Tomsk

City on the River Tom, in the Russian Federation, in western central Siberia; industries include synthetic fibres, timber, distilling, plastics, and electrical motors; population (2002) 487,800. It was formerly a gold-mining town and the administrative centre of much of Siberia.

In April 1993, an explosion in a tank containing nuclear waste at a chemical plant released a cloud of radioactive gas over western Siberia, contaminating 2,500 acres.

Tomsk

Oblast (region) of the Russian Federation, in southwestern Siberia; area 316,900 sq km/122,355 sq mi; population (1996) 1,078,000 (66% urban). The capital is Tomsk. There are lumbering, wood processing, metalworking, and foodstuffs industries. There is fur trapping and dairy farming, and grain and flax are grown.

The region consists largely of flat lowland with moraines and glacial lakes. Over half of the area is covered with mainly coniferous forests (the principal economic resource), and there are extensive tracts of swampland. The main river is the Ob. There are peat, iron ore, oil, and natural gas deposits. Cities in the region include Asino and Timiryazevskiy.

Tomsk oblast was formerly an area of banishment and forced labour camps, especially in the Soviet period.