Restriction of Movement and Parking of Vehicles in Water Protection Zones: Defects in Legal Regulation

Abstract

The paper considers the restrictions on the movement and parking of vehicles in water protection zones established by the Russian legislation in terms of their compliance with the goals of protecting water bodies from pollution and maintaining the quality of water resources favorable for humans, as well as the compliance of the established restrictions with the principle of proportionality. The author proves the presence of legislative defects that prevent the achievement of the above goals of legal regulation. Such defects are: 1) the uncertainty of the concept of «vehicle», which makes it possible to refer to them as means of individual mobility that have an insignificant impact on the environment; 2) lack of consideration of the need to organize the transportation of passengers and the delivery of goods to residents of buildings located in water protection zones, access roads which do not have a hard surface; 3) lack of consideration of the need to organize the movement of vehicles in the winter on seasonal roads (winter roads). According to the author, the identified defects reduce the effectiveness of the established restrictions and create high corruption risks. The author formulated proposals for improving Russian legislation.