The environmental "cost" of doing business in the Southern federal district

Автор: Starokozheva Galina Ivanovna, Mitrofanova Inna Vasilyevna

Журнал: Региональная экономика. Юг России @re-volsu

Рубрика: Условия, ресурсы, факторы и механизмы развития Юга России

Статья в выпуске: 2 (8), 2015 года.

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The article explores the issues of heterogeneity of economic development of subjects (regions) of the Southern Federal District, analyzes the impact of the economic activity on main indicators of pollution, which largely determine the quality of the natural environment. Authors show an assessment of air quality, recorded discharges of legal entities by contaminated wastewater, examines trends in waste formation and consumption in the subjects of the Southern Federal District, most of which belong to the type of old industrial regions. The authors believe that the sustainable development of the mixed economy of Southern Russia needs measures of systemic nature, aimed at the rational use of resources in the process of managing and preserving the environment that requires correction of the district and regional strategies and programs for socio-economic development. That is now the priority of the strategic territorial management, which involves the modernization of the economic complex of the Southern Federal District, taking into account the environmental imperative. The necessity of a transformation of Federal Districts into territorial centers for economic development, characterized by the economic space of a higher quality is becoming increasingly evident.

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Region, southern federal district, economic complex, heterogeneity of economic development, diversity of the economy, structural and technological shifts, environmental externalities, technologically obsolete enterprises, pollution of territories, negative impact, environment

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Короткий адрес: https://sciup.org/149131073

IDR: 149131073

Текст научной статьи The environmental "cost" of doing business in the Southern federal district

external effects of ecological character (pollution, refuse, destruction of natural objects, ecological damage and so on). Negative external effects will hardly influence the economic state of the enterprises polluters themselves. That’s why costs and damage from their activity in direct sense are external ones [28; 30].

Meanwhile ecological negative external effects have a temporary effect that is directly connected with the conception of a sustainable development. Polluting the environment today, worsening the ecological parameter of life quality, mankind is catalyzing economic, social and ecological problems for future generations. A basic moment for the analysis is the extrapolation of additional external expenses by a contemporary generation for the future at the available technogenic development [22; 23].

Another trait of ecological negative externalities is a global character that leads to an aggravation of a number of problems connected for example with the transfer the transboundary pollutants. Exhausts of chemical substances into the atmosphere, river pollution and other ecological impacts create considerable ecological and economic problems as well as additional costs in other, especially transfrontal countries [29; 31].

For the economy of contemporary Russia different forms of property, types of economic activities, methods of manufacture coordination, types of economic relations regulation, degree of technical equipment availability in different industries, types of manufacturing organization are typical. The existing multisctructural character of the economy influences the behaviour of economic actors, creating a new type of economy based on the independence of decision taking by every subject in particular. One of the basic problems of the economic development in this period is becoming the technological monosectoral character denoting simultaneous functioning of both new manufacturers and technologically obsolete enterprises [1; 16; 18].

The suggested division into federal districts for the purpose of the optimization of the administrative and territorial development is on the stage of the determination of the mostly efficient approaches concerning the problems of the regulation of territorial development. In contrast to economic districts, federal districts are not territorial formations of either industrial or functional type. Basic managerial functions on the regional level are still being relied upon the governments of the subjects of the federation. However the necessity of the transformation of federal districts into territorial centers of economic development used for the overcoming also an excessive asymmetric character and leveling problems of a polar interregional differentiation in a multisubjectoral and multisectoral economy of the country remains urgent [3; 15].

Among nine federal districts of the Russian Federation it is in the Southern Federal District where to the utmost the uneven character of the economic development of the economic actors and, as a result, a differentiated character of ecological problems appearing afterwards is displayed [9; 20].

In the regions of the Southern Federal District the multisectoral structure of the economic activity can be characterized by the presence of several technological ways of functioning: half natural, petty economy (preindustrial), industrial and, in parvo, innovative one. This is connected with the fact that during the formation of the district that united territories of the South of Russia, both large industrial centers with ecological problems typical for them and agricultural krays and republics having principally other negative ecological effects resulting from the economic activity were included in it. That’s why the pollution indices reflecting the quality of the environment, the Southern Federal District during latest years does not occupy leading positions among the districts of the Russian Federation [4; 7; 11; 12].

