What is the development of the Russian Far East?

Economic and social development in the Far East

The Far East (hereinafter referred to as the Far East) is the largest economic zone in Russia, with an area of 6215900 square kilometers, accounting for 36.4% of the total area of Russia. The Far East consists of 10 federal entities, namely: Primorsky Krai, Khabarovsk Krai, Jewish Autonomous Prefecture, Amur State, Sakhalin State, Magadan State, Kamchatka State, Korjak State, Chukchi Autonomous Region and Sakha Republic. These 10 federal entities are not only located in the same economic zone geographically, but also have maintained a long-term cooperative relationship in economy, and even face the same social problems. They have economic and historical ties with the neighboring post-Baikal region of Eastern Siberia, and they form the Association for Trans-regional Economic Cooperation of the Far East and Post-Baikal Federal Entities. The board of directors and office of the Association are located in Khabarovsk, the capital of Khabarovsk Krai in the Far East, and the Chief Executive of the Frontier Region, Ishayev, is the chairman of the Association. After Putin became president, he divided Russia into seven federal districts and sent presidential representatives to each federal district to strengthen the relationship between the federal central government and local governments. Many economic zones were merged into a federal zone, while the Far East Economic Zone was divided into a separate federal zone. To some extent, this shows the position of the Far East in the Russian Federation and the importance attached by the federal central government to it.

I. Natural conditions and resources in the Far East

The Far East is located in the northeast of Eurasia, bordering the East Siberian Economic Zone in the west, the Pacific Ocean in the east, Alaska and Japan across the sea, the Arctic Ocean in the north and China and North Korea in the south. It is 3900 kilometers long from north to south and 2500-3000 kilometers long from east to west. The vast territory makes the natural conditions vary greatly from place to place.

The Far East is a mountainous area with an average elevation of 1000-2000m. Some high mountains are distributed in the northeast of Saha and Kirzak autonomous regions, with a height of 2,250-3,000 meters. The Far East is the only region in Russia with volcanoes. There are as many as 20 volcanoes, most of which are 3,300-3,600 meters above sea level, among which the KeLiu Qie volcano (4,750 meters above sea level) erupted in 1.972- 1.974. There are many volcanoes and hot springs in kamchatka peninsula, and geothermal and mineral water resources are abundant. It is a famous convalescent and tourist resort.

The area of the Far East Plain accounts for nearly 1/4 of the total area, mainly distributed in the south of amur river (Heilongjiang) basin and along the coast of Xingkai Lake, as well as in the middle of Saha and the west bank of Lena River and its tributary Viliuyi River. The plain is the zone with the best living and production conditions in the Far East, which concentrates the main population and production potential in the Far East.

The climate in the Far East is different. The northern region goes deep into the Arctic Circle, and the climate is characterized by the cold zone. Winter is long, cold and dry. In June+10/October, 5438, the temperature reached -38-50℃, and Oymyakon in Saha recorded -70℃, which was called "cold pole". In such cold weather, people feel difficult to breathe, metal brittleness increases, rubber hardens, lubricating oil solidifies, mechanical properties are reduced, and airplanes rarely take off in danger. Summer here is cool and short. The temperature in July is only 1 1- 15℃, the annual precipitation is 140-290 mm, and the plant growth period is only 50- 100 days. Plants near the ground will soon blossom and bear fruit. Nature presents a desolate scene. The southern part of the Far East has a mild climate and abundant rainfall. Winter temperature-10-2 1℃, summer 15-2 1℃, precipitation 530- 1050 mm, plant growth period 125-200 days. Siberia can be planted here.

There are many rivers in the Far East, including amur river and Lena River, ranking first and second in Russian length. Amur river is the border river between China and Russia, and China is called Heilongjiang, with a total length of 4,440 kilometers and flowing into the Pacific Ocean. There are 99 kinds of fish in this river, 20 of which are endemic to the region.

