Sayano-Shushenski is located in the Sayan montane conifer forests ecoregion, an ecoregion that is at the mid-elevation levels of the Sayan Mountains, the highest mountains in Siberia. It is in a transition zone between the Siberian taiga to the north and the Mongolian steppe to the south. This ecoregion has high levels of biodiversity due to the meeting of ecological zones, the variations in altitude, and the variations in relief.