LOCATION

The Alps were formed about 35 million

years ago by the African plate pushing

North against the Eurasian plate. The

Alps form a border between Italy,

France, Switzerland, Austria and

Slovenia.

KEY INFO

The Alps consist if around 7 countries

- Italy, France, Germany,

Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia and

Liechtenstein. The Alps have around

180 mountains in total. The highest

peak is Mount Blanc (4910m), near

Franco-Italian border.

DANGERS/PROBLEMS

Avalanches are formed by a weakness

in snow being pulled down by gravity.

They can be particularly caused by

human activity such as skiing.

MEDC FOLD MOUNTAINS CASE STUDY : THE ALPS

Advantages Disadvantages

Tourism

- activities in summer such as

hiking, camping, climbing, hang

gliding

- activitiesin winter like skiing, and

snow boarding

- Les Deux Alps and Val d’lsere

Tourism creates jobs, encourages local

crafts and improves living standards.

Higher pieces of land and food,

pollution from traffic, erosion,

litter, more crowded, trees felled

to supply timber and fuel wood, loss

of cultural identity among locals.

Industry

- main industry in the region is

forestry which relies on the

conifers

Provides building resources, paper and

fuel. Other industrial activities

produce heavy machinery, small

precision items and chemicals.

Industries release pollution that

damage the environment and cause

climate change.

Farming

- keeping dairy cattle and sheep

(valley floors and high pastures in

summer), herding goats in the

highest areas.

Milk from cows is usually made into

local cheese specialties. Farming has

also contributed to Swiss culture like

yodeling and alphorn.

Release of certain greenhouse gases

like methane.

Settlement

- the Alps are the most densely

populated mountain area in the

world.

People who settle in the Alps can

develop industries such as tourism.

Communication is also improved through

the construction of tunnels.

lack of education and jobs

difficult access for transport

natural hazards e.g.

avalanches

Hum

an U

ses

poor health care services

HEP

- Steep slopes and warm summers

when glacial melt. Water is plentiful

make the Alps ideal for HEP

- First HEP system was installed in

St Moritz, Switzerland.

HEP provides almost 2/3 of

Switzerland’s electricity. It is

renewable, doesn’t produce pollution,

greenhouse gases or waste products.

HEP also attracts industries such as

aluminum smelting that need cheap and

plentiful electricity.

Settlements in valleys have to be

flooded to create reservoirs. It

also damages the ecosystem.

Farming

1) The steep upland areas are used to farm goats, which

provide milk, cheese and meat.

2) Some sunnier slopes have been terraced to plant

vineyards.

Mining

Salt, iron ore, gold, silver and copper were mined in the Alps,

but the mining has declined dramatically due to cheaper

foreign sources.

Hydro-electric power (HEP)

1) The narrow valleys are dammed to generate HEP,

e.g. in the Berne area in Switzerland. Switzerland

gets 60% of its electricity from HEP stations in the

Alps.

2) The electricity produced is used locally to power

homes and businesses. It’s also exported to towns

and cities further away.

Forestry

Scots Pine is planted all over the Alps because it’s more

resilient to the munching goats, which kill native tree

saplings. The trees are logged and sold to make things like

furniture.

Tourism

1) 100 million tourists visit the Alps each year making

tourism a huge part of the economy.

2) 70% of tourists visit the steep, snow covered

mountains in the winter for skiing, snowboarding and

ice climbing. In the summer tourists visit for walking,

mountain biking, paragliding and climbing.

3) New villages have been built to cater for the quantity

of tourists, e.g. Tignes in France.

4) Ski runs, ski lifts, cable cars, holiday chalets and

restaurants pepper the landscape.

PEOPLE HAVE ADAPTED TO THE CONDITIONS IN THE ALPS

1) Steep relief : Goats are farmed there because they’re well adapted to living on steep mountains. Trees and man-made

defences are used to protect against avalanches and rock slides.

2) Poor soils : Animals are grazed in most high areas as the soil isn’t great for growing crops.

3) Limited communications : Roads have been built over passes (lower points between mountains) e.g. the Brenner Pass

between Austria and Italy. It takes a long time to drive over passes and they can be blocked by snow, so tunnels have been

cut through the mountains to provide fast transport links. For example, the Lotschberg Base Tunnel has been but through

the Bernese Alps in Switzerland.