Species have great economic value. Amur river and its tributaries contain huge hydraulic resources, which can be used to build cascade hydropower stations with a total power of 20 million kilowatts. At present, the Jieya Hydropower Station with 1.290 MW has been built on the Jieya River, a tributary of the left bank, and the brea Hydropower Station is being built on the brea River, another tributary. The Lena River, which flows into the Arctic Ocean, has a total length of 4,400 kilometers and is rich in water, and its flow is twice that of the Volga River. The upstream hydraulic resources are rich, but they have not been developed and utilized. A hydropower station with an annual output of 2 billion kWh was built on its tributary, the Viliuyi River. Other long rivers are Colimma River (2600km), Anadel River (1145km) and aulick Mahe River (1436km). In the absence of roads and railways in the Far East, these rivers play a particularly prominent role in transportation. However, due to the long freezing period and the navigation period of only 6-7 months, the traffic volume is not large. Affected by the Pacific monsoon, the rainy season in southern China is concentrated, which often causes rivers to flood. Therefore, dams and other flood control facilities must be built to protect farmland and villages.

Far East coastline 17700 km (including island coastline), accounting for 29% of the total length of Russian coastline. The ocean occupies a special position in the economy of the Far East. It is estimated that there are 26 million tons of fish in 200 nautical miles of the Russian Pacific Ocean, of which cod is 6,543,800 tons.

Three million tons of herring. In addition, there are 2.5 million tons of non-fish marine crystals, including shrimp, crab, conch and sea cucumber. The annual catch of seafood can reach 4.5 million tons. There are also many kinds of marine fur animals, such as sea dogs and seals, inhabiting the coastal areas and islands in the northern far east.

The forest coverage rate in the Far East is 45%, and the total forest area is 280.6 million hectares, accounting for 3 1. 1% of the total forest area in Russia, ranking first in all economic zones. The amount of timber is 20.4 billion cubic meters, second only to the East Siberian Economic Zone, accounting for 26% of the total timber in Russia. The ratio of mature forest to over-mature forest is 45.9%, and the stock volume is nearly10 billion cubic meters, which provides conditions for large-scale logging. Larch is the main tree species in the Far East, with an area of 6.5438+66.7 million hectares, accounting for 60.9% of the total forest area. Followed by birch, covering an area of 20.7 million hectares, accounting for 6.7 years; Spruce and fir are next, accounting for 6.5438+0.5 million hectares, accounting for 5.5%; Other tree species include oak (3,654.38 million hectares), linden (800,000 hectares) and Fraxinus mandshurica (400,000 hectares). There are 3 million hectares of precious tree species and ornamental tree species, including 400,000 hectares of Korean pine forest that has been banned from logging since 199 1. In addition, there are 47.8 million hectares of shrubs.

There are also a large number of non-wood resources in the forests of the Far East, including 1000 kinds of medicinal plants, 350 kinds of wild vegetables, 400 kinds of edible fungi and 400 kinds of honey plants that can provide pollen and raise peaks. Every year, 485,300 tons of pine nuts and hazelnuts, 654,38 tons of berries, 500,000 tons of mushrooms and 250,000 tons of medicinal materials can be collected. In addition, there are more than 40 kinds of precious fur animals and other wild animals, which provide good conditions for the development of forest product collection, beekeeping and wild animal breeding.

In recent years, forest fires have frequently occurred in the southern part of the Far East, and the burned forest land area has reached millions of hectares. Many woodlands can't be cut down in time within three to five years after being burned, which leads to the loss of wood and the spread of forest diseases and insect pests.

The Far East is also extremely rich in underground resources, and there are more than 70 kinds of minerals with discovered and proven reserves. There is the largest diamond mine in the world in the west of Saha, which concentrates 84. 1% of Russia's diamond resources. The content of diamond in primary ore is 0.4g per ton.

The content of sand sediment is per cubic meter 1.8 carat. The Far East is an important gold producing area in Russia. Gold deposits are mainly distributed in Saha (accounting for 44% of the whole Far East), Magadan (accounting for 17%), kamchatka peninsula (accounting for 16%), Khabarovsk border area (accounting for 14%) and Afghanistan.

Moore State (8%). The grade of gold ore is: primary ore 4.5-5.5g/ ton, placer gold 0.7- 10g/m3.

