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In order to make the transition to a low-carbon economy and sustainable transport system and solve environmental and climate problems, many countries are replacing traditional cars that run on petroleum fuels with electric cars. Unlike vehicles with an internal combustion engine (ICE), electric vehicles' emissions from the operation phase are practically zero, but this is not the case if we consider the full life cycle. In this paper, we briefly describe the electric vehicle market, examine the life-cycle emissions of electric cars and ICE cars. The novelty of this study is in a methodological approach to the economic assessment of the negative impact of emissions from road transport and in a comparative assessment of the external costs of cars that run on traditional and alternative fuels. We applied the methodology of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which allows calculating country-specific and time-adjusted value of a statistical life. In this paper the characteristics of Russia's energy balance and automotive market are considered. We came to results that, in general, in this country electric cars are more environmentally friendly and contribute less to climate change than cars with internal combustion engines. The external costs caused by life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of an electric car are lower than similar emissions from a traditional car. The external costs caused by emissions of pollutants from the electric car operation phase are lower than external costs caused by emissions from an ICE car. The proposed study could be of interest for policymakers in other countries to develop measures for sustainable transport system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the materials of research conducted in the North of European Russia since 2004. We have studied soil, water and bottom sediments of rivers and lakes, biomaterials of the river inhabitants, and ground vegetation. For more than a 10-year period were accumulated actual data on concentrations of mercury in various components of the ecosystem of the mouth area of the Northern Dvina River, especially the interesting situation with the environment around pulp and paper mills (PPM). The main factor determining the amount of mercury in the environment is the presence of a source of income it. And for this region natural sources of mercury have not been identified, but it’s interesting to note that for the selected region is characterized by the presence of a large number of pulp and paper mills, the production cycle of which included mercury (associated with obtaining chlorine used for paper bleaching). In the press there are reports that before the early 2000s, the largest company in the industry located in the mouth region of the Northern Dvina River – leading pulp and paper mill of Russia – Arkhangelskiy PPM was observed discharges of mercury-containing waste into the river. However, since 2004 there is evidence of a gradual transition of APPM on the use of imported chlorine and commissioning method of producing chlorine without the use of mercury. Today Arkhangelskiy PPM – is one of Europe's leading wood-chemical enterprises, located 15 km upstream the Northern Dvina River from the city of Arkhangelsk. The history of this plant began in 1940, when it was launched-paper industry, and now this is one of the largest Russian manufacturers of paperboard, packaging, pulp and exercise-books. At the Arkhangelsk pulp and paper mill since 2004, operates an environmental management system that meets the requirements of international standard ISO 14001. However, during the production using the technological cycle of mercury, this metal and its compounds fell into different components of the environment, where processes of accumulation, transformation and movement were ongoing. Necessary to specify that for a period of 10 years of observations of mercury concentrations in aquifers of the mouth area of the Northern Dvina River tend to decrease. So, if you compare the value of mercury content in water in 2004 and 2014 - the average concentration has decreased in 4,5 times. In our view this shows a reduction in revenues of mercury-containing wastewater directly into the river. Of course, this process cannot happen quickly because for such a long time period local pollution has undergone all elements of the River ecosystem of the mouth area of the Northern Dvina. Significant stocks of mercury accumulated in bottom sediments. We identified elevated concentrations of mercury in near-bottom horizon, which tells about the influence of bottom sediments on the flow of mercury in the water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Barents Euro-Arctic Council (BEAC) is the forum for inter-governmental cooperation on issues concerning the Barents region. BEAC unites 13 regions of 4 member countries – Finland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden. The Working Group on Environment (WGE) deals with major environmental challenges. Back in 2003, BEAC issued the Barents Environmental Hot Spots List, which included 42 major polluters located in the Russian part of the Barents region [1]. WGE worked out the “Criteria and Procedure” approach aimed at promoting joint efforts of Hot Spot owners, authorities and financers to design, fund and implement relevant environmental action projects. Owners of several Hot Spots developed and implemented such plans and improved environmental performance of their installations. In 2017, it was suggested considering opportunities of the new Russian legislation on Best Available Techniques (BAT) [2] to set criteria for excluding industrial installations from Hot Spot List. Full Track Procedure associated with the new legislation was approved. Two pilot installations – Mondi Syktyvkar Pulp & Paper Plant (Mondi PPP, located in the Republic of Komi) and Petrozavodsk Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant (Petrozavodsk MWWTP), situated in the Republic of Karelia) – volunteered to be excluded by the Full-Track Procedure. Both installations had completed environmental reconstruction programmes in 2013-2019 and agreed to participate in the procedure, retrospectively describing all steps included in the Full Track Procedure. For Pulp & Paper sector, Reference Document on BAT (BREF) was issued in Russia in 2015 [3]. In 2019, BAT-associated Emission Limit Values (BAT-AELs) were officially approved by the Order of the Ministry for Natural Resources and Environment. In Russia, it is decided to regulate Municipal Wastewater Treatment (MWWT) sector by BAT approaches; the first BREF was drawn up in 2015 [4] and reviewed in 2019. Still, BAT-AELs have not been approved yet, though they are clearly described in the BREF. In 2019, Russian and Nordic experts worked out BAT-associated specific exclusion criteria both for Mondi PPP and Petrozavodsk MWWTP. These criteria were discussed with and approved by the regional and international stakeholders. Action plans were prepared in accordance with BAT legislation as Environmental Performance Enhancement Programmes (EPEPs) aimed at meeting BAT-based exclusion criteria. EPEPs were submitted to the Inter-Departmental Commission co-ordinated by the Ministry for Industry and Trade, assessed by BAT experts and approved by the Commission. Thus, Mondi PPP and Petrozavodsk MWWTP obtained official documents stating that they had meet BAT-AELs and can be excluded from the Hot Spot List as installations compliant with the requirements of Best Available Techniques. In 2020, the decision to exclude both pilot installations from the Hot Spot List was officially approved by the Ministers of Environment of Finland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the Russian Federation, according to the United Nations, the area covered by forest is 8.5 million km². Due to the available sufficient reserves of forest resources, the enterprises of the timber industry complex have developed significantly. In the conditions of a modern competitive economy, for the purpose of their further development, timber industry enterprises are forced to maintain investment activity at a high level, to optimize technological processes and modernize production equipment. The article present the analysis of investment projects of the largest forest industry enterprises of the Arkhangelsk region of the Russian Federation (Arkhangelsk Pulp and Paper Mill JSC, Sawmill 25, CJSC). At the same time, factors to reduce the cost of raw materials for processing enterprises of the forest complex are considered, and a comparison of the types of round timber transportation is presented. The dynamics of timber supply is considered on the example of the enterprises of the Arkhangelsk region. In Russia, forest use is unsustainable. Currently, the estimated cutting area in the Arkhangelsk region is just over 20 million m³. At the same time, the volume of logging is only half of the calculated cutting area. The main reason for this is the underdevelopment of the road network necessary for the removal of harvested wood. This leads to the fact that the allocated logging fund is currently located geographically unevenly and to places where there are timber carrying roads. The road network needs to be expanded, but in modern economic conditions it is extremely difficult to do, therefore, where possible, it is necessary to develop the transportation of timber along natural transport arteries - rivers. At the same time, the method of rafting in timber transport units is the most economically viable. At present, small and medium-sized rivers are practically not used for timber rafting due to the small dimensions of the timber rafting. To include them in the logistics of transport processes, it is necessary to complement the existing technologies of rafting round timber. The article present the analysis of modern developments of rafting units suitable for rafting in conditions of limited dimensions of the wood-alloy course, examines the main scientific developments for determining the hydrodynamic and inertial characteristics of rafting and forest transport units, presents the results of mathematical planning and classical study of the hydrodynamic characteristics of rulers from flat rafting units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing demand for enhancement in the management of production and consumption wastes in the megacities with the goal of sustainable development of the urban environment and environmental safety of the population. In this paper, the creation of integrated systems for processing, utilization and disposal of municipal solid waste has been investigated. Such integrated systems are considered as eco-technoparks. In this study, the examples of eco-technopark organization in the in the European Union (EU) countries are reviewed, and the method of a context analysis in the creation of the eco-technoparks is considered. As it is shown in the ISO 14001 standard requirements it is important to consider both internal and external environment and understand the unique context of an organization before starting the strategic planning. PESTLE analysis is considered one of the types of contextual analysis which is the basis for consideration of key factors (political, economic, sociological, technological, legal and environmental) that affect the organizational environment. This analysis is flexible and different organizations can use it in various scenarios. In this paper, it was proved that conducting context analysis during developing eco-technoparks will help the organization identify risks and opportunities and make