Байкальский информационный центр

Circulatory system diseases map

Alexander Ayurzhanaev — 2014-10-14T02:35:00Z

Healthcare

Harsh climatic conditions across the entire territory of the Baikal basin and the surface and ground water used for drinking and food purposes that do not meet the drinking water quality standards (first and foremost in Mongolia and Buryatia) coupled with atmospheric emissions from industrial facilities and motor vehicles (in some parts of the territory) are responsible for the state of human health influencing the organization of healthcare. The ecological situation becomes substantially worse during winter months, which is encouraged by the topography of the terrain. In Mongolia, the spring period is very hard time to bear, with sharp temperature differences, abrupt variations in atmospheric pressure, and frequent dust and magnetic storms.

The organizational pattern of healthcare in Russia and Mongolia has much in common. This is a result of the cooperation of the two countries in this sphere and the fact that medical education and healthcare in Mongolia are organized using Russian experience. Today, Mongolian medical facilities operate on the principles of the state-private partnership concurrent with the demonopolization of the state system of medical services. The country has a mandatory and voluntary medical insurance system, in which state-owned and private medical institutions take part. The country also has various health institutes and centers.

The territory of the Baikal basin is experiencing a deficit of medical workers. As of 2012, the availability of physicians varied from 13.8 to 30.1 per 10,000 people in Russian districts and from 16.1 to 29.0 per 10,000 people in Mongolian aimags. The availability of nurses varies from 25.1 to 112.2 per 10,000 people in Russian districts and from 26.4 to 38.2 per 10,000 people in Mongolian aimags. In Ulan-Ude, these indicators have the values of 53.9 and 117.3, while in Ulaanbaatar – 44.1 and 41.2, respectively.

The ratio of doctors and nurses in the Russian part of the basin is between 1:2 to 1:4, while in the Mongolian part it does not exceed 1:2. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that this ratio should be 1:4. A narrowing of this indicator causes imbalances in the healthcare system thereby limiting possibilities for further development of the after-treatment, casework and rehabilitation services.

Target indicators of healthcare activity are the standard volume of medical care per inhabitant. Currently, there are plans to decrease the per capita volume of in-patient services and increase the per capita volume of the hospital-replacing care. Accordingly, the number of hospital beds available 27/7 will decrease, while the number of beds in day hospitals will grow. Overall, the available number of hospital beds complies with the calculated standards and meets the demand of the population for the in-patient medical aid.

As of today, in Russia, there is an array of problems relating to the high level of illnesses and disability incidences among the population, and these indicators are continuously growing. Such a situation is the result of inadequate preventive measures. Another important contributing factor to this situation is the increase of the proportion of elderly population and the improved effectiveness of illness detection using new diagnostic methods in the process of the increased number of medical checkups.

The leading illnesses in the structure of morbidity are respiratory illnesses, bloodstream, eye, and digestive and musculoskeletal system diseases, as well as traumas. For many years, circulatory system diseases, neoplasms, and injuries have been the main causes of mortality and disability among the population.

Alexander Ayurzhanaev — 2014-10-13T05:10:00Z

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Disturbance of forest land

Under the disturbed land we understand the value that reflects the ratio of the reforestation fund area to the area of forest lands (on the forest fund lands and other land categories, where forests are located). Reforestation Fund consolidates the areas of forest land with stands, damaged by fires, pests and logging. Forest land in contrast to non-forest one represents a category with the following main functions: cultivation, conservation, improving the properties of the main forest forming species. The major part of the forest land is forested and the rest is not covered by forest (burnt areas, dead stands, slashes, clearing sand wastelands). There the reforestation measures are conducted, thus, they contribute to natural regeneration.

On the territory of the Russian part of the Baikal basin, the average disturbance of forest land is 6.1%. It is fluctuating from 0.06 % in the Krasnochikoysky district of Zabaikalsky krai to 9% in the Kizhinginsky district of the Republic of Buryatia. In the Mongolian part of the basin, the disturbance of forest land is higher than in Russia – on the average 9.7%. However, in aimags it is fluctuating from 0.1 to 19.9 %. In six aimags the disturbance of forest lands is more considerable – more than 10%. Such a situation in Mongolia is possibly caused by more accurate description of forest areas with damaged forest stands.

