Sustainable Development of the Urban Agglomeration through the Creation of an Urban Network of Protected Areas: Case Study of Kyiv City Urban Ecosystem

The need for improvement of the environment quality at the territory of cities is directly conditioned by its impact on the health of humans. At the same time humans are not the only residents of urban ecosystems, but they are also inhabited by other organisms, using city as their habitat. The growth of cities is a stable trend of the modern times and it comes into conflict with wildlife living activity and quality of environment. Sustainable development of cities is impossible without environment protection, economic progress and benefits for local communities, therefore the creation of protected areas groups within the city of Kyiv is offered as an instrument for biodiversity support and urban ecosystem stabilization. The most important requirements to the sites to be included into the system of protected areas have been formulated. The first two cores are developed based on small lakes, which are characterized with environmental, recreational and wildlife support potential. The benefits from the creation of the urban network of protected areas have been defined for urban ecosystem and social and economic situation in the city.