Known in Russia as Mother Volga, the Volga is Europe's longest river. It flows to the Caspian Sea, but it is connected through systems of canals, lakes and rivers to arms of the Arctic Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Mediterranean Sea.

Physical features

The Volga's southward journey of 2,325 miles (3,740 kilometers) begins in the Valdai Hills northwest of Moscow and ends at the Caspian Sea. The course consists of three parts—the Upper Volga, the Middle Volga, and the Lower Volga. The Upper Volga becomes the Middle Volga at its meeting with the Oka River east of Moscow. Farther east the Middle Volga meets the Kama River, the largest of the Volga's tributaries. The Lower Volga flows south from this point.

The Volga flows slowly. The mouth of the river is only about 840 feet (260 meters) lower than the source. This means that the river drops at an average rate of only about 4 ¹/₂ inches per mile (6.5 centimeters per kilometer).

The Volga's basin covers about two fifths of the European part of Russia. Almost half of the country's population lives in the basin. Winters are generally cold there. Some 60 percent of the Volga's water consists of melted snow, while 30 percent is spring water and only 10 percent is rainwater. Even close to its mouth, the Volga is free from ice only about 260 days per year.

Economy

The Volga is important to Russia's economy. Boats on the river system carry more than half of the county's inland freight. Construction materials, including timber, account for most of the freight on the river. Other cargo consists of petroleum and petroleum products, coal, grain, fish, vegetables, salt, watermelons, farm machinery, automobiles, and fertilizers. Boats also carry many passengers along the Volga. Eleven major ports are located on the river.

Systems of canals, reservoirs, and lakes now connect the Volga to other seas besides the Caspian. The Volga-Don Ship Canal links the Lower Volga to the Don River, which flows into the Sea of Azov and from there to the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. The Upper Volga is joined to the Baltic Sea by the Volga-Baltic Waterway. Linked to this waterway is the White Sea–Baltic Canal, which runs to the White Sea, an inlet of the Arctic Ocean. The Volga is connected to the Moscow River by the Moscow Canal. The river is thus linked with virtually the entire waterway system of eastern Europe.

Environmental issues

Many dams and reservoirs have been built in an attempt to regulate the waters of the Volga River system and to encourage the economic development of the region. As a result, the region's ecology has been harmed. The habitat of the nearly 70 kinds of fish native to the river has been altered. Pollution caused by industrial waste and by runoff from farms has killed fish. Water loss due to evaporation, reservoirs, and use of water to irrigate crops has greatly reduced the Volga's flow into the Caspian Sea. The water level in the sea has dropped as a result. However, efforts are being made to reduce these damaging effects.