Methodological Aspects of Local Natural and Technical System Assessment Based on the Results of Environmental Monitoring

Abstract

The concept of a natural-technical system is considered as a set of man-made and natural objects located on a single territory is considered. The environmental safety of the natural and technical system is ensured by limiting the negative impact on the environment from a technogenic object. It is noted that the regulation of the negative impact is necessary but not sufficient condition for environmental safety, since it is primarily focused on the implementation of sanitary and hygienic standards in relation to the people’s living or working conditions on the territory of a natural and technical system. The use of sanitary and hygienic maximum allowable concentrations in assessing the transformation of environmental objects is not very informative. It is noted that in the regular functioning conditions of a man-made object, the information basis for assessing negative changes in the environment is the results of environmental monitoring. Environmental monitoring systems are developed mostly for highly hazardous production facilities in terms of organizing the obtaining quantitative data on environmental pollution. The issues of quantitative assessment of the ecological state of the territory have not been adequately considered. The indicators used in the form of aggregated convolutional indices are still focused on sanitary and hygienic standards. In addition, their information content is reduced due to the cross-correlation of indicators used in the calculation in the form of pollutant concentrations. It is noted that objects of flora and fauna are more sensitive to negative impacts, and therefore, along with the quantitative chemical analysis of the pollution of the territory, monitoring of the biotic component of the environment is carried out. At the same time, biomonitoring data are considered as independent results. The relationship between general desirability function in assessing the state of biocenoses and other characteristics of the territory, including its pollution, is usually not studied, which also reduces their informational value. Based on the analysis of the considered materials, it was concluded that for an informative assessment and forecast of the ecological state of the natural and technical system, the development of integral indices of the biotic and abiotic components of the environment in their relationship is required.