Download Va`s Provinces Note Cards

Physiographic Provinces of Virginia
Coastal Plain
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Fall Line
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Piedmont
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Blue Ridge
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Valley and Ridge
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Appalachian Plateau
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Runs from the fall line to the Atlantic Ocean
Contains sand, silt, clay and other sedimentary
rocks from the erosion of the App. Mts.
Formed by erosion and deposition
Contains many fossils
Youngest Province
Has a flat, terraced “or stair stepped” landscape
Rich in sand and gravel- used in road
construction
Contains the Chesapeake Bay and wetlands
Also called the tidewater region
Separates the Coastal Plain from the Piedmont
Here, rivers from the upland region drop to the
low lying plains in the form of rapids and
waterfalls.
It was formed as rivers eroded the softer rocks
of the coastal plain more quickly than the
harder rocks in the Piedmont. This created the
step down or fall zone.
We live here!
Contains rolling hills underlain by ancient
igneous and metamorphic rocks.
Igneous rocks are the roots of volcanoes formed
during an ancient subduction between 2 plates
even before the formation of the Appalachian
Mountains.
Located west of the fall line.
Contains high quality slate and hardly any
fossils.
A high ridge or narrow line of mountains
between the Piedmont and Valley and Ridge
Provinces.
Billion year old rocks are found here and are
the oldest in the state! (Igneous and
Metamorphic)
Mount Rogers is the highest peak in Va. at an
elevation of 5719 feet.
The Appalachian Mountains were formed from
a collision between the Africa and North
American plates during the Paleozoic Era.
Long parallel ridges and valleys underlain by
ancient folded and faulted sedimentary rock.
This folding occurred during the collision that
formed the Appalachian mountains
Contains limestone caves and sinkholes called
“Karst Topography”.
Remember carbonic acid in rain water breaks
down limestone.
Limestone is used to make concrete.
Rugged irregular topography underlain by
ancient flat lying sedimentary rocks.
Contains a series of plateaus separated by
faults.
This areas contained ancient swamps and is
responsible for Virginia’s coal, oil, and natural
gas! Coal is found in the greatest abundance and
contributes the most to Va’s economy!
Physiographic Provinces of Virginia