Impact of Dust Storms on Infrastructure Facilities in the East of the Stavropol Region

Abstract

The purpose of the research is to study the impact of dust storms in 2022 on the road network, settlements and infrastructure facilities in the north-east of the Levokumsky and Neftekumsky districts of the Stavropol Region. Materials and methods. Mapping of the road network, infrastructure facilities (paddocks, cattle barns) and areas of open sands was carried out by visual interpretation of space imagery (Landsat-8, 9 with a spatial resolution of 30 m) and GIS. The study area (354 thousand hectares) includes the territories most noticeably aff ected by dust storms in 2022. Materials of fi eld studies were used in the study. Results and discussion. The spatial position of open sands (53.1 thousand ha) corresponds to their condition as of the beginning of September 2022, i.e. the maximum area of open sands in 2022. A total of 3.4 thousand kilometres of roads (fi eld, paved, including regional and federal roads), 5 settlements and 253 infrastructure facilities have been interpreted. Conclusions. Conclusions. As a result of sand massifs, transport accessibility has decreased for 56 % of infrastructure facilities, including one permanent settlement (Bakres village), some of which have no alternative access roads. As a result of the dust storm, 30 % of infrastructure facilities were completely covered with sand. The road network intersection with sand massifs was noted on the sections with the length of more than 580 km.