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The geographical position is a typical appearance of the Russian plain. Environmental problems of the Russian Plain

1. Geographic location.

2. Geological structure and relief.

3. Climate.

4. Internal waters.

5. Soils, flora and fauna.

6. Natural zones and their anthropogenic changes.

Geographical position

The East European Plain is one of the largest plains in the world. The plain goes to the waters of two oceans and extends from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains and from the Barents and White Seas to the Azov, Black and Caspian. The plain lies on the ancient East European platform, its climate is predominantly temperate continental and natural zonality is clearly expressed on the plain.

Geological structure and relief

The East European Plain has a typical platform relief, which is predetermined by platform tectonics. At its base lie the Russian plate with a Precambrian basement and in the south the northern margin of the Scythian plate with a Paleozoic basement. At the same time, the boundary between the plates in the relief is not expressed. Phanerozoic sedimentary rocks lie on the uneven surface of the Precambrian basement. Their power is not the same and is due to the unevenness of the foundation. These include syneclises (areas of deep basement) - Moscow, Pechersk, Caspian Sea and anticlises (protrusions of the foundation) - Voronezh, Volga-Ural, as well as aulacogenes (deep tectonic ditches, on the site of which syneclises arose) and the Baikal ledge - Timan. In general, the plain consists of uplands with heights of 200-300m and lowlands. The average height of the Russian Plain is 170 m, and the highest, almost 480 m, is on the Bugulma-Belebeev Upland in the Ural part. In the north of the plain there are the Northern Ridges, the Valdai and Smolensk-Moscow stratal uplands, the Timan Ridge (Baikal folding). In the center are the uplands: Central Russian, Volga (layered, stepped), Bugulma-Belebeevskaya, General Syrt and lowlands: Oka-Don and Zavolzhskaya (stratified). In the south lies the accumulative Caspian lowland. Glaciation also influenced the formation of the relief of the plain. There are three glaciations: Okskoe, Dnieper with the Moscow stage, Valdai. Glaciers and fluvioglacial waters have created moraine landforms and outwash plains. In the periglacial (preglacial) zone, cryogenic forms were formed (due to permafrost processes). The southern boundary of the maximum Dnieper glaciation crossed the Central Russian Upland in the Tula region, then descended along the Don valley to the mouth of the Khopra and Medveditsa rivers, crossed the Volga Upland, the Volga near the mouth of the Sura, then the upper reaches of the Vyatka and Kama and the Urals in the region of 60˚N. Iron ore deposits (IMA) are concentrated in the foundation of the platform. The sedimentary cover is associated with reserves of coal (eastern part of the Donbass, Pechersk and Moscow basins), oil and gas (Ural-Volga and Timan-Pechersk basins), oil shale (north-western and Middle Volga), building materials (wide distribution), bauxites (Kola Peninsula), phosphorites (in a number of areas), salts (Caspian region).

Climate

The climate of the plain is influenced by the geographical position, the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Solar radiation changes dramatically with the seasons. In winter, more than 60% of the radiation is reflected by the snow cover. Throughout the year, the western transport dominates over the Russian Plain. The Atlantic air transforms as it moves east. During the cold period, many cyclones come to the plain from the Atlantic. In winter, they bring not only precipitation, but also warming. Mediterranean cyclones are especially warm when the temperature rises to +5˚ +7˚C. After cyclones from the North Atlantic, cold Arctic air penetrates into their rear, causing sharp cooling to the very south. Anticyclones in winter provide frosty clear weather. During the warm period, cyclones mix to the north; the northwest of the plain is especially susceptible to their influence. Cyclones bring rain and coolness in summer. Hot and dry air is formed in the cores of the spur of the Azores High, which often leads to droughts in the southeast of the plain. January isotherms in the northern half of the Russian Plain run submeridian from -4˚C in the Kaliningrad region to -20˚C in the northeast of the plain. In the southern part, the isotherms deviate to the southeast, amounting to -5˚C in the lower reaches of the Volga. In summer, the isotherms run sublatitudinally: +8˚C in the north, +20˚C along the Voronezh-Cheboksary line, and +24˚C in the south of the Caspian Sea. The distribution of precipitation depends on western transport and cyclonic activity. Especially a lot of them move in the 55˚-60˚N band, this is the most humid part of the Russian Plain (Valdai and Smolensk-Moscow Uplands): the annual precipitation here is from 800 mm in the west to 600 mm in the east. Moreover, on the western slopes of the uplands, precipitation is 100-200 mm more than on the lowlands lying behind them. The maximum precipitation occurs in July (in the south in June). In winter, a snow cover forms. In the northeast of the plain, its height reaches 60-70 cm and it occurs up to 220 days a year (more than 7 months). In the south, the height of the snow cover is 10-20 cm, and the duration of occurrence is up to 2 months. The moisture coefficient varies from 0.3 in the Caspian lowland to 1.4 in the Pechersk lowland. In the north, moisture is excessive, in the strip of the upper reaches of the Dniester, Don and the mouth of the Kama - sufficient and k≈1, in the south, moisture is insufficient. In the north of the plain, the climate is subarctic (the coast of the Arctic Ocean), in the rest of the territory the climate is temperate with varying degrees of continentality. At the same time, continentality increases towards the southeast.

Inland waters

Surface waters are closely related to climate, topography, and geology. The direction of rivers (river flow) is predetermined by orography and geostructures. The runoff from the Russian Plain occurs in the basins of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans and in the Caspian basin. The main watershed runs along the Northern Ridges, Valdai, Central Russian and Volga Uplands. The largest is the Volga River (it is the largest in Europe), its length is more than 3530 km, and the basin area is 1360 thousand sq. km. The source lies on the Valdai Upland. After the confluence of the Selizharovka River (from Lake Seliger), the valley expands noticeably. From the mouth of the Oka to Volgograd, the Volga flows with sharply asymmetric slopes. On the Caspian lowland, branches of the Akhtuba separate from the Volga and a wide strip of floodplain is formed. The Volga Delta begins 170 km from the Caspian coast. The main food of the Volga is snow, so the flood is observed from the beginning of April to the end of May. The height of the water rise is 5-10 m. 9 reserves have been created on the territory of the Volga basin. The Don has a length of 1870 km, the basin area is 422 thousand sq. km. Source from a ravine on the Central Russian Upland. It flows into the Taganrog Bay of the Sea of Azov. Food is mixed: 60% snow, more than 30% groundwater and almost 10% rain. Pechora has a length of 1810 km, begins in the Northern Urals and flows into the Barents Sea. The area of the basin is 322 thousand km2. The nature of the current in the upper reaches is mountainous, the channel is rapids. In the middle and low reaches, the river flows through the moraine lowland and forms a wide floodplain, and a sandy delta at the mouth. Food is mixed: up to 55% falls on melted snow water, 25% on rainwater and 20% on groundwater. The Northern Dvina is about 750 km long and is formed from the confluence of the Sukhona, Yuga and Vychegda rivers. It flows into the Dvina Bay. The area of the basin is almost 360 thousand sq. km. The floodplain is wide. At the confluence of the river forms a delta. The food is mixed. Lakes on the Russian Plain differ primarily in the origin of lake basins: 1) moraine lakes are distributed in the north of the plain in areas of glacial accumulation; 2) karst - in the basins of the rivers of the Northern Dvina and the upper Volga; 3) thermokarst - in the extreme northeast, in the permafrost zone; 4) floodplain (oxbow lakes) - in the floodplains of large and medium-sized rivers; 5) estuary lakes - in the Caspian lowland. Groundwater is distributed throughout the Russian Plain. There are three artesian basins of the first order: Central Russian, East Russian and Caspian. Within their limits there are artesian basins of the second order: Moscow, Volga-Kama, Cis-Ural, etc. With depth, the chemical composition of water and water temperature change. Fresh waters occur at depths of no more than 250 m. Mineralization and temperature increase with depth. At a depth of 2-3 km, the water temperature can reach 70˚C.

