Home – Home – Jornals – Geography and Natural Resources 2019 number 2

This article deals with the geographical aspects of international trade and foreign investment at the turn of the 20 ^th century. These issues of historical geography of the world economy are poorly explored in national science. It is shown that the widely held views of the critical importance of the colonies in foreign economic relations of the parent states are unsubstantiated and are not statistically sound. Neither in trade nor in capital investment did the colonies play the role that is often attributed to them. It is established that it is Europe rather than the colonial empires became the main structural element of the world economic system resulting from the industrial and transport-communication revolution. The world economic ties of those times are, in essence, the interrelations between European countries or with the participation of European countries. It is found that the colonial empires were economically open systems rather than closed systems, as is sometimes suggested. The characteristics of the internal structure of the world economic relations are identified. It is shown that raw materials and food products were dominant in the commodity composition of international trade, whereas the structure of foreign investment was dominated by capital investment in the infrastructure. As far as foreign direct investments are concerned, however (which constituted a relatively small part of capital exports), they were made mainly in the primary sector of the economy. Furthermore, the counter flows of capital, that is, mutual investments of industrially developed countries, were uncommon. It is pointed out that the statement that capital was exported solely to poor and backward countries is misleading. On the contrary, as is established, most foreign investments were made in developed countries, according to the standards of those times.

Presented are the results from analyzing the dynamics of the ethnic mosaic index of the Russian regions between the population censuses of 1959 and 2010, with a division into two periods: the late Soviet period (until 1989) and the post-Soviet era. In the late Soviet period, the growth of polyethnicity embraced 55 % of the regions of the RSFSR. They were mostly Russian regions that experienced an influx of migrants mainly from Ukraine and Belarus as well as from other Union Republics and a number of national autonomies of Russia. Already then most of the autonomous republics showed a tendency for an increase in the share of the population of titular enthnicity. In the post-Soviet period, in spite of the ongoing decline in the Russian population in Russia, most regions of the country (71 %) experienced a decree of the degree of homogeneity of the ethnic composition of the population. This category included many “Russian” regions where a markedly educed share of the Russian and Belarusian population was never compensated for by the influx of migrants from North Caucasus and the Baltics and the CIS. From the previously extensive territorial massif with increasing polyethnicity in the center of the European part of the country there were only a few regions left in the post-Soviet period, which formed a ring around Moscow. In this situation, Moscow itself began to play the assimilation function with respect to foreign-language-speaking migrants of the Soviet and post-Soviet periods. Most of the national republics showed a steady increase in the share of titular ethnic groups, including because of the indrawal of a given ethnic group to within the boundaries of the autonomy accompanied by an outflow of Russians. Only in a few republics (Karelia, Komi, Udmurtia and Khakassia) and a number of autonomous okrugs did the proportion of the Russian population increase.

The geoontology principles of identifying the functional connectivity of all components of the socio-biological system have been used as the basis for developing a unified and scientifically rigorous methodology of preprocessing of epidemiological infor mation and its preparation for further use. The specific features of epidemiological information are highlighted as well as the need for territorial linkage of the objects and situations under study in order to ensure the adequacy of management decisions. Ac cording to the principles of designing relational databases, an integrated epidemiological database has been generated, which includes the geographical coordinates of the objects and situations under study. Such a territorial linkage when implemented using GIS technologies provides a means of solving regional problems of estimating the probability of disease with due regard for the specific features of the location, which ensures competent and targeted work of the system of medical and environmental monitoring. The continually updated databases have been created and patented, which are compatible with ArcGIS and contain basic epidemiological data on the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis and tick-borne borreliosis, based on information received from hospitals in Irkutsk. For updating the integrated database with information on the occurrence of infections across landscapes, annual (since 2005) expeditions have been conducted in several key areas of Irkutsk oblast which are distinguished by landscape diversity, vector size, attendance and morbidity of the population. Ticks and their hosts are collected and analyzed for the pres ence of pathogens of natural focal infections. More than 25 thousand ticks were caught, whose infection with tick-borne en cephalitis virus averaged 1.5 %. Visualization of epidemiological information used the methods of end-to-end geographical mapping of the territory, the logic of which formulates the principles of geoinformation mapping and naturally includes a natural territorial component.