the right decisions when problems arise. It is shown that when creating eco-technoparks in the regions of Russia, it is advisable to take into account the special aspects of the territories, the corresponding resource requirements and the ability to ensure timely and efficient processing of municipal solid waste. It is noted that eco-technoparks can become one of the mechanisms for restoring scientific and technical potential, developing scientific and production activities in the field of waste management in the country. The ecotechnoparks allow to reduce the volume of waste disposal and increase the level of use of secondary raw materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Russian Federation has the largest Arctic coastline and the highest level of population among the other Arctic nations. The Arctic region of the Russian Federation occupies the territory of more than 3 million square kilometers. It is the Mother land of more than 2 million people. The Arctic zone is a unique geographical, climatic and ecological region. It is considered to be a special object of the state administration. The importance of the sustainable development in the Arctic region is determined by the national interests of the Russian Federation. The sustainable development in the Arctic is the main priority of the Russian state policy on the regional level. However, at the present moment the development of the Arctic is influenced by a number of factors that need to be taken into account for shaping sustainable development strategy. The most significant objective of scientific support for the development of the Russian Arctic region is to preserve ecosystems, creating efficient life support technologies, providing large-scale scientific projects, etc. The study of the Russian Arctic region includes forming principles, methods, strategies, management system for sustainable development. The paper discusses the features of sustainable development in the Arctic region of the Russian Federation. The theoretical aspects of sustainable development are considered. It gives a brief review of the regulatory documents keeping control on the development of the region. The paper analyses some specific factors having impact on the development in the Arctic region, which determine the whole complex of problems for the long-term sustainable development. The recommendations for shaping concept of sustainable development in the Arctic region are given. The principles of sustainable development in the Russian Arctic region are formulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solid waste disposal facilities are sources of significant negative impact on the environment. In this paper, waste disposal facilities (landfills, dumps, sludge and manure storage facilities, etc.) are considered as open geo-ecological systems that constantly interact with the environment through the flows of substances and energies. Factors that increase the negative impact of landfills are waste fires, as well as accumulation of explosive gases, especially methane. Due to the fact that a municipal solid waste landfill is a source of increased environmental and fire hazards, the purpose of this paper which is to study specific features of the estimation-based monitoring of a solid waste landfill during its operation, is of vital importance. Methodologically, the study is based on the application of modern information technologies, software systems of simulation modeling. In the framework of this study, the features of the estimation-based monitoring of waste disposal facilities through the example of municipal solid waste landfill "Chaplygino" in the Kursk region are studied. The paper presents the results of the risk assessment for the case of methane explosion at the MSW landfill "Chaplygino"; the prediction and assessment of the situation in case of a fire breaking-out at the landfill with subsequent transition to a forest fire. Modeling the development of various emergency situations (explosions and fires) at waste disposal facilities provides timely identification of areas with individual risk indicators exceeding permissible values, planning preventive measures for the effective protection of the territories of the Russian Federation, and also allows formulating methodological recommendations aimed at reducing environmental and fire hazards of waste disposal facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the changes of trends in temperature and precipitation in the Azov sea basin. The nature of this territory has undergone major changes. It is an important agricultural and industrial area. The paper considers changes in temperature and precipitation at stations located mainly in the steppe zone. Maximum, minimum, mean air temperature and precipitation trends on a seasonal and annual time scale are evaluated from data recorded at twelve weather stations in the basin of Azov sea during the period 1966–2015. Since the 70s of the twentieth century, there has been a monotonous increase in air temperature. The warmest years not only for Russia, but also for the Northern hemisphere and the globe as a whole were 2007, 2002, 2005 and 2004. Analysis of maximum air temperature values showed that the warmest years in the basin were 2010, 2007, and 2015. The minimum temperatures were recorded in 1987, 1976, 1992-1993 years. Over the past 15-20 years there have been significant changes in climate features. Annual and season changes are analyzed. It is established a steady warming trend. An increase in annual temperatures by 0.4-2.8 °C, January - by 2.6-3.1 °C and July - by 0.7- 2.1 °C. The study of air temperature by season showed that winter become warmer by 1.1 - 5.8 °C. The precipitation trend is less noticeable. In the winter and autumn periods there is an increase in the amount of precipitation. In the spring the amount of precipitation increases for all the stations under. In summer precipitation changes complicatedly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research is to identify the key features and main components of the successful integration of cloud technologies into the infrastructure of modern business. This paper gives a general overview of cloud technologies, including the overall stages of their development, and highlights the main advantages of integrating cloud technologies into modern business. Cloud technologies are rapidly gaining popularity around the world. Besides business, they have spread to almost every person and have become an integral attribute for a modern network user. Today, the topic of cloud technologies is one of the most popular and burning issues within IT. Cloud computing is the provision of computing power through the Internet, including data storage facilities, applications, software, and other resources. The cloud services market is one of the fastest-growing in the field of high technology for effective remote support planning and organization of enterprise operations. Therefore, we may predict a decrease in the cost of cloud services and an improvement in the quality of software and hardware. This paper describes the results of research and comparative analysis of specific examples of successful implementation of cloud technologies and services in the business processes of foreign and Russian companies. Today's companies need reliable and effective cloud technologies to grow the rapid and successful promotion of innovative information services. Implementation of cloud technologies has many opportunities, and, according to experts, the cloud services market in Russia will continue to develop. The number of companies who have made their choice in favor of optimizing business solutions using cloud technologies will grow, and domestic developers will offer more and more useful products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dust emissions from industrial enterprises are often treated as total suspended particles (TSP); and they also quite often contain a wide range of chemical components. Among these components rather hazardous admixtures can be found, such as heavy metals, benzpyrene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, etc. Structure of emissions in terms of admixtures contained in them is determined by raw materials applied at a specific production, production technologies, structure of an end product, etc. Being suspended, chemical components travel long distances; when dusts deposit, these components transform natural soil structures, influence geoecological parameters of biocenosis, etc. Calculation techniques that are applied in Russia to estimate emissions quite often combine all solid emissions into just total suspended particles (TSP) without any identification of toxic components that occur in their structure. In some cases this neglect of hazardous admixtures doesn’t allow correct estimating and predicting a geoecological situation in a zone influenced by emissions. The research goal was to suggest a procedure for geoecological situation prediction basing on an estimate of component and disperse structure of dusts contained in emissions from certain industrial objects; the procedure involved building up a typical “profile” of estimated emissions. The research involved using the following data and techniques: morphology and structure of particles were determined via electronic microscopy performed with a scanning high resolution microscope (magnification varied from 5 to 300,000 times) with S3400N “HITACHI” x-ray fluorescent detachable device. Chemical structure was determined via x-ray phase analysis of samples performed with XRD-700 “Shimadzu” x-ray diffractometer. The accomplished researched verified industrial dusts being poly-disperse and multicomponent. The paper contains examples of chemical structures typical for dust emissions. Study on morphological properties revealed that solid particles contained in emissions from various technological operations had diverse shapes. These properties give an opportunity to enrich an evidential base applied in assessing impacts exerted by an economic entity on ambient air. The paper outlines complex approaches to examining qualitative structure of dusts, their morphological properties, and disperse structure. These approaches allow building up a so called “emission profile”, that is, a stable set of properties belonging to a dust emission from a specific source or, in some cases, from a whole enterprise. Application of this approach gives an opportunity to reliably estimate impacts exerted by a given enterprise on ambient air; to correctly determine zones exposed to specific (marker) components; to determine chemicals making the most significant contributions; to perform predictive estimates of a geoecological situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions on the increase in the average temperature on the planet and the risk of initiating irreversible processes are recognized by most of the scientific community as real threats to humanity. Many countries have a legal and institutional framework for a consistent industrial policy taking into account the climate and environmental components, including carbon accounting. Russia is a country with high intensity of production-based CO2 emissions. In is well-known that the industry generates necessary hence it induce demand for products from other sectors of the economy. Environmental and social parameters in the formation of industrial policy should not be considered as any limitations for the development of industry. Despite a serious change in the agenda for the industrial policy in recent years, caused by COVID-19 and by current geopolitical situation in the world, it