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The current structure of the types of forest exploitation is determined having regard to the natural and socioeconomic preconditions as well as highlighting the problems and prospects of their development. The most promising kinds of activity are identified in the sphere of harvesting food forest resources and their processing, recreation, hunting management and hunting and growing of planting material of forest plants. The study revealed the main problems in forest exploitation associated with the existence of definite natural conditions and resources as well as with the socioeconomic characteristics of territorial development, and with the requirements of normative-legal legislation on the protection of Lake Baikal. Emphasis is placed on a significant increase in areas of leased forest ranges (by a factor of 3.2), and in the number of contracts signed (by a factor of 1.3). The process of studying the problems used the method of statistical analysis, collected, summarized and interpreted information and generated the information base for the kinds of activity. The findings can be useful in developing programs of territorial planning, and normative-legal documents on governance of the kinds of forest management in the central ecological zone.

We examine the scientific problem of studying the interrelationships of population distribution and dynamics and develop ment of the human potential in Cisbaikalia in conditions of the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory. The inter relationships of territorial and functional development of local systems of population distribution are determined. Territorial tendencies and problems of population distribution and demographic development of Cisbaikalia are revealed by using a statisti cal and a cartographic method. The characteristics of the natural and migration movements of the population are compared in the spatiotemporal context. The population dynamics has been calculated displayed cartographically at the level of municipal formations for 2010-2016. The technique, developed by these authors, was used in calculating the Human Development Index both componentwise (education, health, and per capita income) and integrally. An assessment is made of the current human potential of municipal formations in Cisbaikalia as a crucial factor of territorial development. We determined the main tenden cies and problems of changes in the demographic situation on the study territory which imply a decrease in the population size due to the migration outflow beyond the region, and to the gradual ageing of the population.

This paper provides an overview of the main facilities of social infrastructure and considers their distribution in the Irkutsk-related area of the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory. It is pointed out that this territory with a special modality of economic management serves as the life-sustaining environment for the local population requiring adequate living conditions. Attention is drawn to the fact that the social infrastructure is an important sustainability parameter of the population distribution system. It is found that the main elements of the social infrastructure are far from being present in every settlement. It is emphasized that a large number of settlements are at significant distances from services centers so that access to social infrastructure facilities is reduced. Centers and settlements with a different development level of the social infrastructure are identified: district-level centers, grassroots-level centers of municipal formations, settlements with a minimal set of institutions of social infrastructure as well as settlements not having such institutions. Different investigation techniques have been used, namely the statistical and cartographic methods, and field investigations.

This paper focuses on the process of tourism development at Baikal in the competitive field of ecological and economic priorities. The crucial development factors for the Baikal region as a world-level tourist destination: a rapid development of the global system of international tourism, a critical need in the sector for new territories with a high natural-recreation potential as well as the foreign-policy and domestic-economy conditions facilitating domestic tourism development in Russia. Critical indica tors of development of the territorial tourism system are pointed out, among them the volume and structure of tourist flows, characteristics of the tourist infrastructure, including the number and capacity of accommodation facilities. Analysis of data for 1974-2014 bears witness to the formation of the Baikal-centered tourism system. The study identified more than 40 zones of recreational development, most of which are concentrated at settlements with a low population size. A characteristic of the land reserves of the Baikal natural territory is provided according to the development potential of the most suitable kinds of recre ational activity. It is established that an expansion of the tourism system within the boundaries of the central ecological zone would create the conditions for incorporation of territories at a distance from the shores which have been previously considered promising for tourism.

We examine the scientific-methodological foundations and applied issues of territorial planning and determine the principles of tourist-recreational organization of the territory. On their basis, we developed the schemes of planning structure and func tional zoning of the territory of the Sarma scientific-training ground (STG). Identification of the planning elements took into account the natural, historical-cultural, socioeconomic and tourist-recreational characteristics of the territory, and the land owners and users. The STG is located on the western shore of Lake Baikal in Priol’khonie, in the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory. Most of the STG does not form part of the specially protected natural territories but, according to the pattern of use and the regime of environmental protection, it has much in common with national parks. In this connection, the principles of territorial planning being used in national parks is taken as a basis in carrying out the planning organization of the STG. The spaces that do not form part of the specially protected natural territories in the central ecological zone occupy more than half its area and are actively used for tourist-recreational, scientific and educational purposes; however, they are almost no documents on their territorial planning. The documents developed in this study are essential in organizing recreational, ecological-educational and scientific activities not only on the Sara STG but also on other similar sites where special environ mental and economic restrictions are in effect.

