Then and Now

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(Then and Now)

• By Andreas, Martin and Matt

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(No Transcript)
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What is the Fertile Crescent

• The Fertile Crescent is A region of the Middle
  East arching across the northern part of the
  Syrian Desert and extending from the Nile Valley
  to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The
  civilizations of Egypt, Phoenicia, Assyria, and
  Babylonia developed in this area, which was also
  the site of numerous migrations and invasions.
• http//www.answers.com/fertilecrescentr67

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What is the Fertile Crescent? Cont

• The Fertile Crescent is a historic region of the
  Middle East. A well-watered and fertile area, it
  arcs across the northern part of the Syrian
  desert. It is flanked on the west by the
  Mediterranean and on the east by the Euphrates
  and Tigris rivers, and includes all or parts of
  Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria,
  and Iraq. From antiquity this region was the site
  of settlements and the scene of bloody raids and
  invasions.
• http//www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-FertileC.html

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Why is the fertile crescent shrinking?

• The cause of the decline is mainly as a result
  of damming upstream as well as drainage schemes
  since the 1970s. The Tigris and the Euphrates are
  amongst the most intensively dammed rivers in the
  world. In the past 40 years, the two rivers have
  been fragmented by the construction of more than
  30 large dams, whose storage capacity is several
  times greater than the volume of both rivers. By
  turning off the tap, dams have substantially
  reduced the water available for downstream
  ecosystems and eliminated the floodwaters that
  nourished the marshlands.
• http//www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default
  .asp?DocumentID201ArticleID2826len

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The Fertile Crescent (Then)

• 15,000-20,000 square kilometers
• The Civilizations of Egypt, Phoenicia, Assyria,
  and Babylonia developed in this area
• Home to native animals such as cows, goats,
  sheep, pigs, and horses
• Over usage of water in the area lead to water
  shortage and fighting

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The Fertile Crescent (Now)

• 1,500-2,000 square kilometers
• Covers present day Egypt, Israel, West bank, Gaza
  strip, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Turkey
• Size has shrunk 10x due to drainage and damming
• Home to native animals such as cows, goats,
  sheep, pigs, and horses

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What do I think?

• The middle east is getting most of its water
  from the Fertile Crescent and since it is
  shrinking so much, it will be hard for them to
  get water. They would have to find another way
  to get water, such as desalination, which is very
  expensive. They could get money by increasing
  the oil production and selling it to the USA.

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References

• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fertile_crescent
• http//news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/05/05
  18_crescent.html
• http//www.answers.com/fertilecrescentr67
• http//arcimaging.org/GeisslerRex/BirecikEuphrates
  River20001.jpg
• http//www.bible-history.com/maps/maps/fertile_cre
  scent.jpg
• http//home.triad.rr.com/warfford/ancient/crescent
  .html
• http//www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-FertileC.html

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ZUM ENDE!!!!!