A GEOGRAPHICAL APPRAISAL OF THE USSR NEW LANDS PROGRAM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 129
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 17, 2001
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: February 1, 1956
• Content Type: IR

Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
BEST COPY.
Available
THROUGHOUT
FOLDER
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 CONFIDENT!
roved For Release 2001/08/08 : C1A--RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Copy No. 14.2
GEOGRAPHIC INTELLIGENCE REPORT
A GEOGRAPHIC APPRAISAL OF
THE USSR NEW LANDS PROGRAM
CIA/RR-G-13
February 1956
DOCUMENT NO. '
NO CHANGE IN CLASS. [3
D DECL.A&SWIED
CLASS. CHANGED TO: TS S)
NEXT 1EVEW DAT~
AUTH: H 70-2_ .
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND REPORTS
CONFIDENTIAL
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
WARNING
This material contains information affecting
the National Defense of the United States
within the meaning of the espionage laws,
Title 18, USC, Sees. 793 and 794, the trans-
mission or revelation of which in any manner
to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 t 7 018A000200020001-0
L-"
GEOGRAPHIC INTELLIGENCE REPORT
A GEOGRAPHIC APPRAISAL OF THE USSR NEW LANDS PROGRAM
CIA/RR-G-13
Office of Research and Reports
Approved For Release 20 61/0 CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 :ryCIA- DP 9 T01D18A000200020001-0
CONTENTS
Page
Summary . . . 1
I. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
II. Physical Capabilities . . . . . 6
A. Land Potential in Relation to Agricultural
Expansion Possibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2. Soils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
a. Agricultural Potential. . . . . . . . . . . 9
b. Distribution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
(1) The Northern Belt. . . . . . . . . . . 14
(2) The Middle Chernozem Belt. . . . . . . 15
(3) The Southern Dark Chestnut Belt. . . . 15
3. Water Resources . . . . . ? . 16
B. Climate as a Controlling Factor in Agricultural 18
Expansion ? . . ? . . . . . . . ? . . . . ?. . . . . 18
1. Climatic Influences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2. Seasonal Characteristics. . . . . . . . . . . 20
a. Winter... . . .? . . . . . . . . . . . 20
b. , Spring. . . . . . . . . . . .? . .:. . . . 22
c . Sumer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
d. Fall. . . . 23
3. Agroclimatic Analysis of the Production;.
Potential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24+
Q~L~! 1--1R-i--T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Releans 4 P79T01018A000200020001-0
-E -T
Page
a. Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
b. Precipitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
c. Winds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
d. Drought Hazards . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
III. Settlement Structure in the Development of the New
Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
A. Present Settlement Pattern. . . . . . . . . . . . 46
1. Origins of Settlement . . . 46
2. Population Density and Distribution . . . . . 47
3. Ethnic Composition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
4. Rural Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5. Urban Settlement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
B. Impact of the New Lands Program . . . , . . . . . 53
1. Official Policy Regarding Settlement and
Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
2. New Sovkhoz Settlements , . . . . . . . . . . 55
3. Expansion of Existing Cities and Towns. . . . 59
4. Changes in Ethnic Composition . . . . . . . . 60
IV. Expansion of Transportation in the New lands. . . . . 62
A. New Railroads and Their Significance to the
Overall Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
1. The Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha Line . . 66
2. The Kurgan-Peski-Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy
Line. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
3. The Karasuk--Kamen`-na-Obi Line . . , . . . . 70
E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
CON?flYN1]AL
Page
4 The Tuz-Kala--Uspenka Line . . . . . . . . . . 71
5. The Bulayevo-Sovkhoz im. Malenkova Line. . . . 71
6. The Yesil'-Sovkhoz im. Lomonosova-Uritskoye
Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
72
7. The Shilda-Adamovka-Sovkhoz Ozernyy Line . . . 72
B. Improvement and Expansion of the Road Network. . . 72
1. Northern and Northwestern Kazakhstan . . . . . 76
2. Southern Urals Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
3. Ishim and Barabinsk Plains . . . . . . . . . . 78
4+. Altayskiy Kray Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
C. Possible Development of Waterways for Commercial
Transport. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Appendixes
Appendix, A. Relief Features of the New Lands Region . . . . 85
1. The Northern Plain. . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
2. The Southern Uplands. . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Appendix B. Gaps in Intelligence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Appendix C. Source References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Photographs
Figure 1. Flat terrain on the Kulunda Plain . . . . . . . . 7
Figure 2. Selety River (Akmolinskaya Oblast') in the Kazakh
Folded Upland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Figure 3. A grass-covered chernozem area with patches of
s olonet z . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
W.~,E 1AL
Approved For Release 1%08/0 CIA=RBP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/0, P79T01018A000200020001-0
Page
Figure 4+. Cattle grazing on mixed tall and short grasses
of the dark chestnut belt. . . . . . . . . . . 10
Figure 5. An extensive area of solonetz soil . . . . . . . 14
Figure 6. Boring a well in the steppe region . . . . . . . 17
Figure 7. Plowing and harrowing in the New Lands,
May 19 55 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Figure 8. Sowing spring wheat in the Kulunda Plain,
Altayskiy Kray, June 1954. . . . . . . . . . . 26
Figure 9. Harvesting spring wheat in northern
Zapadno-Kazakhstanskaya Oblast',
August 1952 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Figure 10. Kazakh farmers cutting millet in Aktyubinskaya
Oblast'., 1947- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Figure 11. Melyanopus 69 hard spring wheat -- the
most extensively distributed and
most drought-resistant of hard spring
wheats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Figure 12. Gordeyforme 10 hard spring wheat . . . . . . . . 28
Figure 13. Gordeyforme 189 hard spring wheat. . . . . . . . 29
Figure 14. Mil'turum 553 soft spring wheat. . . . . . . . . 29
Figure 15. Saratovskoye 853 millet. . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Figure 16. Dolinskoye 86 millet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Figure 17. Mechanized harvesting of corn for ensilage . . . 31
Figure 18. Harvesting sunflowers in the New Lands, October
1954 ..................... 31
Figure 19. Cultivating newly planted shelterbelt in western
Kazakhstan, 1951 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Figure 20. Corn row planted in wheatfield to catch blowing
winter snows . . . . . . . . . . . . . ? ? ? ? 43
`-E-T
Approved For Release 20& lQ$l : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2091
1018A000200020001-0
Page
Figure 21. Adobe hut on a Kazakhstan kolkhoz. . . . . . . . 50
Figure 22. Scene in Akmolinsk, 1955 . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Figure 23. Rubtsovsk, probably one of the fastest-growing
cities in the New Lands, 1952. . . . . . . . a 52
Figure 24. Tents used as temporary housing for settlers
on new state grain farms . . . . . a . . . . . 54
Figure 25. Portable temporary housing on a sovkhoz in
Chkalovskaya Oblast`, June 1954. . . . . . . . 54
Figure 26. Prefabricated houses on a new sovkhoz in
Altayskiy Kray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Figure 27. New settlers mixing brick for a house on a
sovkhoz in Altayskiy Kray. . . . . . . . . 56
Figure 28. A new sovkhoz town in Kazakhstan, 195+ . . . . . 56
Figure 29. Another sovkhoz settlement in Kazakhstan, 1955 ? 56
Figure 30. A woman carrying water from a village well in
Western Siberia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Figure 31. Seasonal unimproved dirt road of the type
commonly seen in the New Lands Region. . . . . 63
Figure 32. Laying narrow-gauge track on the newly con-
structed Kustanay-Uritskoye rail line. . . . .
Figure 33. Types of broad-gauge locomotive and rolling stock
to be used in the newly cultivated areas . . . 65
Figure 34. Train arriving at Kustanay with volunteer
colonists from Moscow and the Ukraine. . . . . 65
Figure 35. Initial phase in construction of a narrow-gauge
railroad east of Kokchetav . . . . . . . . . . 67
Figure 36. Trainload of farm machinery for new state farms
arriving at Kustanay . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Figure 37. Loading wheat on a truck in Kazakhstan . . . . . 73
-Ev
Approved For Release 2001 IA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 a 79T01018A000200020001-0
Page
Figure 38. Track across the steppe, typical of those in
the newly cultivated areas. . . . . . . . . . 73
Figure 39. A section of the Chuiskiy Trakt between Biysk
and Kosh-Agach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Figure 40. Travelers on a dusty road typical of the newly
built roads in northern Kazakhstan. . . . . . 75
Figure 41. Small river boat on the Irtysh River upstream
from Ust`-Kamenogorsk . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Figure 42. Navigation on the Ob` River at the site of
the Novosibirsk hydroelectric station . . . . 79
Figure 43. Irtysh River at Ust'-Kamenogorsk. . . . . . . . 81
Figure 44. View of the Irtysh River in the vicinity of
Semipalatinsk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a 81
Figure 45. Dredge at the hydroelectric station site at
Novosibirsk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Figure 46. Bridge over the Ishim River west of
Petropavlovsk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Figure 47. The flat Barabinsk Plain, showing the
characteristic steppe and wooded-steppe
vegetation @ . . . . . . . . . a . . . . . . . 85
Figure 48. The valley of the Charysh River in the
Intermontane Valley area. . . . . . . . . . . 87
Figure 49. Kokchetavskiye Gory in the southern uplands,
showing Ozero Borovoye and a cannery located
on its shore. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 89
r
Maps
Following Page
USSR: New Lands Program (25081) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
USSR: New Lands, Natural Regions (25086) . . . . . . . . . 4
Approved For Release 20 iO8 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/1 lT 01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Following Page
USSR: New Lands, Soil Types (25085
) . . . . . . . . . . .
14
USSR: New Lands in Relation to the
of Spring Wheat, 1938 (250
Distribution
84) . . . . . . . . . .
18
USSR: New Lands, Average Duration
Season (25089) . . . . . .
of the Frost-Free
. . . . . . . . . . . .
22
USSR: New Lands, Sums of Temperatu
Growing Season (25091) . .
res During the
. . . . . . . . . . . .
32
USSR: New Lands, Average Annual Pr
ecipitation (25087) .
38
USSR: New Lands, Average Total Pre
May-June-July 25088) . .
cipitation for
. . . . . . . . . . . .
38
USSR: New Lands, Moisture Zones (2
5090) . . . . . . . . .
40
USSR: New Lands, Relief (25082) .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
92
USSR: New Lands, General Reference
Map (25083). . . . . .
108
Approved For Release 2001 O018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/0 - 79T01018A000200020001-0
CONFIDENTIAL
A GEOGRAPHIC APPRAISAL OF THE USSR NEW LANDS PROGRAM
Summary
The New Lands program formally launched in March 1954 is the
most recent Soviet attempt to increase grain production. Its immedi-
ate goal is the sowing of grain on 30 million hectares of virgin or
idle land by 1956 -- chiefly spring wheat but also some millet and
corn. The bulk of the land being brought under cultivation lies in
the semiarid-steppe and wooded-steppe regions of the southern Urals,
Western Siberia, and northern Kazakhstan.
Relief is an obstacle to agricultural expansion only in isolated
local areas. The New Lands region consists of an unbroken expanse
of plain in the north and a series of rolling or dissected plateaus
and hills in the south. About 65 percent of the land is level enough
to be suitable for tillage, 20 percent is rolling land that could be
used for meadow and pasture, and only 15 percent consists of slopes
too steep for agricultural use.
Soils in the New Lands can be divided into three major belts.
The northern belt consists of a complex mosaic of soils that vary
considerably in their suitability for small-grain cultivation. The
middle belt is a broad expanse of chernozem soils of moderate to high
productivity. The southern belt consists of dark chestnut soils whose
naturally high productivity is limited by low rainfall. Throughout
the region, occurrences of saline and alkali soils drastically reduce
the apparently great reserves of agricultural land.
Climatic factors will exercise a decisive influence on the suc-
cess or failure of the New Lands program. The region has a low an-
nual precipitation and wide annual and diurnal ranges in temperature.
Winters are long and cold, summers are hot and windy, and the transi-
tional spring and fall seasons are short and marked by rapid changes.
The length of the frost-free season sets definite limits to agricul-
tural expansion in the north, where late spring and early fall frosts
are a constant threat. Summer temperatures are usually sufficient
for spring wheat and millet, but not for corn. To the south the
critical factor in agricultural expansion is moisture availability,
particularly during the growing season, and the southern boundary
of New Lands activity roughly follows the 75-millimeter isohyet for
the period May through July. Droughts are a major hazard in the
New Lands, as evidenced by the reduced yields of 1955. Droughts have
occurred on an average of 2 out of 5 years and will probably occur
with the same frequency in the future.
CONFIDENTIAL
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Re
Although the New Lands have actually been settled for many years
and contain a number of large cities, extensive areas are still
sparsely settled. The New Lands program initiates a new era of
settlement and development that will increase the population, stimu-
late the growth of existing villages and towns,- introduce new sovkhoz
settlements, and change the ethnic composition of the area. Newly
established sovkhozes, manned by migrants from all parts of European
USSR, will carry the main burden of new cultivation. The provision
of adequate housing and other facilities for them has been one of
the major problems of the New Lands program. The standard pattern
of establishing new sovkhoz settlements is indicative of the strong
state control over the whole program.
The movement of construction materials, agricultural equipment,
and general supplies into the New Lands, as well as the timely trans-
port of grain, requires an efficient transportation system. In 1954,
only a few key railroads served the New Lands region, and improved
roads were almost totally lacking. With the initiation of the
agricultural program, construction has begun on some 2,132 kilometers
of new railroad lines, about two-thirds of which are narrow-gauge.
The two most important rail lines under construction are the Kustanay-
Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha and the Kurgan-Peski-Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy
lines. New roads are also. being built, and many of the existing dirt
roads have been improved to accommodate year-round traffic. The Ob'
and Irtysh Rivers offer good opportunities for the shipment of grain
and other bulk,products, and a combined program has been initiated
for the regulation of the river flow and the development of hydro-
electric power.
l-E-T
V~~
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/0p1 8C C P-FpP79T01018A000200020001-0
I. Introduction
The Current New Lands program is the most recent manifestation
of the Soviet struggle for increased grain production -- a problem
that is at the very root of the Government's conflict with the
peasantry and one that has precipitated many changes in economic
policy ever since the Communists assumed power. Soviet strong men
have proposed many panaceas for this Soviet Achilles heel, and
political fortunes have fluctuated with the temporary success or
failure of the measures adopted. When Malenkov resigned, he gave
as the reason the failure of the agricultural program. Khrushchev's
rising star was connected with the successful New Lands harvests in
1954, and his political future could conceivably be affected by
results of the current program.
Soviet five-year plans in the past have included many schemes
for land reclamation and development and acclimatization of crops.
In the early 1930's, the emphasis was on acreage increases; in the
later 1930's, it was on improved yields. In the two postwar five-
year plans (1946-50 and 1951-55), improvement of yields was the
announced goal, and the Government leaned heavily on the pseudo-
scientific theories of Lysenko. Production figures published during
these years seemed to indicate success, but these figures were based
on "biological" or preharvest estimates rather than actual barn
yields after normal harvest losses. Malenkov, in a report to the
19th Communist Party Congress in the fall of 1952, even went so far
as to state that "the grain problem ... is successfully solved,
definitely and irrevocably." 124,p.195/* But after the death of
Stalin in March 1953, indications pointed to a disenchantment with
Lysenko's theories and to the need for a new approach to the grain
situation.
The New Lands program as a solution to the problem was formally
launched on 2 March 1954 by decree of the Plenary Session of the Cen-
tral Committee of the Communist Party. The area involved included
Western Siberia, northern Kazakhstan, and the southern Urals (see Map
25081, following p. 4). The plan called for the sowing of grain on
13 million hectares** of virgin and idle landsXXX in this region by
1955 -- 2.3 million hectares in 1954 and the remaining 10.7 million
in 1955. 31/ In the spring of 1954 the goal was exceeded when 3.6
million hectares were planted. In August 1954 the target was
*For numbered source references, see Appendix C.
*'l hectare = 2.47 acres.
***Virgin lands imply those lands not previously cultivated, and
idle lands imply those cultivated at some time in the past.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2T/00$/98 9A-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
increased to 15 million hectares by 1955 and 30 million by 1956.
Spring planting in 1955 exceeded the goal when 20 million hectares
were sown. 108/ Reports on 1955 fall plowing indicate that the 1956
goal of 30 million hectares will probably be reached, if not exceeded.
This will mean about a 20-percent expansion of the total Soviet sown
area, which is estimated at 155 million hectares in 1953. The immense
areal scale of the New Lands operation can be appreciated by a com-
parison with United States wheat acreage, which totaled 21.6 million
hectares in 1954.
Khrushchev set forth five reasons for the need of increased
grain production: (1) to meet the grain requirements of the ever-
increasing population; (2) to provide adequate feed for livestock
needs; (3) to build up reserves "for all kinds of eventualities";
(4+) to facilitate the specialized production of crops other than
grain in certain regions; and (5) to increase the amount of grain
available for export. 121+,p.197/ The launching of the campaign may
well have had accompanying political motivations. In 1955 the
emphasis was on new sovkhozes. By obtaining a higher proportion of
its grain from state farms, the Government is lessening its depend-
ence on the kolkhozes (collective farms) and thereby strengthening
itself in its conflict with the peasantry. At the same time, how-
ever, increased production would serve to reduce the pressure on the
kolkhozes to deliver grain. Perhaps strategic factors, also, were
taken into consideration in the development of an agricultural base
in the interior of the country, as was the case with industrial
development.
Many problems face the Soviets in their new, gigantic undertaking.
One of the main physical limitations is the climate -- the uncertainty
of precipitation, the drought hazard, and the short growing season.
There are also doubts about the amount of land with soils suitable
for cultivation, the extent of salinity conditions, the erosion hazard,
and the efficiency of measures used to prevent soil depletion. A
shortage of surface and ground water for the needs of men and live-
stock may develop. Livestock formerly dependent on grazing will have
to be fed. Adequate manpower, both in terms of quantity and quality,
must be maintained, particularly during the seeding and harvesting
periods. Technical personnel and workers have been motilized from
all over the country,*induced by financial incentives and patriotic
motivation. The needs of workers settling on new lands -- for
housing, consumer goods, personal services, medical facilities, and
schools =- must-be met. The transportation system must be expanded
in view of the vast distances involved and the strain that would be
imposed on the few existing railroads. Equipment such as tractors
and trucks are needed in great numbers, putting a strain on the whole
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 -.-.- -_ -_-_- - ---.- -
- _{p _ _--._ - 3c --- - JQ -40.
'
54 # N-. 9a _.911. 1L+1_ 11a. 12a. 13a -14a.- th _
~
_jBg _ 170 '180
~vvvvvwovvvvv~w
v~
^]
0
r ew , Syr? :~ "am
~000
1
~~~
11 ;~s ~\\\
%
H
Y~ 1. ? ;~,
~y
o
/r0
G
P
%
~t. J
SS .;,il\
I I
S1
r
~
't4
I
~ `
fV~4~
4
`~J r \ - ;F4 . ~Jq't9Yq ?4
1
1 \,
\ `~ 1
(
b
_
k
t
a
H
ff tt\
at "'yid ie `' \Q-
Z"II \ ~~
0?~4yA?
~I
t .M
n ~ i~t muyn
~ n4 ~ iA AH
\
\
\
.
\\yV, ~\
R,
)
.
e1
\
v
~ iLI -
1,
/~ r ' ~ ~,}~
*~ ^H
~
)
C -,N; ( off
'?u
i
w
e
?
4 V
XAUUwukw m ? /
ar
~~
,~~
\\
a
\ 0? i
Akq
' r
~ / (pghS
.. ^
6
",p, A-1 (
' U
.qua
0`
Ap'MU.4m
\
U
\ GR N.
Ak
\
120
? I;,~R ti
s ~. ; \
USSR: NEW LANDS
PROGRAM
30
1 '~ rtIH
e.` RGI2
~
~7D Main New Lands area
\ , .:
fr
\
?~ aX~L~?' .~ SSR ,~
?
0~~~~~ Areas of secondary consideration
'
0 2W IW 6W eW
suwu a~w,
S, k
1~ S /
Note. The boundaries of the New Lands areas indicate the probable maximum limit of
Soviet grain expansion. These limits have been derived from an analysis of climate,
soils, and terrain, together with Soviet announcements concerning the program.
0 2W 100 600 800 20W
XIIOmItH1
60
\ \
70 eo
t20
1 /~S
} S j
. - _ _ _.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 USSR: NEW LANDS
Union Republic boundary (SSR)
Oblast, Kray or Autonomous
Republic (ASSR) boundary
O Administrative center (Oblast,
Kray or ASSR)
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
NATURAL REGIONS
based on climate and natural vegetation
Taiga
Deciduous forest
Wooded steppe
LJ
Steppe Mountain-vegetation
Dry steppe and ^ Limit of main
semi-desert ~'.J New Lands area
C =~ General limit of
secondary areas
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
SOURCE: PRIRODNYYE ZONY SSSR
(Natural Zones of the USSR)
1:5,000,000, GUCK, Moscow; 1953.
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Soviet industrial economy. In 1954 alone, some 50,000 tractors, in
terms of 15 horsepower units, were reportedly sent to the New Lands.
In analyzing the probable degree of success or failure of the
program from a geographic point of view, the physical elements of
climate and soils are given particular attention. Such factors as
precipitation, growing season, and soil type place almost definitive
limits on the extension of grain production. Further, if wheat is
sown in an area where the average available moisture barely meets
crop needs, crop failures can almost assuredly be expected in years
when available moisture is below normal. Similarly, where crops are
sown on soils of marginal salinity, poor yields and soil-management
problems are sure to be the rule. The Soviets frequently claim that
they have developed improved varieties of crops and methods of cul-
tivation specially designed to cope with problems in dry regions,
but these claims may well prove to be either false or merely over-
optimistic. In the drier portions of the Ukraine, a long-established
agricultural area, evidence that natural restrictions have been
appreciably overcome is very slight.
The main body of New Lands activity encompasses an area of about
1,300,000 square kilometers within the steppe and wooded-steppe
regions of Western Siberia, northern Kazakhstan, and the southern
Urals (see Map 25086, following p. 4). The areas of most intense
activity are Zapadno-Kazakhstanskaya, Aktyubinskaya, Chkalovskaya,
Chelyabinskaya, Kurganskaya, Kustanayskaya, Severo-Kazakhstansyaya,
Kokchetavskaya, Akmolinskaya, Karagandinskaya, Pavlodarskaya, Omskaya,
and Novosibirskaya Oblast's, and Altayskiy Kray. Also included with-
in the main New Lands area are smaller portions of Sverdlovskaya,
Tyumenskaya, Tomskaya, Kemerovskaya, Semipalatinskaya, and Vostochno-
Kazakhstanskaya Oblast's.
In addition to the main area of concentration, there are a number
of areas of secondary consideration, such as the region just east of
the Volga, including portions of Saratovskaya, Kuybyshevskaya, and
Chkalovskaya Oblast's, and Bashkirskaya ASSR. There intensive agri-
culture has long been established, and the amount of virgin and idle
land available is limited. New sowings have also been reported in.
eastern Rostovskaya and southern Stalingradskaya Oblast's, but the
paucity of publicity suggests small-scale activity only. Some agri-
cultural expansion is taking place on the piedmonts at the foot of
the high mountain ranges along the eastern and southeastern borders
of Kazakhstan. East of the main area of activity are several smaller
steppe and wooded-steppe regions where virgin.and idle lands are being
cultivated. The most important of these are in southern Krasnoyarskiy
Kray and northeastern Kemerovskaya Oblast' -- particularly around the
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
towns of Krasnoyarsk and Abakan. Some grain has also been sown in
southern Irkutskaya Oblast' along the Trans-Siberian Railroad between
Irkutsk and Tulun. Of only minor significance are new grain sowings
in Chitinskaya and Amurskaya Oblast's and Primorskiy Kray.
II. Physical Capabilities
A. Land Potential in Relation to Agricultural Expansion
Possibilities
The New Lands program has been based upon two dominant charac-
teristics of the land which, at first glance, appear to indicate a
great potential for agricultural expansion. These factors are the
extensive areas of seemingly productive soils, and the vast stretches
of plains that are well adapted to mechanized agriculture. Any eval-
uation, however, that is based solely upon these two factors is
necessarily deceptive, for it completely ignores the third critical
factor -- the severe climatic handicaps.
1. Relief
In the New Lands region, relief is not an obstacle to agricul-
tural expansion except in a few isolated areas. Although detailed
statistics are not available, a rough estimate based on study of
terrain descriptions and analysis of medium-scale maps indicates that
approximately 65 percent of the region is level or gently rolling
country; about 20 percent is rolling land that could be utilized for
pasture and meadow; and only the remaining 15 percent is in slopes
that are definitely too steep for any type of agricultural use. (See
Map 25082, following p. 92).
