The Environmental Potential of Sanitary Protection Zones and the Role of Self-Regulatory Organizations in the Construction Industry in the Projects’ Development of Unified Sanitary Protection Zones

Abstract

Based on the analysis of studies of Russian and foreign scientists-economists, legal scholars, as well as representatives of various areas of natural sciences, this article examines the legal regime of sanitary protection zones. It is shown that now the regulatory framework, which allows establishing the sanitary protection zones according to the industrial facilities classification, has been created in Russia. The requirements for limiting economic activity within the boundaries of such zones are fixed too. However, the classification of industrial enterprises, which was developed in the early 2000s, seems to be out of date and needs to be reviewed. In addition, the Russian legislation does not fix the obligation of operating organizations to green the territory of sanitary protection zones. This gap has been eliminated in some municipalities through the adoption of local self-government acts, which establish requirements for the greening extent and improvement of sanitary protection zones. At the same time, the federal legislation does not regulate the issue of developing uniform sanitary protection zones for several industrial enterprises. It is advisable to foresee the formulation of recommendations on sanitary protection zones’ greening and the development of projects of unified sanitary protection zones within the framework of self-regulatory organizations (SRO) that unite entrepreneurs operating industrial facilities. It is also necessary to fix obligatory requirements in the rules and standards of SROs in the construction industry for property developers to landscape the adjacent to the construction site areas. At the same time, various compensation mechanisms for the costs of landscaping sanitary protection zones can be established in federal, regional and local legislation.