The disturbance of vegetation in the lake Baikal basin map

Alexander Ayurzhanaev — 2014-10-13T00:25:00Z

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Vegetation disturbance

A cartographic evaluation of the anthropogenic disturbance of vegetation is the most effective method for solving numerous issues of environmental protection and the rational use of biotic resources in the Baikal basin. It was carried out taking into account the major changes in the floristic composition and cenotic structure of vegetation, which is developing mainly under the influence of anthropogenic factors. The degree of anthropogenic disturbance of the vegetation was determined by deviation criteria of the composition and structure of plant communities from their native state.

The evaluation is based on a modern universal map “Vegetation of the Baikal basin” 1:4, 000,000, which is created on the principles of a structural-dynamic classification of vegetation taking into account its main regional-typological features and dynamic processes caused by human and natural factors. Thus, invariants of epistructures of plant communities were established and thereby the base (zero) estimation level was defined, which was the starting point for the countdown of actual spontaneous and human-induced changes in the vegetation cover.

Besides the universal geobotanic map, basic cartographic sources were used in assessing the vegetation disturbances. These sources provide information about the boundaries of arable land and farmland and forests damaged by technogenesis, recreation, and harmful insects, burnt sites and regenerated cutover stands. Forest and land use management materials and Google 2013 surveying satellite images were used.

The disturbance of vegetation of the Baikal basin is determined primarily by its use as an industrial and agricultural resource, which is based on forests, grasslands and steppes.

Industrial logging leads to a change of indigenous coniferous stands to small-leaved, less valuable for the economy. Abandoned semi-subsistence raw materials on slashes increase forest fire debris and entomological danger. Light coniferous forests located in the riversides, especially on fertile soils used for agriculture, are often cut.

Besides logging, the forests in Irkutsk oblast, the Republic of Buryatia, Zabaikalsky krai, as well as in Mongolia are annually exposed to forest fire. Fire damages not only the forest but also the community of other vegetation types - mountain tundra, subalpine elfin cedar thickets, yerniks, steppes and others. That leads to the accumulation of large burnt areas, replacing native forests derivatives.

Negative impact on the steppe vegetation is also caused by plowing and irrational use of grazing territory. As for the pastural digression of vegetation, it has completely or partially changed the floristic composition and structure of many steppe and meadow communities.

In Mongolia, grazing currently remains the main type of agriculture. Here they raise cattle, sheep, camels, goats and horses, as well as Mongolian yaks and reindeer. Alpine pastures are even mountain-tundra, cryophyte steppe, marshy meadow and steppe. Vegetation communities of middle mountain, foothill, lowland areas and basins are widely used for pasture. Vegetation communities of floodplains and lakeshores with forest, meadow, prairie and wetland vegetation are especially strongly disturbed [Banzragch, et al, 1990].

In general, in Mongolia, as well as in Irkutsk oblast, the Republic of Buryatia and Zabaikalsky krai in the remote and undeveloped alpine areas, where there is no human activities, undisturbed (indigenous) vegetation is provisionally preserved. According to the development and availability of the areas, the assessment of vegetation disturbance is changing.

As a result of the analysis and assessment of vegetation communities, five categories of vegetation disturbance are identified on the map – conditionally drastic, weakly, moderately, and strongly disturbed and reformed.

References

Banzragch, D., Beckett, U., Buyan-Orshih, H., Munkhbayar, S., & Tsedendash, T. (1990). The map: Types of pastures. Scale 1:3,000,000. National atlas of the Mongolian People’s Republic. Moscow-Ulaanbaatar. p 102-103.