As it is shown in table 1 the share of the Southern Federal District in the total volume of the emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere by stationary and moving sources amounted to only 5,8% that corresponds to 6th rank in the total list of Russian districts. At the same time the degree of participation of the Southern regions in the formation of this index fluctuates considerably (table 1, 2).

The main source of pollution of the atmospheric air in the regions of the Southern Federal District in 2012 were vehicles. The share of the regions of the Southern Federal District made up 1146,1 thousand tons of emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere from moving sources and about 731,1 thousand tons of emissions from stationary sources.

Judging from total emissions of pollutants from moving and stationary sources Krasnodar kray (35,5 %) is the leader, then comes Rostov region (26,6 %), Volgograd region (20,8 %), Astrakhan region (13,2 %). Southern cities of Volgograd, Volgodonsk, Volzhsky are included into the list of the cities of Russia with the highest level of polluted air. Republics of Adygea and Kalmykia pullute the air in parvo and their share of total pollution make up only 1,7 and 1,8 %. At the same time the share of the emissions from moving sources in the total volume of emissions in these republics makes up about 81 % and 89 % correspondingly. This fact is connected not only with a stable growth of vehicles observed in recent years that is accompanied by the increase of emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere and by

Table 1

Emissions of pollutant into the atmosphere by stationary and moving sources in federal districts of Russia (thousand tons)

Indices

By the date 01.01.2013

Share of the federal district in the total amount of emissions, %

Rank of the federal district in the total list of the districts

Pollutants emitted into the atmosphere Totally in the Russian Federation Including

32 468,1

100,0

Central federal district

5 099,7

15,7

4

North Western federal district

3 470,4

10,7

5

Southern federal district

1 877,2

5,8

6

North Caucasian federal district

847,6

2,6

8

Volga federal district

5 205,6

16,0

3

Ural federal district

6 623,9

20,4

2

Siberian federal district

7 833,1

24,1

1

Far Eastern federal district

1 511,0

4,7

7

Source: made on the basis of the data: [27].

Table 2

Emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere by stationary and moving sources in the regions of the Southern federal district by the beginning of 2013 (thousand tons)

Regions

Indices

Emissions into the atmosphere of pollutants, total

Share of the region of the Southern federal district in the total volume of emissions, %

Rank of the region in the total list of the subjects of the Southern federal district

Southern federal district

1 877,2

100,0

Republic of Adygea

32,8

1,7

6

Republic of Kalmykia

33,0

1,8

5

Krasnodar kray

673,1

35,8

1

Astrakhan region

247,7

13,2

4

Volgograd region

390,7

20,8

3

Rostov region

500,0

26,6

2

Source: made using the data: [24; 26; 27; 34–37].

the inconsistency of vehicles with the standards’ requirements, use of low quality gasoline [8; 13].

According to the data of the “Direction for the environment protection and natural resources and emergency situations of the Republic of Adygea” 2 986 sources of the pollutants were identified in the region in 80 objects. Emissions into the atmosphere in 2012 made up 117,5 % in comparison with the previous year. The largest amount is due to the enterprises of communal services, construction industries, wood processing, pulp and paper industry, agriculture [11; 12]. Large sources of the atmospheric pollution are “Maykop thermal networks” (0,4 thousand tons), “Kartontara” (0,1 thousand tons) and “Kubangazprom” (0,2 thousand tons).

Pursuant to the information from “Direction of the Russian natural control in Republic of Kalmykia” the basic stationary sources of pollution are the enterprises of the fuel and energy complex and gas extraction. In the territory of republic powerful stationary sources of pollution are not found. However the revival of economic activity in the sphere of the maintenance of oil pipelines, construction of small oil refining enterprises, manufacturing of plastic production, development of the construction and extracting industries increases risks of the atmospheric air pollution. Besides for a long period the republic is subject to a transboundary transfer of polluting substances from adjoining industrial territories [10; 25].

