Vol 39, No 3 (2018)

Presented are the results from taking an inventory and analyzing the land cover transformation during 2001–2012. The study revealed 246 types of transitions between land cover classes according to the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme, including 229 types of changes with a change of land cover classes. The density of changes is highest in the taiga and steppe zones of Eurasia and North America, savannas and woodlands of Africa and South America, the Arctic tundras of North America and Eurasia. It was found that the natural zones with a complex structure of land cover (open woodlands, shrublands and savannas of the tropical belt and hard-leaved summer-dry open woodland and shrublands of the subtropical belt) have the largest number of transition types (17) and types of changes (10 and 8, respectively). The contribution from the particular transformation processes to the structure of land cover changes within the natural zones was calculated to show the principal land cover trajectories for each natural zone. The findings provide a means of assessing the degree and nature of land cover transformation within the natural zones and identifying, on this basis, the leading land use trends which would have a considerable influence on the structure and dynamics of present-day land surface landscapes across the globe.

Using the method of mapping by high resolution satellite imagery mapping, a study was made of the key areas which are located in the southern part of the forest, forest-steppe and steppe zones of Tatarstan and of Orenburg, Saratov and Voronezh oblasts. Two key indicators were determined: the gully length density and gully head density within the basins; results of the investigation were used in compiling respective maps in vector format. It is established that the density of the gully length in the basins varies over the range from 0 to 0.5 km/km² (from the absence of gullies to strong gully erosion), and the density of gully heads from 0 to 3 units/km². The slope type of gullies is dominant in all basins (about 80%), while the coastal and bottom types have approximately the same proportion (14 and 10%, respectively). Using methods of mathematical statistics we determined a high directly proportional dependence of the indicators of the contemporary gully network on the level of ploughness of the basins and the mean annual precipitation amount, and an indirectly proportional dependence on the level of sodding. An abrupt reduction in gullying indicators was determined. It was found that among the chief reasons behind an abrupt reduction in the gullies to date is a decrease of the rate of agricultural development, with an additional factor, namely, a dramatic decrease in surface runoff down the arable slopes during spring snowmelt caused by climate warming. It is concluded that that a significant part of the gully forms in the study area is currently inactive and massively passes into the balka stage.

This paper considers the theoretical and methodological aspects of landscape-hydrological analysis in substantiating the possible development of recreational activities within the boundaries of the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory (BNT CEZ) in Irkutsk oblast. The hydrological characteristics of the landscapes in terms of their sensitivity and resistance to natural changes and external influences are given. We carried out a landscape-hydrological zoning for the BNT CEZ territory within the boundaries of Irkutsk oblast having regard to the conditions of runoff formation, the characteristic features of its regulation in various landscapes, and to the possibility of preserving the natural water regime and the waterecological state in utilizing the territory. It is determined that the main factors for the landscape differentiation in assessing the advisability of recreational development without damage to the Lake Baikal ecosystem and to the natural waters of BNT CEZ as a whole are the hydrological properties of landscapes and resistance of natural complexes to impacts. It is found that the level of realization of the main hydrological functions of landscapes, i. e. the runoff formation, runoff regulation and water protection functions, characterizes the involvement of the natural complex in the formation of quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the local runoff, in the replenishment processes of dynamical reserves of subsurface waters, the regulation of natural floods and freshets, the preservation of the water-ecological potential of the territory. As a result a landscape-hydrological framework zoning of the territory using the landscape planning tools, three zones have been identified: the zone of the preservation of the existing state, the zone of regulated use, and the zone of territorial development. The proposed zones have general recommendations for the preservation of the hydrological and water-ecological indicators of the natural complexes which imply abandoning any activity in areas of particularly high value and highly sensitive to impacts, and the possibility of developing recreational activities in sustainable areas, subject to environmental protection measures.

The spatiotemporal dynamics of land covers of representative catchments of the Altai region (Altai Krai and Republic of Altai) was analyzed using remote sensing data and GIS techniques. The following key areas were used: the adjacent basins of Lake Gor’koe and the Kasmala and Barnaulka rivers on the Ob Plateau (Altai krai) were used for the inland drainage area of the Ob-Irtysh interfluve and the left bank of the Upper Ob; the Bol’shaya Rechka basin on the Biisk-Chumysh Upland and ancient Ob terraces (Altai krai), for the right bank of the Upper Ob; the Belaya river basin (Altai krai) for the low mountains and middle mountains of the Northwestern province of Russian Altai, and the Maima river basin (Republic of Altai) for the low mountains and middle mountains of the Northern and Northeastern Altai provinces. The algorithm for analyzing the actual state of land covers and identifying the main vectors of their transformation was adapted to the study area. A series of multitemporal Landsat images for three time slices was used. It is found that the plain catchments of the steppe and forest-steppe zones are characterized by a smaller amplitude of land cover change as compared to the mountain zones. For the inland drainage area of the Ob-Irtysh interfluve and the left bank of the Upper Ob, a reduction of the arable land and a high natural dynamics of water bodies are most indicative. The right bank of the Ob is characterized by the lowest dynamics of all types of land cover and a significant dynamics of artificial water bodies. In the mountain basins, a noticeable decrease in the forest areas largely in favor of natural grass communities was caused by the economic activities. It is also shown that the directions of changes and transitions of different types of land covers can differ greatly for different groups of landscapes.