is highly undesirable to lag behind in this area, since it is necessary for international cooperation and human technological development. Low-carbon areas correspond to the modern ideology of industrial policy for many countries. The novelty of the study is the evaluation of the total GHG (greenhouse gases) intensity of Russia's industry by means of intersectoral model. The paper analyses some of industrial policy measures and their implementation that affect low-carbon economic development. The proposed study could be of interest for other economies aiming to reduce their carbon footprint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research of some features of the population distribution in the North of Russia has been presented in the paper. The aim of the research is to reveal systemic and prospective problems of population density estimating in Russia’s northern regions. The objects of the research were the subjects of the Russian Federation, fully or partially located in the Zone of the North. The population density in the North of Russia has been analyzed in the paper. The information concerning the area of the Russian Federation’s subjects, fully or partially located in the Zone of the North, has been presented as well. The Zone of the North is characterized by harsh natural and climatic conditions and insufficiently developed social infrastructure. At the same time, the Russian North is rich in mineral resources, including power ones. The presence of the population in the northern territories is the basis of their economic development, therefore, a number of questions concerning population accommodation in the northern territories are of high relevance. The paper identifies the objective and subjective factors affecting the resettlement of the population in the North. A number of main problems concerning the indigenous peoples of the North have been presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the results of petromagnetic studies of Lake Sabakty (South Ural, Russia) and their paleoclimatic interpretation. Lakes are an element of modern and ancient landscape. The climatic conditions, environmental features, hydrological and hydrochemical regime are the main factors to determine the features of sedimentation in lakes. It is shown that magnetic parameters can be used for paleoclimatic reconstructions. Particularly informative is the division into para-, ferro-, superparamagnetic magnetic components. This makes it possible to better determine the conditions of sedimentation and climate at this time (input of material into the sedimentation basin, changes in bioproductivity). Comparison of the data with the Blitt-Sernandez climate scheme made it possible to distinguish climatic zones and confirm that the changes in the paramagnetic component follow this sequence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study performed a hygienic analysis of pollutant emissions from stationary and mobile sources and hygienic assessment of air quality for 2007-2019 according to official statistics of the Russian Federation. It was found that the main sources of emissions are motor vehicles, ferrous and nonferrous metallurgy, fuel and energy complex, machine building, timber, woodworking, coal, mining, pulp and paper, chemical and oil refining industries. As results of hygienic analysis showed, the total amount of pollutant emissions into the atmosphere in 2019 was 32.4 million tons (from stationary sources – 17.1 million tons, from motor vehicles – 15.1 million tons). During this period, a decrease in total mass of emissions was recordedincluding suspended solids emissions decreased by 552 thousand tons. Emissions of volatile organic compounds mass (VOCs) in 2019 increased by 580 thousand tons. In the period from 2007 to 2019, the share of atmospheric air samples taken in settlements in the Russian Federation with exceeded maximum permissible concentrations (MPC) was recorded for benzene (up to 4.83% of samples with exceeded MPC) and suspended solids (up to 2), 2%), carbon (up to 3.7%), phenol (up to 1.57%), copper oxide (up to 2.72%), methanol (up to 4.46%), nickel oxide (up to 8.95%), nitrogen dioxide (up to 1.41%), fluoride gaseous compounds (up to 2.55%), inorganic fluorides poorly soluble (up to 1.12%) and others. Based on the results of a hygienic analysis of the ambient air quality, a list of 17 priority pollutants was established: phenol, benzene, dimethylbenzene, diVanadiumpentoxide, nickel, copper, lead, ethylbenzene, carbon disulfide, formaldehyde, etc. It was found that the increase in the share of non-standard air samples is influenced by the low expenditure on environmental protection, an increase in the total mass of the emission, deteriorated economic indicators of a region, etc. The results of typologization of territories allowed dividing regions in the Russian Federation into 4 clusters, similar in parameters of factors influencing the state of atmospheric air. Based on the epidemiological analysis, a number of reliable mathematical models have been obtained that link the frequency of violations of hygienic standards and the incidence rates of the population. In the dynamics for the analyzed period the number of additional cases associated with air quality decreases (from 1,238 cases per 100 thousand people in 2012 to 598 cases per 100 thousand people in 2019). The priority classes of diseases in terms of the absolute number of additional cases are: respiratory diseases (69.4% in 2019), digestive diseases (9.75%), circulatory diseases (9.07%), diseases of the blood, hematopoietic organs and certain disorders involving the immune mechanism (4.34%), musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (3.81%), nervous system (3.67%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The polar geocosmophysical observatory is located in the Arctic zone of Russia in Tixie Bay with the following geographical coordinates: the latitude is 71.60 ° N, the longitude is 128.90 ° E. The first optical observations began in 1957. At present the continuous geophysical measurements of variations of the Earth’s magnetic field, auroral absorption of radio waves, ionosphere features, very low-frequency electromagnetic radio emissions, optical glow of the night sky and aurorae as well as cosmic ray intensities are carried out. On September 3, 2015, the first MN-300 geophysical missile was launched from the rocket polygon of the Polar Geocosmophysical Observatory of the IKFIA SB RAS. The paper presents tactical technical characteristics of the MN-300 missile. At the moment, the dynamics of development of the segment of small spacecraft i.e. micro and nano Earth’s satellites are clearly observed. Therefore, various variants of geophysical experiments are considered using the capabilities of micro and nano satellites of the Earth. Along with the limited overall dimensions and weight of detecting devices the following most characteristic features of the considered equipment are determined: the principles of its construction, choice of the circuit design, and detecting elements. These issues are the subjects of this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both in the Central Baltic (CB) countries and Russia, there is a need to develop current education regarding resource efficiency, which is a relatively new and complex issue. The aim of the paper is to present the results of the two parallel twinning international projects "CREA-RE" (Creating aligned studies in Resource Efficiency) and "CREA-RE-RU" (Creating aligned studies in Resource Efficiency in Sweden and Russia), which has been realized from 2018 to 2020. The main goal of the projects was to produceup-to-date aligned training materials for the higher vocational education training (VET) institutions around the CB and enhance cooperation between companies and higher VET. The project promoted the mainstreaming process in the region and best practices through addressing companies and future workers, i.e. students. The overall objective has been achieved through 1) Aligning and producing learning content to be used in higher environmental VET studies; 2) Producing a channel to share aligned materials; 3) Implementing joint innovative cooperation between companies and higher VET to ensure better matching of work opportunities in sustainable business. The activities enabled the creation of a holistic view of students and companies in the theme of resource efficiency and circular economy. Based on different know-how of the partners on the relatively new and complex issues within the theme of resource efficiency and circular economy, the project created aligned e-learning material with a new perspective in the area. Joint practice-oriented case studies promoted companies’ awareness on resource efficiency and enhance their competitiveness, meanwhile enable institutions’ better understanding of the needs in the working life. New information produces a competent labor force to support the integration of the CB labor market, also including Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By applied to spatial planning tasks, a multi-level spatial sustainability assessment system should be taken into account. The paper considers the district spatial level which includes the coastal district municipalities within their administrative borders. All coastal district municipalities have features of their socio-economic statement and environmental status, due to various physical, geographical and socio-economic aspects, which determines the current state of stability of the spatial system. The following sustainability factors should be considered as components: • economic; • social; • environmental; • socio-political. The possibilities of assessing the state of coastal district municipalities are considered on the example of the Krasnodar Krai, as a coastal Subject of the Russian Federation, located in the South-West of the Russia and washed by two seas: the Black sea and the Azov sea. To assess the statement of coastal district municipalities of Krasnodar Krai were used the indicator method. It not only allows to assess the condition of municipalities, but also gives the opportunity to show a spatial hierarchy of theirs, by the comprehensive integral value as by the separate factors of sustainability also. Each of the factors consists of a set of dimensionless indicators. The comprehensive integral values for assessing the statement of the coastal district municipalities of Krasnodar Krai are calculated as average of 16 indicators. This system was tested for 11 coastal district municipalities of the Krasnodar Krai. Statistical information for 2013 and 2018 was used as the initial data, which allowed to assess the trends in the variability of the situation in the coastal municipalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most emerging technologies for climate change mitigation are Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS). Some countries have been developing CCS and CCUS projects and they are at different stages of deployment at the moment. Despite signing of the international agreements on climate change mitigation, Russia does not provide development of CCS technologies and their deployment. Considering long-term development of such technologies, its major objective is to increase public awareness of carbon capture, storage and utilization. Currently the issue of shaping public awareness on CCS and CCUS technologies has gained enormous momentum in the Russian Federation. The main purpose of awareness campaign is to create public perception focused on saving energy resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The high level