However the mentioned above factors in the aggregate when there is no licensed laboratories in monitoring and surveillance places for the atmospheric pollution in the Republic of Kalmykia do not allow assessing authentically the negative impact on the environment.

In Astrakhan region according to the data of the net of monitoring of the state service of environmental surveillance, the level of the atmospheric pollution in 2012-2013 is determined as a high one. The region of a high pollution of the atmosphere was controlled near high ways. The share of the emissions from moving sources of pollution in the total volume of emissions made up 45,7 %. From stationary sources of energy the main polluter remains Ltd “Gazprom dobycha Astrakhan” whose share is about 82 % from the volume of emissions with stationary sources [38].

Considerable pollution of atmospheric air was observed in three industrially developed regions of the Southern Federal District (Krasnodarsky kray, Rostov and Volgograd regions) and made up in 2012 about 83 % from the total volume of pollution. This fact shows the existing interregional changes in the economic specialization of the regions are included into the district.

Multisectoral character of the regional economy of the Southern macroregion in many respects determines typical features of the impact of the anthropogenic activity on the environment in every region. So, according to the information of the “Committee on the environmental protection and natural resources of Rostov region” in 2012-2013 a very high level of air pollution was recorded in Novocherkassk, a high level was observed in cities of Rostov on Don, Millerovo, Volgodonsk, Azov. In the territories of the mentioned above settlements the largest air polluters are concentrated [5; 25].

In Azov and Volgodonsk the main “contribution” and emissions from stationary sources are made by the enterprises of house and communal, energy, chemical, wood processing and oil processing complexes (PC “Donenergo”, PC “Azovsky optiko-mekhanichsky zavod”, Ltd “Bashneft-Yug”, Municipal Unitary Enterprise “Volgodonsky khimzavod”, Ltd “Spetsavtotrans”, Volgodon Nuclear Power Plant and Thermoelectric station). For instance, in Millerovo the atmospheric air polluters include the enterprises of food industry (meat, vine, bread factory, butter making plant) of the agricultural machine construction, metal machinery. In the city of Novocherkassk there are enterprises of heat and power engineering, non-ferrous metallurgy, construction materials production, ready made garments, food production [17].

The largest number of the stationary sources of pollution are registered in the city of Rostov on Don, and mainly these are enterprises of fuel and energy, machine construction complexes, agricultural holdings and the enterprises of the construction industry (Ltd “Combine Harvester Plant “Rostselmash”, affiliate of the North Caucasian Railroad “RZHD”, PC “Rostselmashenergo” and others). That’s why the main polluters are a number of firms situated in Taganrog, Tsimliansk, Shakhtinsk (PC “Tagmet”, PC “Teploenergo”, Private Company “Break factory”, PC “Taganrog aviatsia”, Private Company “Tsimliansky shipengineering plant”, PC “Tsimlianskiye vina”, Ltd “Shakhtinskaya Hydro and Thermal Power Plant”, Ltd “Siboil”, “Electro and metallurgy plant”) [24].

In Vologograd region where more than 18 000 nature users are registered, the main “contribution” to the atmospheric pollution make enterprises of fuel, chemical, oil refining industry, car construction, metal processing, electrical energy, construction materials, ferrous and non ferrous metallurgy. During the period under consideration the share of emissions from stationary sources made up 43,7 % from the total volume. The city of Volgograd and Volzhsky produce 62,49 % ofthe volume. It is in these settlements the enterprises, contributing to the formation of the number of emissions are located. These 36 enterprises give 82 % of the total number of substances emitted by stationary sources [6; 19; 25].

In agricultural regions the emissions of pollutants enter the atmosphere without the purification in the process of the repairing works and maintenance of the nets of main gas and oil pipelines situated in 13 from 32 districts of the region.

The main contribution to the atmospheric pollution of Krasnodar kray make the enterprises of fuel and energy complex and car transport. In some cities of the region vehicles account for up to 90 % from the total volume of pollutants emitted into the atmosphere.

