Water will rise in price in Russia

In 2007, water for water will grow by 15%. In general, the cost of consumption and use of water should grow 4-6 times, said Yuri Trutnev, Minister of Natural Resources of Russia at a government meeting. The increase will occur gradually, but soon enough the circle of payers can be expanded. According to Trutnev, absolutely all users must pay water tax. In addition, all consumers should urgently go on an accurate accounting for water flow, and pollution fines should increase many times, reports the new initiative of the Interfax Ministry of Natural Resources.

From January 1, 2007, payments for the use of water bodies, according to the new edition of the Water Code, will increase by 15%. In general, the government intends to further go to a significant increase in this fee, which should increase from 4 to 6 times, said Yuri Trutnev.

According to Trutnev, the main problem of ineffective use of the country's water economy is that it is too cheap. According to the minister, "water is a free resource, and the payment rate is such that it is not beneficial to save water or cleaning the discharges - the discharges are practically not cleaned." At the same time, the head of the Ministry of Premium said: "Everyone needs to pay for water." For example, introduce water tax for river transport and agriculture, which are now exempted from paying this fee. Another measure of tightening water control should be the widespread introduction of water meters.

In addition, the minister considers it a mandatory increase in fines for environmental pollution. According to Trutnev, today "the size of the fines is symbolic, insignificant, enterprises pay them, calculating several thousand rubles in the Mrots." At the same time, according to the official responsible for the natural wealth of Russia, the modernization of cleaning structures costs about 1 million rubles, "and not a single enterprise will begin reconstruction, while this is the ratio." “The fines must comply, amount to millions of rubles,” he emphasized.

The government decided to significantly increase fines for pollution of water resources, the discharge of large harmful substances into the rivers and the use of worn out resetting channels, cleaning structures. The government will also order the re -equipment of the observation network behind the floods and will conduct an inventory of hydraulic structures.

The minister said that he was worried about "the reluctance of the business to become the owner of hydraulic arms", which leads to the fact that no one is responsible for pollution of water bodies by unpeeled drains of various enterprises.

In order for the state to control the actions of water users, "all management issues as a whole must be transferred to a single stateganese - the Federal Agency for Water Resources," Trutnev believes. In turn, the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences Yuri Osipov proposed to revive a single system of environmental monitoring.

The head of the Ministry of Regional Development Vladimir Yakovlev agreed with Trutnev and announced the need to modernize the water system. In particular, Yakovlev announced the deplorable state of affairs in the housing and communal services, where the wear of the hydraulic equipment is 60%. “As a result, losses due to losses of hot and cold water reach up to 90 billion rubles a year,” Yakovlev emphasized.

Summing up the discussion, Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov noted that "these issues must be resolved purposefully and consistently." “What water, such is our life,” the prime minister summed up.

Minister Trutnev previously said that today only 70% of the water supplied to consumers comply with sanitary standards. “It is necessary to make 100%, human health is very important,” the minister emphasized.