We examine the different approaches in assessing the water quality of water bodies located within the territories with a significant human-induced impact. The hydrological region of Norilsk was used as a test object. The data used in the analysis characterize the period between 2001 and 2003; however, they are still relevant because of a high level of human-induced impact on water bodies. For the purposes of parameterization, the water quality indices which are being most abundantly used in Russia and abroad were evaluated. Results from parameterizing the water quality, obtained by various methods and combined into an overall scheme, were used to generate the rating scale for assessing the hydro-ecological status of aquatic ecosystems. These calculations show that the method of Specific Combinatorial Water Pollution Index (SCWPI) established by the departmental standard of the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring of Russia (Rosgidromet) provides the most objective water quality assessment for water bodies experiencing a significant human-induced impact. Similar results also apply for water quality parameterization using the Canadian CCME WQI method, which is confirmed by the closeness of correlation between the values of these indices. According to the SCWPI method, in none of the streams was the hydro-ecological status assessed as “normal”. In the sources of four rivers, it was found to be close to class 1, and their hydro-ecological status was assessed as “risk”. The water in 11 measuring sections corresponds to quality class 3, or a “critical” status of the aquatic eco system. In 12 measuring sections corresponding mainly to the estuarine segments of the rivers and some brooks, the hydro-eco logical status of the water bodies is characterized as “disaster”, i.e. the water pertains to quality class 4 and 5. Furthermore, in none of the water bodies under study is the environmental “catastrophe” not recorded.

This paper presents new results of paleolandscape studies in the southeastern part of Meshchera Lowlands. The reconstruc tions of pre-agrarian landscapes in the key area located in Klepikovskii district of Ryazan oblast were made using data of pollen analysis and radiocarbon dating of peat deposits and results of morphological analysis of the soil profile in the key area, based on detailed maps of the contemporary landscape structure of the study area. The findings showed that prior to economic develop ment of Southeastern Meshchera, broadleaved forests of oak, lime, elm and ash and spruce-broadleaved forests grew in the dominant geosystems of moraine-fluvioglacial plains under favorable edaphic conditions. It is found that the beginning of an thropogenic transformations of the natural environment in dates back to about 1400 cal BP. It is established that since that time, primary forests were intensely cut down and burned to be replaced by agricultural lands and secondary forests. Spore-pollen spectra showed a sharp decrease in the share pollen from broadleaved species, an increase in the proportion of pollen from pine and birch, tree species characteristic of secondary stands, an increase in the abundance of pollen from herbs, and the appearance of pollen from cultivated cereals, weeds and species of disturbed habitats. Soil profiles showed old arable horizons and prolific evidence of fires. On the basis of data obtained, it is established that modern forest communities are the result of a long-lasting transformation of vegetation under the effect of the anthropogenic factor. The study revealed intense disturbances in vegetation cover over the course of the last 300 years caused by deforestation.

This article outlines an original approach to analyzing the development of the system of spatial nature conservation, and the system itself is shown as a distinctive phenomenon of natural, socio-cultural and economic genesis. Emphasis is placed on institutional, structural and material changes within systems characterized by a set of factors, actors, trajectories and vectors. The factors include the conditions that ensure the availability of resources for the emergence and existence of protected ecosystems. They also determine the current state and trends of the nature protection system determining the current status and tendencies for change of the nature conservation system. Especially protected natural areas, their networks and environmental legislations were used as active agents of the transformations. It is suggested that the elementary changes should be described by means of trajectories which are generalized into transformation vectors, which indicate the possible changes in nature conservation systems. Application of these authors’ hypothesis is illustrated by the example of 540 nature conservation sites, nature conservation systems and legislation of nine regions of Western Siberia. The analysis revealed signs of a crisis situation in the national system of nature conservation. It is established that the regional systems constitute a key element in the structure of the country’s environ mental organization, and the direction and synchronicity of the development vectors within and between them determine the prospects for higher-rank environmental networks. It is concluded that there is a need for the synchronization of regional legisla tive processes in line with the traditional national foundations of reserve management and studies.

An analysis is made of the geoecological state of Abies holophylla plantations on Russkii Island. The restoration process of coniferous-broadleaved geosystems is characterized by using, as an example, the model area of Abies holophylla plantations in the southeastern part of the Sapernyi Peninsula. On the basis of a set of field, geobotanical, soil, dendrochronological, lichenological and landscape investigations, it was established that a favorable geoecological situation is evolving in the study area. It is determined that the values of hazardous chemical elements in the soil and in the tree needles are much lower than the maximum allowable concentrations, and the fir forest over the course of its existence has not experienced negative impacts which could adversely affect its status and the forest restoration process. Dendrochronological analysis showed that the curve of radial growth corresponds to a normal growth process of successfully developing trees over 30 years. The lichen species diversity within the Abies holophylla plantation and its surroundings is higher than average for the island; rare species also occur. In spite of the optimal conditions for the growth and a favorable environmental situation, negative anthropogenic impacts were recorded. Evidence for illegal felling of Abies holophylla was observed in December. Palynological analysis of soft sediments showed that coniferous species, including Abies holophylla, formed part of forest vegetation of Russkii Island, starting, at least, in the latter half of the Mid-Subboreal. It is established that coniferous-broadleaved forests were of the most widespread occurrence during a global cooling period at the interface of the Late and Mid-Holocene.