Soils, flora and fauna

Soils, like vegetation on the Russian Plain, have a zonal distribution pattern. In the north of the plain there are tundra coarse-humus gley soils, there are peat-gley soils, etc. To the south, podzolic soils lie under the forests. In the northern taiga, they are gley-podzolic, in the middle taiga they are typical podzolic, and in the southern taiga they are soddy-podzolic soils, which are also characteristic of mixed forests. Under deciduous forests and forest-steppe, gray forest soils are formed. In the steppes, the soils are chernozem (podzolized, typical, etc.). On the Caspian lowland, the soils are chestnut and brown desert, there are solonetzes and solonchaks.

The vegetation of the Russian Plain differs from the vegetation cover of other large regions of our country. Broad-leaved forests are common on the Russian Plain, and only here are semi-deserts. In general, the set of vegetation is very diverse from tundra to desert. In the tundra, mosses and lichens predominate; to the south, the number of dwarf birch and willow increases. Spruce with an admixture of birch dominates in the forest-tundra. In the taiga, spruce dominates, to the east with an admixture of fir, and on the poorest soils - pine. Mixed forests include coniferous-broad-leaved species, in broad-leaved forests, where they have been preserved, oak and linden dominate. These same rocks are also characteristic of the forest-steppe. The steppe occupies here the largest area in Russia, where cereals predominate. The semi-desert is represented by grass-wormwood and wormwood-saltwort communities.

In the animal world of the Russian Plain, western and eastern species are found. The most widely represented forest animals and, in lesser degree steppe. Western species gravitate towards mixed and broad-leaved forests (marten, black polecat, dormouse, mole, and some others). Oriental species gravitate toward the taiga and forest-tundra (chipmunk, wolverine, Ob lemming, etc.). Rodents (ground squirrels, marmots, voles, etc.) dominate in the steppes and semi-deserts, and the saiga penetrates from the Asian steppes.

natural areas

Natural zones on the East European Plain are especially pronounced. From north to south, they replace each other: tundra, forest-tundra, taiga, mixed and broad-leaved forests, forest-steppe, steppes, semi-deserts and deserts. Tundra occupies the coast of the Barents Sea, covers the entire Kanin Peninsula and further to the east, to the Polar Urals. The European tundra is warmer and wetter than the Asian one, the climate is subarctic with maritime features. The average temperature in January varies from -10˚C near the Kanin Peninsula to -20˚C near the Yugorsky Peninsula. In summer around +5˚C. Precipitation 600-500 mm. The permafrost is thin, there are many swamps. On the coast, typical tundras are common on tundra-gley soils, with a predominance of mosses and lichens, in addition, arctic bluegrass, pike, alpine cornflower, and sedges grow here; from shrubs - wild rosemary, dryad (partridge grass), blueberries, cranberries. To the south, shrubs of dwarf birches and willows appear. The forest tundra extends south of the tundra in a narrow strip of 30-40 km. The forests here are sparse, the height is not more than 5-8 m, spruce dominates with an admixture of birch, sometimes larch. Low places are occupied by swamps, thickets of small willows or birch dwarf birch. There are many crowberries, blueberries, cranberries, blueberries, mosses and various taiga herbs. High-stemmed forests of spruce with an admixture of mountain ash (here it blooms on July 5) and bird cherry (blooms by June 30) penetrate along the river valleys. Of the animals of these zones, reindeer, arctic fox, polar wolf, lemming, hare, ermine, wolverine are typical. There are many birds in summer: eiders, geese, ducks, swans, snow bunting, white-tailed eagle, gyrfalcon, peregrine falcon; many blood-sucking insects. Rivers and lakes are rich in fish: salmon, whitefish, pike, burbot, perch, char, etc.

