canada and us

8/2/2019 Canada and US

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Canada

The Canadian Shield Largest and the oldest feature of Canada

is also called the Laurentian Shield orLaurentian upland or Plateau.

Extending throughout the northwest partof the country from the Beaufort Sea tothe Gulf of St. Lawrence and alsoincludes Hudson Bay and Baffin Island.

A remnant of the earth's crust formed byvery old magma rocks, which is almostlevelled by erosion.


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The Cordillera Regions: It includes the mountains, faces the Pacific Ocean with a

fairly rugged coastline indented by numerous inlets (fiordedcoastline).

The Rocky Mountain System originated from the alpinefolding and started from the mid-mesozoic and continued,

throughout the tertiary. The westernmost reaches of the Canadian Rockies comprise

the Coast Mountain complex which includes the, highest,peaks in Canada, such as Mount Logan (6050,)), near theAlaska or boundary and Mount Waddington (4041m) in thesouthern section.

East of the coast Mountain Range lies the range of RockyMountains proper culminating in Mount Robson (3954 m),on the border between the Provinces of Alberta and BritishColumbia.

This region is rich in forest resources, hydroelectric powerand mineral resources.


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Climate Types: The characteristics of Canada's climate arepredominantly of the continental type, with great annualtemperature ranges and extensive cold and snowfall-in-thewinter.

Precipitation: The northern Arctic regions generally receivevery little precipitation, less than 30 cm annually.

Precipitation gradually increases toward the southeast and atthe latitude of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, varying between 100and 150 cm a year because of the west winds blowing in fromthe Atlantic. The Pacific coasts are also well provided withrain, which generally exceeds 200 cm a year.

(iii) Temperature ranges are also very significant: in theGreat Plains and the St. Lawrence region winter averagesmay normally drop to as low as -10C whereas on thesouthern coasts of the Pacific the average summertemperature however around 15C.

(iv) Snowfall is also very intense and long-lasting, as arealso the period of freezing weather,


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Fisheries It is carried on in three main areas:

(1) The East Coast Fisheries. Off Newfoundland,where the cold waters of the Labrador Current meetthe warm waters of the Gulf Stream, are the Grand

Banks, one of the world's greatest fishing grounds.Here are caught abundant supplies of cod, herring andhaddock. The rocky inlets of the Atlantic coast are avaluable source of lobsters.

The West Coast Fisheries. The ice-free coast ofBritish Columbia, with its long, deep fiords, its stretches,

of water sheltered by fringing islands and its clear, fast-flowing rivers, is equally famous for its abundantsalmonThese Pacific waters also produce herring andabout 60 per cent of the world's halibut.

The Great Lakes. From here and from other inlandwaters comes a considerable quantity of freshwater

fish.


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Natural Vegetation Patterns

Arctic Tundra

A narrow band of treeless tundra extends across the far northern portionof Canada.

Sub-Arctic Parkland and Boreal forest

South of the Tundra from New Foundland to Alaska is a vast coniferous,or boreal, forest chiefly spruce, fir and pine. This forest region, like thesimilar taiga of CIS, is one of the largest forest expanses remaining in

the world. East Temperate Forest or Deciduous Forest

(i) The coniferous forest gives way to deciduous forest through a broadtransitional zone of white and yellow birch, poplar and maple (broad leafspecies) in the eastern half of the continent.

(ii) Northeastern Canada covered by a vast deciduous forest of oak,

hickory, beach and maple in less fertile areas pines dominate. Prairies

(i) The grassland of interior region change from tall grass prairies on theeastern margin of the great plains to short grasses on the drier westernmargin.

(ii)The grasslands region can be used for agriculture and have alreadybeen brought under cultivation.


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Forestry Although forests cover nearly 48 per cent of Canada, only half of

them are productive; the rest is either inaccessible or composed ofpoor quality timber. There are three main areas of exploitation.

Quebec and the Maritime Provinces. Many deciduous trees werecleared during pioneer days for building houses and implements andfor fuel; those that remain are used chiefly for furniture-making. Theconifers are cut for pulping and made into newspring at some of theworld's largest paper-mills.

The Southern Shield. Much of this area is forested with spruce andpine, which, as a result of the barren soils and harsh climate, arestunted and slow-growing. been greatly reduced both by extensivecutting and disastrous fires. Today large areas are government-owned and the timber is carefully conserved. Lumbering isconcentrated in or near the valleys of rivers flowing south-wards tothe Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence,

British Columbia. Half of Canada's wood supplies comes fromBritish Columbia, and there is a danger that cutting may exceedgrowth. Timber companies have, therefore, adopted a careful policyof reafforestation.


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Agriculture

. Three areas are of particular importance.

(1) The Prairies of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

This is the most productive and extensive of the three areas. The gently rolling terrain and the fertile soils make it eminently suitable for

the growth of cereals, and although winters are long and cold, summersare warm, moist and sunny.

(2)The Maritime Provinces and the South of Quebec and Ontario.

Crops are generally more varied than in the Prairies, but oats, grown as

fodder for livestock, occupy much of the land. (3) British Columbia

In the fertile valleys and on the intermont plateaus a great variety of cropsis grown.

This is because of its coastal location where climate is mild and the annualrange of temperature is comparatively small.

Cereals Canada is one of the world's largest wheat-producing countries.

The greater part of the crop (wheat) comes from the Prairies where it isgrown almost traditionally under the system of extensive mechanisedagriculture.