With a view to conducting a comprehensive assessment of pollution of the water bodies within the Lake Baikal drainage basin using dimensionless indicators of the water chemical composition, the problems of identifying and testing the indicators were dealt with, which are necessary for determining the sources and levels of pollution and assessing the contributions of the tributar ies to lake pollution and the self-cleaning ability of the waters. The methodology of geoecological monitoring as suggested by these authors is based on identifying correlations between polluters and environmental sites by examining technogenic material of from the sites as mixtures, and material from the sources as their components. Identification of the spatio-temporal structure of pol lution involves analyzing the landscape organization of the lake drainage basin and the distribution patterns of pollutants. Sub stantiation of the observation and monitoring network, extrapolation of monitoring results and display of real-time data used landscape mapping methods. An analysis was made of the landscape and geochemical differentiation of the Lake Baikal drain age basin, and the unified indicators of water composition relating water pollution to natural conditions were ranked. The study revealed areas of geosystems with different rates of organic matter decomposition, i.e. the water areas of the lake with a different self-cleaning ability of the waters, and the areas of the drainage basin, the soils of which are responsible for the formation of waters of different types. The resulting contours were generalized in accordance with the scale of the map for the spatial differ entiation of biogeochemical parameters of the landscape organization of the drainage basin. The highest decomposition rate of organic matter is characteristic for taiga dark-coniferous geosystems of optimal development, submontane and intermontane depressions and valleys of Khamar-Daban Range, and the lowest rate is typical for goletz and subgoletz geosystems as well as for taiga forests along the western coast of Lake Baikal.

Presented are the results from investigating carbon balance in forests of the transboundary Selenga river basin, based on inventory data for the status of forest fund and the key factors (tree felling and forest fires) influencing carbon absorption and emission in forests. Analysis of the forest fund in the Buryat and Mongolian parts of the Selenga river basin revealed distinctive features in the age structure of forests (middle-aged and young tree stands are dominant in Buryatia, and mature and overmature stands in Mongolia), and in the structure of lands of forest fund (an increase in forest-covered area is observed in Buryatia, whereas Mongolia shows the reverse trend). It is established that these differences are influenced by the nature of forest use and by the organization of the forest protection against fires in neighboring countries. The ROBUL technique was used to obtain estimates of carbon budget. A comparative analysis of carbon balance showed that the potential of forests of Buryatia in carbon absorption (sequestration) is by a factor of 3 larger than forests of Mongolia. It is concluded that the amount and sign of carbon budget of forests growing in neighboring territories are determined by the current age structure of forests and by the intensity of destructive disturbances (carbon losses as a result of tree felling, forest fires and death of tree stands), because the carbon absorption by forests is characterized by a relative stability. The contribution from various carbon pools of the forest ecosystem to the total carbon reserves and deposition (absorption) by forests is shown. Results obtained from assessing carbon budget can serve as a basis for developing the forest management and forest use strategy within the framework of transboundary cooperation of neighboring countries in order to minimize the negative effects of climate change and make effective use of its potential benefits.

We examine the regional conditions for swamp formation in different geomorphological settings and characteristics of their emergence, water feed and functioning in the middle mountain zone of Dagestan. Comprehensive investigations used, as the basis, the largest area of swamps located at the transition from the slope of the Arzhuta ridge to the Khunzakh plateau at altitudes of about 1860 m. We investigated the 1.5 m profile of the Shotota lowland swamp, estimated its age using 14 radiocarbon datings and developed the age-depth model. It is established that the grass marsh was continuously evolving in geomorphologically stable conditions for more than 7400 years. It is pointed out that according to the accumulation rate in the peat layer of the profile (averaging 1 cm per 62 years), the Shotota peat deposits may well become the first high resolution long-period natural archives of the northeastern part of Caucasus. It is determined that the development of this peat deposit and underlying sediments encompasses most of the Holocene, including periods of intense agricultural land use of the mountain zone of Dagestan starting in the Neolithic. Data obtained for changes in the peat composition, accumulation rate, degree of decomposition and ash content revealed large phases of change in the region’s moisture content. It is emphasized that a further study of the paleoecological records in the Shotota profile will permit a detailed reconstruction of the Holocene landscape-climatic conditions to provide fundamentally new information on the evolution of nature and development of the territory of East Caucasus by humans.

