Spatial Inequality and Health of Russian Population (original) (raw)
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AIR POLLUTION AND PUBLIC HEALTH IN A MEGALOPOLIS: A CASE STUDY OF MOSCOW
A rapidly growing number of megalopolises in the world leads to some substantial problems to environmental conditions of their population. One of these problems is the intensification of motor traffic, which contributes to air pollution measured as average concentrations of several air pollutants and climate change in the form of more frequent heat waves and cold spells. The present study analyzes the selected indicators of environmental health in Moscow, the largest Russian megalopolis which contributes for adoption of sound and evidence-based health risk management policies. Individual carcinogenic risks attributed to traffic emissions varied across the study area of 400 km 2 between 3 × 10-4 and 6.53 × 10-4 which is typical for most meg-alopolises in the economically developed countries. However, the carcinogenic risks in some districts may exceed the threshold of 10-3 which is regarded as unacceptable. The total population carcinogenic risk for 3.5 million people who lived in the study area with intense road traffic was 23 additional cases of malignant neo-plasms per year or 1513 cases per 70 years. Additional mortality during the extreme heat episode in the summer of 2010, when forest and peat fires caused exceptionally high levels of smog in Moscow, reached 11,000 deaths. The measures to be taken by the executive authorities include informing the residents about the onset of extreme heat by means of an early warning system, and rating the relative severity of heat and air pollution according to a 4-point scale.
The movement of development indicators toward quality of life brings to the problem of the measurement of the latter. In literature natural and social environment quality are undoubtedly regarded as quality of life components together with material well-being, education, skills, health of the population and other characteristics. However the set of quality of life indicators is still under discussion. Environment studies in Russia are usually based on systematic approach and consider the impact of objective quantitative characteristics of the urban environment on the population. In contrast we suggest environmental approach to urban environment quality measurement. People, their subjective perception of the urban environment, evaluations and opinions are placed into the center of the concept. We look at the convenience of the city for the citizens, its friendliness and suitability for their activities and life plans realization from the three points of view. Firstly, perception of city as a whole is considered. Secondly, we narrow our study to municipal level and describe the most and the least severe problems in the neighborhood. Thirdly, we go to the quality of housing and communal services being the overlapping area of personal and urban interests. Since balanced development of the urban environment would not be possible regardless the most vulnerable socio-demographic groups’ needs, infrastructure problems and limitations on basic services accessibility are considered with special attention to families with dependent children and the elderly. Our research is based on data of 2012 wave of annual representative survey "Moscow and its residents" with a sample of 3106 respondents. The data consist of wide range of information on Moscow city households, including not only their urban perceptions but also demographic characteristics, migration records, income, consumption, health, education, etc. The study has shown that the population of the capital has a positive perception of city as a whole. There is a high degree of citizens’ commitment and relatively low level of conflict concerning to urban environment. The same conclusion is true for groups with specific requirements such as families with minor children and the elderly. Although families with children and the elderly do not differ from others in city as a whole perception, they are significantly more sensitive to the problems in everyday contacts area. Since we face the challenge of an aging population, the issue of senior citizens quality of life should be constantly on the agenda. In many countries the idea of active aging has been actively promoted, however, it cannot become feasible under restrictions of access to quality services and appropriate urban infrastructure for older people. By logistic modelling we investigate the relationship between urban environment perceptions and wide range characteristics of Moscow dwellers with the main conclusion that low income households are more likely to live in infrastructure of low quality. Therefore quality of life of those families is subject to double-negative effect. Infrastructure development in municipalities and services improvement could smooth out differences in the standard of living of the citizens and reduce the impact of these negative externalities. The suggested methodology of quality of life research via urban environment perceptions is not Moscow specific and can be easily applied to similar studies in other cities of Russia.
Russian Urban Environment Research Review
Journal of Siberian Federal University. Humanities & Social Sciences, 2018
Culturological and sociological research of Russian urban environment is a relatively young trend in the Russian humanities; before 1991, the urban environment research was only carried out within the framework of city planning surveys. In the 1990-s, sociological and culturological studies of urban environment began; in the 21st century, the number of such researches began to grow, with the greatest interest towards the actual environment conditions; only few researchers focus on the Soviet or pre-Revolutionary past. The main methods of Russian urban environment research are: overt observation, mapping (using GIS), interview and questionnaire survey. The researches focus not only and not rather on capital cities, but also on regional centres and small provincial towns. The important problems are the local, "non-façade" issues of the modern urban environment; those are not only the material components of the urban environment that are of the researchers' interest, but the intangible ones, such as emotions, perception by the residents, audial component of the city etc. In the contemporary researches of Russian urban environment, description and analysis of particular cases prevail over the theoretical generalizations, which proves the vibrant development of this field of study.