About 30 per cent of the farmland is now under pasture, and oats andbarley, grown to provide winter feed for the increasing numbers oflivestock, each occupying about one-sixth as much land as wheat


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Other Crops Factors, such as soil and climate, are chiefly

responsible for the growth of a variety of othercrops in particular areas. Fruit, for instance, isespecially associated with the sheltered

Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia, the shoresof Lake Erie and the interior valleys of BritishColumbia, while the Maritime Provinces arenoted for potatoes and root crops generally.

Due to the existence of numerous large towns,

a great deal of land in such areas as the St.Lawrence Valley and the Fraser delta in BritishColumbia is devoted to market gardening.


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The five leading non-ferrous metals in orderof value are nickel, zinc (of which Canada isthe world's largest producer), copper, goldand uranium.

Asbestos (i) Asbestos is a thread like mineral fibres

which are used in making fire-resistantmaterials.

(ii) Half of the world's supply come from

Thelford, Black Lake and the town ofAsbestos in Quebec.

(iii) Sugluk on Hudson strait has workingdeposits of asbestos.


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Ferous Metal

Iron (i) Older mines of Wabana on Bell Island, Newfoundland (at one time it was only

the iron ore mine in Canada).

(ii) Enormous reserves of high-grade ore have been found in the vicinity of KnobLake in Labrador

and on the northern shores of Lake Superior at Steep Rock and Michipicoten.

Power

Coal Distribution

(i) Canada's coal fields are small and widely separated.

(ii) Cape Breton island - is locally important region for coal deposits, but they lie farfrom the industrial and urban areas, which therefore find it easier and cheaper toimport supplies from the Applachian coalfields across the American border.

Importance of coal in Canada (i) No coal is used by the railways, which are now powered by diesel locomotives.

(ii) Large quantities are required for the generation of electricity in the newlyconstructed thermal power stations.


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Hydro-electricity Canada has extensive potential of hydel power and only

the U.S.A. exceeds her in actually developed hydelpower. It has harnessed less than one-third of her hugeresources.

Provides 75% of the electricity in Canada. Even though so much of the country is frozen in winter,

there still remains considerable potential. Partly as aresult of the Ice Age, numerous lakes, rapids andwaterfalls which provide the two essential requirementsfor siting a hydro-electric power station, a storage

reservoir and a constant 'head' of water. Ontario and Quebec provinces of Canada are

important for hydel power generation plants.

Important large power stations are at CornerBrook, Niagara, Manitou Falls, Kameno and ChurchillFalls in Labrador.


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Petroleum

Distribution Turner Valley, Southwest of Calgary in Saskatchewan - For many years

it was Canada's sole oil field.

South of Calgary and near Edmonton: considerable deposits ofpetroleum are found.

An economical process for the extraction of petroleum from theAthabasca 'tar-sands' has now been devised, and in the near future

Canada might well find herself with more oil than she requires. Natural Gas

Canada is even more favourably situated as regards natural gas.Distribution

Deposits are found in Alberta and in the Peace River District of BritishColumbia.

The Trans-Canada Gas Pipeline, which conveys Alberta gas toindustrial areas in the east of the country, is the longest in the world.

In 1968, a second trans-continental pipeline (the Great LakesTransmission Pipeline) began operation; it runs from Alberta into theU.S.A. south of Lake Superior, thence to Sarnia


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Great Lakes Region The region around Great Lakes is highly industrialised region of Canada. Major

Industrial centres of Canada are the provinces of Quebec and Ontario80% ofCanada's industries near Montreal, Toronto, Hamilton and Windsor.

Industries in remote areas: The lead-zinc-silver smelter at Trail, British Columbia, andthe paper industry at Corner Brook, Newfoundland.

Iron and Steel Industry

1. This industry operates in two main areas. (i) At Sydney. Scotia, the industry was based originally on iron ore from Bel! Island

and

coking coal from a small local field.

(ii) In the lowlands of Quebec and Ontario

2. Important localisation factors

(i) Large demands for steel made by other industries,

(ii) The Steel Company of Canada (STELCO) operates plants at a number of townsbetween

Hamilton and Quebec.

(iii) The iron ore comes both from Labrador and from the Steep Rock-Michipicotenarea,

(iv) Coal from Pennsylvania, and

(v) Limestone - from southwestern Ontario.

Ports


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Ports

Montreal, despite its inland position and the winter freeze, is Canada'schief seaport.

Halifax and St. John derive a great deal of their importance from the factthat they are ice-free throughout the year. On account of this the CanadianNational Railway (CNR) was made to terminate at Halifax, while St. John

is served by both the Canada National Railway (C.N.R.) and the CanadianPacific Railway (CPR).

Vancouver,grew rapidly after the completion of the C.P.R. in 1885, andincreased still further in size and importance after the opening of thePanama Canal in 1914. Bulk products from the western Prairies travel toEurope more cheaply

Churchill on Hudson Bay is actually the nearest port to the Prairies, but itcan operate only during the three or four summer months when it is freefrom ice.

Railways

The construction of railways was a factor of inestimable importance, notonly in opening up remote areas of production, but also in weldingtogether a nation of widely separated communities.

There are two main systems. (i) The Canadian National Railway (C.N.R.) consists of lines built or

acquired by the Government. Its main transcontinental line runs fromtermini at Prince Rupert and Vancouver on the Pacific coast to Halifaxon the Atlantic.

(ii) The Canadian Pacific Railway (C.P.R.) is the largest of the systemunder private owneship. Its main line runs from Vancouver to St. John inNew Brunswick, 3.367 miles away.


