Information Technology in Ethnological Examination of Investment Projects of Arctic Development

Abstract

We examine the methodological and practical issues related to the application of information technologies and space-based monitoring in ethnological examination of projects of Arctic industrial development. The necessity and prospects of using these technologies to assess the resource productivity of the territory are illustrated by the example of the project of the extraction of alluvial gold in the basin of the Mokrundya stream of the Srednekolymskii ulus (district) of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic. In particular, this is necessary for analyzing the distribution of dominant plant communities, determining the phytomass of pasture plants, stocks of wild plants, and reindeer grazing capacity, and for calculating the losses of the indigenous peoples of the North in the influence zone of the project. A geobotanical map of the study area is provided. It is also shown that the use of space-based monitoring in carrying out an ethnological examination of projects and determining the damage caused to the local population as a result of the impact on traditional land use practices (hunting, gathering wild plants, and reindeer husbandry) makes it possible to take an inventory of pasture lands of reindeer husbandry and reduce the cost of these projects in comparison with traditional methods (field surveys of the territory, and aerial imaging surveys). The possibilities of comparing interannual images can also provide insight into the dynamics of changes in the territory under the influence of anthropogenic activity and taking into account climatic transformations.