North Pacific Coast: Climate, Vegetation, and Settlement between US and Canada, Study notes of Geography of the U. S.

Download North Pacific Coast: Climate, Vegetation, and Settlement between US and Canada and more Study notes Geography of the U. S. in PDF only on Docsity! 1 1 US & Canada: North Pacific Coast (Ch.18) 2 States? Provinces? 3 What regions border it? 2 4 Overview • Main volcanic area of US mainland • Humid, mild • Significant vegetation • Significant growth in places • “Ecotopia” 5 Physical setting • Physical landscape regions parallel region itself – Coastal range – Interior trough (valley) – Inland range 6 Coastal range • Extend from N. Cal. Thru Coastal Alaska – Below US/Canada border: part of mainland – North: islands • Glaciated though elevations not high 5 13 Climate • Cloudy • High precipitation most places – Vancouver Island over 250 inches • Rain shadow in interior trough • Snowless along coast; incredible amounts of snow on interior mountains – Paradise, Mt. Rainier: Over 1,000” in one winter 14 15 Climate comparison 204 in.12 in.0 in.45 in.Snowfall 135 in.39 in.39 in.38 in.Rainfall 60 / 4875 / 5660 / 5282 / 61Jul Temp 30 / 1644 / 3653 / 4133 / 17Jan Temp Yakutat, Alaska SeattleEureka, CA Akron 6 16 Natural vegetation: Temperate Rainforest • Very dense vegetation • Most trees conifers 17 Natural vegetation: outside the forest • Willamette Valley: Prairie grass with much more limited forest • Many other locations: Tundra or ice sheet 18 Native Settlement • Numerous tribes • Among last to be displaced in North America • Expert wood carvers 7 19 White settlement • Russians come south – Advances from interior Alaska • Spanish come north – Explored as far north as Alaska peninsula • British / US – First by boat: James Cook 1778 – Later from the west: British (Canadian) and American claims 20 More settlement • 1820s: Russians limited to current Alaska • 1820s: Spanish limited to California south • 1846: US and Britain eventually split “Oregon Country” at current border • 1867: Russians sell Alaska to US 21 Reaching the area • Originally difficult to transport anything – Lumber only sent to Hawaii or California • 1850s: Gold Rush in British Columbia • 1880s-90s: Railroads connect area to the rest of the continent – Settlement began in all low-lying areas – Vancouver blooms as “end of the line” • Turn of 20th century: Alaska Gold Rush 10 28 Tourism • Remoteness has aided in preservation • Alaskan cruises • Skiing in British Columbia • National Parks: Olympic, Rainier, St. Helens 29 Focus on Asia • Shipping and trade have long focused on Asia • Business and finance well connected as well • Greater cultural attachment to Asia • Larger Asian population here (esp. Vancouver) • Asian currency crisis in 1999 hit exports significantly (lumber down 40%) 30 Seattle - Tacoma • Major shipping port (deep harbor), especially to Asia • Originally gateway to Alaska • Over 3 million people • Boeing a major employer (80,000) – HQ move to St. Louis in 2001 11 31 Portland • Over 2 million people • West Coast’s only freshwater harbor • Major lumber and agriculture port • “Most livable city” 32 Anti-urban sprawl 1970-1990: Portland’s population grew 50%, land use just 2% “METRO” Regional Planning Goals – “Urban Growth Boundary”, beyond which little or no development will be allowed. – Within Urban Growth Boundary , only buildings with high residential densities allowed – Slow highway growth – Spend most of transportation money on a light-rail mass transit system – Banning new shopping malls and stores like Wal-Mart 33 Vancouver • Third-largest metro area in Canada (2M) • Canada’s only main west coast port • Huge influxes of Chinese, most recently around 1997 • Ranks as one of most livable cities in world • Large homeless problem 12 34 Anchorage • Around 300,000 people • Half of Alaska’s total • Gateway to interior • Many jobs in petroleum industry 35 Juneau • State Capital • 30,000 people • On mainland but cut off • One of cloudiest cities in country (only 30 sunny days a year) 36 Outlook • Growing but with environmental concerns • Much more tied to Asian economy than anywhere else • Main growth to remain in a few cities