Geography of Switzerland

Geography of Switzerland
Continent	Europe
Region	Western Europe
Coordinates	47° N 8° E
Area	Ranked 134 41,290 km2 (15,942.2 sq mi) 95.8% land 4.2% water
Borders	Total land borders: 1,852 km (1,151 mi) Italy: 734.2 km France: 571.8 km Germany: 345.7 km Austria: 165.1 km Liechtenstein: 41.1 km
Highest point	Dufourspitze: 4,634 m
Lowest point	Lake Maggiore: 193 m
Longest river	Rhine: 375.5 km
Largest lake	Lake Geneva (shared with France, Lake Neuchâtel is the largest entirely in Switzerland

The Matterhorn, a symbol of Switzerland

Switzerland is a mountainous and landlocked country located in Central Europe.^[1] It is surrounded by 5 countries: Austria and Liechtenstein to the east, France to the west, Italy to the south and Germany to the north. Switzerland is one of the smallest countries in Europe, with a maximum north-south length of 220 kilometers (137 mi) and an east-west length of about 350 kilometers (217 mi).^[2]

Switzerland is well known for the Alps in the south and south east. North of the Alps, the Swiss plateau runs along the east-west axis of the country. Most of the population of Switzerland lives on the rolling hills and plains of the plateau. The smaller Jura Mountains are located on the north west side of the plateau. Much of the northern border with Germany follows the Rhine River, though the Rhine enters Switzerland near Schaffhausen. The eastern border with Germany and a portion of Austria is drawn through Lake Constance (German: Bodensee). A portion of the southwest border with France is drawn through Lake Geneva.

Switzerland is divided into 26 sovereign cantons. The cantons along the Swiss plateau tend to be the most populous,^[3] industrial and religiously Protestant.^[4] The cantons in the Alps tend to be less populous, Catholic, and have an agrarian or tourism-based economy.^[4]

Switzerland is also divided by language. There are four official languages; German 63.7% of population, French 20.4% of population, Italian 6.5% of population and Romansh 0.5% of population.^[5] From Bern east (except Ticino) the population generally speaks German. West of Bern, the population generally speaks French. In the southern Canton of Ticino, most people speak Italian. Romansh, a group of dialects descended from Vulgar Latin, is spoken in several regions in the canton of Graubünden.

Western or Central Europe?

While often defined as a Western European country, Switzerland is also viewed by some as being part of Central Europe. There is in fact no universally accepted subdivision of Europe and the issue how to name and define the Central European region is subject to debates. The United Nations Statistics division and the National Geographic Society locate Switzerland (along with Austria on the east) among the nations of Western Europe. The World Factbook and some encyclopedias such as Britannica and Columbia locate the country in the westernmost part of Central Europe. Switzerland also belongs to the region named Mitteleuropa (from German: Middle Europe). Both terms have not merely a geographical meaning; but also a cultural and a political one.

Geographically, Switzerland is situated approximately 15 degrees of longitude away from the extreme west of continental Europe and 50 degrees away from the Ural Mountains, which form the eastern border of the continent.

Geology

Different geological phenomena shaped the actual landscapes of Switzerland. The alpine orogeny had the most visible consequences nowadays, this term designates the entire geological movements that conducted to the formation of the Alps.

A crystalline basement formed at the begin of the Paleozoic era, between 540 and 360 millions years ago. Later, between 205 and 96 millions years ago, the alpine ocean or Tethys Ocean formed between Eurasia and Africa. The ocean reached its maximum width at the end of Jurassic era, 135 millions years ago. The collision between the Eurasian and African plates made it progressively disappear. This plate collision, still in progress, began 100 millions years ago. The alpine chain resulted from this geological movement, the two plates creating folding zones. The Central Plateau is mainly composed of molasse, a sedimentary rock which formed at the bottom of the old ocean.

Switzerland is situated on a relatively quiet tectonic zone, although the city of Basel was completely destroyed in 1356 by an earthquake, the largest historical seismic event in central Europe. The most active regions are precisely the Rhine Rift Valley (region of Basel) and the Valais.

The three main regions

The three main regions:     Jura      Plateau      Alps

Switzerland is divided in three main geographic regions; the Swiss Alps, the Central Plateau and the Jura. They correspond each to clearly different geological realities. However two small regions are not part of those three. The first, north of the Rhine in the Basel area, is situated beyond the Jura. The second, on the south in the Mendrisio area, is located in the Po Valley. But these two territories are not extended in comparison to the total area of the country.

