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CONTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICAL ISSUES

CONTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICAL ISSUES. IN SOUTHERN LIMBURG. POPULATION DECLINE. Ageing population Today 15% is over 65 years In 2030 it will be over 28% Excess of deaths over births Increase in single-parent households and households of just one person

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CONTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICAL ISSUES

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  1. CONTEMPORARY GEOGRAPHICALISSUES IN SOUTHERN LIMBURG

  2. POPULATION DECLINE

  3. Ageing population Today 15% is over 65 years In 2030 it will be over 28% Excess of deaths over births Increase in single-parent households and households of just one person Many older dependents- there will be 25% less workers in 2035; less tax income.

  4. Out-migration • Stage 5 of the demographic transition

  5. POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS ENCOURAGING MORE IMMIGRATION GIVING MORE FLEXIBLE WORK PERMITS TO BELGIANS & GERMANS PROVIDING ECONOMIC STIMULUS TO ENCOURAGE GROWTH AND IN-MIGRATION NATIONAL POLICIES TO ENCOURAGE BIRTHS

  6. ECONOMIC DISLOCATION AND CHANGES

  7. Collapse of coal mining industry and other heavy industries • ENCI – limits to quarrying and eventual closure of site • More unemployment (11%) • Changes from secondary to tertiary sector • Many people on disability (19%) • Income is lowest in all of Limburg

  8. PROBLEMS OF GLOBALIZATION

  9. DSM – certain sectors being sold off (SABIC) • NEDCAR – FORD take-over • KNP – taken over by SAPPI This can lead to possibilities of unemployment, production changes, plants moving overseas.

  10. OPPORTUNITIES OF GLOBALIZATION

  11. VODAFONE – telecommunications industry which allows Maastricht to become one of the European centers • Boston Scientific and Medtronics which allows southern Limburg to become a place of medical research • Internationalization of University of Maastricht • Intention of United World Colleges to set up a Maastricht campus

  12. INCREASED URBANIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT

  13. Increased traffic on A2 motorway due to new A73 motorway • Increase in truck traffic due to bypassing of Germany because of truck fees • A2 Maastricht – tunnel development • Maastricht airport – building extra east-west runway leading to more noise pollution • Debate: economy or the environment?

  14. AIR POLLUTION

  15. Due to high urban density and geographical conditions= high degree of air pollution. • Maas Valley region- keeps pollutants in= quarrying industries from Liege to Maastricht and other industries. This leads to many soldid particles in the air and as a result one of the most polluted regions of the Netherlands. • Sittard-Geleen – west mining region has a high concentration of pollutants due to DSM • Heerlen-Parkstad – East mining region gets a lot of pollution from the German Ruhr area • In the summer with easterly air flow and a high pressure system the region gets high ozone concentrations.

  16. DRUGS!

  17. Clash of liberal/tolerant Dutch policies on soft drug use and coffee shops. These become selling points for the surrounding countries of Belgium and Germany which have more repressive policies. • Southern Limburg has many ‘drug tourists’ from Belgium, Germany and France • Attraction point for hard drug dealers which increases crime and other problems in the area.

  18. POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS • Spread of coffee shops near the border areas; development of ‘weed boulevards’ • However, this has led to strong opposition from Belgium and neighboring villages

  19. TOURISM

  20. Development of tourist centers • Maastricht (historic and cultural) • Heuvelland (nature) • Eastern Mining region (human-made attractions= Mondo Verde, Industrion, Gaia park, Snow World)

  21. BUT WHAT IS TOO MUCH? • Traffic pressures on Heuvelland = possible solution is to limit car traffic and to close off certain routes; however this could also lead to pressure to other routes • Future of Maastricht= is it living beyond its means; example of Harrods casino coming to Maastricht

  22. CORE-PERIPHERY ISSUES

  23. Southern Limburg’s dilemma • Southern Limburg will always remain on the Dutch periphery • The future: should it forge greater links with the neighboring international regions and develop more clearly a Euroregion?

  24. This is not so easy: • There are conflicting national policies and conflicting regional interests. They do not always coincide • Euroregion competition: example: Wallonia- development of Liege airport example: Aachen- new international school

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