The settlement lies on the banks of the Belaya River (so called because of the contrast between its waters and those of the Anadyr[10]), near to where it flows into the Anadyr River.[11] The Parapol-Belsky Lowlands lie to the west and the Anadyr Lowlands to the east. The village is situated on the northern slopes of the mountain, Gynryretyk (Russian: Гынрырэтык, literally meaning "The Guardian").[10]
The area in the vicinity of the settlement was populated during neolithic times, and a toggled harpoon head found in a grave indicated that there was a viable walrus hunting economy present in the area around 3000 BCE.[12] Furthermore, in the 1950s, the archeologist N.N. Dikov identified a burial site for a previously unknown people, who have been named after the village as the Ust-Belayan culture.[10] Several Neolithic sites have been discovered in the vicinity of the village, on the banks of the river[10] and at the eastern end of the settlement an ancient cemetery was partially destroyed during the construction of some warehouses.[10]
The settlement was established by villagers from Markovo towards the end of the 19th or beginning of the 20th century,[13] and is one of the oldest settlements in Chukotka.[11] At the beginning of the twentieth century, V.Z. Niulin moved here from the village of Markovo with approximately twenty other families from other camps in the surrounding area. in 1927, Nikulin opened a school in the village and the following year established a hospital. In 1930, a collective farm was established in the village and named "The First Revolutionary Committee of Chukotka". For the next five years, Ust-Belaya was the administrative centre of Anadyrsky District. The village is located in the immediate area where famous Chukchi reindeer herder Tenevil lived and the main economic driver of the settlement is still traditional reindeer husbandry aided by the fact that more than two thirds of the population of the village are of indigenous origin.[13]
Currently, Ust-Belaya has a secondary school, an arts school, kindergarten, post office, communications center, a shop, a bakery and a hotel. There is also a weather station called "Muhomornaya" and a small Orthodox chapel.[14]
Population as of 2010 was 856,[2] of whom 436 were male and 420 were female,[3] a slight decrease on a 2005 estimate according to an environmental impact report prepared for the Kupol gold project, which placed the population at 869,[15] down from 936, in 2003.[16] Of the people living in the village in 2005, 685 were reported to be of indigenous origin.[17]
Ust-Belaya has a continental subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification Dfc)[18] with very long, bitterly cold winters and very short, somewhat cool summers.
^ abThe results of the 2010 Census are given for Ust-Belaya Rural Settlement, a municipal formation of Anadyrsky Municipal District. According to Law #148-OZ, Ust-Belaya is the only inhabited locality on the territory of Ust-Belaya Rural Settlement.
Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №33-ОЗ от 30 июня 1998 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №55-ОЗ от 9 июня 2012 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон Чукотского автономного округа "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу по истечении десяти дней со дня его официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №7 (28), 14 мая 1999 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #33-OZ of June 30, 1998 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #55-OZ of June 9, 2012 On Amending the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of after ten days from the day of the official publication.). (in Russian)
Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №148-ОЗ от 24 ноября 2008 г. «О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Анадырского муниципального района Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №24-ОЗ от 1 апреля 2011 г. «О внесении изменений в Приложение 2 к Закону Чукотского автономного округа "О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Анадырского муниципального района Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу через десять дней со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №46/1 (373/1), 28 ноября 2008 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #148-OZ of November 24, 2008 On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Anadyrsky Municipal District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #24-OZ of April 1, 2011 On Amending Appendix 2 of the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Anadyrsky Municipal District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of the day which is ten days after the official publication date.). (in Russian)
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