1. PHYSICAL REGIONS
OF NORTH AMERICA
Gerrik Wong

2. Map of The 8 Physical Regions of
North America
Legend:
Appalachian Region
Coastal Plains
Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Lowlands
Interior Plains
Canadian Shield
Western Cordillera
Intermountain Region
Arctic Plains
Mount Logan

3. Appalachian Region - Overview



Mountainous region that ranges between 160
to 480 kilometres in width
Extends 2400 kilometers in length from
Newfoundland to Alabama
Mountains were formed by two tectonic plates
coming together [Fold Mountains]

4. Appalachian Region Topography



The Appalachian Mountains are made of many
mountain ranges, formed roughly 300 million
years ago, which has been eroded down in to
low rolling hills
The Appalachian region also contains fertile
plateaus and river valleys
Coals, oils and gasses can be found in the
sedimentary layers of the region’s rocks

5. Appalachian Region - Climate


Labrador Current brings in cold Arctic water
south and causes freezing in the northern
parts of the Appalachian Region
Gulf Stream brings in warm Caribbean water
north in to North America causing a warmer
climate

6. Appalachian Region Vegetation
The Original Plants in the Appalachian Region
were as follows:
 Coniferous
 Deciduous
These plants were able to survived infertile
mountain soil and flourish in the plateaus and
rivers that provided much more fertile soil.

7. Appalachian Region - Economic
Activity




Mining
Logging
Fishing
Trade

8. Appalachian Region –
Environmental Concern



Due to the Appalachian Region’s large deposit of
coal, Mountaintop Removal Mining, the process of
removing a mountaintop in order to get access to
a coal seam [layers of coal in which mining it out
would result in a profit].
The remaining pieces of the mountain are
dumped in to nearby hallow land in a giant pile
called Valley Fill.
The results of this mining ends in potentially toxic
elements found in the tissues of fish downstream
of the mines. The blasting cracks house
foundations, and pose danger to the communities.

9. Coastal Plains - Overview




Lowland area
Stretches for 3200 km from Cape Cod to the
Gulf of Mexico
Extends 100 km inland from the ocean
Streams from the Appalachian Region become
rapid when they enter the Coastal Plains

10. Coastal Plains - Topography






Average level of elevation is less than 200 metres
above sea level
Surface is generally flat or slightly rolling
More than half of the Coastal Plains are below 30
metres above sea level
The gradual sinking of the land created many
swamps and marshes, as well as streams and
rivers that can be navigated many miles inland
The Mississippi delta provides fertile agriculture
land
The swamps and marshes not only provide
transportation, but sources of shellfish and other
water-dwelling animals as well.

11. Coastal Plains - Climate



In the northern parts, the climate is cold and
snowy during the winter, and hot and humid
during the summer
In the southern parts, the climate is
comparable to sub-tropical climate, with mild
to warm winters
The southern portion are subject to hurricanes
between the period spanning late summer to
early winter

12. Coastal Plains - Vegetation


Because of the sandy soil in the Coastal
Plains, the vegetation of the land had adapted
to this, sometimes even forming lush jungles,
such as in Mexico
The original vegetation of the Coastal Plains
was pine forests.

13. Coastal Plains - Economic
Activity


Agriculture
Manufacturing

14. Coastal Plains - Environmental
Concern

Rapidly expanding population, as well as
industrial development threatens the fragile
environment

15. The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence
Lowland Overview [Or The “TGLSt.LL”]




Smallest geographical region in Canada
Contains several escarpments [a steep cliff
formed by erosion or faulting]
Cut short by the Canadian Shield near
Kingston
Bound in between the Canadian Shield to the
north and the Appalachian Mountains to the
south

16. TGL-St.LL - Topography



Rolling land, created by glaciation [the
process or result of covering something
with glaciers or ice sheets]
The plains are changed in to hills and deep
river valleys
The plains on each side of the river slowly
begins to rise as they enter the Canadian
Shield and the Appalachian Region

17. TGL-St.LL - Climate



The climate of the TGL-St.LL is a humid
continental climate [a climate type that
develops away from the influence of
oceans, and because of this, the
temperature range tends to be large and
precipitation is low] due of the presence of
the Great Lakes
The Great Lakes store heat, therefore warming
the surrounding areas during the winter
Winters vary from cool to cold and summers
vary from warm to hot

18. TGL-St.LL - Vegetation



This region had very fertile soils, therefore
making it heavily treed [an area planted with
trees]
The parts near the Great Lakes allowed,
because of soil and climate, maple, beech,
hickory, and black walnut trees to grow
The other parts of the region had mixed forests
of deciduous and coniferous trees, such as
maple, beech, oak, ash, birch, spruce, fir, pine,
and cedar