The taiga extends to the south of the forest-tundra, its southern border runs along the line St. Petersburg - Yaroslavl - Nizhny Novgorod - Kazan. In the west and in the center, the taiga merges with mixed forests, and in the east with forest-steppe. The climate of the European taiga is temperate continental. Precipitation on the plains is about 600 mm, on the hills up to 800 mm. Humidification is excessive. The growing season lasts from 2 months in the north to almost 4 months in the south of the zone. The depth of soil freezing is from 120 cm in the north to 30-60 cm in the south. The soils are podzolic, in the north there are peat-gley zones. There are many rivers, lakes, swamps in the taiga. The European taiga is characterized by dark coniferous taiga of European and Siberian spruce. To the east, fir is added, closer to the Urals, cedar and larch. Pine forests form on swamps and sands. On clearings and burnt areas - birch and aspen, along the river valleys alder, willow. Of the animals, elk, reindeer, brown bear, wolverine, wolf, lynx, fox, white hare, squirrel, mink, otter, chipmunk are characteristic. There are many birds: capercaillie, hazel grouse, owls, ptarmigan, snipes, woodcocks, lapwings, geese, ducks, etc. are widespread in swamps and reservoirs. and others. From reptiles and amphibians - vipers, lizards, newts, toads. In summer there are many blood-sucking insects. Mixed, and to the south broad-leaved forests are located in the western part of the plain between the taiga and the forest-steppe. The climate is temperate continental, but, unlike the taiga, it is milder and warmer. Winters are noticeably shorter and summers are longer. The soils are soddy-podzolic and gray forest. Many rivers begin here: the Volga, the Dnieper, the Western Dvina, and others. There are many lakes, there are swamps and meadows. The boundary between the forests is weakly expressed. With advancement to the east and north, the role of spruce and even fir in mixed forests increases, while the role of broad-leaved species decreases. There is linden and oak. To the southwest, maple, elm, ash appear, and conifers disappear. Pine forests are found only on poor soils. In these forests, undergrowth is well developed (hazel, honeysuckle, euonymus, etc.) and grass cover of goutweed, hoof, chickweed, some grasses, and where conifers grow, there are oxalis, maynik, ferns, mosses, etc. In connection with the economic development of these forests, the animal world has sharply decreased. There are elk, wild boar, red deer and roe deer have become very rare, bison only in reserves. The bear and lynx have practically disappeared. The fox, squirrel, dormice, forest polecat, beaver, badger, hedgehog, moles are still common; preserved marten, mink, forest cat, muskrat; muskrat, raccoon dog, American mink are acclimatized. From reptiles and amphibians - snake, viper, lizards, frogs, toads. Many birds, both sedentary and migratory. Woodpeckers, tits, nuthatch, blackbirds, jays, owls are characteristic, finches, warblers, flycatchers, warblers, buntings, waterfowl arrive in the summer. Black grouse, partridges, golden eagles, white-tailed eagles, etc. have become rare. Compared to the taiga, the number of invertebrates in the soil increases significantly. The forest-steppe zone extends south from the forests and reaches the line Voronezh - Saratov - Samara. The climate is temperate continental with an increase in the degree of continentality to the east, which affects the more depleted floristic composition in the east of the zone. Winter temperatures range from -5˚C in the west to -15˚C in the east. In the same direction, the annual amount of precipitation decreases. Summer is very warm everywhere +20˚+22˚C. Moisture coefficient in the forest-steppe is about 1. Sometimes, especially in last years , occur in the summer drought. The relief of the zone is characterized by erosional dissection, which creates a certain diversity of the soil cover. Most typical gray forest soils on loess-like loams. Leached chernozems are developed along the river terraces. The further south, the more leached and podzolized chernozems, and gray forest soils disappear. Little natural vegetation has been preserved. Forests here are found only in small islands, mainly oak forests, where you can find maple, elm, ash. Pine forests have been preserved on poor soils. Meadow forbs have been preserved only on lands that are not convenient for plowing. The animal world consists of forest and steppe fauna, but recently, due to human economic activity, the steppe fauna began to predominate. The steppe zone extends from the southern border of the forest-steppe to the Kumo-Manych depression and the Caspian lowland in the south. The climate is temperate continental, but with a significant degree of continentality. Summer is hot, average temperatures are +22˚+23˚C. Winter temperatures vary from -4˚C in the Azov steppes to -15˚C in the Trans-Volga steppes. Annual rainfall decreases from 500 mm in the west to 400 mm in the east. The moisture coefficient is less than 1, droughts and hot winds are frequent in summer. The northern steppes are less warm, but more humid than the southern ones. Therefore, the northern steppes are forb-feather grass on chernozem soils. The southern steppes are dry on chestnut soils. They are characterized by salinity. In the floodplains of large rivers (Don, etc.), floodplain forests of poplar, willow, alder, oak, elm, etc. grow. Among animals, rodents predominate: ground squirrels, shrews, hamsters, field mice, etc. From predators - ferrets, foxes, weasels . Birds include larks, steppe eagles, harriers, corncrakes, falcons, bustards, etc. There are snakes and lizards. Most of the northern steppes are now plowed up. The semi-desert and desert zone within Russia is located in the southwestern part of the Caspian lowland. This zone adjoins the coast of the Caspian Sea and merges with the deserts of Kazakhstan. The climate is continental temperate. Rainfall is about 300 mm. Winter temperatures are negative -5˚-10˚C. The snow cover is thin, but lies up to 60 days. Soils freeze up to 80 cm. Summer is hot and long, average temperatures are +23˚+25˚C. The Volga flows through the territory of the zone, forming a vast delta. There are many lakes, but almost all of them are salty. The soils are light chestnut, sometimes brown desert. The humus content does not exceed 1%. Solonchaks and salt licks are widespread. The vegetation cover is dominated by white and black wormwood, fescue, thin-legged, xerophytic feather grasses; to the south, the number of saltworts increases, a tamarisk shrub appears; tulips, buttercups, rhubarb bloom in spring. In the floodplain of the Volga, there are willow, white poplar, sedge, oak, aspen, etc. The animal world is represented mainly by rodents: jerboas, ground squirrels, gerbils, many reptiles - snakes and lizards. Of the predators, the steppe polecat, the corsac fox, and the weasel are typical. There are many birds in the Volga Delta, especially during the migration seasons. All natural zones of the Russian Plain have experienced anthropogenic impacts. Particularly heavily modified by man are the zones of forest-steppes and steppes, as well as mixed and broad-leaved forests.

East European, it is also Russian, as well as the Sarmatian plain - these names will forever remain in the history of geography. All of them denote a huge tectonic formation, the second largest in the world after the Amazonian lowland. More than 4 million km 2 of the plain lies between the two oceans, stretching from south to north - more than 1.5 thousand km, and from west to east - almost 1000 km.

All central, southern Russia, as well as the North and North-West of the country are located on the Sarmatian plain. It stretches from the Baltic to the Urals and from the Azov coast and the Caspian to the seas of the Arctic Ocean.

In addition, mountain systems surround it from all sides:

Scandinavian;
Sudetes;
Caucasus;
Ural.

East European Plain on the map: borders and position.

Not everyone knows that Crimea is also located on the Sarmatian Plain, the edge of which here is limited by the foothills of the Crimean Mountains.

Theory of formation, age and tectonic structure of the plain

At the base of the Russian platform lies an ancient (more than 1.5 billion years old) folded crystalline basement, which protrudes only in the regions of the Baltic and Ukrainian shields. On the rest of its surface, as a cover, there is a thick layer of sedimentary rocks from the Proterozoic to the Cenozoic. The thickness of the platform varies from 35 to 55 km.

As a result of the shields coming to the surface, the Central Russian Upland and the Khibiny Mountains were formed. Not far from the Tsimlyansk reservoir there is a significant geological anomaly, the so-called Main East European Fault.

The influence of the glacier on the relief of the plain

In ancient times, the northern end of the plain was covered by a powerful glacier.

As a result of its destructive movement in the Quaternary period, hills were formed:

Privolzhskaya.
Valdai.
Timan Ridge.
Northern Ridges.

To the south, the movement of the glacier left moraine traces, which were subsequently erased by erosion factors and water from the melting of the Dnieper glaciers.

Relief

The East European Plain has a relief typical of platform ones with a characteristic alternation of uplands and lowlands. The highest part of the plain is the northeastern one, where the average absolute height is at the level of 400 m. The platform is lowering towards the coastal zone of the Arctic Ocean. To the south, a series of hills alternate with lowlands.

Main hills:

Central Russian.
Privolzhskaya.
Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya.
Valdai.
Smolensk-Moscow.

From the east, the Meshcherskaya and Upper Volga lowlands adjoin them. Further south, the height of the plain decreases, and here its relief is represented by the Oka-Don and Caspian lowlands. Here, the main relief-forming work was done by modern factors - rivers and winds. Therefore, the surface of the earth is undulating with small hills.

Dominant Heights

The Russian platform has average absolute heights of 100-300 m. Its highest point (479 m) is located near Bugulma. In the south, the Caspian lowland is located at elevations in the region of 10-18 m below the free surface of the ocean.

Climate and natural areas

In foreign geographical studies, information on the Sarmatian plain is presented in an extremely confusing form. Domestic popular science articles also suffer from their fragmentary nature. The reason is that the wrong method of research and description is used.

It is highly inappropriate to separate the following factors from each other:

geological structure;
relief;
natural areas;
climatic features.

All of them are inevitably in close interaction and influence each other, as well as the formation of hydrology, flora and fauna. The Russian Plain is so large that it is located simultaneously in 4 climatic and 8 natural zones.

Climatic zones:

arctic;
subarctic;
moderate;
subtropical.

Natural areas:

arctic deserts;
tundra;
taiga;
forests;
forest-steppe;
steppe;
semi-deserts;
desert.

From the Rybachy Peninsula to Yamal along the coast lies arctic deserts. Winters in this zone are long and abnormally cold. The thermometer scale drops below -50°C. Summer temperatures barely reach +10°C. On average, throughout the year, the temperature is between -10 and 0°C. Precipitation (light drizzle and snowballs) is more frequent in the warm season.

The annual rainfall is 140 - 160 mm. Summer season match polar day, winter - polar night.

To the south, the desert passes into the tundra and forest-tundra. Here the climate is slightly milder, the average January temperature ranges from -10°C to -40°C, and in July it reaches +11 - +14°C. There is also more precipitation - 150 - 300 mm, but evaporation is low, which leads to swamping of large areas.