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Quebec and Ontario each have about one-third of the totalpopulation, and indeed one in every five Canadians lives ineither Montreal or Toronto.

Montreal

Montreal is Canada's most cosmopolitan and also the secondlargest city.

The languages predominantly spoken there are French andEnglish. About 65 per cent of the population is French-speaking, and there is a vigorous and influential English-speaking minority.

Montreal continued to be the largest city in Canada until itwas surpassed by Toronto in 1976.Toronto

This big, thriving city on the northwest shore of Lake Ontarioedged out Montreal to become Canada's largest metropolitan

area in 1976. Its harbour is one of the busiest on the Great Lakes-St.

Lawrence Seaway.

Toronto is also the provincial capital of Ontario. Mostimportant, it is one of Canada's leading educational andcultural centers.


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Vancouver

Vancouver is the biggest city in the Canadian West,Canada's leading Pacific port, and the gateway to one of the

most popular resort areas in the nation. It is located across the Strait of Georgia from Vancouver

Island to which it is connected by ferry.

With its mild temperatures both in winter and summer and itsabundant rainfall, Vancouver is a gardener's delight. Thecity's residential areas have long been noted for their

beautifully landscaped houses.

Winnipeg

Winnipeg is a major city of the Prairie Provinces and thecapital of Manitoba.

The Red River formed much of the eastern boundary of thecity until the boundary was extended to include St.Boniface, the French-speaking city on the opposite bank.

The name, incidentally, comes from the Cree Indian wordwin-nipiy, meaning "murky water", a reference to thebrownish color of the city's.rivers.


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Ottawa

Ottawa, the federal capital of Canada, is on the Ontario shore of theOttawa River

More than a third of the inhabitants of the Ottawa area are of Frenchdescent.

Hamilton Hamilton, at the western end of Land Ontario, is known as the 'Pittsburgh

of Canada' because of the concentration of iron and steel industries there.

One of Canada's busiest ports, with large quantities of iron ore, coal, andlimestone being shipped in, put through the mills, and shipped out again inthe form of finished iron and steel products, which are the city's majormanufactures.

Edmonton

Edmonton, the capital of Alberta, lies along the banks of the NorthSaskatchewan River, which winds through the city in a deep gorge.

Like Calgary, its long-time rival to the south, Edmonton has been abeneficiary of Alberta's recent oil boom.

Calgary

Calgary, in southern Alberta at the junction of the Bow and Elbow rivers, issurrounded by prairies and rangelands that merge into the foothills of theRocky Mountains.

Halifax

Halifax is the capital of Nova Scotia, the largest city in the AtlanticProvinces, and an important ice-free seaport.

Canada borders on three oceans: Atlantic Pacific Arctic


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Canada borders on three oceans: Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic.

The Arctic region has a very small population mostly madeup of about 12,000 Eskimos

The first Europeans to sight Canada in about 1000 A. D.were the Vikings.

Canada is the second largest country in the world afterRussia.

Manufacturing occupies more people in Canada than anyother economic activity.

For at least nine months of the year most of the Arctic Ocean

is frozen over. From east to west Canada is more than 3,200 miles wide.

Quebec onthe St. Lawrence River was Canada'sfirstsettlement (1608).

Canada has the longest coastline, almost 60,000 miles

including islands, of any country in the world. Canada's leading industry is the manufacturing of food and

beverages; second is transportation equipment.

About three-quarters (75%) of Canada's people live in cities.


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Some areas on Canada's west coast receive morethan 250 cm (100 inch) of precipitation in a year, buton the eastern side of coastal mountains theprecipitation is between 35 cm inch to 50 cm, a year.

The people of Canada who are of British descentmake up about 40% of the inhabitants,

whereas people of French origin account for about27%.

Toronto, Canada's largest city, has a population of3,427,000. Ottawa, Canada's capital, has about819,000 people.

About one-third of Canada is covered with forest. Canada imports about 65% of its needs from the

USA, and sells about 75% of its exports to the USA. The USA Rocky Mountains and the Canadian Rocky

Mountains are part of same chain. Mt. Logan in the Yukon Territory, 19,850' above sea

level, is the second highest mountain in North

America.


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United States of America

Physiography

The physiography of the USA is quitevaried owing to the large size of the

country. The physiography consist of plains,

plateau and mountains and they can bedivided into three major groups. They are

(i) the Western Cordilleras

(ii) the Central Lowlands and

(iii) the Eastern or AppalachianHi hlands.


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The Western Cordilleras

The Western Cordilleras runs from north to south along theentire length of the continent and consistsof several parallel ranges, (i) the Rocky Mountains, (ii) thePacific Mountains and Valleys, and the varied (iii)

Intermontane Basin-and-Plateau country lying in between.

Rocky Mountains

The Rocky Mountains forming the easternmost range of theWestern Cordillera is also the highest range.

The Rocky Mountains are themselves divided into three majorregions; the Southern, Middle, and Northern Rockies.

(a) Southern Rocky Mountains

The Southern Rocky Mountains province lies across the heart ofColorado.

The mountains constituting the eastern boundary rise sharply the

adjacent Great Plains along a range called the Front Range inColorado.

Some large rivers rise in this province, including the Rio Grandeand the Colorado River, but it is the glacial period that gave thisregion its distinctive topography through scouring anddeposition.


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(b) Middle Rocky Mountains

The continuity of the Rocky Mountains northward is broken by the WyomingBasin (also called the Great Divide Basin),

The Middle Rocky Mountain province consists of ranges aligned in variousdirections, wide open valleys and basins, and a less congested topography thanexists in the Southern Rockies. wasatch Range and Bighorn Basin are someimportant features.