We provide an overview of the cultural heritage sites of federal and regional significance within the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory that refer to different historical epochs. A historical-cultural zoning of the central ecological zone is suggested for the first time on the basis of analyzing the landscape and historical-cultural aspects. We consider and analyze the territorial and quantitative distribution of the sites for the Southern-Baikal, Olkhon, Ust’-Selenga, Barguzin and Northern-Baikal historical-cultural zones that are characterized by particularly peculiar landscape features which can be taken into account when developing recommendations regarding the pattern and methods of recreational use. It is established that the cultural heritage sites serve as a major factor for tourism development on the Baikal natural territory. It is determined that a special attractiveness is provided by the cultural heritage sites of federal significance as well as by the sites with clearly pronounced ground-based structures. The study revealed the current importance of generating the database on cultural heritage sites in conditions of formation of contemporary ecologically oriented land use.

We examine the ecological-economic problems and conflicts in the sphere of land use, water use and recreational activity related to the characteristic features of the normative-legal and administrative regulation of nature management on the Baikal natural territory. Among them are the prohibition of the transfer of lands of forest reserves occupied by protective forests to lands of other categories, including lands of settlements; problems of state registration of the property rights to tracts of land that are included on the List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and allotment of tracts of land for dacha non-commercial partnerships; the prohibition of the disposal of industrial and consumption waste in the central and water-protection zone, and other restrictions. The significance of the supporting infrastructure (construction of pollution control facilities, garbage gathering areas, etc.) for the development of tourist-recreational activity is illustrated by specific examples. Problems with the development of the natural environment monitoring system are highlighted.

Presented are the data of monitoring of power generation facilities located in the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory. For specifying the location and classification of the power grid facilities, thermal and diesel electric power plants and boilers we developed the information system for the power generation infrastructure in the central ecological zone. It is found that most consumers in the central ecological zone receive electricity in a centralized manner from the power systems of Irkutsk and the Republic of Buryatia and that there are only some local areas of autonomous electric power supply. It is established that the most severe impact on the natural environment in the zone comes from the boilers, and from the Baikalsk thermal power station. Furthermore, the boilers of Irkutsk oblast use almost all kinds of energy resources. In the Republic of Buryatia, coal is the main type of fuel. On the basis of systematized data on the capacity series of the boilers, and on the type and characteristics of fuels, we calculated the volume and ingredient composition of air emissions of pollutants. Among the areas of the central ecological zone, the largest emissions from the power generation facilities correspond to the Severo-Baikal’skii district of the Republic of Buryatia, and to the Slyudyanskii district of Irkutsk oblast. We compiled the list of a possible mitigation of the anthropogenic load on the natural environment in the central ecological zone, including a modernization of boiler equipment, the transfer to ecologically clean types of fuel (natural gas, and timber processing waste), the use of electric energy for heat-supply purposes, and the use of renewable energy sources (geothermal, solar and wind power stations, and heat pumps).

Presented are the results of investigations made as part of the R&D program «Investigation of the negative impact of emis sions and discharges of harmful (polluting) substances on the Baikal natural territory, and working-out of scientifically groun ded recommendations for their regulation». An assessment is made of changes in the amount of emissions from the organized stationary sources in the settlements of the Baikal natural territory. Motor transport emissions are calculated for settlements and along the federal Irkutsk - Ulan-Ude motor road. It is determined that the, in general, study territory does not show any sub stantial increase in pollutants emissions from stationary sources; motor transport emissions tend to increase because of an increase of the automobile fleet. Pollutions are assessed for the types of economic activity affecting the state of the atmospheric air of Baikal’s ecosystem. It is established that the largest contribution to pollutants emissions on the Baikal natural territory is made by the production and distribution of electric energy, gas and water as well as by transport and communication lines, manufac turing industries, and mining of minerals. We calculated the emissions from stove heating in settlements located in the central ecological zone of the Baikal natural territory. Mathematical models and snow survey data have been used in assessing the volumes of main pollutants depositing on the lake surface.

For purposes of ensuring the switch-over to the new system of ecological standardization based on setting ecosystem normative of environmental quality and using the best available technologies, we examine the need to improve the techniques and methods of standardization of admissible impacts on the ecosystem of Lake Baikal. A study is made of the negative influence of discharges of harmful (polluting) substances on the unique ecological system of Lake Baikal. The scientific substantiation has been developed for the normative of maximum permissible impacts on the lake’s ecological system and the methods of determining them. On the basis of a statistical processing of hydrobiological and hydrochemical data for Lake Baikal, collection and analysis of initial information on the main components of the chemical balance in Lake Baikal, assessments of the anthropogenic load on the lake, and calculations of the balances of pollutants, we determined the normative of permissible impacts on the ecosystems of Baikal and its hollows (Southern, Middle, and Northern) regarding inputs of chemical substances and suspended solids as well as microorganisms.