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Read the text and say what new facts about Buryatia have you learnt.
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Buryatia
Read the text and say what new facts about Buryatia have you learnt.
Buryatia occupies a great territory of Eastern Siberia to the east of lake Baikal. It is not hard to find Buryatia on the map. The northwestern borderline runs along the shore of lake Baikal. Buryatia envelopes lake Baikal from south and east like a giant sickle. It also borders on Tuva and Mongolia, the Chita and the Irkutsk regions. The area of Buryatia is 350 000 sq. km and the population is one million people.
The fantastic ice-found area seems to have been mixed together and entangles in local nature. The fertile valleys of rivers border on areas affected by constant droughts. The impenetrable mountain rangers intermingle with steppes and the taiga which abounds in wild life. The main mountains of Buryatia are the Barguzin and the Hamar-Daban mountain ranges. But the most famous are the Sayans with its highest peak Munku-Sardyk (349 meters).
Taiga occupies about 60% of the whole territory of Buryatia. It’s a thick coniferous forest. It is rich in nuts, berries, mushrooms. It’s also rich in fur-bearing animals such as sable, mink, hair, bear, fox and wolf.
The rivers of Buryatia are of no great value as waterways. The longest of them are the Selenga, the Uda, the Barguzin and others. All of them flow into Baikal and only the Selenga, which is a major tributary of lake Baikal, is navigable in summer and early autumn. The greatest part of the year the rivers are frozen. There is also a great number of small mountains, rivulets running into Baikal with extremely cold and crystal-pure water. The slopes of the hills are covered with ever green coniferous forests. The Selenga and the Uda split into a multitude of channels and form a multitude of picturesque green islands.
The climate of Buryatia is of an extreme continental kind. The heat of the short summer gives way to the polar cold of the winter when frosts reach –35-40°C.
Buryatia is rich in mineral resources. The most important resources are ore, coal, asbestos, gold and graphite. The main coal mining centre of Buryatia is Gusinoozersk. Zakamensk has the richest deposits of tungsten in Byryatia. The Dzhida enterprise supplies many metallurgical works of the country with its products.
The Republic industry produces aircraft, river going vessels, powerful truck cranes, electric motors, precision instruments, automation means, building materials, glass, cement, ferroconcrete items.
Traditional husbandry of Buryatia is cattle breeding and poultry.
I. Give Russian equivalents of the following:
1. to run along the shore
2. to border on
3. to occupy a great territory
4. constant droughts
5. the highest peak
6. crystal-pure water
7. picturesque green islands
8. mineral resources
9. metallurgical works
10. ferroconcrete items
11. to be rich in something
II. What’s the English for:
1. гигантский серп
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2. плодородные долины рек
3. горные цепи
4. не имеют большой ценности
5. навигационный
6. хвойные леса
7. пушные звери
8. резко континентальный
9. богатейшие запасы
10. речные суда
11. животноводство
III. Match two parts of the sentences in 2 columns:
1. The population of Buryatia a) runs along the shore of lake Baikal.
2. The northwestern borderline b) is one million people.
3. Traditional husbandry of Buryatia c) are of no great value as waterways.
4. The climate of Buryatia is d) with ever green coniferous forests.
5. The fertile valleys of rivers border e) the rivers are frozen.
6. The slopes of the hills are covered f) of an extreme continental kind
7. The rivers of Buryatia g) is cattle breeding and poultry.
8. The greatest part of the year h) on areas affected by constant droughts.
IV. Finish the following sentences using appropriate words and word combinations:
1. Buryatia is … in Eastern Siberia.
2. Lake Baikal is the … in the world.
3. Buryatia … on Mongolia in the south.
4. The … of Buryatia is 350 000 sq. km.
5. The … of Buryatia is about one million people.
6. The … peak of the Sayans is Munku-Sardyk.
7. The Selenga is the only … river.
8. Taiga is rich in … animals such as bear, hair, wolf and fox.
9. The most important … of Buryatia are coal, gold, asbestos and graphite.
10. The climate of Buryatia is of an … kind.
V. Answer the following questions:
1. Where is Buryatia situated?
2. What does Buryatia border on?
3. What is the population of Buryatia?
4. What kinds of relief are there in Buryatia?
5. What are the most important mountains of Buryatia?
6. What is the highest peak of the Sayans?
7. What is taiga?
8. What is taiga rich in?
9. Are there many rivers in Buryatia?
10. Is the climate in Buryatia extreme continental?
11. What mineral resources is Buryatia rich in?
12. What do the industries of Buryatia produce?
VI. Look through the first passage again and describe geographical position of Buryatia. Don’t forget to use the following words and phrases: to occupy, a great territory, Eastern Siberia, to the east of, a borderline, to run along, lake Baikal, to envelope, to borders, an area.
VII. Look through the fourth passage of the text once again and say what you have learnt about rivers of Buryatia. Don’t forget to use the following words and phrases: to be of no great value, waterways, the longest, to flow into, tributary, to be navigable, to be frozen, rivulets, to run into, extremely cold, crystal-pure, channels.
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