These figures appear to substantiate in part the Soviet claims
to great reserves of land for agricultural development. Climate and
soil, however, drastically reduce this apparent reserve, and these
factors must be taken into consideration. For example, marsh covers
much of the level Barabinsk Plain north of the Omsk-Novosibirsk Rail-
road (Map 25083, at end of report). Before any of this marshy land
could be brought under cultivation, extensive drainage would be nec-
essary, involving considerable outlays for labor, materials, and
equipment. It should also be pointed out that the best land has
already been under cultivation for some time. Even before World War
II, the ratio of the wheat acreage to the total land area was higher
in the Western Siberian portion of the New Lands region than in most
of Central European USSR.
On the basis of relief features, the New Lands region can be
divided into two distinct zones. In the north is the unbroken expanse
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
of plain extending from the Urals to the Altay and Sayany Mountains
(Figure 1); in the south the land consists of a series of rolling or
dissected plateaus and rugged hills (Figure 2).
Figure 1. Flat terrain on the Kulunda Plain.
The plains area is the southern part of the vast West Siberian
lowland, which continues northward to the shores of the Kara Sea,
far beyond the limits of the New Lands. The 300-meter contour is
the dividing line between the plain and the adjacent uplands to the
south, east, and west. The plain slopes gradually toward the north,
and at Tara on the northern margin of the New Lands, it reaches its
lowest elevation of 61 meters.
Although there are no major variations in relief on the northern
plain, a number of distinctive names are applied to specific locali-
ties. Thus the Soviets customarily refer to the Ishim, the Barabinsk,
the Kulunda, and Kustanay Plains and the Pri-Obskoye and Predural'skoye
Plateaus. The combined area of these plains and plateaus covers all
of the northern plain except for a narrow strip along its eastern
margin, for which the term "Eastern Intermontane Valleys" has been
coined.
The southern subregion consists of a series of plateau and foot-
hill areas with elevations considerably higher than those of the
northern plain. The southern upland, which begins near the point
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved. For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 2. Selety River (Akmolinskaya Oblast')
in the Kazakh Folded Upland.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /0?/S CCAER4P79T01018A000200020001-0
where the Irtysh River crosses the southern limit of the New Lands
region, extends westward to the vicinity of Ural'sk, and includes
parts of the Kazakh Folded Upland, the Turgay Tableland, and the
Podural'skoye Plateau. This series of uplands is interrupted only
to the west of Ural'sk and near the center of the New Lands where
the valleys of the Ubagan and Turgay Rivers merge.
A detailed description of the relief of the various sections
of the New Lands region is given in Appendix A.
2. Soils
The extensive belts of moderately and highly productive soils
within the New Lands region give an impression of a vast untapped
potential for agriculture. The best lands, however, are already
under cultivation, and much of the so-called idle land was at one
time cultivated and then abandoned for economic reasons. Furthermore,
widely distributed areas of poorly drained, saline, and alkali soils
drastically limit the real soil potential of the New Lands region.
a. Agricultural Potential
From the viewpoint of area and productivity, chernozems are the
most important type of soil, covering about one-third of the New
Lands region (Map 25085, following p. l4+). Chernozems develop in
areas where restricted moisture supply makes natural forest growth
impossible. They are covered by a thick grass sod (Figure 3), below
which is a layer of black soil 50 or 60 centimeters deep with an
extremely high humus content (6 to 10 percent or higher). Another
characteristic of these soils is the accumulation of lime in the
lower horizons. Because of their adequate supply of plant nutrients
and their good structure, such soils are moderately to highly pro-
ductive for small grains -- wheat, oats, barley, and rye -- and,
where moisture is sufficient, for corn also.
The dark chestnut soils rank second in productivity and areal
extent, covering about 29-31 percent of the New Lands region. Since
the dark chestnut soil has developed on the arid margin of the cherno-
zem belt, its profile is generally similar to that of chernozem, but
the humus content is only 3 to 4+.5 percent. The lower organic content
is reflected in a lighter color -- chestnut or dark brown instead of
the black of the chernozem. The upper soil horizons are invariably
less than 60 centimeters in thickness. Chestnut soils characteristi-
cally have a small cloddy structure. Although the chestnut soils are
unleached and possess good proportions of all the constituents neces-
sary for high productivity, the low rainfall associated with their
development restricts their agricultural potential. In other parts
- 9 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : ChA fDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-
Figure 3. A grass-covered chernozem area with patches of
solonetz in the foreground.
Figure 4. Cattle grazing on mixed tall and short
grasses of the dark chestnut belt.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/Og'v8~CAEFPP79T01018A000200020001-0
of the world the cultivation of dark chestnut soils is commonly
practiced only with the aid of specialized moisture-conservation
practices, such as dry-farming, or through the use of drought-
resistant crops like sorghums and kaffir. Even so, drought is an
ever-present hazard. Where irrigation is possible, however, crop
yields are high. Without irrigation the natural vegetation cover is
mixed tall and short grasses that furnish good pasturage (Figure 4).
Although the southern boundary of the dark chestnut soils seems
to be the effective southern limit of successful grain cultivation,
the Soviet press occasionally refers to New Lands activity in areas
that appear to lie beyond this boundary and within the belt of light
chestnut soils, which are characteristic of semidesert areas. The
light chestnut soils occupy only about 2 percent of the New Lands
region. Although similar to the dark chestnut soils, they contain
somewhat less organic matter (1 to 3 percent), which results in their
lighter color. The humus horizon is only 30 to 40 centimeters thick.
Below the humus layer is a thick layer of carbonates, usually under-
lain by gypsum. When irrigated, the light chestnut soils are pro-
ductive. Without irrigation, farming on such soils is virtually
impossible. The sparse growth of grasses that develops naturally on
such soils is suitable only for extensive livestock grazing.
Degraded chernozem soils, intermediate between the true cherno-
zem or steppe soils and podzolic or forest types, comprise about
10-11 percent of the soil cover. They provide evidence that the
climate in Western Siberia is gradually becoming more humid.* The
soils were developed originally under a vegetation cover of grass.
In recent geologic eras, however, forest vegetation from the north
and the west has encroached upon the steppe vegetation and has begun
to transform the chernozems into podzolic soils. When carried to its
ultimate conclusion, this degrading process results in the disappear-
ance of the granular structure characteristic of chernozems, a reduc-
tion in the humus content, the leaching out of carbonates, and the
deposition of oxides in the underlying soil horizon. A strongly
degraded chernozem is low in productivity. In most cases, however,
podzolization has not reached this extreme stage. The transitional
types, which are generally characterized by a nearly black upper
horizon and vestiges of lime accumulation in the deep layers, are of
moderate to high productivity. Although not identical, these degraded
soils are in many ways like the productive prairie soils of the United
States Corn Belt, where the soils retain the fertility of chernozems
but the rainfall is somewhat greater than on the semiarid steppes.
*This process must be measured against a time scale of hundreds
or thousands of years. It therefore has no practical bearing on the
immediate course of the New Lands program.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2t0/9 c A-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Meadow chernozems cover 6 or 7 percent of the total area in the
New Lands region. These soils are chernozems that have been subjected
to poor drainage. The humus content of the upper horizon of such
soils depends on the soil moisture and is frequently higher than for
the ordinary chernozems, ranging from 7 to 17 percent. The humus
content, however, decreases rapidly with depth, and at 30 to 50 centi-
meters amounts to only 1 or 2 percent. Microrelief factors drasti-
cally affect the characteristics of the meadow chernozems. On the
flat divides the solonetz type of meadow chernozems predominates.
In the lower, poorly drained places, the meadow chernozems are chiefly
of the solonchak type, which has been modified by the process of
salinization.
Meadow chernozems are apparently cultivated to a considerable
extent, but in small scattered parcels because of the effect of
drainage on soil distribution. The meadow chernozems are clayey
and in wet years often drop out of cultivation. In one extensive
area of meadow chernozems on the Barabinsk Plain, such wet periods
reportedly may last 3 to 5 years. Consequently, meadow chernozems
must be classified as marginal in productivity.
Gray-brown podzolic soils account for approximately 2.5 percent
of the soil cover in the New Lands region. These slightly acid soils
develop under a natural vegetation cover of deciduous forest, usually
under good drainage conditions. The soil structure is generally good,
and the leaching out of essential mineral elements has not progressed
as far as in the true podzol soil of the coniferous forest to the
north. Consequently, the gray-brown soils are moderately productive
when the land is first cleared. With proper fertilization and manage-
ment, they may become highly productive for diversified crop and dairy
farming. Soils of a similar type cover the greater part of north-
eastern United States and northwestern Europe, and a high proportion
of these areas is under cultivation.
Concerning alluvial soils, which comprise about 3 percent of the
area, generalizations are diffficult. The soils are commonly in an
early stage of development and have only a small organic content.
Drainage conditions and yields vary greatly from place to place.
Podzol and bog soils, which occur almost exclusively along the
northern edge of the New Lands, occupy about 5 percent of the total
area. The podzols are leached of many of the important plant nutri-
ents and are acid in reaction, deficient in organic matter, generally
poor in structure, and of low fertility. With exceptionally good
farm practices, they may be capable of supporting a subsistence-type
agriculture. Since pasture is generally one of the highest uses of
such soils, the dairy industry is likely to become established in
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
podzol areas. Bog soils are water-saturated most of the time. The
thick peat layers that accumulate are low in productivity, but with
drainage these soils may become moderately or even highly productive
for special crops.
Particular attention must be given to the saline and alkali soils
in the New Lands region. Although planimetric measurements indicate
that solonetz soils cover only 7 percent of the total surface, this
percentage grossly underrates the seriousness of soil salinization
and alkalization. The percentage includes only continuous areas of
solonetz soils extensive enough to be shown on small-scale maps, but
not the innumerable patches of solonetz and solonchak soils that are
scattered throughout the woodedrsteppe and steppe regions of Western
Siberia and Kazakhstan.
Salinization, or the accumulation of various salts of sodium
and calcium or sometimes of potassium and magnesium, can occur in
practically any type of soil, but the process is most active in
poorly drained areas under semiarid and arid conditions. Even a
slight degree of salinization reduces the fertility of any soil
markedly, but saline soils that have reached the solonchak stage have
absolutely no economic value and cannot be used for crops unless they
are washed free of salts. Under irrigation or with slightly heavier
than average precipitation, the salts may gradually be dissolved, and
the solonchaks may be transformed into alkali claypans to which the
name "solonetz" is given (Figure 5). Although slightly better than
the solonchaks, the solonetz soils are also of low productivity.
Although salinization and alkalization tend to become subordi-
nated in general discussions of the major soil types, they must be
considered in evaluating the soil potential of the New Lands region.
In view of recommendations by Soviet agricultural scientists that
land should be plowed only where saline and alkali soils comprise
no more than 10 to 20 percent of the total area, it is clear that
saline and alkali soils drastically reduce the otherwise apparently
great reserves of agricultural land. Such recommendations may have
restricted too greatly the progress of the New Lands program, since
in October 1955 the Communist Party organ Pravda noted and officially
rejected one of the recommendations. qt/ Western experience, however,
seems to corroborate the views of the Soviet agricultural scientists
concerning the cultivation of land if saline or alkali soils comprise
more than 20 percent of the total.
b. Distribution
Although the soils vary considerably within the New Lands region,
the distribution pattern is fairly simple. It consists of three
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 5. An extensive area of solonetz soil.
latitudinal belts that stretch west-east across the entire breadth
of the region. The northern belt, which lies south of the great belt
of podzol and bog soils of the Siberian taiga, has a complex inter-
mixture of soils. In contrast, each of the two southern belts is
dominated by a single soil type -- chernozem in the middle belt and
dark chestnut in the southern. The boundary between the dark chest-
nut and the light chestnut soils coincides closely with the southern
margin of the New Lands region.
(1)
The Northern Belt
The northern belt, which includes all of the New Lands region
east of the Ob' River and north of the Troitsk-Omsk-Barnaul line, is
a complex mixture of degraded and meadow chernozem, gray-brown pod-
zolic, and solonetz soils. Characteristically, narrow strips of
alluvial soils border major rivers such as the Tobol, Ishim, Irtysh,
and Ob'. Beyond these alluvial floodplain soils are considerably
wider bands, measuring anywhere from 10 to 50 kilometers, that gen-
erally consist of degraded chernozem soils. Along the northern mar-
gin of the New Lands region, in areas that are or have been forested,
the degraded chernozems may be replaced by gray-brown podzolic soils.
The meadow chernozems are distributed extensively on the divides
between the streams and are likely to be intermixed with alkali or
saline soils. The intermixture varies from occasional small patches
of solonetz and solonchak soils among the meadow chernozems to
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 General limit of the main
New Lands area
Approved For Release 2001/08108 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0 4) a
SOIL TYPES
Podzol and bog soils = Chernozem
--- Northern boundary of Kazakh SSR Gray-brown podzolic soil Degraded chernozem
Principal railroad
Alluvial flood plain soil _ _ Meadow-chernozem
Sands
Solonchak (saline soil)
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Sources: POCHVENNAYA KARTA SSSR (Soil Map of
the USSRI 1:5,000,000, GUGK, 119461;
POCHVENNAYA KARTA SSSR (Soil Map of
the USSR) 1:4,000,000, GUGK, 1954.
Miles
100 200 300
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
continuous stretches of solonetz soils that extend for distances of
100 or 200 kilometers.
Except in the area east of the Ob', the basic pattern of soil
distribution predominates throughout the northern soil belt, with only
minor variations in the relative proportions of the various soil types.
On the Predural'skoye Plateau, for example, the ratio of gray-brown
podzolic to degraded chernozem is slightly higher than in other parts
of the belt, and on the Barabinsk Plain the areas of continuous solo-
netz soils are especially large. Other distinctive features of the
Barabinsk Plain include occurrences of true chernozem along the ridges
in the central part of the plain and of extensive areas of bog soils
in the valleys.
East of the Ob' River the distribution of soils appears to be
more strongly influenced by elevation. Along the eastern bank of
the Ob' River, strips of sandy podzol soils flank the alluvial soils.
At intermediate elevations, extensive areas of degraded chernozem are
encountered in the wooded-steppe zone. Finally, under deciduous
forest at higher elevations, the gray-brown podzolic soils appear.
(2) The Middle Chernozem Belt
The broad middle soil belt begins at the western boundary of
the New Lands region, skirts the Urals, then extends eastward to
Kamen'-na-Obi, where it turns southeastward along the western bank
of the Ob', and terminates at the eastern margin of the New Lands
region. A southward prolongation of the chernozem belt extends to
the vicinity of Ust'-Kamenogorsk.
The middle belt is made up almost entirely of chernozem soils.
The only major breaks in the continuity of the chernozem belt occur
in two patches of mountain-steppe soils near Kokchetav and in several
narrow strips of sandy podzol soils in the forested valleys of the
Pri-Obskoye Plateau southwest of Barnaul. The chernozem belt of. the
New Lands region differs from the Ukrainian chernozem regions in
possessing a high proportion of alkali soils. Patches of solonetz
soils are widely distributed, becoming especially prominent on the
Predural'skoye Plateau, on the Barabinsk and Kulunda Plains, and in
the area east of Kokchetav. For the most part, these alkali soils
occur in shallow depressions without external drainage.
(3) The Southern Dark Chestnut Belt
The belt of dark chestnut soils stretches uninterruptedly across
the entire southern part of the New Lands. West of Akmolinsk it aver-
ages about 150 kilometers in width. In the vicinity of Akmolinsk the
width increases to between 300 and 400 kilometers.
- 15 -
S-E-C-R-E-T-
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Occurrences of alkali soils are even more widespread in the
southern belt than in the chernozem belt. Throughout the belt,
patches of solonetz soils are scattered among the dark chestnut
soils, principally in poorly drained areas. South of Ozero Selety-
Tengiz, especially extensive areas are covered by solonetz soils.
Two other soil types are represented to a smaller extent in this
belt. The chernozem soil belt penetrates into the higher elevations
of the Akmolinsk-Karaganda area, where chernozems occur as three
small islands; and mountain soils have developed in an area on the
Kyzyl-Tau and Bayanaul'skiye Gory north of Ozero Kara-Sor. In
texture the soils of the southern belt are almost invariably clays
or clay_loams, but sandy soils predominate in the areas south of
Kustanay and east of the Irtysh River.
3. Water Resources
In extending agriculture into the.New Lands region of Western
Siberia and northern Kazakhstan the Soviets are confronted by the
serious obstacle of inadequate water supply. In most of the region,
the deficiency of water has a direct influence not only on agricul-
tural yields but also on the establishment of the necessary new
settlements. Large quantities of water must be provided for the
thousands of new settlers and large numbers of horses, as well as
for heavy machinery. A Soviet source estimates that the water re-
quirements are 30 to 4+0 liters (7.9 to 10.6 gallons) a day per capita
and 4+5 to 50 liters for each horse. 45,p.72/ Although Soviet water
requirements are considerably lower than the American, the provision
of even these modest amounts is generally acknowledged to be a serious
problem.
A Soviet study published prior to the initiation of the New Lands
program indicated that only 20 percent of the wooded-steppe and steppe
regions in Western Siberia and northern Kazakhstan obtains water from
surface sources. 75,p.22/ The remaining 80 percent of the area de-
pends almost exclusively on ground water.
Surface sources of supply are adequate in only small areas along
the northern and eastern fringes of the New Lands region. Along the
northern border, an abundance of potable water can be obtained from
the many fresh-water lakep and swamps. In the east, streams descend-
ing from the Altay and Sayany Mountains make water available to the
adjacent areas. Elsewhere the poorly developed hydrographic net pro-
vides only limited quantities of water. Throughout much of the
wooded steppe, only the largest streams provide potable water the
year round; other streams are inadequate except during the spring
high-water period. Many of the lakes are saline. In the southern
portion of the New Lands region, surface-water resources are
- 16 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/0808 bC#4 9P79T01018A000200020001-0
definitely inadequate. Most of the streams are intermittent, and
potable water is generally available only during the spring. At
other seasons the water available is generally mineralized. Most
of the lakes are saline.
Ground-water resources decrease in both quantity and quality
towards the south. For example, the northern or wooded-steppe part
of the region has an abundance of ground water at shallow depths.
In the northern part of the Barabinsk Plain the water table is only
1 or 2 meters below the surface. Farther south, in the portion of
the Barabinsk Plain along the Trans-Siberian Railroad, the water
table is at depths of 2 to 3 meters. On the Kulunda Plain near
Pavlodar the average depth is 6 to 10 meters.
Mineralization of ground water also increases from north to south.
Along the northern margin of the New Lands, fresh or slightly alkaline
waters predominate. The moderately mineralized ground waters of the
central part contain both sulfates and chlorides. In the south, miner-
alization is very high, with chloride salts predominating. The princi-
pal exceptions to this overall pattern are occasional sandy patches,
where the degree of mineralization is considerably less, and the val-
leys of the major rivers and the shores of many lakes, where the water
is relatively fresh.
Figure 6. Boring a well in the steppe region.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
To surms ize, much of the wooded-steppe region is well supplied
with surface water and also has a fair to abundant quantity of ground
water, which is generally fresh and occurs relatively close to the
surface. In the steppe regions, on the other hand, surface water is
insufficient, and new settlements would have to rely almost exclusive-
ly on the limited ground-water resources (Figure 6), most of which are
mineralized to some degree. This dependence upon the ground-water
supply has been recognized by the Soviets, and at least three indus-
trial plants -- the Mytishchi Instrument Building Plant, the Andizhan
Strommashina Plant, and the Bakinskiy Rabochiy Plant -- have been as-
signed the task of producing water pumps for the New Lands program. 42
Hundreds of these water pumps, one model reportedly capable of lifting
water 100 meters, are being shipped to the New Lands. However, since
the water-bearing strata in the steppe areas are generally thin, wells
frequently dry up during'the dry periods. As a result, protracted
droughts will not only drastically reduce crop yields but also create
water-supply problems affecting the very existence of the new settle-
ments, particularly along the southern margin of the New Lands region.
B. Climate as a Controlling Factor in Agricultural Expansion
Climate plays a dominant role in limiting the extension of culti-
vation and will have a decisive effect on the success or failure of
the current agricultural expansion project. Climate is especially
important in assessing the agricultural potentialities of the New
Lands region, since conditions are not the most favorable.
The best lands in Western Siberia and northern Kazakhstan are
already cultivated. An established belt of grain cultivation extends
approximately eastward from the central Volga to the Altay foothills,
roughly along the route of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, and is inter-
rupted only by the southern Urals (Map 2508+, following p. 18). With-
in this belt the traditional areas of concentrated grain production
have long since become established through trial and error. Some
agricultural expansion is still taking place within the areas of
established farming, largely on marginal lands whose use has been
restricted by soil factors. The New Lands activity, however, involves
agricultural expansion southward from the established belt into the
more arid wooded-steppe and steppe regions.
The present program calls for the cultivation by 1956 of 30 mil-
lion hectares, principally in the semiarid wooded-steppe and steppe
regions of Western Siberia and northern Kazakhstan. It is estimated
that 75 percent of the New Lands have been cultivated at some time in
the past; the remaining 25 percent are truly "virgin." 65,p.5/ It is
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 in relation to the Distribution of Spring Wheat, 1938
Ir
Main New Lords area
\\\\\ Area of secandory consideration
Each dot represents 7,000 hectores
? ? of spring wheot sown in 1938
A- s-t-boundary
-I.- Region b-n-,
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
SEMIPALATINS
jJ``D(1O ALMA
_ ATINSKAYA 'N
BLAST'
OZHAMBULSKAYA
\ Il . \ OBLRST' z
I .f ?'1 ~
YUZHNO
/ KAZAKHSTANSI
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Ysn?? ? /?k?'; OMSKAYT
ZAPADNOKAZANHSTANSIUYA
_ ?? "
oeusr YJ-I AKTYUBINSKAYA
KARAS.ANNINSKAYA
Bn~.,do~ r rno:_
.coy na br th,.nU ScGo.n.~m, ,t
 Approved For Release 2001/O JOP_CghA f P79T01018A000200020001-0
no accident that these lands have been cultivated only intermittently.
Colonists of prerevolutionary times settled here, but generally moved
on to more stable areas after their agricultural attempts proved
unprofitable. During the early 1930's, a great expansion of grain
sovkhozes took place, but adverse natural factors -- especially
climate -- brought about their failure, and much of the land reverted
to pasture or was abandoned.
The new program is thus extending grain production into a zone
of hazard, where yields are variable and frequent crop failures may
be expected. The Russians are apparently willing to gamble, hoping
that with favorable weather, as in 1954, good crops may be grown on
the marginal land. Perhaps the Russians of today feel that with
modern agricultural technology they can succeed where their predeces-
sors failed. On the other hand the rapidly increasing population of
the USSR may have caused the Soviet leaders to embark on the New Lands
program without due regard for the problems involved and the possible
consequences.
1. Climatic Influences
Most of the virgin and idle lands being brought under cultivation
lie within the steppe and wooded-steppe zones, transitional between
the desert to the south and the taiga forests to the north (see Map
25086, following p. 4). This transitional zone extends from the
Volga region to the Altay Mountains, interrupted only by the southern
Urals. East of the Altay Mountains, the terrain is almost completely
mountainous, with occasional isolated "islands" of steppe and wooded-
steppe vegetation. Within these isolated "islands," only limited New
Lands activity is taking place.
The climate of the New Lands region is influenced by both the
Atlantic Ocean and the vast interior of the continent of Asia. The
effect of the Atlantic Ocean is greater in the west and north and
is strongest during the winter. The effect of the continent increases
toward the east and south, and in these areas is pronounced during
both winter and summer.
The temperature contrast and the pressure gradient between the
Atlantic Ocean and the continental interior are particularly pro-
nounced in winter. Because of the nature of the air currents and the
location of areas of high and low pressure, the air from the Atlantic
moves over the New Lands from the southwest. The migration of this
air takes place predominantly in Arctic-front cyclones, in which the
Atlantic air is frequently forced upward and has little effect on the
temperature at the surface. These cyclones abate as they approach
- 19 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 0 1/ 0 IA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
the area of high pressure that occupies all of Central Asia almost
continuously during the winter. In the wake of the cyclones the
Arctic air moves southward and remains stationary over southwestern
Siberia and northern Kazakhstan until another cyclone from the south-
west forces this air to retreat northward. Continental conditions
cool the Atlantic air that flows over the continent and slowly warm
the Arctic air.
In summer the basic process is the formation of continental air
masses. As air from the north moves southward toward the low-pressure
area over the Central Asiatic deserts it becomes drier as it is warmed.
The inflow of Atlantic air is considerably reduced during summer.
Although it sometimes moves as far east as Western Siberia, the
Atlantic air frequently assumes a continental character while it is
still over the European part of the USSR.
2. Seasonal Characteristics
The New Lands region has a marked continental climate with wide
annual and diurnal ranges in temperature. Annual precipitation is
low, ranging roughly from 250 to 400 mm,* with a maximum in summer.
Winters are long and cold; summers are hot and windy; and the transi-
tional seasons are short but marked by rapid change.
a. Winter
Winter generally begins early in November, when the mean daily
high temperature drops below freezing and a snow cover is established.
The season lasts almost 5 months, until late March or early April,
when average afternoon temperatures frequently rise above the freezing
point.
