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Kamchatka Krai ( rus, Камча́тский край, r=Kamchatsky kray, p=kɐmˈtɕatskʲɪj kraj) is a federal subject of
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
(a krai), situated in the
Russian Far East The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admin ...
, and is administratively part of the Far Eastern Federal District. Its
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
and largest
city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
is Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, home to over half of its population of 322,079 (
2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
). Kamchatka Krai was formed on July 1, 2007, as a result of the merger of Kamchatka Oblast and Koryak Autonomous Okrug, based on the voting in a
referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...
on the issue on October 23, 2005. The okrug retains the status of a special administrative division of the krai, under the name of Koryak Okrug. The
Kamchatka Peninsula The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and w ...
forms the majority of the krai's territory, separating the
Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk ( rus, Охо́тское мо́ре, Ohótskoye móre ; ja, オホーツク海, Ohōtsuku-kai) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It is located between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands ...
and the
Bering Sea The Bering Sea (, ; rus, Бе́рингово мо́ре, r=Béringovo móre) is a marginal sea of the Northern Pacific Ocean. It forms, along with the Bering Strait, the divide between the two largest landmasses on Earth: Eurasia and The Am ...
in the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...
. The remainder is formed by a minor northern mainland portion,
Karaginsky Island Karaginsky Island or Karaginskiy Island (russian: Карагинский остров) is an island in the Karaginsky Gulf of the Bering Sea. The -wide strait between the Kamchatka Peninsula and this island is called Litke Strait. Karaginsky Islan ...
, and the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea. It is bordered by
Magadan Oblast Magadan Oblast ( rus, Магаданская область, r=Magadanskaya oblast, p=məgɐˈdanskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is geographically located in the Far East region of the country, and is admini ...
to the west and
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug Chukotka (russian: Чуко́тка), officially the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug,, ''Čukotkakèn avtonomnykèn okrug'', is the easternmost federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia. It is an autonomous okrug situated in the Russian ...
to the north. Kamchatka Krai is an active
volcanic A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plat ...
zone that is home to Kluchevskaya, the highest active volcano in
Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelag ...
, and the
Decade Volcanoes The Decade Volcanoes are 16 volcanoes identified by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior (IAVCEI) as being worthy of particular study in light of their history of large, destructive eruptions and p ...
of
Avachinsky Avachinsky (also known as Avacha or Avacha Volcano or Avachinskaya Sopka) (russian: Авачинская сопка, Авача) is an active stratovolcano in Russia. It is situated on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. Avachinsky ...
and
Koryaksky Koryaksky or Koryakskaya Sopka (russian: Коря́кская со́пка) is an active volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. It lies within sight of Kamchatka Krai's administrative center, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Tog ...
.


