Chapter 11: Northwestern Europe

L. By the end of 2015, several rivers in Europe will be

required to have major restoration to meet the new

regulations.

M. In the UK, community governments can forward EU

fines to the local offenders; local authorities can

remove the most polluting vehicles from the road

N. 3 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are

working to protect, restore, & improve the marine &

coastal ecosystems- Greenpeace, Oceana, & Seas

at Risk

E. factories built in the former Communist East

Germany still give off soot, sulfur, & CO2

F. Some former Communist countries are closing

polluting factories, but they are putting more cars of

the road.

G. acid rain a concern

H. countries in the EU can face legal action if they do

not respect environmental protection laws

I. NWE countries are building buildings w/acid-

resistant coatings

J. 2012 the mayor of Paris proposed a ban on older

vehicles w/higher emissions

K. all countries in NWE have ratified the Kyoto

Protocol

adaptability to changes in global trade give the EU

trade advantages over other regions of the world

IV. Managing Resources

VI. Society and Culture Today

Review Questions

A. NWE consumes large amounts of natural

resources & produces large amounts of waste

B. overfishing a problem; 75% of species are

overfished

C. air pollution is a problem throughout Europe due

to manufacturing industries & a heavy use of

vehicles

D. Industrial fumes & vehicle exhaust cause eye

irritation, asthma, & respiratory infections

A. Many countries in NWE have one or more

official language

B. Christianity is the primary religion in the

subregion

C. Roman Catholicism is the main form of

Christianity, but Protestantism thrives as well.

D. Europeans are only nominally associated with

their religion; many do not regularly attend

services.

E. value compulsory education & comprehensive

health care

Please write and answer the questions.

1. Name three rivers in Europe.

2. Name the five Scandinavian countries.

3. List the natural resources that are found in Finland.

4. List the natural resources found in Sweden.

5. What is the population of Iceland?

6. Why are Scandinavian countries called "welfare

states"?

7. What is stratification?

8. Most people in Norway live around the city of ____.

9. Most of the people in Sweden live around the city of ______.

F. NWE has made great strides regarding equality &

political empowerment for women.

G. Countries support equal work opportunities for

women & promote public policies to balance work

& family life.

H. Women in Europe were generally granted sufferage

before women in the US.

I. Margaret Thatcher became the first female prime

minister of Great Britain in 1979.

J. Gro Harlem Brundtland became prime minister of

Norway in 1981, and Angela Merkel became the

chancellor of Germany in 2005.

G. Northwestern Europe has fertile farmland

H. Mediterranean climates grow olives, citrus fruits, & grapes

I. In the north in the cooler plains region, farmers grow wheat,

rye, & other grains.

J. Many NWE countries have switched from coal to natural

gas, wind, & solar energy sources.

K. The EU has long-term plans to focus on biofuels, solar,

wind, & other renewable energy resources.

L. The European Union (EU)

1. European trading bloc

2. accounts for 1/6th of global trade

3. eliminates tariffs & other trade barriers among member

nations

4. educated & technologically advanced workforce, its

locations with access to water transportation &

VII. Economic Activities

supported large populations

C. Netherlands & Belguim have the highest population densities

D. UK is third in pop. density

E. NWE cities pop. density may exceed 14,000 people per

square mile

F. rural pop. density less than 50 people per square mile

G. Germany began inviting guest workers to encourage economic

growth

H. guest worker- foreign laborers living & working temporarily in

another country

I. Low birthrates & higher life expectancies have led to an older

population

A. NWE economies have developed various combinations

of agriculture, manufacturing, services, & technology

(which includes banking, tourism, & high-tech

industries).

