Mountains and Plateaus
Physical Subdivisions of the Realm
CAUCASUS MTS
ATLAS MTS.
ZAGROS
MTS
ANATOLIAN
PLATEAU
IRANIAN
PLATEAU
3
Mountains & Plateaus
Caucasus
Mts.
Anatolian
Plateau
Atlas Mts.
Iranian
ZagrosPlateau
Mts.
Physical Geography of Northern
Africa & Southwest Asia
• Mountains
– Atlas Mountains in
Northern Algeria and
Morocco
– Thorus Mts in Southern
Turkey
– Elburz & Zagros Mts. In
Iran
– Golan Heights in Israel
Physical Geography
• Plateaus - Anatolian
Highland
• Peninsulas - Saudi
Arabian, Suez
Sinai
Peninsula
located
between
Egypt and the
Arabian
Peninsula
Asia Minor and Cyprus:
• Pontic Mountains north of North
Anatolian Transform Fault
• Slippage and earthquakes (August 1999)
• Taurus Mountains on southern side of
Asia Minor
Iranian Plateau and Ranges:
• Compression, subduction between
Arabian plate and Iranian sub-plate
• Creation of Zagros Mountains
• Makran Range farther SE as uplifted crust
• Up folding of Elburz Mountains and
Kopet Mountains between Iranian subplate and Eurasian plate
• Connected tectonic activity and
volcanoes
Atlas Mountains
• The Atlas Mountains of North Africa, the
physiographic base of the settled Maghreb
(Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia), are also a part of
the Alpine System.
• The Atlas Mountains receive an average rainfall
of 750 mm (30 inches), something unusual for
this region.
• The role of altitude is clear.
• Even 240 km (150 miles) into the interior, the
slopes of the Atlas receive more than 250 mm
(10 inches) of rainfall.
Atlas Mountains Continued
 Separates the
northern moist
Mediterranean
climate from
the arid south.
Taurus and Zagros Mountains
• Taurus
• Spreads across Turkey
• Runs east-west along the northern edge of Turkey
• Highest Point- Mt. Ararat-16, 583 ft., Biblical
historians believe Noah’s Ark landed here.
• Zagros
• Extends through southwestern Iran, and through
northern Iraq
• Highest point- ZardKuh, 14, 921 ft.
Mountain Ranges in Mid-East
Elburz Mts., Iran
Lebanese Mts.
Zagros Mts., Iran
Taurus Mts., Turkey
Anti-Taurus Mountains
Pontic Mounatins
Taurus Mountains
Elburz Mountains
Anatolian Plateau
• Fertile soil
• Conducive (helpful) for farming
Iranian Plateau
• Very dry
• Sparsely populated
Pair-Share
• With your partner, using the
PowerPoint and Reading Notes,
summarize the effects of the
mountain ranges on the Middle
East region.
Deserts
Deserts
Libyan Desert
Sahara Desert
Negev
Sinai
Desert
Desert
Arabian
Desert Rub
al-Khali
Physical Geography of Northern
Africa & Southwest Asia
• Deserts
• The Sahara
Desert
• The Saudi
Arabian Desert
• The Libyan
Desert
• Negev Desert
NEGEV DESERT
26
Where is the driest desert?
27
Sandy Deserts
• Rub al-Khali—Arabian Peninsula desert, known as the
Empty Quarter
– 250,000 square miles, with dunes as high as 800 feet
– 10 years can pass without rain
– Nearby An-Nafud Desert contains the occasional oasis
-desert area where underground spring water supports
vegetation
• Syrian Desert is between Lebanon, Israel, Syria, and the
Fertile Crescent
• Israel’s Negev Desert produces crops through irrigation
Two ways of life—nomadic and
sedentary—developed in the desert.
• Nomadic life- people moved from place to place
within tribes for protection, and as the seasons
changed.
• Sedentary- people settled in oases, where they
could farm. These settlements often became towns.
• Towns became centers of trade. Many had a souk, a
market or bazaar, where goods were traded.
Nomadic Life: Bedouins
• Many people in North Africa and the Middle East still
live a nomadic lifestyle. Nomads live on the Arabian
Peninsula and in the Sahara Desert.
• The deserts have also led to a way of life that
developed around the need to survive in such harsh
surroundings.
