Transformation of Nature Protection Institutions in the North Caucasus: From a State Monopoly of Governance to Multi-Actor Management

Alexey Gunya,Alexey Lysenko,Izolda Lysenko,Ludmila Mitrofanenko

doi:10.3390/su132112145

Alexey Gunya, Alexey Lysenko + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/su132112145

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Abstract

The paper analyzes the state and dynamics of key actors and institutions that regulate the use of resources within the protected areas of the North Caucasus, using the examples of the Teberda Biosphere Reserve and the Elbrus National Park. The network of protected areas created in the North Caucasus during the Soviet period relied on government support, and the participation of the local population in nature conservation was very limited. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the demonopolization of state land laws, new actors emerged, such as the local population and business. This has led to an exacerbation of the conflict between the tasks of nature conservation and the interests of business and local communities. The introduction of market mechanisms and the commercialization of the tourism sector threaten the state of protected natural areas (PAs) and require effective ways of land matters regulation. The paper analyzes the question of whether the PA system created in the Soviet era should continue to be exclusively the privilege of the state using a centralized approach to management? The contradictions in legislation and conflicts of nature management have cast doubt on the effectiveness of the system of environmental institutions inherited from the Soviet period. One of the solutions could be the actualization of environmental legislation, bringing it in line with civil and land regulations, as well as the wide involvement of the local communities and the public in the evaluation of economic and legal projects.

Highlights

Sustainable development of mountainous regions is closely related to their protection, which in turn deeply affects the issues of the life of the local population as well as the regulation of emerging contradictions and conflicts [1]
The aim of this paper is to examine conflicts arising at the intersection of interests of the protected natural areas (PAs), businesses, local population and the state
The socio-political reforms of the last decades have been aimed at ensuring an institutional transition and creating laws regulating regional and local institutions of land use and relations, increasing the effectiveness of local self-governance and development

Summary

Introduction

Sustainable development of mountainous regions is closely related to their protection, which in turn deeply affects the issues of the life of the local population as well as the regulation of emerging contradictions and conflicts [1]. The state plays an important role, having at its disposal the institutions and resources that make it possible to place the issues of nature protection in the foreground, but in reality, often giving priority to economic development [2]. Due to the changes in societal dynamics and the transformation of institutions, new actors often appear in the field of nature conservation, and as a result, new approaches are required to modify the existing institutional environment without harming environmental activities [3]. Conscious and systematic contact as well as the development of management mechanisms ensures the adaptation of the institutional environment [4,5,6].

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