Arkhangelsk Oblast - Geography and Ecology

Geography and Ecology

Arkhangelsk Oblast, which includes Nenets Autonomous Okrug, borders Kirov Oblast, Vologda Oblast, the Republic of Karelia, the Komi Republic, and the White, Pechora, Barents and Kara seas. Cape Fligely in Franz Josef Land (the northernmost point of Russia, Europe and Eurasia) and Cape Zhelaniya in Novaya Zemlya (the easternmost point of Europe) are both located within Arkhangelsk Oblast.

Arkhangelsk Oblast is located on the East European Plain, and most of it represents forested hilly landscape. The north-eastern part belongs to the Timan Ridge, a highland mostly situated east from the oblast. The Nenets Autonomous Okrug is essentially a flat tundra (Bolshezemelskaya Tundra) with several hill chains like Pay-Hoy. The Arctic islands including Novaya Zemlya and Franz Joseph Land are mountainous with glaciers and eternally snow-covered. This region has a genetically distinct population of polar bears associated with the Barents Sea area.

Almost all of the area of the Oblast belongs to the basin of the Arctic Ocean, with the major rivers being (west to east) Onega River, Northern Dvina River (with the major tributaries the Vychegda, the Vaga, and the Pinega), Kuloy River, Mezen River, and Pechora River (with the tributary of the Shapkina River). A minor area in the west of the Oblast, most notably the basin of the Ileksa River, drains into the Lake Onega and eventually to the Baltic Sea. A very minor area in Kargopolsky District in the south-west of the Oblast drains into the Kema River which belongs to the basin of the Caspian Sea. The area in the Onega River basin containing the biggest lakes in the oblast, such as Lake Lacha, Lake Kenozero, Lake Undozero, and Lake Kozhozero. The tundra of the Nenets Autonomous Okrug also contains a number of bigger lakes. The river basin of the Pinega is characteristic of the karst, with a number of caves in the region.

The White Sea coast within the Oblast is split into the Onega Bay (where the Onega is the major tributary), the Dvina Bay (the Northern Dvina), and the Mezen Bay (the Mezen and the Kuloy). Solovetsky Islands, as well as a number of smaller islands, are located in the Onega Bay. The Onega Bay and the Dvina Bay are separated by the Onega Peninsula. The Mezen Bay is separated from the main body of the White Sea by Morzhovets Island.

Almost all of the oblast is covered by taiga, the coniferous forest dominated by pine, spruce, and larch. Large areas in the middle of taiga are devoid of trees and covered by swamps. In the floodplains of the rivers, there are meadows.

A number of areas in Arkhangelsk Oblast have been designated as protected natural areas. These are subdivided into national parks, nature reserves (zapovedniks), and zakazniks of the federal level. The following protected areas have been designated,

• Kenozyorsky National Park;
• Russkaya Arktika National Park (which included previously established Franz Joseph Land Zakaznik);
• Vodlozersky National Park (shared with the Republic of Karelia);
• Pinezhsky Nature Reserve;
• Siysky Zakaznik.

Kenozersky and Vodlozersky National Parks have the status of UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. In addition, there are two protected areas in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, adjacent to each other, Nenetsky Nature Reserve and Nenetsky Zakaznik. It was planned that one more national park, Onezhskoye Pomorye National Park, would be opened at the coast of the Onega Peninsula to protect pristine forests, however, the creation of the park was delayed and is not currently on the agenda.