Yellowstone National Park which occupies the northwestern corner of Wyomingis also a part of this province.

(c) Northern Rocky Mountains

Northwest of Yellowstone Park, the Rocky Mountain landscape again changesconsiderably. The Northern Rocky Mountains exhibit a confused topography,generally lower than that of the Rockies southward and sustained by an evenmore complex set of structures than exists in the south.

To the east lies the Great Plains province; to the south the Snake River Plain of

southern Idaho forms a sharp topographic limit; and to the west, the plain of theColumbia River borders the Northern Rockies.

Large-scale faulting and severe erosion, as well as glaciation, have combined tomake this one of the country's most complex landscape regions.


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Central Lowlands

The interior of USA between the RockyMountains in the west and AppalachianHighlands in the east, is essentially

composed of a vast expanse of plains.In (he south, it extends into Mexicomerge with the Gulf-Atlantic CoastalPlain.

The Interior Plains include the whole of6 states (the Dakotas, Nebraska,Kansas, Iowa and Indiana) practically all

of Illinois, and parts of 23 other states. .

The Eastern or Appalachian Highlands


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The Eastern or Appalachian Highlands

The Applachian Highlands cover a vast area that extends from Newfoundland(Canada) to Albania.

They contain distinct topographic regions: the Applachian Plateau, the Ridge andValley area, the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Piedmont and the New England section.

All are grouped together because they have a common geologic history andbecause they lie as highlands between lowland realms.

Appalachian Plateau

The Appalachian Plateau has an irregular topography carved by erosion into hilllands and low mountains, especially in West Virginia.

Despite forming a part of the Appalachian Highlands realm, the eastern interior

boundary of the Appalachian Plateau is quite well defined by major escarpmentsthe Allegheny Front in the north and the Cumberland Escarpment in the south.

It is the western boundary facing the Interior Lowlands that is in places indistinct,because the Appalachian Plateau loses elevation and prominence toward the west.

"Newer" Appalachians or Ridge and Valley Topography

Compared to the Appalachian Plateau's irregular terrain, the "Newer" Appalachians'form a long parallel ridge and valley topography that extends from New York toAlbania.

Parallel vegetation-clad ridges reach remarkably even summits between 900 and1200 m above sea level. The eastern edge of this physiographic province is markedby a wider lowland corridor called the Great Valley of the Appalachians.

The Great Valley, the most distinctive, runs all the way from northern New York toAlbania. The Hudson Valley, the Cumberland Valley, the valley of East Tennesse are

Blue Ridge Mountains


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Blue Ridge Mountains

East of the Great Valley, extending from northern Georgia to Gettysburg,Pennsylvania, lies the Blue Ridge Mountains section of the Appalachians.

The province is underlain by ancient crystalline rocks, mostly highlymetamorphosed. In this respect the Blue Ridge differs from the Appalachian Plateau

and "Newer" Appalachians in that the latter two are sustained by sedimentary rocks. The Blue Ridge section is indeed the "Older" Appalachians by virtue of the age of

the rocks and the successive periods of mountain-building.

In the mountainous Blue Ridge, where the Great Smoky Mountain dominates theprovince's southern end, the Appalachian Highlands reaches its highest elevations inwestern North Carolina.

The Piedmont The Piedmont is a rolling upland plain that forms the eastern margin of the

Applachian.

The zone of contact between the Piedmont and the coastal plain is known as theFall Line-a name deriving from the falls and rapids which mark the course of riversfrom upland regions to the lower coastal plain.

In the Blue Ridge section, the Appalachians can rise to over 2000 m (6500 ft), but inthe Piedmont the maximum elevation is about 900 m (3000 ft) along the innerboundary, declining from there toward the contact with the Coastal Plain.

The underlying rocks of the Piedmont, however, are the same as those of the BlueRidge: ancient, highly altered crystallines. Thus, the difference is principally a matterof topography and relief.

The Piedmont has more relief than the Coastal Plain, with isolated higher hills risingabove the eneral level of the countr side.


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It extends from the submerged coastal zone to theinterior White Mountains of New Hampshire andMaine and the Green Mountains of Vermont. They aremade of ancient crystalline rocks. Hereelevations exceed 1800 m.

The Gulf-Atlantic Coastal Plain

An extensive coastal plain occupies the seawardmargin of the USA from Cape Cod (New Jersey) to theRio Grande (Texas).

Only three States - Florida, Mississippi, and Louisianalie.entirely within the coastal plain but the plain

touches 16 other states.

In its southwestern section, it contains great oil, gas,sulphur, and salt deposits which provide the basis formajor oil refining and chemical industries.


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The Intermontane Basins and Plateau region They lie between the Rock}- mountains in the east

and the Pacific Mountains in the west. TheImennonUme area may be divided in to number of

major sub sections as follows: The Basin and Range country.

The Colorado Plateau,

The Columbia-Snake Plateau,

The Fraser-Nechako-Stikine Plateau (Canada),and

The Yukon River Basin (Canada),

(a) Basin-and-Range Province


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(a) Basin and Range Province

South of the Columbia Plateau and west and south of the Colorado Plateau lies theBasin-and-Range province.

Actually, this is not just one basin but an entire region of basins, many of theminternally drained and not connected to other surface depressions by permanent

streams. The Basin-and-Range province looks like a sea of fault blocks thrust upward along

parallel axes.

