Russia Develops Environment Protection Measures To Accompany Chemical Disarmament

The Russian Ministry of Natural Resources has worked out measures to protect the environment and provide for environmental safety to meet some of its obligations in the area of chemical disarmament. According to the ministry press service, within the framework of the federal targeted program "Destruction of Chemical Weapons Stockpile in the Russian Federation," the ministry is responsible, in particular, for carrying out state environmental expert evaluation and implementing projects to build chemical weapons destruction facilities. The Natural Resources Ministry is also mandated to provide state control over nature protection and make sure all the standards of environmental safety are followed in the process of storing and disposing of chemical weapons, the press service said. The ministry has developed a pilot project to build a site for testing environmental protection measures, which accompany storage and destruction of chemical weapons. The ministry conducts the relevant scientific research to help improve environmental safety and carries out environmental expert evaluation of project documents, the press service stressed.