Pasture degradation map

Alexander Ayurzhanaev — 2014-10-10T06:50:00Z

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Pasture Degradation

Under the conditions of a complex geomorphological structure of the territory, uneven particle-size distribution, and often thin profile of soils, degradation processes are dominated by linear and sheet erosion. Based on the intensity of development of water erosion and deflation processes and, consequently, different disturbances of the soil profile, as well as according to the results of evaluating the areal development of all types of erosion processes, three degrees of land degradation are shown on the map in shading: slight, moderate, and severe. They were determined by the share of the main categories of eroded soils as a percentage of the agricultural lands area. Twenty-four percent, up to 42%, 47%, and more than 60% of developed lands are eroded in varying degrees in the Baikal region, in the territory of the Republic of Buryatia, in the Olkhon district, and in some areas of Mongolia, respectively.

As a result of a special analysis and assessment of the pasture condition, three categories of the degree of their degradation are distinguished in the map “Pasture degradation”, namely: low, moderate, and high. The map’s explanatory note explains the diagnostic features of pasture degradation. The predominant part of pastures experiencing moderate anthropogenic impact is classified as slightly or moderately disturbed.

In general, the map is the basis for preventing the development of dangerous geo-ecological situations in the region, organizing environmental activities, and optimizing the management of the biogeochemical environment of the population’s life-sustaining activities.

References

Dorzhgotov, D. and Batkhishig, O. (2009). Soils: The soil and geographical zoning of Mongolia. National Atlas of Mongolia. Ulaanbaatar. p 120-122.

Dorzhgotov, D. (1976). Soil classification of Mongolia. Ulaanbaatar. p 170.

Dorzhgotov, D. (2003). Soils of Mongolia. Ulaanbaatar. p 370.

Kuzmin, V. A. (2004). The soil cover: The soil and ecological zoning of Irkutsk oblast. Atlas of Irkutsk oblast. Irkutsk. p 40-41.

Nechaeva, E. G., Belozertseva, I. A., Naprasnikova, E. V., Vorobyeva, I. B., Dubynina, S. S., Davydova, N. D., & Vlasova N. V. (2010). Monitoring and forecasting of the substance-dynamical state of geosystems in Siberian regions. Novosibirsk: Nauka. p 315.

Nechaeva, E. G. (2001). Landscape-geochemical zoning of Asian Russia. Geography and Natural Resources, 1. p 12-18.

Nechaeva, E. G., Belozertseva, I. A., Davydova, N. D., & Sorokovoy, A. A. (2009). The map of degradation and contamination of the soil cover. Scale 1:5,000,000. Electronic atlas of natural resources, economy, and population of the Baikal Region. Irkutsk: V.B. Sochava Institute of Geography SB RAS.

Sochava, V. B., Timofeev, D. A. (1968). Physical and geographical regions of North Asia. Proceedings of the Institute of Geography of Siberia and the Far East, 19. p 3-19.

Ubugunov, L. L., Badmaev, N. B., Ubugunova, V. I., Gyninova, A. B., Balsanova, L. D., Ubugunov, V. L., Gonchikov, B. N., & Tsybikdorzhiev, T. D-T. (2011). Soil map of Buryatia. Scale 1:3,000,000. Ulan-Ude: Institute of General and Experimental Biology SB RAS.

Khismatullin, S. D. (1991). Erosion on agricultural lands of Irkutsk oblast. Geography and Natural Resources, 4. p 49-61.

Shishov, L. L., Tonkonogov, V. D., Lebedeva, I. I., & Gerasimova, M. I. (2004). Classification and diagnostics of soils of Russia. Smolensk: Oikumena. p 342.

Degradation of ecosystems. (2005). In E. A. Vostokova & P. D. Gunin (Eds.), Atlas of Ecosystems of Mongolia. Moscow. p 44.

Soil degradation and contamination map

Alexander Ayurzhanaev — 2014-10-10T06:25:00Z

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Soil degradation and contamination

The background basis of this map is the differentiation of the soil cover according to the conditions of its self-purification capacity, controlled by the processes of migration and accumulation of chemical elements. In this regard, the largest territory units are landscape-geochemical areas. They are distinguished based on the boundaries of the major lithological-geomorphological structures and bioclimatic conditions.

