8 PHYSICAL REGIONS OF NORTH AMERICA

BY: HEIDI ROBINSON

Legend Appalachian Region : Orange Coastal plains: Brown The Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Lowland: Blue The Interior Plains: YellowThe Canadian Shield: Red The Western Cordillera: Pink The Intermountain Region: GreenThe Arctic: Purple

APPALACHIAN REGION• Topography

• Travels from Newfoundland through, Maritime provinces through, U.S. as far as Alabama and Georgia

• Contains Many different mountain ranges (mainly low) because of erosion which, changed pointy/sharp features into rolling hills and deep valleys.

• Was developed around 300,000,000 years ago

• Has many rivers, coal, oil and gasses which can be found in rock layers.

• Climate

• Is influenced by two ocean currents; the Labrador current and the Gulf Stream

• Labrador current carries cold water south from Arctic and in the winter of the northern parts its freezing.

• The Gulf stream however, carries warm water North from Caribbean and along the coast of North America then, crosses Atlantic to Europe.

• Great amounts of Plankton (microscopic organisms) which supplies fish with food and breeding grounds are found where the Gulf Stream and Labrador current meet.

• This is why there is a great variety of fish just off the Northeast coast.

•Vegetation

•Contains a high population of coniferous and deciduous trees

• These trees can survive in poor mountain soil also, can flourish on plateaus and in river valleys where soil is more productive and rich.

• Has a rock called sedimentary which is created by erosion of other rocks which, are now little loose material.

•Economic Activity

• Mining

• Forestry

• Fishing

• Trade (by sea as transportation)

• Chemical Industry

• In 1965 1 in 3 Appalachians were in poverty, in 2007-2011 only 16.1 percent lived in poverty so, their economy has improved over the years and still is.

•Environmental concerns

• Great amount of Greenhouses gasses due to coal power plants.

• Coal mining is destructing the landscapes

• Coal power plants also poisons ecosystem

THE COASTAL PLAINS• Topography

• Extends from Cape Cod along Atlantic coast which includes, Florida then going westward and traveling along Gulf Of Mexico continuing to Mexico

• Elevation less than 200 m above sea level

• Flat/gently rolling

• Contains many swamps and marshes, important because they contain shellfish and other aquatic animals

• There is gradual sinking of land which, can cause sea water to submerge into streams that cross the plains.

• Mississippi delta is an important feature that creates a wide amount of fertile agricultural land

• Climate

• Varies a lot however, winters are typically cold and snowy and the summers are hot and humid

• Southern locations have a subtropical climate with mild even warm winters and are known for their hurricanes which happen between late summer to early winter.

• Vegetation

• Very sandy coastal plains

• Lush jungles in some areas such as, Mexico

• Original vegetation was pine forests

•Economic Activity

• Fish/ shrimp industries

• tourism

•coastal trade; (oil and gas)

•Farming

• has some of the world’s wealthiest industries

•Environmental Concerns

•Urban sprawl is quite a big issue; Houston grew in expanse by 119% from 1970-1990, while its land consumption per capita increased by 26%, and the city now expands over 8800 square miles

• Air quality is poor, Houston faces many toxic chemicals such as, benzene

• Climate change is another problem, 100-year projections determine sea level rises of 15 inches, its possible this problem may become worse because of the very slight slopes (1 foot per mile),

THE GREAT LAKES- ST. LAWRANCE LOWLAND

•Topography

• includes triangle created by lakes Huron , Ontario and Erie

•Rolling landscape formed by glaciation

• Many hills and deep river valleys

• On both sides of the river there are flat plains which, begin to rise into the Canadian shield and the Appalachians

•Climate

•quite humid

•humid because of the Great lakes

•winters can be either cool to cold and summers either warm or hot.

• Vegetation

• Originally had very fertile soil and had a great population of trees

• The Great lakes part of the region had largest broad-leafed forests its great features that included, great soil and suitable climate aloud for maple, beech, hickory, and black walnut trees to grow to full potential.

• Other parts of region had Forests of deciduous and coniferous trees

• Economic Activity

• Manufacturing is biggest industry

• Manufacturing plants are located in the golden horseshoe

• Manufacture things such as: steel, iron-ore, coal and lime stone.

• Farming is another one of their big industries

• Environmental Concerns

• Pollution from the exhaust caused by manufacturing plants

• Also caused by chemicals from the concrete business’s paint; paint is giving off CO2

• Temperature is increasing more and more because of greenhouse gasses

THE INTERIOR PLAINS • Topography

• Run between Canadian shield and Rocky mountains, from north to south they stretch from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic ocean

• Gentle rolling hills, gradually sloping from west to east

• Very diverse

• Divided into central lowland and Great Plains

• The Canadian shield, Great lakes and the St. Lawrence river all make up the northern boundary of the Central Lowland

• Great plains have a higher elevation than the Central Lowland about 600 metres to 1500 metres above sea level in the west

• Interior plains have three different elevations, they are separated by escarpments

• To the north of prairies, interior plains continue to the Arctic ocean

• Climate • Continental climate due to its location, in heart of continent and far from the oceans

• Extreme climate including long, hot summers, cold summers and very little precipitation

• Farther north part of region has colder, longer winters and cooler, shorter summers

• Northern part has an Arctic climate; extremely long, cold winters and very short cold summers

• Vegetation

• Central Lowland east of Mississippi originally was covered with deciduous trees and had a fair amount of evergreens

• Grasses grew very long and green west of Mississippi; in The Great plains

• Natural vegetation of Canadian prairies was also grassland and trees only grew in river valleys

• Northern part consists of boreal forests which, is gradually becoming tundra towards Arctic ocean

• Economic Activity

• Two main Activities are Agriculture and Mining

• Agriculture consists of two parts; vegetables and livestock

• Some of the livestock include: Cattle, pigs, poultry

• Some Vegetables found there include: wheat, barley, oats, flax, canola, mustard, potatoes, corn and sugar beets

• Environmental Concerns

• Ground absorbs farm pollutants or escaping into the bodies of water

• disposing waste into landfills and lumber harvesting.

