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

2. Temperatures High summer-winter contrast

3. Russia

5. 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

6. Why Russia is cold

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

8. Russia

9. OilRussia In east-west bands, affecting settlement

10. Russia

12. Less productive to east

13. Russia

14. Land Use

15. Russia

16. 85% of Soviet population lived on 25% of land Agricultural lands more densely populated ( >10 persons km 2 ) POPULATION LAND

17. “Triangle” of settlement in agricultural zones

18. Ethnic Russian expansion

19. Trans-Siberian railroads in eastern Russia Omsk

20. Russia

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

22. Russia

23. 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

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

25. Russia

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

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

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

29. Russia

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

32. Coal, Metals

33. Oil

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

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

36. 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

37. National Parks and Zapovednik (Reserves) From Russian Conservation News www.russianconservation.org Tour of “Wild Russia” Bioregions

38. Arctic

39. Kola/Karelia Eastern European Forest

40. Eastern European Steppe/ Forest-steppe

41. Ural Mountains

42. Caucasus Mountains

43. Western Siberian Forest

44. Western Siberian Steppe/ Forest-steppe

45. Central Siberia

46. Altai- Sayansky

47. Lake Baikal

48. Zabaikal (Transbaikal)

49. Yano- Kolymsky

50. Amur River- Sakhalin Island

51. Kamchatka Peninsula- Okhotsk Sea