Below-freezing temperatures prevail throughout the winter. Iso-
therms trend generally east-west except where higher terrain inter-
rupts the pattern. The mean daily maximum and minimum temperatures**
at five key points during the winter are as follows:
*25 mm = approximately 1 inch (0.98 inches)
**Climatic statistics given throughout this section were obtained
from a variety of sources, mainly Soviet scientific text, which were
compared with one another for consistency of data. As a further check,
isoline maps were prepared. The result of this careful evaluation was
a composite set of statistics that do not necessarily correspond with
the figures given in any one source.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Absolute
Winter
Station Mean Daily Max. (?C) Mean Daily Min. (?C) Min. ?C
N D J F M N D J F M
Chkalov -2 -lo -14 -11 -4 -8 -16 -21 -18 -12 -41
Kustanay -4 -10 -14 -12 -8 -12 -17 -24 -24 -17 -45
Akmolinsk -5 -12 -16 -13 -7 -12 -19 -22 -22 -17 -49
Omsk -7 -15 -19 -14 -7 -13 -22 -26 -23 -17 -49
Barnaul -6 -12 -16 -12 -6 -12 -20 -24 -23 -17 -52
Surface waters are usually frozen throughout the winter. The
Ishim is normally frozen over from 27 November to 26 April at
Akmolinsk; the Ob' from 8 November to 24 April at Barnaul; and the
Irtysh from 8 November to 30 April at Omsk.
Winter precipitation is almost entirely in the form of snow and
is very light. Totals for the five winter months are 157 mm at
Chkalov, 48 mm at Kustanay, 119 mm at Akmolinsk, 71 mm at Omsk, and
178 mm at Barnaul. Somewhat more than half of this precipitation
falls in November and December. March is the driest winter month;
Kustanay averages only 3 mm during this month. In winter, precipi-
tation can be expected on one-third to one-half of the days.
Throughout the New Lands region, a snow cover is usually estab-
lished by the beginning of the winter season, but in the north around
Kurgan and- Omsk the cover may become established by late October. An
almost uninterrupted snow cover persists for about 140 days in the
west and south, and the period increases to 180 days in the north and
east. The snow cover disappears in early or middle April except around
Barnaul in the east, where it may last until late April. The depth
of the snow cover generally increases from south to north. The maxi-
mum depth usually occurs in January and February, when the average
ranges from 25 cm in the south to 50 cm in the north. Thaws are rare,
but strong winter winds often blow the snow into drifts, leaving
extensive areas of bare ground.
Relative humidity is high throughout the winter, averaging be-
tween 80 and 90 percent in the early mornings and afternoons.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Prevailing winds are from the southwest. Winds of gale force
(winds in excess of 12.5 m. per sec. or 32 m.p.h.) are frequent,
particularly in January. The effect of the strong winter winds is
increased by cutting cold and quantities of fine blowing snow. Snow
driven along the ground may be enough to reduce visibility seriously.
b. Spring
Spring starts in late March or early April, when temperatures
begin to rise rapidly, the snow cover melts, and streams become swol-
len. After 4 or 5 weeks, ending in early May, summer weather sets
in.
Early morning frosts still prevail in early April, but by the
end of the month they are uncommon. The average daily maximum and
minimum temperatures during April are 7?C and -2?C at Chkalov, 6?C
and -4+?C at Kustanay, 4?C and -5?C at Barnaul and Akmolinsk, and
3?C and -6?C at Omsk. The ice on the rivers and other bodies of
water gradually melts, breaking up during the latter part of the
season and soon disappearing.
Spring precipitation is light, with totals for April ranging
from 10 mm to 25 mm. Much of it is in the form of snow during the
early part of the month, but snows are uncommon during the latter
part. When the snow melts and the ground thaws the plains become
muddy, the streams become turbulent, and trafficability is generally
poor.
c. Summer
The hot, windy summer begins in early May after the rapidly ris-
ing temperatures have melted the winter snow and ice and frosts have
ended. The season is about 4-1/2 months long, lasting until late
September, when occasional early morning temperatures approach the
freezing point.
The length of the frost-free period decreases toward the east
and north (Map 25089, following p. 22). The average length is 146
days (5 May-29 Sep) at Chkalov, 131 days (10 May-19 Sep) at Akmolinsk,
125 days (16 May-19 Sep) at Omsk, and 122 days (17 May-17 Sep) at
Barnaul. The length of the frost-free season, however, varies con-
siderably from year to year. The mean daily maximum and minimum and
extreme maximum temperatures at five key points during the summer are
as follows:
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Union Republic boundary (SSR)
Oblast, Kray or Autonomous
Republic (ASSR) boundary
O Administrative center (Oblast,
Kray or ASSR)
Approved For Release 2001/08108 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
AVERAGE DURATION OF THE FROST-FREE SEASON
(number of days)
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2QO4QI: FGJA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S
?
Extreme
S
e
tation
Mean Daily Max,
C)
Mean D
il
?
r
?
a
y Min. (
C)
Ma
C
M
J
J
A
S
M
J
J
A
S
Chkalov
20
24
26
25
18
8
13
15
13
7
37
Kustanay
17
22
25
23
17
4
10
12
11
5
37
Akmolinsk
18
23
26
23
17
6
11
13
11
5
37
Omsk
16
21
23
21
16
4
11
13
11
6
39
Barnaul
16
21
24
22
17
4
11
13
11
5
36
Summer is the season of maximum precipitation, which usually
occurs in the form of brief thunderstorms. Between storms, the sum-
mer can be classified as dry. Summer skies are generally clear, sun-
shine is intense, evaporation rates are high, and relative humidity
is low (40-70 percent). Throughout much of the New Lands region the
precipitation averages 25 mm to 40 mm in May; 30 mm to 50 ram in June,
July, and August; and 25 mm to 40 mm in September.
Prevailing winds are from the north and northwest. Desiccating
winds up to 17.8 m. per second (40 m.p.h.) occur from mid-April to
September, particularly in the western parts of the New Lands.
d. Fall
Fall arrives suddenly in late September, when temperatures begin
to drop rapidly and early morning frosts appear. The season is 5 or
6 weeks long, lasting until early November, when the winter snow cover
becomes established.
Temperatures are highly variable during the fall. Morning frosts
become progressively more frequent. The average daily maximum and
minimum temperatures in October are 8?C and 0?C at Chkalov, 7?C and
-3?C at Kustanay, 6?C and -3?C at Akmolinsk, 4?C and -3?C at Omsk,
and 60C and -20C at Barnaul.
Fall precipitation is rather light, averaging about 25 mm
in October throughout most of the New Lands region. Snow becomes
- 23 -
Approved For Release 200S%08/D8T CIA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
more frequent toward the latter part of the season, but intermittent
thaws occur until early or middle November, when the snow cover is
firmly established.
3. Agroclimatic Analysis of the Production Potential
Of all the physical factors that. hamper and limit expansion in
New Lands region, none is more serious than climate. The two major
limits to the expansion of grain production are (1) the length of the
growing (frost-free) season in the north and (2) the amount of effec-
tive precipitation in the south. Since it is easier to combat the
lack of water in the south than the lack of heat in the north, the
Soviets are emphasizing particularly the intensification and expansion
of agriculture in the marginal-precipitation areas of the steppes and
wooded steppes. It is noteworthy that on 7 January 1955, at a meeting
of Komsomol "volunteers," Khrushchev stated:
The lands in Kazakhstan and Altay are considerably
more fertile than in the Ukraine. It is said that
there is little rain there. But-in the southern
Ukraine there is no more rain; therefore such an
argument does not stand examination: 35,p.2/
Along the Azoz and Black Sea coasts, the portion of the Ukraine that
Khrushchev speaks of, average precipitation totals are similar to
those in the New Lands area, but temperatures permit the cultivation
of winter varieties of wheat. Only a year later, Khrushchev referred
to the New Lands as "a zone of drought." 38,p.1I+/
The greater part of the New Lands activity is being devoted to
increasing the area in spring wheat (Figures 7 through 9). Press and
radio reports on sown acreages in the region indicate that spring
wheat occupies between 75 and 80 percent of the total cultivated area.
In 1955, this amounted to 15 to 16 million hectares, or about three-
fourths of the total wheat acreage in the United States. Most of the
spring wheat is of the hard variety, although some soft wheats are
growi.* Since wheat is the basis of the New Lands program, the agro-
climatic analysis of the production potential of the region will be
directed primarily to that crop.
*For a detailed description of the various varieties of spring
wheat and millet being grown in the New Lands, see Appendix C, Item
4+5. See also Figures 11-16.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Areas in millet are also being increased and probably amounted
to 8 to 10 percent of the total sown area of the New Lands in 1955,
or between 1.6 and 2 million hectares (Figure 10). Millet is grown
both as a fodder crop and a cereal. It is drought resistant, likes
warm weather, requires little seed, and is a good insurance crop
during droughts when other crops may fail. A serious disadvantage
of millet is the large amount of weeding required, which makes heavy
demands on labor. The new millet acreages are located primarily in
the Volga-Urals region, particularly in Chkalovskaya, Saratovskaya,
and Kuybyshevskaya Oblast's and Bashkirskaya ASSR. In 1955, millet
accounted for 35 percent of the total sown acreage in Chkalovskaya
Oblast'. !-1 Considerable areas are also planted to millet in
northern Kazakhstan, particularly in Pavlodarskaya Oblast', where
millet accounted for about one-fifth of the total sown acreage in
1955. In Western Siberia, some millet is grown in Altayskiy Kray,
but seldom elsewhere.
The recent Soviet program for expanding corn (maize) acreages
has extended even to the New Lands. This is surprising because the
precipitation is low and the growing season is too short to permit
the ears to mature. As a result, corn can be raised only for silage
in most years (Figure 17). Another problem is the lack of sufficient
hybrid seed, as evidenced by Soviet eagerness to purchase hybrid seed
from a United States firm. Statistics on corn acreages in the New
Lands are particularly vague. They vary from 5 to 10 percent of the
total sown area in different oblasts, and probably average about 6
to 8 percent for the area as a whole. In 1955, apparently about 1.2
to 1.6 million hectares were involved, or almost 10 percent of the
total Soviet corn acreage.
Other crops often mentioned in connection with the program include
potatoes, sunflowers, and seed flax. Potatoes are probably important
only as a local source of food,'and their total acreage is probably
very small. Sunflower and seed-flax acreages are being expanded to
increase the production of vegetable oil (Figure 18). For these
crops, the goal set is 500,000 to 600,000 hectares, but the progress
toward this goal as of 1955 is not known. 40,P.7/ According to the
best estimate that can be made, sunflowers and seed flax will occupy
between 1 and 2 percent of the total New Lands crop acreage. The
tall sunflowers, and even 'corn, are often planted in strips and serve
as windbreaks and snow fences.
The Soviets have commented very little on the problem of crop
rotation. It would seem to be illogical to sow grain crops on the
same land for many consecutive years in such a dry region. Dry-farming
- 25 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 7. Plowing and harrowing in the New Lands, May 1955.
Figure 8. Sowing spring wheat in the Kulunda Plain, Altayskiy
Kray, June l951-.
- 26 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/88 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 9. Harvesting spring wheat in northern Zapadno-
Kazakhstanskaya Oblast', August 1952. Combine is a
"Stalinets-6" model.
Figure 10. Kazakh farmers cutting millet in
Aktyubinskaya Oblast', 1947-
- 27 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 11. Melyanopus 69
hard spring wheat. The most
extensively distributed and
most drought resistant of
hard spring wheats. Yields
are average, milling and
baking qualities average..
Figure 12. Gordeyforme 10
hard spring wheat. A late-
maturing variety of only
average drought resistance.
Susceptible to blight.
Yields are above average,
milling and baking qualities
average.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 13. Gordeyforme 189
hard spring wheat. Drought
resistance is above average,
milling and baking qualities
average.
- 29 -
Figure 14. Mil'turum 553
soft spring wheat. Drought
resistance is above average
during first half of summer.
Milling and baking qualities
are good.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 15. Saratovskoye 853 millet.
The most widely distributed variety
of millet. Noted for its high
yields, resistance to drought, and
resistance to lodging.
Figure 16. Dolinskoye 86 millet.
Quality and yields are high, but
its drought resistance is only
average. Because of a tendency
toward brittleness, it must be
harvested at just the right time.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-R P79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-
III, ...
Figure 17. Mechanized harvesting of
corn for ensilage.
Figure 18. Harvesting sunflowers in the New Lands,
October 1954. Combine is a "SK-2.6O" model.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
practices, also, generally include frequent fallowing to allow mois-
ture to accumulate in the soil. Occasionally, sources mention 4 to
5 years of grain followed by one year of fallow, or refer vaguely to
2 to 5 years of grain, depending on local soil conditions, followed
by fallow.
a. Temperature
The wooded-steppe and steppe regions, where the land is being
brought under cultivation, generally meet the thermal requirements
of spring wheat and millet. Temperature, however, plays a dominant
role in limiting the northward expansion of grain cultivation and,
together with soil factors, fixes a rather definite northern limit.
Temperature is progressively less significant toward the south,
where precipitation becomes the dominant factor.
The predominance of spring wheat over winter wheat is largely
attributable to temperature factors. If possible, winter wheat would
be grown by preference because of its higher yields, but the short
growing season and low winter temperatures permit only spring-sown
grains throughout the New Lands area. In the USSR, mean October
temperature appears significant as an index of the dividing line
between areas of spring and winter wheat. Winter wheat gives way
to spring wheat where the October mean is less than 8?C. The October
means at five key places are 4?C (Chkalov), 2?C (Kustanay), 2?C
(Akmolinsk), and 1?C (Omsk, Barnaul). Another index is the mean
January-February temperature. Spring grains begin to-appear in areas
where the January-February mean is lower than -6?C. At the five key
places mentioned the January-February mean temperatures are consider-
ably below -6?C, ranging from -14?C to -19?C. In the Great Plains
region of the United States the -6?C January isotherm cuts across
central Nebraska and marks approximately the northern limit of winter
wheat. Winter temperatures in the New lands area correspond closely
with those of northern North Dakota and southern Saskatchewan, which
are in the heart of the North American spring-wheat belt. Tempera-
ture factors, however, are not the sole criterion for determining
areal limits of spring and winter grains. For example, ground with
an adequate snow cover will retain more soil heat than bare ground,
and consequently a snow cover favors the growing of winter grains.
Sums of temperatures for the growing season often set the north-
ern limit of feasible cultivation for a particular crop. 73,P.98-134/
A temperature sum is the total of the average daily temperatures of
those days within the growing season that have an average temperature
of 10?C or more and may be represented by an isoline (Map 25091, fol-
lowing p. 32). A considerably higher temperature sum is needed for
millet and corn than for spring wheat. The northern limit of feasible
-32-
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08408 : CIA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
al11\1 sl~
~ ~n
Karaganda
Karkaralinsk*
Temir? ? Kandagach
~? f nba
2200
2100
0000
? Abaka ~`
Minusins
1900 .0, slap nsk
SUMS OF TEMPERATURES* DURING THE GROWING SEASON
Union Republic boundary (SSR) (degrees centigrade)
Oblast, Kray or Autonomous
Republic (ASSR) boundary
o Administrative center (Oblast,
Kray or ASSR)
Main New Lands area
* Total sum of the average daily temperatures of days
having an average temperature of 10?C. or more.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
SOURCE: Izuestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR.
Seriya Geograficheskaya Mar -Apr. 1955.
 Approved For Release 2001/0S$/~86 CI F~P79T01018A000200020001-0
wheat cultivation is indicated by the 1600?C isoline. Wheat culti-
vation, however, does not often extend so far north in the USSR
because of the cold boggy soil along the southern margin of West
Siberia's great Vasyugan'ye Swamp. Millet varieties grown by the
Russians require a minimum temperature sum of 2050?C, according to
Soviet agronomists. This would preclude millet cultivation north
of a line running roughly from Kurgan to Barnaul. The only millet
acreages in Siberia are in Altayskiy Kray, south of this line. The
temperature sum for average-maturing varieties of corn is 30000 to
35000C, and even quick-maturing varieties need from 2500? to 3000?C.
Temperature sums in excess of 2500?C are only rarely encountered in
the New Lands region, which explains in part why the corn here is
being grown for green fodder only. The Soviets claim to be developing
a variety of corn that requires temperature sums of 2000?C'to 2500?C,
but even if a strain that would mature fully in the New Lands were
developed, the yield would probably be low.
Below certain minimum temperatures, grain cannot be planted and
be expected to germinate successfully. It is generally accepted that
spring wheat should not be planted until average daily temperatures
exceed 5?C. This minimum sometimes becomes a significant factor in
the northern part of the New Lands where the frost-free season is
barely long enough for the growth requirements of spring wheat.
Average temperature is the determining factor; early morning tempera-
tures may fall below 5?C and often do well into May. Average daily
temperatures usually reach the 5?C mark by late April or early May
throughout most of the New Lands region, except in the west, where
the 5?C mark is commonly reached by mid-April. The May mean daily
high and low temperatures at four northern stations are 16?C and 5?C
at Tyumen', 15?C and 3?C at Tara, 13?C and 3?C at Tomsk, and l4?C
and 3?C at Krasnoyarsk. Carl L. Alsberg sets the optimum temperature
for wheat germination at 20? to 25?C. 12 .14+ Mid-afternoon tempera-
tures in the northern portion of the New Lands area average 160 to
18?C during the last week of May. Although these temperatures do not
reach the optimum of 20? to 25?C, they approach it rather closely, and
all northern stations have afternoon readings well in excess of 5?C
even in early May. Normally temperature at the time of sowing is not
a restrictive factor, but it would become highly significant if winter
temperatures persisted abnormally late in the year, since the short
frost-free period does not permit much delay.
Minimum permissible temperatures are higher for planting millet
and corn than for spring wheat. For millet these temperatures range
from 8?C to 10?C; the best time to plant millet is when the average
daily temperature reaches 10?C. Millet sprouts are very sensitive to
frost and begin to show signs of frost nipping at temperatures of
2 or 3?C. The average daily temperature usually reaches 10?C by about
-33-
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
1 May in the millet-growing areas. Although early morning readings
down to 2?C are not uncommon in May in northerly areas and near
Akmolinsk and Barnaul, they are rare in the millet-producing regions
near Chkalov, Ufa, Ural'sk, and Pavlodar. For corn the minimum
planting temperature is about the same as for millet -- 8? to 10?C.
Corn sprouts are nipped at about 1?C, but new growth usually appears
after several days. The optimum time for planting corn is when the
average daily temperature has reached about 13?C, or in mid-May,
throughout all but the northern part of the New lands area, where
very little corn production is being attempted.
The length of the frost-free season is highly significant in
determining the type of grain planted, the sowing and harvesting
dates, and the limits of expansion to the north (Map 25089, follow-
ing p. 22). Since the short growing season and low winter tempera-
tures preclude fall sowing, spring-sown grains prevail throughout
the New lands area. The varieties of hard spring wheat grown in the
region require 100 to 110 frost-free days to mature. The less impor-
tant soft varieties require 95 to 105 days. The growing period of
millet is somewhat shorter -- 70 to 80 frost-free days for the rapid-
ripening varieties and 90 to 110 days for the slower ripening types.
The growing period for New Lands varieties of corn varies considerably.
About 120 to 125 frost-free days are required for the early-maturing
varieties, 130-140 days for the average varieties, and 150 or more
days for the slower maturing varieties. The table on the opposite
page gives the dates and lengths of both the average and shortest
frostless period at various key points (west to east).
From these figures, it would appear that an average year would
present no major problem to raising mature crops of spring wheat and
millet. The problem arises when the frost-free period drops appre-
ciably below average. The column on the right indicates the shortest
frostless season that is likely to be encountered over a long period
of years. The number of frost-free days that might be expected during
below-average years is somewhere between the average and extreme. The
expectancy of below-average years is difficult to forecast because
temperature records do not cover a sufficient number of years, but it
would be safe to assume that one or two years out of every ten will
probably have a frost-free period significantly shorter than average.
At Omsk, for example, where the average length is 125 days and the
observed minimum length is 90 days, a frost-free period of 105-110
days would not be unusual. Since delays in sowing and harvesting are
likely to recur, Soviet socialized agriculture will probably continue
to suffer periodically from serious crop losses. The United States
farm delegation that recently visited the USSR encountered a light
frost at Rubtsovsk in Altayskiy Kray on 15 August 1955 -- about 5 weeks
earlier than normal.
- 34 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/081/08 : CIA- P79T01018A000200020001-0
-E-C-R- -
Average Frostless Season Latest
Earliest
Shortest
First
Date
Last
Date
Length
(days)
Recorded
Spring
Frost
Recorded
Fall
Frost
Season
Recorded
a
(days) d
Ural'sk
26 Apr
28 Sep
154+
16 May
14+ Sep
129
Chkalov
5 May
29 Sep
14+6
4 Jun
13 Sep
114+
Ufa
5 May
27 Sep
144
2 Jun
10 Sep
n.a.
Troitsk
14 May
18 Sep
126
6 Jun
3 Sep
n.a.
Tyumen'
20 May
23 Sep
125
3 Jun
13 Sep
107
Kokchetav
22 May
22 Sep
122
18 Jun
4 Sep
78
Akmolinsk
10 May
19 Sep
131
3 Jun
26 Aug
87
Omsk
16 May
19 Sep
125
9 Jun
28 Aug
90
Karkaralinsk
24 May
12 Sep
110
27 Jun
12 Aug
65
Novosibirsk
20 May
19 Sep
121
13 Jun
3 Sep
91
Barnaul
17 May
17 Sep
1.22
19 Jun
3 Sep
77
Tomsk
17 May
12 Sep
117
n.a.
n.a.
n.a.
Krasnoyarsk
20 May
22 Sep
124
n.a.
n.ae
n.a.
a. This figure does not necessarily agree with the time lapse
between the latest spring and earliest fall frosts, since the dates
given are the absolute extremes and probably occurred in different
years.
b. Data not available.
To achieve any degree of success the Soviets must seed the grains
as early in the spring as possible. Soviet agronomists have stated
that spring wheat sowed later than 20-25 May probably will not ripen
fully before the fall frost, with a consequent sharp reduction in the
harvest. One source reported that at Kustanay the yield of wheat sowed
after 20 May was 24 percent lower than that sowed by 4 May. .i+8
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-
In both 195+ and 1955, seeding was not completed until early
June, with most of it taking place in May. Spring arrived early in
1955 and it would seem that the seeding should have been completed
earlier, but the very size of the gigantic New Lands program proba-
bly caused inevitable delays. There is no reason to assume that
similar delays will not occur in the future. In the United States
and Canada, spring wheat is usually sown several weeks before the
last killing frost. The young plants emerge before the last frost,
but they are not seriously injured. Permissible temperatures for
germination of wheat may occur prior to the last frost; if the young
plants are able to survive a mild frost (not below -2?C), early
planting would seem to be a good way of avoiding the more dangerous
fall frosts.
A heavy frost in the late summer or early fall may kill the
plants before the grain has matured. Wheat that freezes before reach-
ing maturity is likely to be unsuitable for milling. Even a light
frost may cause the bran to wrinkle, resulting in low-quality grain.
During ripening, the plant translocates its nutrients to the develop-
ing kernel, and the longer the plant can live before the arrival of
frost, the bigger and heavier will be the kernels and heads. The
fact that 1955 sowing was not completed until 10 June gives rise to
speculation regarding the extent of possible frost damage before the
fall harvest. Assuming it takes 100 to 110 days to mature, hard
spring wheat planted 1 June will presumably not mature until 8 to 18
September. During an average year (see tabulation on p. 35 and Map
25089), frosts would cause no problem. Should they occur appreciably
earlier than normal, the wheat might well be subjected to frost damage.
If corn is planted by mid-May, early-maturing varieties would
ripen about 13 to 18 September and average-maturing varieties 23
September to 3 October. In so far as the frost-free season is con-
cerned, mature crops of early-maturing types of corn could therefore
be grown in the New Lands area, but the corn would have to be planted
as soon as temperatures permit successful germination if the damaging
effects of frosts earlier than about 20 September are to be avoided.
Corn is highly sensitive to frost damage, particularly if temperatures
fall as low as -3?C. This may explain in part why the Soviets are
planting their corn closely, as if only a fodder harvest were anti-
cipated. Millet has a shorter growing period than wheat and corn,
and consequently is less subject to frost damage.
Temperature is an important factor throughout the life history
of the wheat plant. Heat requirements for germination have been
discussed on page 33. During the flowering period, wheat needs fairly
cool weather. If the weather is too hot, the pollen grains will be
killed; if it is too cool, the flower will not open. Flowering lasts
- 36 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
from 6 to 14 days, depending on the weather. Fertilization of the
flowers takes place within rather narrow climatic limits. The best
temperatures appear to be from 13? to 26?C. Fertilization takes
place chiefly in the morning, but low temperatures may delay the
process until later in the day. The actual opening of the flower
and discharge of pollen takes less than an hour. Depending on its
size, an entire field of wheat takes 1 or 2 days for fertilization.
Optimum climatic conditions must prevail if the whole field is to
flower at the same time and if all of the grain is to ripen at the
same time.
