Russia has become the world’s environmental donor as 20% of the world’s forests that absorb carbon dioxide are located in the country’s territory. This was reported by Vladimir Burmatov, Head of the State Duma Committee on Environmental Protection, during a press conference on ratification of the Paris Climate Agreement, at RIA Novosti on October 2.
“Russian forests are only comparable to forests in Latin America while the West often underestimates us claiming that the absorbing capacity of Russian forests is five times lower than that of German forests and twice as low as that of the forests in Finland. However, these calculations only apply to the forests involved in economic activity while there are vast woodlands that remain unaffected,” the parliament member said.
Vladimir Burmatov noted that Russia is the fourth largest country in the world for greenhouse gas emissions.
“We have been outrun by China (27% of emissions) and the United States (15%). Russia produces just over 4% of greenhouse gases, which is six times less than China. We managed to achieve such relatively low figures thanks to a well-directed policy,” he stressed.
The MP pointed out that Russia still has room for reducing its air emissions by 45%.