The taiga-forest zone occupies the largest part of the East European Plain (almost 700 thousand sq. km, or about 60%). In this natural enclave, the climatic conditions can be described as temperate continental. This is due to the influence of the Arctic and Atlantic air masses.

Winter here is long: from 5 to 6 months, depending on the distance from the Arctic. On average, the scale of winter temperatures is at the level of -10°C - -10°C. With the invasion of Arctic anticyclones (1-1 time per season), frosts reach abnormal values of -30°C - -40°C. The thickness of snow cover in the middle lane is 40 - 90 cm.

The spring period starts from the end of March, snow melting is unstable and can continue until mid-April. Return frosts end in the first decade of June. The average duration of summer is 3 months.

Summer temperatures are low and the average is +19°C, but with the advent of the Siberian and Central Asian anticyclones it becomes hot: the thermometers exceed +19°C. Precipitation occurs quite often in summer, in total the summer norm is around 150 mm. This is about a third of the annual rate.

Autumn is usually quite short and rainy. The temperature is rarely higher than +9 - +11°C. From the end of October precipitation in the form of sleet begins. From the beginning of November, autumn begins to turn into winter. In the region of the 50th parallel, broad-leaved forests begin to give way to forest-steppes. They occupy about a quarter of the Russian Plain (150 thousand sq. Km).

The type of climate also belongs to the temperate, however, in this natural zone it is already much milder. Winter comes at the very end of November with the establishment of permanent snow cover. Winter cold fluctuations occur from -9°C to -15°C. The temperature rarely reaches low values. The snow cover is up to 40 cm and completely disappears in March.

Spring is warm and short: it begins in April, and by the end of May, summer weather is already established. With the advent of summer, precipitation increases significantly and in the first two months more than 60% of the average annual rate falls (from 300 to 600 mm). The temperature regime is much warmer than in the forests: the night temperature is +19°C, and during the day it soars up to +36°C.

Summer ends in the second half of September.

Autumn lasts more than 2 months with quite comfortable temperature indicators: the thermometer scale drops to zero only by mid-November. Further south are the Russian steppes. In addition, the steppe zone is also present on the Crimean peninsula. In relation to the previous natural zones, they occupy a very small area.

The zone is located in the temperate zone, however, it is much warmer than all the previous ones. The duration of the seasons, when there are no negative temperatures, is six months or more. Winter lasts from December to March. In April, warm spring weather is already stable. From mid-May the temperature rises to +30°C. A long and warm summer is setting in.

Below + 30 ° C, the thermometer drops very rarely. The summer period turns into autumn only at the beginning of October. Moreover, above-zero temperatures last until mid-November, the transition to winter weather occurs, as a rule, in mid-December. There is little precipitation: only 150 - 300 mm falls during the year.

The East European Plain, in its southeastern part, captures 2 natural zones that are not quite typical for Russia: semi-deserts and deserts.

They fragmentary wedged into the following areas:

Kalmykia.
Astrakhan.
Volgograd.
Rostov region.

2 of these natural enclaves are very similar to each other, it is possible to separate them only very conditionally. The climate here is sharply continental and arid. The temperature regime and the level of precipitation almost do not differ from the steppe zone. In deserts, the amount of precipitation is 160 - 110 mm per year.

Dry subtropics are located on the territory of the Novorossiysk region and on the Crimean peninsula. The climate here is dry and hot. Winters are very warm and with high humidity. Precipitation falls more than 700 mm per year.

A comparative analysis in the table shows how diverse the climate of the Russian deserts is:

Name	Average temperature °С		annual difference	Rainfall per year (mm)	Evaporation (mm)
Name	January	July	annual difference	Rainfall per year (mm)	Evaporation (mm)
Arctic deserts	— 30	+ 9	39	140	100
Tundra	-15	+11	37	300	100
Taiga-forest zone	-15	+19	34	750	600
forest-steppe	-11	+15	37	600	800
Steppe	-9	+30	39	300	900
semi-deserts	— 15	+ 15	40	300	1500
desert	— 9	+ 19	37	100	1000
Dry subtropics	+ 4	+ 19	15	700	1300

The groundwater

The Russian Plain has a high supply of groundwater, which contains the East European platform artesian region. It, in turn, is divided into smaller basins of the 1st and 2nd orders. The main source of groundwater is atmospheric precipitation due to its infiltration into the depths. There is also seepage of water from surface water bodies.

Another way of replenishing groundwater is very peculiar: at positive temperatures, the vapor in the air has a more elastic structure than in the soil. Entering the ground, but reaches the zone of constant temperature and condenses. This condensate is the basis for the formation of groundwater in semi-deserts and deserts.

Fresh waters are located at depths up to 100 m, and below their mineralization begins. The underground waters of the Russian platform are characterized by an increased content of iron, manganese and fluorine.

Rivers

Consideration of the question of lowland rivers should always follow groundwater: by their nature, they are reservoirs with mixed nutrition. Initial basis groundwater, and a significant part - snow water with powerful floods.

By belonging, the rivers of the Russian Plain are divided into basins:

Atlantic.
Arctic Ocean.
Caspian.

In accordance with the relief of the plate, the watershed are the main hills:

Central Russian.
Valdai.
Privolzhskaya.

The main rivers of the Russian Plain are:

Name	Length (km)	Basin area (thousand sq. km)	Annual flow (km 3)
Volga	3530	1360	154
Dnieper	1101	504	53,5
Don	1870	411	17,7
Northern Dvina	744	350	110
Pechora	1809	311	130
Neva	74	181	78,9
Kama	1805	507	117

lakes

The lake beds of the plain are represented by 5 types:

glacial;
moraine;
floodplain;
karst;
firth.

In terms of lens size, the largest lakes of the plain are:

Caspian Sea.
Ladoga.
Onega.

The hydrology of the largest plain is not limited to rivers and lakes. Other bodies of water include swamps, ponds and reservoirs.

Flora

The East European Plain with its richest set of natural zones makes the flora of the region unique. All the vegetation characteristic of Russia is present here. The only exceptions can be plants of the high-mountainous regions of the Caucasus and some samples of the flora of Primorsky Krai. The poorest region in terms of vegetation is the arctic desert and tundra.

Mosses, lichens, small shrubs adapted to life in extreme conditions subarctic climate, form the basis of fragmentary vegetation cover. With the transition to the forest-tundra, a rare crooked forest and herbaceous plants appear, as well as mosses already cover the entire surface of the earth. They form the basis of the reindeer's diet.

The taiga zone is represented by a complete set of conifers:

pine;
larch;
fir.

The zone of mixed and broad-leaved forests, as well as the forest-steppe, are very similar in terms of representatives flora(preserving, including conifers).

In different proportions, but each zone has the same plants:

Linden;
ash;
poplar;
maple;
aspen.

In addition to tree crops from the taiga to the forest-steppe, Russian nature is rich in shrubs, both flowering and berry. A countless family of mushrooms hides in forests and forest belts throughout the warm season. Grass covers are represented by meadow and oak forbs.

The steppe zone has significant differences in vegetation: the basis is the zonal distribution of the meadow steppe and the forb or feather grass steppe. Half a thousand species of herbaceous (flowering and non-flowering) plants fill the steppe. The Don Valley is famous for its huge water meadows. Semi-deserts have much more sparse vegetation.