The basins are mostly dry, streams are intermittent, vegetation is sparse, and windaction plays a major role in sculpting the landscape.

The most famous of all the existing bodies of water in this province is undoubtedly

the Great Salt Lake in northern Utah. (b) Colorado Plateau

The Colorado Plateau, by contrast, is underlain chiefly by flat-lying or nearlyhorizontal sedimentary strata, weathered in this semiarid environment into vividcolors (Colorado is a Spanish word for red) and carved by erosion into uniquelyspectacular landscapes.

The eastern boundary is shared with the Southern Rocky Mountains province. Onthe western side, a lengthy fault scarp bounds the Colorado Plateau and separates itfrom the Basin and Range province (which also borders the region on the south).

The Colorado Plateau is traversed by several sets of steep-walled canyons withmulticolored layers of sedimentary rocks. The Grand Canyon of northern Arizona, isof course the most famous. Rivers,

principally the Colorado, San Juan and little Colorado have cut vigorously into thelateau surface. Erosional activit in this re ion has created numerous buttes and


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(c) Columbia Snake Plateau The Columbia Plateau region lies wedged between

the Northern Rocky Mountains to the east and theCascade Range of Washington and Oregon to the

west. It is characterised by extensive areas of level land,

the result of massive lava flows in the past whichburied the past topography.

The Columbia Plateau itself is one of the largestlava surfaces or Intermontane basaltic plateau inthe world.


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Pacific Mountains and Valleys

West of Columbia Plateau and Basin-and-Range Province lies the verycomplex region of Pacific Mountains and Valleys. The dominantorientation here is approximately northsouth, parallel to the West Coast;this is the western edge of the North American Plate. These include:Alaska Range: Coast Mountains of British Columbia; Cascade Range inWashington and Oregon; Sierra Nevada in California, Sierra MadreOccidental in Mexico and the Peninsula of lower California. It includes Mt.

McKinley , the highest peak of North America. In between the rangesthree main gaps have been cut by the Fraser, the Columbia and theColorado Rivers.

In the north and south of this physiographic province, two elongatedvalleys separate lower coastal mountains from higher interior mountains.In the north, between the Cascades to the east and the Coast Ranges to

the west, the Willamette

Puget Sound Lowland extends northwardfrom south of Portland, (Oregon), to north to Seattle, (Washington), whereit becomes filled with ocean water. In the south. 1ies the Central Valley ofCalifornia a narrow lowland area almost completely enclosed bymountains

D i W h d


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Drainage Watershed

The drainage network of the United States is strictly conditioned by its mountainformations: the continental watershed line (Continental Divide) runs along the RockyMountains, separating the streams flowing toward the Atlantic from those flowingtoward the.

Streams of the Pacific

The Yukon, which drains a good part of Alaska, with a course 2900 km long and alarge basin of about 850.000 km2

The Columbia, which receives the Snake and is roughly 2000 km long with adrainage area of about 800,000 km2;

The Sacramento, which drains the streams from the large central valley ofCalifornia; and

The Colorado, 2300 km long with a drainage basin the streams from the largecentral valley of California; flows through the arid regions of the interior plateaus ofthe Rockies and empties into the Gulf of California.

Streams of the Atlantic

The tributaries of the Atlantic are much more abundant. Many short rivers rising inthe Appalachian highlands, such as the Hudson, empty into it, while the St.Lawrence, with only its southern shore lying in the United States, drains the largeGreat Lakes system.

Streams of the Gulf of Mexico

Rio Grande which forms a large part of the U.S.Mexican border,

The Mississippi which, together with the Missouri and its other right-and left-banktributaries the Ohio and the Tennessee constitutes one of the lar est river

Great Lakes: Some facts


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Great Lakes: Some facts

The lakes in order of size are Superior, Huron, Michigan, Erie, andOntario. Lake Superior (31,120 sq. mi.) is about four times larger thanLake Ontario (7,540 sq. mi.). Lake Superior is slightly smaller than SouthCarolina.

Only one of the lakes, Lake Michigan, is wholly within the United States.Canada and the United States share the other four.

The Great Lakes are connected to the Atlantic Ocean by the St. LawrenceSeaway, the St. Lawrence River and, finally, the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Aship travels 2,342 miles from Duluth, Minnesota to the Atlantic Ocean.

The Great Lakes are connected to the Gulf of Mexico via the IllinoisWaterway and the Mississippi River. Thus, it is possible to enter the St.Lawrence Gulf and sail all the way to New Orleans

Still another important water route connects the Great Lakes to New YorkCity via the Hudson River and the New York State Barge Canal System.

During the winter months shipping in the Great Lakes is severely curtailed.Most of the lakes, the St. Lawrence Seaway and the St. Lawrence Riverare frozen. In some places ice-breakers keep waterways open, but keepingthem open is a considerable task.

Climate


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The United States includes a greater number of major climatic types within itsboundaries than does any other country in the world.

Factors influencing the Climate

Latitudinal influence

Arrangement of large mountain systems

Air masses: Excluding Alaska, which is directly affected by the Arctic air massesUSA is also affected by tropical airmasses.

Oceanic Influence: The contiguous ocean masses of the Atlantic and Pacific alsohave a considerable effect on the climate. On the Atlantic coastclimaticconditions are characterised by extensive temperature swings due to the effect of

the cold atmospheric and marine currents from the Arctic which are responsible forharsh winters with heavy snows, while summers are generally fairly warm andhumid.