More fractional territory subdivisions are landscape-geochemical provinces, singled out based on a complex of factors of potential contamination of soils and their degradation in the process of different types of nature management. Among these factors is the zonal and altitude-belt specificity of bioclimatic conditions, determined by hydrothermal parameters of the territory. The possibility of involving elements-pollutants of the environment in the biological cycle and the food chain of living organisms depends on them. The rate of development of biochemical processes of pollutants transformation in the soil medium and neutralization of their toxic action also depends on the amount and ratio of heat and moisture. Another equally important factor of self-purification of the soil cover is the water migration of material. Criteria for determining the differentiation of the territory according to the intensity of material migration (IMM) are topography and true altitude (TA) of the area. Weak IMM is peculiar to lowland plain surfaces with TA below 200 m; medium IMM – to low-mountain relief terrain, and high and low plateau with TA from 400 to 600 m; high IMM – to middle altitudes and steep slopes with TA of 600-1000 m; and intensive IMM – to high mountains with TA above 1000 m. Mountain-depression landscapes widespread within the given territory are characterized by contrast migration: from intense to weak.

Geochemical classes, denoted by the indices of typomorphic elements, contain the integral characteristics of the soil medium, which is depositing with respect to the pollutants. The classes reflect alkaline-acid and redox conditions of the environment peculiar to different landscapes: the main factors of functioning of the migration-accumulation mechanism in soils and formation of various geochemical barriers, where elements-pollutants may deposit.

Based on these main criteria for evaluating the self-purification capacity of soils taking into account the location of currently functioning sources of industrial emissions into the environment within the territory, an assessment of the hazard level of its technogenic-chemical pollution was made.

Against the background of the degree of the potential hazard of soil contamination estimated according to the natural factors, the main sources of pollution are shown. They are industrial and boiler facilities of the towns of Slyudyanka, Baikalsk, Severobaikalsk, Nizhneangarsk, Listvyanka, Ulan-Ude, Gusinoozersk, Petrovsk-Zabaikalsk, Kyakhta, Ulaanbaatar, Darkhan, Erdenet, Zuunmod, etc. Virtually all industrial complexes are located in the conditions with insufficient self-purification of the environment, and those ones, emissions of which are heading toward the Baikal depression, represent a factor of environmental risk for it. The map shows the areas of soil contamination with the exceedance of pollutants MPC, their total emissions, industrial sources, and their contribution to air pollution. The pollution halos, 1-10 times exceeding the MPC values in the sum of the priority toxic elements (hazard class I-III), are contoured with a linear map sign. Emission rates into the atmosphere are presented in a pie chart for the sources with emissions of more than one thousand tons per year. The proportion (%) of different industries in the gross emissions is marked in the diagram. Halos with the emission sources of less than one thousand tons per year cover a small area, and in the given scale they are marked with point signs.

A significant contribution to the mechanical degradation and contamination of the soil cover in the Baikal basin, rich with various mineral resources, is made by their industrial development. Conventional signs mark the lands of mining industry (quarries, terricones, dumps, etc.). The most significant in size and intensive in the degree of disturbance of the soil cover and the geological environment are objects, registered in the Gusinoozersky and Erdenetsogt coal basins.

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Conventional symbols mining enterprises map

Alexander Ayurzhanaev — 2014-10-10T06:15:00Z

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Environmental impact of mining industry

Mining industry is one of the sectors strongly and comprehensively affecting the environment. The intensive use of land lots for mining mineral resources leads to the destruction of the surface ground layer, creation of mining openings, disturbance of the hydrological regime of rivers, soil and surface and underground water pollution, and destruction of the environmental integrity and natural landscapes.

The importance of mining industry for Siberia and Mongolia is explained by their mineral resources specialization. Within the context of transitioning to sustainable (balanced) development, the high cost-effectiveness of the mining industry along with environmental compliance and the increase of social and living standards of the population are especially important.

This map reflecting the impact of mining on the environment was created to reveal the ecological component of sustainable development in the Baikal basin.

