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Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno. SECTION (2): CONTRASTING EUROPEAN REGIONS II: THE MEZZOGIORNO. Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno. MEZZOGIORNO Soils Thin upland soils as over half the land area of the region is mountainous
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Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • SECTION (2): CONTRASTING EUROPEAN REGIONS II: • THE MEZZOGIORNO
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • MEZZOGIORNO Soils • Thin upland soils as over half the land area of the region is mountainous • Richer soils are found on the densely populated coastal plains • Volcanoes of Vesuvius in the fertile plain of Campania and around Mt Etna in Sicily • Deep layer of alluvial soils deposited by rivers and soils • Common soil in the region is Terra Rosa - a red soil • Only suitable for growing vines – winemaking
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PHYSICAL PROCESSES Climate • Warm temperate climate also known as a Mediterranean type climate • Hot, sunny and dry summers with temperatures averaging around 29ºC, influenced by a high pressure belt from the Azores • Dry stable weather conditions causing cloudless skies • Rainfall is low as high pressure brings no fronts • North-east trade winds that are dry • Droughts in summertime
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PHYSICAL PROCESSES Climate • Winters in the Mezzogiorno are warm, mild and damp, temperatures average around 11ºC • South-west winds • Rainfall averages between 500 and 900 mm • East of the region is drier, approximately 400 mm of rain • Rain shadow affect of the Apennine Mountains • Convectional rainfall • Influenced by the hot wind from the Sahara, the Sirocco • Sardinia is affected by the cold mistral wind
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PHYSICAL PROCESSES Relief and drainage • The Apennines dominate the landscape of the Mezzogiorno and 85 per cent of the region is classified as upland, with 45 per cent as mountainous upland
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PHYSICAL PROCESSES Alpine Fold Mountains • Formed 30–35 million years ago and mainly consist of limestone • Coastal plains most productive areas of the region, e.g. the Puglia lowlands • Contain alluvial soils • They contained swamps and marshes that were home to mosquitoes carrying malaria • The area is also affected by mudslides, earthquakes and volcanoes as the region is tectonically active
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PHYSICAL PROCESSES Alpine Fold Mountains (continued) • It is on a plate boundary between the African and the Eurasian plates • Home to many famous volcanoes, e.g. Mt Vesuvius • Most recent earthquakes – 2009 • 5.8 on the Richter scale • Town of L’Aquila in Abruzzo killing 308 people
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PRIMARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Agriculture • Climate • Limiting effect on agriculture • Irrigation is necessary • Most agriculture is carried out during the winter months • Tree crops such as vines, olives and citrus fruits, e.g. lemons and limes • Sheep are grazed in upland areas • 9 per cent of the workforce is involved in agriculture
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PRIMARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Agriculture (continued) • High dependency on EU grants as farm incomes are 50 per cent lower than the EU average • The Mezzogiorno contains 50 per cent of Italy’s agricultural employment • In the 1950s the land of the Mezzogiorno was divided into estates called latifundi owned by absentee landlords • Only 25 per cent of people at that time owned their own land • Some peasants rented small plots called minifundia but most people worked the land of the estates as landless labourers called braccianti
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • PRIMARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Agriculture (continued) • Production levels were low • Farming was extensive • Land was subdivided and therefore farm holdings were small • 70 per cent below 3 hectares in size • Overgrazing and overcultivation were common • Land worked intensively to support large families • As people didn’t own the land there was no incentive for them to try to improve their farming methods
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa per il Mezzogiorno • In the 1950s the Italian government introduced the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno (Fund for the South), backed by the EU, to modernise farming practices in the South Changes introduced: • Land reform so that the local people could have access to their own lands • Holdings of approximately 5 hectares were created. • Farmers were introduced to new farming techniques • Farmers were trained in crop rotation, cash crops were introduced and intensive farming practices • Cassa invested in mechanisation and technology for farms
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa per il Mezzogiorno Changes introduced (continued): • Irrigation schemes • Co-ops were formed to help farmers market and sell their produce to the north of the country • Improvements to infrastructure and ports • Building of the Autostrada del Sole (a motorway) • Communication links and services to rural villages were ungraded • Malarial swamps were drained • Marshes of Metapontino were reclaimed • Agricultural output increased tenfold
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Mezzogiorno is now one of the main producers of citrus fruits and olives for the European market • Olive oil is also produced in the region • Warmth and sunshine that encourages the early ripening of crops • Tree crops are suitable – deep roots to bind the soil • Waxy leaves prevent moisture loss • The most productive area – ‘plain of Campania’ • Deep fertile soils derived from the weathered lava of Mt Vesuvius • Referred to as the ‘Cultura promiscua’ by Italians
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa undesirable effects • Mainly benefited the coastal plains • Undesired effect of widening the income gap between the upland areas and the coastal plains • Farmers grow crops such as tomatoes, olives and grapes • There has been a 200 per cent increase in the amount of tomatoes grown in this region alone
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa undesirable effects (continued) • Limited amount of crops • Seasonal overproduction of these crops • Dramatic fall in prices • Irrigation systems introduced were very expensive • Expansion into new farming practices such as pastoral is limited in the region
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • SECONDARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Manufacturing activities • Did not experience the Industrial Revolution of the late nineteenth century • 17 per cent of the Italian workforce and industrial output were located in the region • Poor and uneducated workforce • Few large urban areas • Poor local markets and upland terrain limits • Peripheral location makes it difficult to attract Multinational Companies (MNCs) • Lacks natural resources