– These people are known as “Bedouins” or desert
nomads
– They survive and make a living by
• Living in tent camps
• Surviving as sheep and camel herders
• Trading animals and handmade goods
Desert Bedouins
Rub al-Khali:
“The Empty Quarter”
Rub Al-Khali
– Size of Texas
– One of largest sandy deserts in
world
• It is the largest area of
continuous sand in the world.
– Surface temps, can reach 150°
– Very Arid
• 10 years may pass w/out rain
• No permanent streams exist
• The Rub 'al-Khali, or "Empty Quarter" is a
large desert in Saudi Arabia. It is the
largest area of continuous sand in the
world.
•
The climate is extremely arid. Few places
receive more than 7 inches of rain a year,
and no permanent streams exist. Summer
temperatures reach as high as 130° F in
some areas.
Arabian Peninsula
• Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, United
Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Yemen
• Small population
• Lack of water BUT lots and lots of oil!!!
• Birthplace of Islam
• Very dry, sandy, & windy
– Wadis- riverbeds that remain dry except for the
rainy season.
The Arabian Peninsula is primarily steep
and has a desert climate
Salt Deserts
• In Iran, high mountains block rain; dry winds increase
evaporation
• Loss of moisture in soil leaves chemical salts, creates a
salt flat (a flat expanse of land covered in salt and other
minerals; usually shines white under the sun)
• Iran’s salt flat deserts:
• Dasht-e Kavir in central Iran
• Dasht-e Lut in eastern Iran
• Land is salt-crusted, surrounded by salt marshes, it’s
very hot
• Almost uninhabited, it’s a barrier to easy travel across
Iran
Iranian Salt Flat
Sahara Desert:
Sahara Desert Location
• Atlantic Ocean on the west
• Atlas Mountains and the
Mediterranean Sea on the north
• Red Sea and Egypt on the east
• Sudan and the valley of the
Niger River on the south.
The Sahara
•The Sahara is the world’s largest desert, stretching 3.5 million
square miles.
• Very dry, so very few people live there
• Averages less than five inches of rain each year.
• Temperatures there can run to the extreme
• freezing at night
• Can be more than 130 degrees Fahrenheit at the peak of
day.
• Nearly every settlement in the Sahara is located near an
oasis, a wet and fertile area in a desert where a spring or well
provides water.
• Common features in the Sahara include broad gravel plains,
tall sand dunes, and dry streambeds.
Breeding Areas of Desert Locusts
Swarms of Desert Locusts!
Israel Hit By Worst Locust
Plague Since the 1950s!
Locusts Swarm the
Pyramids Complex at
Giza!
Sahel:
- Area separating the Sahara
from the tropical rainforest
of Africa.
Pair-Share
• What has surprised you about
the desert of the Middle East
region?
• Why?
Completed Map
Black Sea
Dardanelles StraitAnatolian
Plateau
Atlantic
Ocean
Atlas Mts.
Caucasus
Mts.
Tigris
Euphrates
Iranian
Jordan RiverRiverZagros Plateau
RiverNegev
Mts.
Sinai
Suez Canal
Desert
Strait of
Desert
Arabian
Hormuz
Libyan Desert Nile
Desert
Gulf
River
Rub
of
al-Khali
Oman
Sahara Desert
Arabian
Sea
Gulf of Aden
Indian
Ocean
The Natural Resources of the
Middle East
Major Resources of the
Middle East
•
•
•
•
•
•
Petroleum
Water
Cotton
Natural Gas
Coal
Iron
Oil
Oil
• Economy
– oil dominated industry
• Petroleum- remains of plants &
animals, formed from pressure
& heat over millions of years.
– Oil is not in big pools under
the ground, it is trapped in
the pores of rocks.
– Taken out of ground by
pressure
• Crude Oil- unprocessed petroleum
• Refinery- converts crude oil into
useful products like gasoline &
kerosene
Oil
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Oil is certainly the most important resource of North Africa and
Southwest Asia.
Deposits are concentrated around the Persian Gulf. It is the most
economically important export of the realm.
Between 1994-1996, on average, these countries together produced
28.0 percent of the world’s total output.
