ECOLOGICAL ATLAS OF ROSTOV OBLAST: STRUCTURE, CONTENT, AND METHODS OF ASSESSMENT

A method for geoecological mapping at a scale of 1:500,000 was developed and tested. All 104 atlas maps were compiled by applying the same principles—use of the administrative district (rayon) as the effective statistical unit and a scale-unit (interval-level) assessment of each criterion. The atlas maps are grouped in five blocks characterizing the natural-economic features of the territory, the human pressure exerted upon it, pollution and degradation of the environment, demographic conditions, and health status of the population. The composite block “Ecological Assessment and Regionalization” includes a series of special assessment maps and a final integrated map. Translated by Edward Torrey, Alexandria, VA from: Izvestiya Akademii Nauk, seriya geografi-cheskaya, 1999, No. 1, pp. 88-95.