In 2012 the pollution of the atmospheric air in cities of Krasnodar and Novorossiysk is acknowledged to be high in connection with the functioning in their territories of oil refining enterprises, enterprises of electrical energy, oil and gas pipelines, fuel, food and construction materials productions. Besides in the city of Novorossiysk the tendency to the increase of emissions from stationary sources at the expense of revival of the activity of a number of enterprises and freight turnover growth through the Novorossiysk trade port is noticed. In the city of Sochi tendency of growth of atmospheric air pollution near highways and in the streets of cities with intensive car traffic is kept [33].

Judging form the volume of sources the discharge into surface water objects in the regions of the Southern Federal District has the highest percentage in the total volume of sources and it was observed in Krasnodar kray (64,0 %), Rostov region (18,1 %) and Volgograd region (10,4 %) (table 4).

In other regions the share of the discharged waters in the total volume did not exceed 4 %. During recent years according to the ratio under analysis, Southern Federal District stably occupies the 6th place in the total list of the districts of the Russian Federation (table 3). However the necessity of

Table 3

Polluted sewage discharge into surface water objects in federal districts of Russia (mln m3)

Indices

Condition by 01.01.2013

Share of the federal district in the total volume of discharge, %

Rank of the federal district in the total list of districts of the Russian Federation

Discharged polluted waste waters into surface water objects, total in Russian federation, including

15 678

100,0

Central federal district

3 651

23,3

1

North Western federal district

2 877

18,3

2

Southern federal district

1 394

8,9

6

North Caucasian federal district

395

2,5

8

Volga federal district

2 854

18,2

3

Ural federal district

1 665

10,6

5

Siberian federal district

2 077

13,2

4

Far Eastern federal district

765

4,9

7

Source: made on the basis of the data: [27].

Table 4

Polluted sewage discharge into surface water objects in the Southern federal district (mln m3)

Regions

Indices

Emissions into the atmosphere of pollutants, total

Share of the region of the Southern federal district in the total volume of discharges, %

Rank of the region in the total list of the subjects of the Southern federal district

Discharged polluted waste waters into surface water objects, total in the Southern federal district

1 394

100,0

Republic of Adygea

28

2,0

5

Republic of Kalmykia

20

1,5

6

Krasnodar kray

892

64,0

1

Astrakhan region

56

4,0

4

Volgograd region

144

10,4

3

Rostov region

253

18,1

2

Source: made using the data: [24; 26; 27; 34–37].

modernization and reconstruction of treatment facilities and waste discharges in all the regions of the Southern Federal District requires considerable expenses. Most often this situation is determined by their improper state. The worn out items of the water purifying system are not capable of admission and efficient sewage treatment coming from the population, communal services and industrial enterprises [14; 21; 25].

In Republic of Adygea the wear and tear of sewerage system amounts to 80 %. More than 340 kilometers of nets are to be replaced. Reconstruction is being conducted in treatment facilities of city of Maykop. The largest source of pollution of water resources is “Maikopvodokanal”, whose discharge make up 97 % of all volume of waste waters in the republic [26].

In republic of Kalmykia the main sources of water pollution are agricultural firms producing rice. The discharged waters are diverted into water objects located in drainless territories of the interfluve of rivers Volga, Don and Terek. In general the anthropogenic impact on the water objects of Kalmykia from its own territory can be assessed as a minimal one. This is connected with the absence of polluting productions and small density of population. However waters are polluted from conjoining territories in rivers Kuma and Kalaus (Stavropol kray) and using the main sewer (Astrakhan oblast) [37].

In regional centers the most often the reason for pollution are normative work of city sewage systems, inefficient work of local sewage nets in a number of industrial enterprises of cities, absence of additional cleaning in municipal treatment facilities and devices controlling the consumed water under the conditions of the intensive development of plots attached to houses, emergency situation of city sewage nets, illegal connection of local sewage systems to storm water sewage system of large industrial, dwelling and communal objects.

In Astrakhan oblast the largest source of discharge of polluted sewage waters is the city water canal company “Vodokanal”. According to the monitoring data, in 2012 the segments of the water objects polluted waters of industrial and household types of pollution with the intensity of pollution up to 100 maximum permissive concentrations. In ground waters oil productions, nitrogen compounds and phenols are found. The substances of the 3rd class of danger predominate [36].

