Post-Soviet stage of development of the environmental protection infrastructure is marked, on the one hand, by theoretically limitless opportunities to improve comfortable live support from the perspective of market economic principles based on the ideas of sustainable (balanced, harmonious) development of a modern national economy. On the other hand, the analysis of reality represents the loss of all accumulated experience in this fi eld in the process of the adaptation to market economy, the unrealized hopes to “turn the market” to such a profi table business as waste management (European experience), the growth of negative processes, including environment deterioration, sometimes of almost catastrophic level (coastal pollution of Lake Baikal in the most visited places). The article represents the results of the economic and geographical study of environmental protection infrastructure from the point of view of the spatial organization, increasing role of government regulation and institutional environment in its further development

This study offers a view on the ideas of new economic geography from the theoretical geography perspectives. It represents the analysis of the models of theoretical geography in their sequential order from the point of view of modern understanding of spatial structure of the region. A common factor for classical models is revealed. The new economic geography approaches are used to identify the patterns of economic development of the region in the modern market economy in Russia.

Changes of a thermal regime of the rivers are compared with dynamics of natural and anthropogenic factors. Signifi cant change of temperature of river waters in last 20–30 years practically was not studied. The main goal of this article is the analysis of features of change of a thermal regime of rivers in the south of European Russia.

Several hypotheses of inheritance “field” structure of the landscape in the modern forests of Valdai were confi rmed, as well as the opportunity to reconstruct the original dimension of its contours using geobotanical techniques. Evaluation of fragmentation of vegetation carried out using remote data revealed the dimension of the modern contours of different types of vegetation (forest, meadow and marsh). The average area of relatively homogeneous contour was 1.9 ha, coinciding with the average size of agricultural circuits identifi ed in the assessment of agro-landscape fragmentation. Index of fragmentation of the Valdai landscape within the boundaries of the contours of modern vegetation (pine, spruce, birch forests, meadows) is 0.18–0.24, showing not only the similarity of their genesis (in place of forest clearings and fi elds), but also centuries of existence in the cycle of the agricultural use. The analysis of field data and remote sensing data revealed patterns of actual spatial dynamics of vegetation in conditions of widespread reforestation and form an idea of the stability of its anthropogenic mosaic. It was established that the syntaxonomic analysis of vegetation (classifi cation of plant communities on the fl oristic principle) allows to reconstruct typologically (and, may be, actually) borders of single contour before agricultural land development. According to preliminary estimates, their size range from a few tens to hundreds of hectares, i.e., arrays of indigenous forests until settled farmers in Valdai occupied homogeneous elements of mesorelief and contours of similar Quaternary deposits completely. Comparison of fi eld data and remote sensing data helped to clarify the parameters of phytomass of plant communities in Valdai – from 12 (meadows) to 400 (immoral spruce) t/ha, as well as parameters of production – from 3 (bogs) to 13–15 (meadows, spruce immoral) t/ha per year. Comparison of phytomass of indigenous and secondary forests shows the decline in the latter case by 1.5–2.0 times. Reforestation of grasslandss, hayfi elds and pastures has signifi cantly changed the spatial structure of vegetation productivity in Valdai National Park, the stock of phytomass has grown. At the same time, recreational qualities of historically formed in Valdai ancient Russian forest-fi eld-meadow landscape that is attractive to tourists and valuable object of conservation of natural and cultural heritage are decreasing.

The evolutional changes of European small mammal fauna (mostly Arvicolidae) during Early Pleistocene – Middle Pleistocene transition were analyzed. The fauna between the beginning of the Jaramillo palaeomagnetic event till the Ilinka interglacial of Middle Pleistocene were taken into account (1.07– 0.7 mln years ago). The principal trends in small mammal evolution were revealed. The comparison between the Eastern European fauna and Western European one was carried out.

The problem of the depletion of natural resources potential of traditional nature use of indigenous peoples of the North Siberia as a consequence of industrial development projects is discussed in the paper. A quantitative assessment of negative impact for traditional nature use is performed with the use of geoinformation modeling. Case-study for Evenk people husbandry in Kalar district of the Zabaikalsky krai under condition of infrastructural development is a specifi c component of the research. Modern tools of geographic information systems can effectively take into account the natural conditions and features of the studied area.

Issues of regional sustainable development in relation to the implementation of the priority national project of 21st century – development of Siberia and the Far East are discussed in an article in the format of the review of the book by A.K. Tulokhonov “On the geography in modern society. Lessons of practical geography”. We discuss some of the burning issues of regional development, for example, Russia and its regions in the context of globalization, the Baikal region as a world model area of sustainable development, the risks of depression in Asiatic Russia and possible ways of its socio-economic recovery, crossborder cooperation as an important element of the national project of development of Siberia and the Far East. The conclusion is made concerning he need to clarify the paradigm of interaction of geography with practice, primarily as a leading scientific exploration of space.

Evolutionary approach in snow studies: a fundamental work

On the 75th anniversary of the V.M. Razumovsky