Yauza River - Geography

Geography

The contemporary Yauza consists of three parts:

The Upper Yauza flows from the marshes of Losiny Ostrov . The lakes surrounding the river were formed in the 20th century on abandoned peat-mining sites. A 1995 study identified twelve beaver colonies in the upper Yauza basin; large portions became a typical "beaver landscape".
After the river enters the city of Mytischi, it flows through a chain of narrow valleys into Sokolniki Park deep inside Moscow. The Yauza Valleys, zoned specially-protected natural territories, are managed by city authorities as public parks.
Past Sokolniki, the Yauza enters a heavily-industrialized area; below Glebovsky Bridge it flows in a man-made channel shaped by granite embankments, with heavy traffic on both sides.

The Yauza collects waters from many tributaries, most of them confined to underground sewers. The few that remain on the surface, at least partially, are (north to south):

Western (right bank) tributaries Eastern (left bank) tributaries
  • Sukromka
  • Chermyanka (12 km, )
  • Likhoborka (16 km, )
  • Kamenka (7 km, )
  • Putyaev and Oleny brooks in Sokolniki Park
  • Ichka (12 km,
  • Budayka (4.4 km,
  • Khapilovka (all confined to sewer, ) with tributaries Serebryanka (12 km) and Sosenka (9 km) running naturally through Izmailovo Park. This is the largest subsystem of the Yausa basin, with its own drainage basin of 75 square kilometers.

The flow of the Yauza is regulated (particularly in winter) and reinforced with water from the Volga River that reaches the city through the Moscow Canal. 80 million cubic meters of Volga water is sourced each year from the Khimki Reservoir in northwest Moscow and fed through underground pipes and an open channel to Golovinsky Ponds and the Likhoborka River (a tributary of the Yauza). The water level in the lower Yauza is regulated by the Pererva Dam on the Moskva River, and by the locks on the Yauza itself east of Kursky Rail Terminal. Raised water levels in the downtown portion of the Yauza basin led to long-term flooding and death of trees deep inside Losiny Ostrov.

Within the city of Moscow the Yauza is spanned by 21 road bridges, five railroad bridges, one dedicated tram bridge, two Moscow Metro bridges, numerous pedestrian bridges and the historical Rostokino Aqueduct. Spring floods due to low clearance under old bridges were common, with four in the 1950s alone (1951, 1952, 1955 and 1957); they were practically eliminated when these bridges were rebuilt to modern standards. The most recent flash flood on the Yauza occurred August 14, 2003, following a record-setting rainfall. The Yauza and its valleys are not particularly prone to the landslides and erosion common in the western and southern districts of Moscow. There were two minor landslides on the Yauza in 2008, compared with 40 on the Chertanovka River and 33 on the Gorodnya River.

There is no commercial or recreational shipping, although the river is accessible to small motor boats as far as Preobrazhenskaya Square .

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