of public awareness and approval of such projects will stimulate CCS and CCUS projects deployment in the Russian Federation. The level of public awareness on CCS and CCUS technologies is determined by different sources of information. Currently Social Media is the most popular way of getting information in the Russian Federation and globally. The paper discusses the research results of spreading information on CCS and CCUS technologies in the Social Media. It provides the analysis of existing social groups and topic video content in the social networks. The recommendations for developing system of actions to improve Russian public awareness on CCS and CCUS technologies are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stockpiling and conservation of mining waste is of high social and environmental importance, since it is the mining industry that is characterized by large volumes of waste. It is almost impossible to update information on the ecological state of ore mining and processing wastes accumulated during the deposits development and their impact on the environment by studying the archives of enterprises, due to the incompleteness of the stored data that is not within the scope of industrial interests.In this regard, it seems promising to use remote monitoring methods based on satellite data, which provide objective monitoring of the state of the Earth's surface and is characterized by a repeated frequency of surveys, a significant breadth of coverage, and the availability of digital archives via the Internet.The methodical approach has been substantiated to use the satellite data for assessing the ecological state of stored waste and its environmental impact based on the temporal dynamics of two parameters of the underlying surface: an index characterizing the substantial composition of the waste and a vegetation index characterizing the state of the vegetation cover. Аs an example,using the satellite observations of the iron ore deposit of the Kola mining complex, the authors have determined impact of the stored ore processing waste on the vegetation cover of the surrounding natural landscape by the decreasing temporal dynamics of the vegetation index taking into account the index characterizing the substantial composition of the processed ore.The paper demonstrates the efficiency of creating a vegetation cover on the protective dam of stockpiled ore processing waste,according to a technology developed at the Mining Institute KSC RAS, Russia. The technology provides a much faster formation of a phytocenosis with the structure of the surrounding natural landscape than during self-growth, which is seen in an increasing temporal dynamics of the vegetation index.A methodological approach to monitoring the ecological state of stockpiled mining wastes and their impact on the environment based on satellite data is easy to learn and use and can be recommended to support decision-making on improving the ecological conditions of the region during deposits development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to address and consider ancient manor complexes as landscape objects,and to identify the linkages between their formation, location and environmental conditions. Ancient manors are unique monuments of the spiritual and material culture of Central Russia. The landscape has the imprint of the historical and cultural heritage of the past, which, in turn, largely determines its current state and appearance. We consider the manor as a landscape-historical estate complex, which was formed during the long-term interaction of man and nature, and is both an independent landscape unit and part of the structure of the contemporary cultural landscape. It is the ancient estates that determine the perception and appearance of many modern cultural landscapes of Central Russia.The study of the manor complexes was based on the landscape approach, through the use of land scape-geographical methods, that integrated field methods, including landscape descriptions, and office (paper)methods, including a comparative analysis of archival materials (XVIII -XX centuries) and aerial photographs.A land scape and geotopological typology of ancient estate complexes was created.As a result of studies of the relationship of manor complexes and environmental conditions, and an analysis of the location of manors within landscapes,a geotopological typology of the manor complexes was compiled. Locations of the same type in different landscape regions have a similar imprint on the structure, functioning and dynamics of manor complexes. The ancient estates of Central Russia are entirely original and have their own features of their structure and location, directly related to the landscape structure.The natural and cultural manor complex, the development of which was largely determined by its location in the landscape, is an integral element of the man-made landscape of Russia and a reflection of national psychology and even our spiritual life today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mining activity entails accumulation of sulfide–bearing mill wastes with high concentrations of ore elements (Fe, Cu, Zn, Cd) and impurities (As, Hg, Be, and Tl). The volumes of hazardous sulfide-containing mining waste in non-equipped storage facilities according to modern standards reach several billion tons in Russian Federation. The handling of abandoned waste in our country is not currently regulated, the question remains open: there is no established methodology for estimating stockpiles and handling of waste stored in old unaccounted storages. Also, the abandoned mine wastes can be considered as “man-made deposits” due to high content of valuable components and their volumes. This paper reports on the results of the complex geophysical and geochemical investigation of three abandoned mine tailings Western Siberia, Russia. Today, all objects are in an abandoned state, located on the territory of settlements, are free to visit by the local population, and are also used as recreation areas. The aim of the work was to assess the volumes of man-made bodies, the resources of valuable and toxic components for further calculation of environmental damage and the economic feasibility of processing the waste. When comparing the concentrations of non-ferrous, rare and noble metals, as well as non-metals (As, Sb) in waste with concentrations in the ores of these deposits, high concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb, As, and Sb were noted. According to the most conservative estimates, three small abandoned dumps in the territory of two Russian cities contain up to 26 % As from his annual production (AP), 7.6 % In, 6.5 % Sb, 0.74 % Hg, 0.52 % Ag, 0.22 % Zn. Of course, we present these figures here only to demonstrate the resources of dumps in the mining regions of the Russian Federation. A separate big question is the probability of their extraction. The information on the contents of potentially toxic components (As, Hg, Be, Tl) in such objects becomes extremely relevant. Further work in this direction is related to the compilation of a register of such objects, the calculation of economic feasibility and environmental damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russian Arctic regions are most sensitive to global climate change. Their unique and fragile ecosystems are very dependent on freshwater. Beyond temperature rise, climate change is accompanied by shifts in precipitation and wind conditions, thereby causing floods, droughts, and altered mixing regimes, all having a serious impact on the abiotic and biotic structure. This work is relevant for better understanding of the biota of the Russian Arctic. Cladocerans are very promising for studying climate change risks owing to their inherently predictive nature. They form a rich functional group of zooplankton in ecosystem modeling and are distributed all over the world. However, the difficulty is that they are characterized by a very confusing taxonomy. In this paper, we considered the possible effects of large-scale climatic fluctuations on the dynamics of cladoceran community in the studied region. The aim of the study was to analyze of the subfossil cladoceran community of Lake Arkto-Pimberto in the Pechora River delta (in the northeast of European Russia). A total of 16 taxa were registered in the subfossil cladoceran community of the lake. Most of the identified taxa belong to the Chydoridae family. The representatives of the Bosminidae family were less frequent. Bosmina longispina was the dominant species. The subdominants were represented by Chydorus cf. sphaericus. Lake Arkto-Pimberto is inhabited mostly by northern and littoral species. The Shannon–Wiener diversity index varied between 0.86 and 1.85. According to the Pantle–Buck saprobity index, the lake is mesosaprobic. Significant changes in the composition of cladoceran communities were observed over time, thereby reflecting the environmental and climate changes in the region [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Study presents the current state and assessment of prospective ways of college campuses development in the Russian Federation based on environmental reconstruction. There is identified the main complex of problematic aspects of sustainable architectural development of campus territories. The paper proposes a concept of integrated modernization of buildings and territories of Russian universities. The presented priority directions for the college campuses reconstruction is based on the green building system. The research observes the modern tendencies of college campuses design and its possible implementation in the complex environmental reconstruction of the territories and buildings. The innovative principles of architectural planning and design of college campuses are founded on recent research findings that testify compliance to the international green standards and economic effectiveness. They include agile design, biophilic forms and objects, coworking open spaces, automatic engineering systems. Expediency of reconstruction using the advanced architectural design approaches has confirmed a correlation between effectiveness of building operation and identified influence factors such as acoustic characteristics, lighting, air temperature, accessibility, biophilia, color and furniture, automatic utility systems, etc. Along with this increase in monetary and energy savings, green building has been proven to make the occupants more productive. The proposed methods of integrated reconstruction of college campuses will allow to design a sustainable architectural space and achieve the environmental performance of university’s buildings and territories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the growth of agricultural production in Russia is closely related to the pace of scientific and technological progress in the agro-industrial complex, which is largely determined by its level of energy supply. The most significant consumers of energy in the agro-industrial complex are livestock, poultry complexes and enterprises associated with food storage. In animal husbandry, energy costs are the second largest after feed, with more than 30% of the energy consumed in creating a production microclimate. Of particular importance is the task of creating a microclimate for storing finished products. The article is devoted to the creation of complex energy-saving cool and thermoelectric regeneration systems based on the use of innovative technical solutions and the use of new ceramic materials with improved electrotechnical characteristics for the agro-industrial complex. It is supposed to