THE CANADIAN SHIELD

• Topography

• More than 2 billion years old

• Stretches around Hudson Bay and James bay, in east, south to Great Lakes and west to Interior Plains

• Overlaps two United States areas

• Has great amount of volcanic mountains that were created by many years of erosion

• barren rock surface due to the ice age

• Glaciers also affected the drainage

• Debris left behind by glaciers damned up rovers or forced them to flow in different directions

• As a result the rivers, lakes, swamps and muskeg all have a rather disorderly pattern

• Average elevation is about 100 metres above sea level in the north getting up to about 500 metres in the south

• Hudson Bay and James Bay lowlands are covered in clay, most rivers flow into these two bays

• Climate

•Northern part of region has increasingly cold, long winters and shorter cooler summers

•In Yellowknife, NWT the temperatures vary between about -30 degrees in the winter months and 15 degrees in the summer. They receive only a little precipitation the average is about 20mm a month

•In Thunder Bay, Ontario the temperatures vary between about -12 degrees in the winter and about 20 degrees in the summer

And receives a fair amount of precipitation average is about 61 mm a month

• Vegetation

• Boreal forests cover most of the region these trees include spruce, pine and fir; they depend on thin sandy soil

• Some deciduous are also found such as: poplar and white birch these trees are more suited for to the pulp and paper industry because they are a lot smaller and weaker

• North however, the growing factors are so poor; little to no precipitation and permafrost that no trees are able to grow

• Economic Activity

• has many of the worlds minerals such as: gold, silver, copper and nickel therefore, mining is a huge economy there

• In northeastern Quebec there is the Manic‐cinq, or Manic‐5 it is one of the largest‐known meteorite impact craters on Earth.

• Pulp and paper industry is also big there

• Environmental Concerns

• Acid rain is a significant problem

• Very damaging to environment and things such as: aquatic life, forests, crops and buildings. Also, bad for human health.

THE WESTERN CORDILLERA • Topography

• West coast of North America

• Many ranges of mountains , that are separated by plateaus and valleys

• Coastal chains of mountains are volcanic and inner ranges are fold mountains

• Has very high mountains, twice as high as Appalachian mountains in the east these mountains are also very sharp and rocky because they haven’t been worn down by erosion

• Rocky mountains to the east form continental divide

• All rivers to the east flow east to the Gulf of Mexico or Arctic ocean or Hudson Bay and, all rivers to the west drain towards the pacific ocean

• Climate

• West coast has a maritime climate which means, bodies of water if close affect the climate

• Receives a lot of precipitation, one of wettest regions on earth, most precipitation generally comes in the fall/ winter

• Winters are usually above freezing

• Summers cooler than interior of continent

• Mountain slopes are a lot cooler than valleys

• Leeward slopes are often very dry because they are effected by the rain-shadow whereas, winward slopes are receive a lot more precipitation

• Vegetation

• Many different variations

• Windward slopes have evergreens including: Douglas fir, western hemlock ad western red cedar these trees have a long life span and grow very tall.

• The higher you get on the mountain the more vegetation becomes like the Tundra

• Leeward slopes have tall grasses and cacti which, grow in the dry valleys

• If you travel more south you will not find the great evergreens since, the rainfall is less.

• Economic Activity

• Logging

• Fishing

• Mining

• Farming

• Environmental Concerns

• Construction and development of the land is a leading cause of the death of many wild life

• Industrialization and urbanization are the causes of water shortages in the Ecozone this is a cause of death of many species living in the ecozone. Without enough, clean water, the animals and plants would die. The water's quality is quite poor, it may be harmful to the animals in this region

• In Yukon, Alberta and Quebec water quality are all major concerns

• Potential oil spills

THE INTERMOUNTAIN REGION • Topography

• Located in U.S. and Canada which falls between the Rocky Mountains, the Cascades and Sierra Nevada

• Contains great amount of high Plateaus along with Isolated mountains

• Also has the only deserts found in the U.S.

• Most streams and rivers stop inland and do not ever deposit into the sea in fact, they flow to brackish lakes such as, Great Salt lake located in Utah otherwise disappear into desert sinks

• However, in some parts of region rivers deposit into the ocean

• Climate

• Depends on location and elevation

• Winters maybe hot, wet or dry depending on region

• Northern parts receive little precipitation, quite moderate, has moist winters and dry, hot summers

• Southern parts have short, warm winterns and receive very little precipitation

• Vegetation

• Ranges between grasslands to plants that can survive in desert conditions

• Higher elevations contains pine forests

• Economic Activity

• Cattle ranching

• Mining

• Fruits and vegetables

• Environmental Concerns

• Dry air in this region is endangering up to 11 bird species

• Dry air is also a cause of many forest fires

THE ARCTIC

• Topography

• Combination of lowlands and mountains located in northern part of Canada

• Very flat lands especially land near the oceans

• Mountains in north were created by folding and are currently covered by glaciers

• Climate

• Very extreme because its so far from equator

• Winter lasts for ten months in far north

• Summers very short and not very warm

• The Arctic is actually considered a desert because they don’t get a lot of rainfall

• Vegetation

• Not much vegetation because it has poor growing factors

• Small shrubs, mosses and lichens

• Economic Activity

• Oil and gas industry is a big economy

• Fishing

• Mining

• Arctic

• Global warming, the average global temperature has increased by about 0.7°C in the last 100 years

• Starting to drill for oil which, opens up potential for oil spill

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