President of Russia Vladimir Putin signed a law stipulating simplified environmental impact assessments during construction of social and transport infrastructure facilities in the Arctic zone.

The bill was drafted in order to streamline the procedure for conducting environmental assessments of design forms and records for building or overhauling permanent facilities in the Russian Arctic.

Under the document, specific requirements for conducting federal-level state environmental impact assessments shall not apply to the design forms and records of social and transport infrastructure facilities that are on a list stipulated by the Government of the Russian Federation. The same also concerns facilities being built or overhauled within the Russian Arctic’s communities located outside specially protected natural areas.

Simplified environmental expert check requirements will also apply to inter-municipal motorways, due to be built and overhauled outside communities,  specially protected natural areas.