[English translation of Russian Text published in Ekologiya, 2022, No. 5, pp. 321–333] Natural recovery of forest ecosystems after the termination of impacts caused by emissions from large industrial enterprises gives a clue to their sustainability mechanisms. However, the lack of data on dif- ferent ecosystem components, natural zones, and emission sources makes it impossible to identify general patterns of restorative successions. This paper examines the distribution and abundance dynamics of macrol- ichens growing on birch trunks in the southern taiga forests of the Middle Urals affected for many years by emissions from the Middle Ural Copper Smelter. Two periods were compared: (1) period of intense emissions (1995–1997); and (2) period of almost ceased emissions (2014–2016). In the interval between the two studied periods, technogenic boundaries of all studied lichen species distribution have shifted closer to the smelter, and the abundance of most species increased in all pollution zones, including the slightly polluted and back- ground zones. However, the frequency and abundance of the species still go down as the distance to the smelter decreases. The explerent species Tuckermanopsis sepincola demonstrates the opposite response: it dis- appears from background and slightly polluted areas reaching maximum abundance in the extremely severe pollution zone. Keywords: epiphytic lichens, sulfur dioxide, heavy metals, natural recovery, dynamics, sustainability, recolo- nization, environmental strategies, Middle Urals.