THE NILE RIVER --- KEYSTONE OF EGYPT’S GEOGRAPHY ---
EGYPT
This is Egypt.
Notice that it is mostly desert...
…except for that green strip down the central/east region, and the bit at the top.
EGYPT
The green strip is the Nile River
Valley and Delta.
The Nile is an excellent example
of how people both adapt to and
affect their environment.
EGYPT
Everything you’ve ever read or heard about
Ancient Egypt took place in that
green strip.
Most everywhere else is unlivable.
THE ANCIENT NILE
The Nile River provided the major transportation route through Egypt.
----The Nile Delta (delta: sediment-produced
landform where a river meets a sea or ocean) is over 150 miles wide; includes Alexandria.
----Because the Nile fertilized the farmland,
nearly all Egyptians lived within ten miles of the river, or within the Nile Delta.
THE ANCIENT NILE
How did the Nile fertilize the farmland?
The Nile River carries silt downriver. This silt contains nutrients needed for plants to grow.
The Nile floods every year. The floods overwhelm the farmlands, and the river leaves some of its silt behind. This silt recharges the
farmland for another growing season.
THE NILE RIVER DELTA
The Giza pyramids are near the delta’s point. ----
The Nile splits in two (Rosetta and Damietta Rivers), explaining the Nile’s large delta.
Giza
Alexandria
DamiettaRiver
RosettaRiver
City of Niledivides
THE NILE AND THE PYRAMIDS
Boats on the Nile transported building materials from both ends of the river.
----Many pyramid workers were farmers whose
fields were unworkable during floods, meaning Egypt had a large available labor force.
----Some believe the pyramids’ foundations were
leveled by flooding the site from the river.
THE ASWAN HIGH DAM
Built 1960-1970----
The dam has a hydroelectric generator station, which produces a significant amount of Egypt’s
electrical power.----
Construction of the dam formed Lake Nasser, which holds the water that the dam blocks
until it is released when needed.
THE ASWAN HIGH DAM
Benefits1. Eliminates risk of floods, potentially saving
lives and property each year2. Increases safety sailing down the river
3. Increases the number of harvests annually from one to two or three
4. Greatly reduces risk of a bad harvest, thus stabilizing Egypt’s home-grown food supply
5. Provides electricity for the country6. National symbol of power, modernization
THE ASWAN HIGH DAM
Drawbacks1. Requires a massive irrigation project
involving canals to feed every field2. Dam, irrigation, and electrical infrastructure require maintenance to remain useful and safe3. Everyone living above the dam site has to be evacuated for the new lake (50,000 Egyptians)
4. Historic site at Abu Simbel flooded5. Loss of fertile silt deposits on fields requires
use of chemical fertilizers
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