Geography

Kamchatka Krai occupies the territory of the
Kamchatka Peninsula The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and w ...
, the adjacent part of the mainland, the island Karaginsky and the Commander Islands. It is bounded to the east by the
Bering Sea The Bering Sea (, ; rus, Бе́рингово мо́ре, r=Béringovo móre) is a marginal sea of the Northern Pacific Ocean. It forms, along with the Bering Strait, the divide between the two largest landmasses on Earth: Eurasia and The Am ...
of the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...
(a coastline of more than ) and to the west by the Okhotsk Sea (a coastline of approximately ). Mountain ranges: Sredinny Range (about long), Eastern Range (about long), and the
Koryak Mountains The Koryak Mountains or Koryak Highlands () are an area of mountain ranges in Far-Eastern Siberia, Russia, located in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and in Kamchatka Krai, with a small part in Magadan Oblast. The highest point in the system is the Mou ...
, with the Ukelayat Range, Vetvey Range, Penzhinsky, Pahachinsky, Pylgin, and Olyutor ranges. Heights: Khuvkhoitun (), Ledyanaya (), Acute (), Shishel (), Tylele volcano (). The longest rivers are the Vyvenka, Penzhina, Talovka, Lakhacha, Apuka, Kamchatka, and
Ukelayat The Ukelayat (russian: Укэлаят; Koryak: Вуквылгаят) is a river in Kamchatka Krai, Russia. The length of the river is and the area of is drainage basin . The name of the river comes from the Koryak ''"vukvylgayat"'' ''(Вук ...
. The largest freshwater lakes are Kronotskoye, Talovskoye, and Palanskoye. Peninsulas:
Olyutor Peninsula Olyutor Peninsula (russian: Олюторский полуостров) is a peninsula in Kamchatka Krai, Russian Federation. The nearest town is Tilichiki, Olyutorsky District.Google Earth The peninsula is named after the Olyutor people, the anci ...
, Gavena Peninsula, Ilpinsky Peninsula, Ozernoy Peninsula, Kamchatskiy Peninsula, , and the Yelistratova Peninsula. Islands (NW-NE going clockwise): Verkhoturov Island,
Karaginsky Island Karaginsky Island or Karaginskiy Island (russian: Карагинский остров) is an island in the Karaginsky Gulf of the Bering Sea. The -wide strait between the Kamchatka Peninsula and this island is called Litke Strait. Karaginsky Islan ...
, the Commander Islands, Ptichy Island (Kamchatka Krai), Konus Island, Zubchaty Island, Rovny Island, Dobrzhanskogo Island, Vtoroy Island, Krayniy Island and
Trety Island Trety Island or Treti Island (Остров Третий; ''Ostrov Trety'', literally: The Third Island) is a relatively large island in the western shores of the Shelikhov Bay, at the northern end of the Sea of Okhotsk. It is located 4 km to ...
. Despite their proximity, the
Kuril Islands The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese language, Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakh ...
are not part of Kamchatka Krai, falling instead under Sakhalin Oblast. Kamchatka belongs to the zone of volcanic activity, there are about 300 large and medium-sized volcanoes, 29 of them are active. The largest volcano in Eurasia – Kluchevskaya (altitude ). With the volcanic activity associated with the formation of many minerals and a manifestation of hydro geothermal activity: education fumaroles, geysers, hot springs, etc. Despite Kamchatka lying at similar latitudes to
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, it is mostly
subarctic The subarctic zone is a region in the Northern Hemisphere immediately south of the true Arctic, north of humid continental regions and covering much of Alaska, Canada, Iceland, the north of Scandinavia, Siberia, and the Cairngorms. Genera ...
, more continental in the hinterland, and more
maritime Maritime may refer to: Geography * Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps * Maritime Region, a region in Togo * Maritime Southeast Asia * The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Pri ...
and prone to monsoons on the coast.


Nature

Most of the peninsula is covered with forests of stone birch, while alder and cedar elfin are commonly found at higher altitudes. In central areas, especially in the Kamchatka River valley, widespread forests of larch and
spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfam ...
can be found. In floodplains, forests grow with fragrant poplar, alder, Chosenia, and Sakhalin willow. In the second tier, undergrowth such as the common hawthorn, Asian cherry, Kamchatka rowan, and shrubs growing Kamchatka elderberries, Kamchatka honeysuckle, meadowsweet, willow shrubs, and many other species. More than 14.5% of the territory of the Kamchatka Territory is specially protected. There are six protected areas of federal significance (three-state reserves, one federal reserve "South Kamchatka," two spa areas – "Resort Paratunka," "Malkinskie mineral waters"); four natural parks of regional significance ("Nalychevo," "Bystrinsky," "South Kamchatka," "Kluchevskoy"); 22 reserves of regional importance; 116 monuments of nature; four protected areas (landscape natural park "Blue Lake," Southwest and Tundra Sobolewski reserves).
Kronotsky Nature Reserve Kronotsky (Кроноцкий) Nature Reserve (also: ''Kronotsky Biosphere Zapovednik'') is a Russian ' zapovednik' (strict nature reserve) reserved for the study of natural sciences in the remote Russian Far East, on the coast of the Kamchatka Pen ...
is a nature area reserved for the study of natural sciences in the remote
Russian Far East The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admin ...
, on the coast of the
Kamchatka Peninsula The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and w ...
.Encyclopædia Britannica (2009
Nature Reserve''
Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved March 12, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online
It was created in 1934 and its current boundary contains an area of . It also has Russia's only
geyser A geyser (, ) is a spring characterized by an intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by steam. As a fairly rare phenomenon, the formation of geysers is due to particular hydrogeological conditions that exist only i ...
basin, plus several mountain ranges with numerous
volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates ...
es, both active and extinct. Due to its often harsh climate and its mix of volcanoes and geysers, it is frequently described as the "Land of Fire and Ice".Quammen, David (2009
Fragile Russian Wilderness: The Kronotsky Nature Reserve Is Best Appreciated From Afar
,
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widel ...
, p.62, January 2009, Vol. 215, No.1
It is mainly accessible only to scientists, plus approximately 3,000 tourists annually who pay a fee equivalent to US$700 to travel by helicopter for a single day's visit. Kronotsky Nature Reserve has been proclaimed a
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
by
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
.