In the process of creating this map, the following library and published data were used: “National atlas of the Mongolian People’s Republic” (1990), “The ecological and geographic map of the Russian Federation” (1996), “Atlas of social and economic development of Russia” (2009), and “National atlas of Mongolia” (2009), etc. High-resolution satellite images (made in 2010-2013) were deciphered and used to examine the landscape structure of the territory. The state of the industrial sector and environment in the areas of mineral resources management was determined.

The objects of ecological evaluation were mineral deposits and mining enterprises. The information about them is provided on the basic maps that are part of this Atlas: “Fuel-energy resources and their development”, “Resources of ferrous, non-ferrous, and rare metals and their extraction”, “Basic types of nonmetallic materials, resources, and development”.

The biggest part of the researched area is part of the central and buffer zones of the Baikal Natural Territory within the Russian Federation. The Baikal basin in Mongolia is a natural continuation of this buffer zone. According to the Russian law “On the Protection of Lake Baikal”, the ecological zoning of the Baikal Natural Territory is the main tool for its implementation. Specific conservation restrictions are applied in the central ecological zone surrounding the Lake Baikal depression. Among the types of activities prohibited in this zone are the extraction of crude oil, natural gas, and radioactive and metal ores and the exploration and mining of previously undeveloped new deposits. The extraction of mineral resources within the water area of Baikal, in its water-protection zone, and in spawning rivers and their water-protection zones is prohibited.

In the buffer zone, the prospected and prepared for the development deposits, as well as mining operations are located within the ecological districts of Type 6, which includes industrial districts with a regulated intensive development. This type of districts is characterized by highly valuable landscapes and their components with an average or low sensitivity to stress. They mostly include the valley, piedmont, steppe and sub-taiga landscapes. The reason for singling out these districts is the importance of mining for the economy of the region. However, mining operations should not negatively affect the ecological system of Lake Baikal.

The cartographic evaluation of the technogenic disturbances of landscapes within the studied territories is provided for 380 mineral deposits. At present, 75 deposits are being developed. At 12 deposits mining operations are suspended, and they are either moth-balled or turned into reserves. The impact of mining enterprises on the environment is primarily determined by mining methods, the toxicity of raw materials and reagents used in processing, and landscape features.

The maximum impact on the environment, which is manifested in the drastic transformation of the relief with the formation of the technogenic denudation and accumulated forms, is caused by open-pit mining operations that remain a preferred mining method in the majority of cases due to economic considerations. On the territory under observation, 73 deposits are being developed by the open-pit mining method, and only 2 deposits are developed by the underground mining methods (the Bom-Gorkhon tungsten deposit and Nalaikh brown coal deposit). The main indicator of technogenic impact on the lithosphere is the area of disturbed land in square km, which is assessed using the following grades: I – over 10 km²– the strongest impact, II – 1-10 km² – strong impact, III – 0.1-1 km²– moderate impact, IV – less than 0.1 km²– weak impact. The largest disturbed land areas have been formed as a result of mining operations at the deposits of Erdenetiyn ovoo (Fig. 1), Gusinoozersky (Fig. 2), and Olon-Shibirskoe.

Sizable areas of disturbed lands in river valleys form due to the placer gold mining, which results in the intensification of erosion, change of structure and productivity of floodplains, pollution and deformation of riverbeds, decrease of groundwater level, and destruction of biotic components of ecosystems. On the surveyed territory, there are about 30 sites, where placer gold is being mined. Nearly all of them are located in the mountain river valleys of the Krasny Chikoy and Zakamensk district and the Selenge and Tov aimags. The maximum size of the disturbed land (about 40 sq. km) was found in the Tuul river valley (Fig. 3).

At the undeveloped deposits, the main source of the impact on the lithosphere are exploration works, including the development of drill holes and trenches, drilling, construction and exploitation of temporary roads and settlements. The area of such disturbances is relatively small and conventionally accepted as 0.01 sq. km.

