Regional Specifics of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Arctic Regions of the Russian Federation

The article analyzes the regional specifics of solid municipal waste management in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. The relevance of the topic is determined by the need to analyze the regional specifics of solid municipal waste management within the framework of the federal project "Integrated System of Solid Municipal Waste Management", included in the national project "Ecology". First of all, this request will allow us to achieve the most effective management decisions in the field of regulatory regulation and the introduction of mechanisms for economic regulation of MSW management activities, as well as to contribute the creation of an effective management system, and the development of infrastructure for MSW management. The statistical analysis of formation indicators, processing and utilization of MSW waste in the structure by region is presented in this paper. The factors determining the specificity of MSW handling in the Arctic regions are defined. The expert survey made it possible to identify the main problems of implementing the garbage reform in the Arctic in general and in inner regions in particular. The main methods in this study were: semi-formal telephone interviews with representatives of environmental organizations and associations (18 informants), as well as collecting and analysis of statistical indicators of the MSW handling in the Arctic regions

“Dying” or “New Life” of Single-Industry Towns (the Case Study of Socio-economic Adaptation of Residents of Single-industry Settlements in the North-West of Russia)

The article is devoted to the socio-economic adaptation of single-industry towns’ population on the example of single-industry settlements in the North-West of Russia. The work’s theoretical and methodological framework is the approaches of scientists who study the grassroots practices of survival of small towns and villages (seasonal work, commuting, a distributed way of life, the informal economy). The empirical base of the study are statistical data collected from the databases of EMISS, SPARK Interfax, the Foundation for the Development of Single-Industry Towns, websites of administrations of single-industry settlements in the Northwestern Federal District, as well as data from field studies collected by the method of semi-formalized interviews with representatives of administrations and deputies of city and regional councils, with ordinary residents of single-industry towns in Republic of Karelia, Leningrad and Vologda oblasts. The study’s preliminary results are presented: first, an analysis of the contradictions in the management approach. Many single-industry settlements in the Northwestern Federal District do not meet the criteria according to which they are included in the official list of single-industry towns. Also, government support measures to rescue “dying” monotowns are ineffective. Secondly, empirical research results show that residents of single-industry towns have developed strategies for adapting to new socio-economic conditions of life, which are not associated with employment in a city-forming enterprise. These strategies include: 1) rotational work or seasonal work; 2) pendulum migration within spontaneous local agglomerations; 3) “distributed lifestyle”; 4) involvement in various spheres of the informal economy. Thus, single-industry towns “do not die” but survive primarily due to the population’s grassroots economic practices

Features of local identity of single-industry town residents (the case of the Murmansk Oblast)

The article presents an analysis of the local identity of single-industry town residents in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation (AZRF) in the case of the Murmansk Oblast, which has half the single-industry towns of the Arctic zone. Considering local identity as a EArt of territorial identity, the authors present it as a symbolic sEAce for creating and strengthening the sense of territorial identity. At the same time, according to the authors, the people's identification related to the area of residence contributes to the construction of an effective system of regional interaction. It is one of the critical factors for the sustainable development of territories. According to the results of the study, positive and negative factors of identity manifestation were obtained from the residents of single-industry towns of the surveyed area (questionnaire (n=428), in-depth interviews (n=12)); the assessment of connection with the place of residence and socio-economic status of residents, the degree of attractiveness of cities and migration attitudes of the population were determined. The authors argue that the socio-economic image of the area in the minds of its residents is developing along with the manifestation of their rootedness. A distinctive feature of the local identity of single-industry town residents in the Murmansk Oblast is well-being. It determines the visibility of communication with the place of residence. The increase in prosperity is proportional to the growth of identification with the town, and it is of strategic importance for building regional policies in single-industry towns