During ripening, the temperature should be cool and the air
should contain sufficient moisture to allow wheat to continue to grow
and develop its kernels until they are mature. When the plant dies
naturally, it is ready for harvesting. The ripening process requires
5 to 6 weeks after the emergence of the ear from the leaf sheath.
At any time during the growth cycle, very high temperatures create
the hazard of excessive evaporation, which might reduce the plant to
the wilting point. Temperatures are particularly significant in July,
since the critical period of heading and flowering of wheat occurs at
that time. According to a Soviet agronomist, 23?C appears to be
critical in July; higher temperatures are likely to damage the
grain. 114.,p.263/ The July 23?C isotherm corresponds roughly with the
southern boundary of the New Lands region. Average July temperatures
at five key southern points are 24?C at Ural'sk, 22?C at Aktyubinsk,
22?C at Urkatsch, 19?C at Karkaralinsk, and 22?C at Semipalatinsk.
Corn is a warm-weather plant that requires high temperatures
both day and night during the growing season. In the United States,
practically no corn is grown where the average summer temperatures
are lower than 19?C. Temperatures suitable for corn production pre-
vail in the southern and western parts of the New Lands, but not
along or north of the Trans-Siberian Railroad. Warm weather after
planting hastens germination and growth. Corn flowers and ripens
much sooner when grown at 27? to 32?C than at 21?C. At temperatures
as low as 16?C the flowering and maturing are considerably retarded.
During the months of June, July, and August the average afternoon
high temperatures range from 21?C to 27?C at most stations in the New
Lands. The failure of afternoon temperatures to rise consistently
above 27?C is a significant handicap to the successful production of
a crop of mature corn.
Millet also thrives on high temperatures, particularly those
between 22? and 32?C. Millet does not grow well at temperatures
above 35?C, but such high temperatures are rare. Because millet has
a shorter growing period than any other major grain crops, its
production is less restricted by temperature factors.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Throughout much of the New Lands area the ground freezes to a
depth of 1-1/2 to 2 meters in winter as a result of the long and
severe cold and scant snow cover. At Kursk, in the European part
of the USSR, temperatures are equally low, but the soil usually
freezes to a depth of only one-half meter because of the protection
provided by a heavier snow cover. In the New Lands, unlike European
USSR, the soil dries out more rapidly than it warms up, and the top
layer of the soil is ready for working while the lower layers are
still frozen. For example, by about May 1 the average daily air
temperatures at Omsk begin to reach the 5?C mark necessary for germi-
nation, but at a depth of 1 meter the temperature is still around
0?C, and at a depth of 1-1/2 meters it remains below freezing until
mid-May. As a result, plant growth and the renewal of bacterial
activity are retarded, and water runs off the land instead of being
absorbed into the soil.
b. Precipitation
Throughout much of the New Lands region, especially in the cen-
tral and southern parts where agricultural expansion is most active,
the critical factor is moisture supply. Only in the wooded steppes
to the north, where effective precipitation is greater and evaporation
lower, is sufficient moisture for grain culture generally assured.
Annual precipitation totals are small throughout the New Lands
area, ranging from about 250 mm in the south to 400 mm in the north
(Map 25087, following p. 38). Precipitation exceeds 400 mm only in
the extreme north and east. Isohyets trend east-west except where
the plains are interrupted by the southern Urals, the Kazakh Folded
Upland, and the Altay Mountains. In the southern Urals rainfall
becomes heavier as altitude increases, and the isohyets bend sharply
southward. Precipitation also increases on the northern slopes of
the Kazakh Folded Upland, and Akmolinsk has a higher annual total
than Omsk, about 430 kilometers to the north. On the east, precipi-
tation becomes heavier near the base of the Altay Mountains, which
mark the eastern limit of the main body of New Lands activity.
The seasonal distribution of the precipitation is an important
factor in evaluating the agricultural possibilities of an area.
In the western part of the New Lands, maximum precipitation falls
in late spring and early summer May-early June), whereas east of
the Urals the maximum usually falls in July. Throughout the area
precipitation is heaviest during the warm season when evaporation
rates are highest. In addition, summer rains are usually in the
form of brief thundershowers, with long dry periods between. Precipi-
tation decreases in the fall, and winter is the driest season of the
year. Fall rains are important, and the land is often plowed in the
- 38 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Union Republic boundary (SSR)
Oblast, Kray or Autonomous
Republic (ASSR) boundary
Administrative center (Oblast,
Kray or ASSR)
Approved For Release 2p01108/08 : CIA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
AVERAGE ANNUAL PRECIPITATION
(in millimeters)
(approximate inch equivalents are shown in parentheses)
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 USSR: NEW LANDS
Union Republic boundary (SSR)
Oblast, Kray or Autonomous
Republic (ASSR) boundary
O Administrative center (Oblast,
Kray or ASSR)
4ain i'!ev, Lands
Approved For Release 3001/08y/08 : CIA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
AVERAGE TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR MAY-JUNE-JULY
(in millimeters)
(approximate inch equivalents are shown in parentheses)
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
fall to assist in building up moisture reserves for the following crop
year. In winter the ground freezes, and a light snow cover blankets
the landscape. In spring, when the ground thaws and the snow cover
melts, runoff-retention measures are of paramount importance if the
winter precipitation is to be conserved for agricultural use.
Moisture availability determines largely the southern limit of
agricultural expansion in the New Lands. The average annual precipi-
tation gives only an approximate indication of this limit, since the
moisture may not be available when it is most needed. The 250 mm
isohyet corresponds fairly closely with the southern limit of wheat
cultivation, but in some places the Soviets are sowing wheat where
the average annual rainfall is even more precarious. For example
at Kandagach (south of Aktyubinsk), Uspenskiy (south of Karaganda),
Pavlodar, and in the area between Kustanay and Atbasar the annual
totals are between 200 and 250 mm.
The amount of precipitation during May, June, and July (Map
25088, following p. 38) is important for maintaining soil moisture
from the time of sowing through the critical stages of heading and
flowering (53-60 days). If rainfall is below normal, the plant must
rely on moisture stored in the soil, which may soon be depleted.
In established wheat areas in other parts of the world the 75 mm
isohyet for these three months often corresponds with the extreme
limit of sparse acreage. Three-month totals (May through July) for
six stations along the southern limit of wheat production in the
New Lands are 89 mm at Uraltsk, 89 mm at Aktyubinsk, 90 mm at
Urkatsch, 125 mm at Karkaralinsk, 79 mm at Pavlodar, and 96 mm at
Semipalatinsk.
From about mid-July to early September (44-50 days) the grain
is filling out and maturing, and the precipitation during this time
often determines the size of the heads and the general quality of the
grain. Precipitation during July and August is greater than during
May and June thro h most of the New Lands area, the chief exception
being in the west(Uraltsk-Chkalov), where the peak precipitation
comes in the earlier part of the summer. In general, however, precip-
itation is less of a problem during the filling out and maturing stage
of wheat than in the period from sowing to flowering and heading.
Millet is one of the most drought-resistant grains and has long
been an established crop in the Volga-Urals area and northern
Kazakhstan. Millet is very economical in its consumption of mois-
ture, having a lower transpiration coefficient than other grains.
The seeds require only a little soil moisture for growth and absorb
very little water. During past droughts, wheat yields dropped 70
percent while millet yields dropped only 25 percent.
- 39 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For R%Legse 0 1 8/08 : CIA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
Corn needs plenty of moisture. Requirements are high throughout
the growing season, particularly during silking and tasseling.
According to Soviet agronomists, precipitation is most critical dur-
ing the second and third months following planting, or roughly from
late June to late August. During this 2-month period 100 mm or more
of precipitation per month are needed for a good mature crop, 75 to
100 mm per month for a satisfactory crop, and 50 to 75 mm for a poor
crop. If the precipitation is less than 50 mm per month, a good
crop cannot be expected. The average July and August precipitation
(in millimeters.) for a number of key stations is as follows:
Station
i_ulz
August
Ural'sk
25
26
Chkalov
31
35
Aktyubinsk
25
58
Kustanay
37
46
Kokchetav
37
47
Omsk
52
4+6
Akmolinsk
45
40
Karkaralinsk
1i3
40
Pavlodar
21
4+6
Semipalatinsk
34
26
Barnaul
63
53
Almost everywhere in the New Lands the rainfall for July and
August is less than 50 mm. Altayskiy Kray (Barnaul) seems to be the
most promising area. The deficiency in precipitation during each of
these two months is one more indication that a mature corn crop can-
not be expected unless hybrid varieties adapted to the short growing
season and low precipitation totals are developed and widely used.
A Russian geographer, N.N. Ivanov, has divided the New Lands area
into three moisture zones (Map 25090, following p. 40). 58,p.48-50/
For the four months of May, June, July, and August, he has computed
the relation of precipitation to maximum evaporation and calls the
-#o -
Approved For Re ka a V /08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /0 / CC 4 l P79T01018A000200020001-0
resulting values "coefficients of moisture."* For example, if the pre-
cipitation total were only half the maximum possible evaporation total,
the coefficient of moisture would be 0.50, as indicated below:
Coefficient of moisture Precipitation total
Maximum possible evaporation
Moisture zones are classified as having sufficient-moisture (0.50
and above.), deficient moisture (0.20-0.50), and "meagre" moisture
(less than 0.20). For the period May through August, most of the
New Lands fall within the "deficient" zone. Only in the general
area north of the Trans-Siberian Railroad and in portions of
Novosibirskaya Oblast' and Altayskiy Kray is the moisture "suffi-
cient". According to Ivanov's moisture classification, the zone of
deficient moisture includes most of the New Lands. However, the
area between Karaganda and Semipalatinsk, where numerous state farms
were established in 1955, falls in the zone of meagre moisture supply.
c. Winds
Winds are a significant climatic factor with which the Soviets
must contend in developing the New Lands. Summer winds blowing
across the plowed surface cause dust storms. Hot, dry spring and
summer winds may dessicate crops and dry out the soil, and winter
winds may remove the valuable snow cover. The Soviets realize the
importance of the problem and are extensively applying measures to
reduce the damaging effects of wind.
The New Lands can be described as a "windy" region. Southwest-
erly winds prevail in winter and northerlies and northwesterlies in
summer. No major physical barriers prevent winds from blowin into
the New Lands from the north and south. Winds of gale force (over
51 km per hour) are common throughout the year. In the region of
Aktyubinsk, Kustanay, and Kokchetav, gales blow an average of 4+0 to
4.5 times a year. Farther to the east -- around Omsk, Novosibirsk,
Karkaralinsk, and Barnaul -- gales are experienced 20 to 25 times a
year. The frequency of gales decreases to the north (Kurgan, 9;
Tomsk, 3) and the far west (Chkalov, 7; Ural'sk, 9). 47/
Of particular importance are the hot, dry winds of late spring
and summer (sometimes referred to as "sukhovey) that blow up to
64 kilometers per hour. These winds are associated with descending
masses of air and usually occur along the southern margin of an anti-
cyclone. By lowering the relative humidity during both day and night,
these winds greatly increase the rate of transpiration and soil evap-
oration. If the soil moisture is sufficient to balance transpiration,
the damage to plants is slight, but if the soil moisture is low when
eS a also discussion of evapotranspiration by,Thornthwaite. 11
- 41 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
the wind occurs the plant may wilt and be permanently damaged. In
this way, high winds may seriously aggravate existing drought con-
ditions. Sukhovey winds have reportedly caused temperatures to rise
to l+O?C and relative humidity to drop to 15 percent.
Wind is also an important erosion agent. In northern Kazakhstan
and western Siberia, clouds of blowing topsoil have always been a
common occurrence. This situation has been aggravated by the current
extensive plowing program. Members of the visiting farm delegation
in the summer of 1955 describe large quantities of dust on the ground
and in the air. In winter, high winds often blow snow from the fields
into the ditches or nearby woods. Since the snow cover is thin, it
is essential that as much as possible be retained on the fields to
provide moisture for spring crops.
The Soviets have adopted a number of measures to protect soils
from wind erosion and preserve the winter snow cover. Many reports
mention the planting of trees and shrubs in protective shelterbelts
across open country and along the-borders of the fields (Figure 19).
The United States farm delegation that visited the USSR in the sum-
mer of 1955 noticed great numbers of these newly planted trees and
shrubs. ~8 In many places, high-stalked vegetation -- particularly
corn and sunflowers -- is planted along the edges of the fields
(Figure 20). Soviet agronomists have recommended that the fringes
of fields be plowed and planted first, but this seems rather impracti-
cal. Also recommended is the establishment of a cloddy soil structure
with soil particles too heavy to be carried away by the wind. The
erection of snow fences has also been mentioned frequently. One of
the visiting American farmers reported that "the Soviets are making
the great mistake of taking off all the stubble, which in itself is
a good snow retainer."
d. Drought Hazards
Droughts are a major hazard to the New Lands program. In the
discussion of the southern limit of agricultural expansion, it was
noted that the Soviets are extending cultivation as far south as
average precipitation totals will permit. Even during an "average"
year, agriculture would be in a precarious position in some of the
newly cultivated areas. Soviet statistics for one station in the
New Lands area over a period of 70 years show that 46 percent of the
years had precipitation 10 percent or more lower than average and 26
percent had totals 20 percent or more lower than average. 63/ In
areas where agriculture is precarious in an "average year.," even a
10 percent reduction of precipitation would be hazardous. Therefore,
the critical factor for agriculture is not so much average precipi-
tation as the irregularity and undependability of the precipitation
within any one year and from year to year.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
USSR: NEW LANDS
T?mir? S
KantlaBach
_ S Emba
Union Republic boundary (SSR)
Oblast, Kray or Autonomous
Republic (ASSR) boundary
Administrative center (Oblast,
Kray or ASSR)
Mein Nay, Lanus ared
z
Tara ?
.Kyshtymnl 0Shadrinsk 0.50 0.60
atoust lfhim? \0 65
p ?KUrsan 0.45
:.' Chelyabinsk 0.30 0.40 0'55 E ~? r~ra.~ `~@ar
MOISTURE ZONES*
r ao rove ............. S"uffi%icCi n mw~tu."o
0.5 - and o,~
0.2 -0.5 ........ .............. Deficient moisture
Less than 0.2...??........... Meager moisture
* by coefficients of moisture based on relation of
precipitation to maximum potential evaporation.
(according to Soviet Geographer N. N. Ivanov).
0.8
0.7
0.7
IOIe9sK ~nbaKai\
Cis? ?vsK
PrpNOO psk `.AlnusiPs
~Sta~
0.55 : asbta6ol,
00.69
.6
0.70
SOURCE: izvestiya Akademii idauk SSSR.
Seriya Geograficheskaya Mar.-Apr. 1955.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/95B4..:I.RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Figure 19. Cultivating newly planted shelterbelt in western
Kazakhstan, 1951.
Figure 20. Corn row planted in wheatfield to catch
blowing winter snows.
- 43 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 20i 1 D?rjCIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Normally, precipitation increases during the spring months,
reaches a maximum in the summer, and then declines through autumn
to a minimum in the winter. Nevertheless, dry spells may occur in
May and June. In this critical period of crop growth, the moisture
supply accumulated during the autumn and winter is quickly used up
by the growing plants and evaporation and transpiration increase
because of rapidly rising temperatures. It was one of these early
summer dry spells that seriously reduced the harvest in 1955. After
the spring wheat germinates, continued dry weather dries out the
upper layers of the soil, and the small wheat plant cannot develop
an adequate root system. Without proper rooting, a crop cannot be
assured. Even with proper rooting, drought causes the wheat plant
to speed up its growth processes in an effort to complete the ripening
of the grain before the water supply is exhausted. The result is
shriveled, prematurely formed heads that give low yields or poor
quality grain. The heat and dryness of the atmosphere also cause
more rapid transpiration by plants and a proportionally heavier drain
on soil moisture.
The effect of drought on wheat yields is shown by a comparison
of 1954 and 1955 yields in the New Lands region. According to a
member of the visiting U.S. farm delegation, spring wheat at Rubtsovsk,
Altayskiy Kray, yielded 21 centners per hectare* (barn yield) in 1954.
In 1955, a drought year, the same area yielded 8 to 10 centners per
hectare. Yields at Rubtsovsk are considerably higher than on most
of the New Lands. At Atbasar 1954 yields averaged 11.5 centners per
hectare and 1955 yields 3.5 to 4 centners per hectare. 10
Hot, dry winds are sometimes associated with droughts, particu-
larly in the western part of the New Lands area. Such winds increase
evaporation and transpiration rates and have a desiccating effect on
crops. Winds are discussed in greater detail in section II-B-3-c,
pp? 41-42.
The late spring and summer droughts may be broken by rains,
which improve the condition of the crops, or the drought may continue
through a large part of the summer. The dry spells that occur fre-
quently in autumn are sometimes followed by winters with particularly
light snow cover. Maximum winter snow depths range from'25 cm in the
south to 50 cm in the north. Should the snow cover be appreciably
below normal, the soil-moisture reserves would be reduced, and a dry
spell the following spring would be especially serious.
*1 centner per hectare = 1.49 bushels per acre.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Drought expectancy is particularly important in analyzing the
probable degree of success or failure of the New Lands program in
coming years. There are no definite climatic criteria for defining
a drought. Drought is relative, depending on the extent of departure
from normal-moisture conditions in any specific locality. Records
kept at Barnaul from 1857 to 1930 give some indication of the varia-
bility of precipitation from year to year. During this long period,
26 percent of the years had precipitation 10 percent or more above
normal, 8 percent had precipitation 20 percent or more above normal,
46 percent had precipitation 10 percent or more below normal, and 26
percent had precipitation 20 percent or more below normal. 63,
Below-normal annual precipitation does not necessarily indicate
drought, since favorable distribution might compensate for low rain-
fall in any specific year. According to A.A. Kaminskiy, a Soviet
climatologist, drought conditions occur when there is a continuous
period without rain, afternoon temperatures increase day by day,
there is little cloudiness, and the absolute humidity is constantly
low. 44,p.166/
The records for Barnaul indicate that a serious drought occurred
on an average of once in every 5 to 8 years and usually lasted 2 years.
One especially serious drought lasted 15 years -- from 1857 to 1872.
In 1939, Lazar Volin of the U.S. Department of Agriculture stated
during a period of nearly half a century following the catastrophic
crop failure of 1891 in the lower Volga and Asiatic wheat regions
only 11 years had a good moisture supply; 22 years experienced
potential droughts during the growing season; and 15 years had full-
fledged droughts. 123.,P-179/ These 15 droughts occurred on an aver-
age of once in 2 to years, but they varied from 2 years in succes-
sion to 1 in 7 years. According to other estimates, droughts may be
expected in 2 out of 5 years. It can be assumed that the frequency
of drought in the future will be about the same as in the past.
In 1954, moisture conditions were good in the New Lands and
poor in the Ukraine, whereas in 1955 the situation was reversed.
This has led to the development of the so-called "balancing out"
theory, which some believe to be one of the motives behind agricul-
tural expansion in the New Lands. Since droughts are usually con-
fined to particular regions in any specific year, the production of
wheat in several regions rather than in only one would reduce the
hazard of a major Soviet grain shortage in any one year.
III. Settlement Structure in the Development of the New Lands
The New Lands area is by no means new as an agricultural region,
although it includes large reserves of virgin and idle land. The main
- 45 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
area of expansion -- the southern part of Western Siberia, northern
Kazakhstan, and Altayskiy Kray -- was colonized by agricultural set-
tlers in Tsarist days, and agriculture and animal husbandry have
long been important features of the economy.
The larger cities of the area, which originally served as mar-
ket towns, key points in the transportation network, and distribution
and supply centers, later developed diversified manufacturing. The
New Lands area is well situated for importing basic industrial goods,
since the major part of it lies between two great industrial complexes,
the Urals and the Kuzbas, with a third growing industrial and mining
center at Karaganda, to the south (Map 25083, at end of report).
Despite the established agricultural and industrial development,
the distribution of population in the New Lands is irregular, and
large areas are sparsely populated. The current Soviet agricultural
program ushers in a new era of settlement and development. Many
observers have noted similarities between conditions in the New Lands
and along the frontier in the early days of the American West.
Emphasis on permanent settlement in the New Lands continued to in-
crease as the program moved into its second year. If successful,
the program will introduce a new type of agricultural town into the
steppes, stimulate the growth of established settlements, and increase
population throughout the area.
A. Present Settlement Pattern
1. Origins of Settlement
The process of peopling the area now included in the New Lands
project has been in progress since the colonial days of Tsarist Russia,
when the Empire was being expanded to the east and south. Most of the
large cities in the-main New Lands area originated as fortresses at
strategic points on overland routes, some of them early in the eight-
eenth century. Even the present-day major centers of northern
Kazakhstan -- Petropavlovsk, Kokchetav, Akmolinsk, and Aktyubinsk --
were established as Russian outposts, not Kazakh settlements.
Although situated far to the east, the Altay region was the
objective of Russian colonization as early as the end of the seven-
teenth and the beginning of the eighteenth century. Later, in the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it received many immigrants from
the Ukraine. The best agricultural lands of northern Kazakhstan were
colonized by settlers from the Ukraine and the central chernozem re-
gion during the nineteenth century.
- 46 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /0 / CCj4ApP79T01018A000200020001-0
Settlement in these areas, however, received its greatest im-
petus from the building of railroads. The Trans-Siberian main line,
particularly, was a major influence in bringing permanent agricultural
settlement to Western Siberia. Construction was begun in the early
1890's and continued for about 13 years. The completion of the rail-
road opened up the adjacent lands to intensive agricultural settlement.
2. Population Density and Distribution
The present distribution of population in the New Lands is in-
fluenced not only by availability of agricultural land, as determined
chiefly by climate and soils, but by transportation facilities, par-
ticularly railroads. In this area the majority of the population is
concentrated along the widely separated rail lines.
The area from the Volga eastward to Chkalov and Orsk is shown
on Russian maps as having a population density of 10-25 per square
kilometer (26-65 per square mile). Densities are about the same in
the vicinity of Chelyabinsk and Kurgan, around Omsk, in a narrow
band along the main Trans-Siberian line eastward beyond Novosibirsk,
southward from Novosibirsk into Altayskiy Kray and the Kuznetsk Basin.
The rest of the main New lands area falls within the category of 1-10
persons per square kilometer (2.6-26 per square mile). To'the north
and south the New Lands area is bordered by nonagricultural, sparsely
populated areas with densities of less than 1 person per square kilo-
meter (2.6 per square mile).
Within these general population categories densities vary locally.
The northern and central portion of Kustanayskaya Oblast', according
to best recent Soviet sources M26, has an average rural density of 7
persons per square kilometer er square mile). The part of
Akmolinskaya Oblast' within the New Lands area (the north and central
part) has an average density of 9 per square kilometer (23 per square
mile . Population density falls to about 4 per square kilometer (10
per square mile) in the adjacent northern part of Karagandinskaya
Oblast'. Along the northern section of the right bank of the Irtysh
River in Pavlodarskaya Oblast', in easternmost Kazakhstan, highest
densities are from 3 to 5 per square kilometer (8-13 per square mile).
In the dry southwestern part of the oblast, densities drop to less
than 1 per square kilometer.
In the oblasts in Western Siberia along the main Trans-Siberian
line, densities are higher than in northern Kazakhstan. The densest
population in Omskaya Oblast' is in the central part along the rail-
road, where densities rise to 15 persons per kilometer (39 per square
-4+7-
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
mile). Novosibirskaya Oblast' has its heaviest population concen-
trations, up to 16-23 per square kilometer (4+2-60 per square mile),
in the eastern Trans-Ob' rayons, which are well served by rail
transportation and are near the industrial Kuznetsk Basin. Densities
are lower in the western part of the oblast, which is most emphasized
in the New Lands program, and lowest -- 4 per square kilometer (10 per
square mile) -- in the northern rayons of the Barabinsk Plain.
Altayskiy Kray has an average population density of 9 per square
kilometer (23 per square mile), but the density rises to 20 (52 per
square mile) on some of the better agricultural lands in the wooded-
steppe and steppe zones.
3. Ethnic Composition
Great Russians are the dominant ethnic group throughout the New
Lands, but many Ukrainians and Kazakhs, as well as representatives
of various smaller nationality groups, live within the area.
The Volga area has significant Ukrainian and Bashkir minorities,
and a few Tatars. In the Urals the proportion of Bashkirs increases.
Ukrainians are also present, and Kazakhs appear as a minority group
in the south near the borders of the Kazakh SSR, especially in
Chkalovskaya Oblast'.
Ukrainians are relatively numerous among the farming population
of Western Siberia, particularly in southern Omskaya Oblast' and in
the Barabinsk Plain of Novosibirskaya Oblast'. Some Tatars are found
in Kurganskaya Oblast' and another group of them near Lake Chany in
the Barabinsk Plain, but they comprise an insignificant proportion
of the population. Many other nationality groups of the Soviet Union
are represented in the area, especially in the large cities. Like
any frontier area, Western Siberia has been a melting pot for many
nationalities.
In Altayskiy Kray the Ukrainian population ranks second only to
the Great Russian, and Ukrainians are' particularly numerous in the
Kulunda Steppe. Chuvash and Kazakhs form small minority groups.