use thermoelectric modules as the basis for building of systems, the principle of operation of which is based on the Peltier effect. Currently, the possibility of cooling to a temperature significantly lower than the ambient temperature in combination with uniquely small dimensions determines the main advantages of thermoelectric cooling using these modules. It should be noted that the use of this approach in cooling systems makes it possible to regenerate thermal energy, what can be solved within the framework of using the same modules, only with the opposite effect. This allows to embed it in the system and sources of solar thermal energy as well. The paper considers the main aspects of building these systems. Issues of the application and design of the ceramics used were identified and considered in order to create new ceramic materials with improved electrical characteristics, as well as to solve a number of tasks in creating technological energy-saving control and monitoring subsystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the conceptual issues of creating and using the information infrastructure of a multi-satellite system for Earth remote sensing (MS RS) to address a wide range of problems in the oil and gas industry. We analyzed the information needs arising from monitoring the state of oil and gas production, storage, transportation, and refining facilities, as well as the possibilities of meeting these needs in the framework of a promising MS RS created on the basis of a small spacecraft constellation. The concept of the information infrastructure architecture of the MS RS is proposed. This architecture involves the creation of a federal zero trust network operable in the absence of constant telecommunication connectivity by using public communication channels (Internet, etc.), owned communication channels of the MS RS infrastructure, partners and data consumers, including asymmetric ones (for example, satellites), as well as by transferring information using removable media (Sneakernet). The approach is aimed at the possibility of providing consumers with data in remote and infrastructurally isolated territories, which is especially important for the Northern regions of the Russian Federation. In addition to the macro-level architecture of the federal network, we considered a number of architectural and technological aspects of building separate network nodes and communication protocols between them, as well as issues of automation of basic infrastructural units and full control of the integrity and availability of data based on cryptographic methods. On top of the federal network, the creation of cloud services was proposed. These services provide remote sensing data processing and building of thematic information products based on them, both in a standard stream form and in special problem-oriented applications. This allows the conclusion that the proposed architecture is high-potential for creating a ground segment of a promising MS RS and its use for addressing problems of oil and gas industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of classifying spatially distributed targets using their radar images during the process of remote sensing has been and remains one of the main tasks when observing the Earth with space-based observation means based on the use of a synthetic aperture radar (SAR). The applying of radar monitoring means is especially relevant for the northern latitudes, for example, the territory of Russia, where, on the one hand, a rather high percentage of cloud cover, on the other hand, the duration of daylight hours is quite short for half a year. The problem of obtaining radar images has been fully studied, the algorithms for their formation have also been known for a long time, nevertheless, the evaluation of the effectiveness of such means requires careful and detailed consideration, which this work is devoted to. The exact formulas are given in the paper, which allows, based on analytical methods, to calculate the probability of correct recognition of spatially distributed objects that differ in size and distribution by scattering cross-section value on the target surface. In addition, a detailed analysis of approximate formula expressions is given, as well as the boundaries of their applicability. Examples of the application of the proposed algorithm for specific situations presented on a variety of radar portraits of objects of the earth's surface are given. Specific recommendations that take into account the various possible situations that a researcher may encounter are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The econometrical time series are under investigation in this paper. The mathematical models describing connections between two time series in the form of VAR(p), Vector Autoregression, models are investigated. Their connection is confirmed by means of cointegration tests. If connected time series are described with some models (here the ARIMA, Autoregressive integrated moving average, models) with certain lag orders it’s assumed that maximal orders of ARIMA models are the upper limits for the orders of the VAR model. This point is investigated in the computational experiment. Non-linear terms are included in the VAR model. Such models could describe connections between some time series better. The ordinary least squares method is used to evaluate coefficients in the VAR equations. This method allows non-linear terms to be added into equations. Also there are two ways of ARIMA orders selection. The first one uses values of the information criteria (Akaike and Bayes critera), the second one is based on the correlation functions plots analysis. The maxima locations indicate maximal value of orders of the ARIMA model. Thus there are two ways to select VAR model orders. Both of them are tested. There wage index and money income index time series of the Dynamic series of macroeconomic statistics of the Russian Federation are investigated are investigated in the computational experiment. Investigating non-linear models the VAR model with high coefficient of determination is obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relevance of the work is dictated by extensive environmental pollution in the areas of mining waste storage by chemical elements of 1-3 hazard classes (Hg, Be, As, Fe, Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Co, Ni, Mo, Ag, and Sb). The interaction of crushed sulfide-containing wastes with surface waters and atmospheric precipitation contributes to the formation of highly mineralized technogenic solutions with element concentrations exceeding the background and maximum permissible values several orders of magnitude. Land and water resources around such storages are experiencing a high technogenic load, underground and surface waters are contaminated, and the local population suffers. An unreasonably little attention is paid to assessing the potential hazard of facilities related to waste or the consequences of the mining industry in our country, although today about 16 billion tons of such waste has been accumulated in the Russian Federation. This problem is also relevant around the world where metal ores are developed. On the other hand, such objects can be considered as “technogenic deposits”, which contain high concentrations of useful components (Cu, Zn, Ag, Au, In). In practical terms, without understanding the structure, composition and total volume of waste storage facilities, it is impossible to create protective geochemical barriers and remediation schemes for contaminated areas. Unfortunately, today there are no methodology describing step-by-step comprehensive studies with subsequent forecasting of the environmental hazard of a dump. This paper presents the results of our work, which continues interdisciplinary research of abandoned waste in Siberia using methods of geophysics and geochemistry. A comprehensive study of the Belokluch dump containing sulphide-bearing wastes of gold processing production (Kemerovo region) was carried out. The methods of remote sensing (aerial photography), electrical exploration (electromagnetic scanning and Electrical Resistivity Tomography) and classical geochemical testing were used. As a result, an orthophotomap was built, a 3D model of the object, the dump body was contoured, the volumes of waste were determined, and the resources of toxic and valuable components were calculated. The total amount of waste according to aerial photography is more than 103,000 cubic meters. The amount of chemical elements in the dump is: iron - 11074648 kg, copper - 22881 kg, zinc - 16564 kg, arsenic - 63138 kg, cadmium - 71 kg, mercury -15295 kg. This information is further used to calculate the environmental damage and economic feasibility of waste processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the European experience, the aim of this paper is ecologic, economic and organizational prospects for the creation of innovative technological clusters of he production, processing, transportation of fossil energy resources, primarily gas condensate in Russia. Improving the methodology of natural resources management, the paper proposed organizational structure of the resource cluster, consisting of three main zones: the center of the cluster (specialized production), internal environment (services, associated productions and innovation centers), external environment (consumers, Federal and Regional authorities). Cluster approach allows to identify the directions of increase of competitiveness of all participants, including measures of state support. The author has developed an organizational scheme of development of gas cluster in Siberia - the main center of hydrocarbons production in Russia. Qualified use and deep processing fossil fuel while minimizing losses of all components is the priority of the innovative policy in primary industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russia is one of the most important players in the Arctic Zone with significant economic, security and political interests on these territories. This is primarily because of significant natural resources, in particular oil and gas, in the Russian Arctic. The objective of this paper is to define the main prospects of strategic development of the Russian Arctic zone, and to offer socioecological approach to its development. Arctic has considerable strategic importance to the Russian economy. Strategic development of the Russian Arctic represents an area of economic, ecological and social concern. The Arctic shelf in the future can become the main source of hydrocarbons for both Russia and the world market in the whole. The paper presents the strategic importance of the Russian Arctic as a wealth of petroleum and mineral resources. We offered socioecological approach to the Arctic's sustainable development and paid special attention to the ecology and environment preservation. We examined legal and regulatory framework of the Russian Arctic development and estimated social and economic potential of oil and gas project's implementation in the Arctic. Special attention is paid to ecological aspect of the Arctic zone's development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to identify the degree of resistance of cryogenic soils exposed to chemical contamination from the Nurbinsky extractive plant in Western Yakutia. It examines the resistance basing on the sorption capacity of soil material, and also assesses their ecological and geochemical state. In this paper we consider homogeneous suprapermafrost-gley, gley podzolized and homogeneous non-gley types of cryozemes. A total of 16 full-profile soil cuts