Integrated assessment of readiness of the Russian Arctic zone industries for implementation of technologies of circular economy

In the 21st century, most global powers have started creating new models of efficient management which, unlike the traditional linear economy model, are aimed at simultaneous maintenance of economic growth and preservation of the planet’s environment. The most effective model is called ‘circular economy’, and its key vector is improvement of resource efficiency and extension of the service life of products on the basis of environmental advantages by using the least amount of both material and natural resources. However, the implementation of the circular economy principles faces serious regulatory barriers, lack of system methodology of management and assessment of the economic systems’ readiness for the transition to new business models. The article presents a method of assessment of potential of the transition to circular economy within the framework of industrial development of the Arctic zone on the basis of the method of integral estimates and the authors’ system of analytical indicators which take into account both the environmental behavior activism of industrial enterprises and the scale of innovative activity. The authors have carried out typologization of the types of economic activity of the Russian Arctic zone industries and identified five clusters: a strong circular economy innovator – the manufacturing industries, construction; a medium-strong circular economy innovator – mining, power, gas and steam supply, air-conditioning; a medium circular economy innovator – water supply, sanitation, waste management, pollution elimination activities; a medium-weak circular economy innovator – information and communication activity; a weak circular economy innovator – agriculture and forestry, hunting, fishing and fish farming with similar levels of environmentoriented development and pace of environmental innovation. Clusterization indicates that the best results in implementation of the circular economy have been achieved by the cluster that includes such industries as ‘Manufacturing industries’ and ‘Water supply and sanitation, waste management, pollution elimination activities’. In their turn, agriculture, fishing, fish farming and business structures involved in information and communication require the activation of environment-oriented activities from the standpoint of state support, as well as the development of internal potential and increased environmental responsibility. The authors conclude that types of industrial production belonging to the five clusters identified in the study differ in the opportunities and needs for environmental innovation and development of the circular economy concept. On the basis of integral estimate of the activities of the Russian Arctic zone industries identified according to the All-Russian Classifier of Economic Activities, the authors have chosen leading circular economy innovators for implementing the circular economy technologies and determining the environmental impact indicator, and defined the factors that affect the environmental activity of the industrial enterprises and the prospects for its development in the Russian Arctic zone.