Speaking at his annual address to parliament on Tuesday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev instructed regional governors to report on the environmental situation annually.
"I instruct the heads of the subjects to report on the environmental situation in their territories every year," Medvedev said.
Tackling environmental problems should be one of the criteria when assessing the efficiency of regional governors, he said.
He said it would be reasonable to grant "environmental amnesty" to companies ready to compensate for damage done to the environment.
"Some experts believe that it is necessary to grant 'environmental amnesty' if a company makes the commitment to make production more ecological in the territory in which it is operating," the president said. "I think the idea is reasonable."
MOSCOW, November 30 (RIA Novosti)
