Research Institute of Applied Ecology of the North, Ammosov North-Eastern Federal University, Yakutsk, Russia:

А. N. Gorokhov, Chief Researcher, Candidate of Biological Sciences, algor64@mail.ru
V. V. Ivanov, Chief Researcher, Candidate of Engineering Sciences
Z. А. Kudinova, Junior Researcher
А. А. Petrov, Senior Researcher, Candidate of Biological Sciences

The ecological conditions in the territory of the Verkhoyansk Region in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) are evaluated. The landscapes, soil and vegetable cover, and their ecological alteration under mineral mining are characterized. The landscape structure is examined at the basic levels of the ecologicalgeographical analysis of a territory: regional, local-regional and local. At the regional level, the ecological-geographical zoning of the area of the Verkhoyansk Region is implemented with respect to the rate of mining-induced transformation of the environment. The area of the Batagay settlement and Lazo placer mine is studied at the local-regional level. At the local level, the site of the mined-out tin ore deposit Ege-Khaya and the area around operating mine Sentachan are surveyed. Based on the data of the field research, joint analysis of cartographic sources, interpretation of satellite images and GIS data, the landscapes of the region under study were mapped at different scales. The application of the landscape mapping approach to assessing man-made transformation of terrestrial ecosystems and identifying ecological problems due to mining in the Verkhoyansk Region is discussed in the article. It is found that the heaviest mining-induced transformation in the region is connected with the effects of Ege-Khaya deposit mining, as well as with the impact of operating Lazo placer mine and Sentachan gold-antimony deposit and the corresponding production and transportation infrastructure.

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