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Опубликовано в библиотеке: 2021-12-08
Источник: Politics and the Times 2003-12-31

ECOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS IN UKRAINE: PHANTOM OR REALITY?

Tetiana Perha, Candidate of History, research assistant, Institute of the World Economy and International Relations of the NAS of Ukraine

* * *

Continuous intellectualization is one of imperatives of the global development. The history of the 20th century vividly demonstrated the axiom: "The world is owned by those, who owns intellect." Not without purpose they heavily invest in buying these most valuable riches; really, heaps od money are spent to promote such policy. Winning over brains from the whole world (purchasing them for a song, to be precise) to their side has long been a political priority in developed economies, especially in the United States of America.

Active innovation is an important component of intellectual development of every country. Today one can say, that the development of ecological innovations is the most important factor of improvement of competitiveness in the 21st c. Let us discuss this problem in greater detail and examin the domestic situation in this domain.

The innovation policy of the world economies has its national distinctions; at the same time they have a lot in common. For a long time now the innovation and

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technological development of many countries has been considered not only as a way to improve their competitiveness, which in the long run increases the quality of life of the population, but it has been considered the prerequisite of global leadership as well.

This strategic challenge is met with a complex of measures including attraction of alternative funding sources, which combine all spheres of life-economic, social, technological, informational, ecological, legislative and so on.

On this point the most demonstrative is the innovation policy of the USA both in general, and in the sphere of ecological technologies in particular. The basic scientific researche is one of the principal sources of American leadership. Unlike the applied research, this kind of studies is unprofitable, that is why American government, proceeding from the long-term interests of the country, finances is from the state budget. But the moment there is a possibility to put the results of basic research into practice, they tap a great variety of alternative sources.

Universities are the leading scientific centers in the USA. Despite the fact, that from 1975 on public financing of university researches was curbed (both in general, and in certain spheres: mostly in the domain of social sciences, least of all in the sphere of computerization and ecology), this had no effect on the general financing of this sphere, because academic research institutes began to more closely cooperate with different industrial and financial structures.

During the last 20 to 25 years firms and corporations were increasingly active in financing the university science. In 1998 it still did not exceed seven percent of general funding of science in the USA, but the rate of this type of financing was higher than that from alternative sources. The cooperation of corporations and companies with universities cannot be reduced to financial backing only; it includes the ever rising amount of joint research as well.

The development of the USA primarily depends on rising investments both in external, and in internal scientific activity (it increased 25 times for the last decade only!). By the way, the biggest contributions here were made by corporations: 22.5 percent of investments were done by American firms, 17.5 percent by Swiss ones, 14 percent by British, 10.6 percent by Japanese, 9.3 percent by French, 7.9 percent by Canadian, 4.7 percent by Dutch, 4.6 percent by Swedish, 2.1 percent by South Korean, and 6.8 percent by other firms [1].

The increasing number of foreign companies, which realize these programs in the USA, reflects the world tendency towards globalization of innovation processes and intellectualization of the global space. Therefore, the matter concerns the formation of the new global innovation space.

Already today the ecological innovations make the biggest part of the process in the USA. From the ninetieth of the 20th c., the USA began to spend more on them, which resulted in $4bn allocated for the project. And it was generously repaid! It is now that the USA stakes on the development of ecological innovations as the main precondition of its economic

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power and securing for itself positions of the global leader.

This trend became most obvious during the last decade. Let us make a brief excursus into history. Three months after entering the White House B. Clinton ordered the fedral administration to estimate the competitiveness of American ecotechnologies and formulate the strategy of their development. This resulted in the report prepared in November 1993: Export of Echotechnologies: Strategic Foundation for the Leadership of the USA. In the upshot in 1993-1994 the White House administration published a number of fundamental reports covering the problems of ecologization of science and engineering, for example: Technologies for American Economic Growth, Strategy of Ecological Innovations: Project etc.

The final document was published under the title of the National Strategy In the Environmental Technology; its main idea consisted in transition to commercialization of ecotechnologies which needs the following measures to be taken: backing of innovations, encouragement of new approaches, attraction of the world community and cooperation in education and popularization of information. Accent in this strategy was on concretization and more decisive role of the government in the developments in the sphere of ecoinnovations and transition to the paradigm based on the forecast, estimation and warning about hazardous environmental impact and health damages [2].

The higher interest to ecological innovations in the United States is more understandable, when we turn to certain forecasts of the impact of new technologies on the natural environment and global economic development in the 21st century.

The experts predict, that in ten years imrovement of a number of technologies can substantially change production and consumption of energy, extraction of minerals and raw materials, methods of material processing and making of final products. As a result both technogenic impact on the environment and expenses on the nature- conservative measures will go down.