Most of the native Altaic tribes live chiefly in the mountains in
the southern part of the kray rather than on the agricultural lands.
Even in Kazakhstan, Great Russians appear to outnumber the
native Kazakhs, with Ukrainians occupying third place. Soviet sources
stress the fact that Kazakhs comprise the basic mass of the population
throughout the republic, but this does not seem to be true for indi-
vidual oblasts. In Akmolinskaya Oblast', for example, the census of
1939 indicated that about 30 percent of the population was Kazakh,
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/0 /$ CCAA NP79T01018A000200020001-0
40 percent Great Russian, and 20 percent Ukrainian. 26/ The percent-
age of Great Russians in the total population of Kazakhstan has un-
doubtedly increased since 1939. In general, the Great Russians are
concentrated in the larger towns and cities, especially in industrial
and mining centers, and the Ukrainians are found chiefly in the rural
villages of the better agricultural areas.
if. Rural Settlements
Rural settlement prior to the New Lands program consisted
chiefly of compact agricultural villages. By that time, the dis-
persed farmsteads of the earlier settlers had gradually disappeared
and been replaced by the nucleated settlements of kolkhozes, sovkhozes,
and machine-tractor stations.
In the wooded-steppe area along the Trans-Siberian Railroad in
Western Siberia, farm villages are usually small, with a population
of about 500 or less. In the Barabinsk Plain of Novosibirskaya
Oblast', the average number of households per kolkhoz ranges from 92
to 255. Within the boundaries of a single kolkhoz, there are usually
several populated points, or small villages. The extensive type of
cultivation in less humid areas of this type, plus the consolidation
of kolkhozes in recent years, has contributed to this situation.
Villages in the Kulunda Steppe of Altayskiy Kray are generally larger
than those of the wooded steppe, with settlement concentrated near
good water sources. Most of the numerous rural settlements in Altay-
skiy Kray are shown on a recent Soviet map as having a population of
less than 2,000. 140
Villages are most closely spaced near transportation routes.
The larger settlements, which are often rayon centers, are generally
located on a railroad line or a major stream. Village streets are
generally unpaved. Wooden construction predominates in the villages
of the wooded steppe, and log houses and wooden fences around indi-
vidual homes are common. An occasional village made up entirely of
whitewashed adobe huts reveals the Ukrainian origin of its inhabitants.
A fairly dense net of local dirt roads connects the agricultural vil-
lages.
In the true steppe in Kazakhstan, south of the wooded steppe,
the villages are more widely spaced and usually smaller. In
Akmolinskaya Oblast', which will be a major center in New Lands
development, populated places are spaced 30 to 40 kilometers apart.
For the most part, they are located along rivers or on fresh-water
lakes and have populations of 300 to 500, with an occasional larger
village of 1,000 or more. Houses in the timberless steppe area are
predominantly pf adobe (Figure 21).
- 49 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 21. Adobe hut on a Kazakhstan kolkhoz.
5. Urban Settlement
There are a number of cities with populations of over 100,000
in the main New Lands area, as well as many smaller cities. The
cities, however, are more widely spaced here than in European USSR.
Novosibirsk, with a population estimated at 800,000,* is the largest
city in the area. Other large cities in the RSFSR sections of the
New Lands are Chelyabinsk (700,000), Omsk (6oo,ooo), Chkalov (225,000),
Kemerovo (325,000), Barnaul (250,000), Tomsk (225,000), Tyumen'
(130,000), and Kurgan (l00,000).** These cities all have adminis-
trative functions, being oblast centers or the equivalent. Two of the
large cities are not administrative centers. Orsk, a center of oil
refining and heavy industry in Chkalovskaya Oblast', has a population
of about 155,000; and Biysk, a city of 12 5,000, is located in a rich
agricultural region in Altayskiy Kray.
*All population figures in this section are estimates, based on
source 2 in Appendix C. In some cases these estimates seem too high.
**The industrial cities of the Kuznetsk Basin other than Kemerovo
are not included here, since they have little connection with the New
Lands program.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
The large cities include the usual range of urban activities.
Most of them are transportation centers and have varied industrial
enterprises. Novosibirsk, usually described by observers as a booming
frontier-type town despite its large size, is the most important
industrial and transportation center east of the Urals. The products
of its industries include electronic equipment, assembled airframes,
optical instruments, steel products, arms and ammunition, and farm
machinery.
In northern Kazakhstan the chief cities, which are also oblast
centers, are generally smaller, and their industries are less varied.
The outstanding exception is Karaganda, a huge coal-mining and metal-
lurgical center in the southern part of the New Lands. The most
recent estimates place the population of the Karaganda metropolitan
area at around half a million. Both Petropavlovsk and Semipalatinsk
are in the 150,000-population category, and Akmolinsk, Aktyubinsk,
Ural'sk, Kustanay, Kokchetav, Pavlodar, and Ust'-Kamenogorsk are
cities of 75,000 to 125,000 population. In all these cities mentioned
except Karaganda, the processing of agricultural products occupies a
prominent place among the industrial activities.
The impact of the New Lands program is likely to be more strongly
felt in the many smaller cities in the area than in the large cities
with diversified industries. The chief industries of the typical
small steppe city are concerned with processing agricultural products
and include flour mills, meat-packing plants, tanneries, and in some
places woolen mills. Most of the oblast centers of Kazakhstan are
of this type, with industries dependent on the products of their
hinterlands. Kustanay and Akmolinsk, particularly, are frequently
mentioned in the press as being centers for the development of new
lands (Figure 22). Among the other small steppe cities are Shadrinsk
in Kurganskaya Oblast', Ishim in Tyumenskaya Oblast', Troitsk in
Chelyabinskaya Oblast', Atbasar in Akmolinskaya Oblast', and Kamen'-
na-Obi and Slavgorod in Altayskiy Kray. Most of them fall within
the 25,000-50,000 population range and will serve as local supply
and market centers in the New Lands program.
Rubtsovsk in southern Altayskiy Kray, unlike many other small
cities, is already a large center for the manufacture of tractors
and agricultural machinery (Figure 23). Since the founding of these
industries during and after World War II, Rubtsovsk has grown rapidly,
and its position in the midst of a greatly expanded market area should
be an added impetus to growth. In 1955 the population of Rubtsovsk
was estimated at 70,000.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 22. Scene in Akmolinsk, 1955. Most of
the streets in this sizable city are unpaved.
Figure 23. Rubtsovsk, probably one of the fastest-growing cities
in the New lands, 1952.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
B. Impact of the New Lands Program
1. Official Policy Regarding Settlement and Construction
A period of several years with good harvests will be required
before permanent settlements can become firmly established in the
New Lands. No plans were made for building settlements in advance of
immigration to the New lands. Rather, the settlers themselves, mostly
young agricultural workers, after being transported to the New Lands
apparently were expected to do a large part of the actual building.
Khrushchev touched on the problem of living conditions in a
January 1955 speech, months after the first settlers had gone to the
New Lands area. He commented on the gradual improvement in housing,
such as, progression from earthen floors to wooden, and urged settlers
to use local building materials, such as the reeds of Kazakhstan.
Since most of the New Lands are in a timber-deficient area, houses
of clay and straw were recommended. Khrushchev emphasized the impor-
tance of carrying "town culture" to the steppes and urged the settlers
to build schools, children's homes, and kindergartens. 35/
One of the early Party and Government decrees on virgin and idle
lands clearly indicated the temporary character of initial settlement
facilities. 9/ According to the decree the Ministry of Consumer's
Goods was required to deliver large numbers of 25-man and 10-man
tents to the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of State Farms.
Some provision for permanent housing was made in the decree, which
stipulated that prefabricated housing units also were to be delivered
to the Ministries of Agriculture and State Farms-.
Housing and water supplies have presented major problems through-
out the New lands area. Primitive living conditions, with workers
housed in tents and field wagons, apparently prevailed in many areas
throughout 1951+ and in some cases persisted into the second year of
the program (Figures 21. and 25). Prefabricated houses and building
materials, however, soon were moving into the area from woodworking
enterprises in the northern parts of the USSR, along with such facil-
ities as portable bathhouses. In spite of continuous press reports
about the tardiness and inefficiency of the responsible construction
trusts, houses and other buildings have apparently been.springing up
in the new settlements at a relatively rapid rate, possibly because
of the initiative of the settlers in building their own homes.
Various types of prefabricated houses are being shipped in, rang-
ing from single homes to multiple-flat buildings (Figure 26). One
dormitory-type unit is described as consisting of 14 individual rooms
and a common kitchen, dining room, drying room, and storage room.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 24. Tents used as temporary housing for
settlers on new state grain farms.
Figure 25. Portable temporary housing on a sovkhoz in
Chkalovskaya Oblast', June 1954.
- 54 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/ E8 - CII -RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Figure 26. Prefabricated houses on a new sovkhoz
in Altayskiy Kray.
Many of the settlers, however, are building their own homes with the
aid of government loans. Such individual houses are generally made
of mud brick because wood is scarce (Figure 27).
The use of local building materials has been facilitated by
various local surveys. Stone, concrete, bricks, and other local
materials have been widely used in the construction of grain store-
houses. Even the-Kazakhstan reeds have been used to a considerable
extent in the manufacture of pressboard. Houses made of blocks and
slabs of this material instead of clay bricks can be built very rap-
idly.
2. New Sovkhoz Settlements
In 1954, the first year of the New Lands activities, the burden
of bringing new ground under cultivation fell chiefly on the kolkhozes
already existing in the region. This work is being transferred to
large new sovkhozes (state farms), 124 of which were established in
the New Lands area in 1954 and 300 more in 1955 (Figures 28 and 29).
Of this total, 337 state farms with a total of about 12.5 million
hectares are in Kazakhstan. 85 The large percentage of new state
farms points up the importance of northern Kazakhstan in the New Lands
project, but in actual acreage planted to grain, Kazakhstan does not
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 27. New settlers mixing brick for a house on a
sovkhoz inAltayskiy Kray.
Figure 28. A new sovkhoz town in Kazakhstan, 1954.
Figure 29. Another sovkhoz settlement in Kazakhstan, 1955.
Houses are almost identical to those in Figure 28.
- 56 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
rank quite so high. Apparently, in established farming areas that
are already fairly well settled, such as Altayskiy Kray, southern
Omskaya Oblast', and even Severo-Kazakhstanskaya Oblast', large acre-
ages are to be brought under cultivation by extending the sown areas
of existing kolkhozes and sovkhozes, and the new sovkhozes are being
built chiefly in areas where few had existed before. Akmolinskaya
Oblast', for example, has 77 new grain sovkhozes 34 and Kustanay-
skaya Oblast' even more, while Altayskiy Kray has only 20 or so. 121/
The best estimate of the average size of the new state farms is
in excess of 25,000 hectares. Estimates, however, vary from 20,000
to 50,000 hectares. Minister of State Farms Benediktov stated on
one occasion that each farm has an average of 25,000 hectares of
arable land, not including land of other types. 36/ According to a
July 1955 report from Kazakhstan, the land area at the disposal of
each sovkhoz varies from 20,000 to 40,000 hectares. Planning teams
are working on land-utilization programs for the new sovkhozes, using
aerial photographs to identify areas suitable for grain, hay, and
pasture. The teams are also working on plans for internal transport,
organization of settlements, and the layout of irrigation networks. 32
In contrast to the frequent mention in the Soviet press of new
sovkhozes, no mention has been made of new kolkhozes. Some new MTS's
(machine-tractor stations), however, are being built to meet the needs
of expanding agriculture on existing kolkhozes. This has been in-
terpreted as evidence of a desire for direct state control over new
lands, which is most easily accomplished if the sovkhoz is the dominant
type of agricultural organization. The creation of new sovkhozes
with larger, functionally planned settlements manned chiefly by young
people is also a quicker and more efficient means of getting produc-
tive workers onto the land than is resettling whole peasant families
on new kolkhozes. The personnel of established kolkhozes, however,
is being increased by the immigration of whole families. For example,
more than 4,000 families reportedly migrated to kolkhozes in Altayskiy
Kray in 1954.
The most striking changes in settlement pattern apparently will
take place in sparsely inhabited areas where.new sovkhozes are being
organized, notably in northern Kazakhstan. In areas already settled
the chief effect will'be an increase in total population and in the
size of kolkhoz settlements, even though a few new sovkhozes will be
established. On the new sovkhozes, however, new settlements are being
created around the central farmsteads, and considerable centralized
control will be exerted over the building of the new towns.
The Ministry of Urban and Rural Construction of the USSR is
sending groups of architects, engineers, and other technicians to the
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
New Lands to select sites for the towns on new state farms. Each of
the planned settlements was assigned an area of 60 to 100 hectares,
allowing room for several streets. A central square, a park, a gar-
den, and public buildings are planned for each settlement, with elec-
tric stations, workshops, and grain-storage facilities on the out-
skirts. The figure of 500-600 inhabitants is suggested for these
"townlets," but population figures quoted for several individual
sovkhozes are 1,000 or more.
The building of settlements on the large new sovkhozes affords
an excellent opportunity for realizing Khrushchev's aim of carrying
"town culture" to the steppes. The new settlements, with rows of
apartment houses and cultural buildings, will be in striking contrast
to the older kolkhoz villages. Although there has been no actual
mention of agrogorods, much of the planning for sovkhoz settlements
is reminiscent of Khrushchev's abortive 1950-51 scheme for resettling
the agricultural population in rural cities. In September 1955,
Pravda stated that "in the steppes, populated points of a new type
are arising, with hospitals and maternity homes, libraries and read-
ing rooms, baths and public dining rooms." 89/
According to the standard pattern, an ideal new settlement would
apparently consist of dwelling houses (including apartment buildings),
a school and nursery, public dinin room, stores, bathhouse, "House
of Culture," and other facilities Figures 27, 28 and 29). Most of
these buildings will be of the simplest construction. New houses
have only two or three rooms, and the much-publicized Houses of Cul-
ture may be one-room structures. Some of the new settlements have
been described in Soviet press and radio reports. At Kulundinskiy
Sovkhoz in the Kulunda Steppe of Altayskiy Kray, for example, appar-
ently a dormitory and store have been completed and houses, a school,
a club, and a hospital are under construction. Plans also called for
planting a "green ring" of trees around the sovkhoz town.
Many articles emphasize the quick change-over from the tents and
field wagons of 1954 to permanent settlements. In regard to Izobil'nyy
Sovkhoz of Akmolinskaya Oblast', Pravda said: "Last year on the farm-
stead of this sovkhoz there were scattered around only several komsomol
tents, but now there stands here a comfortable small town with a popu-
lation of 1,500 people. One hundred and fifty families of new settlers
are being provided with private homes." 89
Although primitive living conditions still prevail in many places,
the provision of essential services to the new sovkhozes is being
pressed forward. The most serious problem is the provision of a de-
pendable water supply. The new farms must depend on wells, and so far
the number of wells and the quality of the water do not seem to be
- 58 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
satisfactory. Commonly a single well supplies a whole village with
water, and no plumbing or sewer facilities are available (Figure 30).
However, the new sovkhozes are apparently being supplied with elec-
tricity, telephone, telegraph, and radio facilities at a fairly rapid
rate.
Figure 30. A woman carrying water
from a village well in Western
Siberia. Scarcity of water is
one of the chief problems of
settlements in the New Lands.
3. Expansion of Existing Cities and Towns
The expansion of the sown acreage of the kolkhozes and the arriv-
al of additional personnel will also increase the size of existing
rural settlements. The growth of such centers has received some at-
tention in the Soviet press, although the emphasis has been on the
new settlements. Kolkhoz villages, as well as new sovkhoz settle-
ments, report the construction of radio diffusion networks, electric
power stations, schools, clubs, libraries, and medical centers as new
families arrive from European USSR.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 0 1/ 8 08 : IA-RDP79TO1018A000200020001-0
E-
Many railway-station settlements and urban centers in areas of
agricultural expansion will also tend to increase in size and function.
A striking example of a growing railroad town is Karasuk in the south-
ern part of Novosibirskaya Oblast'. Karasuk, located on the Tatarsk-
Kulunda line, is also the center for the construction of the new.
Karasuk-Kamen' broad-gauge line. A new settlement for railroad
workers is growing up and new grain elevators have been built on the
outskirts of the town. A considerable number of apartment houses are
under construction, as well as schools, warehouses, clubs, and other
public and cultural buildings. The completion of the Karasuk-Kamen'
line will also speed the development of its other terminus, Kamen'-
na-Obi, which is now a river port with important food-processing
industries.
Another settlement that is likely to develop rapidly because of
the expanding rail net is Peski, located at the crossing of the
Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha line and the Kurgan-Sovkhoz Kras-
noznamenskiy line. Although it was formerly only a small village
near the Ishim River in Kokchetavskaya Oblast', Peski is now scheduled
to become an important rail center.
An example of the impetus to the growth of steppe cities is given
by a press report from Kustanay in April 1955, which noted that that
city had become the center of one of the largest areas of new-land
development. 86/ The article further stated that many new enterprises
are either planned or under construction, among them the largest grain
elevator in Kazakhstan, a plant for making reinforced concrete, and
a brickyard. Housing is being provided for construction workers,
railway workers, geologists, and other workers brought in by the New
Lands program.
Development of the iron ore deposits south of Kustanay, which
are located near the confluence of the Tobol and Ayat Rivers will
give new importance to Kustanay and Tobol. A new city is also planned
for the actual site of the ore-extraction combine, which will be on
the railroad now under construction between Kustanay and Tobol.
In cities such as Rubtsovsk, where agricultural-machinery plants
are already in operation, the expansion of these and related indus-
tries is already in progress. In Pavlodar, a large new agricultural-
machinery plant is under construction.
4. Changes in Ethnic Composition
The resettlement program in the New Lands area will have a marked
effect on ethnic composition. Figures on the number of migrants or
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
their ethnic origin, however, are incomplete. Frequent fragmentary
reports suggest a continuing flow from almost all parts of European
USSR into the New Lands, chiefly Kazakhstan, Altayskiy Kray, and
some oblasts of Western Siberia. For 1954, the first year of the
program, a commonly quoted figure is 150,000 immigrants. In the fall
of 1955, Benediktov announced that a total of 450,000 volunteers had
gone to work on the collective and state farms of the New Lands..36
This figure apparently did not include demobilized soldiers, techni-
cal experts, or railroad construction workers, whose addition might
bring the total up to more than half a million. Kazakhstan alone
has received over 290,000 immigrants, according to late 1955 press
and radio reports. j
In order to induce settlers to go to the New Lands, the state
has made liberal financial allowances, including free transportation,
long-term credits for construction of homes, loans for livestock
purchases, increased wages, and subsidies of other types. Most of
the settlers actually seem to be volunteers attracted by patriotism,
the adventure of the new frontier, or the liberal government allow-
ances. Nevertheless, many technically qualified cadres, such as
machine operators, engineers, and agronomists, are undoubtedly being
moved into the New Lands under Party or Government orders.
The majority of the new workers seem to be young people from
the urban centers; the press frequently reports the departure of
trainloads of volunteers from Moscow, Leningrad, and other cities.
Settlers for the New lands are also being recruited from the Ukraine,
Belorussia, Moldavia, and the Baltic republics, as well as from the
RSFSR. The central industrial region and the-central chernozem
oblasts of the RSFSR appear to be supplying considerable numbers of
settlers. Ethnically the composition of the immigrants is probably
in proportion to the size of the three major Slavic groups of the
USSR -- chiefly Great Russians, next Ukrainians, and then Belorus-
sians -- with smaller numbers from the other nationality groups.
There are some indications that settlers are also being recruited in
the Central Asian republics, but probably in small numbers. A group
of settlers from one city or area usually moves as a unit into the
New Lands, and some areas have provided the complete complement of
cadres for a new state farm. Leningrad, for example, has manned 15
new grain sovkhozes in Pavlodarskaya Oblast'.
The greatest ethnic change will be in the Kazakh portion of the
New Lands, where the inflow of Slavic settlers will accelerate Russi-
fication of the area and reduce still further the relative proportion
of native Kazakhs in the population. This is a continuation of an
already established trend that has strong political implications.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
IV. Expansion of Transportation in the New Lands
The success or failure of the New Lands program will depend in
part on the availability of an efficient transportation system capa-
ble of meeting the heavy traffic demands associated with the impor-
tation of construction materials and the movement of grain and other
agricultural products. Adequate railroad, road, and inland-waterway
facilities will speed up the settlement of millions of acres of
uncultivated lands, as well as guarantee the timely transport of
grain and other agricultural products to processing centers.
In 1954, during the initial stages of the New Lands program,
transportation was very inadequate. The rail net consisted chiefly
of the east-west Trans-Siberian and Turkestan-Siberian (Turksib)
trunklines and a few key railroads that crossed the New Lands area
roughly from north to south. The Akmolinsk railroad junction and
classification yard, located at the intersection of the South Siberian
and Petropavlovsk-Karaganda lines, handled much of the freight traffic
destined for the virgin and idle lands of northern Kazakhstan. It
was known as the gate to the New Lands.
Roads in the New Lands area left much to be desired. Except
for a few improved roads* following major rivers and railroad lines,
most of the roads were unimproved dirt lanes that became muddy and
unfit for motor traffic during the rains of autumn and spring (Figure
31). Many roads were no more than cross-country tracks, inadequately
distributed and lacking road signs or orientation markings of any
kind. The only inland waterways in use were a few hazardous stretches
of the Ob' and Irtysh Rivers,,which at best permitted only light traf-
fic.
The Soviet Government, fully aware of the need for improved
transportation in the New Lands, has taken ambitious steps to con-
struct new avenues for overland freight movement and to develop in-
land waterways for greater. commercial use. To date the construction
program has been focused mainly on railroads, which are expected to
carry the bulk of freight traffic in the New Lands. Road and inland-
waterway improvement has progressed at a much slower rate because of
lower immediate priority.
*This category includes roads with a built-up travelway, with
gravel surfaces that. have been reinforced or rolled. Improved roads
are generally provided with drainage ditches and can be used for
normal traffic throughout the year.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 31. Seasonal unimproved dirt road of the type
commonly seen in the New Lands region.
Figure 32. Laying narrow-gauge track on the
newly constructed Kustanay-Uritskoye rail line.
- 63 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
A. New Railroads and Their Significance to the Overall
Pr2Uam*
With the initiation of the New Lands program, the construction
of some 2,132 kilometers of new railroad lines was started in the
vast expanse extending from the upper reaches of the Tobol River to
the Irtysh and Ob' Rivers. The new lines, mainly of narrow gauge,
will cut from west to east and from north to south across the main
stretches of virgin and idle lands that are being brought under
cultivation in northern Kazakhstan, the Altayskiy Kray, and the
districts of Kurgan, Omsk, and Novosibirsk.
The predominance of narrow-gauge lines, approximately 1,390
kilometers of the total of 2,132, reflects the need for quick and
cheap construction. Narrow-gauge lines can be laid quickly, with a
minimum construction effort and a relatively small financial outlay
(Figure 32). They are somewhat more expansive than hard-surfaced
motor roads, but considerably cheaper than broad-gauge rail lines.
Broad-gauge lines, however, are capable of handling heavier traffic
and are therefore being constructed in areas where heavy traffic is
anticipated. For this reason, some of the new lines originally
planned as narrow-gauge are being changed to broad-gauge.
The network of narrow- and broad-gauge lines is intended to
speed up the development of the New Lands and to guarantee trans-
portation to processing points for grain and other agricultural prod-
uce, even from remote producing areas (Figure 33). In addition, the
railroads will enable thousands of workers and settlers from the
heavily populated areas of the European USSR to move to far-off
districts in the New'Lands (Figure 34+). Essentially, the new lines
will serve as feeder lines to the Trans-Siberian and South Siberian
trunklines, which roughly bound the New Lands area on the north and
south. Some of the new lines will branch off from one or the other
of the two trunklines; others will connect with existing branches.
*Transportation data in this section were derived primarily from
Soviet radio broadcasts and newspaper articles, which are exceptionally
numerous because of the high propaganda value placed on transportation
in the New lands program. The information was spotty, incomplete, and
in many cases inconsistent or contradictory. The material in this
section is largely taken from such scattered accounts pieced together
and evaluated against each other. Consequently the presentation as a
whole is new, and no single source can be cited for many of the state-
ments made. The section on railroads has been coordinated with S/Tr.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /0?/0L3 b%A;RYP79T01018A000200020001-0
Figure 33. Types of broad-gauge locomotive and rolling
stock to be used in transporting grains from the newly
cultivated areas.
Figure 34. Train arriving at Kustanay with volunteer
colonists from Moscow and the Ukraine.
- 65 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 29_gq 8/R8~_cIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Some of the new construction will serve those state farms that are
being designed as show places of the huge agricultural program, such
as Sovkhozes imeni Khrushcheva, im. Lomonosova, and Pobeda. Accord-
ing to present plans, other lines will terminate at large state farms,
such as Sovkhozes Ozernyy, Krasnoznamenskiy, and im. Malenkova (see
Map 25083, at end of report).