Presented are the results from investigating spatio-temporal variability in surface air and soil temperatures at depth across the territory of Western Siberia at the end of the 20 ^th - beginning of the 21 ^st centuries. It is established that there were sea sonal differences in temporal changes of climatic parameters in the north and in the south of the region: in the early 21 ^st cen tury, the highest rates of warming were observed in spring throughout the region, whereas the trends were oppositely directed during the winters season in the north and in the south. A comparison is made of the estimates obtained with instrumental ob servations. It was determined that, in spite of the identified differences in the seasonal behavior of the values of soil temperature trends at different depths, it is more appropriate to use reanalysis data in describing regional climate variability. The identified trends in soil temperature fluctuations at different depths are generally similar to air temperature changes. Examination of soil temperatures in the 28-100 and 100-255 cm layers from the reanalysis dataset showed that, in contrast to the situation for 1979-1998, the time interval 1999-2015 showed a decrease of this value in autumn and winter and its significant decrease during the spring-summer period, with the highest rate in spring in the arctic zone of the territory. It was found that the chang es observed according to reanalysis data indicate a rise of temperature in upper soil layers, which, in turn, can lead to an increase in the depth of the layer of seasonal thawing.

It has been established that over a long period of exploitation of gold deposits in Eastern Transbaikalia the area occupied by technogenic formations now measures more than 4 thou ha of land. Most of the tailings of Eastern Transbaikalia date back to the 1930s-1950s. Their surface was, for the most part, not covered with a layer of binding materials for fixing. When designing them, no waterproofing of the bases and protective dams was foreseen. It is shown that among the technogenic formations of the worked-out gold deposits in Eastern Transbaikalia the tailing dump of the gold extraction plant of the Kariiskoe deposit presents the greatest environmental hazard. Its potential toxicity is characterized by the values of GER = 52 632. Dumps of gold recovery plants of the Klyuchevskoe (GER = 4166) and Ilinskoe (GER = 6617) deposits are less dangerous. It was found that the tailings of gold deposits in Eastern Transbaikalia contain from 0.35 to 1.79 g/t of gold. In the course of experimental studies on the leaching of elements from gold-bearing ores, a high mobility of As, Ca, Fe, Cu, Pb and Zn, and a lower mobility of Ni, Co, Cd, Bi and Sb was determined. Studies conducted by specialists of the Research Institute of Occupational Medicine and Human Ecology (Irkutsk) showed that residents of Balei, compared to residents of the cities of Chita and Nerchinsk with no mining enterprises, significantly more often have pathologies of the circulatory organs, pathological disorders of the organs of vision and hearing and diseases of the respiratory system.

Modern levels of global ¹³⁷ Cs deposition in permafrost soils of tundra and taiga zones of Yakutia are studied. It is shown that the reserves of ¹³⁷ Cs in the soils of Yakutia, depending on the landscape and climatic features of the territory, vary in a significant range. The greatest number of ¹³⁷ Cs is contained in soils of mountain areas (Aldan highlands and Chr. Ulahan-Clean), located in the zone with the maximum average annual rainfall, and the lowest - in the soils of the tundra zone. It is recorded that the average density of soil pollution ¹³⁷ Cs on the surveyed flat parts of the territory of Yakutia is now generally decreased by three to four times compared with the data of aerogamma-spectral surveys conducted 1968-1974 on the territory of the Ya kut ASSR due to its radioactive decay, burial, removal from surface waters and accumulation of vegetation. It is shown that in the surveyed areas of the plains and mountains of Yakutia, the global deposition of ¹³⁷ Cs in soils is on average 2-4 times less than in the soils of the Urals, Western and southern Siberia and other territories of Russia. The correlation between the density of soil pollution ¹³⁷ Cs and the amount of atmospheric precipitation was revealed. The main regularities of migration and redis tribution of ¹³⁷ Cs in different types of soils conjugated by runoff of areas of permafrost landscapes are established. In the harsh climatic conditions of Yakutia in permafrost soils vertical and lateral migration ¹³⁷ Cs weaker than in the soils of the European part of Russia contaminated with radioactive cesium after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

