Yenisei River
Published by It’s length incorporates the Angara and Selenga Rivers, making Yenisei River the fifth longest river in the World.
The Yenisei River is the 5th longest river in the world and is located on the Asian Continent mainly flowing through and splitting Siberia in Russia. It is 3,445 feet long and originates in Mongolia and ends flowing into the Kara Sea and Arctic Ocean. One of its main feeder rivers is the Angara which originates at Lake Baikal, a lake so deep that it contains more water than all 5 Great Lakes combined.
The upper reaches of the Yenisei River are mountainous with rocky shores and sometimes large rapids. The river then forms a wide valley that divides the West Siberian lowland from the Central Siberian plateau.
The Yenisei provides a great deal of energy to Russia from the many Hydroelectric power stations that have been built along its course.
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Some of the dams were built by Gulag labor when the Soviets ruled Russia. Gold Mining, logging, oil drilling and refining, transportation of timber, grain, and coal all take place and are powered in and around the Yenisei River and its drain basin.
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The Yenisei River is navigable to ships for most of its course but the river does freeze up for almost half of each year. Chief ports along the Yenisei include Dudinka, Igarka, and Krasnoyarsk.
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The main tributaries of the Yenisei are the Angara River, the Podkamennaya Tunguska River and the Nizhnyana Tunguska River.
The Yenisei River basin area was first settled in modern times Ancient nomadic by the Cossacks and fur traders in the early 17th century. In ancient times nomadic tribes such as the Ket people and the Yugh people lived along its banks and some Ket people do still survive in the area though one can imagine the harsh treatment they have received through the years from the Russians and especially the Soviets.
Today the Yenisei River basin is being widely used for oil drilling and exploration as well as precious metals mining and exploration. As the area continues to open up to these types of activities the battle between environmentalists and industry continues to grow larger every year.
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