Edited._Urban_Sustainability_in_the_Arct.pdf
Жанна Эдуардовна Каспарьян Центр гуманитарных проблем Баренц-региона Кольского научного центра РАН More urban, less Arctic? Convergence and Divergence: The case of the Ob river region
Belgeo , 2018
Development in northern Russian cities is determined by specific economic and social conditions, as well as by natural and climatic factors. Most of these cities were established in the period of the Soviet industrialization and, thus, have a mono-profile character; for that reason, economies of single-industry cities pose high development risks of the “boom-bust” type and the relevant social problems. This paper endeavours to discuss these issues, relying on the case study of Kirovsk (Murmansk region) in order to analyse the urban planning aspects and challenges on the way to sustainability. The main factors (e.g. socio-economic, environmental and land use, institutional) were analysed to learn how they may contribute to sustainable development of Kirovsk as a single-industry town. The role of different stakeholders (mining companies, local communities, and government authorities) in decision making process is discussed. The paper presents the potentials and challenges for a further development of Kirovsk and studies its chances to become a sustainable town. Most challenges are connected with structural and paradigm changes in economy and functionality of enterprises after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Among them are contradictions of interests (e.g. ecological: enterprise owners – citizens), downsizing and depopulation, domestic and foreign market situation, environment pollution and degradation as well as associated health problems linked to the quality of life of the local population. The paper argues that following the long history of industrialization the mining activity is still dominant and has a great influence on the everyday life of urban dwellers. However, Kirovsk also has opportunities to become a sustainable town based on tourism development potential and innovations, development towards environment-saving technologies conducted by scientific institutes located there. In addition, participatory approaches (e.g. public participation, involvement of stakeholders and activism of local NGOs) in urban management allow the linkages to be made among specific forms of land use, its management and policies.
The well-being of residents in an urban environment: the case of a Russian megapolis
ADMINISTRATIE SI MANAGEMENT PUBLIC, 2020
The issue of ensuring the well-being of residents is central to systems of municipal governance. The purpose of our study is to measure the well-being of residents in an urban environment and, based on the obtained results, to identify problem areas that impede the achievement of strategic development goals in the megapolis. We conducted a representative survey of residents in one of the largest industrialized Russian megacities, Ekaterinburg. Based on the survey data, an index of subjective well-being in the urban environment was obtained, which included 4 blocks of assessment indicators: 1) assessment of the current state of the urban environment; 2) assessment of the changes in the urban environment; 3) assessment of personal well-being; and 4) assessment of intentions to live in the city. The study revealed that the most prosperous citizens in the urban environment are: 30-39 years old; married; employed. The problems of low well-being and the absence of youth intent to connect ...
Public health and ambient air pollution in Arctic and Subarctic cities of Russia
Science of The Total Environment, 1995
In arctic and subarctic regions of Russia, there are 34 industrial cities where the largest metallurgic, paper, and pulp production in the world takes place. This article reviews investigations in environmental epidemiology, which are just beginning. The investigations are hindered by the absence of computer databases and by the migration of the population into other regions. Marked changes in the status of public health can be seen in Nor&k and Montchegorsk, the centers of metallurgy, as well as in cities near paper and pulp production. Improvement of epidemiologic investigations will require better analytical methods and the consideration of information from international sources, for example, the foundation of a cancer register and a register for congenital abnormalities in newborns.
Towards Sustainable Urban Development: the Ukrainian situation
Geopolitical, Social Security and Freedom Journal, 2019
The continuing process of urbanization sets up urgent issues of environmental degradation resulting in disrupting opportunities to enhance quality of life of the population. In Ukraine, the anthropogenic and human impacts on the environment are several times higher than in developed countries. Thus, life expectancy in Ukraine is on average around 68 years (e.g. in Italy-82, Sweden-80, Poland-74) which is largely due to the environmental pollution which is the result of production activities of mining, metallurgy, chemical industries, fuel and energy complex. Therefore, there is a strong need in the Ukrainian society to address the consequences of powerful external forces as environmental pollution and climate change, and internal forces as socioeconomic development. These forces play a role at all levels but are prevalent at urban levels. Cities are not isolated entities; they interact with their surroundings, economically, socio-politically and environmentally. Urban development toward sustainability has to consider the capacity of the entire ecosystem to support such development including the prevention and mitigation of adverse environmental impacts of the outside urban areas. Hence, cities are unique territories to implement green economy opportunities to ensure the development of sustainable societies. Exploring different dimensions of sustainability should be connected with the exploration of urban processes and developments on a global level. This connection shows how sustainability can be destroyed or ensured. Sustainability should be based on social cohesion in local urban areas and contribute to sustainable urban development.