Shilo Northeastern Interdisciplinary Scientific Research Institute, Far East Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, Magadan Russia:

Yu. V. Pruss, Senior Researcher, Candidate of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, pruss@neisri.ru

One of the trends in the tourist industry in Russia and in the world is expansion of geo-touring. Geo-touring, as a widely unknown but prosperous tourism sector, means traveling to the unique geological sites of mining. Numerous natural monuments and geological sites of mining are situated in Northeastern Russia. However, traveling and its commercialization are straitened by the imperfect regulatory and legal framework of this economic sector. This research aims at provisional assessment of the prospects for the involvement of natural geological sites of mining in the touristic and recreational activities in Northeastern Russia. It is suggested to accomplish audit of natural sites defined as the natural monuments, as well as the sites unappraised by the government, and to create an integrated register with regard to new requirements, standards and regulations. The new updated regulatory and legal framework should take into account the economy, demography and social arrangement in the mineral mining territories. The economic advisability of practical use of the natural monuments and geological sites of mining in Northeastern Russia is currently difficult to evaluate as the government in the recent decades has unsupported the infrastructure development required for the transition to new management models in the territories with a long history of mineral production. To define the number of tourists anxious to visit a natural legacy site is also anything but simple. Nonetheless, generation of a register of the monuments of nature and the geological and mining heritage sites should be started today in order to build a model of their involvement in the national economic activities. Northeastern Russia, with its geographic position, vast territory and diversity of geological sites, has all possibilities to develop geo-tourism.

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