Sino-Russian environmental cooperation: past, present, and future

Abstract

In order to address vital environmental issues, China and Russia have established a set of cooperation mechanisms, such as the Sub-Committee on Environmental Protection of the Regular Meeting of the Prime Ministers of China and Russia. There is currently a multilevel environmental cooperation system between the two countries. In recent years, China and Russia have strengthened their ecological cooperation and have achieved certain results in the conservation of cross-border water resources and establishment of transboundary nature reserves. There are still, however, many problems to handle such as the discrepancies in legislation and the limited character of investment each of the countries is willing to make into environmental protection. Therefore, as the article shows, it is necessary to formulate a unified regulatory framework; to establish a resource protection zone; to enhance joint monitoring of the water quality in transboundary rivers as well as soil and air quality in adjacent areas; and, finally, to raise public awareness in both countries of environmental security and nature conservation. In 2017, Russia hosted the Year of Ecology, which was a good opportunity for both countries to promote information exchange and cooperation in the sphere of joint monitoring and governance, environmental legislation, and ecological education.