Download East Asia Physical Ch 27

Physical Geography of East Asia:
A Rugged Terrain
The mountainous
landscape, open
ocean, and harsh
climate of East Asia
isolate the region
and present
challenges for the
people living there.
Mongolia’s Gobi Desert.
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Section 1
Landforms and
Resources
• East Asia has a huge mainland area that
includes rugged terrain.
• East Asia has a number of important islands
off its eastern coast.
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SECTION
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Landforms and Resources
Landforms: Mountains and Plateaus
A Survey of the Region
• East Asia stretches from western China to the east
coast of Japan
- also includes Mongolia, Taiwan, North Korea,
South Korea
• Landscape has high mountains, deserts, cold
climate, Pacific waters
• Rugged terrain created by tectonic plates colliding
- natural barriers limit human movement, increase
isolation
Continued . . .
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continued Landforms:
Mountains and Plateaus
Mountain Ranges of the Region
Map
• High mountains limited China’s contact with rest of
Asia
- world’s highest mountains located on western
edge of region
• Kunlun Mountains are located in west China
- source of Huang He (Yellow) and Chang Jiang
(Yangtze) rivers
• Qinling Shandi Mountains divide northern China
from the south
Continued . . .
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continued Landforms:
Mountains and Plateaus
Plateaus and Plains
• Mountainous area includes some sparsely
populated basins, deserts
- includes Plateau of Tibet (Xizang Plateau)
- western China’s Tarim Pendi Basin and
Taklimakan Desert
• Gobi Desert stretches from northwest China into
Mongolia
- covers 500,000 square miles
• Mongolian Plateau is in northeastern China
• Northern China includes Manchurian Plain, North
China Plain
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Gobi Desert - China
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Peninsulas and Islands
The Coast of China
• Eastern coast of China has several peninsulas
- Shandong, Leizhou, and Macao Peninsulas
- Portugal owned Macao; returned it to Chinese
control in 1999
• China’s long coastline has several major port cities
like Shanghai
• Korean Peninsula is on eastern border of China
- contains independent nations of North Korea and
South Korea
Continued . . .
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City of Shanghai China
Shanghai China shipping port
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continued Peninsulas
and Islands
The Islands of East Asia
• East of China is continental shelf—the submerged
border of continent
• Isolation of shelf islands allows them to develop in
peace, security
• Chinese islands include Hainan and part of Hong
Kong
- Hong Kong was Britain’s; returned to China’s
control in 1997
• Japan is a small island nation with large economic
power
• Taiwan once belonged to mainland China, which still
claims it today
Chart
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River Systems
The Huang He
• Huang He (Yellow River)—northern China river
- starts in Kunlun Mountains in west, winds east for
3,000 miles
- empties into Yellow Sea, named for yellow silt the
river carries
The Chang Jiang
• Chang Jiang (Yangtze River)—longest river in Asia
- flows 3,900 miles from Xizang (Tibet) to East
China Sea
- major trade route; floods often causing great
damage
Image
Continued . . .
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continued River
Systems
The Xi Jiang
• Xi Jiang (West River) flows southeast through south
China
- joins Pearl River (Zhu Jiang) to flow into South
China Sea
- Xi Jiang, three other rivers form estuary between
Hong Kong, Macao
Other Rivers of the Region
• Yalu Jiang river flows 500 miles along North Korea,
China border
- Chinese troops cross it in 1950
- attack UN forces, enter Korean War
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Resources of East Asia
Uneven Distribution
• China, Mongolia, North Korea have natural, mineral
resources
• Japan, South Korea, Taiwan have limited natural
resources
Interactive
Land and Forests
• Limited farmland in sparsely populated,
mountainous, western areas
• Most Chinese are in fertile eastern river basins
where rice is grown
• Abundant forests in China, Japan, Taiwan, North and
South Korea
- Japan reserves forests by buying timber from
Continued . . .
other regions
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continued Resources
of East Asia
Mineral and Energy Resources
• China has large petroleum, coal, natural gas
reserves
- energy resources make China self-sufficient
• China’s mineral resources include iron ore,
tungsten, manganese
- also molybdenum, magnesite, lead, zinc, copper
• North and South Korea have coal, tungsten, gold,
silver reserves
• Japan has lead, silver, coal, but must trade for most
resources
Continued . . .
