Risk-oriented approach to ensuring environmental safety of the devastated territories for urban development

The article considers the possibilities to improve the use of devastated territories of the Russian Federation, particularly of the Northwest Federal District and the Leningrad Oblast. The work provides data on monitoring the formation, usage and disposal of waste and outlines the range of environmental problems occurring due to exploitation of devastated territories. Measures of optimizing these territories, prospects for their implementation and related risks that may entail economic losses for urban development were determined in the article. This work reveals the important role of geoecological factors played in addressing the issues of preparing such areas for further building development. The study of characteristics and classification of devastated lands is of great importance for the rational planning of urban space. Successful rehabilitation of devastated lands enables their integration into the urban environment, the most effective usage and ensuring their social and economic potential growth for urban development