Absence of east-west mountain barriers: The absence of east-west mountainbarriers exposes the country to sharp temperature contrasts under the dualinfluence of polar and tropical air masses.

Natural Regions


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Arctic (or Tundra) Region

Climatic Types: Arctic or Tundra, found in the northern margins of Alaska. SoilThesub-soil is permanently frozen to a considerable depth (permafrost) but the surfacethaws out during the brief summer and becomes water-logged.

Vegetation Characteristics Consists of mosses and lichens, with occasional patchesof dwarf, shallow rooted shrubs, such as heather and crowberry. Few stunted pinesand dwarf birch trees grow on the margins of cold continental regions.

Cold Continental

Precipitation: Generally less than 50 cm , mostly falling in summer as a result offrontal depressions. Winter snow is quite small in amount, although it remains

conspicuously on the ground for long periods.Cool Temperate Maritime Region

Climatic Types: Cool Temperate Maritime climate, occupies a strip of coastal lowlandextending from southern Alaska to the northern border of California.

Temperature: In winter westerly winds from off the relatively warm waters of thePacific Ocean keep the January temperatures above freezing point and the coastal

waters are ice-free, but in summer these waters are cool in comparison with the land,and July temperatures are only about 16C .

Precipitation: All seasons of the year, heavy, because moist air-masses, continuallymoving in from the Pacific are forced to rise almost as soon as they reach the coast.In the rain-shadow area east of the coastal mountains, and as one approaches the'Mediterranean' area to the south, precipitation is markedly less.

Soil Types: Podzol in the wet coastal areas of Oregon and Washington.

Warm Temperate Western Margins (or Mediterranean') Region


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p g g

Climatic Characteristics Rainfall in winter with on-shore westerlies and drysummer with off-shore trades. San Francisco in California is the representativeclimatic stations of Mediterranean climate.

Vegetation: Evergreen woodland of southern California has been cut down and inits place masses of short stunted bushes have grown, known as 'Chapparal' inCalifornia

Hot Desert Region

Climatic Characteristics

A few torrential downpours may be followed by many wholly rainless months or evenyears.

The region includes Mohave, Sonoran and California deserts, formed partly as aresult of offshore trade winds, rain shadow effect of Sierra Nevada, highatmospheric pressure which persist over the area for most part of the year andpartly due to the presence of the cool Californian Current, maximum dailytemperatures are frequently 38C or more.

The continually clear skies lead to great ranges of temperature Vegetation is scanty

and consists only ofxerophytic scrubTropical Maritime Region

Heavy rainfall is caused by moist air-masses from the Gulf of Mexico, especiallywhere these rise over steep mountain ranges, and is further increased by convectioncurrents which are particularly active when the sun is overhead at noon.

Vegetation Evergreen dense forests of valuable hardwood trees (mahogany,

rosewood, ebony) with very thick undergrowth consisting of lianas and epiphytes.

Humid Continental (or ^Laurentian') Region


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Climatic Characteristics

Temperature: Great annual range of temperature. Heavy snowfalls, which mayparalyse briefly the life of cities such as Washington, Toronto and Chicago, arecommon in winter, while heat-waves and thunderstorms occur frequently during thesummer months.

VegetationThe Maritime Provinces of Canada, north-eastern USA and the GreatLakes area were originally covered by 'mixed forest' composed of both coniferous anddeciduous trees, but now many of them have been cut for timber, or for agricultureand settlement.

Warm Temperate Eastern Margins Region

Precipitation: Annual precipitation amounts to 100 cm or more. The northern -limit of this type of climate is approximately the northern limit of

successful cotton-growing, a line through places experiencing 200 frost free days.Apart from occasional burst of cold air from the north, the climate is dominated bymoist Tm air .masses from the Gulf of Mexico and neighbouring parts of the AtlanticOcean.

The three outstanding features of this climate are the high humidity, the violentsummer thunderstorms, which often cause widespread damage to fruit crops, and thedreaded hurricanes, which in autumn form in the Gulf and travel northwards.

Soil Types: Podzol soil in South eastern region of high temperature and heavyrainfall.

Vegetation: Luxuriant forests of deciduous type are found in low lying damp areas

while numerous types of pine are found on the dry sandy soils.

Mid-latitude Semi-arid Region


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Precipitation is between 25 to 50 cm low due to continentality.

An interesting feature of this climate in the High Plains is the warm Chinook windwhich may blow-quite (snow eater) suddenly in spring, causing a remarkabletransformation.

Soil Types Chernozem in the eastern part of this region which becomes 'chestnutcoloured' to the west and then 'brown in the extreme west (owing to diminishingsupplies of humus).

Vegetation Treeless temperate grassland Prairies are found although some specieslike low willows, alders, and poplars found along water course. Towards extreme westin grasses become shorter and sparser.

Mountaineous Region Mountain areas may display a great variety of climate as a result of the altitude,

exposure to or shelter from dominant winds, temperature inversion, the incidence offog and frost in valley bottoms, and many other local features. The influence ofaltitude is well exemplified in Mexico, where between sea-level and 3,000 feet are thehot, tropical coastlands.

Soils and Vegetation: differ as widely as the types of climate. Peaks and steep slopes are often without soil of any kind, while the remaining areas

are covered with the ill-sorted products or weathering, ranging from boulders andpebbles to fine-grained sands, described as 'immature' soils. On the lower slopesvegetation frequently takes the form of coniferous forest; above the 'timber line' (orupper limit of tree growth) there are grasslands, and still higher are only small alpine

plants, bare rock and permanent snow.


