The nature did not deprive the vast territory of the Russian Federation of water resources. The state owns significant reserves of fresh water. And, if you do not take into account the rest of the reservoirs, only more than 130 thousand rivers with a length of 10 km or more have been recorded. The Irtysh River is the most powerful Siberian stream, whose waters are rapidly rushing from the south to the north, it is second only to the Lena River in its length.
Pearl of Siberia
Even in ancient times, this turbulent river attracted to its banks the tribes of the Scythians, the ancestors of the Hungarians and Bulgarians. The Turkic peoples, noticing the wayward nature of the beauty, called her Irtysh, which means "shrew". And the river fully justified its name, repeatedly changing its course and destroying the banks, which for the most part consist of loose soil rocks. As a result of this long process, the Irtysh Mountains were formed, reaching a height of 30-40 meters.
The Irtysh occupies one of the places of honor among the full-flowing rivers of the planet and at the same time, of course, is in the lead as the longest tributary. Interesting,that, flowing into the Ob River, the Irtysh at the same time exceeds its length (4,248 km). Their meeting itself presents a rather interesting picture: it is the Ob that approaches the Irtysh and takes the direction of its flow. Hence there is a lot of controversy, which of them is more important. Together they form a single water system with a length of 5,410 km, the second in Asia after the Yangtze River.
Geographical characteristics of the Irtysh
The main tributary of the Ob flows through three large states - China, Kazakhstan and Russia. Its long and thorny path originates in the glaciers of the Mongolian Altai mountain system, between China and Mongolia. On the eastern slope of the ridge, located in Dzungaria, is the source of the Irtysh River. The river passes through the territory of China for about 525 km and, under the name Black Irtysh, enters Kazakhstan, in the flowing lake Zaisan. In this place, it is greatly enhanced, fed by the waters of other tributaries.
On the territory of Kazakhstan, the full-flowing Siberian beauty is blocked by a number of dams, which only testifies to its power and potential. Here the length of the Irtysh River is 1,835 km. In the north-west of the state, where the borders with the Omsk region pass, it already appears as a flat river and continues on its way, rushing further and further north. Then, having overcome the taiga regions and passing 2,010 km, the river reunites with the Ob to flow together to the Arctic Ocean.
Irtysh river basin
The Siberian pearl pool is characterized by a largevariety of physical and geographical conditions. Its river area is 1,643 thousand km2, which exceeds the area of the Volga basin and allows it to compete with such world rivers as the Mississippi, Amazon and Nile. The upper part of the Irtysh river basin is located in the Altai mountains and has a fairly developed river network. But a significant part of it falls on the steppe and forest-steppe zones, and only in the lower reaches the river passes into the forest belt. On the Russian territory of the basin (44%), the river runs in a wide valley, in places up to 35 km.
The climate of the Irtysh basin is mainly characterized by long winters and relatively warm summers. The river is fed in its mountainous part mainly by melt water, and on the plain - by snow supply, but at the same time, groundwater plays a significant role. Excessive moisture and the peculiarity of the river relief determines the spread of endorheic lakes and increased waterlogging in some places.
Tributaries
The Irtysh River is very rich in tributaries: more than 120 large and small rivers flow into it. There are a little more than 20 of the most significant of them: these are Kurchum, Kalzhir, Bukhtarma, Narym, Ulba, Usolka, Kamyshlovka, Ishim, Vagai, Tobol, Konda and others. It should be noted that the main part of the tributaries falls on the upper and lower reaches of the Irtysh. In the middle course, the river is very scarce in tributaries; steppe rivulets cannot reach it in any way (either dry up on their way, or flow into lakes). The only exception is the Usolka River in the Pavlodar region, which is fed by groundwater. In addition, waterThe Irtysh is fed by two more channels: in Kazakhstan - the Irtysh-Karaganda and in China - the Irtysh-Karamay.
With so many tributaries, one would expect a river to be quite full, but that is not the case at all. In China, water is diverted from the Irtysh, which already significantly affects the water level in the river. Dams with hydroelectric power stations have also been built: Bukhtarma, Shulbinskaya, Ust-Kamenogorsk and others.
Economic use of water body
The Irtysh River is a major transport artery in western Siberia, which connects the far regions of the north with the south of Russia. Its waterways are of great national economic importance for the Sverdlovsk, Tyumen, Omsk regions and the entire East Kazakhstan. They pass through territories with a very rare network of railways and roads, which is explained by difficult climatic conditions and large swamps. And, along with this, the river basin has significant natural resources: timber, metals, building materials, fuel. Construction work is underway for the industrial development of new deposits. Also, agriculture is actively conducted and developed in the lands adjacent to the river. All this determines the growing role of the Irtysh in the economic development of the regions.
Flora and fauna
The valley of the Irtysh River is rich in floodplain, forb and cereal meadows, forests, hayfields. There are many trees and shrubs, medicinal and wild herbs. For many kilometers there are dense forests of deciduous and coniferous trees. Alder, pine grows,birch, juniper, viburnum, mountain ash, bird cherry and much more.
The generous pool of the Irtysh attracts tourists and fishermen from everywhere. A wide variety of fish does not leave anyone indifferent, providing a very interesting fishing. Here lives: sturgeon, sterlet, rotan, ruff, bream, nelma, carp, whitefish, pike perch, roach, perch, burbot and others. It should be noted that fish species such as trout, silver carp, ripus were bred artificially. Unfortunately, in recent years, the fish population in the river has declined quite dramatically. The main reasons include developed poaching and severe pollution of the Irtysh.
Environmental Issues
Recently, the position of the Irtysh River in Russia, and not only, is estimated by environmentalists not just as very polluted, but as close to an ecological disaster. S alts of heavy metals, chemicals, oil products, nitrates, and pesticides regularly enter its waters. The location of cattle burial grounds near the river basin and the discharge of sewage from livestock farms are noted. A high level of microbiological contamination was recorded, which leads to mass death of fish. Pollution of the Irtysh significantly exceeds all permissible norms and indicators.
The main sources of pollution of the river are: the petrochemical industry, housing and communal services, electricity, agriculture. Experts predict that climate change will be one of the possible consequences of the environmental disaster on the Irtysh.
Interesting facts
- In ancient timesthe valley of the Irtysh river reached 200 km, today it is 35 km.
- Paradoxically, the Irtysh is still one of the cleanest and least mineralized rivers on the planet.
- There are many ancient mounds in the river valley, during the excavation of which gold and precious items are found.
- The bed of the Irtysh often changes its course, its width sometimes reaches 700 meters, in the northern regions it reaches 1000 meters.
- From the source to the mouth of the Irtysh there are 12 large cities.
- The name of the river in the upper reaches - the Black Irtysh - was given not in the meaning of color, but in the meaning of the earth - the river starts from a spring.
