SS7G7

1
SS7G7

• The student will explain the impact of location,
  climate, physical characteristics, distribution
  of natural resources, and population distribution
  on Southwest Asia

2
a. Explain how the distribution of oil has
affected the development of SW Asia

• Two of the most important natural resources are
  oil and natural gas
• Bring wealth to the region because they are
  needed for much of the worlds economy.
• First deposits in SW Asia were found in the
  1900s.
• At first the drilling and refining was controlled
  by companies from the United States and Europe.

3
a. Explain how the distribution of oil has
affected the development of SW Asia

• Now most of the drilling and refining is
  controlled by the countries themselves.
• Over ½ of the worlds known oil reserves are
  found in this part of the world.
• This has made some of the countries very rich and
  has given them control over much of the global
  economy.

4
a. Explain how the distribution of oil has
affected the development of SW Asia

• In the 1960s, several of these countries joined
  with other oil-rich countries to create the
  Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries,
  OPEC, in order to have more control over the
  price of oil on the world market.
• OPEC has called for an embargo (a slow down or
  temporary halt) to oil supplies at various times
  in the past to get political and economic
  agreements from other countries in the world.

5
a. Explain how the distribution of oil has
affected the development of SW Asia

• Some countries in SW Asia have grown very rich
  due to their oil production.
• Others have struggled to help their populations
  make a decent living.
• The SW Asian countries with the greatest reserves
  of oil and natural gas are Saudi Arabia, Iraq,
  Iran, and Kuwait.
• Some countries have smaller reserves, especially
  those found around the Persian Gulf and Arabian
  Sea.

6
a. Explain how the distribution of oil has
affected the development of SW Asia

• These countries have enjoyed great growth in
  national wealth and an improved standard of
  living in the past 50 years.
• Countries without oil reserves have had a much
  harder time improving living conditions for their
  people.
• The difference in wealth among the countries of
  the Middle East have led to conflicts among the
  nations.

7
Can you answer these questions?

• What are the two most valuable natural resources
  in SW Asia?
• How much of the worlds oil supply is found in SW
  Asia?
• How has the discovery of oil in some SW Asian
  countries affected the economic development of
  this area?

8
Can you answer these questions?

• Which countries in SW Asia are the most oil rich?
• Why does OPEC play a powerful role in the world
  economy today?

9
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Three major river systems are located in SW Asia.
• The Euphrates River runs through Turkey, Syria,
  and Iraq.
• The Tigris River runs through Turkey and Iraq and
  joins with the Euphrates to become the Shatt al
  Arab which goes on to empty into the Persian
  Gulf.

10
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• The Jordan River forms part of the border for
  Syria, Jordan, the West Bank, and Israel.
• These rivers provide boundaries between some
  countries and are important sources of water.
• They furnish water for drinking and irrigation as
  well as routes for transportation and trade for
  those who live along their paths.

11
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Many of the major cities in SW Asia are located
  on or near these rivers.
• These cities and towns are also centers of
  industries as this is where workers can easily be
  found.

12
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• The Middle East has a number of very large desert
  areas
• The great Syrian Desert between Syria and Iraq
• The Rub al-Khali (or Empty Quarter) in southern
  Saudi Arabia
• These deserts have historically provided a
  natural barrier against invasions.

13
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• They also led to the development of a way of life
  that centered around the need to survive in such
  a harsh environment.
• Some people survive living in tent camps, working
  as sheep and camel herders and making a living by
  trading animals and hand made goods with those
  who live in towns on the deserts edge.

14
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• These people are known as Bedouins, or desert
  nomads.
• Their way of life is gradually disappearing.

15
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Countries of SW Asia generally have a very hot
  and dry climate.
• Four large oceans or bodies of water surround
  this area.
• They are the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, the
  Arabian Sea, and the Persian Gulf

16
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Mountain ranges close to the coastal areas block
  rains coming from these bodies of water and the
  result is that much of the interior of the Middle
  East is desert.
• Because there are coastal areas as well as the
  three large rivers, other parts of the region
  have enough water to support agriculture and
  cities and towns of a good size.

17
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Southwest Asia (the Middle East) is the gateway
  between the rest of Asia and Europe. It is also
  located close to Africa.
• Therefore it has played a major role in trade
  among these continents.
• The Silk Road ended in Turkey.
• Ships from SE Asia would travel to the coast of
  SW Asia to unload goods.

18
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Those goods would be loaded onto caravans and
  taken across the desert to the Mediterranean
  coast.
• Today the Suez Canal in Egypt links the
  Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea and ultimately
  the Indian Ocean.
• This makes the use of the overland caravans a
  thing of the past (obsolete).

19
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Many people practice subsistence agriculture,
  growing small amounts of crops to take care of
  their local needs.
• Because the climate is so dry, farmers must
  direct water from small rivers and streams to
  their fields (irrigation).
• There is some commercial agriculture but it is
  also limited by lack of water.

20
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Water critical resource in Middle East
• Both a source of life and a route for trade.
• Tigris and Euphrates run through more than one
  country source of political conflict in recent
  years.
• Several countries have built dams to create lakes
  for irrigation and hydroelectric power.
• Each dam cuts water supply to countries
  downstream.

21
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• No agriculture or animal herding can take place
  without adequate sources of water.
• People use many creative ways to get water to the
  fields (water wheels and pumps powered by animals
  or electricity, digging wells and qanats-
  underground tunnels that bring water from the
  hills to dry plains- and building canals.)

22
b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of SW
Asia have affected the population in terms of
where people live, the type of work they do, and
how they travel.

• Irrigated land usually needs chemical
  fertilizers.
• Repeated use causes salts to build up in soil
  which makes it hard to grown anything.
• Many places in SW Asia which have been irrigated
  for many years no longer produce crops as well as
  they did in the past.

23
Can you answer these questions?

• Many of the largest cities in SW Asia are located
  on or near _________________
• The Bedouins are SW Asians who have
  traditionally lived in and around ________
• People living in the deserts in SW Asia have
  usually made their living by_____________

24
Can you answer these questions?

• How have the major rivers of SW Asia become a
  part of political conflict?

25
Can you answer these questions?

• Describe the climate of much of SW Asia.
• The mountains that block winds coming from the
  oceans cause much of the interior of the Middle
  East to be _____________
• Why have the major rivers of the Middle East
  become political issues?

26
Can you answer these questions?

• Name some of the ways the people living along the
  rivers of SW Asia have gotten water for
  irrigation.
• Why do dams built along rivers cause problems for
  people living further downstream?

27
Can you answer these questions?

• Name the rivers that begin in Turkey.
• Which 2 flow through Syria?
• Which 2 empty into the Persian Gulf?