CH. 12- Europe

“The Peninsula of Peninsulas”

Ch. 12.1 “Landforms and Resources”

• Peninsulas and Islands

1. Northern Peninsulas (Norway & Sweden)

– Fjords: steep u-shaped valleys, cut by glaciers, provide

excellent harbors for fishing boats

Jutland Peninsula

2. Southern Peninsulas Iberian Peninsula

Italian Peninsula

Balkan Peninsula

• Italian penisula-

Italy and the

Sicilian island

• Iberian Penisula –

Portugal and Spain

• Balkan –Contains

Greece, Bulgaria,

Yugolslavia,

Macedonia,

Croatia, Bosnia &

Herzegovina, and

Slovenia

3. Islands Great Britain

Iceland Greenland

*Both Iceland and Greenland were settled by

Scandinavians: people who are from Norway

and /or Sweden

Mountains and Uplands 1. Mountains in Europe

separate groups of people

• Alps

Mountains and Uplands Cont.

2. Uplands:

• Hills or very low

mountains that may

also contain mesas

and high plateaus

1. Kjolen Mountains

(Scandinavia)

2. Brittany (France)

3. Meseta (Spain)

4. Massif (Central

France)

Meseta Mountains

Rivers “Europe's Links”

• Rivers used to transport goods and ideas

between coastal harbors and inland

• Two major rivers:

Danube River

Rhine River

Fertile Plains

• Northern European Plain

– One of the most fertile agricultural areas of the world

• Stretches across France, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Poland

Resources

• Two most abundant are

coal and iron ore.

– Ruhr Valley (Germany)

– Alsace-Lorraine (France)

• North Sea Floor holds

deposits of oil and

Natural Gas

• Peat: partially decayed

plant matter that is found

in bogs

12.2 “Climate and Vegetation”

• Westerly Winds control

the cold temp on Atlantic

coast of Europe

– North Atlantic Drift:

warm water flows near

Europe’s West Coast

• Alps create harsh

climate zone by trapping

weather systems

– high elevation = colder

climate

Mediterranean • From Southern Spain to Greece

• Mistral: cold dry wind from north

• Sirocco: hot steady wind blows from N.

Africa to S. Europe

Land of the Midnight Sun

• Northern Scandinavia

• Land is permafrost

• No trees, moss or

lichen

• Winter nights long,

days short

• Summer days long,

nights short

12.3 “Human Environment

Interaction”

• Dutch Netherlands – Much of land is below

sea level therefore prone to floods

Netherlands – Seaworks: structures used to control sea

• Dikes: earthen dams

• Polders: process that reclaim land by diking and draining

• Terpens: platforms that provide safety during floods or high

tides

– Zuider Zee- arm of the N. Sea, now freshwater lake

Terpens

Venice

• Movement of people and goods is dependent upon using the 150+ canals

• Weight of buildings is compressing the ground forcing the city to sink

• Pollution from sewer, boats, saltwater

Deforestation

• Forests cleared for

fuel, or for building

structures

• Acid Rains, by

product of waste

emissions (sulfur

dioxide, nitrogen

oxide)

3, 2, 1s • 3 things you found out

• 2 things you found interesting

• 1 question you still have