russian: Березники
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Perm Krai
Perm Krai (russian: Пе́рмский край, r=Permsky kray, p=ˈpʲɛrmskʲɪj ˈkraj, ''Permsky krai'', , ''Perem lador'') is a federal subject of Russia (a krai) that came into existence on December 1, 2005 as a result of the 2004 ref ...
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city of krai significance of Berezniki
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, mun_data_as_of=October 2009
, urban_okrug_jur=Berezniki Urban Okrug
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, mun_admctr_of=Berezniki Urban Okrug
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, leader_title=Head
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, leader_name=Konstanin Svetlakov
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, pop_2010census=156466
, pop_2010census_rank=112th
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, established_date=1873
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, current_cat_date=1932
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, postal_codes=618400-618426
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, dialing_codes=3424
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, website=http://admbrk.ru/
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, commonscat=Berezniki
, date=May 2010
Kydzakar, also known as Berezniki ( koi, Кыдззака́р, russian: Березники́), is the second largest
city in
Perm Krai
Perm Krai (russian: Пе́рмский край, r=Permsky kray, p=ˈpʲɛrmskʲɪj ˈkraj, ''Permsky krai'', , ''Perem lador'') is a federal subject of Russia (a krai) that came into existence on December 1, 2005 as a result of the 2004 ref ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...
. The city is located on the banks of the
Kama River, in the
Ural Mountains with a population of 137,091 as of 2021.
Etymology
The name Berezniki is derived from a
birch
A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...
forest originally situated in the city's location.
History
The first Russian settlements in the city appeared in the 16th - 17th century on the basis of salt mines.
It was founded in 1873.
City status was granted to it in 1932
as its
industry
Industry may refer to:
Economics
* Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity
* Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery
* The wider industrial sector ...
was rapidly expanding under
Joseph Stalin.
Administrative and municipal status
Within the
framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated as the
city of krai significance of Berezniki—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
.
[Law #416-67] As a
municipal division, the city of krai significance of Berezniki is incorporated as Berezniki Urban Okrug.
[Law #1983-434]
Economy
After the
dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the city's population dropped due to increased unemployment. Nevertheless, the city was able to keep its main industries on track. Large
chemical plant
A chemical plant is an industrial process plant that manufactures (or otherwise processes) chemicals, usually on a large scale. The general objective of a chemical plant is to create new material wealth via the chemical or biological transfor ...
s such as
titanium and
sodium factories as well as several huge
potassium,
magnesium and
potash mines are operational in Berezniki.
The potash mine, owned by
Uralkali
Uralkali ( rus, Уралка́лий, p=ʊrɐɫ'kalʲɪj) is a Russian potash fertilizer producer and exporter. It is traded on the Moscow Exchange using the symbol, URKA. The company’s assets consist of five mines and seven ore-treatment mills ...
, was the basis of the fortune of
Dmitry Rybolovlev who sold his interest in 2010 to
Suleyman Kerimov
Suleyman Abusaidovich Kerimov (russian: Сулейма́н Абусаи́дович Кери́мов, p=sʊlʲɪjˈman ɐbʊsɐˈidəvʲɪtɕ kʲɪˈrʲiməf; lez, Керимрин Абусаидан хва Сулейман; born 12 March 1966) ...
. Mine supports in the huge underground mine, about 1,000 feet (~300 metres) beneath the city, consist of soluble salt which is being dissolved by water flooding into the mine. The city, a former Soviet-era labor camp, was built near the work site, over the mine. Several
sinkholes, some huge, have opened within the city. The situation requires round-the-clock monitoring. The problem is believed to be limited to a small part of the mine which was not filled properly and is limited in its future impact, but the relocation of the city is under consideration.
["A Russian City Always on the Watch Against Being Sucked Into the Earth"]
article by Andrew E. Kramer in '' The New York Times'' April 10, 2012 The largest sinkhole, locally dubbed, "The Grandfather" by 2012, was 340 yards (~310 metres) wide, 430 yards (~390 metres) long, and 780 feet (~240 metres) deep.
When it opened in 2007 the hole was initially 80 m long, 40 m wide and 200 m deep. The sinkhole was expected to expand, and destroy part of the only rail line which leads to and from the
potash mines, and, being that Berezniki produces around 10% of the world's potash, this would lead global demand towards
Canada, potentially damaging the local economy. Nobody was injured when the sinkhole appeared.
Culture
Berezniki has a theatre and a museum of regional history.
Every year from July 17 to the 20th the town celebrates its
mosquitoes. They have music, dancing and a "most delicious girl" competition. In the competition, the girls stand for 20 minutes in their shorts and vests, and the one who receives the most bites wins.
Population
The city was in 124th place out of 1115 cities of Russia in terms of population in 2019.
According to the 2010 census,
Russians formed a majority in the city with a 90.87%, while
Tatars (3.16%) were the largest minority, followed by
Ukrainians (0.81%),
Permian Komi (0.67%) and
Germans (0.51%).
Notable people
*
Vasily Pavlovich Boryagin Vasily Pavlovich Boryagin (russian: Василий Павлович Борягин, 1919–1998) was a prominent Russian fitter and production-rationalizer, Honored citizen of Berezniki, Hero of Socialist Labor.
Vasily Pavlovich Boryagin was born ...
,
Hero of Socialist Labor
The Hero of Socialist Labour (russian: links=no, Герой Социалистического Труда, Geroy Sotsialisticheskogo Truda) was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It repre ...
*
Dmitry Rybolovlev, Russian billionaire, controlled the leading Berezniki potash mines from 2000 — 2011
*
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
, Russia's first president, attended
Pushkin High School
Pushkin High School is a comprehensive high school in the city of Berezniki in Perm Krai oblast, Russia. Former Russian president Boris Yeltsin was educated there.
There is also a high school by the same name in the city of Syktyvkar in Komi, Rus ...
in Berezniki
Transportation
Berezniki is served by the
Berezniki Airport, which mainly serves helicopters. A railway station is closed since it is located in the sinkhole area and has been damaged beyond repair. In the city, public transport service is operated with
trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...
es.
Gallery
Церковь Троицкая. (Разрушенная Лёнвинская Свято-Троицкая церковь).jpg, Trinity Church
Кинотеатр авангард.jpg, Cinema Avangard
Березники троллейбус 140.jpg, BTZ trolleybus and railway station in Berezniki
Березниковский троллейбус.jpg, Trolza
Trolza (russian: ZАО "Троллейбусный завод" (Тролза)), formerly known as the Uritsky factory or simply Uritsky,Bushell, Chris; and Stonham, Peter (eds.) (1987). ''Jane's Urban Transport Systems 1987'', pp. 603–605. ...
trolleybus in Berezniki
Провал в г.Березники на БРУ-1.jpg, A sinkhole in Berezniki at the site of the first potash plant
Больница содового завода на территории промплощадки ООО "Сода-Хлорат".jpg, Hospital of a factory
References
Sources
*
*
Further reading
"A Russian City Always on the Watch Against Being Sucked Into the Earth"article by Andrew E. Kramer in ''
The New York Times'' April 10, 2012
External links
Official website of Berezniki
Berezniki Business Directory
Pictures of Berezniki
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Perm Krai
Cities and towns built in the Soviet Union
Populated places established in 1932
Populated places on the Kama River