Saudi Arabia ranked as the world’s leading producer with 13.1 percent
followed by: Iran with 5.8 percent; the United Arab Emirates with 3.6
percent; Kuwait with 3.3 percent; and Libya with 2.2 percent (Table 6.2).
Additional detailed statistics on the world’s leading oil countries are
shown in Table 6.3.
In 1997, the world estimates in petroleum reserves were
1,160,069,500,000,000 barrels.
These countries collectively account for 56.3 percent of the world's
total reserves. Saudi Arabia has 22.6 percent, Iraq 9.7 percent, Kuwait
8.2 percent, Iran 7.8 percent, U.A.E. 5.5 percent, and Libya 2.5 percent.
Oil Reserves vs. Economy
• The Southwest Asian countries with the largest reserves of
natural gas and oil are:
– Saudi Arabia
– Iran
– Iraq
– Kuwait
• These countries have seen tremendous growth in national
wealth and an improved standard of living in the past 50
years.
• Some other countries have smaller reserves, especially
around the Arabian Gulf.
• Those countries without the reserves have had a much harder
time improving living conditions for their people.
• This difference has lead to much conflict.
Reserves
• Until the Gulf War, Kuwait had a 21 billionbarrel proven reserve.
• Iraq has a 7 billion barrel proven reserve.
Saudi Arabia
• Have a proven 200
year reserve.
• The Saudi
Government could
purchase the entire
National Football
League (contracts,
salaries, stadiums,
etc.) with 6 weeks of
their oil reserves.
Kuwait:
An Island Floating on a Sea of Oil
Kuwait
City
Oil
World Oil Reserves
Saudi Oil Fields & Refineries
Importance of Oil
• For this reason, countries in the Middle East have a
steady market for all the oil and natural gas they
produce.
– Saudi Arabia and Iran are two of the world’s
largest suppliers / producers of oil.
• Over half of the world’s known supply comes
from them.
– Israel has very few natural resources and
practically no oil.
• They have a high industrial economy, so the
world price of oil has a huge impact on their
economy.
Importance of Oil
• Oil is one of the most important and valuable natural
resources in the Middle East.
• Oil and natural gas are considered fossil fuels which means
they were created centuries ago.
• They are also non-renewable natural resources which means
they cannot be replaced
• Most of the world’s industrial nations depend on a steady
supply of both resources
• The US imports over half of its supply, almost 18 million
barrels every day.
Oil Transport
How are oil and gas transported?
Saudi Pipeline
Oil Tanker (Knock Nevis)
Effects of Oil
Regional Issues
Over the last few decades, major conflicts have erupted in the Middle
East. Issues that have contributed to the conflicts include the presence
of huge oil reserves, the growth of Islamism, and the conflict between
Israel and its neighbors.
Oil in the Middle East
• About two-thirds of world’s known
oil reserved located in Middle East
• Reserves have been great source
of wealth for Saudi Arabia, Iran,
Iraq, Kuwait, other countries
• Most members of Organization of
Petroleum Exporting Countries
Oil Revenues
• OPEC attempts to regulate
production of oil exports to
maximize revenues
• Oil revenues allowed Middle East
governments to modernize
countries, promote industrialization,
economic, social development
However, oil has also been a source of conflict.
Importance of Oil
Oil as source of conflict in Middle East
•
Some governments have used oil revenues to build up
military, maintain power, threaten neighbors
•
Oil wealth has caused internal clashes within countries,
societies
•
Region’s strategic importance as source of oil has led outside
nations to become involved in Middle Eastern affairs, politics
THE IMPACT OF OIL
•
•
•
•
HIGH INCOMES
MODERNIZATION
INDUSTRIALIZATION
REGIONAL
DISPARITIES
• FOREIGN
INVESTMENT IN THIS
REALM
• INVESTMENT IN
FOREIGN COUNTRIES
73
Oil Industries
• Disputes over access to other natural resources, like
oil, also cause conflict.
• The Persian Gulf has the largest source of oil in the
world.
• The countries that border the Persian Gulf also have
a large oil industry.
• Many wars have been fought over oil in Southwest
Asia.
• These wars have had a major impact on the
environment.