Mostly feather grass and fescue. In addition, there are a number of semi-shrubs such as wormwood. Herbaceous plants are represented by a small set of species that have adapted to seasonal existence: either they complete a full life cycle in one summer, or they are bulbous and persist until the next season (tulips, for example).

And in the dry subtropics, undersized deciduous and evergreen shrubs grow. In deserts, only plants with a developed root system survive, which is able to keep them in weak soils and reach groundwater.

Fauna

The fauna of the Russian platform is as diverse as the vegetation. There are no exotic species here, however, given the vast size of the territory and the numerous natural areas on it, the fauna here is the richest in the world.

Many authors really want to present this issue in an exotic light: attempts to tie the habitats of walruses and polar bears to the Russian Plain are not very substantiated. These animals in the bulk live much to the east, and on the islands adjacent to the north of the Russian Plate, their population is quite insignificant.

But in the vastness from the Arctic to the subtropics, the true owners of the mainland live in abundance:

Various small predators and rodents are presented in huge numbers.

Feathered inhabitants, taking into account migratory ones, there are more than 100 species of which the indigenous inhabitants are:

owl;
duck;
martin;
crow;
bustard;
heron;
nightingale;
partridge;
capercaillie;
black grouse;
sparrow.

Traditionally, coastal sea waters and lowland rivers are rich in fish resources, the most popular of which are:

roach;
sturgeon;
pike;
trout;
cod;
flounder;
gudgeon;
crucian carp;
zander;
burbot;
perch;
rudd;
sterlet.

How many species of insects live within the plains, it is impossible to give an exact answer due to their low level of knowledge. It is estimated that about 90,000 species.

Of these, several species are clearly exotic:

arctic bumblebee;
tarantula;
scorpion.

The detachment of invertebrates on the Russian plain is not too large:

viper;
snake;
verdigris;
muzzle;
monitor lizard

In total, the flora of the East European Plain includes more than 100 species of mammals, about 100 species of birds, 15 invertebrates, almost 100 thousand species of insects and more than fifty fish.

Minerals

The East European Plain, due to its geological structure, has a specific composition of fossil raw materials. Here is the world's largest (more than 50% of world reserves) iron ore basin. Its capacity is estimated at 100 billion tons and more.

Less significant minerals within the ancient geological plate are:

There are diamond deposits in the Arkhangelsk region.

Regions

Of the 85 subjects of the Federation, 53 are located on the Russian Plain.

These are the territorial entities that are part of the Federal Districts:

Central.
Northwestern.
Southern.
Privolzhsky.
North Caucasian.

Large cities located on the plain and their features

The main historical stages of Russian history are associated with cities located on the territory of the Russian Plain. Each of them made a worthy contribution to the development of the state.

You can classify them by size, then the most significant will be:

City	Population (million people)	Add. information
Volgograd	1	It has existed since 1579. It occupies the 3rd place in Russia in terms of area.
Voronezh	1	Laid down in 1586. From here begins the history of the Russian Navy.
Ufa	1,1	The capital of Bashkortostan. The most spacious city with a population of over one million (about 700 sq. m per inhabitant).
Rostov-on-Don	1,1	The first name of Azov (a fortress built by decree of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna in 1749)
Samara	1,16	Known since 1367. The Soviet name Kuibyshev - since 1941 was the reserve capital.
Kazan	1,2	Cultural capital of Muslims in Russia.
Nizhny Novgorod	1,3	It was built in 1221. The militia of Minin and Pozharsky was formed here. Now it is a large industrial center.
St. Petersburg	5,2	It has existed since 1703. The northern capital of Russia. From 1712 to 1918 it was the true capital. The northernmost city in the world with a population of over a million.
Moscow	12	Historical capital.

Ecological situation and specially protected natural areas

Cities located on the Russian Plain are mostly industrial centers. They emit heavy metal compounds, acid-containing substances into the atmosphere, and discharge untreated waste. This exacerbates the situation in the field of ecology.

More specifically, the main sources of environmental disaster are:

Cherepovets.
Dzerzhinsk.
Lipetsk.
Moscow.

If the first three are the largest industrial centers and their emissions are due to production factors, then the capital suffers an environmental catastrophe only from a huge number of cars. There are more than 5 million vehicles registered here alone.

In addition to damage to nature from industrial facilities, human intervention leads to the destruction of the flora and fauna of the Russian Plain. In order to preserve natural enclaves in their original state and restore habitats for wild animals, a number of specially protected objects are being created.

For example:

Reserves.
Bashkir.
Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky.
Volzhsko-Kamsky.
Zhigulevsky.
Crimean.
Mordovian.
Volga forest-steppe.
Rostov.
biosphere reserves.
Astrakhan.
Bryansk forest.
Voronezh.
Darwin.
Oksky.
Prioksko-Terrasny.
Central Forest.
Central Black Earth.
National parks.
Bashkiria.
Valdai.
Kalevalsky.
Curonian spit.
Moose Island.
Meshchersky.
Onega coast.
Pleshcheyevo Lake.
Smolensk Poozerie.

The largest plain of the continent was called Sarmatian, as European geography claimed, implying that it belongs to the eastern race. And this time the Europeans were right: the lion's share of the plain is occupied by Russia. And all its riches and attractions give a special color to life on these lands.

Article formatting: Lozinsky Oleg

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one of the largest plains on our planet (the second largest after the Amazonian plain in Western America). It is located in the eastern part of Europe. Since most of it is within the boundaries Russian Federation, The East European Plain is sometimes called Russian. In the northwestern part it is limited by the mountains of Scandinavia, in the southwestern part by the Sudetenland and other mountains of central Europe, in the southeastern part by the Caucasus, and in the east by the Urals. From the north, the Russian Plain is washed by the waters of the White and Barents Seas, and from the south by the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas.

The length of the plain from north to south is more than 2.5 thousand kilometers, and from west to east - 1 thousand kilometers. Almost the entire length of the East European Plain is dominated by a gently sloping plain relief. Most of the population of Russia and most of the country's large cities are concentrated within the territory of the East European Plain. It was here that many centuries ago formed Russian state which later became the largest country in the world. A significant part of Russia's natural resources is also concentrated here.

The East European Plain almost completely coincides with the East European Platform. This circumstance explains its flat relief, as well as the absence of significant natural phenomena associated with the movement of the earth's crust (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions). Small hilly areas within the East European Plain resulted from faults and other complex tectonic processes. The height of some hills and plateaus reaches 600-1000 meters. In ancient times, the Baltic Shield of the East European Platform was at the center of glaciation, as evidenced by some forms of glacial relief.

On the territory of the Russian Plain, platform deposits occur almost horizontally, making up lowlands and uplands that form the surface topography. Where the folded foundation protrudes to the surface, uplands and ridges are formed (for example, the Central Russian Upland and the Timan Ridge). On average, the height of the Russian Plain is about 170 meters above sea level. The lowest areas are on the Caspian coast (its level is about 30 meters below the level of the World Ocean).

Glaciation left its mark on the formation of the relief of the East European Plain. This effect was most pronounced in the northern part of the plain. As a result of the passage of the glacier through this territory, many lakes arose (Chudskoye, Pskovskoye, Beloe and others). These are the consequences of one of the most recent glaciers. In the southern, southeastern and eastern parts, which were subjected to glaciation in an earlier period, their consequences are smoothed out by erosion processes. As a result, a number of uplands (Smolensk-Moscow, Borisoglebskaya, Danilevskaya and others) and lacustrine-glacial lowlands (Caspian, Pechora) were formed.