The Swiss Alps occupy the southern part of Switzerland. They were formed by the thrust of the African plate, which also caused the formation of the Jura in the north-east and the plateau between the two massifs. In terms of area the Alps constitute about 60% of the country, the plateau 30% and the Jura 10%.

The rugged terrain of the Jura and the Alps are very sparsely populated, except for some large valleys such as the Valais. Most of the population lives on the plateau where the country's major cities such as Geneva, Zürich and Bern are located.

The Plateau

The Rhine Falls (German: Rheinfall) located near Schaffhausen is Europe's largest waterfall

The Swiss Plateau extends from Lake Geneva on the French border across central Switzerland to Lake Constance on the German and Austrian borders. The plateau has an average altitude of 580 meters (1,903 ft).^[6] The entire plateau is covered with rolling hills, small lakes and rivers. Most of Switzerland's large lakes are located in the plateau. Both Lake Geneva (581.3 square kilometers (224.4 sq mi)) and Lake Constance (541.1 square kilometers (208.9 sq mi)) are located in the plateau but are shared with other countries. The largest lake totally in Switzerland, Lake Neuchâtel (218.3 square kilometers (84.3 sq mi)), is located in the Swiss Plateau.

The Swiss Plateau is crossed by three great river valleys (Rhone, Rhine and Aar) and the smaller Thur River valley. While the headwaters of these four rivers all lie in the Alps, they all cut across the plateau between the Alps and the Jura mountains. The Rhone and Rhine valleys are separated from those of the Aar and the isolated Thur by the great northern outlier of the Alps, which consists of the Bernese Oberland and Glarus Alps. Two wide and undulating valleys (Aar and Thur) and two deeply cut trenches (Rhone and Rhine) thus lie on the northern slope of the Alps, to the north and south respectively of the great northern outlier of the Alps.^[7] All four rivers wind back and forth and combine to form some of the major rivers in Europe. Near Schaffhausen the Rhine River passes through the Rhine Falls, Europe's largest waterfall. The Rhine Falls are 150 meters (492 ft) wide and 25 meters (82 ft).

Rolling hills south of Bern

The plateau occupies about one third of the land area of Switzerland, and about two thirds of the population live in this area. The population density on the plateau averages about 450 people per km² (1,166 per square mile).^[6] In the regions around Lake Geneva, Lake Zürich and other cities, the population density exceeds 1000 people per km².^[8] As well as a majority of the population, the Swiss Plateau is also home to the majority of industry, manufacturing and farming in Switzerland. The farms are generally small and very organized. Most farms include small meadows alternating with fields with a variety of crops and small wooded areas.

The Alps

The Finsteraarhorn highest summit in the canton of Bern

The Swiss Alps form part of a chain of mountains that stretch across southern Europe and isolate Northern Europe from the Mediterranean Sea. Several important passes through the Alps are located in Switzerland, and control of the passes has been important throughout Switzerland's history. The Alps have an average altitude of 1,700 meters (5,577 ft)^[9] and cover nearly two thirds of the total surface area. Within the Alps there are 48 mountains that are 4,000 meters (13,123 ft) or higher.

The Alps are the watershed of Western Europe. The Rhine River, together with its tributaries the Aare River and the Thur River drain about two thirds of the water into the North Sea. The Rhone and the Ticino drain about 18% of the water into the Mediterranean Sea. The Inn which becomes the Danube outside of Switzerland drains about 4.4% of the water into the Black Sea.^[10] The Swiss Alps also contain many of Central Europe's glaciers. There are about 1,800 glaciers^[9] which cover 1,200 square kilometers (463.3 sq mi) of the total glaciated area of the Alps.

Bernese Alps in Grindelwald

The Alps are a popular tourist destination and are one of the most recognizable symbols of Switzerland. The tallest point in Switzerland, Dufourspitze (4,634 meters (15,203 ft)) in Canton Valais, is located in the Alps as is tallest mountain wholly in Switzerland, the Dom (4,545 meters (14,911 ft)). One of the most recognizable symbols of Switzerland, the Matterhorn is also located in the Alps. The Matterhorn (4,478 meters (14,692 ft)) is the seventh highest peak in the Swiss Alps and is the most photographed mountain in Switzerland. The tallest mountain in the northern outlier^[7] or Bernese Alps is the Finsteraarhorn (4,274 meters (14,022 ft).