In the upper reaches of the Kolyma river and on the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, 211 biotopes showed ecologically impor tant temperature characteristics of seasonally thawed and seasonally frozen soils during warm and cold seasons. The highest (for the upper reaches of the Kolyma) cumulative positive temperatures (2000-2150 ° C/day at a depth of 20 cm) can accumulate in the warmest soils of both types, whereas in the coldest seasonally frozen soils at the same depth this parameter (400-450 ° C/day) is higher by a factor of 40-45 than in the coldest seasonally thawed soils. On the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, formation of seasonally thawed and seasonally frozen soils is possible at any of the values of winter and summer temperatures. The limits of fluctuations of the minimum soils temperatures in hydrogenic taliks of both regions are determined: in the warmest soils at a depth of 20 cm they vary from -1 to -4 ° С, or 4-6 ° С higher than in the warmest permafrost biotopes; and in the coldest taliks (except in poplar-chosenia communities of floodplains) they are vary from -13 to -14 ° C. Annual minima in the range between -6 to -8 ° С and -23 to -24 ° С can occur both in taliks and in permafrost biotopes, lower values in seasonally thawed soils only. Thus the annual minima of soil temperatures of most biotopes do not depend on the presence or absence of permafrost horizons, and only in a small part of hydrogenic taliks they are significantly higher than in the warmest permafrost biotopes.

We examine the issues concerning the perception and transformation of transport accessibility in interrelatedness and in terdependency with the different ways of life: nomadic, rural and urban. The analysis used data of field investigations obtained by these authors in 2017 in Yakutsk, and during 2009-2017 in Aldan and in the Verkhnekolymskii, Nizhnekolymskii, Neryun grinskii, Olenekskii and Srednekolymskii uluses (districts). The study revealed transformations of transport accessibility caused by socio-economic and climatic changes: in spite of an intense development of the transport infrastructure, the duration of the winter roads is becoming shorter and less predictable, and the conditions of the water and air transport infrastructure remain critical. The characteristics of perception and transformation of transport accessibility are illustrated by the example of hunters and reindeer herders, residents of the village of Berezovka and of the city of Yakutsk. It is pointed out that representatives of the nomadic population are less vulnerable to socio-economic changes but more are dependent on natural conditions. It is found that the main problems in Berezovka are associated with periodic floods which are aggravated by limited transport accessibility. Yakutsk has lower transport accessibility compared to the other regional centers but higher accessibility than the other settlements within the region and in the perception of local residents. As a result, it is concluded that, depending on the way of life and experience of the interaction of the local communities with the outside world, the problems of limited transport accessibility are perceived and experienced differently. Thus the relativity of the concept of transport accessibility and the need for further research into its perception and relationship with the way of life of the population is demonstrated.

Methodological approaches to the economic evaluation of the recreational ecosystem services are discussed, and results of calculations exemplified by a separate region are presented. A brief overview of research in the field of economic assessment of natural resources is provided. It is emphasized that after the de-linkage of the ecological-economic and geographical approaches in 1990s the development of methodological approaches to the economic assessment of natural resources in geographical science was not adequately addressed. It is shown that an intensification of research in this area contributed to change in the content of existing concepts and to emergence of new ones. In particular, the notions of “natural capital” and the “ecosystem services” were introduced in the conceptual and terminological system. This permitted a broader interpretation of the “natural resources” category by considering not only their resource functions but also ecosystem services. Classifications of ecosystem services are considered, and it is substantiated that separation of ecosystem services into a special group will be most appropriate. The method of transport and travel costs is suggested for assessing recreational ecosystem services. Based on actual economic indicators, it permits reliable results to be obtained. This method was used to make an economic assessment of recreational ecosystem services for the Republic of Buryatia and a ranking in separate districts using their cost. It is concluded that recreational ecosystem services of the republic have an importance significance and that there is a need to improve the assessment methods.

