The European Union

28 member states
1957: European Economic Community
6 members: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxemburg and the Netherlands
1994: EU (economic union)
Reasons for creating the EU:
Cooperation
Lower expenses of manufacturing
Larger markets
Lower expenses of research
Import duties were abolished
Duties are imposed on goods from countries outside the EU
Free movement of labor force + capital within the EU
Common currency: the Euro (except for Sweden, G.B., Denmark)
Institutions:

European Parliament
Strasbourg
The Council of Ministers: legislative body
The European Commission: helps legislation
International trade relations
Brussels
Court of Justice
Deals with judicial issues
Court of Auditors
Checks the spending of money
The European Investment Bank
Financing institution
The Economic and Social Committee
Advisory body (helps the work of EU Parliament)
The Committee of Regions
Helps the integration of regions
Significant differences in the level of economic development
Enlargement
Physical geography:

I.
II.
III.
IV.

Ancient Shields: Baltic Shield

Old Mountains: the Pennine, the Highlands, the Massif Central, the Scandinavian
Mts., the Sudetes
Young mountains: the Alps, the Pyrenees, the Carpathian Mts., the Balkan Mts., the
Apennines
Plains: German Plain, Polish Plain, Po Plain, the Great Plain, East European Plain,
Romanian Plain
Climate:

North: Subarctic/Taiga
Oceanic
Humid continental
Dry continental
Mediterranean
Climate of high elevations
Rivers: the Rhine, the Danube, the Thames, the Seine, the Loire, the Elbe, the Ebro,
the Vistula, the Oder
Agriculture:

Highly developed
The size of farms smaller than in the USA
Fewer machines -> more work -> more expensive products
Policy protecting farmers (duties)
Cooperation
Types of agriculture:

Northwest:
Livestock rearing, fodder crops
Oceanic climate
Dairy farming, mixed crop & livestock farming
France, Germany
Land cultivation, livestock rearing have equal importance, wheat, sugar beet, potato,
fodders
Mediterranean
Land cultivation, wheat, fruit, vegetables
High mountains
Livestock rearing
In the Alps
Cattle
In Mediterranean areas
Sheep, goat

Industry:

Industrial regions: coal + iron ore

The Highlands (Scotland)
The Black Country (UK)
The Meuse Valley (Belgium)
Lorraine (France)
Oviedo, Bilbao -> Spain
The Ruhr region: large agglomeration
The structure of the industry has changed ( the amount of coal has decreased)

Industry in ports -> imported ores -> metallurgy

Refineries, chemical industry (Rotterdam)
Capitals
Energy:
Nuclear power
France, Germany
Brown coal
Germany
Natural gas
The Netherlands, North Sea
Oil
North Sea (UK, Norway)
Import