Karelian Isthmus
The Karelian Isthmus (Russian: Карельский перешеек, romanized: Karelsky peresheyek; Finnish: Karjalankannas; Swedish: Karelska näset) is the approximately 45–110-kilometre-wide (30–70 mi) stretch of land situated between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga in northwestern Russia, to the north of the River Neva.[1] Its northwestern boundary is a line from the Bay of Vyborg to the westernmost point of Lake Ladoga, Pekonlahti. If the Karelian Isthmus is defined as the entire territory of present-day Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast to the north of the Neva and also a tiny part of the Republic of Karelia, the area of the isthmus is about 15,000 km2 (5,800 sq mi).
For the Amorphis album, see The Karelian Isthmus. For other meanings of the name "Karelia", see Karelia (disambiguation).
The smaller part of the isthmus to the southeast of the old Russia-Finland border is considered historically as Northern Ingria, rather than part of the Karelian Isthmus itself. The rest of the isthmus was historically a part of Finnish Karelia. This was conquered by the Russian Empire during the Great Northern War in 1712 and included within the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland (1809–1917) of the Russian Empire. When Finland became independent in 1917, the isthmus (except for the territory roughly corresponding to present-day Vsevolozhsky District and some districts of Saint Petersburg) remained Finnish. Finnish Karelia was partly ceded to the Soviet Union by Finland following the Winter War (1939–1940) and Continuation War (1941–1944). In 1940–1941, during the Interim Peace, most of the ceded territories in the isthmus were included within the Karelo-Finnish SSR. However, since World War II the entire isthmus has been divided between the city of Saint Petersburg (mostly Kurortny District), as well as Priozersky District, Vsevolozhsky District and Vyborgsky District of Leningrad Oblast.
According to the 2002 census, the population of the Kurortny District of Saint Petersburg and the parts of Leningrad Oblast situated on the Karelian Isthmus amounts to 539,000. Many Saint Petersburg residents also decamp to the Isthmus during their vacations. The main population centers of the Isthmus are Vyborg (Выборг; Finnish: Viipuri; Swedish: Viborg), Priozersk (Приозе́рск; Finnish: Käkisalmi; Swedish: Kexholm) and Primorsk (Примо́рск; Finnish: Koivisto; Swedish: Björkö).[2][3]
The western part of the Karelian Isthmus is an important transport corridor linking Scandinavia and Central Russia. Primorsk, terminus of the Baltic Pipeline System, which has recently become one of the most efficient Russian sea ports, is also located here.
The only motorway on the isthmus is the recently completed E18 "Scandinavia" (M10) going from Saint Petersburg through Vyborg and Vaalimaa.
Saimaa Canal (opened in 1856) is an important link connecting inland waterways of Finland with the Gulf of Finland.
The Karelian Isthmus is served by a number of railways; the trains arrive from Finlyandsky Rail Terminal and Ladozhsky Rail Terminal of Saint Petersburg:
Also on the Karelian isthmus are all lines of the St. Petersburg metro.
Industry[edit]
The pulp-and-paper, timber and woodworking industries (JSC Svetogorsk, pulp and paper mill in Svetogorsk, Vyborgsky Pulp and Paper Mill in Vyborg, Priozersky Furniture and Woodworking Industrial Complex and Priozersky Woodworking Factory in Priozersk, as well as other smaller enterprises all over the isthmus) are well developed in Vyborgsky and Priozersky Districts. The pulp and paper industry, however, affects the environment adversely. The predecessor of the Priozersk facilities, Priozersky Pulp and Paper Mill, a major polluter of Lake Ladoga constructed in 1931, was closed down in 1986. Northern and western parts of the isthmus are also an important reserve of granite (quarries in Kuznechnoye, as well as a number of others along the Vyborg-Hiitola railroad).[20]
Vyborg Shipyard is one of the largest shipbuilding companies in Northwestern Russia. Roskar Battery Farm in Pervomayskoye is a leading producer of chicken and eggs.
In Vsevolozhsky District state-owned Morozov Plant is located, which is an important producer of paints, adhesives, abrasives and other substances. In Kuzmolovsky, Vsevolozhsky District, near the station Kapitolovo of the Saint Petersburg–Hiitola railroad, a facility of the Saint Petersburg nuclear enterprise Izotop is located, which specializes in transportation of nuclear materials and radioactive waste. Bogs of Vsevolozhsky District along the shores of Lake Ladoga and the Neva River were major sources of peat for fuel. Now it is extracted in smaller quantities, mostly for agricultural purposes. The district is also an important supplier of sand. A plant of Ford Motor Company producing Ford Focus cars was opened in Vsevolozhsk in 2002.
Military[edit]
The Karelian Isthmus is included within Leningrad Military District of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The isthmus hosts airfields in Levashovo, Pribylovo and Gromovo. Other airfields in Veshchevo and Kasimovo (Vartemyagi) have been abandoned. In the northern part of Vsevolozhsky District, to the south of the old Finnish border, Karelian Fortified Region (KaUR) is located, which was reconstructed as late as in the 1960s, but now seems to be abandoned as well. There is Bobochinsky tank range (195.975 km², founded in 1913) between Kamenka and Kirillovskoye and a number of military facilities in Vsevolozhsky District in the lowlands between Lake Ladoga and Saint Petersburg-Hiitola railroad, including Rzhevsky artillery range (founded in 1879), a huge area, 740 km2 (286 sq mi), encircled by the Road of Life, the roads Rzhevka – Novoye Devyatkino and Novoye Devyatkino – Matoksa and the coast of Lake Ladoga (available to visitors since 2003). In 2006 a Voronezh early warning radar was built in Lekhtusi, Vsevolozhsky District. The port of Vysotsk is a base of the Baltic Fleet. 138th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade is located in Kamenka, and in the 56th District Training Centre in Sertolovo.
Population[edit]
The population of the Karelian isthmus today is slightly less than 3.1 million inhabitants. Of these, about 2.4 million live in St. Petersburg and a little less than 700 thousand in the Leningrad region. The population is growing solely due to migration, as the mortality rate is much higher than the birth rate, but the migration attractiveness of St. Petersburg and the surrounding areas of the Leningrad region is very high. Thus, about 40% of the population of St. Petersburg and about 30% of the population of the Leningrad region live on the Karelian isthmus. There is strong growth in population in all the districts of the Karelian isthmus in addition to the Vyborg district and Priozersk district .