Environmental sustainability and economic development in Russian regions: spatial analysis

Institute of Economics of the Ural Branch of RAS, 29, Moskovskaya str., 620014, Yekaterinburg, Russia

^* Corresponding author: av_suvorova_av@mail.ru

Abstract

Environmental degradation and increasing risks to regional eco-systems seriously impede the progress towards sustainable development goals. This study is aimed at investigating the spatial aspect of this problem by focusing on the case of Russia, in particular the environmental aspects of the country's spatial organization. Methodologically, the study relies on spatial analysis methods (spatial modelling and mapping) and the official statistical data. As a result, we have identified heavily polluted locations that jeopardize sustainable development efforts on the national level: as these locations are situated in close proximity to each other and share a strong spatial correlation, their combined impact far exceeds that of isolated territories. It was found that Siberia is the largest zone of concentration of air pollution hotspots, where high levels of air pollution are not compensated for by these regions’ outstanding economic performance. Our findings have shown that the patterns of the country's economic and environmental spatial organization do not always coincide. In other words, the regions with booming economies are not always the same regions whose manufacturing sector puts the heaviest pressure on the environment. This can point to the fact that the link between economic activities and environmental pressures is now weakening.