In Rostov region communal, industrial, mines, collector and drainage waste waters contain polluting substances. Types of economic activity, contaminating surface water objects in the territory of Rostov region are the following (as a percentage from the total volume of waste waters requiring purification) are production and distribution of electricity, gas and water – 60,0 %; agriculture, hunting and forestry – 11,48 %; coal industry 8,3 %; processing industry – 5,3 %. The main polluters are the river port in the city of Rostov-on-Don, North Caucasian railroad, purifying facilities of the sewage system, water intakes, disposal dumps for hard communal refuse of all large cities, Rostov Nuclear Plant, oil pipeline, industrial enterprises, small size vessels, agricultural surface discharges [24].

In Volgograd region as a result of the economic activity of industrial manufacturing enterprises the excess of the Maximum Concentration Limit concerning substances of phenol, cuprum ions, ammonium ions, oil products, zinc ions, ions manganese is regularly observed in the river Volga. In the river Don and the Tsimlyanskoye water reservoir the increase of the mentioned above index is recorded in phosphates, phenol, cuprum, aluminum, phosphamide [19; 25].

In 2012 the total volume of polluting substances in waste waters discharged into surface water objects of the Nizhnevolzhsk basin district amounted to 36 819 thousand tons. The main enterprises discharging polluted waters without purification or insufficiently cleaned waste waters of Nizhnevolzhsk and Don basin regions are the following: Municipal enterprise “State water canal of Volgograd”; Ltd “Leninsky Water Canal”; Municipal enterprise of Kamyshin PUVKH; Volgograd PC “Khimprom”; Volgograd Hydroelectric dam; Volgograd Thermoelectric Station-2; Ltd “Lukoil Volgogradenergo”; kazak holding company “PC Krasnodonskoye”; Municipal enterprise of communal service of Kamyshin region of Volgograd region; PC “Sebriakov Cement”; Municipal enterprise “Mikhailovskoye water supply and sewage system”; Municipal enterprise “Olkhovskoye communal services”; Ltd “Serafimovich communal system”; Federal State Unitary Enterprise “Medveditsky experimental fish pond factory”; Municipal enterprise “Water supply and sewage system” of city of Uriupinsk; Ltd “Surovikinsky Water Canal”; State Medical Institution “Volgograd regional psychiatric hospital № 1” of Kalachevsky region [34].

According to the data of the management of Kuban basin, discharge of waste waters into natural surface water ways in 2012 was made by 238 enterprises respondents having waste water discharges into natural water ways. 3 105,91 mln cubic meters of polluted waters were discharged into the water objects of Krasnodar kray. Among them 1715,29 mln cubic meters were not purified, 962 57 mln cubic meters containing 53 658 of chemical substances required purification [25].

The main source of pollution of water resources of Krasnodar kray when analyzing industries are housing and communal services. About 90 % of the organic and suspected particles as well as a number of other polluting substances are discharged into waste waters by housing and communal sources. The remaining volume of polluted waste waters is produced by agricultural enterprises (agricultural firm “Poltavskaya”, “Kubanagro – Priazovye”, “Krasnoarmeysky stud plant”, kolkhoz – plant breeding “Rossiya”) [35].

Judging from the ratio of the industrial refuse creation and consumption in the total volume of the districts of Russia Southern Federal District occupies the 7th rank (table 5). Besides the problem of refuse treatment in all the regions of the Southern Federal District is considered to be the main one. During the analyzed period the highest level in the total volume of refuse was recorded in Krasnodar kray (56,60 %), Rostov region (24,93 %) and Volgograd region (16,72 %). In other regions the share of the industrial and consumption in refuse the total volume in the district does not exceed 2 % (table 6).

Reasons are diversified and depend on the economic specialization of regions. So, in agricultural republics the main polluters are municipal and village dumps, most of which are illegal ones, as well as forbidden and unsuitable for use protection substances for plants, industrial and consumption wastes [14; 25]. The main polluters are the galvanic sludge containing compounds of heavy metals, unworkable pesticides, worked out mercury lamps, batteries, sediments of treatment facilities, worn out tires, worked out fluorescent lamps, untenable pest killers, cattle breeding and poultry farming scrap, synthetic oils, paints, hard communal refuse [3; 15].

