Belarusian Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Andrei Khudyk took part in the 8th meeting of the CIS Interstate Environmental Council, BelTA learned from the press service of the ministry.

The agenda included the most pressing issues of environmental cooperation in the spirit of mutual trust and support, including the possibilities of convergence of approaches and approximation of national legislations in the field of environmental protection, measures to respond to climate change, exchange of experience in waste management, development of appropriate infrastructures for "green technologies".

"Today, the situation in the world remains complex and difficult to predict. The old challenges and risks remain while new ones emerge. The world has indeed entered a time of turbulence, with the universal mechanisms of international interaction going away. That is why it seems vital to deepen integration based on the coherent approaches," Andrei Khudyk said in his speech. “In modern conditions, in the context of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, we should be proactive in terms of international activities within the framework of the new global climate agenda, joint actions in such areas as the EAEU roadmap on the global climate agenda, the promotion of the green economy principles and mechanisms, safe packaging, reducing the use of plastic and increasing the use of waste at all stages of production.”

The minister also stressed the need to exchange the best national practices on the introduction of national systems for monitoring, reporting and verification of greenhouse gas emissions, the restoration of degraded peatlands and the use of lowland and wooded ecosystems as greenhouse gas sinks. Andrei Khudyk proposed to consider the possibility of applying common methods for calculating emissions of pollutants in the CIS, which would be consistent with the provisions of the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution.

Written by: belta.by