Central America Central America 7 countries Guatemala Belize

Central America

Central America • 7 countries- Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama • Isthmus that connects North America and South America • Volcanic mountains cover most of the seven countries • Climate – Mountains- cool with rich soil, ideal for growing coffee – Coast- tropical rainforest, hot with 100 inches of rainfall a year

Caribbean

Caribbean • Archipelago- chain of islands between Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea • Coastal plains produce sugar cane • Climate- mild in the winter and hot in the summer • Tourism year round is a main economic activity of the region

Earthquakes and Volcanoes

Earthquakes and Volcanoes • Central America and Caribbean were under water millions of years ago • Tectonic plate movements caused land to rise( islands), mountains and volcanoes to form • Continuous movement of the plates causes earthquakes and volcanic eruptions • 1996 – Montserrat- volcanic eruption caused 2/3 rds of the population to flee their homes • 2010 - Haiti- 7. 0 earthquake caused extensive damage, Killed 200, 000 people, 1 million people left homeless, destroyed critical systems: no water, electricity, transportation or medical care

Montserrat

1. 3 Rainforest of Central America

Rainforest • Importance – Home to many plants and animals, including many rare species – Valuable economic resource: logging, farming and tourism • Destruction – 1500 s- most of Central America covered by rainforest – 1900 s- forest cleared by logging and farming – 1990 -2005 - Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador lost 14 -30 % of their rainforest

Reasons for Destruction • Commercial farming – Large areas cleared for plantations – Large areas cleared for raising of cattle • Logging – Lumber needed for building – Valuable wood like mahogany and rosewood • Rural farmers – Clear areas to farm, soil is not rich, so they farm more land to get bigger crop – Firewood for village