B. In 1800's, Europe's large deposits of coal & iron ore

sparked the growth of heavy industry

C. Europe's industrial centers- Ruhr & Middle Rhine

districts of Germany & Lorraine-Saar district in France

D. Today, the service industry provides a large percentage

of the countries GDP (70%)

E. largest service industries- insurance, banking, &

tourism

F. transportation infrastructure- highways, high-speed

railroads, waterways, & airline routes

III. Climate, Biomes, & Resources

A. generally warm

B. mistral (strong north wind from the Alps) can send gusts of

bitterly cold air into southern France

C. foehns (dry winter winds) blown down from the mountains

into valleys & plains; can cause avalanches

D. natural vegetation- deciduous & coniferous trees

E. natural resources- coal, iron ore, natural gas, oil, nuclear,

timber, peat & hydroelectric energy sources

I. Landforms

IV. History & Government

A. Northwestern Europe (NWE) is scattered by plains & mountains

B. Northern European Plain stretches from southeastern England

across France to Germany; covered by loess

C. Alps

1. Mont Blanc is the highest peak in the Alps

2. high jagged mountains; south of the Northern European Plain

D. Central Uplands

1. lie b/w the Alps & the Northern European Plain

2. covers eastern France, southern Belgium, & southern

Germany

E. British Isles

1. consists of 2 large islands & thousands of smaller islands-

Great Britain & Ireland

2. Northwest of the mainland

3. features rocky cliffs that drop to deep bays

4. mountains, plateaus, & valleys make up most of the northern

& western Great Britain

5. low hills & rolling plains dominate in the south & in lreland

A. Over centuries, a variety of ethnic groups came into contact w/

this subregion.

B. NWE was profoundly influenced by Christianity.

C. NWE was a part of the Roman Empire; Christianity became the

official religion.

D. During the Middle Ages, Europeans fought the Crusades ( a series

of religious wars against the Islamic states of the eastern

Meditteranean)

E. goal of the Crusades were to regain the Holy Lands; Christians

lost

F. Effects of the Crusades

I. Enlightenment Period

1. one of the ideas that emerged was the belief in the idea of

progress

2. Before the Enlightenment, people expected their lives to remain

the same.

3. During the Enlightenment people began to think that society&

government could improve.

J. Industrial Revolution

1. transformed manufacturing in Europe with the change form

human labor to machines

2. Great Britain had labor, capital, technology, natural resources, &

access to waterways for transporting goods

3. started in Great Britain & spread to Belgium, France, Germany, &

eventually the US

K. poor working conditions led to the rise of Communism

L. Due to European rivalries two World Wars were fought.

E. important rivers-

1. Thames- allows oceangoing ships to reach port of

London

2. Rhine- connects many industrial cities of the

interior to the port of Rotterdam

3. Seine- carries most of France's inland waterway

traffic

4. Loire River- not open to ship traffic; home to

migratory birds

5. Rhone River flows into the Med. Sea; used for

hydroelectric power

6. Danube

II. Water Systems

A. Most of NWE lies within 300 miles of a sea or ocean

B. 11 significant lakes surround the Alps

C. 25% of the Netherlands is below sea level

D. Dutch build dikes to keep the water out

1. opened trade routes & helped to create cultural diffusion (+)

2. ended feudalism in Europe (+)

3. created religious tensions between Jews, Muslims, &

Christians (-)

4. increased violence against the Jews (-)

5. weakened the church (-)

G. After the Middle Ages in Europe the Renaissance (rebirth) began

H. Protestant Reformation

1. started by Martin Luther

2. religious reform movement

3. decreased the power of the Roman Catholic Church (RCC)

4. introduced Protestantism

M. During World War II, Hitler and his Nazis carried out the

largest genocide in history (the Holocaust)

N. After WWII, the division of Europe led to the Cold War, a

power struggle between the communist world, led by the

Soviet Union, & the noncommunist world, led by the

United States

O. After WWII Germany was divided into communist East

Germany & the democratic West Germany ; reunited in

1990

P. several European countries fromed trade agreements

which eventually led to the creation of the EU

V. Population Patterns

A. NWE is densely populated

B. temperate climates, fertile soil, manufacturing, & trade have

Chapter 11: Northwestern Europe