Further south is a zone of uplands and lowlands, elongated in the meridional direction. Among the hills, one can note the Azov, Central Russian, Volga. Here they also alternate with the plains: Meshcherskaya, Oka-Donskaya, Ulyanovsk and others.

Further south are the coastal lowlands, which in ancient times were partially submerged under sea level. The plain relief here was partially corrected by water erosion and other processes, as a result of which the Black Sea and Caspian lowlands were formed.

As a result of the passage of the glacier through the territory of the East European Plain, valleys formed, tectonic depressions expanded, and even some rocks were polished. Another example of the impact of a glacier is the winding deep bays of the Kola Peninsula. With the retreat of the glacier, not only lakes were formed, but concave sandy lowlands also arose. This happened as a result of the deposition a large number sand material. Thus, over the course of many millennia, the many-sided relief of the East European Plain was formed.

Some of the rivers flowing through the territory of the East European Plain belong to the basins of two oceans: the Arctic (Northern Dvina, Pechora) and Atlantic (Neva, Western Dvina), while others flow into the Caspian Sea, which has no connection with the world ocean. The longest and most abundant river in Europe, the Volga, flows along the Russian Plain.

On the East European Plain, there are practically all types of natural zones available on the territory of Russia. Off the coast of the Barents Sea, tundra prevails in the subtropical zone. To the south, in the temperate zone, a strip of forests begins, which stretches from Polissya to the Urals. It includes both coniferous taiga and mixed forests, which gradually become deciduous in the west. To the south, the transition zone of the forest-steppe begins, and beyond it the steppe zone. On the territory of the Caspian lowland, a small strip of deserts and semi-deserts begins.

As mentioned above, on the territory of the Russian Plain there are no such natural phenomena as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Although some tremors (up to 3 points) are still possible, they cannot cause damage, and are recorded only by highly sensitive devices. The most dangerous natural phenomena that can occur on the territory of the Russian Plain are tornadoes and floods. The main environmental problem is the pollution of soil, rivers, lakes and the atmosphere by industrial waste, since many industrial enterprises are concentrated in this part of Russia.

According to the materials of the big encyclopedia of Russia

1. Determine the distinctive features of the geographical location of the European part of Russia. Rate it. Show on the map the main geographical features of the East European Plain - natural and economic; Largest cities.

The European part of Russia occupies the East European Plain. In the north, the East European Plain is washed by the cold waters of the Barents and White Seas, in the south - by the warm waters of the Black and Azov Seas, in the southeast - by the waters of the world's largest Caspian lake. The western borders of the East European Plain are bordered by the Baltic Sea and go beyond the borders of our country. The Ural Mountains limit the plain from the east, and the Caucasus - partially from the south.

Geographical features - Bolshezemelskaya tundra, Valdai upland, Donetsk ridge, Malozemelskaya tundra, Oka-Don plain, Volga upland, Caspian lowland, Northern Uvaly, Smolensk-Moscow upland, Central Russian upland, Stavropol upland, Timan ridge.

The rivers Akhtuba, Belaya, Volga, Volkhov, Vychegda, Vyatka, Dnieper, Don, Zap. Dvina, Kama, Klyazma, Kuban, Kuma, Mezen, Moscow, Neva, Oka, Pechora, Svir, Sev. Dvina, Sukhona, Terek, YugOzera, Baskunchak, White, Vygozero, Ilmen, Caspian Sea, Ladoga, Manych-Gudilo, Onega, Pskov, Seliger, Chudskoye, Elton.

Large cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Samara, Ufa, Perm, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don.

Ancient Russian cities: Veliky Novgorod (859), Smolensk (862), Yaroslavl (1010), Vladimir (1108), Bryansk (1146), Tula (1146), Kostroma (1152), Tver (XII century), Kaluga (1371 ), Sergiev Posad (XIV century), Arkhangelsk (1584), Voronezh (1586).

2. What do you think, what features unite the East European Plain with a huge variety of its landscapes?

The East European Plain is united by a single tectonic foundation (the Russian Platform), the flat nature of the surface, and the distribution of a temperate climate, transitional from maritime to continental, over most of the territory.

3. What is the originality of the Russian Plain as a territory most inhabited by people? How has its appearance changed as a result of the interaction of nature and people?

The main characteristic feature of the East European Plain is the well-defined zoning in the distribution of its landscapes. On the coast of the Barents Sea, occupied by cold, heavily waterlogged plains, a narrow strip is located in the tundra zone, which is replaced by forest-tundra to the south. Harsh natural conditions do not allow farming in these landscapes. This is a zone of developed reindeer breeding and hunting and trade economy. In the areas of mining, where settlements and even small towns arose, industrial landscapes became the predominant landscapes. The northern strip of the plain is the least transformed by human activity.

In the middle zone of the East European Plain, a thousand years ago, typical forest landscapes prevailed - dark coniferous taiga, mixed, and then broad-leaved oak and linden forests. In the vast expanses of the plain, forests have now been cut down and forest landscapes have turned into forest fields - a combination of forests and fields. The floodplains of many northern rivers are home to the best grazing and hayfields in Russia. Forest areas are often represented by secondary forests, in which coniferous and broad-leaved species have been replaced by small-leaved species - birch and aspen.

The south of the plain is a boundless expanse of forest-steppes and steppes that go beyond the horizon with the most fertile black earth soils and the most favorable for Agriculture climatic conditions. Here is the main agricultural zone of the country with the most transformed landscapes and the main fund of arable land in Russia.

4. What do you think, did the fact that it is the historical center of the Russian state play a special role in the economic development and development of the Russian Plain?

The role of the center of the Russian state definitely influenced the development and development of the Russian Plain. It is characterized by dense population, the greatest variety of types of economic activity, and a high degree of landscape transformation.

5. In the works of which Russian artists, composers, poets are the peculiarities of the nature of Central Russia especially clearly understood and conveyed? Give examples.

In literature - K. Paustovsky "Meshcherskaya side", Rylenkov's poem "Everything is in a melting haze", E. Grieg "Morning", Turgenev I.S. "Notes of a hunter", Aksakov S.T. "Childhood of Bagrov-grandson", Prishvin M.M. - many stories, Sholokhov M.M. - stories, "Quiet Don", Pushkin A.S. many works, Tyutchev F.I. "Evening", "Noon", "Spring Waters".

In music - to G. Ibsen's drama "Peer Gynt", K. Bobescu, "Forest" from the suite "Forest Fairy Tale", "Where the Motherland Begins" (music by V. Basner, lyrics by Matusovsky).

Artists - I. N. Kramskoy, I. E. Repin, V. I. Surikov, V. G. Perov, V. M. Vasnetsov, I. I. Levitan, I. I. Shishkin.

THE EAST EUROPEAN PLAIN, The Russian Plain, one of the largest plains in the world, within which are the European part of Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Moldova, as well as most of Ukraine, the western part of Poland and the eastern part of Kazakhstan. The length from west to east is about 2400 km, from north to south - 2500 km. The area is over 4 million km 2. In the north it is washed by the White and Barents Seas; in the west it borders on the Central European Plain (approximately along the valley of the Vistula River); in the southwest - with mountains Central Europe(Sudet and others) and the Carpathians; in the south it goes to the Black, Azov and Caspian seas, to the Crimean mountains and the Caucasus; in the southeast and east, it is bounded by the western foothills of the Urals and Mugodzhary. Some researchers include V.-E. R. the southern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula and Karelia, others refer this territory to Fennoscandia, the nature of which differs sharply from the nature of the plain.

