Federal law ‘On specially protected natural territories’

On March 14, 1995 the President of the Russian Federation B. N. Yeltsin signed a Federal law ‘On specially protected natural territories’. The law was adopted by the State Duma on February 15, 1995.

The law determined the concepts, the essential principals of use and protection of the specially protected natural territories (OOPT), their patterns of ownership, the powers of federal organs of government and organs of government of the Russian Federation regions and local authorities.

Under the law the specially protected natural territories represent the areas of land, water and aerial space over them containing the natural complexes and facilities of a special conservation, scientific, cultural, esthetic, recreational and health-improving significance. The basic element of protection of this type of territories is the limitation or the absolute prohibition of economical activities on them.

The law defines the following OOPT categories: state natural reserves, including biosphere ones; national parks; natural parks; state natural wildlife preserves, monuments of nature; dendrological parks and botanical gardens; health-improving areas and health resorts.

The law regulates the relationship in the field of organization, protection and use of the specially protected natural territories in order to preserve the unique and typical natural complexes and facilities, natural sites, objects of flora and fauna, their genetic fond, study of natural processes in biosphere and control of its state, ecological education of the population.

The law ‘On specially protected natural territories’ provided a legal basis for creation on the federal level in the regions of the Russian Federation the  specially protected natural territories of local significance. Moreover for the first time the legislative act of the Russian Federation stipulated the right of the Russian government, the bodies of executive power of the Russian Federation regions and the local authorities to establish other categories of the specially protected natural territories. The law also stipulated for a special order of earning the status of OOPT. Some parts of the Law define the organization of OOPT protection and responsibilities for breaking the OOPT routine. According to article 36 of the Law, breaking of OOPT routine results in criminal liability.

At present there are over 200 specially protected natural territories of the federal level in Russia with the total area of about 580 thousand square meters.

Lit.: Боголюбов С. А., Журавлёва Л. В. Организация использования отдельно взятого объекта особо охраняемых природных территорий / Право и экономика. 2010. № 10; Галиновская Е. А., Кичигин Н. В., Пономарёв М. В. Комментарий к Федеральному закону «Об особо охраняемых природных территориях». М., 2006; Галиновская Е. А. О правовых основах образования системы особо охраняемых природных территорий в России / Журнал российского права. 2010. № 5; Дубовик О. Л. Экологическое право: Учебник. М., 2011; Игнатьева И. А. Консолидация в экологическом законодательстве России: теоретические проблемы и перспективы применения / Экологическое право. 2008. № 1; Никитин В. В. Правовые основы охраны особых природных территорий в субъектах Российской Федерации. М., 2005; Об особо охраняемых природных территориях: Федеральный закон от 14 марта 1995 г. № 33-ФЗ // Собрание законодательства Российской Федерации от 20 марта 1995 г. N 12 ст. 1024; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://base.garant.ru/10107990.htm#doc; ООПТ России: информационно-справочная система [Электронный ресурс] URL: http://oopt.info/index.php?page=1.

Based on the Presidential Library’s materials:

Natural Wealth of Russia: [digital collection];

The decree “On federal natural resources” took effect // On this day. 16 December.