Far East silver reserves are in a leading position in Russia. Although no pure silver ore has been found, silver has been found in more than 50 other ore producing areas. The proven silver reserves are: Magadan 57%, Khabarovsk Krai 24%, Sakha Republic 9%, Primorsky Krai 9%, Kamchatka 8% and Amur only 2%.

The Far East is the largest tin mine producing area in Russia, which concentrates 95% of the tin mine resources in Russia, and there are 183 mines that can be exploited for industry. 85% of tin resources occur in primary ore and 15% in alluvial deposit. Saha * * * and China have the most abundant tin resources, accounting for 44% of the reserves in the Far East; Followed by Khabarovsk Krai and Magadan, each accounting for 21%; Coastal border areas reappeared, accounting for 14%. Tungsten resources in the Far East account for 24% of Russia's total reserves. There are 55 tungsten mines and tungsten-bearing mines that can be exploited industrially, including 26 primary mines and 29 alluvial mines. Tungsten is mainly distributed in Primorsky Krai (accounting for 40% of the reserves in the Far East), Sakha (37%) and Magadan.

State (14%) and Khabarovsk border area. There are 30 lead-zinc mines in the Far East. 8 1% lead ore and 79% zinc ore are concentrated in coastal border areas. Other reserves are distributed in the border areas of Khabarovsk and polymetallic mines in Magadan.

The reserves of titanium ore in the Far East are huge, but like the reserves of aluminum ore, they have not been proved. Facts have proved that the quality of titanium ore here is good, not inferior to the best titanium ore in the United States and Canada. Titanium resources are mainly distributed in the border areas of Amur and Khabarovsk. The reserves of alunite, the raw material for aluminum smelting, are mainly distributed in the lower reaches of amur river in Khabarovsk border area.

The proven iron ore reserves in the Far East are 4.4 billion tons, accounting for 8%- 10% of Russia's total reserves, of which 79% are distributed in the south of Sakha, 16% in Utah Autonomous Prefecture and 5% in Amur Prefecture. It is worth mentioning that there is still manganese needed for steelmaking in the border area between the Republic of Sakha and Khabarovsk, with a huge reserve of 6.4 million tons; Other auxiliary raw materials are also complete, which provides superior conditions for establishing a strong ferrous metallurgical base.

All administrative regions in the Far East have coal resources. There are nearly 100 proven coalfields, with coal reserves of 29.8 billion tons, accounting for 40% of all Russian reserves. Saha is the largest coal-producing area in the Far East, where 47% of the proven reserves are concentrated. South Yakutia coalfield is the largest coalfield in eastern Russia.

As an important coking coal field, the mined coking coal is an important export material in the Far East.

Oil and gas resources in the Far East are mainly distributed in Sakhalin Island and sakhalin island oil and gas basins. The exploration of Saha oil and gas field has been initially completed, but large-scale industrial exploitation has not yet been carried out. Sakhalin Island is rich in oil and gas reserves, and the oil fields on Sakhalin Island have been industrially exploited for a long time. Crude oil is transported to Qingcheng, Amur Prefecture for refining and processing through cross-sea oil pipelines. The oil and natural gas resources on the continental shelf around the island attract foreign investors to invest and exploit by concession. At present, some oil wells have started industrial oil production.

Other metal deposits in the Far East are also rich. Among them, antimony accounts for 88% of Russia's total reserves and mercury accounts for 63%. There are all kinds of nonmetallic deposits. Among them, boron accounts for 90% of all Russian reserves, fluorite accounts for 4 1%, and natural sulfur and apatite account for 8%- 10%. There are also abundant clouds.

Mother, the raw material for producing cement and various building stones. It is well-deserved that the Far East is called the treasure house of natural resources.

Second, population and nationality.

The Far East is vast in territory and rich in natural resources, but sparsely populated. At present, there are only more than 7.2 million people, accounting for 5.4% of Russia's total population. It is the least populated economic zone in Russia. The population density in the Far East is only 1. 1 person per square kilometer. The population distribution is extremely unbalanced. Primorsky Krai, with the highest population density, has an average of 12. 1 person per square kilometer, while Saha, Magadan and Kamchatka, with poor natural conditions, have an average of only 0.3 to 0.8 people per square kilometer. The population of the Far East is highly urbanized. 78% of the population lives in cities and towns. According to the statistics of 1 99665438+1October1,there are 68 cities in the Far East, of which 49 are small cities with a population below 50,000, 9 are medium-sized cities with a population of 50,000-65,438+million, and 8 are cities with a population of 654.38+million-500,000.

