COMPREHENSIVE MAPPING OF POTENTIAL PUBLIC HEALTH HAZARDS

Abstract

A paper devoted to exploring the new hazards to public health (referred to here as medical geographic situations [MGS]) that could arise as a result of continually evolving human-land relations on the territory of Russia uses comprehensive maps as an essential tool in their early detection, forecasting of future spatial extent, and planning of remedial measures. A medical ecological mapping procedure is applied to Altay Kray in West Siberia to illustrate how the concept advanced by the authors is used to assess human pressure on the environment, preconditions for emergence of disease, and spatial patterns in emergence of public health problems. Translated by Edward Torrey, Alexandria, VA from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1997, No. 4, pp. 43-49.