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • SECONDARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Manufacturing activities (continued) • Limited supply of water • Energy supplies are also limited – small gas and oil deposits • Food processing industries are difficult to develop because of the limited amount of agricultural products • Rail brought cheap mass-produced goods from the North • Small companies in the region could not compete • Long distance from EU markets • Little local capital
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa per il Mezzogiorno From 1957 onwards the the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno (Fund for the South) scheme focused on improvements to industrial development in the region • Over the next 25 years €2.3 billion was invested under the Vanoni Plan 1965–1970 • Created over 300,000 new jobs • Introduced grants, subsidies and tax relief to encourage new private companies • The government also passed a new law requiring 40 per cent of all new state companies to locate in the Mezzogiorno
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa per il Mezzogiorno (continued) • New industrial estates, tax exemptions and transport subsidies • Fund for vocational training of the local labour force • Building of new international airport at Calabria • Money was invested • Autostrada del Sole was constructed • Benefited the food processing industries – transport perishable food to the EU markets quickly and efficiently
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa per il Mezzogiorno (continued) • Heavy industries, e.g. steel, oil refining, petrochemical and gas distribution, has as much as 60 per cent new investment in the south during this period • Develop four growth poles (cities) in the south • The industrial triangle of Bari-Brindisi-Taranto • Petrochemicals and steel brought much-needed jobs to the region • Most successful: new state owned industries is Finsider Steelworks based in Taranto – Italy’s largest steel works
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa per il Mezzogiorno (continued) • Taranto is third most important port in Italy • In 2002 the port handled over 36 million tonnes of freight • EU funds have also been used to improve ports • In the 1970s the Cassa changed its approach and focused on more labour intensive industries such as food processing, fruit canning and vitamin manufacture • Cassa was eventually disbanded in 1984
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • EU structural funds were used by the Italian government to improve the region and from 1989 to 1993 and more than €13 billion was invested. • The workforce of the Mezzogiorno has almost tripled since the 1960s to 1.4 million in recent years. • The economy of the south has become more diversified and outward migration has decreased
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa undesirable effects The ‘Cassa per il Mezzogiorno’ it did not reach its potential: • Heavy industries only • Not much spin-off employment • Oil refineries were set up in Naples; they were capital intensive and created few jobs • Environment was not a priority for the government • The region’s waters polluted
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa undesirable effects (continued) • 2 million jobs were lost in agriculture due to mechanisation and industrial development figures fell from 57 per cent of the workforce in the 1950s to 9 per cent today • Over-reliance on state investment • Unemployment rates in the region are still very high at 20 per cent • Development not evenly spread • 23 per cent of families in the south still live in poverty
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • Cassa undesirable effects (continued) • Infant mortality rate is four times that of northern Italy and twice the rate of Western Europe • Housing is substandard and 24 per cent of children drop out after primary school • Foreign companies wary of the influence of the Mafia and the Camorra (Naples mafia) • Infrastructure in the south still lags behind the north
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • TERTIARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Tourism • Beautiful coastline, e.g. Amalfi Coast • Dotted with ancient ruins • Volcanic landscapes, e.g. Mt Vesuvius • Cheaper and less crowded than other better known Italian resorts • Mediterranean type climate with guaranteed sunshine • 29ºC in summer
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • TERTIARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Tourism (continued) • Developed originally in the 1950s with the introduction of package holidays and cheap flights • Mezzogiorno lagged behind in the new tourist trade • Poor transport facilities and peripheral location • Growth in this area was limited to coastal regions • In the 1950s, 15 per cent of the budget of the ‘Cassa per il Mezzogiorno’ was targeted towards the development of the tourist industry in the south
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • TERTIARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES Tourism (continued) • Improvements made to hotels and self-catering apartments in the region • Communication links developed • New airport was built at Calabria and ferry links were introduced to Sicily and Sardinia • Cassa developed more than 25 areas for tourism providing direct and indirect employment • 17 million visitors annually descend on the Mezzogiorno but two-thirds of these are from the north of Italy
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • TERTIARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES The Mezzogiorno has failed to be marketed to the international tourist trade • Employment in the tourist industry in the south is seasonal • Increased both noise and environmental pollution • Newly formed interest by foreign investors has created inflated land prices • Often beyond the reach of locals wishing to build and live in their own area • Pressures on an already strained water supply • Budget airlines have started flying to the south, opened up the region to visitors from Ireland and the UK, e.g. Ryanair fly from London to Bari
Chapter 26: The Dynamics of European Regions II: The Mezzogiorno • TERTIARY ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES TRANSPORT Communication links in the south were poorly developed • €2.5 million of the Cassa funds directed to the south were spent on improving the infrastructure of the region • Two main motorways constructed • Investment in the south was put into upgrading the region’s ports especially the deep water ports of Taranto and Sicily • New container port of Gioia Tauro in Calabria – developed 1995 • Second largest container port in the Mediterranean employing more than 1,000 people