1. Unit 5: Russia and the Republics
Physical Geography

2. Landforms and Resources

3. Northern Landforms This region can be broken down into 4 areas:
Northern European Plain
West Siberian Plain
Central Siberian Plateau
Russian Far East

4. Northern Landforms Northern European Plain Lowland area
1,000 miles from western border to Ural Mountains
Chernozem-“black earth”, very fertile soil
Lots of agriculture in this area
290 million people inhabit this land
Big Cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kiev (Ukraine)

6. Northern Landforms West Siberian Plain Eurasia??
Ural Mountains and Yenisey River
Because this area is tilted northward, rivers flow toward Arctic Ocean
Eurasia??

7. Northern Landforms Central Siberian Plateau and Russian Far East
Plateaus: 1,000-2,000 feet are common
Yenisey and Lena Rivers
Russian Far East
Volcanic ranges
Kamchatka Peninsula (120 volcanoes, 20 actives)
Sakhalin and Kuril islands

8. Southern Landforms Caucasus and Other Mountains Black and Caspian seas
Border between Russia and Transcaucasia
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia
Tian Shan is part of a huge mountainous region farther east
Central Asia-Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
Ranges in this area are so high, stops moist air from reaching the areas beyond the mountains

9. Southern Landforms Turan Plain lowland
Caspian Sea to mountains and uplands of Central Asia
Syr Darya and Amu Darya are the 2 major rivers of the area
Kara Kum and Kyzyl Kum plains

10. Rivers and Lakes Drainage Basins and Rivers
Drainage Basins-area drained by a major river and tributaries
Arctic Ocean, Caspian Sea, Pacific Ocean, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Aral Sea basins
Arctic basin is the larges
Rivers: Ob, Yenisey, Lena drain 3 million sq. mi.

11. Rivers and Lakes Lakes Caspian and Aral Seas Lake Baikal
Both are saltwater lakes
Caspian is largest inland sea in the world
Aral has lost about 80% of its water volume since the 1960s due to irrigation
Lake Baikal
Deepest lake in the world
Mile depth, 400 miles long
20% of Earth’s freshwater
Thousands of plants and animals live in the lake
Only species of freshwater seal lives here

13. Regional Resources
Issues with managing the many resources of this region
Corruption
Environmental issues
Coal, iron ore, other metals
Oil and natural gas
Timber
Hydroelectric power

14. Regional Resources
Harsh climates, difficult terrain, and large distances make management unstable
Many resources are located in Siberia
Mining, oil, natural gas production has caused severe damage to the environment
Dams and thermal pollution have damaged plant and animal habitats

15. Climate and Vegetation

16. Varying Climates Major Climate Regions
Humid continental and subarctic dominate the area
High latitude and impact of mountains
Because the land is so large, sea/ocean influence doesn’t impact the majority of the region
Continentality

17. Varying Climates
Distance from sea can impact precipitation and temperature
Siberia: highs of 50 degrees, lows of -90 degrees
Weather impacts life

18. Varying Climates Warmer climates do exist: southeastern areas
Semiarid and desert
Transcaucasia: moist air from Mediterranean Sea created a subtropical climate zone.
Before ethnic cleansing issues, resorts here were a popular tourist destination

19. Vegetation Regions Tundra Forest Mosses Lichens Low shrubs
Taiga-largest forest on earth, contains mostly coniferous trees
Animals: fox, vermin, bear, elk, wolves

20. Vegetation Regions Steppe Desert Grassland
Southern Ukraine through northern Kazakhstan
Fertile soil: grain
Desert
Plains of west and central areas of Central Asia
Kara Kum and Kyzyl Kum

21. Human-Environment Interaction

22. Shrinking Aral Sea Gets most of its water from Amu Darya and Syr Darya
Irrigation projects took water out of these rivers and towards agriculture
Sea is beginning to evaporate
Effects of Agriculture
Pesticides and fertilizers on cotton farms were picked up by runoff and brought into streams/rivers
Killing much plant and animal life in the area
Diseases for people: cancer, respiratory issues, dysentery, typhoid, hepatitis

24. “Wild East”
Traveling through Siberia was dangerous and slow during the 19th century
Trans-Siberian RR-linked Moscow to Pacific port of Vladivostok

25. “Wild East” Trans-Siberian RR 5,700 mi long 7 time zones 1891-1903
70,000 workers
77 million cubic feet of land, 100,000 acres of forest cleared