Chapter Introduction
Section 1: Physical
Features
Section 2: Climate and the
Environment
Visual Summary
Human-Environment Interaction
Russia’s vast, cold landscapes
include mountain ranges, plains,
and evergreen forests. The country
is also rich in natural resources,
especially those used to create
energy. To take advantage of these
resources, however, Russia’s
people must overcome problems
created by the country’s landforms
and climate. How do Russia’s
location and landforms affect its
population and its use of
resources?
Section 1:
Physical Features
Changes occur in the use
and importance of natural
resources. Russians have
used their soil, water, and
timber for their own needs. As
global demand for energy
rises, Russia’s rich supply of
energy resources will be
increasingly important.
Section 2: Climate and the
Environment
People’s actions change the
physical environment.
Because much of Russia has a
harsh climate, most Russians live
where the climate is milder. The
Russian people have adapted to
their surroundings, but some of their
actions have damaged the
environment. Planning is necessary
to take advantage of the country’s
great resources while preserving the
environment.
Changes occur in the use and
importance of natural resources.
Content Vocabulary
• fossil fuel
• softwood
• infrastructure
Academic Vocabulary
• benefit
• inhibit
The bubbling goo in this volcanic pool is
like a pot of boiling soup. Here in far
eastern Russia, a huge volcano exploded
tens of thousands of years ago. The area
now contains cold, rushing rivers, hot
springs, and pools filled with steaming,
toxic mud. As volcanic gases push their
way up through the thick ooze, they create
bubbles. The bubbles are evidence that
forces under Earth’s crust are always in
motion. Read this section to learn more
about the different types of physical
features found in Russia.
Do you think a cold climate can affect
a country’s economy?
A. Yes
B. No
A. A
B. B
0%
A
0%
B
The Western Caucasus, designated one of the United
Nation’s World Heritage Sites, is a vast wilderness in
European Russia, near the Black Sea. It is a protected
place for many unique plants, animals, and geological
features. Here is Russia’s deepest and longest cave.
This territory is larger in size than the state of Rhode
Island but is one of the few large mountain areas left in
Europe that has not experienced damaging human
interference. There is virtually no measurable human
population now nor has there been in recent history.
Landforms in Russia
Russia is a huge country with
a location and landforms that
greatly affect how people live.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• Russia is the world’s largest country,
measuring 6,200 miles (9,980 km) and
straddling both Europe and Asia.
• Because of its northern location, Russia does
not benefit from its closeness to the sea.
• Most of the country’s long coast lies along
waters that are frozen for much of the year.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• The Black Sea, in the southwestern part of
the country, is one of Russia’s water routes
that is not frequently frozen.
• It provides a route to the Mediterranean Sea.
• Russia’s varied landforms include rugged
mountains, plateaus, and vast lowland plains.
• About 75 percent of Russians live in the mild
climate of the Northern European Plain.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• Moscow, the capital, and St. Petersburg, a
large port city near the Baltic Sea, are in
this region.
• The Ural Mountains divide Europe from Asian
Russia.
• Asian Russia is east of the Ural Mountains
and includes Northern Siberia, a vast,
treeless plain with one of the coldest climates
in the world.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• The few people who live here make their
living fishing, hunting seals and walruses,
or herding reindeer.
• Further south in Siberia is a region of dense
forests where people make their living by
lumbering or hunting.
• Plains, plateaus, and mountain ranges cover
this area.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• Mountains rise in the far eastern Kamchatka
Peninsula.
• These mountains are part of the Ring of Fire,
a region along the rim of the Pacific Ocean
where tectonic plates meet and cause the
Earth’s crust to be unstable.
• As a result, Kamchatka has many volcanoes.
• The Volga is European Russia’s major river.
The Lena, Yenisey, and Ob΄ are among the
longest rivers in the world.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• Russia’s Caspian Sea is the largest inland
body of water in the world.
• It is a saltwater lake and an important
resource for fishing.
• Major oil and gas deposits are found near or
under the Caspian Sea.
• Lake Baikal lies in southern Siberia and is the
world’s deepest freshwater lake.
Landforms in Russia (cont.)
• It holds one-fifth of the world’s supply of
unfrozen freshwater.
• Baikal is home to many kinds of aquatic life,
including Baikal seals, or nerpa, the only
seals that live in freshwater.
What is Russia’s deepest body
of water?
A. Caspian Sea
B. Volga River
C. Lake Baikal
D. Lena River
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Natural Resources
Although Russia has plentiful
resources, many of them are
in remote Siberia and are
difficult to obtain.
Natural Resources (cont.)
• Russia is a leader in reserves of the fossil
fuels—oil, natural gas, and coal.
• The country also has large deposits of iron
ore, copper, and gold.
• Another major resource for Russia is timber.
• Trees cover much of Siberia, and Russia
produces about a fifth of the world’s
softwood.
Reserves of Energy Resources
Natural Resources (cont.)
• This wood from evergreen trees is used in
buildings and for making furniture.
• Russia’s large size and cold climate inhibit
humans’ ability to use its many resources.
• Siberia is vast and remote, and its
resources are difficult to use because of
the area’s lack of infrastructure.