1. The Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha Line
This railroad is the longest of the lines planned for the New
Lands in northern Soviet Central Asia. From Kustanay a rail terminus
on the upper reaches of the Tobol River, it follows a roughly east-
west course for approximately 820 kilometers to the settlement of
Kaymanachikha on the Irtysh River.
The Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha line, when completed, will
cut through the heart of the New Lands area in northern Kazakhstan
about halfway between the Trans-Siberian Railroad on the north and
the South Siberian Railroad on the south. At Kustanay, it will con-
nect with a new industrial line currently under construction to Tobol,
which will provide access to an area of huge, recently discovered
iron-ore deposits in the vicinity of Lake Sarbay and near the village
of Sokolovskiy. At the settlement of Kokchetav, the new railroad
will intersect the-Petropavlovsk-Karaganda-Balkhash line of the
Karaganda railroad system.
Construction of the Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha line was
progressing at a. rapid pace to insure at least temporary service
along sections of the line by the 1955 harvest season. According to
the Soviet Ministry of Railroads the entire line was to be completed
by August 1957- 50/ Original plans called for narrow-gauge construc-
tion throughout. Information as of April 1955, however, indicates
that the 190-kilometer section from Kokchetav through Chkalovo to
Kzyl-Tu was changed to broad gauge because of unexpected increases in
traffic.
Construction is most advanced in the Kustanay-Peski-Kokchetav
stretch. By October 1955, the Soviets had announced that two parts
of this stretch had already been completed and commissioned for rail-
road traffic: (a) from Kustanay to the rayon center of Uritskoye, a
distance of approximately 135 kilometers (Figure 32), and (b) from
the village of Volodarskoye to Kokchetav, some 80 kilometers. Rail-
road surveying and construction work are also reportedly underway
between Uritskoye and Volodarskoye (Figure 35). Between Kustanay
and Kokchetav, according to Soviet sources, a number of railroad
junctions, stations and sidings, water-supply points, temporary wooden
- 66 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/Q$/08~ cLJ ! PP79T01018A000200020001-0
Figure 35. Initial phase in construction of narrow-gauge
railroad in the area east of Kokchetav.
Figure 36. Trainload of farm machinery for
new state farms arriving at Kustanay.
- 67 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2S01
E/FW8E_IA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
bridges, and communication lines are being constructed. A transload-
ing station between narrow- and broad-gauge lines is being built at
Kustanay to facilitate the transshipment of farm machinery and grains
and other agricultural products (Figure 36). The small village of
Peski, located on the left bank of the Ishim River approximately 220
kilometers east of Kustanay, is earmarked to become a significant
railroad junction. Here, the east-west Kustanay-Kaymanachikha line
will be intersected by another line leading northwestward to Kurgan
and southeastward via Atbasar to Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy (Red Banner
State Farm). Heavy demands on railroad facilities at Peski are antic-
ipated because of the nearby large Khrushchev state farm. The Tobol
River at Kustanay and the Ubagan River some 100 kilometers to the east
are reportedly crossed by temporary wooden bridges.
Construction appears to have been completed on a 80-kilometer
section extending from Kokchetav eastward to Chkalovo. According to
plans, this section was to be commissioned for temporary service by
September 1955. To date, the opening of the line has not been con-
firmed. East of Chkalovo, railroad construction is less advanced.
Indications suggest that a narrow-gauge track is still planned for
the stretch eastward from Kzyl-Tu to Kaymanachikha on the Irtysh
River. Although the route east of Kzyl-Tu may have been surveyed and
the roadbed laid, it is doubtful whether construction has been com-
pleted.
2. The Kurgan-Peski-Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy Line
The Kurgan-Peski-Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy line is the second
longest of the new lines under construction. As shown on a sketch
map originally published in the Soviet newspaper Gudok, 28 October
1954 145/, the line branches off the Trans-Siberian trunkline at
Kurgan and follows a southeasterly course for a distance of approxi-
mately 550 kilometers through the Severo-Kazakhstanskaya, Kustanay-
skaya, Kokchetavskaya, and Akmolinskaya Oblast's of the Kazakh SSR.
At the settlement of Atbasar, located some 450 kilometers southeast
of Kurgan, the railroad intersects the significant and recently com-
pleted South Siberian trunkline. According to current plans the
line terminates at the large state farm Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy,
north of the Tengiz lakes.
Construction of the railroad is reportedly progressing along
the entire route from Kurgan to Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy. The route
has been surveyed, and some sections of completed roadbed and track
have been put into operation. Following a pattern of construction
similar to that used on the Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha line,
the railroad is being built in several sections. Although some
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
sections have been completed, others are still in various stages of
construction. Efforts were made to have approximately half of the
entire line completed by the end of the 1955 harvest season.
The northernmost railroad section under construction extends
from Kurgan to Peski, a distance of about 268 kilometers. Although
originally planned as a narrow-gauge line, broad gauge was later
adopted. The change is attributed to growing transportation needs
in the area. A 160-kilometer stretch of this railroad section, which
connects Kurgan with the Sovkhoz im. Khrushcheva, was earmarked for
completion by the end of August 1955. According to Sovetskaya Molo-
dezh' 43/, it had been completed and opened for temporary traffic by
August 1955. Four new stations between Kurgan and Sovkhoz im.
Khrushcheva have been mentioned, but they cannot be located on avail-
able maps. The stations are Kairankul near Sovkhoz im. Khrushcheva,
Utyak in Kurganskaya Oblast', Polovinnoye 67 kilometers south of Kur-
gan, and Troyebratnaya in Kustanayskaya Oblast".
Construction is least advanced along the narrow-gauge section
extending 125 kilometers southeastward from Peski to Sovkhoz Pobeda
(Victory State Farm). Although this stretch has been surveyed, it
apparently is not scheduled for completion until sometime in 1956.
Preparations are being made for building a railroad bridge across
the Ishim River near the southern outskirts of the Peski railroad
jihction. A large railroad station, Stantsiya Barakul, some 7 kilo-
meters northwest of Sovkhoz Pobeda is reported as completed. It has
been provided with grain-storage facilities, loading ramps, and
administrative buildings and will probably servo the transportation
needs of the sovkhoz.
Construction has been active for some time along the narrow-gauge
section connecting Stantsiya Barakul and Sovkhoz Pobeda with Atbasar
on the South Siberian trunkline. In August 1955, Pravda announced the
opening of train traffic along this entire section. 130 The construc-
tion of the line, which originally was started at Atbasar, was under
the jurisdiction of the Baltic Transport Construction Trust (Balt-
Trans-Stroy). The workers came mainly from Daugavpils, Limbazi, and
other towns and rayons of the Latvian SSR. New railroad stations
reportedly in operation along the completed railroad include Atbasar
II, Kovyl'naya, Sovetskaya, Khlebnaya, Ovrazhnaya, and Kosogornaya.
New railroad sidings are also reported at the settlements of Krutoy
and Baygut.
Completion of the 100-kilometer narrow-gauge section between
Atbasar and Sovkhoz Krasnoznamenskiy also appears to be imminent.
In August 1955, Pravda reported that this section of line was about
to be opened to traffic, and that narrow-gauge locomotives and coaches
-69-
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
were already available for scheduled runs. 130 Completion was
originally scheduled for the end of 1955 to insure the shipment of
that year's grain harvest. In addition to servicing the huge Krasno-
znamenskiy State Farm, the new line is to handle the transportation
needs of other state farms in the area, such as Bauman, Astrakhan',
and Kurzhunkul. The railroad junction of Atbasar is designed to
become an important railroad center capable of handling the trans-
loading and transshipment of large quantities of grain from the
newly developed state farms. A new railroad station, Stantsiya
Magdalinovka, has been reported between Atbasar and Sovkhoz Krasno-
znamenskiy, but the exact location is not known.
3. The Karasuk--Kamen'-na-Obi Line
The Karasuk--Kamen'-na-Obi line is one of the relatively few
broad-gauge lines under construction in the New Lands area. Accord-
ing to plans, the 250-kilometer line will be the main link of a pro-
posed Central Siberian trunkline connecting Omsk with Barnaul.
According to Gudok of 28 October 1954, / the line is scheduled to
be in full operation by August 1957. It may be opened for temporary
traffic, however, as early as the summer of 1956.
When completed, the new line will contribute greatly to the
economic development of the Kulunda plain by speeding up the shipment
of workers, construction materials, and agricultural machinery to
newly created state farms in the area, as well as by improving facili-
ties for exporting-grain, livestock, and other agricultural products.
Currently the transportation of wheat and livestock from local state
farms to processing centers at Karasuk or Kamen'-na-Obi is being
handled by slaw-moving truck convoys.
The rayon centers of Karasuk and Kamen'-na-Obi will also assume
greater economic importance as a result of the new railroad. Karasuk
is being developed into an important railroad junction and hub serving
both the new line and the existing Tatarskaya-Kulunda-Semipalatinsk
line. The ancient town of Kamen'-na-Obi is to be developed into a
great urban and industrial center, which undoubtedly will affect the
economy of adjacent rayons.
Construction of the Karasuk--Kamen'-na-Obi line is under the
jurisdiction of Construction Trust No. 12 of the Ministry of Trans-
port Construction, which has its headquarters in Karasuk. Mechanized
operations are handled by two units of the Siberian Mechanized Con-
struction Trust (Trest Sibstroymekhanizatsiya). One unit is based
in the village of Zubkovo, located 43 kilometers east of Karasuk,
and a second unit operates from the village of Khabary, approximately
100 kilometers east of Karasuk.
- 70 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/0$/(3 ~ P79T01018A000200020001-0
To date, construction has proceeded at only a moderate rate.
As of May 1955 the entire line had been surveyed, but completed
track and roadbed extended only a few kilometers eastward from Kara-
suk to sidings Karasuk II and Tselina. The embankment for the road-
bed has been built for a distance of about 100 kilometers, to a point
somewhere near the village of Khabary.
The Karasuk railroad station is the receiving center for
construction materials, which include rails from Stalinsk, railroad
spikes from Magnitogorsk, and lumber for ties from the Khakaskaya
ASSR. New terminal and transloading facilities and a large railroad-
workers settlement are reported under construction in the vicinity
of Karasuk. Plans for the new line also call for the construction
of 18 railroad stations and 3 sidings. Of these, only the stations
of Mir, Zubkovo, and Khabary and the sidings at Karasuk II and Tselina
are known to be under construction.'
4. The Tuz-Kala--Uspenka Line
This line is a short extension of the broad-gauge Maraldy-
Tavolzhan line, which branches off from the South Siberian Railroad.
Tuz-Kala appears to be the name for the railroad station and terminal
at Tavolzhan and probably for the recently constructed railroad-workers
settlement near the station. The 32-kilometer extension is to be
completed by August 1957. This rather remote completion date supports
the theory that construction progress to date is negligible or non-
existent. The line is probably designed to supply and service new
state farms in the vicinity of Uspenka. The present Tuz-Kala--
Maraldy line is used to transport salt extracted from the saline
deposits of Maloye Tavolzhanskoye Ozero (Small Lake Tavolzhan).
5. The Bulayevo-Sovkhoz im. Malenkova Line
This narrow-gauge railroad was constructed to provide an outlet
for grain produced at new state farms located in Bulayevskiy Rayon of
Severo-Kazakhstanskaya Oblast' and in Chkalovskiy Rayon of Kokchetav-
skaya Oblast'. The new line branches off the Trans-Siberian trunkline
at Bulayevo and terminates at the large Sovkhoz im. Malenkova. The
completed line is approximately 100 kilometers long. Originally the
line was scheduled to be completed and opened for temporary traffic
by August 1955.* A new railroad station is known to have been built
at Uspenka, a small village 20 kilometers south of Bukyevo.
*A Soviet broadcast from Alma-Ata, dated 22 July, reports that
the line was commissioned 20 days ahead of schedule. 33
- 71 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
6. The Yesil'-Sovkhoz im. Lomonosova-Uritskoye Line
This narrow-gauge railroad will link the settlement of Yesil'
on the Karaganda railroad with the village Uritskoye some 200 kilo-
meters to the north on the Kustanay-Kokchetav-Kaymanachikha line.
The line is to facilitate grain shipment from newly cultivated lands
in Ruzayevka Rayon of Kokchetavskaya Oblast' and in Uritskoye and
Semiozerny Rayons of Kustanayskaya Oblast'.
Only a 90-kilometer section, running between Yesil' and the
new Sovkhoz im. Lomonosova, was due to be completed by the end of
1955. As of September 1955, some of the completed track was ready
for limited traffic and narrow-gauge locomotives and rolling stock
were assembled at Yesil'. It is possible that the entire section
is now completed and that limited railroad traffic may be operating.
7. The Shilda-Adamovka-Sovkhoz Ozernyy Line
This narrow-gauge line branches off the Chelyabinsk-Orsk rail-
road at Shilda and leads southeastward via Adamovka to Ozernyy, a
new state farm near the Kazakh border. Covering a distance of
approximately 170 kilometers, the line is to serve exclusively the
transportation needs of Adamovskiy Rayon of Chkalovskaya Oblast'.
Construction was started in 1954, and temporary traffic started by
the end of August 1955 along the 75-kilometer stretch between Shilda
and Adamovka. Nine stopping points have been opened on this line,
including Shilda-Novaya, Anichovka, and Adamovka. The entire line
to Sovkhoz Ozernyy is to be completed by 1957-
B. Improvement and Expansion of the Road Network
During the construction of railroads, the New Lands must depend
mainly on motor and wagon transport (Figure 37). To date, however,
only a few roads are capable of meeting the increasing freight traffic
requirements of state and collective farms in the area. Most of the
existing roads are seasonal dirt roads or cross-country steppe tracks
on which motor traffic is extremely slow and inefficient (Figure 38).
It is not uncommon for trucks to lose their way or to make long de-
tours before arriving at their destinations. Frequently, grain ship-
ments are taken unnecessarily far out of their way to reach certain
railroad or river transloading stations. For example, grain is
hauled by truck from the Presnogor'kovka procurement center (in
Kustanayskaya Oblast'), a distance of 240 kilometers to Kustanay,
although there is a railroad station only 100 kilometers away.
The USSR Ministry of Motor Transportation and Highways, acutely
aware of the need for better roads in the New Lands, initiated an
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 37. Loading wheat on a truck in Kazakhstan.
Trucks currently serve as the principal means of
transporting wheat in the New Lands.
Figure 38. Track across the steppe, typical of those in the
newly cultivated areas.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
ambitious project involving the repair of existing roads and the
construction of some 6,000 kilometers of new road. According to
plans, roads are to play a major role in the rapid assimilation of
the steppe lands, in addition to assuring the newly organized state
farms of adequate traffic routes.
As a result of the road-construction program, a number of the
existing unimproved dirt roads and cross-country steppe tracks are
being repaired to accommodate year-round traffic. Several are being
graded and some are being hard surfaced.* The few improved dirt and
hard-surfaced roads in the New Lands area are also undergoing improve-
ment to increase their traffic capabilities. The following five
improved roads provide the backbone of the present road network in
the New Lands:
(1) The Omsk-Pavlodar-Semipalatinsk highway, which parallels
the right bank of the Irtysh River, continues southward to Ayaguz
and then crosses the Arbagatay Mountains to Sinkiang in China. An
improved branch road forks off at Cherlak and leads to Akmolinsk,
the oblast capital.
(2) The Novosibirsk--Barnaul--Biysk--Kosh-Agach highway is one
of five main routes between the Soviet Union and Mongolia. The north-
ern section, which closely follows the railroad to Biysk, is partly
gravel surfaced and partly unimproved dirt. From Biysk the highway
continues as the Chuiskiy Trakt to Kosh-Agach and crosses the Altay
mountains to Mongolia (Figure 39). In this section, the road is
asphalt surfaced, three lanes wide, and has drainage ditches.
(3) and (4) Two improved roads cross the steppe lands of western
Altayskiy Kray. One road leads from Novosobirsk to Kamen'-na-Obi and
Aleysk; the other runs from Barnaul to Aleysk and Rubtsovsk. Along
sections of their routes, both roads follow roughly the course of the
Ob' or the Charysh River.
(5) The Petropavlovsk-Kokchetav-Atbasar road crosses one of
the areas of heavy agricultural activity in the New Lands.
New road construction is gaining momentum in various districts
of northern and northwestern Kazakhstan, the southern Urals, the
Ishim and Barabinsk Plains, and in Altayskiy Kray. From the initiation
of the road program in the spring of 195+ to early 1955 progress was
*Hard-surfaced roads are constructed of compact crushed rock or
are paved with cobblestones, macadam, asphalt, or concrete. Most
such roads are in areas of heavy year-round traffic.
- 74 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 39. A section of the Chuiskiy Trakt between Biysk
and Kosh-Agach.
Figure 4+0. Travelers on a dusty road
typical of the newly built roads in
northern Kazakhstan.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
very slow. This delay in getting started may be attributed in part
to the lack of sufficient mechanized building equipment and in part
to the higher priority given railroad construction. During 1955,
however, the situation improved somewhat, and several of the pro-
jected roads may have been commissioned for traffic by the end of
the year.
1. Northern and Northwestern Kazakhstan
In this area the Kazakh Ministry of Automobile Transport and
Highways is directing an ambitious program calling for the construc-
tion of some 2,600 kilometers of new roadway. As in other parts of
the New Lands area, progress at first was slaw. Construction has
been reported on only about one-fourth of the initially planned
roads. Much of the work completed appears to be of poor quality,
and the new roads are not suited to climatic conditions in the
area (Figure 4+0). Soviet critics have reported rapid deterioration
of some of the newly built hard-surfaced roads.
One of the more important roads under construction connects
Severo-Kazakhstanskaya and Kokchetavskaya Oblast's, leading from
Petropavlovsk on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, through the settlements
of Mar'yevka and Stavropol'ka, to the planned railroad junction at
Peski. The road, which is approximately 230 kilometers long, will
skirt the banks of the Ishim River.
A newly built gravel road 100 kilometers long reportedly runs
from Yelenovka in Kokchetavskaya Oblast' to the South Siberian
railroad station at Dzhaksy in Akmolinskaya Oblast'.
Kustanayskaya and Kokchetavskaya Oblast's are to be connected
by a new road leading from the railroad station at Uritskoye to the
agricultural settlement of Ruzayevka. Uritskoye and Ruzayevka are
connected by dirt roads with the oblast centers of Kustanay and
Kokchetav, respectively.
Two gravel-surfaced roads are reported to be under construction
in Kustanayskaya Oblast' proper. One leads from Kustanay northward
along the Tobol' River to Vvedenka, the other extends from Uritskoye
to the small settlements of Karasu and Kaybagar.
Shorter stretches of new road are reportedly under construction
in Akmolinskaya, Zapadno-Kazakhstanskaya, Aktyubinskaya, Pavlodarskaya,
and Karagandinskaya Oblast's. In Akmolinskaya Oblast', most of the
new roads will connect remote state farms with railroad stations and
grain-storage facilities. Roads now being built will lead from
- 76 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Akmolinsk to the agricultural settlements of Romanovka and Rozhdest-
venka. Three other new roads already connect the South Siberian
Railroad with outlying farm settlements. Others lead from Atbasar
southward to ladyzhenka; from Dzhaksy northward to Chistopol'ye;
and from Dzhaltyr on the South-Siberian Railroad southward to the
village of Astrakhanka and northward to Makinsk on the Akmolinsk-
Petropavlovsk line.
In Zapadno-Kazakhstanskaya Oblast' a recently completed road
connects the urban center of Ural'sk with the agricultural settlement
of Dzhambeyty, 14+0 kilometers to the southeast.
2. Southern Urals Region
Preparations are underway for the construction of several new
roads in the virgin lands of Kurganskaya, Chelyabinskaya, and Chkalov-
skaya Oblast's and in the Bashkirskaya ASSR. The Soviets estimate
that in the next 3 years a-total of some 1,000 kilometers of new
roadway will be built in the southern Urals region. Plans call for
the construction of several hard-surfaced roads. Responsibility for
this construction has been placed on the recently organized "Urals
Trust of Road Machine Stations," which has its headquarters in Chelya-
binsk. This organization apparently will handle road construction
throughout the entire region.
A new motor road in Kurganskaya Oblast' connects the oblast
center of Kurgan with the small settlement of Zverinogolovskoye,
located on the right bank of the Ubagan River. The road, which is
125 kilometers long, has already been commissioned for truck-traffic.
Heavy traffic in grain, chemical fertilizers, and building materials
is reported.
The building of 'several new roads has been reported in the steppe
area east of Magnitogorsk in Chelyabinskaya Oblast'. According to
the Soviets, these roads will connect state and collective farms in
the Chesma, Varna, Verkhne-Ural'sk, and Agapovka areas with railroad
lines leading to Magnitogorsk, Karaganda, and Chelyabinsk. One of
the roads will lead from the rayon center of Chesma to Tamerlan
Station on the Chelyabinsk-Orsk line near the village of Varna.
In Chkalovskaya Oblast', a 60-kilometer road is under construc-
tion between the town of Buzuluk and the rayon center of Andreyevka
to the south. A number of additional support roads are also being
built from state grain farms to the nearest railroad.
Roads are also reportedly under construction in the southern
rayons of the Bashkirskaya ASSR. One of them, some 100 kilometers
- 77 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
long, will connect the rayon center of Zilair with the village of
Sibay near the Ural River.
3. Ishim and Barabinsk Plains
Road construction in this area is concentrated primarily in
Omskaya and Novosibirskaya Oblast's. Soviet news items dated 1955
reveal plans for the construction of some 600 kilometers of roadway
in Omskaya Oblast'. These roads will link the city of Omsk with the
rayon centers of Russkaya Polyana, Novovarshavka, Poltavka, and
Okoneshnikovo. When completed, the roads will facilitate the deliv-
ery of grain and other agricultural products from the outlying south-
ern rayons to the Trans-Siberian Railroad.
In Novosibirskaya Oblast', new road construction is being handled
by "the Baraba Construction Trust," under the auspices of the Depart-
ment of Roads of Novosibirskaya Oblast'. According to current news
items, two roads will connect the Trans-Siberian Railroad with remote
areas in the southern Barabinsk Plain. One of these leads approxi-
mately 90 kilometers southward from Kargat-Station to the rayon cen-
ter of Kochki on the Karasuk River. The other, which is about the
same length, connects the rail center of Barabinsk with Zdvinsk, a
rayon center on. the Kargat River.
4. Altayskiy Kray Region
Road construction in the Altayskiy Kray is also apparently pro-
gressing at full speed. A road from Blagoveshchenka on the South
Siberian Railroad to the village of Rodino about 50 kilometers to
the south was to be completed by the end of 1955. Two additional
roads were scheduled to be completed and opened to traffic in 1955?
Of these, one runs southward about 125 kilometers from Pospelikha on
the Turksib Railroad to Stantsiya Tretyakovo on the Veselyy Yar-
Leninogorsk line. The other trends northeastward from the rail termi-
nus at Biysk to Togul, near the confluence of the Chumysh and Togul
Rivers, and when completed it will cross some 120 kilometers of
reclaimed steppe land.
C. Possible Development of Waterways for Commercial
Transport
In addition to new railroads and roads, the development of trans-
portation in the New Lands area requires maximum utilization of all
inland waterways suitable for navigation. The Irtysh and Obt Rivers,
crossing the area in a roughly north-south direction, provide the main
routes for water transportation in the New Lands (Figures 41 and 14-2).
Of the other rivers, the Ishim alone is navigable, but only for small
craft.
- 78 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 4+1. Small river boat on the Irtysh River upstream
from Ust'-Kamenogorsk.
Figure 42. Navigation on the Ob' River at the site of the
Novosibirsk hydroelectric station.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
The utilization of the Irtysh and Ob' Rivers for the shipment of
grain from Kazakhstan and the Altayskiy Kray to distribution points
in the northwestern USSR would greatly relieve the traffic loads on
the new railroads. One of the major difficulties of river navigation
is the short interval between the grain harvest and the end of the
river-navigation season. Soviet plans call for the transloading of
grain from the rails to river boats after the end of the navigation
season. The grain stored on the boats would then be ready for ship-
ment at the opening of the next navigation season. Boats navigating
the Irtysh and Ob' rivers would proceed downstream to the confluence
of the two rivers and then down the Ob' to its mouth. Here the grain
would be transloaded into seagoing vessels for shipment to Murmansk,
Arkhangelsk, Riga, and other Soviet seaports.
The central location of the Irtysh in Western Siberia makes it
a very important channel for transportation. The transportation
potential of the river is being increased considerably by the develop-
ment of two new dams for hydroelectric projects. 1 The Ust'-
Kamenogorsk hydroelectric project completed in 19 raised the level
of the Irtysh some 4+0 meters and formed a reservoir, the so-called
Irtysh Sea, which is more than 70 kilometers long (Figure 1+3). The
section of the Irtysh River upstream from the Ust'-Kamenogorsk dam
will serve as a waterway from the eastern interior of the Altay
Region to the railroad terminus at Ust'-Kamenogorsk and other points
farther downstream (Figure 1414). The Ust'-Bukhtarma hydroelectric
project, which is being constructed at a point below the confluence
of the Irtysh and Bukhtarma Rivers, will maintain water levels high
enough to permit safe upstream navigation by large river vessels.
