1. Landforms and Resources of Latin America

2. Regions of Latin America
Mexico
Central America
Caribbean
South America
Brazil

3. Mountains and Highlands
The Andes Mountains-
The Andes are a part of the mountain range that runs through a portion of North, Central and South America.
United States- The Rocky Mountains
Central America- The Sierra Madres
South America- the Andes
There are many volcanic peaks throughout the Andes.

5. Andes Characteristics
Many volcanoes
The longest mountain range in the world, nearly 5,000 mile long.
Creates a barrier between the coastal cities on the west coast and the interior of the continent.

6. Highlands
The other mountainous regions in Latin America include the following:
The Guiana Highlands
The Brazilian Highlands

7. The Plains of Latin America
There are vast plains regions in Latin America well suited for agriculture
Llanos:
Colombia and Venezuela
Pampas:
Argentina and Uruguay
Amazon River Basin:
Brazil

8. The Pampas: Argentina

9. The Amazon River and Other Major River Systems
South America has three major River Systems:
Amazon River:
Brazil
Orinoco River:
Venezuela and Colombia
Paraná River:
Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina

10. The Mighty Amazon
Amazon : Flows 4,000 from west to east and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Source is the Andes Mountains close to the Pacific Ocean.

11. The Orinoco River
The Orinoco River flows mainly through Venezuela and Colombia. It creates part of the border between the two countries.

12. The Paraná River
The Paraná river begins in the Brazilian Highlands and flows southward through Paraguay and Argentina. It meets with several other rivers to create the Rio de la Plata a very important estuary in South America.

13. Islands of the Caribbean
Three Main Island Groups make up the West Indies:
The Bahamas
The Greater Antilles
The Lesser Antilles

14. The Bahamas
The Bahamas are made up of hundreds of islands off of the southern tip of Florida. Nassau is the capital and largest city in the Bahamas.

15. The Greater Antilles
The Greater Antilles is made up of the largest islands in the Caribbean including Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic), and Puerto Rico.

16. The Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles includes the smaller islands in the region southeast of Puerto Rico. They are divided into two groups- the Leeward island and the Windward islands.

17. Agricultural Products
Resources
Gold
Silver
Oil
Natural gas
Hydroelectric power
Copper
Timber
Agricultural Products

18. Climate and Vegetation
Tropical Wet
Rain forest
(Brazil)
Tropical Wet and Dry
Llanos and Pampas
(Venezuela and Argentina)
Semiarid
Patagonia- Argentina
Desert
Atacama Desert-Chile

19. Mid-Latitude Climates
Humid Subtropical
Paraguay, Uruguay, southern Brazil,
Bolivia, and Argentina
Mediterranean
West coast of Chile
Marine West Coast
Southern Chile, eastern Argentina
Highlands

20. Vertical Climate Zones
About 15,000 ft Terra Helada (Mountain Tundra)
Tree Line
10,000-12,000 ft Tierra Fria (Cloud Forest)
6,000 -6,500 ft Tierra Templada (Wet forest)
2,500- 3,000 ft Tierra Caliente (Dry Forest and swamp)

21. Human-Environment Interaction
Agriculture:
Slash-and-burn technique used to clear the land for farmland in the Amazon River basin.

22. Human-Environment Interaction
Agriculture: Terraced Farming is an ancient technique introduced by the Inca for growing crops on the side of a mountain. This reduces soil erosion.

23. Urbanization
Push and Pull factors: People in Latin America are moving from rural areas into urban areas in search of better opportunities. This has created many problems such as the development of slums in the big cities.

24. Push Factors
Push factors: reasons why people feel forced to move away from rural areas examples: Poverty, poor medical care, poor educational opportunities, low-paying jobs

25. Pull Factors
Pull factors: reasons why people are drawn to live in the cities. Examples: Possibilities for work, education, medical care.

26. Rapidly Growing Cities
City Population (2000)
Mexico City, Mexico 99,639,000
Buenos Aires, Argentina 37,048,000
Lima, Peru 27,136,000
Sao Paulo, Brazil 16,800,000
Santiago, Chile 15,211,000
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 11,029,300

27. Urban Sprawl Unemployment Crime Illegal Drug trafficking Slums
Pollution
Sanitation
Shortages of clean drinking water and housing

28. Tourism Advantages: Creation of new jobs
Reduction of the income gap between rich and poor

29. Tourism Disadvantages: Congestion Pollution Strain on local resources
Resentment and hostility
Large public debt due to building tourist facilities

30. The End