Climate


Legislative Assembly

The legislative assembly was formed in 2007 after the merger of Kamchatka Oblast and Koryak Autonomous Okrug. It therefore replaced the Council of People's Deputies of Kamchatka Oblast (1997-2007) and the Duma of Koryak Autonomous Okrug (1994-2007). The Chairman of the Legislative Assembly of Kamchatka Krai is the presiding officer of that
legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...
:


Administrative divisions


Economy

The main industries in Kamchatka include
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...
and
forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...
.
Coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...
and other raw materials are extracted. Due to its geographical location near major shipping routes, it is a center for
shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to bef ...
, ship repair, and related services. There are also oil and mineral resources which are yet to be fully developed. The largest companies in the region include Kamchatskenergo (power distribution company with revenues of $ million in 2017), Oceanrybflot (fishing company, $ million), Morskoy Trast ($ million), Amethystvoye Mining and Processing Combine (gold mine, part of
Renova Group Renova may refer to: Cities, towns, townships etc. * Renova, Mississippi *Renova: an unincorporated settlement in Dexter Township, Minnesota Brand names * Renova (brand), a Portuguese paper products company * Trade name of tretinoin Treti ...
, $ million).


Demographics

Population: * Births (2008 Jan–Nov): 3,673 (11.55 per 1000) * Deaths (2008 Jan–Nov): 3,554 (11.17 per 1000)


Vital statistics for 2007

Source: * Births: 3,931 (11.32 per 1000, 11.36 for urban areas & 11.20 for rural areas). * Deaths: 3,863 (11.13 per 1000, 10.49 for urban areas & 13.63 for rural areas). * Natural Growth Rate: +0.02% per year (+0.09% for urban areas & -0.24% for rural areas). After nearly two decades, Kamchatka recorded a net natural population growth instead of decline in 2007. However, in first half of 2008, the trend was reversed and population decline was observed again, partly due to an increased mortality rate among the rural population.


Vital statistics for 2012

* Births: 4 158 (13.0 per 1000) * Deaths: 3 691 (11.5 per 1000) Total fertility rate:
2009 – 1.58 , 2010 – 1.51 , 2011 – 1.61 , 2012 – 1.73 , 2013 – 1.77 , 2014 – 1.85 , 2015 – 1.89 , 2016 – 1.90(e)


Ethnic composition

There were 108 recognized ethnic groups in the krai as of 2010. Indigenous peoples of the North made up only 5% of the total population. *
Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 '' Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...
– 85.9% *
Ukrainians Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Ort ...
– 3.9% * Koryaks – 2.3% *
Itelmens The Itelmens (Itelmen: Итәнмән, russian: Ительмены) are an indigenous ethnic group of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia. The Itelmen language is distantly related to Chukchi and Koryak, forming the Chukotko-Kamchatkan langua ...
– 0.8% *
Tatars The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary
is an umbrella term for different Turki ...
– 0.8% *
Belarusians , native_name_lang = be , pop = 9.5–10 million , image = , caption = , popplace = 7.99 million , region1 = , pop1 = 600,000–768,000 , region2 = , pop2 ...
– 0.6% * Evens – 0.6% * Kamchadals – 0.5% * Chukchi – 0.5% *
Koreans Koreans ( South Korean: , , North Korean: , ; see names of Korea) are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. Koreans mainly live in the two Korean nation states: North Korea and South Korea (collectively and simply r ...
– 0.5% * Others – 3.6% * 28,084 people were registered from administrative databases, and could not declare an ethnicity. It is estimated that the proportion of ethnicities in this group is the same as that of the declared group.


Religion

According to a 2012 survey, 31.2% of the population of Kamchatka adhere to the
Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...
, 4.4% are unaffiliated
Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ� ...
, 0.8% are Orthodox Christians who do not belong to the Russian Orthodox Church. 2% of the population adhere to the Slavic native faith or Siberian shamanism, 1.2% to
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...
, 0.6% to forms of
Protestantism Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
, and 0.4% to
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
. In addition, 22.8% of the population declare themselves to be spiritual but not religious, 21% are
atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
, and 14.8% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question.


See also

* List of Chairmen of the Legislative Assembly of Kamchatka Krai


References


Notes


Sources

* * * {{Use mdy dates, date=June 2015 Far Eastern Federal District Russian Far East Pacific Coast of Russia Krais of Russia States and territories established in 2007 2007 establishments in Russia Russian-speaking countries and territories Road-inaccessible communities of Russia