Meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev

The Deputy Prime Minister briefed the head of state on the progress of the Ecological Well-Being national project, specifically focusing on measures to protect water bodies and to preserve and restore forests. They also discussed issues related to the agro-industrial complex, personnel training for the agricultural sector, and the state programme for rural development.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Where shall we begin? Let us start with the environment.

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev: Good. Mr President, thank you very much. I have a short presentation prepared: the second part covers environmental issues, while the first part focuses on agricultural matters. Let us begin with the environment. I think there is plenty to discuss in this area.

The key objectives we are currently addressing within the environmental and nature conservation block are included in the Ecological Well-Being national project. We have allocated over 800 billion rubles for its implementation until 2030, with six federal projects serving as instruments for achieving these goals.

Let me highlight several key areas of our work.

We are placing special emphasis on improving the health of water bodies. The activities under the national project will cover many major waterways: the Volga, the Ural, and the Angara. Accordingly, we continue to build and renovate hydraulic and wastewater treatment facilities. I would like to note that we are closely monitoring progress on wastewater treatment facilities at the special Government centre, with the participation of the relevant federal executive bodies and, most importantly, the regions concerned.

Next, a few words about forests. They are our "lungs" and account for one-fifth of the world's total forest reserves. Therefore, one of our key priorities is to conserve and restore them. Over the past six years, the area of newly planted forests has reached almost eight million hectares, and for several years now we have been gaining more forests than we are losing.

I would also like to emphasise the importance of protecting forests from fires. We had a challenging start to the season, but we managed to stabilise the situation by mid-July - something that usually does not happen until late summer. At present, both the area affected by fires and the number of fires are below the 2024 average and, most importantly, below the long-term average.

Major Cleanup is another notable federal project, which we use to clean up the environmental damage. The largest projects include the former Krasny Bor landfill in the Leningrad Region and industrial sites operated by Usolyekhimprom and the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill in the Irkutsk Region.

I have been to all these sites. Notably, the work is underway without issues and as scheduled, meaning that we plan to clean these sites up on time.

In addition, as part of this federal project, a list of other hazardous sites, at least 50, is being drawn up to be eliminated by 2030.

On a final note, a few words about the Closed-Cycle Economy federal project. You set the task of ensuring one hundred percent waste sorting by 2030 and reducing landfill disposal by 50 percent, with one quarter of the waste to be reused. We are working to achieve these goals across several areas at once. Above all, this involves building the necessary infrastructure. Around 300 waste management facilities have been built since the time the reform started. We will need to build another 400 over the next six years.

There are important details to it. In 2025, the Government made it possible to speed up the process in 19 regions facing infrastructure construction-related difficulties by having a state-owned Russian environmental operator act as a lead participant in the projects. This mechanism is expected to create 37 facilities.

Without a doubt, waste management reform starts with clean container sites in urban courtyards. We teamed up with the regions to mount photo and video cameras at the sites to ensure quality and, most importantly, timely waste removal. To ensure waste delivery to waste treatment facilities, the GLONASS system is used to track garbage lorries.

However, much remains to be brought up to standard in this regard. We teamed up with the Ministry of Natural Resources and, most importantly, with heads of regions, to set up an interagency headquarters to monitor progress of the reform at the Government level.

In short, that is all I wanted to say about the environmental protection efforts. If I may, I would like to go straight to the agricultural sector.

Vladimir Putin: I would like to clarify a point about the forests. You said we are restoring more forest than what?

Dmitry Patrushev: More than we are losing. Forests are lost to wildfires and to timber procurement processes. We engage in reforestation. We use our own seedlings and we are now planting more forest than we are losing. Overall, we have accomplished a lot.

Vladimir Putin: I am genuinely pleased to hear that.

Let's move to the next topic.

To be continued.