GEOGRAPHY
Location:
Northern Asia (that part west of the Urals is sometimes included
with Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the
North Pacific Ocean
Geographic coordinates: 60
00 N, 100 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area:
total: 17,075,200 sq km
land: 16,995,800 sq km
water: 79,400 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly
less than 1.8 times the size of the US
Land boundaries:
total: 19,917 km
border countries: Azerbaijan 284 km, Belarus 959 km, China
(southeast) 3,605 km, China (south) 40 km, Estonia 294 km, Finland
1,313 km, Georgia 723 km, Kazakhstan 6,846 km, North Korea 19
km, Latvia 217 km, Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast) 227 km, Mongolia
3,441 km, Norway 167 km, Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast) 206 km, Ukraine
1,576 km
Coastline: 37,653 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: ranges from steppes
in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia;
subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters
vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers
vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast
Terrain: broad plain with
low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in
Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Gora El'brus 5,633 m
Natural resources: wide natural
resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal,
and many strategic minerals, timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance
hinder exploitation of natural resources
Land use:
arable land: 8%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 4%
forests and woodland: 46%
other: 42% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 40,000 sq
km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: permafrost
over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic
activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the
Kamchatka Peninsula
Environment - current issues:
air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric
plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal,
and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and sea coasts;
deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper
application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes
intense radioactive contamination; ground water contamination
from toxic waste
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides,
Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography
- note: largest country in the world in terms of area but
unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world;
despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates
(either too cold or too dry) for agriculture