and 185 small trenches were made in depth of 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm during the 2007-2014. In general, 334 samples of soil material were collected from the territory of the industrial site of Nyurbinsky extractive plant. Microelements were grouped into three clusters according to content of mobile forms and characterization of intraprofile distribution. For the elements of clusters I (Mn, Cu, Zn, Cd) and II (Co, Cr, Ni) the major criteria affecting the sorption are physical clay content and capacity of cation exchange. The main sorbent for elements of cluster III (As, Pb) is organic substance. We conclude that homogeneous suprapermafrost-gley cryozem and homogeneous nongley cryozem have high sorption ability and low resistance to chemical pollution. While the gley podzolized cryozem has low sorption ability and high resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article is devoted to the development of software tools to support elimination of wildfires in small regions lacking governmental financial resources and using volunteer help for in situ and remote activities. The latter activities include not only training but also monitoring and even creation of scripts, databases, web applications to simplify governmental firefighting service work and make some of their professional cases public. Murmansk regional forest firefighting service (located in northern Russia) give an example of cooperation between local authorities, services and university to improve professional activities with coordinated volunteer help. Students not only work in situ during fire hazard period but also inspect situation with fire dynamics and location of firefighting forces that have volunteer groups as additional part. Volunteers cannot use federal systems with restricted access, such as “Rosleskhoz ISDM” (Remote Monitoring Information System). The tasks, methods and results of forest fires research in extremely hot summer of 2018 in the vicinity of specially protected natural areas in Murmansk region are presented in the paper as an example. The simplified algorithm for researching of forest fires dynamics and consequences with spatial treatment technologies, R programming language and open data is proposed. Open access portals are chosen to be used (Diva-GIS, OpenStreetMap, Protected Planet, Fires.ru, Glovis, Earth Explorer). Developed scripts provide heat points and plumes of smoke detection, NDVI calculation and area vegetation classification from satellite gridded data (Landsat-8 OLI TIRS). PostgreSQL database with OpenStreetMap regional data in PostGIS and pgRouting extensions is created to maintain firefighting information. Web application with interactive map will be implemented in R (with shiny and leaflet packages) to visualize regional aspects of wildfire fighting, in particular, the governmental service structure and amount of interacting with volunteers resources to be used. Web application is also a way to report news and recommendations for ordinary civil people and professional communities in region, in Russia, and worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares four growth models (Logistic Model, Gompertz Model, Richards Model and Stannard Model) using the experimental data of wastewater treatment from a single sell protein production with Bacillus subtilis in order to describe bacterial biomass growth. One model was used to describe carbohydrate consumption during the bacterial fermentation. This study was carried at the Department of Biotechnology (Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia) as part of deproteinized sunflower meal bioconversion into a highly added value product research. The temporal profiles of carbohydrates unmetabolized during single cell protein production with the yeasts, and CFU/mL were modelled with a set of ordinary differential equations solved using MATLAB software. The models were validated by the experimental data based on goodness of fit criteria; R2, MSE, and SD values. The coherence between the models and experimental results demonstrated that the models were reasonable for the prediction of the fermentation process dynamic behavior. The models gave more information about the operation conditions of the fermentation and they could be applied for further development and scaling of wastewater treatment during the single cell protein production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many works are devoted to the problem of obtaining healthy drinks. The paper discusses various aspects of obtaining the probiotic drink from grain raw materials and concentrate for its preparation. Wheat malt was used as the raw material. The following strains of the lactic acid bacteria were used to manufacture a probiotic beverage: Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus fermenti, Lactobacillus brevis and acid-resistant yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae TUM 175. The most good organoleptic and physico-chemical indicators were achieved with the help of the TUM 175 yeast and the Lactobacillus fermenti lactic acid bacteria. The formulations and the technology for producing the concentrate from the wheat light and dark malt were developed. The optimum evaporation temperature of the concentrate using the rotary evaporator is 80 °C. The work was identified the main indicators of the probiotic drink: the mass fraction of dry substances, the acidity, the volume fraction of alcohol, the pH and redox potential. The finished probiotic drink and kvass wort concentrates meet the quality and safety requirements of the regulations of the Russian Federation and the Customs Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the study of the laws of the functions of local government in the environmental field, the practice of implementation of environmental programs at the local level, we give the comparative legal analysis of municipal participation mechanisms to ensure the right of every resident of the territory of a favorable environment in Russia and foreign countries in this scientific paper. The decision of some local environmental issues (provision of separate waste collection, creation and equipping of municipal waste processing stations, cleaning forests and river areas) is economically difficult to achieve. At during the study were used comparative legal method for the study of the positive foreign experience in solving environmental problems; system analysis method to analyze the institute of municipal governance and procedure solutions to local environmental issues as a single complex; methods for describing, summarizing, predicting for the formulation of the problem of the right of local people to a healthy environment and the formulation of conclusions about the prospects of its solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the features of legal regulation of administrative liability for environmental offenses in the Russian Federation, as well as the main difficulties encountered of its implementation. The legislator is paying more and more attention to ensuring environmental safety as one of the most important directions of the domestic policy. In this paper there is a conclusion about the variety of legal acts in this sphere at the present stage. Also the authors determine the main modern theoretical and practical problems arising in the process of regulation and law enforcement of administrative liability for environmental offenses. There are some significant difficulties in distinguishing criminal and administrative liability for acts in the field of environmental protection and management. The practical activity of authorities and officials on detection, prevention and consideration of cases on ecological administrative offenses is also not effective. Most of them do not have the necessary level of special training in the field of ecology, which indicates their low awareness in the field of environmental management. The authors analyze the regulatory framework and the works of researchers and come to conclusion that legislative norms and structures have many disadvantages in this legal sphere. There is no uniformity and order in the environmental legislation that leads to serious obstacles of bringing to administrative liability. The article suggests key directions of problems elimination and further improvement of administrative legislation in the field of environment. The use of this key directions into practical use will contribute to the formation of effective mechanisms for the prevention of environmental offenses and environmental management, as well as ensuring environmental safety. During the research and formulation of problems the authors used a general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, comparison, forecasting, classification) and a number of specific scientific methods (formal legal, formal logical, system-structural and comparative legal ones) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a sweeping increase in a number of universities in the Russian Federation that are moving to implement courses and programs through English medium instructions (EMI). In other words, English is being used to deliver and teach content in the sciences, math, history, business, and engineering both in public and private education at all stages – primary, secondary, and tertiary one. With the aim to promote international exchange, raise the quality and prestige of educational establishments, and provide a well-qualified bilingual workforce for improving the country’s economy EMI has become an exponentially developing trend in higher education all over the globe. The authors of the current research set a focus account of EMI status at Kazan Federal University, Institute of Management, Economics and Finance, basically the attitude of the teacher staff towards this academic phenomenon, their fears and expectations, and designing a tailor-made course with the view to enhance EMI methodology awareness as well as English language proficiency of academia. The authors adopted a mixed method design where we have included the data placed on the official university websites analysis as well as the data from the questionnaire. The results of the survey were analyzed using the descriptive statistics methods. The paper concludes with the proposed syllabus design for an advanced training course “English for teaching proficiency”. Thus, despite plenty of challenges, pitfalls, outcomes and expectations we do emphasize the crucial character of the course and its introduction at a graduate level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As far as environmental challenges in the world become more serious and cross-cutting, higher environmental education plays an important role in development of sustainable society. The aim of this article is to describe the specification and trends in higher environmental education in the Russian Federation under the ongoing processes of urbanization, anthropogenic impact and changes in demand of the labor market. Besides, some comparisons with overseas universities are given. The paper deals with the changes in educational standards and actualization of the Federal educational standards of higher education in the field “Ecology and Natural management”- which is one of three fields in environmental education in Russia. The recently updated professional competences that are formulated for implementation at all universities of Russia are considered. Basing on provided investigations, recommendations for Russian universities, non-government organizations, and policy-makers might be given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of the effective