Human Environment Interaction in Europe

1. Human Environment Interaction in Europe Coach Reed

2. Essential Questions • How have European industrialization and technological innovations impacted the human and physical environment? • How has Europe’s physical geography affected its development? • You will answer one of these questions on a sheet of paper at the end of this lesson for points, please be prepared!

3. The North Atlantic Drift • The N. Atlantic Drift is a current of warm water from the tropics. It flows near Europe’s west coast. • It has two effects: • The westerlies (wind flowing west to east) pick up warmth and carry it over Europe • The westerlies also carry moisture.

5. Human Environment Interaction • How have Europeans affected their environment? In today’s lesson we will learn both the positive and negative ways Europeans have interacted with their environment

6. Human Environment Interaction • The Dutch (people of the Netherlands) reclaim land from the sea. Polders are lands that are reclaimed by diking and draining. • Please turn to page 282 and look at the graph • Can you summarize the process of making a polder

7. Venice, Italy • People settled in a lagoon (shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by barrier islands or reefs) • Builders sunk wood into the ground to support structures. They needed so much wood they cut down oak forests in Slovenia and Italy. • Today, Venice is sinking due to rising sea levels, pumping too much groundwater, and the weight of the buildings.

8. Amsterdam, The Netherlands • Venice of the North • Amsterdam’s canals are the result of city planning • Amsterdam is two meters below sea level • They served three purposes: • Defense • Water management • Transportation

9. Maeslant Barrier • Storm surge barrier in The Netherlands • One of the largest moving structures in the world • Protects the city/port of Rotterdam from flooding and storm damage

10. Deforestation • Wood has many uses- houses, ships, fuel source • Industry in 1700s and1800s required wood to make charcoal for furnaces. • Huge areas of native forest have now been lost.

11. The Chunnel • The Channel Tunnel connects the British Isles with mainland Europe • A link had been proposed since 1800s • Over 18 million people used the service last year • Faster than ferry system and more convenient that air

12. Netherlands • Cause: The Dutch needed more space for themselves • Effect: They build polders, their land mass has gotten bigger, much of their land is below sea level.

13. Writing Assignment • We have learned several ways Europeans interact with their environment. On a separate sheet of paper, please tell me how European industrialization and technological innovations impact the human and physical environment?