An Attempt at a Quantitative Evaluation of the Natural Resource Potential of Regions in the USSR

A technique for measuring total resource potential is proposed. For a selected set of resources (coal, oil and gas, iron ore, hydro power, timber, arable land, forage land), reserves are divided by the estimated period of use to obtain annual productivity. The resources are then valued in terms of a set of unit prices. The inclusion of agricultural land resources tends to assign a greater role to the Western portions of the USSR than is normally the case in resource estimates. The significance of the mineral-rich Eastern regions is also understated by limiting reserve estimates to those that are likely to be accessible in the foreseeable future (10 to 15 years). Resource density per unit area shows particularly high values for the southern agricultural regions, especially where they are combined with significant mineral and hydro resources. Resource availability per 1000 population shows expectedly high values for the sparsely populated Eastern regions of the USSR.