In large industrial centers only a part of the created refuse is returned into production, the rest (not decontaminated) are placed in dumps, sludge tanks, dung yards. Tons of hard communal and industrial refuse are created every year.

According to the inventory of the objects of the industrial and consumption refuse placement in Krasnodarsky kray there exist 320 dumps of hard communal refuse; 499 dung pits and 29 litter dumps, 13 spots of placement of industrial refuse [35].

In Rostov region 16 dumps of hard communal refuse; 6 industrial refuse and 697 dumps are located [24].

In the structure of the regional list of the spots of the refuse placement of Volgograd regions there are 712 objects. They are: 14 reservoirs of liquid and paste like inorganic refuse of processing industries, 1 reservoir of liquid and pastelike organic refuse, 8 dumps for industrial refuse, 685 dumps for temporary accumulation of wastes and 4 dumps for hard communal wastes [34].

List of the created refuse in mentioned places is presented by substances of all classes of danger

Table 5

Generation of industrial and consumption refuse in federal districts of Russia (thousand tons)

Indices

Condition by 01.01.2013

Share of the federal district in the total volume of discharge, %

Rank of the federal district in the total list of districts of the Russian federation

Generation of industrial and consumption refuse – total in the Russian Federation including

5 007 937

100,0

Central federal district

170 397

3,4

5

North Western federal district

476 326

9,5

2

Southern federal district

16 261

0,3

7

North Caucasian federal district

3 306

0,1

8

Volga federal district

167 906

3,3

6

Ural federal district

256 456

5,1

4

Siberian federal district

3 469 174

69,3

1

Far Eastern federal district

448 113

8,9

3

Source: made on the basis of the data: [27].

Table 6

Generation of industrial and consumption refuse in the regions of the Southern federal district (thousand tons)

Regions

Indices

Emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere, total

Share of the region of the Southern federal district in the total volume of emissions, %

Rank of the region in the total list of the subjects of the Southern federal district

Generation of industrial and consumption refuse in total in Southern federal district including

16 261

100,0

Republic of Adygea

5

0,03

5

Republic of Kalmykia

4

0,02

6

Krasnodar kray

9 198

56,60

1

Astrakhan region

280

1,70

4

Volgograd region

2 720

16,72

3

Rostov region

4 054

24,93

2

Source: made using the data: [24; 26; 27; 34–36].

and leads to aggravation of the condition of environment in the territory of all regions.

Technologically obsolete enterprises not only bring down the efficiency of national economy but also cause unrecoverable ecological damage to the environment. Spontaneous structural and psychological shifts in the Russian economy influenced by a strong wish to achieve competitive advantages by its agents are accompanied by intersectoral disbalances and make considerable difficulties for a practical realization of programs of social, ecological and economic transformation of the economic space of Russian regions [25].

Under the given circumstances the provision of the stable development of the multistructural economy of the South of Russia the systematic measures in the rational use of resources and protection of environment is the basic strategic task implying the modernization of the economic complex of the Southern Federal District taking into account ecological imperative. At the same time the simultaneous existence in the regions of the district of different types of economic practice should not prevent from attracting the resource for modernization into Southern regions irrespective of the economic type in equal conditions. Not only the attraction of strategic investments within the frames of the state and corporative target programs, megaprojects of territorial development [32], but also private investments into segments of economic complex of the Southern Federal District are to be accompanied by active measures in the reproduction and the protection of regional resources.

The prompt realization of the complex of measures will help to reduce external ecological expenses of the economic activity in Southern regions of Russia including the following: construction of the plants in compacting, deactivation, reprocessing and waste packing; elimination of illegal dumps and creation of places of the systematized refuse collection; intensification of work of communal services concerning cleaning municipalities and adjoining territories from hard communal refuse; introduction of innovative technologies of utilization and reprocessing of industrial refuse in enterprises.

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