It will also facilitate navigation farther downstream by regulating
the river flow.
The Ob' is one of the largest and most important natural water-
ways in Siberia. Together with its chief tributary the Irtysh, the
Ob' has by far the largest river drainage basin in Asia. This huge
waterway network, extending from the Chinese border to the Arctic
Ocean, is among the busiest in the Asiatic USSR. Traffic, however,
is concentrated in the more populous middle and upper reaches of the
rivers. The chief products transported are grain and lumber, to which
manufactured goods and mineral products have been added in recent
years.
Currently, navigation on the Ob' begins at Biysk. Throughout
most of the New Lands area, river navigation on the Ob' is difficult
because of its narrow channel (1140 meters at Barnaul) and the presence
of shallow rapids (minimum depth 1-1.5 meters at low water) 83/.
Beyond Barnaul, as the river becomes wider and the current slower,
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Figure 1+3. Irtysh River at Ust'-Kamenogorsk,
looking north.
Figure 4+. View of the Irtysh River in the vicinity of
Semipalatinsk.
- 81 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
navigation hazards are less numerous. Rocky outcrops in the river
bottom, however, occasionally present obstacles to navigation. A
new hydroelectric project at Novosibirsk, a major port on the Ob'
River, will greatly improve navigation across the New Lands region.
The powerplant and dam currently under construction a short distance
above Novosibirsk are rated among the largest Soviet hydroelectric
developments (Figure 45). The dam will make it possible to maintain
high water levels both upstream and downstream, thus permitting larger
vessels to reach transloading docks at Kamen'-na-Obi and Barnaul.
The Ob' Sea, the reservoir formed by Novosibirsk Dam, will occupy
an area of more than 1,000 square kilometers. Passenger motor vessels
will operate between Novosibirsk and Iskitim. The latter is currently
located about 20 kilometers east of the Ob' River and some 50 kilo-
meters southeast of Novosibirsk. Freight traffic will be considerably
increased. A group of engineers from the Novosibirsk branch of the
State Planning and Survey Institute for the river fleet has recently
completed plans to build sea wharves between Novosibirsk and Kamen'-
na-Obi. Mechanized mooring operations will be possible at Iskitim,
and ship repair workshops will be installed near the wharves at Berdsk.
The Ishim River, the main tributary of the Irtysh, is navigable
in the New Lands region from Mar'yevka downstream to its confluence
with the Irtysh (Figure 46). Recently several grain-carrying barges
and two cutters were assigned to operate within the stretch between
Mar'yevka and Petropavlovsk.
Other rivers in the New Lands, including the Tobol, Ubagan, Se-
lety, and Karasuk, are not navigable for commercial shipping. These
rivers are highly seasonal and have only short periods of navigabil-
ity. Some flat-bottom boats and rafts, however, may use the streams
for short distances during high-water periods.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/0?/0
$ 6R9P79T01018A000200020001-0
Figure 45. Dredge at the hydroelectric station site
at Novosibirsk.
Figure 4+6. Bridge over the Ishim River west of Petropavlovsk.
- 83 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
APPENDIX A
RELIEF FEATURES OF THE NEW LANDS REGION
1. The Northern Plain
Three plains -- the Ishim, Barabinsk, and Kulunda Plains --
comprise the north-central part of the New Lands region. The Ishim
Plain is separated from the Barabinsk and Kulunda Plains by the
Irtysh River. The Barabinsk Plain occupies the basins of the Om',
Kargat, and Karasuk Rivers. On the north, the Barabinsk Plain is
bounded by the Vasyugan'ye Swamps; to the south, it merges very
gradually into the Kulunda Plain. (See relief map following p. 92.)
Variations in relief are insignificant on these three plains.
The Ishim Plain slopes gently downward to the north and northeast,
whereas the Barabinsk Plain slopes downward from northeast to south-
west. In most localities the slope is imperceptible to the eye, and
level land appears to stretch uninterruptedly to the horizon (Figure
1+7). Much of the Kulunda Plain, by contrast, has a definitely rolling
Figure 4+7. The flat Barabins!Plain, showing the characteristic
steppe and wooded-steppe vegetation.
- 85 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
surface. Elevations on the three plains range between 110 and 160
meters above sea level. Elevations drop below the 100-meter contour
only (1) along the northern mar in of the New Lands region, (2) in
the major river valleys, and (3) in the larger solonchak and lake
depressions. The Barabinsk and Ishim Plains are only slightly
dissected by river erosion. In the 500-kilometer stretch from the
Irtysh River to the Tobol-Ubagan Valley, the only major valley is
that of the Ishim. Other valleys are shallow, with poorly developed
riverbanks.
The most conspicuous feature of the Ishim Plain is the multitude
of small depressions and hollows, most of which contain lakes. The
Barabinsk and Kulunda Plains, on the other hand, are characterized
by a series of low, broad, parallel ridges with a pronounced northeast-
southwest trend, separated by gently sloping depressions. Even the
long axes of the many narrow islands in Ozero Chany are oriented in
the same direction. Most of the ridges are small -- only a few kilo-
meters in length and about 200 meters in width -- and rise only 2 to
4 meters above the surrounding land. Occasional ridges may be some
20 kilometers long and 10 or more meters high. Most notable are the
two ridges bordering the Burla River. The ridge on the northern side,
which is sometimes called the Karasukskaya Griva, reportedly measures
about 160 by 10 to 12 kilometers. Its highest point is about 50 or
60 meters above the adjacent lowland. The ridge to the south is about
the same width, but it is considerably lower and only 75 kilometers
long. On the Kulunda Plain the depressions between the ridges are
generally occupied by small streams, lakes, grassy marshes, meadows,
or solonchak wastes.
Terrain is a limiting factor to the development of agriculture
in only small areas within the Ishim, Barabinsk, and Kulunda Plains.
Swamps and areas of solonchak and solonetz soils are the most impor-
tant categories of nonagricultural land. With few exceptions the
slope is ideal for mechanized agriculture. In fact, the best land
has been used for wheat and livestock production for many decades.
Southeast of the Kulunda Plain is the Pri-Obskoye Plateau.*
Absolute elevations on the plateau range between 200 and 325 meters.
The relief is dominated by a series of parallel valleys separated by
flat or, in some places, rolling divides. The divides rise 60 to 80
meters above the valley floor in the southwest and 110 to 120 meters
in the northeast. A striking characteristic of the relief features
*Some Soviet geographers consider tfis plateau to be an integral
part of the Kulunda Plain. The characteristics of the plateau, how-
ever, are distinctive enough to warrant a separate discussion.
-86-
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08108 CCIRAERDP79T01018A000200020001-0
is their strict parallelism, with all the long axes running from
northeast to southwest. The wide valleys contain meadows, marshes,
strips of forest, and a large number of elongated lakes, both fresh
water and saline. Compared with the plains to the northwest, slopes
are relatively steep, especially in the northeastern part of the
plateau (the area between Pavlovsk and Ust' Charyshskaya Pristan').
In this area the valley slopes have been dissected by networks of
gullies. Since any increase in the cultivated area on such slopes
would materially increase the danger of soil erosion, Soviet writers
point out that the preservation of the forest patches along the gul-
lies in this area is essential as an erosion-control measure.
The Intermontane Valley area east of the Barabinsk Plain and
northeast of the Pri-Obskoye Plateau is not a true plain although
it is usually regarded as a part of the northern plains. The area
consists of a series of valleys that wind among the outliers of the
Altay and Sayany Mountains (Figure I.8). The most extensive stretch
Figure 1i8. The valley of the Charysh River in the Intermontane
Valley area.
of level land is the plain 20 to 50 kilometers wide along the eastern
bank of the Ob' River, where marshes are a prominent feature. On the
- 87 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Ob' Plain elevations range between 100 and 200 meters. Changes in
elevation, however, are gradual, and most of the plain is relatively
flat. The marshes would be the greatest obstacle to agricultural
expansion unless extensive drainage projects were undertaken.
The remainder of the Eastern Intermontane Valley area consists
of narrow lowland corridors, which penetrate into the mountains to
the east. In the north, the Tom' and Inya Valleys are wedged between
the Kuznetskiy Ala-Tau and the Salairskiy Range. Farther south are
the valleys of the Chumysh, Biya, and a host of smaller rivers. Slopes
along the valley floors are gentle enough for agriculture, and many
parts of the lower mountain slopes can be and have been tilled.
Extension of the cultivated area, however, is limited by the steep
slopes that begin a short distance up the mountainsides.
West of the Ishim Plain is another flat, slightly elevated plain
to which Soviet geographers have applied the name Predural'skoye
Plateau.* From an elevation of 70 to 100 meters along the Tobol River
in the east, the plain rises gradually to elevations ranging from 170
to 230 meters in the west. In contrast with the situation in the
plains farther east, the stream network here is incised into the ter-
rain. The major rivers have cut broad valleys with well-defined val-
ley walls. On the surface of the interstream divides, however,
drainage is poor. The landscape is dotted by countless lakes, few of
which exceed 8 kilometers in length, and occasional patches of marsh
and saltpan. In general, relief presents no obstacles to agriculture
on the Predural'skoye Plateau.
South of the Uy River is another small area referred to in Soviet
literature as the Kustanay Plain. Despite the term, the land here
actually rises more abruptly from the floors of the Ubagan and Tobol
Valleys than does that of the so-called Predural'skoye Plateau. The
Kustanay Plain is bounded on the east by the Ubagan Valley and on the
west by the Ural Mountains. On the south the plain extends to the
vicinity of the Magnitogorsk-Kartaly-Kushmurun rail line, where it
merges gradually into the Turgay Tableland. The Kustanay Plain is
an area of gently rolling relief and elevations that range from 150
to 225 meters above sea level east of the Tobol River to between 175
and 250 meters west of the Tobol. Near the foothills of the Urals,
elevations are still higher. The slopes are still predominantly
gentle, only a few exceeding 1 or 2 percent. Except for valleys of
the Ubagan, Tobol, and Toguzak Rivers, few valleys cross the Kustanay
*Not to be confused with the Podural'skoye Plateau, which lies
to the southwest.
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/01/ ~CAA-.P79T01018A000200020001-0
Plain and those few are shallow. A large number of saline and fresh-
water lakes of varying sizes and depths are found in the countless
depressions. From the standpoint of relief, the Kustanay Plain is
well suited for mechanized agriculture.
2. The Southern Uplands
The south-central margin of the New lands is part of the Kazakh
Folded Upland. Although this upland extends over most of northeast-
ern Kazakhstan, only two sections -- the northwestern and the central
areas -- lie within the New Lands region. The northwestern part of
the Kazakh Folded Upland, commonly referred to as the Kokchetav Area,
is essentially a rolling plain with numerous isolated low hills or
series of hills. Elevations on the plain range between 300 and 500
meters, but the hills generally rise considerably higher. The most
prominent hills are the Kokchetavskiye Gory 60 kilometers southeast
of the city of Kokchetav, which reach a summit elevation of 887 meters.
The forest-covered slopes of these highly dissected hills rise sharply
above the surrounding surface (Figure 149). The hills form a ridge
Figure 1i9. Kokchetavskiye Gory in the southern uplands, showing
Ozero Borovoye and a cannery located on its shore.
- 89 -
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
20 kilometers long, with a convex west-facing slope. At the base of
the ridge are a number of picturesque lakes, on one of which is the
large resort center of Borovoye. Although many slopes are too steep
to be cultivated, the northwestern section of the Kazakh Folded Upland
includes much gently rolling or even level land suitable for mecha-
nized agriculture.
The other part of the Kazakh Folded Upland within the New Lands
region lies southeast of the Selety River. This area is almost
congruent with what Soviet physical geographers call the Central
Upland or Karkaralinsk Area. The southern limit coincides closely
with the boundary between the dark chestnut and the light chestnut
soils. Most of the area is hilly, and the section south of Karaganda
is definitely mountainous.
The rugged relief severely restricts opportunities for agricul-
ture in the Karkaralinsk Area. Extensive areas with slopes gentle
enough for cultivation are found only along the northern and western
margins (in two belts, one running directly east and the other immedi-
ately south of Akmolinsk). Within the mountain complex itself, level
or gently sloping land is limited to small patches in the bottoms
of valleys and depressions.
To the west of the Kazakh Folded Upland is the Turgay Tableland.
This area is a fairly level plateau bisected from north to south by
a broad depression known variously to the Soviets as the Turgayskaya
Dolina and the Turgayskiye Vorota. The northern half of the depres-
sion is occupied by the Ubagan River valley and the southern by the
valley of the Turgay River. The depression is believed to have pro-
vided drainage from the West Siberian Plain to the Aral Sea during
past geological eras. At present the valley floor contains a number
of lakes of various sizes, most of which lack outlets and are saline.
Elevations within the depression range from 100 to 150 meters above
sea level.
On both sides of the depression the land rises sharply to a fairly
level plateau surface whose average elevation is between 200 and 250
meters. Although the plateau margins facing the depression have been
dissected by a complex network of gullies, ravines, and stream valleys,
most of the plateau surface is poorly drained. Not a single major
river valley has cut headwards into the plateau. Relative relief is
insignificant, the chief surface characteristic being a multitude of
small depressions, most of which are occupied by shallow saline lakes.
Since slopes rarely exceed 2 or 3 percent, terrain is no obstacle to
the extension of mechanized agriculture.
90 -
S-E-C-R-.E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/081Q8 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
The westernmost part of the New Lands region is the Podural'skoye
Plateau. Its eastern section between the Or' and the upper Ilek is
an elevated plain with a nearly level surface interrupted by narrow
valleys. North of Aktyubinsk, elevations are somewhat higher (400
to 500 meters) than to the south (300 to 400 meters). Westward from
the Ilek River the plateau surface is more dissected. The valleys
become wider and wider until they form fairly broad lowland strips
separated by narrow ridges with rounded summits and deeply eroded
slopes, In the area north of the Ural River, an alternating ridge
and valley landscape is especially well developed.
In general, the elevations of the ridges decrease progressively
from east to west. For example, in the part of the area south of
the Ural River the ridge crests average over 300 meters near Sol'-
Iletsk; the highest elevation southwest of Chilik is 263 meters;
and in the area between the towns of Kazakhstan and Ural'sk the maxi-
mum elevation is only 201 meters. These are absolute elevations; in
any given locality the relative elevation rarely exceeds 150 meters
and is generally considerably less. Slopes vary considerably. The
lowland valleys and the plateau surface in the eastern part of the
area contain a large amount of level or gently sloping land. On the
other hand, the slopes of the dissected ridges are too steep for
any type of agricultural development. Lakes are relatively few on
the well-drained Podural'skoye Plateau.
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY...
USSR: NEW LANDS
RELIEF
General limit of the main New Lands area
ALTITUDE TINTS
Meters Feet
500
1640
3
984
00
656
200
10
328
0
Sea level
Sea level
Spot elevation (feet)
Kilometers
50 100 200 300
Statute Miles
50 100 200
300
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
GAPS IN INTELLIGENCE
Adequate information was lacking on a number of phases of the
New Lands program in spite of the availability of a voluminous amount
of literature related to such a program. Detailed statistical data
were completely lacking concerning the proportion of the land that
is considered suitable for cultivation, pasture, and meadow and on
the amount of such land that was in use before the inception of the
New Lands program. Nor were figures available on the relative pro-
portions of plains, rolling and hilly lands, or individual soil
types -- information that would make possible a better evaluation of
the New Lands. Recent large-scale maps that show details of relief
and hydrographic features were available only for limited sections
of the area.
Information was meager for many climatic factors. No data were
available on the frequency of droughts for some parts of the New
Lands region, and no information at all was available on evaporation-
transpiration rates. In many cases, specific information was lacking
on the extent and proportions of the various crops and their distri-
bution, both within the main body of the New Lands and in areas of
secondary consideration. Detailed data on the specific varieties of
each crop being grown and their climatic needs and limitations were
far from complete.
Although some kolkhozes and new sovkhozes are named, their exact
locations are seldom given, and no adequate maps or complete listings
were available. Only scattered figures were found concerning the
number and place of origin of migrants to the New Lands. Population
figures, whether in terms of actual numbers or general density, were
always approximations or estimates, since the last published census
figures were for 1939. Even recent Soviet sources may give 1939
figures, without identifying them as such. Current population esti-
mates by United States sources were usually based on the number of
election districts, which allows for a considerable margin of error.
Information on some phases of the transportation network was
lacking. Neither reports nor maps gave complete information on the
alignment, classification, and extent of new railroads and roads
completed or under construction, and the location of new railroad
stations and sidings. The periodic progress bulletins on rail and
road construction frequently disagree, and many are ambiguous. In-
formation on the extent of reservoirs of the new hydroelectric pro-
jects and their effect on water transportation is far from complete.
- 93 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
Data on the amount and nature of shipments of grain and other commod-
ities by both new and previously existing railroads, roads, and water-
ways were practically nonexistent.
-94 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /08 _~C 4L29P79T01018A000200020001-0
SOURCE REFERENCES
The source material available for this study was extensive but
spotty in topical coverages. The bulk of the information was derived
from unclassified sources -- primarily Soviet scientific texts, peri-
odicals, newspapers, and maps. Intelligence reports and documents
and the National Intelligence Survey (NIS) were also extensively
utilized.
For the terrain, soil, and hydrographic analyses, the Soviet
regional and topical textual materials that served as the primary
sources were supplemented by Soviet maps and the NIS. The climatic
study was based largely on Soviet regional and topical textual mate-
rials, intelligence documents, and U.S. periodicals and books dealing
with the relation between climate and agriculture. The main sources
for the settlement section were Soviet newspapers, FDD summaries,
and the second edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia.
The majority of the railroad and road data was obtained from Soviet STATSPE
newspapers, FDD summaries, and Treasure Island trans-
lations of Soviet materials. For settlement and transportation partic-
ularly, current Soviet information comes largely from radio and press
releases. Because of the propaganda value attached to these subjects
in the New Lands program, every account had to be carefully screened
and compared with other data to determine its accuracy.
The bibliography is selective and does not include all of the
individual items used as background material, among them some general
articles in Soviet and U.S. newspapers and periodicals,
FDD summaries, and Treasure Island translations.
The sources used in this study were generally found to be reliable
as of the date of publication. Soviet books and periodicals dealing
with subjects of an academic nature were generally free from "ideo-
logical bias." Press and radio reports, however, contained many ac-
counts of doubtful reliability, and these were carefully screened
before any data were accepted.
- 95 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 209i 8 Q ._ECV,-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
Evaluations following the classification entry have the follow-
ing significance:
A - Completely reliable
1 - Confirmed by other sources
B
- Usually reliable
2 - Probably true
C
- Fairly reliable
3 - Possibly true
D
- Not usually reliable
4 - Doubtful
E
- Not reliable
5 - Probably false
F - Cannot be judged
6 - Cannot be judged
Evaluations not otherwise designated are those appearing on the
cited document; those designated RR are by the authors of this re-
port. No "RR" evaluation is given when the author agrees with the
evaluation of the cited document.
Sources such as established reference works cited in their en-
tirety, official documents of foreign governments, and other mate-
rial not susceptible of evaluation have not been given an evaluation
symbol.
1. Agriculture. Climate and Man, 19-1 Yearbook of Agriculture,
Washington, 1941; p. 308-35, 51+5-50, U
2. Air, AFOIN, Air Research Division. 1956 Annual Estimates.: Poli-
tical and Demographic Composition of USSR Population, 1 Apr 55, S
3. Air, AFOIN-lAl. IR-385-55, 27 Jun 55, Trans ortation Problems
of the "Virgin Land" Area, p. 1-25, info 1954-55, CIA D257881,
U. Eval RR 2
4 Air, Air University, Studies and Research Branch. Inland Water-
ways of the Soviet Union, Jan 50, p. 21+-28, S. Eval RR 2
5. Air, USAFE. AIIR 52HD-DOC-55-21A, 11 Feb 55, Narrow-Gauge Rail-
way from Kustanay to Peski, C. (tr from Gudok, 3 Feb 55, U)
Eval RR 2
6. Air, USAFE. AIIR 52HD-DOC-55-21D, 16 Feb 55, New Railroads in
Kazakhstan, CIA D180427, C. (tr from Stroitel'naya Gazeta, 9 Feb
55, U Eval RR 3
7. Air, USAFE. AIIR 52ND-Doc-55-36J, 3 Mar 55, Narrow-Gauge RR Line
Between Kustanai and Peski, info 26 Feb 55, CIA D20 5 2, C. Eval
F-6 RR 2
-96-
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
8. Air, USAFE. IR-1179-55, 211. May 55, New Rail Trackage in Northern
Kazakhstan, info 11 May 55, CIA D214-3050, C. Eval F-6 RR 2
9. Air, USAFE. IR-963-55, 20 Jul 55, New RR Line in Kur an Steppe
Region, info 8 Jul 55, CIA D297890, C. Eval F-6 RR 2)
10. Aksarin, I.I. Zapadnaya Sibir' (Western Siberia), Vysshaya
Partiynaya Shkola pri Ts. K. KPSS, Moscow, 1951-, 46 pp, u
11. Alisov, B.P. 'Klimaticheski e Oblasti i Ra o SSSR (Climatic
Regions and Areas of the USSR), OGIZ Geografgiz, 19147, U. (tr
as CIA FDD Translation U-1695, 13 Mar 52, p. 11+2-58, OFF USE)
Eval RR B-2
12. Alsberg, C.L. "Forecasting Wheat Yields from the Weather,"
Wheat Studies of the Food Research Institute, v. 5, no 1, Stan-
ford Univ., Nov 28 T
, pp, U. Eval RR 2
13. Army, AFFE. Doc no 839141, 7 Feb 55, Railroads in the Vicinity
of Barnaul, p. 9-12, CIA 1272933, S. (tr of Hoshi Report., no
50, Sec B. 25 Aug 51+, S) Eval RR 3
14. Army, FECOM, Allied Translator and Interpreter Section, MI
Section, General Staff. Doc 506142A-5061-2F, 12 Sep 1+9, Soviet
Central Asia and Kazakhstan, R
15. Army, Moscow. R-182-55, 12 Apr 55, Soviet Desert Automobile
Highways, p. 1-14, info 8 Apr 55, U. Eval RR 3
16. Army, Moscow. R-373-55, 18 Aug 55, New Soviet Narrow-Gauge Rail-
road, info 18 Aug 55, CIA D299080, U. Eval RR 2
17. Army, Moscow, R-379-55, 19 Aug 55, New Railroad in Kurgan Oblast,
info 18 Aug 55, CIA D299076, U. Eval RR 2
18. Army, Research and Development Branch, Military Planning Division,
Office of the Quartermaster General. "Western USSR," Clothing
Almanac, no 6, Sep 50, 63 pp, C
19. Army, Research and Development Branch, Military Planning Division,
Office of the Quartermaster General. "Snow Cover of USSR,"
Environmental Protection Section Report, no 168, Jun 50, 25 pp, U.
tr from Russian by George S. Mitchell) Eval RR 3
20. Army, USAREURIC. RT-1+48-53, 16 Jun 53, The Nura Taldinski Live-
stock Sovkhoz South of Karaganda, p. 14, info Nov 46, C. Eval
RR 3
_97_
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
21. Army, USFA. R-353-53, Feb 53, Karabas Urban Area Report, p. 3,
info Dec 46-Apr 50, C. Eval RR 3
22. Army, USFA. R-527-54, 12 Feb 54, Urban Area Karaganda, p. 2-5,
info June 45-Dec 47, CIA 2504131, C. Eval F-6
23. Bakonin, L. "Karasuk-Kamen'-na-Obi," Gudok, 17 Aug 55, p. 1, U.
Eval RR 3
24. Baranskiy, N.N. Ekonomicheska a Geo afi a SSSR (Economic
Geography of the USSR), Moscow, 1951, 11.22 pp, U
25. Berg, L.S. Natural Regions of the USSR, New York, 1950, p. 90-
110, U. (tr from Russian by Olga A. Titlebaum) Eval RR B-2
26. Bol'sha a Sovetskaya Entsiklo edi a (Great Soviet Encyclopedia),
2d ed, Moscow, 1949-, U
27. Botanicheskiy Institut im. V.L. Komarova. Pustyni SSSR i ikh
Osvoyeniye {Deserts of the USSR and Their Mastery , Leningrad,
Izdatel'stvo Akademii Nauk SSSR, 1954, v. 2, 801 pp, U
28. Bova, N.V. "Agroklimaticheskiye Zony Yugo-Vostoka SSSR" (Agro-
climatic Zones of Southeastern USSR), Sotsialisticheskoye
Zernovoye Khozyaystvo, no 1, 1946, p. 2 -33, U. Eval RR 3
29. "Building in Kazakhstan," Central Asian Review, v. 3, no 2, 1955,
p. 95-101, U. Eval RR 3
30. Carleton, M.A. The Small Grains, New York, 1916, 685 pp, U
31. "Central Committee Decree on Virgin and Idle Lands - I," Current
Digest of the Soviet Press, v. 6, no 9, 14 Apr 54, p. 3-6, U.
tr of decree in Pravda, 6 Max 54, p. 1-4, u)
330
34.