Relief and geological structure

V.-E. R. geostructurally corresponds in general to the Russian plate of the ancient East European platform, in the south - northern part of the young Scythian platform, in the northeast - southern part of the young Barents-Pechora platform .

Complex relief V.-E. R. characterized by small fluctuations in altitude (average height is about 170 m). The highest heights are noted on the Podolsk (up to 471 m, Mount Kamula) and Bugulma-Belebeevskaya (up to 479 m) uplands, the lowest (about 27 m below sea level - the lowest point in Russia) is located on the Caspian lowland, on the coast of the Caspian Sea.

On V.-E. R. two geomorphological regions are distinguished: the northern moraine with glacial landforms and the southern extra-morainic with erosion landforms. The northern moraine region is characterized by lowlands and plains (Baltic, Upper Volga, Meshcherskaya, etc.), as well as small uplands (Vepsovskaya, Zhemaitskaya, Khaanya, etc.). To the east is the Timan Ridge. The far north is occupied by vast coastal lowlands (Pechora and others). There are also a number of large uplands - the tundra, among them - the Lovozero tundra, etc.

In the northwest, in the area of the Valdai glaciation, accumulative glacial relief prevails: hilly and ridge-moraine, depression with flat lacustrine-glacial and outwash plains. There are many swamps and lakes (Chudsko-Pskovskoye, Ilmen, Upper Volga lakes, Beloe, etc.), the so-called lake area. To the south and east, in the area of distribution of the more ancient Moscow glaciation, smoothed undulating secondary moraine plains, reworked by erosion, are characteristic; there are basins of lowered lakes. Moraine-erosion uplands and ridges (Belarusian Ridge, Smolensk-Moscow Upland, and others) alternate with moraine, outwash, lacustrine-glacial, and alluvial lowlands and plains (Mologo-Sheksninskaya, Upper Volga, and others). In some places, karst landforms are developed (the White Sea-Kuloi plateau, etc.). Ravines and gullies are more common, as well as river valleys with asymmetric slopes. Along the southern border of the Moscow glaciation, woodland (Polesskaya lowland, etc.) and opolye (Vladimirskoye, Yuryevskoye, etc.) are typical.

In the north, insular permafrost is widespread in the tundra, in the extreme northeast - continuous permafrost up to 500 m thick and with temperatures from -2 to -4 °C. To the south, in the forest-tundra, the thickness of permafrost decreases, its temperature rises to 0 °C. Permafrost degradation, thermal abrasion on sea coasts with destruction and retreat of coasts up to 3 m per year is noted.

For the southern extra-morainic region V.-E. R. characterized by large uplands with erosion ravine-gully relief (Volyn, Podolsk, Pridneprovsk, Azov, Central Russian, Volga, Ergeni, Bugulma-Belebeevskaya, General Syrt, etc.) and outwash, alluvial accumulative lowlands and plains belonging to the area of the Dnieper and Don glaciation (Pridneprovskaya, Oksko-Donskaya, etc.). Wide asymmetric terraced river valleys are characteristic. In the southwest (the Black Sea and Dnieper lowlands, the Volyn and Podolsk uplands, etc.) there are flat watersheds with shallow steppe depressions, the so-called "saucers", formed due to the widespread development of loess and loess-like loams. In the northeast (High Trans-Volga, General Syrt, etc.), where there are no loess-like deposits and bedrocks come to the surface, the watersheds are complicated by terraces, and the peaks are weathering remnants of bizarre shapes - shikhans. In the south and southeast, flat coastal accumulative lowlands are typical (Black Sea, Azov, Caspian).

Climate

Far North V.-E. The river, which is located in the subarctic zone, has a subarctic climate. Most of the plain, located in the temperate zone, is dominated by a temperate continental climate with the dominance of western air masses. As you move away from the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the continentality of the climate increases, it becomes more severe and dry, and in the southeast, in the Caspian Lowland, it becomes continental, with hot, dry summers and cold winters with little snow. The average January temperature ranges from -2 to -5 °C in the southwest and drops to -20 °C in the northeast. The average temperature in July increases from north to south from 6 to 23–24 °C and up to 25.5 °C in the southeast. The northern and central parts of the plain are characterized by excessive and sufficient moisture, the southern part - insufficient and meager, reaching arid. The most humid part of V.-E. R. (between 55–60°N) receives 700–800 mm of precipitation per year in the west and 600–700 mm in the east. Their number decreases to the north (up to 300–250 mm in the tundra) and to the south, but especially to the southeast (up to 200–150 mm in the semi-desert and desert). The maximum precipitation occurs in summer. In winter, snow cover (10–20 cm thick) lies from 60 days a year in the south to 220 days (60–70 cm thick) in the northeast. In the forest-steppe and steppe, frosts are frequent, droughts and dry winds are characteristic; in the semi-desert and desert - dust storms.

Inland waters

Most of the rivers V.-E. R. belongs to the basins of the Atlantic and North. Arctic Oceans. The Neva, Daugava (Western Dvina), Vistula, Neman, etc. flow into the Baltic Sea; the Dnieper, Dniester, Southern Bug carry their waters to the Black Sea; in the Sea of Azov - Don, Kuban, etc. The Pechora flows into the Barents Sea; to the White Sea - Mezen, Northern Dvina, Onega, etc. The Volga, the largest river in Europe, as well as the Urals, Emba, Bolshoi Uzen, Maly Uzen, etc. belong to the basin of internal flow, mainly the Caspian Sea. spring flood. In the southwest of the E.-E.r. rivers do not freeze every year; in the northeast, freeze-up lasts up to 8 months. The long-term runoff modulus decreases from 10–12 l/s per km2 in the north to 0.1 l/s per km2 or less in the southeast. The hydrographic network has undergone strong anthropogenic changes: a system of canals (Volga-Baltic, White Sea-Baltic, etc.) connects all the seas washing the East-E. R. The flow of many rivers, especially those flowing south, is regulated. Significant sections of the Volga, Kama, Dnieper, Dniester, and others have been transformed into cascades of large reservoirs (Rybinsk, Kuibyshev, Tsimlyansk, Kremenchug, Kakhovskoe, and others).