On the south face of the Alps is the canton of Ticino which is split geographically in two parts by the Monte Ceneri pass. The northern, more mountainous part, called Sopraceneri, is formed by the two major Swiss valleys around the lake Maggiore: Ticino valley and Maggia valley. The southern part, called Sottoceneri, is the region around the Lake Lugano. The lowest point in Switzerland is on Lake Maggiore (177 meters (581 ft)).^[7]

The Jura

Creux du Van in Canton Neuchatel showing the limestone layers visible in the Jura Mountains

The Jura is a limestone range running from Lake Geneva to the Rhine river. This area makes up about 12% of Switzerland's land area. Located about 700 meters (2,297 ft) above sea level, this region is characterized by a limestone highland with deep river valleys.

The limestone rock in the Jura is a Jurassic period rock with numerous fossils and dinosaur tracks. The name Jurassic actually refers to the Jura region where these fossils were studied at the end of the 18th century.^[11] The Jura is considered one of the most important sites for dinosaur footprints in the world. In one area near the village of Courtedoux, over 1,500 footprints were discovered in between 2002 and 2004 with an estimated 4,000-5,000 footprints still undiscovered.^[12]

The range is being continually built up and decreasing in width by mountain building, accommodating the compression from alpine folding as the main Alpine orogenic front moves roughly northwards. The deformation becomes less pervasive away from the younger, more active Alpine mountain building.

Doubs River

Structurally, the Jura consists of a sequence of folds, the formation of which is facilitated by an evaporitic decollement layer. The box folds are still relatively young, and this is evident in that they define the shape of the overlying landscape, meaning that they have not existed long enough to experience erosion and thus are evidence of recent mountain building.

The folds comprise three major (lithological units) bands of building evidenced dated roughly by era: the Malm, Dogger, and Lias (part of the Jurassic Geologic period). Each era of folding represents effects on a previously shallow marine environment as evidenced by beds with particular carbonate sequences, containing abundant bioclasts and oolitic divisions between layers (called horizons).

The highest peak in the Jura range is Le Crêt de la Neige at 1,720 meters (5,643 ft), although previously it was believed to be 1,717.6 meters (5,635 ft). This could be caused by constant Tectonic Plate movements making such mountain ranges go higher.

Hydrography

Switzerland has 6 % of all freshwater reserves in Europe. The country shares five river basins and some of the largest lakes in western Europe with its neighbours. It is the source of several major European rivers that ultimately flow into the North Sea (Rhine, Aar), into the Mediterranean Sea (Rhone), into the Black Sea (Inn river) and into the Adriatic Sea (Ticino river). Switzerland also has considerable reserves of groundwater, and numerous natural (Lake Geneva on the Rhone, Lake Constance on the Rhine, Lake Maggiore on the Ticino river) and artificial lakes (Sihlsee, Grande Dixence). Lakes and reservoirs contain 50 % of the stored water, glaciers 28 %, groundwater 20 % and rivers 2 %.^[13]

Climate

Valley of lauterbrunnen, from the floor at 800 metres to the highest mountains at 4,000 metres, the climatic conditions show great variations.

The weather in Switzerland is generally moderate in the Swiss Plateau. On the plateau, freezing temperatures generally occur during December-early March^[14] with an average temperature of
9 °C (48.2 °F) for elevations between 500–600 metres (1,640–1,969 ft). On the Plateau the average precipitation is 1,000 millimeters (39.4 in) with a range of about 800–1,300 millimetres (31.5–51.2 in).^[2] The higher elevations of the Jura and the Alps naturally cause lower temperatures and in the high Alps glaciers exist. The Jura and foothills (both north and south of the Alps) typically have more precipitation, with an average of 1,200–1,600 millimetres (47.2–63.0 in), while the high Alps may have over 2,500 millimetres (98.4 in).^[2] Ticino, on the south side of the Alps, has sub-tropical vegetation and is usually 2 °C (35.6 °F) - 4 °C (39.2 °F) warmer and wetter than the Swiss Plateau.

In the Köppen climate classification, the Swiss Plateau is classed as Maritime Temperate or Oceanic climate (Cfb) and the Alps are considered Tundra climates or (ET). A maritime temperate area will have changeable, often overcast weather. Summers are cool due to cloud cover and winters are milder than expected due to latitude. The Jura will be slightly cooler due to higher altitude. Within the Alps, temperatures and snow fall correlate to altitude.

