Topography
There
are four main geographical regions going north to south parallel to the
Mediterranean Sea. The four regions are the coastal plain, the Lebanon Mountain
range, the Bekaa Valley, and the
Anti-Lebanon Mountain range. The narrow, arable coastal plain is broken at
several points by the foothills and peaks of the Lebanon Mountains. Lebanon’s
main cities are located in this plain. These cities are Beirut and
Tripoli. The Lebanon Mountains are
have many rivers, which must flow down to the Mediterranean Sea. Lebanon’s
highest peak, Qornet Es-Sauda,
rises to 3090 meters or 3379 yards is located in the Lebanon Mountain range.
Directly behind the Lebanon Mountains is the Bekaa Valley. The Bekaa Valley
is an extension of the Great Rift Valley. In the
15-kilometer or 9.3 mile wide Bekaa Valley is Lebanon’s main agricultural
region. Crops in this
region vary from the sugar beat to tomatoes to grapes are grown in the valley.
The Valley’s archaeological findings are among Lebanon’s finest. The cities of Baalbek
and Anjar have been found in the Bekaa
Valley. Baalbek was once a Roman mega
city and Anjar was an Umayyad 8th
century version of modern day Chtaura.
The two main rivers of Lebanon are the Litani and the Orantes rise in the Bekaa
Valley. The Bekaa Valley ends suddenly
at the Anti-Lebanon Mountain range. The
Anti-Lebanon Mountain range is the arid mountain-boarder between Lebanon and
Syria. The highest peak in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains is Mt. Hermon rises to
2814 meters or 3077.4 yards.
Climate and Environment
In
Lebanon’s arable coastal plain is where most of the country’s population lives.
This part of Lebanon has a mild Mediterranean climate, which gives it rainy
winters. The soil is fertile because of the rich alluvial deposits found
throughout the valley. Along the coast a dry undergrowth called the maquis grows
while vineyards, wheat, olives, and oranges are
refined. Lebanon has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and cool
rainy winters. The sun is shining 300 days a year every year. The coastal plain gets
around 35 inches
of rain, while the mountains get more than 50 inches of rainfall. The coast has
high humidity, which gives it days and nights around 30˚C or 86˚F. Beirut in
the summer is a commuter society because most families move to the mountains
for the cooler but still dry climate. Winters along the coast can be dry and
balmy one day, and chilly and cool the next. Winter temperatures are 15˚C or 59˚F
and 26C or 79˚F in the mountains and pleasantly cool at night.
Flora
Most
of Lebanon is now deforested. Great cedar forests are now mostly only in the
high mountains. A Mediterranean undergrowth called maquis is found almost everywhere.
Fauna
Random
hunting has greatly reduced the once rich bird and animal population in the
wild. Few species can still survive in the wild today. These species are the jackal,
the wolf, the wild donkey, and the gazelle can still survive.