The Environmental Impact and Economy of the Middle East

Introduction

To study the environment of the Middle East is to study a world of extremes. For in this one region, you will find the Fertile Crescent, once the birthplace of agriculture, not too far away from the Empty Quarter, which has no agriculture. There are rivers flowing through deserts and deserts next to seas. There are nations with more oil than water neighboring nations completely barren of oil. There is land that is located lower than any other land on Earth and places that get hotter than any other place on Earth. In fact, there are so many "extremes" in this region that it is extremely difficult to list them all here in the introduction. Be aware that in this module, you will be learning how the people of the Middle East have handled their environment and, in some cases, how the environment has handled them.

Module Lessons Preview

In this module, we will study the following topics:

Human Environmental Interaction -

Southwest Asia also known as the Middle East is considered the birthplace of civilizations. The vast history of the Fertile Crescent gave life to the domestication of agriculture and animals. Today the region is known for its rich oil resources. Today the region faces several environmental problems such as water scarcity, river pollution, and unequal distribution of water resources.
Production, Distribution, & Consumption -

Countries in the Middle East have a variety of economic systems. Numerous countries are members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The production of oil has allowed for a variety of economic systems to develop such as Market, Mixed, and Command economies.

Key Terms

Economics- the science of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services
Specialization- in economics it is the development of a special or specific good, service, or industry
Economic Growth- An increase in the capacity of an economy to produce goods and services, compared from one period of time to another
Trade Barriers-government-induced restrictions on international trade
Natural Resources- a thing humans use that is found naturally in the environment
OPEC- Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries; organized in 1960 to coordinate policies of oil-producing countries not in Europe or North America
Price Fixing- an agreement by market participants to buy or sell a product only at a set price
Traditional Economic System- An economic system where resources are allocated by inheritance; strong ties with subsistence farming
Erosion- gradual eating or wearing away caused by glaciers, water, waves, or wind
Desert- a dry barren region that is usually sandy and without trees
Desertification- The transformation of arable or habitable land to desert, as by a change in climate or destructive land use
Deforestation- the act or result of cutting down or burning all the trees in an area
Overgrazing- To permit animals to graze (vegetation cover) excessively, to the detriment of the vegetation.
Pollution- the dirtying of any part of the environment, especially with waste
Arable- land fit for plowing
Potable- fit or suitable for drinking
Subsistence Agriculture- farming in which the farmers focus on growing enough food to feed themselves and their families
Commercial Agriculture- large scale production of crops with the intent for sale
Oil- Petroleum
Irrigation- supplying land with water
Revenue- money coming in; income
Dam- a wall built to hold back water of any flowing water
Oasis Village- a settlement that develops near a green, fertile place in the desert that has a water supply
Services- work in the service of others; useful labor
Goods- things for sale; wares
Reservoir- a place where water is collected and stored for use; usually man-made and on the ground's surface
Aquifer- naturally occurring underground water storage
"Empty Quarter"-the largest sand desert in the world, located on the Arabian Peninsula; also known as Rub-al-Khali
Qanat- an underground tunnel with water
Peninsula- a piece of land almost surrounded by water
Strait- narrow channel connecting two larger bodies of water
Gulf- a large bay, an arm of an ocean or sea extending into the land
League of Arab States- also known as the Arab League; a regional organization of Arab countries in North Africa and Southwest Asia (Middle East) formed in 1945 to protect their independence and sovereignty
Embargo- any restriction put on commerce by law
Nationalize- to bring under the control of or ownership of a nation's government (usually about a business)
Hydroelectricity- electricity developed from waterpower
Climate- a type of weather a region experiences over a long period of time
Weather- refers to the day to day conditions and changes in the atmosphere
Precipitation- the depositing of moisture in the form of rain, dew, snow, etc.
Tributaries- streams that flow into a larger stream or body of water
Syrian Desert- a region that combines steppe terrain (semi-desert) and true desert in the northern Arabian peninsula
Commerce- the buying and selling of goods
Anatolia Plateau- plateau located in Turkey
Plateau- plain in the mountains or considerably above sea level
Plain- a flat stretch of land
Steppe-vast treeless plains

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