The Volga (Russian: Волга, Tatar Cyrillic: Идел, Latin: Idel) is the
largest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. It
flows through the western part of Russia, and is widely viewed as the
national river of Russia. In fact, eleven out of the twenty largest
cities of Russia, including its capital Moscow, are situated in the
Volga basin. Some of the largest reservoirs in the world can be found
along the Volga.
The Volga belongs to the closed basin of the Caspian Sea. Rising in the
Valdai Hills 225 meters (738.2 ft) above sea level north-west of Moscow
and about 320 kilometers (199 mi) south-east of Saint Petersburg, the
Volga heads east past Lake Sterzh, Tver, Dubna, Rybinsk, Yaroslavl,
Nizhny Novgorod, and Kazan. From there it turns south, flows past
Ulyanovsk, Tolyatti, Samara, Saratov and Volgograd, and discharges into
the Caspian Sea below Astrakhan at 28 meters (91.9 ft) below sea level.
At its most strategic point, it bends toward the Don ("the big bend").
Volgograd, formerly Stalingrad, is located there.
The Volga has many tributaries, most importantly the Kama, the Oka, the
Vetluga, and the Sura rivers. The Volga and its tributaries form the
Volga river system, which drains an area of about 1.35 million square
kilometres in the most heavily populated part of Russia. The Volga Delta
has a length of about 160 kilometres and includes as many as 500
channels and smaller rivers. The largest estuary in Europe, it is the
only place in Russia where pelicans, flamingoes, and lotuses may be
found. The Volga freezes for most of its length during three months of
each year.
The Volga drains most of Western Russia. Its many large reservoirs
provide irrigation and hydroelectric power. The Moscow Canal, the
Volga-Don Canal, and the Volga-Baltic Waterway form navigable waterways
connecting Moscow to the White Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Caspian Sea, the
Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. High levels of chemical pollution
currently give cause for environmental concern.
The fertile river valley provides large quantities of wheat, and also
has many mineral riches. A substantial petroleum industry centres on the
Volga valley. Other minerals include natural gas, salt, and potash. The
Volga Delta and the nearby Caspian Sea offer superb fishing grounds.
Astrakhan, at the delta, is the centre of the caviar industry.
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