There are numerous lakes of various genesis: glacial-tectonic - Ladoga (area with islands 18.3 thousand km 2) and Onega (area 9.7 thousand km 2) - the largest in Europe; morainic - Chudsko-Pskovskoye, Ilmen, Beloe, etc., estuaries (Chizhinsky floods, etc.), karst (Okonskoye Zherlo in Polissya, etc.), thermokarst in the north and suffusion in the south of V.-E. R. Salt tectonics played a role in the formation of salt lakes (Baskunchak, Elton, Aralsor, Inder), since some of them arose during the destruction of salt domes.

natural landscapes

V.-E. R. - a classic example of a territory with a clearly defined latitudinal and sublatitudinal zonality of natural landscapes. Almost the entire plain is located in the temperate geographical zone, and only the northern part is in the subarctic zone. In the north, where permafrost is common, small areas with expansion to the east are occupied by the tundra zone: typical moss-lichen, grass-moss-shrub (lingonberry, blueberry, crowberry, etc.) and southern shrub (dwarf birch, willow) on tundra- gley and bog soils, as well as on dwarf illuvial-humus podzols (on sands). These are landscapes that are uncomfortable for living and have a low ability to recover. To the south, a forest-tundra zone with undersized birch and spruce woodlands stretches in a narrow strip, in the east - with larch. This is a pasture zone with technogenic and field landscapes around rare cities. About 50% of the territory of the plain is occupied by forests. Zone of dark coniferous (mainly spruce, and in the east - with the participation of fir and larch) European taiga, swampy in places (from 6% in the southern to 9.5% in the northern taiga), on gley-podzolic (in the northern taiga), podzolic soils and the podzols are expanding towards the east. To the south there is a subzone of mixed coniferous-broad-leaved (oak, spruce, pine) forests on soddy-podzolic soils, which extends most widely in the western part. Pine forests on podzols are developed along the river valleys. In the west, from the coast of the Baltic Sea to the foothills of the Carpathians, a subzone of broad-leaved (oak, linden, ash, maple, hornbeam) forests stretches on gray forest soils; forests wedged out to the Volga valley and have an insular distribution in the east. The subzone is represented by forest-field-meadow natural landscapes with a forest cover of only 28%. Primary forests are often replaced by secondary birch and aspen forests, which occupy 50–70% of the forest area. The natural landscapes of opal areas are peculiar - with plowed flat areas, the remains of oak forests and a ravine-beam network along the slopes, as well as woodlands - swampy lowlands with pine forests. From the northern part of Moldova to the Southern Urals, a forest-steppe zone stretches with oak forests (mostly cut down) on gray forest soils and rich forb-cereal meadow steppes (some sections are preserved in reserves) on black soil, which make up the main fund of arable land. The share of arable land in the forest-steppe zone is up to 80%. Southern part of V.-E. R. (except the southeast) is occupied by forb-feather grass steppes on ordinary chernozems, which are replaced to the south by dry fescue-feather grass steppes on dark chestnut soils. Most of the Caspian lowland is dominated by grass-wormwood semi-deserts on light chestnut and brown desert-steppe soils and sagebrush-saltwort deserts on brown soils in combination with solonetzes and solonchaks.

Ecological situation

V.-E. R. has been mastered for a long time and significantly changed by man. Many natural landscapes are dominated by natural-anthropogenic complexes, especially in the steppe, forest-steppe, mixed and broad-leaved forests (up to 75%). Territory V.-E. R. highly urbanized. The most densely populated areas (up to 100 people/km 2) are the zones of mixed and broad-leaved forests of the Central region of V.-E. r., where territories with a relatively satisfactory or favorable ecological situation occupy only 15% of the area. Particularly tense environmental situation in large cities and industrial centers (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Cherepovets, Lipetsk, Voronezh, etc.). In Moscow, emissions into the atmospheric air amounted (2014) to 996.8 thousand tons, or 19.3% of the emissions of the entire Central Federal District (5169.7 thousand tons), in the Moscow Region - 966.8 thousand tons (18. 7%); in the Lipetsk region, emissions from stationary sources reached 330 thousand tons (21.2% of the district's emissions). In Moscow, 93.2% are emissions from road transport, of which carbon monoxide accounts for 80.7%. The largest amount of emissions from stationary sources was noted in the Komi Republic (707.0 thousand tons). The share of residents (up to 3%) living in cities with high and very high levels of pollution is decreasing (2014). In 2013, Moscow, Dzerzhinsk, Ivanovo were excluded from the priority list of the most polluted cities of the Russian Federation. Foci of pollution are typical for large industrial centers, especially for Dzerzhinsk, Vorkuta, Nizhny Novgorod, etc. Oil products contaminated (2014) soils in the city of Arzamas (2565 and 6730 mg / kg) of the Nizhny Novgorod region, in the city of Chapaevsk (1488 and 18034 mg /kg) Samara region, in the regions of Nizhny Novgorod (1282 and 14,000 mg/kg), Samara (1007 and 1815 mg/kg) and other cities. Spills of oil and oil products as a result of accidents at oil and gas production facilities and main pipeline transport lead to a change in soil properties - an increase in pH to 7.7–8.2, salinization and the formation of technogenic solonchaks, and the appearance of microelement anomalies. In agricultural areas, soils are contaminated with pesticides, including banned DDT.

Numerous rivers, lakes, and reservoirs are heavily polluted (2014), especially in the center and south of East-East. r., including the rivers Moscow, Pakhra, Klyazma, Myshega (Aleksin), Volga, etc., mainly within the cities and downstream. Fresh water intake (2014) in the Central Federal District amounted to 10,583.62 million m3; the volume of household water consumption is the largest in the Moscow region (76.56 m 3 / person) and in Moscow (69.27 m 3 / person), the discharge of polluted wastewater is also maximum in these subjects - 1121.91 million m 3 and 862 .86 million m 3, respectively. The share of polluted wastewater in the total volume of discharges is 40–80%. The discharge of polluted waters in St. Petersburg reached 1054.14 million m 3 or 91.5% of the total volume of discharges. There is a shortage of fresh water, especially in the southern regions of V.-E. R. The problem of waste disposal is acute. In 2014, 150.3 million tons of waste was collected in the Belgorod Region - the largest in the Central Federal District, as well as disposed waste - 107.511 million tons. Leningrad region over 630 quarries with an area of more than 1 hectare. Large quarries remain in the Lipetsk and Kursk regions. The main areas of logging and timber processing industry are located in the taiga, which are powerful pollutants of the natural environment. There are clear cuttings and over-cutting, littering of forests. The proportion of small-leaved species is growing, including in the place of former arable lands and hay meadows, as well as spruce forests, which are less resistant to pests and windfalls. The number of fires has increased, in 2010 more than 500 thousand hectares of land burned. Secondary swamping of territories is noted. The number and biodiversity of the animal world is declining, including as a result of poaching. In 2014, 228 ungulates were poached in the Central Federal District alone.

For agricultural lands, especially in the southern regions, soil degradation processes are typical. The annual washout of soils in the steppe and forest-steppe is up to 6 t/ha, in some places 30 t/ha; the average annual loss of humus in soils is 0.5–1 t/ha. Up to 50–60% of the lands are prone to erosion, the density of the ravine network reaches 1–2.0 km/km2. The processes of siltation and eutrophication of water bodies are growing, and the shallowing of small rivers continues. Secondary salinization and flooding of soils is noted.

Specially protected natural areas

Numerous nature reserves, national parks and reserves have been created to study and protect typical and rare natural landscapes. In the European part of Russia there are (2016) 32 reserves and 23 national parks, including 10 biosphere reserves (Voronezh, Prioksko-Terrasny, Central Forest, etc.). Among the oldest reserves: Astrakhan Nature Reserve(1919), Askania-Nova (1921, Ukraine), Bialowieza Forest(1939, Belarus). Among the largest reserves is the Nenets Reserve (313.4 thousand km 2), and among the national parks - Vodlozersky national park(4683.4 km 2). Plots of indigenous taiga "Virgin forests of Komi" and Bialowieza Forest- in the list world heritage. There are many nature reserves: federal (Tarusa, Kamennaya steppe, Mshinsky swamp) and regional ones, as well as natural monuments (Irgiz floodplain, Rachey taiga, etc.). Natural parks have been created (Gagarinsky, Eltonsky, etc.). The share of protected areas in different subjects varies from 15.2% in the Tver region to 2.3% in the Rostov region.