Lands of Wealth and Poverty
• The Geography of Fossil Fuels
• Oil unevenly distributed in the area
– Saudi Arabia, Iran, U.A.E., Libya, Algeria
contribute significantly to oil production, while
Morocco & Sudan have few developed reserves
– Region has 7% of the world’s population; holds
68% of the world’s proven petroleum reserves
• Regional Economic Patterns
– Higher-Income Oil Exporters
– Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, U.A.E.
– Cultural landscape reshaped because of oil wealth
– Not all benefit – rural Shiite Muslims and foreign
workers
75
Lands of Wealth and Poverty (cont.)
• Regional Economic Patterns (cont.)
– Lower-Income Oil Exporters
• Algeria: oil and natural gas are its top exports; but
political instability remains a problem
• Iran: huge oil reserves, but long war with Iraq (198090), & fundamentalist government withdrawal from
world trade under have lowered living standards
– Prospering Without Oil
•
•
•
•
Israel has highest living standard in the region
Turkey has a diversified economy; has seen growth
Economic reforms in Tunisia
Lebanon has potential for prosperity through tourism
& telecommunications
76
Natural
Gas
Oil
Deposits
77
The Oil Curse
•
•
•
•
The “Resource Curse”
– Prone to authoritarian rule, slow growth, corruption and conflict.
– Resources used to finance armies, corruption and patronage.
– Oil is a good example.
Modernization
– High incomes.
– Industrialization.
– Regional and national disparities (oil wealth distribution).
Migration
– Brought populations from outside the realm.
Foreign incursions
What is done with Oil Wealth?
• Oil rich nations typically provide healthcare and improved
schooling.
• However those segments of the population not employed in
the oil industry tend to have lower standards of living.
Girls school in
Saudi Arabia
Bedouin in
S.Arabia
Persian Gulf War Over Oil
• Much of the oil refining machinery in Iraq was badly
damaged in the Persian Gulf War, in 1991.
• The Iraqi government did not repair the equipment
that makes refining oil safer for the environment.
• For years, pollution from Iraqi oil refineries leaked
into the water supply and in the air.
• Today, the Iraqi oil industry is not productive because
of the current war in Iraq.
• However, many of Iraq’s oil refineries were destroyed
and burned during the war, so that the air was
polluted.
Oil in War
• During the first Gulf War, Iraq used pollution
as a strategy for fighting.
• Iraqi soldiers dumped over 300 gallons of oil
into the Persian Gulf.
• They also burned hundreds of oil wells in
order to keep the U.S. from taking control of
their oil industry.
Oil Pollution
• Oil is the basis of most of the economy of the Middle
East, but pollution from the oil industry is one of the
biggest threats to its environment.
• This pollution endangers the water supply in
particular.
• Since there is not much fresh water in the region,
these environmental problems directly affect the
lives of Middle Easterners.
Oil Pollution
• For years, pollution from Iraqi oil refineries
leaked into the water supply and in the air.
• Today, the Iraqi oil industry is not productive
because of the current war in Iraq.
• However, many of Iraq’s oil refineries were
destroyed and burned during the war, so that
the air was polluted.
• Oil Spills are a risk when
transporting oil in narrow
straits or around reefs
– Largest in U.S. History is the
Exxon Valdez spill in 1989
OPEC
OPEC
• In 1960, Venezuela, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia
founded OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries) in an effort to dictate oil prices.
• Later additions included Algeria, Ecuador, Nigeria,
Gabon, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and
Libya.
• This 13-member cartel was designed to control world
pricing and production of a single commodity, oil.
• Currently, OPEC has 11 members after the withdrawal
of Ecuador and Gabon.
Problems with unequal oil distribution:
• Oil producing country (OPEC) can raise prices,
and cut off oil supply
• Oil spills
These 12 countries (from 3 different
continents) produce 1/3 the world’s oil
and set the price of oil
Members:
Algeria
Kuwait
Libya
Ecuador
Iran
Qatar
Nigeria
Venezuela
Iraq
Saudi Arabia
United Arab Emirates
Angola
Top Five Oil Producing Countries:
-Saudi Arabia
-Iraq
-Kuwait
-Iran
-United Arab Emirates
Top Oil Consuming Countries
-United States -Russia
-Japan -Germany
-China
Where America gets Oil
INCOME LEVELS
Pair-Share
• After what we have learned
about the geography of the
Middle East, which resource
do you think is more precious
and important---fresh water or
oil?
• Why?