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Minerals Iron Ore

Major iron-are producing regions in the USA are

Lake Superior region: Haematite with a metal content of 5265 per cent mainly occur in the west and south of Lake superior,the most important of which is the Mesabi Range. But the richestand the most accessible of haematite ore are almost exhaustedbecause they have been worked since mid nineteenth century.

North-eastern region: Adirondacks region of New York and theCornwall of Pennsylvania are important for magnetic oredeposits.

The Western Region: Scattered iron ore reserves in the westernregion of USA, in the states of California, Nevada, Utah andWyoming.

The South-eastern Region: States of Birmingham and Alabamaare important for both haematite and limonite ores.

Coal


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The Appalachian Coalfields provide three-quarters of America's total and containexcellent coals of almost every type.

Gas-and coking-coals are plentiful in the Northern and Southern Coalfields, andhave been major factors in the location of the steel industry around Pittsburgh andaround Birmingham (Alabama).

Anthracite from the Ridge and Valley areas of East Pennsylvania

Household and steam coal comes mainly from the Central field in Kentucky andWest Virginia.

The Eastern Interior Coalfield, centred on Illinois, also consists of thick seamsnear the surface, which are easily excavated. The coal has only poor cooking

qualities, but it is particularly useful for raising steam in thermal power stations, whichsupply Chicago and other urban centres.

The Western Interior Coalfield, centred on eastern Kansas, is very extensive, butis little worked because the coal is of low grade.

Hydro-electricity

The U.S.A.is the world's largest producer of hydro-electricity. The major producing

areas are in the St. Lawrence Valley (at dams associated with the Seaway and theNiagara Falls), the Tennessee Valley, the Columbia Valley (Bonneville and GrandCoulee) and the Colorado Valley (the Hoover Dam).

Petroleum Oil


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The U.S.A. is the world's largest producer of crude oil, but even this is insufficientfor the country's needs, and large quantities are imported from Venezuela and theMiddle East.

Oil was first struck in Pennsylvania in 1859, and soon other deposits were opened upin the gentle folds immediately west of the Appalachians and in a number of outlyingdistricts in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Some high quality oil is still being produced inthese areas, but the deposits are now almost exhausted.

Today there are three main producing areas

The Mid-continental Field extending from Kansas through Oklahoma into Texasprovides 40 per cent of America's output.

The California Field (25 per cent) now produces less than formerly. The Gulf Coast Field (30 per cent) is steadily increasing its output, as more wells

are sunk in the Missisippi delta and in the shallow, offshore waters of the Gulf ofMexico.

Natural Gas

The U.S.A. is the world's largest producer of natural gas.

The gas usually occurs in association with petroleum, especially in Texas, and isused both as a fuel and in the manufacture of petrochemicals (plastics, manmadefibres, etc.).

Industrial Regions


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The Middle Atlantic States

Advantages for Industrial developments

The proximity of the region to Pennsylvanian anthracite, bituminous coal and oilof Appalachians. Steady influx of immigrants forming a vast skilled labour force.

Delaware River and Chesapeake Bay not only serve as convenient waterways forocean vessels but also provide an easy access to foreign markets. Today most of theiron ore supply comes from Canada and Venezuela through them.

This is the most populous region of the United States. Thus, it has produced a largedomestic market for its own industrial productions. Small amount raw materialscoaland iron.

This region is one of the longest, largest and most populous of the world'smetropolitan chains or Megalopolis, extending from New York to Baltimore withNew Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and Philadelphia being other industrialcentres along-with some small centres like Sparrow Point, Bethlehem, etc.

instruments factories at Philadelphia) are found here.

Major Manufacturing Centres

New York CityPrinting, publishing, metal fabrication, electrical goods, apparelindustry and food processing units, specialises in financial and administrative sectors.

PhiladelphiaFood processing plants and Shipyards and petroleum refineries line theDelaware River below Philadelphia.

Baltimore and CamdenMajor food processing centres.

Sparrows PointPetrochemical plants and iron and steel industry. Wilmin ton DelawareChemicals lants.

The Pittsburgh-Lake Erie Region


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The region has an ideal location for iron and steel manufacturing. Apart from

proximity to an excellent domestic market, this region has excellenttransportation advantages: the Great Lakes, all the major railroads running fromMiddle Atlantic to the Midwest, major highways and a network of pipelines and airroutes converge here. Further more, the region is rich in coal.The location of North

America on the opposite side of Europe stimulated international trade and thedevelopment of cheap inland water and rail transport. Besides, the development ofcheap inland water and rail transport helped in mobilising the raw materials to theindustry and finished products to the markets.

1. New England States

It comprises six New England States namely, Connecticut, Rhode Island

Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Boston is the main centreof this industrial region.

It is the most densely populated and most urbanised region of USA.

Two zones of industrial concentrations may be distinguished within New England.

Eastern New EnglandFavourable conditions for industrial developments

High concentration of population, it formed one of the most important markets inthe Western Hemisphere.

Numerous streams flowing over the rocky terrain provided the facilities forwaterpower development, which formed the traditional source of energy in the coalscarce region.

Surplus capital was reaped from the operations of ships and exports of timber.

The rough terrain of the region encouraged extensive agriculture and wool andhides became its b - roducts.

Another advantage lay in the situation of Eastern New England near the sea withd h b hi h f ilit t d th i t d t t d ith ll th


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good harbours, which facilitated the import and export trade with all thebackground set for the industrial development.

Boston is the main centre of the region.

The traditional industries of shipbuilding are found at Boston.

