1. Environment By: Anxhelo Taho, Jack Foley, and Andrew Jayne

2.  Coal-burning factories sent chemicals into the air  Toxic wastes and untreated sewage were dumped into rivers.  Pesticides and heavy metals poisoned the soil in many areas.  Radioactive wastes were emptied into seas and rivers throughout the USSR.  The many large oil spills were never cleaned up.

3.  As of 2001 there were 31 mammal species, 38 bird species, and 129 species of plants listed as threatened.  Endangered species include Atlantic sturgeon, beluga, crested shelduck, Amur leopard, Siberian tiger, Mediterranean monk seal, Wrangel lemming, and the Oriental stork.  The great auk, Palla's cormorant, and Steller's sea cow have become extinct.

4.  In 1992 Russia had the world's third highest level of industrial carbon dioxide emissions.  75% of Russia's surface water is unsuitable for drinking.  Lake Baikal in Russia is the largest fresh water reservoir in the world, but has been heavily polluted through agricultural and industrial development.