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continued Resources
of East Asia
Water Resources
• China’s long river systems are important to its
economy
- provide crop irrigation, hydroelectric power,
transportation
- Three Gorges Dam on Chang Jiang will control
floods, create power
- Huang He and Xi Jiang provide hydroelectric
power, transportation
• Sea is important food source for East Asia
- Japan has one of world’s largest fishing industries
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Section 2
Climate and Vegetation
• East Asia has a dry highland climate in the
west.
• The region has a humid climate in the east.
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Climate and Vegetation
High Latitude Climate Zones
Subarctic
• Small subarctic zones on Mongolia’s and China’s
Russian borders
• Summers are cool or cold; winters are brutally cold;
climate is dry
• Vegetation is northern evergreen forest, mosses,
lichens
Highland
• Western China’s highland zone temps vary with
latitude, elevation
• Vegetation also varies; forests, alpine tundra are
typical
• Tundras have no trees, frozen soil a few feet below
surface
- only mosses, lichens, shrubs grow on tundras
Image
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Dry Zones
Desert
• Most of region’s deserts are in west central mainland
• Taklimakan Desert—in west China, between Tian
Shan, Kunlun mountains
• Gobi Desert—in north China, southeast Mongolia
- prime area for dinosaur fossils
Image
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Tropical Zones
Tropical Wet
• Typhoon—tropical storm that occurs in western
Pacific
• Tropical climate zone in East Asia is small
- strip of land along China’s southeastern coast
- island of Hainan, southern tip of Taiwan
• High temperatures, heavy rainfall, high humidity all
year
• Tropical rain forest has tall, dense forests of
broadleaf trees
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Section 3
Human-Environment
Interaction
• The Chinese are building the Three Gorges
Dam to control flooding.
• The Japanese have developed creative
ways to use their limited amounts of land.
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Human-Environment Interaction
The Three Gorges Dam
An Engineering Feat
• In 1993, China began construction of the Three
Gorges Dam
- being built on China’s Chang Jiang river
- should reduce flooding, generate power
• China’s largest construction project will be world’s
biggest dam
- will be 600 feet high, spanning a mile-wide valley
- will create 400-mile-long reservoir, covering 1,000
towns
Image
Continued . . .
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continued The
Three Gorges Dam
Positive Effects
• Government believes dam will control Chang Jiang
flooding
- river irrigates half of China’s crops, drains one-fifth
of land
• Giant turbines should generate 10% of China’s
electrical power
• Will make it easier for ships to reach China’s interior
through locks
- river carries more than half the goods moved on
China’s waterways
- dam, locks will increase shipping capacity,
decrease costs
Continued . . .
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continued The
Three Gorges Dam
Negative Effects
• Most observers feel dam will also have negative
effects
- negative environmental impact may outweigh any
benefits
• One to two million people will have to move
- hundreds of historical sites, scenic spots will be
submerged
• Dam could cost $75 billion rather than original $11
billion estimate
- costs scare away many potential investors
Continued . . .
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continued The
Three Gorges Dam
Negative Effects
• In building dam, government has not protected the
environment
• New reservoir will flood land, reduce animal habitats
- submerged factories could leak chemicals into
water
- region’s climate, temperature will be affected
- some species (alligator, river dolphin, others) may
vanish
• International groups slow to invest due to
environmental concerns
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Use of Space in Urban Japan
Crowded Living and Working Spaces
• 60% of 127 million people live on 3% of land along
coastal plains
- 80% live in largest cities: Tokyo, Yokohama,
Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo
- 25 million in Tokyo, one of world’s largest
cities
• Cities poisoned with mercury, PCBs—factory
pollutants—in 1950s, ’60s
- PCBs build up in animal tissue; cause disease,
birth defects
- PCBs banned in 1977
Continued . . .
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continued Use
of Space in Urban Japan
Adapting to Limited Space
• Houses are small, sparsely furnished
• Many in cities live in apartments
- family of four in a one-bedroom apartment is
common
• Some move to suburbs, but must commute several
hours to work
• Coastal cities reclaim land with landfill
- landfill is solid waste buried in layers of dirt
- Tokyo puts factories, refineries on landfill
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