education systems and their constant improvement lays a basis for stable function of any state. Economic strategy of Russia and achievement of high living standard for majority of population possible only when educational system in the country will reach international levels. It is well known, that in Russiaany University must pass the rigid system of accreditation to satisfy and match federal the educational standards. The main aim of such accreditation is to test quality and depth of the already available education. Nevertheless, current rules of accreditation are quite controversial and the raise many question both for secondary (professional) and higher education. Changes in the work market will lead to the changes in educational process itself. Importance of such changes are confirmed by professional community and resulted in creation of the new National qualification system and advanced professional standards.The aim of this paper is to develop an algorithm that describes relation between the state and social (professional) accreditation of education programs in geo-specialities. We describe an approach that allows to minimize differences between state and professional accreditation approaches and maintains conformity of standards to state qualification standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century the process of formation and development of various branches of the chemical industry started. One of the important industries was the industrial production of soda. Soda was an essential element for the textile, leather, glass and soap industries in this period. In the first half of the 19th century. Russian entrepreneurs were looking for a way to make the production of soda cheaper. At the end of the 18th - first half of the 19th century soda in Russia was made from ash. The study of bitter-salt lakes in the South of Russia and in Western Siberia allowed the discovery of Glauber’s salt deposits, which became the main raw material for the industrial production of soda. In 1864 the first soda plant was opened in Barnaul. In the 1880s soda plants were established in the European part of Russia. The largest producer of soda in Russia has become the ‘Lyubimov, Solvay and Kº’ factory in the Urals. The new sector formed in the environment of protectionist policies for soda plant owners, carried out by the government. This paper will examine some aspects of the history of the soda production in Russia, i.e. sources and specifications of raw materials, history and business operations of soda plants as well as description of their respective owners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Greening creates those economic consequences that every day are increasingly in demand by the market and are used to improve the efficiency of economic processes. One of the consequences of this policy is the production of environmentally friendly products. The production of such products allows us to solve two problems: making a profit and solving environmental problems. A special accounting system is required to ensure efficient use of resources and increase productivity. Environmental-economic accounting is a supporting system, which greatly expands the capacity of national accounts, but does not overload the system itself. The system of environmentaleconomic accounts is considered to be complementary to national accounting. The diversity and choice of assessments allow for the assessment of natural benefits, including those for which ownership is not clearly defined and which are not quantifiable, and the inclusion of the assessment in environmentally adjusted macroeconomic cost aggregates. The methods of scientific knowledge, induction, deduction, system and complex approach were applied in the process of work. The methods of expert assessments were also used as an instrumental and methodological apparatus. The study gave a theoretical understanding of the nature and content of the resource-saving economy, the system of "green" accounts. The paper presents the possibility of implementation in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation methodological principles of the United Nations on environmental-economic accounting. Also, the problems of the implementation of the system of "green" accounts in Russia were identified, the main directions for the establishment of environmental and economic accounting in the regions of the Russian Federation were identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid growth of blockchain technologies in the world drew attention to the environmental aspects of its production. Blockchain technology is based on the use of significant computing power, which consumes a large amount of electricity. In most cases, traditional non-renewable energy sources are used, which leads to the depletion of natural resources. The scale of operations of the mining process of blockchain increased dramatically during the last years. By the end of 2017, the amount of electricity spent on mining exceeded 29 terawatts per hour. This indicator exceeds the level of the annual energy consumption almost all Eastern European and African countries. Russia occupies the third place in the world in terms of energy consumption for cryptocurrency production. To maintain the competitiveness of blockchain technology in the global market, it is necessary to develop an alternative development strategy using renewable energy sources. The need for a transition to a new economic course in the development of a “green” or “low-carbon” economy in the field of blockchain mining determines the relevance of the chosen research topic. The paper investigates the following key points: trends in the blockchain technology and digital economy; the matrix for its environmental risks analysis; determination of significant environmental aspects of blockchain mining in accordance with ISO 14001 requirements. The aspects’ assessment shows that the significant environmental aspects are linked to energy consumed by computers or farms at different stages of its lifestyle. Thus, environmental-friendly methods of mining (hydro mining) are needed. As a conclusion, possible applications of blockchain technology in Russia are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salmonid fishes have always been the most valuable objects of the fisheries in the Baltic region. The population growth in Baltic region and the demand for fish products have resulted in the overfishing and impoverishment of many fishing areas. Most of wild types of fishes are losing their native spawning areas because of anthropogenic transformation involving hydro-technical construction, eutrophication of water bodies, water pollution and inadequate fishery. Heavy metals are considered as main toxicants in the production of fish products. Bioaccumulation of these toxicants in fish tissues has a significant negative impact to the physiological and reproductive quality of fish as well as reducing the quality of the fish products. According to investigations in this field, bioaccumulation of heavy metals by fish and subsequent distribution in organs is greatly inter-specific. In addition, many factors can influence their uptake like sex, age, size, reproductive cycle, swimming patterns, and etc. Without sufficient information about the accumulation of dangerous pollutants in the fish tissues it is hard to develop an adequate strategy for restoring populations of wild Atlantic Salmon. In this paper, the accumulation of heavy metals in the tissues of wild Atlantic Salmon caught for artificial reproduction and its fry from the state hatcheries of Baltic part of Russia is studied. Analysis of the obtained data is shown that significant bioaccumulation of heavy metals happens during growth and feeding after Salmon fry release into the wild and not during their growth in the state hatcheries. The accumulation values of individual heavy metals in different organs of the studied species have a significant variation (p <0.001). In this study, significant relationship with the habitat was revealed only for the accumulation of copper in the tissues of Atlantic Salmon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to analyze the activities in the field of implementation of Arctic scientific projects carried out by the organizations of the Russian Federation, Murmansk Arctic state University has created an information and analytical system (database) for Arctic research and technological works. The work of the system is based on information from official open sources. Only the projects that have a specific reference to the Arctic region in their implementation are including for analysis. The executor of the project is the organization officially specified in the project documentation. By the system, the information and analytical processing was carried out on projects that were implemented in 2018 and/or are implemented in 2019, regardless of the start date of the project. The analysis includes information on almost 1000 Arctic projects implemented by more than 200 organizations. For the correct analysis and selection of the most competent organizations, a sampling was carried out on the number of Arctic projects being implemented (at least 5) and on the amount of annual funding (at least 10 million rubles). The organization was included in the sampling if at least one of the above conditions was realized. As a result, more than 100 organizations were allocated, of which 84 organizations are subordinate institutions of the Ministry of science and higher education of the Russian Federation, including scientific organizations of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The total amount of annual financing of organizations amounted to more than 5.8 billion rubles, with a total of almost 700 projects. The paper presents the main generalizing conclusions on Arctic scientific activities of scientific and research-educational organizations [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The active development of large cities leads to increase of wastes. And as a result, a system of interrelated problems was formed: 1) The negative impact of municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills on the population and the environment; 2) The irrational use of land adjacent to metropolises; 3) The lack of modern facilities. In Russia the MSW landfills for a long time will be used for disposal of solid wastes residues. To date, 93% of generated wastes is placed on landfills. The main objective is to reduce the number of harmful effects on the environment. The reclamation of the MSW landfills is one of the main stages of solving these problems. The issue of restoration of land suitable for exploitation inevitably necessitates when closing landfills. And the organization of reclamation is one of the solutions for this issue in the world. The MSW landfills become a storage of metals in the soil. For the reclamation of landfills, clean soils are used, but over time various toxic substances, including heavy metals, may come from underground layers of wastes. In small quantities, heavy metals are necessary for the vital activity of living organisms. However, their increased concentration is a serious threat to life. The high concentrations of heavy metals in soil impedes the development of former lawn fields sown by traditional types of lawn grass. The green plants are used as an environmental technology to remove pollutants from the topsoil or turn them into harmless compounds. Research shows that plants allow us to clean the environment from metals residues. Different types of plants have a different ability to accumulate metals. The accumulation of a