Information technologies as a new tool for reindeer pastures monitoring in arctic Russia

At the start of the twenty-first century, the historically rooted sector of pastoral reindeer husbandry in European Russia entered a period of rapid transformation driven by both environmental and social dynamics. Environmental shifts associated with the climatic reconfiguration of Arctic ecosystems, evaluations of the likely consequences of the explosive acceleration of regional industrial development, the advent of near-real-time monitoring of pasture components, and the deployment of GIS and GPS-based reindeer tracking have together defined the principal strands of a twenty-year research programme undertaken by the Computer Systems, Technologies and Modelling Group at the Institute of Biology, Komi Science Centre, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. This study aims to synthesise that experience into an integrated account, to identify “hot spots” for traditional resource use, and to show how these advances have been translated into practical natural-resource management and land-use applications. Since 2011, new information technologies for monitoring the condition of pasture vegetation resources, tracking daily and seasonal migration of animals (using satellite and radio collars), and accounting for pasture loads have been tested and implemented in land surveying practices for reindeer herding farms in the European North of Russia. The availability of pasture resources in the region varies significantly, ranging from 14 ha per head in the aboriginal community “Yamb-To” to 394 ha per head in “Druzhba narodov,” with an average of 151 ha per head based on statistical data. For all large reindeer herding farms, pasture area utilisation projects have been updated, and detailed vegetation mapping, including temporal changes, has been conducted. The primary sources of spatial data are high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicle images and satellite imagery. Calculations of optimal reindeer-intensity indicators, accounting for green and lichen fodder reserves, have been carried out. The resulting data has been integrated into an information system dedicated to reindeer herding in the European North. The main trends in pasture changes in the region are driven by climatic shifts, variations in grazing load, and active industrial expansion. According to MODIS satellite imagery, over 89% of East-European tundra areas exhibited an increase in the green phytomass of vascular plants by 50%–150% in 2024 compared to 2000. Nearly 10% of areas showed biomass storage increases exceeding twofold. Warming and industrial activities have triggered the incorporation of various chemical elements, including heavy metals, into trophic chains, which may adversely affect the quality and safety of reindeer industry products. New information technologies are crucial for reindeer pasture monitoring, and the integration of diverse data into a single system can have a positive impact on reindeer husbandry and ecosystem monitoring of region.