Download Chile Case Study

World Geography 3202
Name: ________________________________
CASE STUDY - Assessing Development: Case Study of Chile
Chile is an unusual shape. It is a long, narrow country, stretching
7 000 km along the southwest coast of South America. Its length,
and the rugged Andes Mountains, pose challenges for internal
communications and links with other countries. Chile extends from hot
deserts in the north to cool, wet forests in the south. Central Chile has a
Mediterranean climate, and is the core of the country, with the capital,
Santiago (1994 population 5.7 million). The country covers almost 757
000 km2, but 64% is classed as unproductive mountain and desert.
Development Indicators for Chile
Chile's northern desert contains great mineral wealth, principally copper. The relatively small central
area dominates in terms of population and agricultural resources, and is the cultural and political center
from which Chile expanded in the late 19th century when it incorporated its northern and southern
regions. Southern Chile is rich in forests and grazing lands, and features a string of volcanoes and lakes.
The southern coast is a labyrinth of fjords, inlets, canals, twisting peninsulas, and islands.
Today, Chile is one of South America's most stable
and prosperous nations It leads Latin American
nations in human development, competitiveness,
income per capita, globalization, state of peace,
economic freedom, and low perception of corruption.
It also ranks high regionally in sustainability of the
state, and democratic development. In May 2010,
Chile became the first South American nation to join
the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development
Chile's 2002 census reported a population of 15
million people. Its rate of population growth has been
decreasing since 1990, due to a declining birth rate.
By 2050 the population is expected to reach
approximately 20.2 million people. About 85 percent
of the country's population lives in urban areas, with 40 percent living in Greater Santiago. The largest
agglomerations according to the 2002 census are Greater Santiago with 5.6 million people, Greater
Concepción with 861,000 and Greater Valparaíso with 824,000
Chile is one of South America's most stable and prosperous nations, leading Latin American nations
in human development, competitiveness, income per capita, globalization, economic freedom, and low
perception of corruption. Since July 2013, Chile is considered by the World Bank as a "high-income
economy", and hence as a developed country
Chile has the highest degree of economic freedom in South America (ranking 7th worldwide), owing to its
independent and efficient judicial system and prudent public finance management. In May 2010 Chile
became the first South American country to join the OECD. In 2006, Chile became the country with the
highest nominal GDP per capita in Latin America.
Copper mining makes up 20% of Chilean GDP and 60% of exports. Escondida is the largest copper mine
in the world, producing over 5% of global supplies. Overall, Chile produces a third of the world’s copper
Agriculture in Chile encompasses a wide range of different activities due to its particular geography,
climate and human factors. Historically agriculture is one of the bases of Chile's economy, now
agriculture and allied sectors like forestry, logging and fishing accounts only for 4.9% of the GDP as of
2007 and employed 13.6% of the country's labor force. Some major agriculture products of Chile
includes grapes, apples, pears, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, beans, beef, poultry,
wool, fish and timber. Due to its geographical isolation and strict customs policies Chile is free from
diseases such as Mad Cow, fruit fly, this plus being located in the southern hemisphere (having quite
different harvesting times compared to the Northern Hemisphere) and its wide range of agriculture
conditions are considered Chiles main comparative advantages. However, the mountainous landscape of
Chile limits the extent and intensity of agriculture so that arable land corresponds only to 2.62% of the
total territory.
Wine Making in Chile
There are few places in the world where nature has favoured a territory as much as in the Chilean Central
Valley, where nearly 300 days of rich sun a year shine on the vineyards. The soft ocean breezes, the impressive
Andes Mountains, perfectly balanced soil components and clean mountain rivers, create an ideal climate for
cultivating grapes for some of the finest wines in the world.
These geographical barriers also act as a natural defense against the feared Phylloxera louse, from which Chile
has always been spared. Thus in the central valley, 2 000 hectares of land are divided among ten vineyards with
unique micro-climates. In this way, control of the wine making process can be guaranteed under any
circumstances, from the harvest all the way to the presentation of the wine in world markets.
How Wine is Made
1. Picking the Ripe Grapes. It is of great importance that the grapes arrive freshly picked. The process starts
immediately; the grapes are visually checked, weighed, and then processed.
2. Destemming. A machine removes the stems because they are bitter. Once destemmed, they are pumped to
one of three vessels depending on the grape variety and style of wine to be made.
3. Pressing. All the grapes pass through the press to extract the grape juice or wine from the grape.
4. Fermentation. The process of fermentation digests and breaks down the sugars which then form into
alcohol.
5. Racking. Racking is the process in which the yeast that has settled to the bottom of the barrel is removed.
6. Filtering. Small and large particles are removed.
7. Bottling. Filling the bottles, corking, and labeling are the last steps in making the wine.
1. Explain, using evidence from the case study, whether Chile’s wine-making industry is a light or heavy
industry. 2/20
2. Explain the difference between a market-oriented industry and a resource oriented industry. Using evidence
from the case study, explain into which category Chile’s wine industry would fall. 4/20
3. What physical features of Chile have had a negative impact upon development of its infrastructure? 2/20
4.
With reference to why industries locate where they do and information from the case study, explain the
influence that site conditions have had on the location of Chile’s wine industry. 6/20
“Indicators are a useful way of measuring development. However, a country may not have reached the same
level of development on all indicators. So, it may not be easy to place that country in one development class.”
5.
Evaluate this statement with respect to Chile, using three specific examples from the case study to support your
answer. 6/20