Open AccessON DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF PRIORITY MEASURES FOR ADAPTATION OF ST. PETERSBURG TO CLIMATE CHANGES
Author(s) -
Igor Pavlovskii
Publication year - 2020
Language(s) - English
DOI - 10.33933/2074-2762-2020-58-111-126
Subject(s) - st petersburg , geography , climate change , greenhouse gas , flooding (psychology) , population , adaptation (eye) , physical geography , environmental science , environmental protection , regional science , ecology , demography , psychology , russian federation , sociology , psychotherapist , biology , physics , optics
The adverse effects of climate change are a critical threat to sustainable urban development in the twenty-first century. The article discusses the possible impacts of climate change on St. Petersburg and adaptation measures for them. Special attention is paid to the directions specified in the Strategy of Social and Economic Development of St. Petersburg for the long term: formation of an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, protection of the coast from flooding and erosion. Available estimates of greenhouse gas emissions in St. Petersburg are analyzed. Comparative estimatesof changes in emissions of harmful substances from the main thermal power plants of St. Petersburg in the 1980s and in the 2020 are presented in the article, total emission from main energy plants having decreased more than 4 times. Achievements of St. Petersburg energy complex in transition to gas fuel are shown. Global warming can affect almost all anthropogenic and natural components of the metropolis St. Petersburg. In addition, they can be significantly strengthened by the urban heat island, which has become a characteristic of St. Petersburg in the late 19th century. Trends of St. Petersburg population growth and density of urban development make it possible to say that the development of the island of heat will continue in the next decades.The author proposes boundary delimitation of the maritime zone of St. Petersburg, determined on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the various zones related to the protection of the eastern Gulf of Finland. Practically all climatic normals of St. Petersburg presented in normative documents have changed at present. This circumstance requires updating of these documents. Extreme estimates of sea level rise pose a major threat to the security for the coast and population of St. Petersburg in the 21st century under global warming. Estimates of global warming impacts should be taken when planning urban development for the long-term.