RESOURCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL CRITERIA TO DETERMINE THE GEOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT ASSIMILATION POTENTIAL BY EXAMPLE OF MINING REGIONS OF UKRAINE

Mineral deposits are intensively developed in Ukraine for nearly a century and a half. This has defined the development of its economy as a raw material one, specializing on export of mineral raw materials products, which provided its economic growth. But apart from the obvious advantages, such a path of development has led to negative effects. The main ones are: accumulation of environmental effects of mining and mineral processing and deterioration of the environment in the mining regions and districts. One of the types of natural boons, which is widely, but mostly unknowingly used by people, is the assimilation potential of the natural environment. The assimilation potential of different territories of Ukraine is different depending on the geological structure and physical geographical conditions. Quantitatively, the assimilation potential is close to such scientific and technical standards, as the maximum permissible concentration of pollutants. Economic evaluation of assimilation potential will determine the measure of the ability of the environment to recover its lost properties and possibilities to realize this ability to generate income. With the value of assimilation potential the environment is determined by the extent to which one can save on the environmental costs. Almost all objects of the mining industry in Ukraine are characterized by extension of liquidating works and an increase of the needs in financing as mining deposits are worked out which is associated with the accumulation of negative environmental effects in the area of enterprise activity. The main opportunities for improving the mechanisms of economic management of natural resources control, especially mineral-raw, involve possible rental management approaches and capabilities of determining the natural rent. In the interpretation of the authors, ecological rent corresponds to savings on environmental costs to compensate unrealized damage caused by environmental risks due to the assimilation capacity of the environment.