19. TGL-St.LL - Economic Activity




Farming
Logging
Manufacturing
Urban economic activity

20. TGL-St.LL - Environmental
Concern








Mercury, Polychlorinated Biphenyl and other
contaminants in the water and fish
Bacterial contamination leading to beach closing
Habitat destruction and degrading
Excessive growth of nuisance aquatic plants
Exotic species
Fish and wildlife health impacts
All of the listed above are environmental concerns in
the St. Lawrence area
Historically, contaminants have entered the St.
Lawrence river due to industrial and municipal
discharges, urban storm water, agricultural run off and
other sources

21. The Interior Plains - Overview

Vast sweep of plains, but not entirely flat


Most places consist of gently rolling hills and deep river
valleys
Runs between the rocky mountains in the west and
Canadian Shield, or Appalachian Mountains on the east
Extends from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic Ocean

Because of its size, the region is very diverse


22. The Interior Plains - Topography






Separated in to central lowland and great plains in the
United States
Central lowland’s northern boundary is formed by the
Canadian Shield and TGL-St.LL River
Great plains are higher that the central lowland and
rise from about 600 metres to 1500 metres above sea
level in the west
In Canada, the prairie provinces contain 3 different
elevations which are separated by escarpments
The plains are gently rolling, gradually sloping down
from west to east
The Interior Plains continue to the Arctic Ocean to the
north

23. The Interior Plains - Climate




Continental climate, due to its position in the
center of the continent
Extreme climate, including long, hot, summers
and cold winters with little precipitation
To the north, the winters are colder and longer
and summers are shorter and cool
The northern portion of the region has
extremely long, cold, winters, and short, cool
summers

24. The Interior Plains - Vegetation




The central lowland east of the Mississippi was
covered with mixed deciduous trees and scattered
evergreens
In the great plains, prairie grasses grew as tall as
a person
In Canada, the natural vegetation of the prairies
were grasslands, trees only growing in the river
valleys
In the northern portion, boreal forests grow
gradually turning in to a tundra towards the Arctic
Ocean

25. The Interior Plains - Economic
Activity



Farming
Mining
Oil and natural gas drilling

26. The Interior Plains - Environmental
Concern




Oil sand mining creates environmental
controversy and potential danger for residents
The risk of an oil leak could devastate the
environment
A large amount of water is required to separate
the oil and sand
Produces a large amount of carbon dioxide
and other emissions

27. Canadian Shield - Overview





More than 2 billion years old
Made of volcanic mountains that were levelled
by millions of years of erosion
Covers more than half of Canada’s surface
Stretches from Labrador to the Interior Plains
in the west
Overlaps the US in two areas

28. Canadian Shield - Topography




Most of the soil was removed during the Ice Age
Because of the retreat of the glaciers, it caused
the shield’s rivers to flow in different directions,
creating a chaotic network of rivers, lakes,
swamps and muskeg [a level bog or swamp]
Average elevation is 100 metres above sea level
in the north, and 500 metres in the south, the
centre being much lower than it’s outer portion
Around Hudson Bay and James Bay are lowland
areas covered with clay, causing most rivers in the
region to flow in to these two bays

29. Canadian Shield - Climate


Climate varies in this vast land
In the north, the winters become increasingly
long and cold, with the summers shorter and
cooler

30. Canadian Shield - Vegetation



Boreal [of the Arctic] forests covers most of
the Canadian Shield, since evergreens are
suited to more sandy soil
Deciduous trees are also present
To the north, no trees are able to grow, since
the growing season is too short and there is
too little precipitation, as well as permafrost

31. Canadian Shield - Economic
Activity


Pulp and paper industry
Mining ores such as
gold, copper, lead, diamonds, nickel, platinum
and so on

32. Canadian Shield - Environmental
Concern



Acid rain is an especially large problem for the
Canadian Shield
The sulphur dioxide produced by the mining
industry to refine certain metals are put in to
the atmosphere and absorbed in to the clouds,
which then rain down acid rain
The Canadian Shield, is especially susceptible
to the acid rain, due to the lack of natural
alkalinity, such as a lime base, and therefore
can not neutralize the effects of the acid rain

33. Western Cordillera - Overview

Runs along the west coast of North America

Consists of range after range of mountains separated by plateaus
and valleys

The Rocky Mountains are the eastern range of mountains of the
region, and in the US, it veers to the interior of the continent

