The Country and its People Russia The Country and its People

The land Russia is the largest country, by land area, in the world 6.3 million square miles Covers parts of two separate continents Russia is home to many large mountain ranges The Ural Mountains mark the traditional boundary between European Russia and Asian Russia The Caucasus Mountains lie between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, a large saltwater lake Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus is Russia’s highest elevation The land

The Ural Mountains

The Ural Mountains

Mt. Elbrus in the Caucasus

The Caucasus Mountains

Man, is it cold! Most of Russia has a very cold climate Only about 10% of its land can be commercially farmed Permafrost – permanently frozen soil that cannot be used for farming Taiga – sub-arctic far northern coniferous forest that covers 2/5 of western Russia; largest coniferous forest in the world Tundra – vast frozen treeless plain north of the Arctic Circle; average annual temperature is below freezing Due to the climate most of the people in Russia live in western Russia on the Northern European Plain, where the climate is more moderate Man, is it cold!

Taiga

Tundra

Population History Russia is home to more than 120 ethnic groups Ethnic Group – people who share a common language, history, and place of origins One of the largest varieties in the world Ethnic Russians are part of a larger group that includes Poles, Serbians, and Ukrainians called Slavs Other ethnic groups include the Caucasian people and the Turkic people Population History

Political History Early civilization included the Kievan Rus Slavs who settled near present day Moscow Slavs were conquered by the Mongols around 1200 AD Imperial Period Russia was ruled by a czar (supreme ruler) Russia was an autocracy Autocracy – Rule by one person alone Rule by the czars lasted from 1547 until 1917 Czar Nicholas II and his entire family were murdered by the Bolsheviks during the communist Revolution Russia became part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) in 1922 Political History

As the U.S.S.R, the country was controlled by the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, who believed in communism Communism – Based on the ideas of Karl Marx, it calls for the creation of society led by the working class Communism promotes equity by having everyone share equally in the society Under communism, people purchase homes directly from the government for a fixed price The Soviet Union existed from 1922 until 1991 Political History

Industrialization was a huge priority in the U.S.S.R. Industry grew without regard to environmental impact Nuclear Weapons testing for the Cold War had devastation environmental impacts Russia’s air, water, and soil were badly damaged by Soviet disregard for the effects of industrialization Lack of sustainable development – technological and economic growth that does not deplete the human and natural resources of a given area Serious environmental problems in Eastern Europe have resulted from industrialization during communism Pollution of ground water The Aral Sea Human Impact in Russia

The Aral Sea - 1985

The Aral Sea - 2009

Soil in Russia has been badly damaged by pesticide use and poor farming techniques Air pollution from Soviet factories has led to very poor air quality and acid rain in the area The area is just now starting to recover Air and Soil

Between 1949 and 1987, the Soviet Union set off more that 600 nuclear explosions Each explosion causes a by product known as nuclear waste Nuclear waste can remain dangerously radioactive for thousands of years Some of this waste was dumped directly into the Barents Sea, the Baltic Sea, Lake Baikal, and the Bering Sea The Chernobyl Explosion in 1986 Power plant explosion that released tons of radioactive particles into the local environment Released 400 times more radiation into the environment that the Hiroshima Explosion 350,000 people displaced from their homes The area is unsafe for human habitation for the next 20,000 years The City of Chernobyl Pripyat Ukraine Nuclear Waste

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GNSer8T6TA The Mayak Disaster

Pripyat, Ukraine Right – Abandoned apartment buildings in Pripyat Left – Bumper cars at an abandoned amusement park in Pripyat Pripyat, Ukraine