The background indicator of technogenic disturbances of lands is the density (prevalence) of disturbances. This indicator is determined as a ratio of the total area of the disturbed land in an administrative district to the total area of this district. The following grades of disturbance are used (sq. km / thou. sq. km): I – over 10 – very high, II – 1.0 to 10 – high, III – 0.1 to 1.0 –intermediate, IV – 0.01 to 0.1 – low, V – less than 0.01 – lowest. Using this scale, the following aimags and districts have been classified as territories with a very high and high levels of land disturbance: the Orkhon, Darkhan-Uul, and Tuv aimags, Ulaanbaatar, the Petrovsk-Zabaikalsky, Zakamensky, Slyudyansky and Selenginsky districts.

At several operating mines, such as Olon-Shibirsky (coal), Tumurtolgoy (iron), Erdenetiyn ovoo (copper, molybdenum), Bom-Gorkhon (tungsten), Boroo (gold), etc., the extracted mineral resources undergo primary processing. In order to store or bury tailings, tailings ponds and dumps are created (Fig. 4). If built without paying due attention to filtering and other factors, they pose environmental risks and become the source of contamination of surface and ground water, as well as the atmosphere (dust). The most serious environmental consequences are found at the tailings ponds of the Erdenet Mining Company, Dzhidinsky tungsten-molybdenum mill (now shut down) and Kyakhta mill (currently not operating).

Extracted raw materials and enrichment products are classified into five categories of toxicity according to the degree of their ecological risk: I – very high: rare metal and radioactive ores, II – high: ores of nonferrous and precious metals, fluorite, III – increased: coal and brown coal, iron ores, IV – moderate: placer gold and tungsten, V – low: nonmetallic raw materials.

For every mining enterprise, environmental components (nature, economy, and people’s health) are differentiated by the degree of technogenic impact.

A negative impact on the environment and health is exemplified by the dumps and tailings ponds of the non-operating Dzhidinsky tungsten-molybdenum mill, which is located within the administrative borders of Zakamensk (Fig. 5). The production waste accumulated during the 50 years of the mill’s operations is a strong source of pollution contaminating the surface and ground water with toxic components and the air (dusting).

The mining enterprises are shown as symbols of varying shapes, sizes, structures and colors. The shape designates a mining method, the size shows the degree of land disturbance. The external contour (rim) shows landscape stability, while the internal contour points at its significance. The color of the contour corresponds to the values of indicators. A circle in the center of the map and its color show the level of toxicity or ecological risk of extracted materials and their enrichment products. The circles on the map designate the deposits undergoing different stages of geological exploration. The density of disturbed lands in administrative districts is reflected on the map using the quantitative background technique.

The map shows that the majority of mining enterprises is concentrated in the central most developed part of the territory. On the southwestern flank within the Mongolian part of the basin, there are many deposits, the majority of which are currently not developed. The lands are least disturbed in the northeast. In the central ecological zone of the Baikal Natural Territory, there are three operating non-ore deposits (the Angasolka deposit of construction stone, Slyudyanka cement marble deposit, and Tarakanovsky cement limestone deposit) located over 4 km away from the coast of Lake Baikal. The extracted materials belong to the low class of ecological risk. The development of these deposits is not included into the types of activities prohibited in the central ecological zone of the Baikal Natural Territory and does not significantly affect the ecosystem of Lake Baikal.

References

National atlas of Mongolia. (2009).

Atlas of social and economic development of Russia. (2009). Мoscow: Cartography. p 155-215.

The ecological and geographic map of the Russian Federation. Scale 1:4,000,000 (1996). Мoscow: GUGC.

National atlas of the Mongolian People’s Republic. (1990). Moscow-Ulaanbaatar. p 144

Fig. 1. Production and social infrastructure facilities at the copper molybdenum deposit Erdenetiyn Ovoo. There is a tailings pond in the northern part of the photo. The open pit is shown in the southern part, while production and residential zones – in the southwest.

Fig. 2. The nature of soil degradation at the Gusinoozersk brown coal field: open pits filled with water and waste rock dumps.

Fig. 3. Technogenic damages to the Tuul valley landscapes at a placer gold mine.

Fig. 4. Boroo gold mine: open pit is in the southwestern part of the photo, tailings pond is in the northeastern part of the photo.