Land use

As of 2001^[update], 36.9%^[16] of the land in Switzerland was used for farming. In 1993 it was estimated that 250 square kilometers (96.5 sq mi) (or about 0.6%) of the entire country was irrigated^[5] meaning that most Swiss farms receive enough rainfall to grow. 30.8% of the country is covered with forests and woodlands^[16], with an additional 6.8% covered with houses or buildings.^[2] About one-fourth (25.5%) of the country is either mountains, lakes or rivers and can not be used.^[2]

Environment

The retreat of Aletsch Glacier (situation in 1979, 1991 and 2002), due to global warming.

With the delicate alpine and glacial environments making up a significant portion of the country and providing a major industry, Switzerland has been concerned with environmental issues. Some of the main issues are listed below.

Air

The main environmental issues in Switzerland's air is air pollution from vehicle emissions and open-air burning as well as acid rain.^[5] In 2004, the average amount of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emission per resident was 6 tonnes (6.6 ST; 5.9 LT)^[16] and in 2005 was 6.2 tonnes (6.8 ST; 6.1 LT).^[17] With these numbers, Switzerland is 31st to 33rd among the 45 nations listed by United Nations Millennium Development Goals Indicators as developed nations and 69th worldwide.^[17] Switzerland expects by 2010 to reduce their total greenhouse gas emissions by 8% to 10% over emissions in 1990.^[2]

The population (as of 2005^[update]) uses 3.76 Tonne of oil equivalent per person per year, of which 43.7% comes from petroleum and 19% from nuclear power.^[16]

Water

The major water issue in Switzerland is water pollution from the increased use of agricultural fertilizers as well as hydrocarbon pollution from transport and industry.^[5] While improvements have been made, there are still issues with eutrophication (an increase in nitrogen and phosphates) in many lakes in the Swiss Plateau.^[2]

The total renewable water resources of Switzerland, as of 2005^[update], is 53.3 km³ (1.17×10¹³ imp gal; 1.41×10¹³ US gal).^[5] Of which the total freshwater withdrawal is 2.5 km³ (5.5×10¹¹ imp gal; 6.6×10¹¹ US gal) per year. This breaks down to a per capita freshwater withdrawal of 348 m³ (77,000 imp gal; 92,000 US gal) per year. Of that water (as of 2002^[update]), 24% is used for in households, 74% in industry and only 2% is used for agriculture.^[5]

Biodiversity

An alpine ibex in the Lötschental

Switzerland is facing a loss of biodiversity.^[5] While the country is quite small, the wide range of climates allow a variety of organisms to flourish. There are about 50,000 animal and plant species living in Switzerland.^[2] While most species that live on north and south foothills of the Alps are generally doing well, the Swiss Plateau is seeing a decrease in many species. The pressure from city and agricultural growth is reducing or eliminating the habitat of many species that once flourished along the plateau. There are about 60 species that are considered endangered that live in Switzerland.^[16] To help offset this, 28.6% of the country is set aside as a protected natural area.^[17]

International agreements

Party to:

• Air Pollution
• Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides
• Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94
• Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds
• Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
• Antarctic Treaty
• Biodiversity
• Climate Change
• Desertification
• Endangered Species
• Environmental Modification
• Hazardous Wastes
• Marine Dumping
• Marine Life Conservation
• Nuclear Test Ban
• Ozone Layer Protection
• Ship Pollution
• Tropical Timber 83
• Tropical Timber 94
• Wetlands
• Whaling

Signed, but not ratified:

• Antarctic-Environmental Protocol
• Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
• Law of the Sea^[5]

Area and boundaries

Area:
total: 41,290 km² (15,942 sq mi)
land: 39,770 km² (15,355 sq mi)
water: 1,520 km² (587 sq mi)

Land boundaries:

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lake Maggiore: 193 m (633 ft)
highest point: Dufourspitze: 4,634 m (15,203 ft)

See also: Extreme points of Switzerland

UNESCO Natural World Heritage Sites

Monte San Giorgio	Glarus thrust	Oeschinen Lake	Oberaletsch Glacier
Aletsch Glacier	Konkordiaplatz	Jungfraujoch	Unteraar Glacier

Topography

See also

• Geography of the Alps
• Swiss cartography
• Valleys of the Alps

References

External links

• CIA World Factbook
• About.ch – Geography of Switzerland