Shannon River report, by Simon van der Putten
The river Shannon is the longest river in Ireland. With her 259 km long track, she almost crosses Ireland from north to south. After that, she mounds in an estuary witch in her turn is another 113 km in length. She drains an area of 16,695 km and with that she is one of the largest in Ireland. The river has been of great importance to the commercial fishery and the seaman from all over the globe.
Characteristics
Length: 259 km (the longest river from Ireland)
Drain-area: 16695 km
Rainfall: 2000 mm per year
Evaporation: 1000 mm per year
Animal species: Swans, Geese, Grey herons and kingfisher and a numerous species of ducks, Muskrat, American mink, brown rats and pine marten. Pearl mussel, freshwater crayfish, mayflies, Caddish flies, salmon, brim, trench, rudd, eel, roach.
Abstract
Facts about the Shannon river
The river Shannon is the longest river in Ireland. With her 259 km long track, she almost crosses Ireland from north to south. After that, she mounds in an estuary witch in her turn is another 113 km in length. She drains an area of 16,695 km and with that she is one of the largest in Ireland. The river has been of great importance to the commercial fishery and the seaman from all over the globe.
The river basin of the Shannon River
In the early years, the Shannon was also an important means of transportation for human passengers, who cruised the river with steamboats and horse drawn boats until the steamboat association could not face the competition and withdraw their carriers from the canals and rivers in 1850. Now the river is mainly used for pleasure cruises, sport fishing and people who are drawn to nature. The banks of the Shannon mainly consist of meadows with broom, willows, meadows and moors. Especially where the soil is poor of nutrients (and that is in many places so along the river shore, infect in the whole of Ireland, the soil is mainly poor of nutrition’s) moors occur.
Less than 20 people per square kilometer inhabit the country. This means there is very little pollution this area.
The river cuts through the carniforous limestone from the Paleozoic witch is carved out by the glacial drift. The limestone doesn’t allow the river to meander allot, and she hardly does so. There are a few villages alongside the Shannon, of witch Athlone and Limmerick are the biggest. Near Limerick is the Arnacrusha hydrogen power plant. There is little known about this dam, and little or none information is given. What is known is that Loch Derg expanded by the building up of water, swallowing a few small villages.
When the Shannon passes Limerick and the dam, the water is 33m lower and enters the estuary.
There is a rainfall of 2000 mm a year, with an evaporation of 1000 mm a year. This is a result of the polar maritime airflow. Ireland has a marine west coast climate.
Links
http://www.curriculumvisions.com/river/worldRivers/EuropeRivers/Shannon.html
http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/worldbook/atozgeography/i/281020.html
http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/single_image/0,5716,1751+bin%5Fid,00.html
http://www.epa.ie
http://www.infowing.ie/fishing/Coarse/Rsb2.htm
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