The historical factors of the development of organic agriculture in the Baikal region are considered on the basis of ethnoecological experience of traditional agriculture management in the 18^th–19^th centuries. It is pointed out that the historical method of developing the territory of Transbaikalia is based on nomadic ethnic culture, self-consciousness of the Buryat ethnos, and on the stereotype of behavior in the natural environment and constitutes a unique historical experience of adaptation of the Buryats in the steppe and forest-steppe landscapes of Transbaikalia. And the preservation of nomadic traditions and the Buryat culture of economic managing deserve the attention of researchers. The historical-geographical approach makes it possible to demonstrate the adaptive character of nomad livestock breeding and the use of the territory of Transbaikalia region by the Buryat ethnos in the past, using a conditionally allocated cattle-breeding model as an example. It is shown that the livestock husbandry (nomadic) model of agrarian nature management under consideration reflected a specific “strategy of adaptation” of traditional (nomadic) nature management to the natural environment of the region, which was at a certain socio-economic level of development and represented a natural model for the existence of the Buryat ethnos formed under the influence of the unique landscapes of Transbaikalia and historical traditions. The livestock husbandry model of the economy in the past was the main system of using the territory of Transbaikalia by the Buryat population and reflected the dynamic stereotype of behavior in a given natural environment. The main features of nomadic livestock husbandry are identified, which confirms that the livestock husbandry model was an ecologically correct form of farming, and traditional agriculture is an alternative to intensive forms of agriculture, a kind of management with a focus on the manufacture of ecologically clean products of livestock husbandry as well as being the prototype of organic agriculture in the Baikal region.

The process of laboratory compilation of the natural landscape chorological map of one of the uluses (administrative districts) of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic is presented at a scale of 1:2 500 000. The GIS tools were used to reference thematic cartographic documents to the topographic base of the ulus containing contour lines, elevations and the main river network. The final river network is drawn on the basis of other data sources. A significant role in the subsequent map compilation stages was played by data from the Google Earth website: 2D and 3D images were used to identify floodplains. Units of glacial landforms of foothill areas and the main types of geological and geomorphological units of the ulus were determined using both published data sources and the Google Earth imagery. The map of natural vegetation has been compiled having regard to the humidity conditions and the vertical zonation of the climate and soils. The digital map layers in GIS were gradually combined into the synthetic natural landscape map of the ulus, and the identified natural landscape units were also incorporated into the regional classification of the landscapes of Siberia. It is established that the hierarchical system of natural landscapes of the ulus differentiates three levels of classification: high (the landscapes are differentiated with respect to their geographical location into the landscapes of lowlands and high mountains), intermediate (the differentiation of the landscapes with respect to the genesis and topography dissection in a relevant climatic zone) and low (the natural landscapes are determined by a combination of vegetation covering the type of soil that developed on a given geological substrate).

Results from investigating atmospheric aerosols in Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia) 2005–2014 are presented. It is found that the largest sources of suspended particles are represented by fuel combustion and the concomitant exhaust gases, thermal power generation, industrial facilities and mineral dust transport; the main components of aerosol particles are SO₄^2-, NO₃^-, Cl^–, NH₄⁺, Ca²⁺ and Na⁺. It is determined that in the wintertime, as a result of an increase in fuel consumption, calm weather and orographic characteristics of topography which contribute to accumulation of contaminants in the urban atmosphere, the average sum of ions increases to 43.9–114.6 μg/m³ against 7.44–18.48 μg/m³ during a warm season. Interannual differences in aerosol composition were noted; the total ion content averaged 43.9 μg/m³ during December 2011, 114.6 μg /m³ during December 2012, 68.7 μg/m³ during December 2013, and 64.7 μg/m³ during December 2014. It was found that the concentration of the sum of ions in the aerosol during the winter period is by a factor of 6 higher than during the summer. The highest exceedance of the concentrations was observed for the alkaline earth ions Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ (by a factor of more than 20) forming part of the ash components. There is a difference in the chemical composition of the aerosol sampled in the center of the city and on its outskirts. It is established that the aerosol composition and concentration in Ulaanbaatar during the winter period are comparable the aerosol composition in the industrial cities of China.

In the lead-up to the 100^th anniversary of the Institute of Geography RAS, we summarized the salient features and chronology of its field investigations into the country’s nature and resources during the 20^th–21^st centuries. It is shown that the institute’s history has embodied all stages of evolution of national geography: the traditions of the late 19^th century with their departure from the perception of geography as a “descriptive” science and the development of genetic (V.V. Dokuchaev’s) and chorological (A. Hettner’s) approaches, the development of the sectoral specialization of science, the introduction of modern methods: remote sensing, navigation and geoinformation technologies, and the formation of the geography of the 21^st century as a philosophical phenomenon and a synthetic discipline with profound prospects for a better understanding a rapidly changing world. This was all facilitated by the institute’s continual expedition activity that began in the first years of its functioning and has continued to date. For the first time in the historiography of the national academic geography, we determined the vectors of field investigations at the time of change of the paradigm of its interaction with practice and the relatively poorly studied territory of the country. A brief history of the permanent stations operated by the institute is given as well as identifying the periods of its functioning according to the character of expedition work: the 1920s, 1930s, the period of the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945, 1946–1965, 1966–1990, and from 1991 till the present.