• Infrastructure is the system of roads and
railroads for transporting materials.
Russian fossil fuels include all of the
following EXCEPT
A. Coal
B. Oil
C. Wood
D. Natural gas
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
People’s actions change the physical
environment.
Content Vocabulary
• permafrost
• smog
• taiga
• pollutant
Academic Vocabulary
• period
• decline
For many Russians, ice fishing is a
favorite pastime. In this photo, an ice
fisher is shielded from the cold winds
blowing along the Tom River in
Siberia. The fisher must often reach
into the icy water and remove slush
from the hole to keep it from freezing
over. Read this section to learn how
Russia’s many climate zones have
influenced its people.
Do you think you would like to have
just two seasons—winter and
summer?
A. Yes
B. No
A. A
B. B
0%
A
0%
B
Vladivostok, in the far eastern portion of Russia, is
overwhelmed by pollution from untreated sewage,
contaminated run-off from dumps, and oil spills from
industries. Lack of funding and government support
has stopped programs to clean the nearby bay. Half
a century ago, people enjoyed the Vladivostok
beaches, but now they even refuse to eat the fish
caught in home waters.
A Cold Climate
Russia has a generally cool to
cold climate because of its
northern location.
A Cold Climate (cont.)
• Russia, located in the high latitudes,
receives little of the sun’s heat even during
summer.
• Much of Russia also lies inland, far from
the moist, warm currents of the Atlantic
and Pacific Oceans that help moderate
temperature in other parts of the world.
Russia: Climate Zones
A Cold Climate (cont.)
• In Russia’s far north, elevations are
generally too low to prevent the southerly
flow of icy Arctic air, and in the country’s
south and east, tall mountains stop the
warm air coming from the lower latitudes.
• Russia has a generally cool to cold
climate, and large areas of the country
experience only winter- and summer-like
conditions.
A Cold Climate (cont.)
• Spring and autumn are simply brief
periods of changing weather.
• The northern and eastern areas of Russia
have short, cool summers and long, snowy
winters.
• The northern tundra climate zone is so
cold that moisture in the soil cannot
evaporate.
A Cold Climate (cont.)
• Cold temperatures and lack of precipitation
result in permafrost, a permanently frozen
layer of soil beneath the surface.
• South of the tundra lies the subarctic zone,
Russia’s largest climate area.
• The taiga, the world’s largest coniferous
forest, stretches about 4,000 miles
(6,436 km) across this zone.
The majority of Russians experience
how many seasons?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Russia’s Environment
As Russia’s economy
expanded, the country’s
environment was poorly
cared for.
Russia’s Environment (cont.)
• For most of the 1900s, Russia’s leaders
stressed economic growth and ignored the
damage this growth caused to the
environment.
• Today, smog—a thick haze of fog and
chemicals—blankets many of Russia’s
cities.
• Factories pour pollutants, chemicals and
smoke particles that cause pollution, into
the air.
Russia’s Environment (cont.)
• Russia’s water pollution is caused by poor
sewer systems and by agricultural and
industrial chemicals ending up in the rivers
and lakes.
• Pollution entering Lake Baikal may be
causing a decline in the populations of
some animal species in the area.
Which of the following has caused a
decline in animal population in the
area surrounding Lake Baikal?
A. Smog
B. Water pollution
C. Pollutants
D. All of the above
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
A Vast Northern Land
• Straddling Europe and
Asia, Russia is the
world’s largest country.
• Most of Russia’s long
coast lies along waters
that are frozen for
many months of the
year.
Russia’s Landforms
• Northern and western
parts of Russia are mostly
plains. Eastern and
southern areas of the
country are covered with
mountains and plateaus.
• Inland waterways are
important for moving
goods through Russia. Many long rivers flow
north, however, into the cold Arctic Ocean and freeze
in winter.
• Russia has many inland bodies of water, including the
Caspian Sea and Lake Baikal.
Natural Resources
• Russia is rich in natural
resources, including
fossil fuels, metals,
and timber.
• Russia’s large size and
generally cold climate
make it difficult for
Russians to use their
resources.
Climate
• Most of western Russia has a humid continental
climate of warm, rainy summers and cold, snowy
winters.
• Northern and eastern parts of Russia have cold
high latitude climates. The far north of Russia
is so cold that moisture in the soil cannot
evaporate.
• The country’s cold winters helped the Russians
defeat German forces during World War II.
Environment
• Communist leaders paid little attention to the
damage that economic growth was causing to
Russia’s environment.
• Other countries are providing Russia with aid to
clean up heavily polluted areas.
Students should identify pollution issues in their own
communities.
fossil fuel
oil, natural gas, or coal, which are an
important part of the world’s energy
supply
softwood
wood of evergreen trees, often used
in buildings or making furniture
infrastructure
system of roads and railroads that
allows the transport of materials
benefit
something that does good to a person
or thing
inhibit
limit
permafrost
permanently frozen lower layers of
soil found in the tundra and subarctic
climate zones
taiga
large coniferous forests
smog
thick haze of smoke and chemicals
pollutant
chemical and smoke particles that
cause pollution
period
a portion of time
decline
a change to a lower state or level
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