Fold Mountains: The Andes Flashcards
Plates involved:
Destructive
Nazca plate subducts under South American plate.
Sediment accumulated on ocean floor and some oceanic crust is scraped off and forced onto south american plate. = obduction. Forms a wedge of deformed rock adding to the size of the continent.
Highest peak in mountain range:
And how tall is it?
Mount Aconcagua.
6962m tall
Physical problems of living in the Andes:
Steep slopes& Fine soil = hard to farm.
Expensive to build roads= Secluded
Human activity:
- HEP: steep slopes, narrow valleys and water sourced (springs and glaciers)
- Mining: fold brought minerals closer to surface. Tin, nickel, silver, gold.
- tourism: trekking, skiing, nature.
Adaptions to farming with steep slopes and thin soil:
- Terraces: retain water, limit erosion. However, machinery not possible= very laborious work.
- once in control of malaria: deforest lowlands and use mechanised farming.
How did people adapt to isolation and lack of roads?
- Pack animals: lamas / donkeys used to carry heavy loads up and down slopes. Along the narrow footpaths. Don’t need roads.
- Invested in roads & railway : makes it easier. Money can come from co-operatives = transport products together & build roads.
adaptions:
- Terraced farming
- pack animals
- build train and road networks
- hydroelectric power to take advantage of the narrow valleys
- adapted to altitude.
Location:
South America
West coast
Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Columbia, Venezuela.
How many countries do the andes cover?
6
What is the name of the largest gold mine in the world?
Yanacocha
Name a dam in the andes
Yucan dam
The inca trail
3 facts
4 four day trek
One of 23 world heritage sites
500 trekkers start out on the trek per day
