Southwest Asia: Climate and Vegetation

Deserts Rub al-Khali: desert located on the Arabian Peninsula, approximately the size of Texas The local name is “the place where no one comes out” During the summer, temperatures on the surface of the sand can exceed 150˚ As many as 10 years can pass without rainfall

Semiarid Lands Located on the fringes of deserts Summers are warm-to-hot and enough rain falls to sustain grass and low-growing shrubs Crops like cotton and wheat can be grown Also suitable for pasture grazing for animals In Turkey, mohair goats graze on these lands

Mohair goats

Coastal Areas Along the Mediterranean coast and most of Turkey, hot summers and rainy winters create a good climate for growing citrus fruits, olives, and vegetables Farmers are able to grow crops year round

Southwest Asia: Human-Environment Interaction

Scarcity of Water Drip Irrigation: small pipes slowly drip water just above the ground to conserve water used for crops Used by several countries in the Middle East Desalinization: removal of salt from ocean water Can be an extremely expensive process, can’t provide enough water to meet the needs of all people

Oil Oil and natural gas do not exist in large pools below ground The oil and natural gas are actually trapped inside rocks

Oil Crude oil: petroleum that has not been processed Refinery: where crude oil is transformed into useful products like gasoline Pipelines transport crude oil to either refineries or ports where the oil is picked up by tankers and moved to other places for processing