The redistribution of sediments in the Kuda river basin as a result of erosion-accumulation processes is investigated from the systems perspective. The current geodynamic position of the basin associated with the transition zone from the Siberian platform to the Baikal rift is emphasized. The contribution of cryogenic, karst and aeolian processes to the mobilization of matter in the system is considered. A quantitative assessment of the amount of transported material in the upper (slope), middle (ravine) and lower (riverbed) lithodynamic zones of the basin was made. Time series of the main hydroclimatic indicators were used to determine the long-term dynamics of the functioning of the basin. Using the satellite images, we identified changes in the economic activities within the basin over the past 30 years. They imply a reduction in croplands and an expansion of grasslands. Calculations show that the annual volume of sediments transported within the basin reaches 3 184 430 tons. Most of them (89 %) are involved in the movement by the runoff of storm water, and only 364 405 tons are transported with the runoff of melt water. The role of gully erosion in ablation and sediment transportation is insignificant, because most of the gullies are inactive with a reduction in agriculture; the average growth rate of the heads of gullies does not exceed 0.5 m/year. Channel processes contribute primarily to the redistribution of sediments between adjacent sections of the channel, and their transport to large distances is limited by karst processes and by a significant anthropogenic transformation of the bottoms of the valleys. The annual flow of suspended and transported sediments is a mere 31 000 tons, and the main ablation of material from the system occurs in a dissolved form. In general, the mechanical volume of sediment yield from the system makes up 1 %. The rest of material is redistributed in the basin and causes an enhanced accumulation. It is shown that almost half of the sediments is intercepted by large ponds; the rest is accumulated in the bottoms of the valleys in areas with active karst development, on floodplains as well as in talus and proluvial trains. The study determined a general trend in the transformation of the relief as a result of the functioning of the basin implying its planation.

For the first time, the connection between the formation of the ultra-high pressure ice dam on the Chuya-Kurai glacier-dammed lake and the development of aufeis processes on the Chuya river was substantiated. Consideration is given to the mechanisms of self-regulation in the process of glacier-dammed lake self-freezing as a consequence of a consequence of synchro nous processes of Chuya river aufeis formation and the filling of the hollow with water. It is found that aufeis formation in sec tions of initial damming of the water flow caused an increase in the height and area of the dam and, hence, in its weight. Due to the large weight, favorable conditions were created for the development of the processes of regelation and plastic viscous flow of the monolithic ice massif, without formation of cracks and water flow channels inside the ice body. These factors were respon sible for the long-term resistance of the dam to destruction processes. A possible retrospective assessment of the lake filling dura tion at different flow rates in the Chuya channel is made. It is established that the suggested formation mechanism for a high-pressure ice dam is consistent the well-known cryogenic-hydrophysical patterns and can, therefore, apply for realistic events.

The unique landscape features of the Kingdom of Bhutan, associated with contrasting topography, abrupt height differ ences at short distances and with large amounts of monsoon precipitation in the summer time, are considered. The main feature in the landscapes of this region is determined: exceptional diversity of vegetation cover and animals. An analysis is made of the subtropical, temperate and alpine landscape-ecofloristic zones. In each of the zones, subtropical, temperate, subarctic (alpine type) and nival altitudinal belts are identified. A brief description of high-altitude belts and types of vegetation and animals is given. It is established that the largest space here is occupied by subtropical, broadleaved and coniferous forests (80.9 %) which extend from the foot of the mountains to almost 3500 m above the sea level. The zones and belts are characterized by excep tional biodiversity with a large number of endemic fauna and flora. The system of protected areas of Bhutan is described, and a brief account of its national parks, nature reserves and biological corridors is given. Attention is focused on the rational and careful attitude of the royal government toward nature, implying the establishment of national parks and reserves which occupy half of the entire area of the State.

An analysis is made of the organization of settlement of the eastern regions of Russia in the early period of their development: in the late 19 ^th - early 20 ^th centuries. Historical experience is treated as the result of the State’s transformation activity. Charac teristics of the resettlement movement are shown, which was based on the allocation of land to peasants. Resettlement to outlying district was necessary; therefore, unauthorized settlers were also welcomed, and they also received plots of land. Results of peasant resettlements to the south of the Far East during the Stolypin agrarian reforms, and also the causes and magnitude of emigration to Australia through the eastern gates” of Russia are analyzed. Such emigration was much cheaper than in the westward direction, because the Chinese border could be reached using State assistance with resettlement to the east. It was after the Civil War that migration from Russia became largest. In addition to settlers from the European part of Russia, migrants from neighboring coun tries (China and Korea) were actively involved in the colonization of the Far Eastern lands. Several waves of such resettlements were recorded. The structure of immigration flows from neighboring countries and the areas of their settlement are considered. It is shown that an increase in State assistance to cover expenditures connected with resettlement in the early 20 ^th century contrib uted to a rapid population growth. The region had the highest level of population growth in the country. At present, the preserva tion of the demographic potential and its further increase are becoming a challenging problem of regional policy.