ECOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC ASSESSMENT OF THE SIBERIAN REGIONS’ DEVELOPMENT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE ‘GREEN ECONOMY’ CONCEPT

Abstract

The concept of green economy is relatively new among the existing models for the socio-economic development ofcountries and regions. It is developed by the international community within the framework of sustainable development ideology.The purpose of our study is to assess the development dynamics of Siberian regions over the past 30 years taking into account theecological capacity of this development and the prospects for implementing the principles of green economy. To this end, we used index, mathematical-statistical, and comparative geographical methods of research. The green economydevelopment of Siberian regions was assessed on the basis of calculating the ecological capacity indicators and the decouplingcoefficient – a quantitative tool for measuring the relationship between economic growth, resource consumption, and environmentalpollution.As the study showed, in all regions of Siberia, the decoupling effect on major indicators of statistically accountableenvironmental pollution corresponds to the general Russian trends. Compared to the early 1990s, the indicators of environmentalintensity of economic growth have dropped by several times. However, in Kemerovo and Tomsk Oblasts (regions) as well as inKrasnoyarsk Krai these indices remain high. Another negative aspect is energy-intensive GRP in Siberian regions, which exceeds theaverage Russian level by 1.2–4.6 times, especially in Kemerovo and Irkutsk Oblasts as well as in the Republics of Khakassia andTyva. The observed structural shifts in the economy, namely an increase in the share of the non-manufacturing sector, enhance theopportunities for ‘green growth’ in the regions through the development of less carbon-intensive industries. At the same time, theimplementation of the green economy principles is only at the initial stage.Based on the assessment of the regional development dynamics and its ecological capacity, we propose a differentiatedapproach to be used to improve the environmental and economic sustainability of Siberian regions.