The article is devoted to the relevant problem, i.e. the evaluation of the investment attractiveness of renewable natural resources in the underdeveloped Northern and Arctic territories. Economic interaction arising from the development of natural resource potential is the subject-matter of the study. The development of the methodological tools for the assessment of investment attractiveness for business and authorities is the purpose of the study. For the zoning of territories at the pre-investment project stage typical landscapes were selected and assessed by each type of renewable natural resources. On the basis of the analysis of the existing approaches to the zoning of natural resources, three types of landscapes were defined: the investment-attractive ones, the investment-attractive ones with some restrictions and the investment unattractive ones. During the study, the following hypothesis was confirmed: the selection of the most valuable natural resources increases the opportunities of their development. The investment attractiveness is determined by the advantages of geographical location, development of regional infrastructure, natural potential which is considered as a priority investment target. The need for the valuation of the natural resource potential of landscape areas within the boundaries of the assessed area is justified. The limitations are the low level of infrastructure development, insufficient resistance of landscapes to anthropogenic influence, the export of raw materials for recycling from the territories. The list of conditions that demand the introduction of correction factors to the cost parameters of the natural resource potential of landscape areas is justified. The main results of the research are presented in the form of the landscape zoning of the territory and as the developed methodological tools for assessing the investment attractiveness. The testing is conducted on the example of the Berezovsky municipal district of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug — Yugra.

The Yamal region occupies the fifth part of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District. Therefore it is one of the territories where traditional natural resource management is mainly developing. Its key branches are reindeer herding and fisheries. The major problems in the development of industries are due to an active industrial and transport exploitation of the tundra zone; the situation in reindeer husbandry caused by pasture overgrazing because of uncontrolled increase in livestock; poaching fish. Two following anthropogenic factors have a negative impact on soil and vegetation in the Yamal region: reindeer herding as the main traditional form of natural resource management of Small Indigenous People of the North (SIPN) and the intensive industryrelated development of the territory (geological exploration, industry, transport, construction). Since grazing is practiced throughout the whole Yamal Peninsula, which is not occupied by industrial zones, it is the most widespread form of natural resource use and the leading factor of anthropogenic impact on Yamal’s natural territorial complexes. The primary reason for the decline in fish resources is the violation of the ecosystemic reproduction of fish resources due to their excessive catch. One of the main reasons of this is poaching. In turn, the annual increase of surplus catch is caused by the population growth, including SIPN, and the growing density of the road network providing the access to fishing grounds. The article offers the guidelines for economic damage assessment determined by the harm to the pasture resources. The authors justify the amount of compensation that repairs losses arising from their damage, which takes into account the decline in the productivity of land and the period of restoration of the economic and biological potential of pastures for the corresponding periods of years (compensation for economic damage). The economic damage assessment of the fish resources supposes taking into account the decline in their economic value. It involves the use of a refined population-biological approach while the detailed calculation. In addition, we give an example of the guidelines’ approbation.

The regions of the Russian North occupy 70 % of the territory of the country. These areas considerably differ in the level of socio-economic development. Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug (KhMAO) — Yugra is the most developed industrial region of the Russian North. KhMAO is also the main supplier of oil and gas resources. Thus, KhMAO is the focus of the research. The purpose of the paper is to evaluate how the traditional natural resource management transforms on the developing territories and to assess its impact on the lifehoods of the Small Indigenous Peoples of the North (SIPN). The study is based on the hypothesis of the negative impact of industrial development on the territory of the traditional residence of SIPN and, accordingly, on their social and economic development and the quality of life. We have found certain intraregional distinctions of this territorial subject of the Federation. These differences are caused by the features of natural and resource potential, transport security and geographical location. It is true for both the separate municipal entities and larger territorial and administrative sub-regions. We have identified the most acute problems in the development of traditional natural resource management on the territories of active industrial and transport development. The main industries there are reindeer breeding and fishery. We also identified the problem of the northern legislation set up to protect the rights of SIPN. The paper considers the evolutionary changes in the formation of the institution of ancestral domains and the territories of traditional natural resource management, as well as the practice of coordinating the interests of subsoil users and SIPN’s representatives with the help of economic agreements. We have demonstrated the problem associated with the difficulties of social adaptation of SIPN. We have analyzed the ecological situation and current state of traditional environmental management to compare the conditions of municipal entities of the region. Using ethnic social and ecosystem approach, we have evaluated the lifehoods of SIPN in the developed and poorly developed regions of KhMAO. The results of the assessment support the hypothesis of the research. The findings of the research can be used when working out on the roadmap of the development of traditional industries and SIPN in the municipal districts of various development level.