35.
36.
- 98 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
.
STATSPEC
38.
39? CIA. FDD, Summary, no 19, "Meteorology of the Moscow-Irkutsk
Air Route," 7 Feb .50, 158 pp, C
40. CIA. FDD, Summary, no 577, 12 Jul 55, P? 7-11, C. Eval RR 3
41. CIA. FDD, Summary, no 644, 8 Sep 55, p. 11, C. Eval RR 3
42. CIA. FDD, Summary, no 667, 28 Sep 55, p. 62-63, info Mar-Apr 55,
OFF USE. Eval RR 2
43. CIA. FDD, Summary, no 732, 1 Dec 55 [Operation of Rail Lines
Begun in Virgin Lands], info 28 Aug 55, S. (tr from Sovetskaya
Molodezh') Eval RR 3
44. CIA. FDD, Translation, no 317, "The Climates of the USSR,"
14 Feb 52, 231 pp, C. (tr of A.A. Borisov. Klimaty SSSR,
Moscow, 1948, U)
45. CIA. FDD, Translation, no 431, "An Aid to Agricultural Special-
ists in the Reclamation of Virgin and Fallow Lands -- Collection
of Material and Articles," 30 Jun 55, 92 pp.. OFF USE. (tr of
V Pomoshch' Spetsialistam Sel'skogo Khozyaystva Po Osvoyeni
Tselinnykh i Zalez kh Zemel' -- Sbornik Materialov i State y,
v. 1, 1954, p? 25-144, U) Eval RR 3
46. CIA. Intelligence Memorandum 340, 31 Oct 50, Seeding and Harvest-
ing Dates of Soviet Cereal Crops in Specified Regions, 18 pp, S.
Eval RR 3
47. CIA. NIS 26-III, Ch 2, Sec 23, Dec 48, p. 40, C
48.
49.
25X1A 50.
51. CIA. RR-MR-45, May 55, Important Multipurpose River-Development
Projects in the USSR, p. 12-20, info 1930-55, S. Eval RR 2
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
52. "Construction of Narrow-Gauge Railroads in Areas Developing
Virgin Lands," Kazakhstanskaya Pravda, 24 Oct 54, p. 1, U.
Eval RR 2
53. Daniel, Clifton. "Report on a City in Siberia," New York Times
Magazine, 10 Jul 55, p. 8 if, U. Eval RR 3
54. Datsenko, M., and Pospelov, I. "Well-Planned Highways are Impor-
tant and Necessary," Current Digest of the Soviet Press, v. 7,
no 33, 28 Sep 55, p. 28, U. (tr from Moskovskaya Pravda, 9 Aug
55, p. 2, U) Eval RR 3
55. Denisov, P.S. Bor'ba s Zasukhoy v Zaural'ye i Sibiri (The Strug-
gle with Drought in the Trans-Urals and Siberia), Izdatel'stvo
Akademii Nauk SSSR, 19514-, 76 pp, U. Eval RR 3
56. Dzerdzeyevskiy, B.L. "Meteorologicheskiye Osobennosti 1954g. na
Tselinnykh i Zalezhnykh Zemlyakh Altayskogo Kraya i Severe,
Kazakhstana" (Meteorological Peculiarities in 1954 in the Virgin
and Idle Lands of Altay Kray and Northern Kazakhstan), Izvestiya
Akademii Nauk SSSR Seriya Geo raficheska a, no 2, Mar-Apr 55,
p. 30-42, U. Eval RR 2
57. Fedorovich, B.A., and Shuvalov, S.A. "Prirodnyye Predposylki
Sel'skokhozyayStvennogo Rayonirovaniya Territorii Zemel' Novogo
Sel'skokhozyzystvennogo Osvoyeniya v Severnykh Oblastyakh
Kazakhstana" (Natural Bases of Agricultural Regions in Territory
of Lands of New Agricultural Development in the Northern Regions
of Kazakhstan), Izvesti a Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Geo afiche-
skaya, no 2, Mar-Apr 55, p. 54-61, U. Eval RR 3
58'. Fel'dman, Ya. I.; and Shvareva, Yu. N. "Klimaticheskiye Usloviya
Territorii Zemel' Novogo Sel'skokhozyaystvennogo Osvoyeniya v
Severnom Kazakhstan i Predgornykh Rayonakh Altayskogo Kraya"
(Climatic Conditions in the Territory of Lands of New Agricul-
tural Development in Northern Kazakhstan and Premountainous
Regions of Altay Kray), Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR Seriya
Geografiche"skaya, no 2, Mar-Apr 55, p. 3-53, U. Eval RR 2
59. "From the Neva to the Ob," Current Digest of the Soviet Press,
v. 7, no 33 28 Sep 55, p. 29, U. tr of Sovetsky Flot, 13 Aug
55, p. 1, U) Eval RR 3
60. Gerasimov, I.P., Ocherki o Fizicheskoy Geografii Kazakhstana
(Sketches of the Physical Geography of Kazakhstan), Alma-Ata,
Izdatel'stvo A.N. Kazakhskoy SSR, 1952, 492 pp, U. Eval RR 2
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /OS8/V6 C_FP79T01018A000200020001-0
61. [German] Generalstab des Heeres, Abteilung fUr Kriegskarten and
Vermessungswesen. Militar eo a hische Angaben U'ber das Asia-
tische Russland, All emeiner Uberblick (Military-Geographic Data
on Asiatic Russia, General Survey), Berlin, 1942, U. (tr in
part as CIA FDD Translation 130, 25 Mar 48, 54 pp, R)
62. Glavnoye Upravleniye Gidrometeorologicheskoy Sluzhby SSSR pri
SNK Soyuza SSR. Mirovo o-Klimaticheski Spravochnik (World
Agro-Climatic Handbook)., Leningrad, Gidrometeorologicheskoye
Izdatel'stvo, 1937, 418 Pp, U. Eval RR 2
63. Glavnoye Upravleniye Gidrometeorologicheskoy Sluzhby SSSR pri SNK
Soyuza SSR. "Zapadnaya Sibir" (Western Siberia), Spravochnik
po Vodriym Resursam SSSR (Handbook of Water Resources of the USSR),
Leningrad, Gidrometeorologicheskoye Izdatel'stvo, 1937, v. 15,
part 2, p. 607-19, U. Eval RR 2
64. Golubev, G. "Puteshestviye Zhemchuzhnogo Zerna" (Migration of
the Pearly Grain), Vokrug Sveta, no 8, Aug 55, p. 2-6, U.
Eval RR 4
65.
66. Hinrichs, C.G. Limits of the Spring Wheat Belt in European
Russia, Master's Thesis, Dept Geography, Univ Iowa, Aug 52,
66 pp, U
67. Horbaly, William. Migration of Agriculture in the Soviet Union,
Master's Thesis, Dept Geography, Univ Chicago, Dec 7, 70 pp, U
68. "Hundreds of Kilometers of New Railroad Lines in Virgin Land
Areas," Current Digest of the Soviet Press, v. 7, no 26 10
Aug 55, p. 25-2 ,, U. (tr of Pravda, 2 Jun 55, p. 1, U) Eval
RR 3
69. Institut Geografii, Akademiya Nauk SSSR. Kazakhstan, Izdatel'stvo
A.N. SSSR, 1950, 490 pp, u
70. Ivanova, Ye. N., and Fridland, V.M. "Osvoyeniye Tselinnykh i
Zalezhnykh Zemel"' (Development of Virgin and Idle Lands),
Priroda, Apr 54, p. 3-10, U. Eval RR 3
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
71. Jackson, W.A.D. "The Virgin and Idle Lands of Western Siberia
and Northern Kazakhstan: A Geographic Appraisal," The Geographi-
cal Review, v. 46, no 1, Jan 56, p. 1-19, U. Eval RR 2
72.
73. Koloskov, P.I. A oklimatichesko e Ra onirovani e Kazakhstana
(Agroclimatic Divisions of Kazakhstan ,Moscow, Institut
Geografii Akademiya Nauk Kazakhskoy SSR, Izdatel'stvo A.N. SSSR,
1947, part I (text), 260 pp, U. Eval RR 2
74+. Krukov, S. "Provide Virgin Land Areas with Good Roads," Current
Digest of the Soviet Press, v. 7, no 16, 1 Jun 55, p. 25-226UU.
Eval RR 3
75. Kuzin, P.S. Rezhim Rek Yuzhnykh Rayonov Za adno Sibiri,
Severnogo i Tsentral'nogo Kazakhstana (River Regimes of the
Southern Regions of Western Siberia, Northern and Central
Kazakhstan), Leningrad, Ministerstvo Sel'skogo Khozyaystva i
Zagotovok SSSR, 1953, 538 pp, U. Eval RR 2
76. Kuznetsov, N.T. "Nekotoryye Osobennosti Ozer i Ikh Osvoyeniye
na Tselinnykh i Zalezhnykh Zemlyakh Severnykh Oblastey Kazakh-
stana" (Some Characteristics of Lakes and Their Utilization in
the Virgin and Idle Lands of the Northern Regions of Kazakhstan),
Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Geo aficheska a, no 2,
Mar-Apr 55, p. 62-68, U. Eval RR 2
77. Lebed, A. "Transportation Beyond the Urals and in Central Asia,"
Bulletin of the Institute for the Study of the History and Cul-
ture of the USSR, Munich, v. 1, no 9, Dec 54, p. 3-14, U. Eval
RR 3
78. "Life in the New Lands of Kazakhstan," Central Asian Review, v. 3
no 1, 1955, p. 32-36, U. Eval RR 3
79. Lorimer, Frank. The Population of the Soviet Union, League of
Nations, Geneva, 1946, 284 pp, U
80. Mattice, W.A. "Weather and Corn Yields," Monthly Weather Review,
v. 59, no 3, Mar 31, p. 105-13, U. Eval RR 2
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001 /0j1 _rj P79T01018A000200020001-0
81. Ministerstvo Prosveshcheniya RSFSR. Ekonomicheskaya Geografiya
SSSR (Economic Geography of the USSR , Gosudarstvennoye Uchebno-
Pedagogicheskoye Izdatel'stvo, 1954, 427 pp, U. Eval RR 3
82. "Nachalos' Dvizheniye po Novoy Magistrali" (The Opening of
Traffic on a New Trunk Line), Pravda, 19 Aug 55, p. 1, U.
Eval RR 2
83. Navy, ONI. IR Serial 52-50, 6 Jul 50, Inland Waterways of the
USSR and Satellite Countries, p. 17-19, C. Eval B-2
84. "New Roads in Raions of Virgin Lands," Joint Press Reading
Service - Moscow Daily Press Review, sec B, no 344, 10 Dec 54,
U. (tr of D. Zhdankin. Krasnyy Zvezda, 10 Dec 54, p. 1, U)
Eval RR 3
85. "Novym Sovkhozam--Povsednevnoye Vnimaniye" (To New Sovkhozes--
Daily Attention), Pravda, 30 Jun 55, p. 1, U. Eval RR 2
86. "Novyy Oblik Kustanaya" (The New Appearance of Kustanay), Pravda,
10 Apr 55, p. 2, U. Eval RR 3
87. Nuttonson, M.Y. "Agricultural Climatology of Siberia, Natural
Belts,, and Agro-Climatic Analogues in North America," American
Institute of Crop Ecology, International A o-Climatolo ical
Series, Study no 13, Washington, 1950, 64 pp, U. Eval RR 2
88. Nuttonson, M.Y. "USSR: Some Physical and Agricultural Character-
istics of the Drought Area and Its Climatic Analogues in the
United States," Land Economics, v. 25, no 4, Nov 49, p. 347-51,
U. Eval RR 3
89. "Okruzhit' Vnimaniyem i Zabotoy Novoselov na Tseline" (To
Surround the New Settlers on the Virgin Land with Attention and
Care), Pravda, 12 Sep 55, p. 1, U. Eval RR 3
90. Orlova, V.V. Klimaticheski Ocherk Barabinskoy Nizmennosti
(Climatic Sketch of the Barabinsk Lowland), Leningrad,
Ministerstvo Sel'skovo Khozyaystva i Zagotovok SSSR, 1954,
235 PP, U. Eval RR 2
91. Orlovskiy, N.V. Osvoyeniye Tselinnykh i Zalezhnykh Zemel' v
Altayskom Kra ye (Development of Virgin and Idle Lands in Altay
Kray), Moscow, Izdatel'stvo Akademii Nauk SSSR, 1955, 104 pp,
U. Eval RR 2
- 103 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2RQJ/(~8/R8E _lA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
92.
"0 Sisteme Vedeniya Khozyaystva i Poryadke Izpol'zovaniya
Osvaivayemykh Tselinnykh i Zalezhnykh Zemel" (Concerning a
System of Conducting the Economy and Sequence of Utilization
of Virgin and Idle Lands), Sel'skoye Khozyaystvo, no 121, 24 May
55, P. 3, U. Eval RR 3
93. Panadiadi, A.D. Barabinskaya Nizmennost' (Barabinsk Plain),
Gosudarstvennoye Izdatel'stvo Geograficheskoy Literatury, 1953,
232 pp, U
94. "Party and Government Decree on Virgin and Idle Lands," Current
Digest of the Soviet Press, v. 6, no 13, 12 May 54, p. 11, U
95. "Pervenets Zhelezorudnoy Industrii Kazakhstana" (The New Iron
Ore Industry of Kazakhstan), Geografiya v Shkole, no 5, Sep-Oct
55, P. 55-56, U. Eval RR 3
96. "Plans for New Railroad Lines in Virgin Lands," Current_ Digest
of the Soviet Press, v. 7, no 4, 9 Mar 55, P-5-7., U. tr
of Gudok, 28 Oct 54, p. 2, U) Eval RR 2
97. Pravda, 16 Oct 55, p. 2, U. Eval RR 5
98. "Railroads in Virgin Land," Current Di est of the Soviet Press,
v. 7, no 33, 28 Sep 55, p. 2T--29, U. (tr of Pravda, 18 Aug 55,
p. 1, U) Eval RR 2
99. "Railroads on Virgin Lands," Current Digest of the Soviet Press,
v. 6, no 47, 5 Jan 55, p. 21, U. (tr of Trud, 21 Nov 54, p. 1,
U) Eval RR 2
100. "Railroads to New State Farms," Current Di est of the Soviet
Press, v. 7 no 19, 22 Jun 55, p. 22, U. (tr of Pravda, 10 May
55, P. 2, U) Eval RR 3
101. Rikhter, G.D. "Znacheniye Snezhnogo Pokrova v Prirode i
Khozyaystve i Zadachi ego Izucheniya" (The Importance of Snow
Cover to Nature and the Economy and the Problems of its Study),
Priroda, no 4, 1946, p. 20-28, U. Eval RR 3
102. Rose, J.K. "Corn Yield and Climate in the Corn Belt," The Geo-
graphical Review, v. 26, 1936, p. 88-102, U. Eval RR 2
103. "Russia's Asian Frontier," New York Times Magazine, 5 Jun 55,
p. 8-9, U. Eval RR 3
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
104. Shashko, D.I. "Agro-KLimaticheskiye Zony i Rayony Zapadnoy
Sibiri i Severo-vostochnykh Oblastey Kazakhstana po Uvlazhneniyu"
(Agro-Climatic Zones and Regions of Western Siberia and North-
eastern Regions of Kazakhstan According to Moisture), Izvestiya
Vseso zno o Akademii Sel'skokhoz a stvenno o Nauka im. Lenina,
v. 13, no , 1948, p. 3-9, U. Eval RR 2
105. Shul'gin, A.M. "Ob Izmenenii Klimata g. Barnaula" (Concerning
the Changing Climate of Barnaul), Izvestiya Vsesoyuznogo Geo-
graficheskogo Obshchestva, v. 85, no 1, Leningrad, Jan-Feb 53,
P. 95-96, U. Eval RR 3
106. State, Moscow. Dsp 265, 30 Dec 54, Agricultural Observations
Made on Trip Through Kazakhstan and Central Asia, C. Eval RR 2
107. State, Moscow, Dsp 471, 25 Aug 55, C. Eval RR 2
108. State, Moscow, MA 1561, Sep 55, WEEKA 38 ECON, S. Eval RR 2
109. State, OIR. "New Village Plans Resurrect Khrushchev's Ideas,"
Soviet Affairs, OIR Report 4800.76, May 55, p. 16-17, S. Eval
RR 2
110. State. "The New Soviet Frontiersmen," Soviet Affairs Notes,
no 176, 6 Jul 55, 8 pp, U. Eval RR 2
111. Suslov, S.P. Fizicheska a Geo afi a SSSR: Aziatskaya Chast',
2d ed, Moscow, 1954, P? 7-83, 520-43, U. Eval RR B-2
112. Suslov, S.P. Zapadnaya Sibir' (Western Siberia), Moscow, 1947,
176 pp, U. Eval RR B-2
113. Takhayev, Kh. Ya. Bashkiriya, Moscow, Gosudarstvennoye Izdatel'-
stvo Geograficheskoy Literatury, 1950, 325 pp, U
114. Talanov, Viktor. Rayony Sortov Yarovay i Ozimoy Pshenitsy SSSR
i ikh Kachestvo (Regional Types of Spring and Winter Wheat and
Their Quality), Leningrad, Institut Prekladnoy Botaniky i Novykh
Kul'tur, 1928, U
115. Thornthwaite, C.W. "An Approach Toward a Rational Classification
of Climate," The Geographical Review, v. 38, 1948, p-. 55-94, U
116. Tikhomirov, I.K., and Ryazantseva, Z.N. Klimat Zavolzh'ya
(Climate of the Trans-Volga), Moscow, Gosudarstvennoye Izdatel'-
stvo Kolkhoznoy i Sovkhoznoy Literatury, 1939, no 9, 395 PP,
U. Eval RR 2
- 105 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
117. "Traffic Begins on New Line," Current Digest of the Soviet
Press, v. 7, no 33, 28 Sep 55, p. 29, U. (tr of Pravda, 19
Aug 55, p. 1, U) Eval RR 2
118. Tulaikov, N.M. "Agriculture in the Dry Region of the USSR,"
Economic Geography, v. 6, no 1, Jan 30, p. 54-80, U. Eval RR 2
119. Unstead, J.F. "The Climatic Limits of Wheat Cultivation, with
Special Reference to North America," The Geographical Journal,
v. 39, no 1+, Apr 1912, p. 31+7-66, U. Eval RR B-2
120. USIA. IS-19-54, 28 Dec 54, 1954 Developments in the Soviet
Union and Satellites, U. Eval RR 2
121. "Vesti s Poley" (News From the Fields), Pravda, 10 Aug 55,
U. Eval RR 2
122. Volin, Lazar. "A Survey of Soviet Russian Agriculture," U.S.
Dept Agriculture, Agricultural Monograph, no 5, Aug 51, 194
pp, U. Eval RR A-2
123. Volin, Lazar. "Effects of the Drought and Purge on the Agri-
culture of the Soviet Union," Foreign Agriculture, v. 3, no 5,
May 39, p. 175-96, U. Eval RR A-2
1211. Volin, Lazar. "The New Battle for Grain in the Soviet Union,"
Foreign Agriculture, v. 18, no 11, Nov 54, p. 194-99, U.
Eval RR A-2
125. Von Poletika, W.P. "A Climatic Survey of Russian Agriculture,"
Bulletin of the Institute for the Study of the History and Cul-
ture of the USSR, Munich, v. 2, no 8, Aug 55, P? 3-12, U. Eval
RR 2
126. Von Poletika, W.P. "Zernovaya Problema i Osvoyeniye Tselinnykh
Zemel"' (Grain Problems and the Development of the Virgin Lands),
V Konferentsiya Instituta o Izucheniyu Istorii i Kulltury SSSR,
Doklady i Diskussii (Conference of the Institute for the Study
of the History and Culture of the USSR, Papers and Discussion,
25-27 Apr 55), Munich, 1955, p. 65-73, U. Eval RR 2
127. Vsesoyuzriyy Institut Rasteniyevodstva Narodogo Komissariata
Zemledeliya Soyuza SSR. Rasteniyevod.stvo SSSR (Plant Culture
of the USSR), Leningrad, Sel'khozgiz, v. 1, 1933, part 1, 379 pp,
part 2, 674 pp, U. Eval RR 2
- 106 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
128. Zanin, G.V., and Aleksandrova, V.D. "Fiziko-Geograficheskaya
Kharakteristika Territorii Osvoyeniya Tselinnykh i Zalezhnykh
Zemel' v Altayskom Kraye" (Physical-Geographic Characteristics
of the Territory of Development of Virgin and Idle Lands in
Altay Kray), Izvestiya Vsesoyuznogo Geograficheskogo Obshchestva,
v. 87, no 3, May-Jun 55, p. 205-19, U. Eval RR 2
129. Zanin, G.V., Aleksandrova, V.D., Kravtsova, V.I., and Shavrygin,
P.I. "Prirodnoye Rayonirovaniye Territorii Zemel' Novogo Sel'-
skokhozyaystvennogo Osvoyeniya v. Altayskom Kraye" (Natural
Regions in the Territory of Lands of New Agricultural Develop-
ment in Altay Kray), Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya
Geograficheskaya, no 2. Mar-Apr 55, p. 9-72, U. Eval RR 2
130. "Zheleznyye Dorogi na Tseline" (Railroads in the Virgin Land),
Pravda, 18 Aug 55, p. 1, U. Eval RR 2
Maps and Atlases
131. Altay i Sa a , 1:1,500,000, Glavnoye Upravleniye Geodezii i
Kartografii GUGK) MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1954, U
132. Atlas Mira (Atlas of the World), GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1954, U
133. Atlas SSSR (Atlas of the USSR), GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1954, U
134. Bol'shoy Sovetskiy Atlas Mira (The Great Soviet Atlas of the
World)., Sovet Narodnykh Komissarov SSSR, v. 1, Moscow, 1937, U
1~5. Chkalovskaya Oblast', 1:750,000, GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1954, U
136. Geoaaficheskiy Atlas (Geographic Atlas), GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow,
1954, U
137. Karta Narodov SSSR (Map of the Peoples of the USSR), 1:5,000,000,
sheets, GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1953, U
138. Klimatolo icheski Atlas" Rossiyskoy Imperii (Climatological
Atlas of the Russian Empire), Nikolayevskaya Glavnaya
Fizicheskaya Observatoriya, St. Petersburg, 1900, U
139. Klimatologicheskiy Atlas SSSR (Climatological Atlas of the USSR),
no 3, Izdaniye Gosplana SSSR i GMK SSSR i RSFSR, Leningrad,
1933, U
0 - 107 -
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
S-E-C-R-E-T
140. Kuznetskiy Basseyn (Kuznetsk Basin), 1:600,000, GUGK MVD SSSR,
Moscow, 19 54., U
141. Novosibirskaya Oblast', 1:600,000, 2 sheets, GUGK pri Sovete
Ministrov SSSR, Moscow, 1950, U
142. Plotnost' Naseleni a SSSR (Density of Population of the USSR),
1:5,000,000, 4 sheets, GUGK pri Sovete Ministrov SSSR, Moscow,
1953, U
143. Pochvennaya Karta SSSR (Soil Map of the USSR), 1:4,000,000, 6
sheets, GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1954, U
144. Politiko-Administrativn a Karta Kazakskoy SSR (Political-
Administrative Map of the Kazakh SSA),, 1:1,500,000, 4 sheets,
GUGK pri Sovete Ministrov SSSR, Moscow, 1950, U
145. Skhema No kh Zheleznodoroz kh Liniy v Rayonakh Osvo eni a
Tselinnykh i Zalezhnykh Zemel' Scheme. of New Railroad Lines
in Regions of Development of Virgin and Idle Lands), photostat
of map in Gudok, Moscow, 28 Oct 54, p. 2, CIA 94085, u
146. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Res ublik (USSR),
1:5,000,000, sheets, GUGK MVD SSSR, Moscow, 1955, U
147. Trans-Siberian Railroad -- Ufa-Novosibirsk, 1:12,500,000. Sep
55, CIA 13944, C
S-E-C-R-E-T
Approved For Release 2001/08/08 : CIA-RDP79T01018A000200020001-0
 SECRET
IJ
QUO IMSU
Arousr C
?
q; U xxx~~?eFar~.
I 1 BEL0.4R.lr... /
te,p ! g?~a
;,okrl~.. - ~ 0
MrIr1,,' r
"kl.,.K r~S 1
300 400
200 300
ulunda
A - .9 ~i v ~'. NLNER~' It /
I ~ / \ >4ERCW~rCAYA
A Y A- ~.~ o^ ~~A 1
~'" ~ Kemerovo
AS v pp Drovino
pBLT' %
Y"
Keraat ,-
yrn
'~ I NOVOS BIRSI'' ' E~iN~tsaar'
q
~ / edaskq Iskltim i Bdcvo
Kocnki-~r I
w
Cherepa(tovo/ .'/ kk
~.f V04051811 et -
gg ~ ~ a Slalinsk
1. ~ RES