The western coastal chains of mountains are volcanic
mountains, but the eastern mountains are fold mountains

34. Western Cordillera Topography



Made of new mountains not yet worn down by
erosion and are twice as high as the
Appalachian Mountains
There are many different mountain ranges,
such as the Rocky Mountains that form the
Continental Divide
Rivers east of the Rockies flow east finding
their outlets in the Gulf of Mexico, Arctic
Ocean, Hudson Bay or James Bay, while the
rivers to the west drain to the Pacific Ocean

35. Western Cordillera - Climate



Maritime Climate [a climate strongly affected
by its proximity to a large body of water, and
has large precipitation and a small annual
temperature range] although it varies from north
to south
West coast is moist and mild, with winters usually
above freezing, and summers cooler than the
interior of the continent
Valleys are warmer than mountain slopes and
windward slopes wetter than the leeward
slopes, due to the rain-shadow effect

36. Western Cordillera - Vegetation





Vegetation varies depending on which side of the
mountain it is
On the moist windward slopes, evergreens grow
to tremendous age and enormous size on the
lower slopes of the mountain
Higher up, the trees are smaller, and at the top,
vegetation becomes similar to a tundra’s or
ceases to exist
On the leeward slopes, grasses and cactuses
grow in the dry valleys
Farther south, evergreens no longer grow since
rainfall is less

37. Western Cordillera - Economic
Activity




Logging
Fishing
Mining
Farming

38. Western Cordillera - Environmental
Concern


Logging and oil exploration is responsible for
accelerated slope erosion, both from the
operation and from the roads created to reach
them
Erosion has created silting of streams

39. The Intermountain Region Overview




Lies between the Rocky Mountains and Coast
Mountains, the Cascades, and the Sierra Nevada
Not heavily populated area of high plateaus [flat area
at high elevation] and isolated mountains
Contains only deserts in the United States
Consists of the interior plateau valleys of British
Columbia and Yukon in Canada

40. The Intermountain RegionTopography


Streams and rivers usually never reach the
sea, and instead, flow into brackish
[somewhat salty] lakes or disappear in to
desert sinks [a place where water is
collected]
Some areas of the region can be made
productive by irrigation, and in others, cattleranching is possible

41. The Intermountain Region Climate




Climate varies depending on its location and
elevation
Winters can be cool and wet or hot and dry
In the south, winters are sort and warm with
little precipitation
Northern portions lack precipitation, although
the climate is more moderate with moist
winters and hot dry summers

42. The Intermountain RegionVegetation


Ranges from sparse grassland to plants that
can survive in desert or semi-desert conditions
Higher areas are covered in thin pine forest

43. The Intermountain Region- Economic
Activity



Forestry
Fresh Water Fishing
Agriculture

44. The Intermountain Region- Environmental
Concern

The Intermountain Region contains over 370
species of birds, and because of the growing
human population, and activities that help
sustain the region’s economy, such as forestry
destroy the birds’ habitats

45. The Arctic - Overview



Combination of lowlands and mountains
Lowlands are found in a series of islands lying
to the north of Hudson Bay
Mountains are found in the extreme northwest
border

46. The Arctic - Topography


Areas near the ocean are very flat
Mountains in the far north were formed by
folding and are covered in glaciers

47. The Arctic - Climate




Severe climate due to its location away from
the equator
Winters last up to ten months in the far north
Summer is short and not very warm
Due to its little precipitation, the Arctic is a
desert

48. The Arctic - Vegetation



Besides lichen, very few life forms are able to
grow on the mountains of the Arctic
Trees can not grow on the tundra
[northernmost vegetation region found in
areas too cold for trees to grow] because of
the cold and dry climate, and only a small
amount of thawing occurs during the summer
Small shrubs, mosses, and lichens are the
only things that can grow, which cling to the
ground and absorb the small amount of
warmth and moisture available

49. The Arctic - Economic Activity



Mining
Oil and natural gas drilling
Fishing

50. The Arctic - Environmental
Concern



Climate change
Changes in biological diversity
Accumulation of toxic chemicals

51. Bibliography

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
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
Lindsey, Rebecca. United States. NASA. Coal Controversy In Appalachia. 2007. Web.
<earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/MountaintopRemoval/>.

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
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
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
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
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
Rose, Briar, Hanan , and Jonah . "The Intermountain Region." . N.p., 05 03 2013. Web. 17 Feb 2014.
<prezi.com/xdi0uvo7psek/the-intermountain-region/>.

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
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