These results were reported by the specialists of the Pacific North-Western National Laboratory of the US Department of Energy, which in 1998 pioneered the survey of perspective developments in different branches of science and engineering capable to cardinally improve the global ecological situation by 2008. The review included only technologies already put into effective operation with high positive environmental potentialities. These experts concluded that the ten most ecologically promising technologies are as follows:

1. Agricultural engineering.

Introduction of methods of the genetic engineering for cultivation of plants with better resistance to diseases will curtail using pesticides and contaminants.

2. Purification technologies.

In this field there are very promising so called smart membranes permitting to automatically set water purifiers to filter undesirable admixtures. The porous filters will allow to remove nitrates and heavy metals from water.

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3. Renewable energy sources.

The experts predict the development of perspective power accumulators. Inertia devices are very competitive in this field; they accumulate energy with the help of the flywheel. These devices will accumulate electric power of the solar power plants during daytime permitting to use it at noght.

The wide application of photo-electric plants for electric power production will reduce atmospheric pollutant emissions, which is a case with the heat stations. By the way, the US specialists hope that this very innovation will help the United States to fulfill its obligations in front of the world community, according to which the atmospheric pollutant emissions in 2008-2012 should be seven percent lower than in 1990.

4. Microtechnologies.

Industrial sector will more actively use the possibilities of perspective microchips and micromechanic devices in different production processes and final products. This will allow to create miniature power-saving pumps for effective heating of premises, microenterprises making necessary chemicals in needed amounts, that excludes ecologically dangerous stockpiling and transport of these agents.

5. Paperless technologies.

Due to application of perspective technologies it will become possible to decrease consumption of paper in the spheres of information and office work, that will reduce environmental pollution in papermaking and production of stationery (for example, eraser, ink etc.). This process will also be accelerated by the progress and combination in wireless communication, Internet, e-mail, flat and flexible displays and so on.

6. Molecular design.

The study of the nature of interaction of substance on molecular level will hasten the development of new materials and more effective sun batteries. The molecular design of catalysts and sensors will considerably increase the completeness of chemical reactions and fulfill production process requirements which will improve the quality of output and decrease the amount of harmful waste.

7. Biotechnology.

New technologies in production of fuel, chemicals, and medical preparations with the use of biotechnology can considerably decrease the man-caused impact on the environment.

8. Motor transport weight reduction.

The intensive use of light metals, composition materials and plastics in automobile design will reduce their weight and, as a result, lower fuel consumption, that will diminish pollutants emission into the air.

9. Biodegradable materials.

The firms will go over to products made of materials, which can be easily reprocessed. This pertains to both wrappings, and different kinds of packages, motor transport and electronic engineering.

10. Real-time ecological sensors.

Their production will help to find pathogenic microflora in foodstuff at the very scene of their sale, will allow to

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raise contamination control quality of the environment. Such sensing elements can also be used to prevent ecological terrorism. Their actuality was proven by 11/9 events in Washington, when after the terrorist acts somebody began to send round white powder with pathogens of siberian ulcer.

Apparently, the world science is developping in a fast pace, and the things that a few decades ago were treated as science fiction, have become a reality today. Understanding this, the advanced economies quit this political myopia developing the long-term strategic vision of its future in the global world.

Now, having taken into account everything said above, we will dwell on ecological innovations in our country.

Characterizing the process of innovative development in general, we should note, that today Ukraine occupies one of the last places in the world in this field. The State Service of Critical Technologies and Special Information, Ministry for Science and Technologies, State Innovation Fund, Ukrainian State Innovation Company failed to do their job, although they wre not to blame: our state spends 0.3 percent of GDP (as compared to 30 to 40 percent with progressive development models in China, Japan, Singapore) on science, and still less on innovation activity. Ukraine has neither real strategy of innovation development, nor effective economic, legislative and financial mechanisms of its realization.

As for ecological innivations, this is a path untrodden: the state has no even official conception of its development. From time to time there is a chancy information about some reasearch team inventing unique water purification methods or improved waste utilization know-how etc., but there are no funds whatsoever to set it going. We find such pitiful situation in almost all research establishments.

In the light of the considered directions of innovation development Ukraine will face hard times making its last-ditch effort: the majority of scientific establishments fell into decay, specialists went abroad, material resources are absent. But let us quit that bow-vow style: there is still a ghost of a chance.

Let us take an example of alternative energy sources. Our climatic conditions- especially in the south and in the west are good for the development of this direction (wind farms, solar energy, ebb-and-flow power plants, etc.). The breakthrough undertalings here might improve ecological and economical situation and place us side-by-side with world leaders in this sphere.

