Soviet Union Physical Geography Temps, Precip., Vegetation, Land Use Natural regions Effects on human settlement

Temperatures High summer-winter contrast

Russia

Why Russia is cold Northern location (Moscow N of Edmonton) Moderating oceans far away (“continentality”) Low relief open to Arctic cold winds Ranges block warm air

Why Russia is cold

Precipitation Mainly from Atlantic, favors west Rains in mid-Summer Lack of snow cover Interior drought- vulnerable

Russia

OilRussia In east-west bands, affecting settlement

Russia

Less productive to east

Russia

Land Use

Russia

85% of Soviet population lived on 25% of land Agricultural lands more densely populated ( >10 persons km 2 ) POPULATION LAND

“Triangle” of settlement in agricultural zones

Ethnic Russian expansion

Trans-Siberian railroads in eastern Russia Omsk

Russia

Mixed forest zone West of Urals Grey-brown soils ideal for agriculture Slavic, Baltic states (including Russian heartland)

Russia

Steppe/Forest-steppe Grasslands or mixed (former nomad regions) Rich black earth good for farming Drought-vulnerable Ukraine/S. Russia bands, SW Siberia, N. Kazakstan

Semi-arid/Desert S. Kazakstan, rest of Central Asia Alkaline poor soils Fertile river valleys, oases, mountain flanks Slavs extracted resources

Russia

Mediterranean type Semi-arid but arable Parts of Caucasus, Crimea Drought-vulnerable Can grow some subtropical crops (Georgian wines, etc.)

Taiga/Boreal forest North Russia/Siberia Acidic podzol soils poor for farming Conifers Half of Former USSR (all in Russia)

Tundra (treeless) zone Permafrost (frozen subsoil) Indigenous herders Slavs extract resources

Russia

Minerals Exhausted in earlier-conquered western regions Plentiful in Interior, Siberia, Central Asia Opposite of agriculture

Coal, Metals

Oil

Rivers Caspian Sea Aral Sea Lake Balqash South Ranges Caucasus Tien Shan Pamirs Ural Amu Syr Lakes

Ranges Carpathians Dinaric Alps (Ex-Yugoslavia) Transylvanian Alps West Rivers Volga Don Dniester Dnieper Danube Elbe Vistula Seas Baltic Black Adriatic (Ex-Yugoslavia)

Seas White Japan Barents Bering Kara Okhotsk E. Siberian Laptev East/North Ranges Rivers Ob’-Irtysh Yenisei-Angara Lena-Aldan Amur-Ussuri Kolyma Lake Baikal Kolyma Aldan Syan Altai Yablonovy

National Parks and Zapovednik (Reserves) From Russian Conservation News Tour of “Wild Russia” Bioregions

Arctic

Kola/Karelia Eastern European Forest

Eastern European Steppe/ Forest-steppe

Ural Mountains

Caucasus Mountains

Western Siberian Forest

Western Siberian Steppe/ Forest-steppe

Central Siberia

Altai- Sayansky

Lake Baikal

Zabaikal (Transbaikal)

Yano- Kolymsky

Amur River- Sakhalin Island

Kamchatka Peninsula- Okhotsk Sea