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Letter of Instruction from the Russian Ministry
of Natural Resources’ Department of Environmental Protection
and Ecological Safety

October 23, 2000 #33-01-3/462

On Restricted Economic Activity inside State Nature Reserves

In view of recent enquiries regarding restricted economic activities inside nature reserves and their fenced-off areas, the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources’ Department of Environmental Protection reports:

Economic activities permitted inside state nature reserves are regulated by the Federal Law on Natural Protected Territories and the Regulations on State Nature Reserves in the Russian Federation adopted by the Russian Government Decree #48 (December 12, 1991) with subsequent amendments.

Specified types of restricted economic activities inside state nature reserves may be conducted only in strict accordance with the regulations of the reserve in question.

Economic exploitation of fenced-off areas is allowed only in accordance with regulations adopted by local executive authorities.

Inside restricted areas, cattle may graze only in those places specified in the reserve’s regulations and in compliance with the recommendations of the reserve’s Research Council (maximal livestock, limitations on goat pasturing, etc.) and with forest legislation requirements.

Forest husbandry, fire control and biotechnical activities, construction and repair of cordons, winter cabins, stationary buildings, bridges, other technical buildings, clearing of glades and paths, arrangement of eco-tourism routes, boundaries of reserves, forestries, guard routes and squares, fencing of individual areas, mowing, round-wood harvesting and firewood chopping must be included in the yearly plan of forestry and reservation/regulation enterprises.

This plan is prepared by the reserve’s guard departments in conjunction with other relevant departments. The plan is handed to members of the reserve’s Research Council, evaluated by the Research Council, and presented by the director of the reserve to the Ministry of Natural Resources’ Department of Environmental Protection and Ecological Safety (hereinafter “the Department”) for its consideration in accordance with established procedure. The plan is submitted together with an explanatory note and a copy of the minutes of the Research Council’s session presenting the course of discussion and the results of the voting. Where necessary, alterations and additions to the forest and reservation/regulation enterprises plan may be made during the year using the same procedure.

The reintroduction of various fauna and flora in restricted and fenced-off areas is permitted in strict accordance with the Federal Law on the Animal World and only after the subject has been considered by the Research Council and permitted by the Department.

The hunting of wild animals (including wolves and birds of the corvid family) inside reserves for scientific and regulatory purposes is permitted exclusively in compliance with the current Regulations adopted by Russian Nature Ministry Decree #24 (December 8, 1992). Inside reserves, hunting requires the written permission of the Department (except where small mammals, listed in the Regulation for scientific purposes, and invertebrates are concerned). Inside fenced-off areas, hunting is done in coordination with the Department and by permission of the respective regional governmental authorities (or in accordance with a different procedure as established by the Regulation of the Reserve’s Fenced-off Area).

Amateur fishing inside restricted areas by non-staff is permitted on rare occasions upon consideration by the Research Council and after the necessary amendments are made to the reserve’s current regulations.

Coordination of the above-mentioned actions with other governmental authorities may be required.

For example, when carrying out the actions mentioned above in the Forest Fund, the following variants are possible:

1. Transfer of forest areas to the category of non-forest areas for forestry-related purposes and exploitation of the Forest Fund. Such a transfer may be done by appropriate forest authorities.
2. Transfer of forest areas to the category of non-forest areas for non-forestry-related purposes and exploitation of the Forest Fund. Such a transfer may be done in compliance with Russian Government Decree #1200 On the Procedure for the Transfer of Forest Areas to the Category of Non-Forest Areas for Non-Forestry-Related Purposes, Exploitation of the Forest Fund, and/or Requisitioning of the Forest Fund Area.

The following activities should be coordinated with the regional centers of sanitary and epidemiological regulation for ratification of fulfillment of anti-epidemiological enterprises and for purposes of meeting sanitary and hygienic rules and standards:

• choice of plots of land for construction purposes;
• settlements planning and arrangement;
• designing, construction and reconstruction of buildings and networks, putting them into operation;
• choice of water sources to be used for water supply and recreation;
• water supply for drinking and household purposes;
• garbage collection, recycling, disposal and reutilization.

Construction and reconstruction of buildings should be coordinated with the regional offices of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Fire Control Service for fire prevention.

Coordination of allocation areas of buildings, as well as expert examination of construction projects and other town-planning documents, should be done by regional or municipal architecture and construction authorities of the Russian State Committee on Construction, Housing and Communal Complex.

In supplying drinking water to people living inside the reserve, all actions must be coordinated with the Russian Center for Sanitary and Epidemiological Regulation. The licensing of water consumption by regional offices of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources is required only when the drinking and household water requirements of reserve residents, construction of buildings, piers and other structures (except for water-detention structures), involve one or more of the following:

• stationary, mobile and floating structures for mechanical and self-flowing diversion from surface water objects;
• drainage systems to be used for communal and household waste disposal into surface water objects;
• dams, sluices and other water-regulating constructions (including temporary dams);
• hydroelectric power stations (reservoir, diversion, tidal, pumped-hydro-storage stations).

State nature reserves do not need a license for water usage when exploiting water objects without application of constructions, engineered features and facilities (general water use).

To supply water to reserve residents, state nature reserves may use underground waters not listed in the state registry, and construct and use wells for the first water-bearing horizon if the latter is not used as a source of drinking water.

Borehole drilling for central and decentralized water supplies requires a license. Underground water usage for a drinking water supply may be licensed by the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and its local authorities in compliance with the Regulation on Licensing Procedure for Drilling adopted by Russian Supreme Soviet Decree #3314-1 (June 15, 1992).

Decisions on the entry of reserves into associations and other profit and non-profit organizations, establishment of companies, self-supporting laboratories and other enterprises, whether or not associated with direct nature exploitation inside reserves, on the basis of reserves, can only be made by the Research Councils.

Consider invalid the Letter of Instruction from the Russian Ministry of Ecology (February 19, 1992 #268/NG) On Restricted Economic Activity within Territories of the State Nature Reserves.

The above information should be made known to the staff of all reserves.

A.M. Amirkhanov,
Head of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources’ Department
of Environmental Protection and Ecological Safety

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