Ukraine is interested in the development of paperless technologies (everybody knows that Transcarpathian forests suffer from criminal felling), in higher automatization, informatization, and computerization. This might considerably develope domestic innovations, that could help our country to faster enter the global information space. The domestic genetic engineering also has certain potential, because Ukrainian researchers began to investigate these problems as early, as in the seventieth of the last century.

The great agricultural potential of Ukraine needs further active researches

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and concrete investment projects. The problem of the aftermath of Chornobyl disaster-though it is our inconsolable grief-gave impetus to the unique development of innovative treatment of nuclear-waste disposal both on the territory of our state, and in other regions of the world.

Certainly, we have attainments, which one could call ecological innovations. For example, scientists from the NAS of Ukraine under Academician Shestopalov developed the method of cloud-burst telesounding, based on the theory that coincidence of the velocity and direction of downpour zone and flood wave produce a frightful ruinous force. This flood warning method is extensively used in construction projects in Sweden, Rumania, Great Britain, Japan, USA, and Canada [3]. Only at home-despite serious flood problem in Transcarpathians-nobody takes interest in it so far.

According to S. Sledz [4], today Ukraine is one of six countries having the up-to-date production technologies to make gas-turbine units and combined cycle units, which are very perspective due to leading growth rates of their efficiency, environmental safety, low cost price of capital expenses etc. With great strides the whole world is working to put this innovation into production. The part of gas-turbine units, which the US Department of Energy is going to bring into action during the nearest decade, makes 80 percent of all projected units.

Gas-turbine units of home manufacture have been working on ships of eighteen countries of the world for a long time already, the USA included [4], while at home nobody takes interest in it so far.

Another example. The Scientific and Technical Center INTREK under the National Technical University of Ukraine developed a number of unique water purification methods on the basis of cavitation technologies. However, the main partners of the center are foreign customers, and not domestic ones, says Borys Bulhakov, the chief of the developers team. The aforementioned know-how are used on several heat stations in Moscow and on Oka River; the Russian plant Iaroslavneftieorgsintez, daily profit of which from realization of this innovation make about USD10,000, utilizes new know-how of black oil rectification [5].

Ecological innovations and technologies depend on the rapidly expanding world market of ecological goods and services.

Experts value the potential ability of absorption of the market about USD500bn. Its yearly increase makes five percent and more in some countries. For example, in Baltic countries the increase makes eight percent a year, and ten percent in Canada.

The capacity of the expanding market of environmentally-friendly goods and services in the countries of Eastern Europe is about USD20bn. So, Ukraine still has its chance to find its own place. However, it needs a lot of work to be done.

For example, in the European Union expenses necessary to fulfill ecological legislation make about USD95-145 per capita. For comparison, in Slovenia it amounts to USD74, Estonia-USD54, Bulgaria-USD14, Baltic states-

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USD10, and Rumania-USD9 (1996 data).

In Ukraine capital and current environmental expenses make approximately USD15 per capita and tend to drop down [6]. Allowing for such tendencies, how on Earth a country can aspire to join either European or global community and step into the market of ecologically clean goods and services?

To begin with, it is necessary at least to understand, that the use of ecological innovations and technologies and augmentation of environmental expenses is advantageous in the long-term perspective, because they will improve global marketability of our goods.

Unfortunately, things are right where they started. Analysis of the investments distribution during the recent years shows that the past an future priorities of the national ecological market development are as follows:

* water conservation (approximately 62 percent of general investments);

* air protection (16 percent);

* land conservation and rational utilization of mineral resources, biological conservation etc. (12 percent);

* rational use, utilization and recycling of waste (10 percent) [7].

You can see for yourself, that the development of ecoservice (ecological tourism, audit and consulting, landscape design) fails to attract attention in our country.

Therefore, the realization of the strategy of innovation development in Ukraine together with adequate policy and legislation will make foundation for future innovation breakthroughs in different branches of science and engineering that will give Ukraine its chance to draw nearer to the world leaders and to join to the world community on equal terms.

References

1 Наука в США. - Internet address: www.otd.ru/geo/data/namer/usa/27.htm/ - P. 1- 5.

2 В. Д. Писарев. Экологический компонент научно-технической политики США и подход России. - Internet address: http://iskran.iip.net/russ/works98/pisarev.html. - P. 1-5.

3 Тарасова-Ходжашвили О. Небесным авариям - охранную грамоту // Зеркало недели. - N 41 (416). - 2002 . - Лист.

4 Следзь С. Мечи - на орала, а уголь - на газ // Дзеркало тижня. - N16 (340). - 2001. - Квіт.

5 Янковой В. Политтехники для экологии // Дзеркало тижня. - N4 (277). - 2000. - Січ.

6 Попова О. Экология входит в рынок // Дзеркало тижня. - N40 (364). - 2001. - Лист.

7 Ibid.


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© Tetiana PERHA () Источник: Politics and the Times 2003-12-31

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