From the editor-in-chief

Pacific Russia is considered as the large Russian eastern macroregion, including the Far East, 200-mile sea economic zone and the eastern part of the Arctic shelf. The geographical factors of the regional development, such as environmental conditions and resources and their spatial differentiation, economicgeographical position and processes of the socioeconomic complexation and of the genesis of districts forming the territorial socioeconomic systems and their structural links, are distinguished and estimated. The geopolitical factors of a sustainable development, such as certain components of the geopolitical position, including asymmetry, the trans-boundary features of a number of the territories and water areas of the region, etc., are considered. Based on the materials of the Regional Development Program and scientific studies, the priority directions of the long-term development are highlighted. Estimations on inertia features and variability of main types of activities by regional subjects are given.

Geography of capital outflow and inflow to BRICS countries is considered. The prerequisites of capital outflow and inflow to these states are analyzed. The orientation of capital export and import from these countries to offshores and offshore-conduit states is underlined. The attempt is made to discover the reasons of high offshorization of BRICS countries’ outflow and inflow of capital. Author’ hypothesis explaining these reasons is put forward. It is based on the thesis of weak institutional structure of BRICS and other developing countries first of all insufficient protection of entrepreneurs, high level of shadow and criminal business as well as underdevelopment of civil law in these states.

The sector of intellectual business services is one of key elements of knowledge economy and through the creation, accumulation and dissemination of knowledge contributes to a more dynamic and innovative development not only itself, but also the external environment. The article is devoted to the problems of spatial distribution of the sector of intellectual business services in Russia. The study is founded on the unique empirical base received from the results of mass surveys of Russian producers and consumers of intellectual business services. Collected data have formed quantitative characteristics of spatial distribution of intellectual business services. Comparative analysis of ingoing (demand) and outgoing (supply) flows of intellectual business services in the federal districts has allowed to classify the latter according to the level of involvement in the process of these services and to map the intensity of inter-regional supply and demand of federal districts. It is found that companies offering intellectual business services in Russia are highly concentrated in large cities. The demand for intellectual business services is more distributed, but also not spatially neutral. The article may be of interest to researchers dealing with spatial distribution of elements of the innovation economy in Russia. It may be useful for regional authorities to assess the territorial development potential.

The assessment of the hydrological consequences of landscape changes in the basin of the Moscow River since the mid-19th century to the present day is attempted. The surface slope runoff and the total surface runoff in the basin of the Moscow River with account of the runoff with an area of the hydrographic network were calculated on the basis of the water-balance stations data. The estimation of changes in runoff of infiltration origin and the total river runoff is given.

The annual range of temperature and the annual precipitation are major climatic factors affecting the biota and soil biological activity of arid areas of the South of the European part of Russia (chernozems, chestnut and brown semidesert). The coefficient of correlation between climatic parameters and humus content, the enzymatic activity of arid soils is very high and is from -0.90 to -0.93, for example, for the coefficient of continentality (according to Zenker). The values of the integral index of biological state (IIBS) of soil decrease with increasing degree of continentality in series: chestnut → light-chestnut → brown semidesert soils. Changes in IIBS between the extreme points for surface horizons are more than 40%.

Space-time characteristics of dissolved organic matters (DOM), alkaline-acidic conditions (pH) and mineralization (∑m) of river waters of natural provinces and countries of mountains with tundra-taiga types of vertical zoning of Russia are analyzed. The study is based on the results of long-term experimental hydrochemical researches and observations on the network of Hydrometeorological Service. The reaction of river water of studied mountains is neutral (pH is from 6.5 to 7.0). Water mineralization in the main area is extremely small (less than 100 mg/dm3 ), in some natural countries and provinces increases to small. The river water of mountains with the West Siberian and East Siberian tundra-taiga zoning types is quite similar by average annual chrominance, by the content of dissolved organic matters and easily oxidable fractions, while these parameters for the river water of the pacific types mountains are at 1.5 times lower. Extreme average concentrations of humic and fulvic acids in the water of the rivers of these mountains are maximal in the mountain territory of the country.

In sections of the loess-soil series of the Central part of the East European plain, the Mikulin interglacial paleosoils were formed according to texture-differentiated type with predominance of the processes of lessivage and possible podzolization in similar climatic conditions with modern climate. The Kamenka interglacial paleosoils contained the signs of the processes of argillization and lessivage and were formed in more humid conditions than the Mikulin interglacial paleosoils. The Inzhavino interglacial paleosoils were formed under forest vegetation, where the texture and differentiated paleosoils were formed by eluvial-illuvial type involving process of lessivage, as well as with significant involvement of the processes of surface-gleying or podzolization. It points to conditions, similar to conditions of formation of the Kamenka interglacial soils, but with more intense processes of hydromorphism. Interstadial paleosoils of the late and middle Pleistocene were formed under grass vegetation in semiarid conditions.

