International conference “Cleaner production as a contribution to sustainable development” is finishing in Moscow tomorrow. The aim of the cleaner production system is to minimize impact of industry, agriculture, transport and living complexes on environment. Russian-Norwegian Center, supported by Ministries of Natural Resources, has been implementing the Program in Russia for 10 years. Valentin Stepankov, Russian deputy minister of natural resources, said that implementation of this system allows to come to a model of sustainable development. The model will decrease impact on environment by establishing systems of rational use of the world natural resources. “The Cleaner production” program has proved the possibility of resource consuming reduction without new and expensive technologies, RBC daily reports.

The program was started in Russia after intergovernmental agreement about environmental safety cooperation between Russia and Norway in 1994. Nowadays 558 small and large Russian enterprises are implementing “The Cleaner Production” Program. The Program works in St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Republic of Karelia, Archangelsk, Murmansk, Lipetsk, Kaliningrad, Leningrad and other Russian regions.

Specialists of Russian Ministry of Natural Resources predict great economical and environmental effect in case the Program is implemented in the majority of the Russian enterprises. Unfortunately, the Program has been implemented not everywhere, because some directors of big Russian enterprises are not interested in impact reduction on the environment.