Natural Environments
of Europe
By Tiana, Phillip, Daniel, and
Castro
Physical Features
Landforms
Europe stretches from the Atlantic
Ocean to the Ural Mountains and
from the Arctic Ocean to the
Mediterranean Sea. The major
islands include Great Britain, Ireland,
Iceland. Europe is however can be
divided into four major landform
regions.
Which these regions are the Northwest
Highlands, the Northern European
Plain, the Central Uplands, and the
Alpine mountain system.
The Northwest Highlands
The Northwest is an ancient eroded
region of rugged hills and low
mountains. In the north it includes
the hills of Ireland and England, the
Scottish Highlands, and the
mountains of Scandinavia.
Northwestern France and some of
the Iberian Peninsula are also part of
the Northwest Highlands. During the
last ice age, glaciers scoured the
landscapes of Scandinavia and
much of the British Isles. Glaciers
also carved fjords along the
Norway’s coast. Fjords are narrow
deep inlets of the sea set between
high rocky cliffs. When the ice
melted, the retreating glaciers left
behind thin soils and thousands of
lakes.
Fjords
Northern European Plain
To the south lies the Northern European
Plain. This broad coastal plain
stretches from France’s Atlantic
coast all the way to the Urals. Most
of the plain is less than 500 feet
above sea level. Many rivers flow
across it before reaching the ocean.
As a result many, river towns and
port cities have developed there.
These features have allowed culture
groups to travel, trade, and migrate
throughout the region. Today the
Northern European Plain is Europe’s
most important farming and
industrial area. As you might expect,
it is also densely populated.
Central Uplands
This is an area of hills and small
plateaus, with forested slopes and
fertile valleys. It includes the
Massif Central of France and the
Jura Mountains on the French-
Swiss border. The region stretches
northeastward across southern
Germany to the Bohemian
Highlands. The Central Uplands
are an old eroded region. As a
result, the low mountains and hills
in the region are often rounded.
Many of Europe’s productive coal
fields lie in the Central Uplands. A
number of industrial towns and
cities grew near coal deposits.
Alpine Mountain System
The youngest region is the Alpine
Mountain System, which
includes the Alps, Europe’s
major mountain range. The Alps
stretch from France’s
Mediterranean coast to the
Balkan Peninsula. Many peaks
reach heights of more than
14,000 feet. Because of their
high elevations, the Alps have
large snowfields and glaciers.
Avalanches are fairly common in
winter. Although the Alps are
high mountains.
Alpine Mountain System
Historically they have not been a serious
barrier to human interaction. People
have crossed Alps through mountain
passes for thousands of years to
trade or travel. Other ranges in the
Alpine system include the
Carpathian Mountains in Eastern
Europe and the Apennines in Italy.
The Pyrenees of France and Spain
are also part of this system. The
Alpine Mountain System mountains
were formed by the plates colliding.
Climates and Biomes
Europe has three major climate types:
marine west coast, humid continental,
and Mediterranean.
Marine West Coast
The marine west coast climate is
found throughout most of northern
and western Europe. This climate
region includes southern Iceland
and the British Isles. It also
stretches across northern
continental Europe from northern
Spain into Poland and Slovakia.
Frequent Atlantic storms brings
clouds and rain. Rainfall averages
between 20 and 80 inches a year.
Snow and frosts can occur in
winter. Temperatures are mostly
mild, and cloudy, drizzly, and foggy
days are common.
Humid Continental
Areas from interior Norway and
Sweden south to the Black Sea
have a humid continental
climate. This climate has four
distinct seasons, including a
cold snowy winter and mild to
cool humid summer. Winters are
severe in parts of this climate
region. Periodic summer
droughts affect Hungary and
Romania.
Mediterranean
This region gets between 10 and
30 inches of rainfall a year. Most
rainfall comes during the mild
winter. Occasional North Atlantic
storms pushed by the westerly
winds bring rain at that time.
Long, dry, and sunny summers
are typical.
Plants and Animals
Human activities have affected
Europe’s plants and animals and
wildlife severely. For thousands
of years, people have hunted
and cleared out the homes of
the animals. The growth of
towns, cities, and roads has
also changed the natural
environment. Some waterways
have been polluted. As a result
many animals became extinct or
endangered.
Biome
Most of Europe lies within a
temperate forest biome. Trees
such as ash, beech, maple, and
etc. are common. You will find
the Mediterranean scrub forest
biome in some drier areas in
southern Europe. Large parts of
northern and central Europe lie
within the boreal biome. Far
northern Europe has a tundra
biome.
Natural Resources
Natural resources in Europe is
forests, soils, and fisheries.
They farm cash crops and have
the customary crop rotation
technique. And many acid rain
and air pollution has destroyed
many trees and forests. Also the
economic has also a thing for
cattle and ranching.
Energy and Minerals
Europe has given many things to
the world but energy and
mineral wise, Europe has
contributed immensely. Europe
has mined and refined steel,
iron, and other metals. And
energy wise they provide many
oils, coals, and natural gas.
Also in the modern time they
also are working on Nuclear
Power.
SO ARE YOU READY??!!
Hopefully you have learned from your
masters and now have edmucation in
your heads! Get ready for the game!
Thank you for learning… don’t come
again…
