necessary to invest in climate projects in Russia. "In the end, it will be more advantageous to those who do it. This work will be more effective. And it includes long-term prospects," the Russian president concluded.