Basyrov R.N. Foreign Experience of Legal Securing of Completion Works Performance by Subsoil Users

Abstract: The main issue addressed herein is the lack in the legislation of the Russian Federation of effective mechanism of legal securing of performance by subsoil users of reclamation works, abandonment of mining enterprises and different subsoil facilities, which are offered to be merged into a single group of works – «Completion works». The author pays attention to the fact that by the time when Completion works are to be performed, subsoil user may have been insolvent, and by virtue of the end of subsoil use process the sanction for non-compliance in the form of early termination of the subsoil use right becomes ineffective. The relevance of this topic is reinforced by existence of numerous waste and abandoned subsoil, which certainly exacerbates ecological problems on the territory of Russia. All this evidences that it is necessary to enshrine additional guarantees of such obligations performance by subsoil users in relevant legislation. Using methods of analysis, synthesis and comparison, the author investigates into foreign experience of legal securing of compliance by subsoil users with environmental requirements at subsoil use closing stage. This article analyzes mining legislation of the USA, several countries in Western Europe and CIS. The article concludes that money deposit method (formation of abandonment funds by subsoil users) has proved to be effective and is currently applied by a number of countries. Considering that such measures place a great burden on subsoil users, the author offers to ensure, on the first stage, that licensing authorities are familiar with subsoil users’ financial standing for the purposes of such authorities’ rapid response in case of their insolvency.

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