There are 4.4 million people living in these cities, including 6.5438+0.2372 million residents in Khabarovsk and Vladivostok. There are 269 towns in the Far East with a population of 6.5438+300,000.

There are about 3,000 villages in the Far East with a population of about 6,543.8+0.8 million (654.38+0.997), with an average of 600 people in each village. However, 30% of the residents in rural areas are not agricultural population. They are employees of nearby industrial and mining enterprises, stations, road maintenance and post and telecommunications systems, and their homes are in the countryside.

Obviously, such a small agricultural population restricts the development of agriculture in the Far East. Compared with other regions, the history of population development in the Far East is unique. The Far East is the latest developed area in Russia. 1897 When the population was counted, the population of the Far East was only 367,000. After the October Revolution, the Soviet government accelerated the development of the Far East and accelerated immigration there. At the same time, during Stalin's purge, thousands of cleansed people were put into labor camps there. Jews, Tatars and other ethnic minorities were forcibly moved to the Far East, and the current Jewish Autonomous Prefecture is the designated residential area for Jews who were driven to the Far East that year. In this case, the population of the Far East is growing rapidly. During the two censuses of 1926- 1939, the Russian population soared by 89.3%, while the Russian population only increased by 16.9% in the same period. From 1940 to 1958, the population of the Far East increased by 62.4%, while the population of Russia only increased by 8.4% in the same period. After the mid-1960s, the Soviet Union accelerated the development of the Far East, especially the construction of the North Arab Railway in the 1970s. The Soviet government sent a large number of young people there and built many new stations and settlements along the railway, which made the population quality in the Far East reach the best state.

Before the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the population of the Far East was about 8.06 million. 199 1 year witnessed the first negative population growth in the history of the far east, with a decline rate of 0.3%, while that of Russia as a whole decreased by 0. 1%. Since then, the population of the Far East has continued to decline, and the rate of decline has exceeded the national level of Russia by about 1 percentage point. By the beginning of 1998, the population of the Far East was 7.336 million, a decrease of nearly 730,000 in seven years. The reason for the continuous decline of population should be attributed to the serious economic crisis in the transitional period.

Before the reform, the Far East was a national key financial support area. Although the conditions in the Far East are difficult, the wages are high, and there are many policies such as regional subsidies and preferential housing, medical care and vacations. Due to state subsidies, the price is basically the same as that of Europe and Russia. In this case, the living standard of residents in the Far East is even higher than that in some areas in the west of the country, so it is very attractive to the labor force, and a large number of people move to the Far East from other areas every year. After the reform, most of the preferential treatment for the Far East under the planned economy system was cancelled. After losing the financial support of the state, the Far East, which was involved in the market economy, became the region with the highest price and the greatest decline in residents' living standards. The continuous decline in production and the underemployment or even closure of a large number of enterprises, mainly defense industrial enterprises, have led to a large number of unemployed people and forced many people to make a living in other areas. 1992- 1995 When the economic crisis deepened, the annual net outflow of population exceeded100000, and 1992 and 1994 were both close to150000. The decline of residents' living standard and medical security level leads to the decline of birth rate and the increase of death rate. Since 1993, the number of deaths in the Far East has exceeded the number of births, with 1993 being 17600 and 1994 being 20800, and thereafter it is about 1500 every year. The average life expectancy of the population in the Far East has been shortened, and the physical quality has declined. This grim population situation has aroused great concern from the Far East authorities and the federal government. Population decline is not only detrimental to the future economic recovery and development of the Far East, but also adversely affects national security.

In this case, the government of the Russian Federation issued an order in July 1995, ordering the relevant departments to formulate development plans to stabilize the population of the Far East, carry out structural reforms and integrate into the world economy through the Asia-Pacific region. Promulgated in 1996, this plan is a special plan for the economic development of the Federal Far East and post-Baikal region from 1996 to 2005, and approved by President Yeltsin.