The numerous publications of the Soviet and post-Soviet periods are devoted to the consequences of the unfavourable impact of natural and climatic conditions on the health and life activity of both the indigenous and incoming population, especially in the areas of new industrial development. However, the issues of an integrated assessment of natural and climatic conditions in terms of their influence on the comfort of living remain insufficiently studied. The purpose of this study is to develop a consistent approach to assessing the degree of the comfort of living in the northern regions with the help of an integrated indicator, as well as to test this approach on the example of the territory of the Ural North. The study is based on the hypothesis that natural conditions are one of the main factors affecting the level of foreign population and increasing the cost of infrastructure facilities construction and ongoing production activities in the North. The article analyzes the state of methodological support for the assessment of natural conditions and the comfort of living, proposed by the representatives of various scientific fields — by economists, sociologists, demographers, geographers, ecologists, physicians, etc. We have proposed the basic principles and factors for determining the comfort of living in terms of climatic, socio-economic, medico-demographic and ecological approaches. By means of the empirical analysis, we have justified the methodological approach to assessing the comfort of living in the northern territories on the example of the areas near to the Ural mountains. We have proposed a set of indicators, which allow to adequately reflect the degree of comfort of living, and a calculation formula for its scoring. In the natural climatic zoning of the territory, we took into account zonal and azonal factors. The results of the assessment of the comfort of natural conditions are necessary to address a number of issues. Firstly, these results are needed to define a degree of comfort of human settlements conditions. Secondly, the natural conditions assessment is important for identifying the features of immigrants’ adaptation. Thirdly, the results of this assessment will contribute to establish opportunities for the formation of resident population from incoming population. And last, the assessment of the comfort of natural conditions is necessary to study the environmental sustainability to man-made activities, etc.

Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug — Yugra (KMAO) is the North’s most industrially developed region and the key supplier of the oil and gas resources. Moreover, it is the historical homeland of the small indigenous peoples of the North (SIP). The problem of saving the KMAO’s traditional economy is relevant to other North regions, too. The paper analyses the evolutionary changes in the traditional nature management on the developed territories. Additionally, it establishes the methodological tools to substantiate the possibility of the SIP’s entrepreneurial activity and its main directions. We hypothesised that the traditional nature management, which determines the necessity of the entrepreneurial activity’s development, is volatile. We revealed the reason for the fisheries’ low profitability in the traditional economy and proposed the ways of increasing the efficiency of the traditional sector’s enterprises. Furthermore, we demonstrated the role of the state and corporate structures in supporting traditional industries and traditional ways of the SIP’s living. An analysis of the development of the traditional nature management in the historical perspective has revealed the instability of this kind of activity of indigenous ethnic groups. The instability is caused by several threats of political, socio-economic, environmental, institutional, demographic nature. We demonstrated the specificity of the modern state of traditional nature management in the territories of active industrial and transport development. Traditional nature management involves reindeer herding, hunting, fishing and collecting the wild crop. Furthermore, we considered the forms of organizing the enterprises of traditional nature management. These forms include communities with the stable legal status, non-profit enterprises, limited liability companies, reindeer herding companies, trading posts. We formulated the reasons for the strengthening of the ecological threat, caused by the expansion of the areas transferred to the oil companies for long-term lease, which negatively impacts the environment in these territories. We suggested the methodological tools for substantiating the possibility for the entrepreneurial activity of indigenous ethnic groups. We have depicted them in the form of algorithm of the wild crops’ harvesting and processing in the territory of Russkinskaya settlement that belongs to Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug.