An analysis has been made of changes in the mineral composition of conifer needles in northern taiga forests after reduction of emissions from the Severonickel Copper-Nickel Smelter Complex in the city of Monchegorsk, the most powerful source of air pollution in Northern Europe. The data obtained in permanent monitoring plots in 1991, 1993, 2000, and 2007 have been compared. The results provide evidence for reduction in the concentrations of heavy metals (Cu, Ni, Fe) and sulfur in the needles of spruce and pine trees in areas with different levels of air pollution. However, mineral nutrition of conifers has not been optimized. The plants are insufficiently supplied with nutrient elements such as P, Mg, Mn, and Zn. The contents of these and other elements essential for the normal functioning of needles (in particular, Ca, K, and P) continue to decrease, especially in pollution-induced sparse spruce forests. The most significant alterations of nutrient regime have been revealed in the Siberian spruce.

This article, based on a report at the meeting of the RAS Presidium on December 10, 2019, discusses the possibilities and problems of the development of the Russian circular forest bioeconomy, which is considered an effective response to modern global challenges. The concepts of the programs on science and technology, Ecological and Socioeconomic Threats of Forest Degradation in Russia under Global Change and Ways to Prevent Them and Assessment and Ways to Prevent the Risks of Crisis Situations in Forests during Forestry Intensification, initiated by the RAS Research Board on Forests, are presented, as is a draft concept of a new edition of the Federal Law On the Forest Code of the Russian Federation.

To understand the relationships between soils and vegetation in forest ecosystems, it is necessary to establish the spatial levels where they are implemented and to determine parameters characterizing the relationships. The key step in the development of the hierarchy of the spatial levels is the establishment of the elementary unit of the soil-vegetation cover. Such a unit, called tessera, is substantiated. Studies conducted in boreal forests have demonstrated a close association between the vegetation and soil components of tesserae. It can be quantitatively described in terms of informative fertility parameters: pH; C: N ratio; contents of nutrients, such as Ca and Mn; etc. Thus, data on the relationships between soil and vegetation determined in tesserae can be summarized at higher spatial levels of the forest cover: parcel, biotope, etc.