A reconstruction of the climate of the Tien Shan in the Holocene based on spore-pollen analysis and radiocarbon dating of lake and marsh sediments is presented. It is proved that the climatic conditions of the Sub-Holocene as well as the early and middle Holocene are characterized by aridity and continentality, except the interval from 6 to 5 thousand years. The late Holocene was different by wet and cool climate. Cold and wet conditions were observed in the late Sub-Atlantic time (the last millennium A.D.), and the middle of the Sub-Atlantic period (the first millennium A.D.) characterized by very dry and warm climate. A significant difference in the estimates of the climate of the Tien Shan, Pamir, and the Fergana Valley in the Holocene was detected. It was caused by a different interpretation by the researchers of the same spore-pollen spectra (SPS) of mountains of the Central Asia (the former Soviet Union). The author’s interpretation of the spore-pollen spectra characterizing periglacial landscapes of the Sub-Holocene and the early Holocene of the Tien Shan is proposed. The scientific correctness of the proposed interpretation, confirmed by the synchronous oscillations of the level of the Aral Sea and the paleoclimate of the Tien Shan – area of runoff formation of the Syr Darya River, is proved. Using the proposed interpretation for the spore-pollen spectra removes many of the contradictions in assessing climate of mountains of the Central Asia.

The objects of this study were the Holocene soils formed on different elements of relief and under conditions of different natural zones, as well as paleosoils including buried under the mounds.

The aim was to identify the patterns and mechanisms of formation of the structure of spatial heterogeneity of soil properties and soil cover conditioned by the paleoecological factors, based on a measure of the magnetic susceptibility. For the first time regularities of spatial variability of the magnetic susceptibility indicator in soils of different elements of paleocryogenic microrelief were identified. The paleocryogenic microrelief role in the formation of strong magnetic minerals of iron is comparable with the effect of zonal conditions of soil formation and is expressed in differentiation of water-air conditions. The character of variation of these conditions determines heterogeneity of soil properties at the subtype level. Variography allowed revealing the characteristic dimensions of homogeneous structures, the presence of which was associated with paleocryogenic microrelief and its structure-forming elements. The spatial distribution of the magnetic susceptibility conditioned by paleocryogenic microrelief has the form of annular, rhythmically repeating structures.

Profile distribution of the magnetic susceptibility in paleosoils of the steppe zone defined primarily the soil magnetite content can be used as a “magnetic recording” of paleoecological factors of steppes and provides quantitative characteristics of climate (precipitation). In addition, the topoisopleths of spatial distribution of the magnetic susceptibility can show both the stages of construction of ground burial structures (mounds), and the materials used.

Results can be used in the study of soil cover structure and its mapping, monitoring of soil characteristics in connection with the development of technology “exact” agriculture.

For the first time rating of ecological state of all of 1100 Russian cities by an integral index of intensity of human impact on the environment, including air pollution, pollution of water resources, amount of solid consumer waste, heat and radiation contamination was made. An integrated approach to the ecological situation assessment of the Russian cities, which takes into account both the level of human impact in the settlement and pollution in the existing settlement system is proposed. The rationale and elaboration of this method acts as an important research task, because main social and ecological consequences of the territorial structure transformation of the economy can be assessed through the number of people living in conditions of varying degrees of pollution. As a result, there was developed a typology of cities in the country by the ratio of the internal pollution potential and “induced pollution” from other cities, calculated as the potential surfaces of human impact. Almost in half of Russian cities ecological situation has formed as a result of internal human impact. One-third of Russian cities are characterized by an equal contribution of inner legacy funds and external sources. However, every fifth city of Russia provides its environmental resources for settling and recreation, influenced by centers of agglomerations. The proposed measures to improve the ecological situation in the different types of cities and regions take into account the structural features of the integral index, as well as proportion of own and external components of the potential surfaces of human impact.

Data about main local pollution sources in the Pechora Delta, natural state of soil and vegetation cover are given. Their morphological changes due to mechanical and geochemical impact after the 1987 accident are listed. The spatial structure of pollution by oil products and its consequences for ecological and geochemical state of soils and bottom sediments in zone of influence of the accident and boreholes which functioned trouble-free is described.

The factors and conditions for formation of local depressions are considered. The hydrological typology of depressions is given. Long-time variability of the hydrological regime, peculiar to the depressions relief, is simulated. It is shown that the depressions water regime is defined by the total set of factors of runoff formation. Conclusions about a specific role of the cone-shaped depressions for groundwater recharge are drawn.

The Unified State Register of Soil Resources (EGRPR) illustrates a modem soil cover model of Russia. The geographical part of the model is denoted by soil polygons, boundaries of administrative regions (subjects) of the Russian Federation (RF), boundaries of soil-ecological regions and points showing a location of representative soil profiles. The attributive part comprises a relational structure made of morphological-analytical description of soils included in the EGRPR and derived from morphologicalgenetic and analytical data of representative soil profiles, characteristics of the soil resources of subjects of the RF and description of soil-ecological regions.

“За единую и устойчивую Латинскую Америку” – под таким девизом в Гаване с 5 по 10 апреля 2015 г. прошел ставший уже традиционным Конгресс (исп. – “Встреча”) латиноамериканских географов. На этот раз EGAL (такова испанская аббревиатура мероприятия, которое проводится с 1987 г. с двухлетним интервалом поочерёдно на разных страновых “площадках”) собрал рекордное число участников (1896, включая 436 кубинских географов) из 27 государств.