Assessment of the decoupling effect based on the regions of the Southern federal district

The research aims to analyze the decoupling effect when assessing the ecological and economic condition of the regions of the Southern Federal District. The article suggests the results of studying the indicators and systems of indicators of sustainable development applied in the global practice. In addition, the article reveals the need of a wider application of the decoupling analysis, when assessing the ecological and economic condition of the regions. Moreover, the research presents a unique methodology of the extended decoupling analysis, which allows defining six qualitatively different sectors of the ecological and economic condition of the regions which comprise: three sectors reflecting the decoupling effect (the “absolute” decoupling effect sector, the “normal” economic growth sector and the sector of the accelerated decline of environmental pollution) and three more sectors with no decoupling effect (the rapid economic growth sector, the accelerated economic decline sector and the crisis sector). The authors test the suggested methodology using the Southern Federal District regions as an example and assess the effectiveness of the regions’ economic growth from the point of view of sustainable development principles. Rostov Region has the best ecological and economic condition among the Southern Federal District regions over 2010-2016, whereas the worst results are typical of Krasnodar Krai and the Republic of Adygea. Furthermore, the research found out the general deterioration of the ecological and economic condition of the Southern Federal District regions in 2015 and 2016. The suggested models and calculation methodologies can be applied in monitoring and assessing the ecological and economic condition of the regions in order to estimate regional management decisions and elaborate mechanisms of supporting “green” projects. The assessment of either presence or absence of the decoupling effect and its extended analysis will allow making further conclusions on the social and economic condition of the regions and assessing the effectiveness of regional management decisions at the regional level.