Textiles and leather are the oldest industry developed here. Footwear and textilemanufacturing machinery are its specialised supplies.

Western New England

No particular city dominates this region the way Boston dominates eastern NewEngland.

SpringfieldElectrical machinery.

HartfordAircraft and armaments.

The cheap power from Niagara Falls has helped in the development of severalnew industries like aluminium, paper, electro-chemicals, etc. The whole region haseasy access to the markets both in the Atlantic coast and in the western interior.

1. Iron and Steel Industry

An iron and steel producing belt, based on coal from the northern Appalachiancoalfields and iron ore from Mesabi Range via Great Lakes, developed fromPittsburgh to Lake Erie.

Pittsburghiron and steel capital' of the world.

Wheeling, Youngstown, Warren, Sharon and Cleveland are other importantsteel towns.


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Buffalonear the confluence of the Erie Canal and Lake Erie, produces andflour with the help of hydroelectric power from Niagara Falls.


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The Detroit Industrial Region

Detroit

Located along the Detroit river, this metropolis is on the main stream of Great

Lakes shipping with easy access to iron ore from Lake Superior region andcoal from Lake Erie region.

Greatest automobile-manufacturing region of the U.S.A., sometimes called asthe automative capital of the United States'.

The region has developed various ancillary activities to car manufacturing suchas tyre-making, electrical wires, glass, batteries, paints, polishes, alloyed

steel and spare parts.

The Lake Michigan Region


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An important industrial concentration has developed on the southern Lake Michiganhinterland, a horseshoe-shaped industrial area wrapped around the lower end ofLake Michigan.

Advantages of this region

(i) Productive agricultural regions, providing raw material for certain food-processing units, and also the agricultural surpluses help in increasing thepurchasing capacity for the manufactured goods.

(ii)Densely populated region, which forms a vast market apart from cheap labour.

(iii) Earliest advantage of function as a rail-road centre and also a major highwayconvergence point of all the major transportation, for example, Chicago- most

important region which is situated on a navigable canal and is a good port. It is amajor highway convergence point, it is the largest centre for air travel in the UnitedStates and has the largest railway yard in the Western Hemisphere.

(iv) Level terrain, fertile soils and suitable climate has supported commercialagriculture in the region.Chicago, Illinois. Indiana and Milwaukee are major centre.

Manufacturing Centres

ChicagoMeatpacking, grain milling and manufacturing of agricultural machinery

Southwestern Ohio, East-central Indiana and Louisvillearea of diversifiedmanufacturing such as machinery, aircraft, paper, etc.

Cincinnatinational leader in making machine tools.

Miami Valleypaper.

Chicago-Garysteel mills.

The South Region


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This region does not have any large industrial agglomerations comparable with thosein the north.

The important manufacturing concentrations are Houston, Atlanta, andBirmingham. This region can be subdivided into two parts (i) the southeasternpart, and (ii) the southwestern part and both have been enjoying different set ofadvantages and this is reflected in the kind of manufacturing units that are locatedthere.

Southeastern region


(i) Rich deposits of minerals. Two-thirds of the great Appalachian coal field lies in

West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennessee and Alabama. iron ore is found inAlabama, phosphate in Florida and Kaolin in Georgia.

(ii)Agricultural and forest resources. The region grows cotton and tobacco andhas excellent timber reserves.

(iii) Excellent waterpower resource. The two important hydroelectric plants arelocated at the Piedmont and the Tennessee Valley.

(iv) Moderately large population, providing cheap unskilled labour and market.

(v) The climate is mild, which helps in incurring less factory overhead expensesthan north for winter time heating.

Manufacturing Products and Centres

(i) Birmingham Major steel making centre of this region.

(ii) New Orleansoil refining, chemicals and cotton textile industries.

Southwestern Region


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The region's industrial development is based on oil. The region supplies aboutone-third of the U.S. domestic production of oil and has three-quarters of thecountry's natural gas reserves.

Other advantages of this region are (i)westward spread of agriculture into drier regions particularly, the cotton cultivation

has

provided a sound agricultural base;

(ii)the oil refining and chemical industries have been located on the coasts so that oiland oil

products are easily exported to other countries or sent to other parts of the U.S.A.through the ports and transshipment points;

(iii)intra-coastal waterway has been constructed running along the coast and throughlagoons

giving a deep channel on the shallow Gulf shore;

(iv)capital, has been generated by the oil industry which is invested in thedevelopment of other industries, either linked with oil or producing consumer goods.

Houstonoil refineries, chemical plants, synthetic rubber factories and steelmilling and the

manufacture of mining equipment and consumer products.

Dallasmajor cotton market, apparel and fashion industries.

Fort Worth

cattle town with the largest stockyards in the southern U.S.A. and is


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Other Industrial Region of the U.S.A Characteristics

Kansas Citysimilar manufactures as St. Louis and in addition it also hasaircraft and oil refining.

Seattle Aircraft industry partly due to cheap hydroelectric power andaluminium plants.

Portland, Los Angeles and San Diegomajor aircraft centres.

Californiasuitable climate of southern California facilitate aircraft testing. Los AngelesKnown for its world famous film industry. Along with it, the

climatic advantages for outdoor living has promoted sportswear and apparelmanufactures.

San Franciscolargest food-processing centre, centre for ship building andrepair.

Los Angeles - Santiago Corridorprocesses and packs the fruit andvegetable specialties.

Los Angeles and OaklandOil refining and chemical industries are important.

The San Francisco Bay districtfamous for Silicon Valleyproject

canada and us

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