large amount of metals in certain plant species is largely determined by their morphophysiological features. It is also shown that the cultivation of plants-hyperaccumulators of metals in the contaminated areas allows the soil to be effectively cleaned from excess metals. Also, the ratio of heavy metals content in various plant organs is different. When carrying out reclamation work, it is necessary to select such types of lawn grasses that have high phytoremediation capacity. In this paper, we evaluated the impact of various factors on plants’ ability to absorb heavy metals. An experimental method (ISO 22030) for determining growth and reproduction of higher plants under controlled conditions was used to conduct the experiments. The plants are accumulators when heavy metals accumulate in their above-ground organs with no visible signs of damage. Various plants with the ability to accumulate heavy metals were used as test objects. To assess this ability, they were planted in the vegetative vessels with soil. The vessels were placed under phytolamp. The number of plants was up to eight in each vessel. Giant underground networks formed by the roots of living plants extract and concentrate essential elements and compounds from soil and water. You can also assess the effect on the accumulation of metals and various additives and chelate complexes. The use of phytoremediation technology can be very promising for treatment of the landfills. It should be noted that in our country work is underway on the biological recultivation of landfills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adequate treatment of industrial and communal wastes is one of the urgent challenges nowadays. The worsening critical situation in the sphere of waste management has turned the minor issue into a global problem. About (55÷60) million tons of municipal solid wastes (MSW) are generated in Russia annually. More than 90% of them are stored in landfill sites and unauthorized landfills. The progressive growth of the municipal solid waste volumes from year to year makes the problem even more urgent. Biotechnological disposal of the organic fraction of the MSW by solid-state anaerobic digestion (SSAD), where the content of dry matter is 15÷40 percent, in bioreactors is a promising approach, because it is conducted in the systems having no direct contact with the environment. Therefore, such systems have no negative impact on it. The proposed method allows generating such valuable products as biogas and organomineral fertilizer. Waste pretreatment by different physical and mechanical, chemical and biological methods is used to intensify the SSAD process. In this paper the impact of the pretreatment of a model mixture of the MSW organic fraction in an apparatus of the vortex layer with ferromagnetic particles on the main parameters of the fermented mixture and on SSAD process is studied. Dispersion of waste particles in the vortex layer apparatus is achieved by the action of ferromagnetic working cylinders placed in a tube of non-magnetic material and intensively moving in it due to an external rotating magnetic field. The fundamental parameters of the model mixture of the MSW organic fraction were compared before and after treatment in the vortex layer apparatus. It is found, that the time of the methanogenesis initiation is decreased. Pretreatment of the model mixture in the vortex layer apparatus helped also to increase biogas production during SSAD process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing proportion of waste in megapolicies belongs to food waste, including waste of food industries and catering. Currently, this type of waste is practically not processed in Russia and disposed in landfills. However, technologies for food waste processing are known and include composting, accelerated anaerobic digestion, biogas production, etc. This paper discusses the innovative technology of food waste use in the form of a substrate for growing black soldier flies (Hermetia illucens) to produce melanin, which is used in the manufacture of therapeutic and prophylactic drugs and dietary supplements for animal feed. The use of dead imagos and the empty shells of black soldier flies’ pupae (Hermetia illucens) was considered promising for expanding the raw material base for melanin production because of their easy feeding with nutrient substrate, high reproduction rate, and relative ease of organization of growing conditions. The article presents the methodology and results of experimental studies on the extraction of melanin from the chitin-melanin complex (CMC), obtained as a result of a multi-stage biomass extraction. The subject of the study was black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) at the following stages of the life cycle: the imago grown under controlled conditions and died from natural death and empty shells of pupae remaining after their departure. Considering that the useful product yield may vary during rearing on different substrates, for analyzing the economic efficiency of technology it is necessary to determine the desired concentrations of the useful product using each type of substrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental issues have gained importance across national borders. Climate change mitigation is one of the major global purposes. To achieve the goal it is necessary to solve a number of issues. The key one is to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases emissions while keeping high growth rates of living standard, industry and economy. Some countries develop such technologies to decrease greenhouse gases emissions, in particular, carbon capture and storage technologies (CCS technologies). Meanwhile, the development of CCS technologies has advantages and disadvantages both for global economy and the economy of the Russian Federation. The potential of CCS technologies development in the Russian Federation is also caused by the level of public environmental awareness of CCS projects deployment. Currently global community attitude to the CCS technologies development is controversial. Thus, the study of public environmental awareness and improving public perception of CCS technologies development is an extremely essential issue. The paper reviews the level of public awareness concerning CCS technologies across the world. It provides the comparison of public awareness in different countries. The recommendations for raising Russian public awareness of CCS technologies are made [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mercury and its compounds migrate between environmental components. contaminating water bodies. It poses a danger in aquifer systems: inorganic mercury. by the action of microbes. converts to its highly toxic forms such as methyl- and dimethylmercury. minor exposures of which have devastating effects on central nervous system. According to the research conducted in the Russian Federation. mercury used for producing consumer items tends to get into residues (29 tons). Almost 11 tons of mercury is released in soil. 4.8 tons is emitted in the atmosphere and 4.9 tons is migrated into waters. Mercury in mercury-containing waste is prone to leaching. that causes its migration into aquifer systems. The conversion of residual mercury compounds to the most stable form - mercury sulfide will reduce the water bodies pollution. We show that low octanol-water partition coefficient (Kow) value significantly reduce impact on the environment. In order to do that values of Kow were measured for several mercury compounds to determine which ones are the most environmentally safe. To immobilize mercury in this paper. we analyze the reactions in a system containing mercury. sulfur. and glass. Glass is used as a common substance accompanying mercury in solid household waste such as thermometers and/or lamps. To evaluate quantities of mobile mercury compounds compared with its sulfide the respective methodologies were developed. including the examination of dissolution rate of elemental mercury in nitrogen acid in varying concentrations and carrying the series of experiments of indirect titrations using potassium iodide. sodium chloride and direct titration with ammonium rhodanate. As a result. the developed method describes recommended concentrations of the standard solutions and titrated substances. In addition. equations for determination of residual concentrations and the detection limit of Hg2+ ions were described in this work. Reaction masses and reaction products need to be drained and pumped; this study suggests using bentonite for this purpose. Low viscosity allows easily remove suspensions from apparatus and pump them to the dryer. The parameters for the preparation of bentonite-glass-water suspensions were selected. taking into account the possibility of such operations as pumping suspensions with appropriate pumps and pumping them into the dryer. The necessary parameters were such ratios as Tsum. (A mixture of bentonite-glass).Tsum-water.as well as the ratio of the mixture of sulfur-glass.in which the viscosity of the suspension in the Marsh funnel was in the range of 180-300 seconds (this range is required for the pump for pumping the kaolin slurry). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A characteristic feature of fuel cells is a weak dependence of their energy efficiency on the scale of the installation and the ability to provide the required level of power by simply increasing the number of fuel cells. The use of fuel cells, including in combination with renewable energy sources, can mean a technological revolution in the transport sector and energy, will reduce the negative impact on the environment to a minimum level. In this paper, a review of the current state of problems and trends in the development of critical technologies of hydrogen energy in Russia and abroad showed that the promising basic technology in the field of small and medium decentralized energy is the use of devices for direct conversion of chemical energy of fuel into electrical – electrochemical generators on fuel cells. The use of fuel cells on hydrogen or hydrogen-containing fuels can be commercially justified and environmentally safe. The relevance of the project is due to the need to develop methods of partial autonomy for commercial electric transport. In this study, the optimal design parameters of the solid oxide fuel cells batteries were studied. The results of the development of methods for the formation of membrane electrode blocks of solid oxide fuel cells are described. The description of membranes is given. Solid oxide fuel cells are an alternative to traditional internal combustion engines and turbines to produce energy that produce electricity with higher efficiency and less negative impact on the environment. Hydrogen, natural gas, kerosene, coal and even complex hydrocarbons can be used as fuel sources for solid oxide fuel cells. However, many solid oxide fuel cells batteries have a high cost per unit of output power. The analysis of patents in Russia showed that over the last ten years the development of the solid oxide fuel cells is aimed at improving the technology of manufacturing the components of the solid oxide fuel cells and assembling the design of the battery of the solid oxide fuel cells, which leads to a significant reduction in capital costs and operating costs. However, the existing difficulties, in particular large start-up periods (usually from a few minutes to several hours) and the high cost of manufacturing materials significantly limits the possibility of their use in automotive engines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]