Western Europe

Western Europe

Western EuropePeninsula of Peninsulas

Western Europe

Western Europe

• Because of its unique geography and weather patterns, Europe’s landscapes, waterways and climates vary greatly.

Western EuropeSection1

• Western Europe consist of 24 countries.• We will divide them up into small regions.(5)A. British Isles

1. United Kingdom2. Ireland

B. Central Europe3. France4. Andorra5. Monaco6. Germany7. Switzerland8. Austria9. Liechtenstein

Western Europe

C. Benelux Countries 10. Belgium 11. Luxembourg 12. Netherlands

D. Scandinavia Countries(Nordic)

13. Denmark14. Finland15. Iceland16. Norway17. Sweden

Western Europe

E. Mediterranean Countries18. Greece19. Italy20. Vatican City21. San Marino22. Portugal 23. Spain24. Malta

Types of Government in Europe

Religions of Europe

Language

Europe GDP

Internet Use

Comparing Landmass/Population

Comparing Rivers/Mountains

Western EuropeLandforms and Resources

Peninsulas• Europe is a large peninsula

of Asia.• Also has its own smaller

peninsulas.• Most places are within 100

miles of the ocean or sea.

Peninsulas and Islands

Northern Peninsulas• The Scandinavian Pen. Includes Norway

and Sweden-bounded by Norwegian, North, & Baltic Seas.

• Ice age glaciers remove topsoil; leave thin, rocky soil.

• Glaciers create fjords in Norway. -steep U-shaped valleys connected to sea, filled with seawater

-provide harbors for fishing boats• Jutland Pen. Forms large part of

Denmark, small part of Germany. -gentle, rolling hills & swampy low areas.

Fjords

Southern Peninsulas/Islands

Southern Peninsulas• Iberian Pen: home to Spain

and Portugal• Italian Pen. Includes Italy,

extends into Mediterranean Sea.-booted-shaped, with 4700 miles of coastline

• Balkan Pen. Bordered by Adriatic, Mediterranean, Aegean seas.

Islands• Larger:

Great Britain, Ireland, Iceland, & Greenland

• Smaller: Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, & Crete

Mountains• The Alps is Europe’s most

famous mountain chain.-crosses France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Balkans-cuts Italy off from rest of Europe

• Pyrenees Mtns. block movement from France to Spain & Portugal.

• Apennines Mtns. divide Italian Peninsula between east & west.

• Balkan Mtns. block off peninsula, separate ethnic groups.

• Pindus Mtns. are in Greece.

Alps

Apennines Mountains

Uplands• Hills or low mountains; may have

mesas, high plateaus.-some are eroded remains of mountain ranges.

• Uplands include Scandinavian Kjolen Mtns, Scottish Highlands.-also Brittany in France and the Meseta plateau in Spain.

• Some uplands border mountainous areas:-Central Uplands of Germany at base of Alps-Massif Central uplands in France

RiversMoving People, Goods, Ideas

• Network of rivers bring people, goods together-allows goods inland from coastal harbors, aids economic growth.

• Two major, castle-lined rivers as highways are:1) Rhine flows north 820 miles from interior to North Sea2) Danube flows east 1,771 miles, through 9 countries, to Black Sea.

• These & many other rivers connect Europeans.-encourage trade and travel

Rivers

Rhine River

Northern European Plain

Fertile Plain• One of the most fertile

agricultural regions in the world.

• Curves across France, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Poland.-flat agricultural land produces vast quantities of food.

• Flatness also has given invaders open route into Europe

North European Plain in Poland

Natural resources of Europe

Resources

Industry/Energy/Agriculture• Coal & iron ore needed to create

steel for industrialization.-found in Belgium, Netherlands, France, Germany, Poland.

• Major industrialized regions:-Ruhr Valley in Germany. and parts of the United Kingdom.

• Oil, natural gas found in North Sea.-petroleum supplied by Norway, Netherlands, Britain

• 33% of Europe is suitable for agriculture; world average only 11%.

Oil in North Sea

Resources Shape Life

• Irish burn peat: partially decayed plant matter from bogs

Chapter 12 Section 2

Climates• Maritime (most of countries)

• Humid Continental (inland countries)

• Mediterranean (in south)

• Subarctic (in north)

Climates influenced by:• North Atlantic Drift:

-carries warm water from Caribbean to coast

• High Mountains (Alps)(Cold)• The Atlantic Ocean prevents:

-Western Countries from having extremes of temperatures-quite mild year round temperatures.

Climates

North Atlantic DriftExample

Mediterranean Winds

• Mistral: A cold dry wind from the north. This on the coast of France not protected from the mountains.

• Sirocco: is a hot steady south wind that blows from North Africa.

Europe Growing Season

Farming

Crops

• Wheat• Rye• Barley• Potatoes• Sugar beets• Citrus fruits• Olives• Grapes

Land of the Midnight Sun

Cold, Dark Winters• Tundra climate in far northern

Scandinavia, along Arctic Circle-permafrost with no trees, only mosses, lichens

• South of Tundra is subarctic climate: cool with cold, harsh winters-little growth except stunted trees.

Region’s sunlight varies sharply:-some winter days have no sun, some summer days have no night

What is the EU

European Union• The European Union is a group of

countries whose governments work together.

• It's a bit like a club. To join you have to agree to follow the rules and in return you get certain benefits.

• Each country has to pay money to be a member. They mostly do this through taxes.

• The EU uses the money to change the way people live and do business in Europe.

• Countries join because they think that they will benefit from the changes the EU makes.

Exporting Partners

Chapter 12Section 3

Polders: Land from the Sea• “God created the world, but the

Dutch created Holland”-to hold growing population, the Dutch reclaimed land from the sea-40% of the Netherlands was once under water-dikes-earth banks that hold back the sea-a polder-land reclaimed by diking and draining.

Netherlands

Making a Polder

Seaworks/Terpen/Windmills

Seaworks• Seaworks-structures like dikes

that control sea’s destructive force.

-terpen-high earthen platforms that provide safe ground during floods

Windmills• OLD

• NEW

Transforming the Sea

Zuider Zee• It was an arm of the North

Sea and is now a freshwater lake.

• The lake is called Ijsselmeer.(eye Suhl mair)

Ijsselmeer Lake

Water Pollution• Industrial waste, sewage,

saltwater eat away foundations

• Erosion lets saltwater in• Agricultural runoff promotes

“killer algae” growth-algae grow rapidly, die, decay; this uses up oxygen, so fish die.-dead fish attract insects and create stench in warm weather.

Deforestation

Demand for Wood• Huge areas of Europe fall

prey to deforestation.• Wood used to fuel, building,

materials for ships, houses.– Industry needed wood

charcoal for blast furnaces– Eventually coal replaces

wood, but damages to forests is done.

Problems of Europe:Acid Rain

• Factories produce sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide emissions-combine with vapor,

create acid rain or snow-winds carry emissions to

other areas, affecting one-fourth of forests