© all rights reserved 2011
GEOGRAPHY-ENVIRONMENT-WEATHER
Though it’s a big place, the geography isn’t too difficult
overall. First, the western part, called European Russia, is
mostly flat without significant geographic landmarks. There are
no obstacles to human transport, so the great majority of
Russians live there. Numerous rivers flow mainly north-to-
south. It is forested northerly and with mostly fertile plains,
some long-ago deforested, everywhere else. The eastern
boundary of European Russia and Western Siberia is a low
mountain range called the Urals. This range has historically
been called the primary longitudinal boundary between Europe
and Asia. Next eastwardly comes Siberia, which is like a flat
soup bowl cut in half. The lipped southern extreme is either
steppe, forest, or mountains. Generally, the southern boundary
between Russia and other countries in this region is the line
between forest and steppe. Rivers all run north to the arctic
through forest and tundra, much of which has permafrost
underneath. There are huge human transport issues here, so
folks mainly live along the rivers or along the single railroad
running through it, aptly called the Trans-Siberian. About 20%
of Russia’s population lives here, though it constitutes most of
the country’s area. Finally, in the south-east corner, there is the
Far East which, like European Russia, is flat and ideally suited
for agricultural development and population density. It is
Russia’s only year-round contact with warm ocean water (for the
Navy) but is isolated from the rest of the country. This only
became a part of Russia in the 1860’s, at the expense of China.
(*KEY*) Throughout their history, Russians have been forest
folks, hunter/gather types, and this plays a large role in their
approach to life, even today; appreciating this makes their
behavior much easier to understand. Note: Alaska, a very
important subject for many Russians even today, will be treated
in the history section. (*KEY*) Russia expanded
(hunted/gathered) continuously out of its European root-base
continually between 1551-1991.
The environment, given the relative simplicity of the geography
through similar latitudes, must be thought of mainly in terms of
present-day damage, adding in the problems caused during the
Soviet times to the southern steppe regions which now aren’t a
part of the Russian Federation:
overall. First, the western part, called European Russia, is
mostly flat without significant geographic landmarks. There are
no obstacles to human transport, so the great majority of
Russians live there. Numerous rivers flow mainly north-to-
south. It is forested northerly and with mostly fertile plains,
some long-ago deforested, everywhere else. The eastern
boundary of European Russia and Western Siberia is a low
mountain range called the Urals. This range has historically
been called the primary longitudinal boundary between Europe
and Asia. Next eastwardly comes Siberia, which is like a flat
soup bowl cut in half. The lipped southern extreme is either
steppe, forest, or mountains. Generally, the southern boundary
between Russia and other countries in this region is the line
between forest and steppe. Rivers all run north to the arctic
through forest and tundra, much of which has permafrost
underneath. There are huge human transport issues here, so
folks mainly live along the rivers or along the single railroad
running through it, aptly called the Trans-Siberian. About 20%
of Russia’s population lives here, though it constitutes most of
the country’s area. Finally, in the south-east corner, there is the
Far East which, like European Russia, is flat and ideally suited
for agricultural development and population density. It is
Russia’s only year-round contact with warm ocean water (for the
Navy) but is isolated from the rest of the country. This only
became a part of Russia in the 1860’s, at the expense of China.
(*KEY*) Throughout their history, Russians have been forest
folks, hunter/gather types, and this plays a large role in their
approach to life, even today; appreciating this makes their
behavior much easier to understand. Note: Alaska, a very
important subject for many Russians even today, will be treated
in the history section. (*KEY*) Russia expanded
(hunted/gathered) continuously out of its European root-base
continually between 1551-1991.
The environment, given the relative simplicity of the geography
through similar latitudes, must be thought of mainly in terms of
present-day damage, adding in the problems caused during the
Soviet times to the southern steppe regions which now aren’t a
part of the Russian Federation:
1. Nuclear waste (southern Urals)
2. Biochemical waste (Aral Sea)
3. River and air pollution from industry and coal-fired
electrical production (EVERYWHERE)
4. World Heritage Site damage (Lake Baikal and Sochi)
5. Deforestation (EVERYWHERE)
6. Massive oil pollution in the arctic, resulting from
abandoned and/or poorly maintained exploration and
development.
7. The short and long term costs of 1-5…. This site often
pays attention to the cost of things.
The weather works pretty much the same everywhere, and
folks generally associate it with seasons. Spring and
Autumn are identical, each lasting 45-60 days. These two
seasons feature every imaginable type of weather in
transition between summer and winter, with patterns often
changing extremely on very short notice. Folks generally
don’t like these two seasons for this reason. Summer is 2
good hot months and can be 3 if luck holds out. Winter fills
in the rest of the year, usually about 7 strong months.
(*KEY*) Hitler respected the weather so much, Germany
didn’t invade Russia in ww-2 until June 22nd. Even then,
despite bringing along 800,000 horses, they often got
bogged down and later, many froze to death, not being
adequately prepared for the coldest winter in 100 years.
2. Biochemical waste (Aral Sea)
3. River and air pollution from industry and coal-fired
electrical production (EVERYWHERE)
4. World Heritage Site damage (Lake Baikal and Sochi)
5. Deforestation (EVERYWHERE)
6. Massive oil pollution in the arctic, resulting from
abandoned and/or poorly maintained exploration and
development.
7. The short and long term costs of 1-5…. This site often
pays attention to the cost of things.
The weather works pretty much the same everywhere, and
folks generally associate it with seasons. Spring and
Autumn are identical, each lasting 45-60 days. These two
seasons feature every imaginable type of weather in
transition between summer and winter, with patterns often
changing extremely on very short notice. Folks generally
don’t like these two seasons for this reason. Summer is 2
good hot months and can be 3 if luck holds out. Winter fills
in the rest of the year, usually about 7 strong months.
(*KEY*) Hitler respected the weather so much, Germany
didn’t invade Russia in ww-2 until June 22nd. Even then,
despite bringing along 800,000 horses, they often got
bogged down and later, many froze to death, not being
adequately prepared for the coldest winter in 100 years.
