The Tavricheskiy Palace hosted the Plenary Session of the VII Nevsky International Ecological Congress.

Valentina Matvienko emphasized that Russia had always been open for cooperation for the sake of environment and nature preservation. This is proved by the recent official meeting of Ministers of Environment of BRICS countries in Moscow, Russia’s participation in UN Programs and international and environmental conventions.

According to the Chairperson of the IPA CIS Counsil, in spite of a number of unsolved challenges, Russia is serious about the environmental safety and has enacted a significant number of laws aimed at implementing new eco-friendly and protecting technologies.

The most important vectors of work among others are raising awareness and environmental responsibility and developing ecological tourism.

The environmental component should be integrated in each and every economic activity and implementation of stricter rules and regulations is one of the effective tools to ensure environmental safety.

Nuclear safety and nuclear disarmament were also spotlighted as important factors of environmental safety.

Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of Russia Sergey Donskoy also agreed that ensuring environmental safety for Russian citizens is one of the key priorities of the country. He believes that the results of the VII Nevsky International Congress will attract more investments in environmental projects and help to rise to numerous challenges.

Mayor of St. Petersburg Georgiy Poltavchenko referred to St. Petersburg as to the birthplace of environmental initiatives, it was among the first Russian cities that had adopted environmental policy to 2030.

Foreign representatives also delivered their speeches during the Plenary Session.