Declining Economic Prosperity (MEDC)

Declining Economic Prosperity (MEDC) Unit 2B Development

We have discussed … • … the different levels of development of various countries – an eg of a MEDC? LEDC? LLEDC? • … how different areas within countries may develop at different rates – e.g. of variation within a country? e.g. of variation within a city? • … how some countries have developed as industrial nations very rapidly and so have increased their level of development – e.g. NIC? • And now we are going at how some areas within MEDCs may have declining economic prosperity

Can you think of any reasons why this might be? • Why might an area’s GDP per capita go down? • Why might its standard of living go down? • Why might it’s quality of life go down?

We are going to look at the South Wales Coalfields • But first, there may be lessons to be drawn from what happens to the inner-cities that may help explain what has happened in South Wales, so …

What were inner cities like? • Inner city areas were once thriving communities with a mixture of land-use and rich living alongside poor. • There were shops & houses, services, community spirit & little crime. • However there were high levels of pollution – land, air & water. • Poor sanitation led to a high death rate. • So not a bad place to be so long as you would put up with pollution and poor health

But then they began to decay Decline of inner city factories New industries go elsewhere The rich move out Cycle of Deprivation More decline Crime moves in Empty buildings Poorest left behind Social problems Local authorities do not invest

The South Wales Coalfields A history of decline

South Wales in 1860 • Coal had been mined on a small scale in south Wales for centuries, but the area was still mainly rural until the start of the Industrial Revolution in the late 1700s. • South Wales had three very important raw materials that could be used to make iron. • Firstly it had iron ore (a rock containing iron), secondly it had coal that was used to heat the iron ore and make it molten so that the iron was separated from the rest of the rock. Finally, it had limestone that was used in iron making to speed up the whole process. • These three important raw materials were found close to each other. This was a tremendous advantage given the high cost of transporting heavy rocks.

At first coal was used mainly in the iron industry. But South Wales coal was of such high quality that it became popular all over the world. By the middle of the 1800s two major developments in transport provided a great boost to the industry. In the early 1800s canals were used to transport coal from the valleys down to the dock. But when rail replaced canals the industry really took off. Railways from the Rhondda valley and other coal-mining valleys ran fairly short distances down to the booming docks at Cardiff, Newport and Swansea. Look at the map of South Wales and notice how the river valleys naturally provided routes down to the coast. By 1870, 50% of the coal was being exported overseas.

A rail network was built throughout Britain and Europe - the steam trains ran on coal and south Wales coal was in much demand. • The rail network made it easier to transport coal to the rest of Britain. Railways in far away British colonies such as India and in Africa used coal from Wales. • Ships switched from sail to steam power. As early as 1851 the British navy decided that Welsh coal was the best coal for its ships. Navies and merchant ships around the world used coal from south Wales. • The basic physical geography of south Wales had given the region a great advantage over other coal-producing areas. The river valleys gave transport routes and the steep valleys made it easy to mine down to the coal.

Why was there a population explosion in the valleys? • Coal mining depended on hard, physical labour. • The industry was hungry for workers. • The boom in the south Wales coal industry attracted people to move to the area from the rural parts of Wales, but also in great numbers from Ireland, Scotland and England. The south Wales coalfield became a "melting pot" of different cultures and people. • The Rhondda valleys became the centre of the coal industry. • In 1860 they had a population of around 3,000 people. • This had jumped to 160,000 by 1910.

Why was there a population explosion in the valleys? • The mining valleys developed their own unique culture. • Strong communities grew up with people sharing the hardships that mine work brought. • By and large the coal companies did little to help their workers. • There were frequent disputes over pay and conditions. • The miners formed unions to try and look after their interests and improve their pay and conditions. • The mining communities of the south Wales valleys became famous for their strength, and for their choirs, chapels, clubs and rugby teams! • With the colliery on the valley floor, terraced housing was built close by for the workers. The shape of the valley meant that there was little flat land and the houses had to fit in where they could.

Coal was important to industry and very important to South Wales • A government report said in 1919 that: "The prosperity of south Wales is entirely dependent on the export trade in coal." • The industry relied on exporting 70% of its production. • The whole area, mining settlements and the docks, depended on coal. • But demand for coal was falling and there were few other industries in south Wales. • Iron and steel making, and the manufacture of other metals, were also in decline because other countries had developed their own industries.

What happened next … • The 1920s and 1930s were decades of economic depression and poverty in the coalfields. • There were long strikes and bitter disputes between the company owners and the miners. The companies wanted to keep up their profits but often at the expense of miners' wages and jobs. • In 1934 unemployment rates of 60% were recorded in parts of the south Wales coalfield. • People started to move away. • Between 1931 and 1939, 160,000 people migrated from south Wales to look for work in the new industries being developed in other parts of Britain. • To modernise the industry, machines were needed instead of manual workers. Many of the coal seams in south Wales weren't suited to the use of modern mining machinery.

Why were these reasons likely to lead to a decline in the coal industry? • New light industries • Ships • Coal seams • Transport • Other countries • Politics • Lack of government support • Coal for electricity • How people warmed their homes

What was the impact of mine closures? • At its peak nearly 300,000 miners had been employed in the coal industry. In 1945 there were 125,000 miners working in 135 pits in south Wales. By the early 1980s that had shrunk to 22,000, and by the early 1990s to below 1,000. • Whole communities were devastated when their pit closed. Families lost their income and without the miners' wages, shops and businesses lost trade. • People moved away to look for work, and those who stayed found it hard to find a decent job. • Ever since the 1930s the government has been trying to attract new industry to the valleys. • The Welsh Development Agency continues this work today. But the valleys offer few attractions as a location for modern factories.

What was the impact of mine closures? • New companies setting up in Wales over the last 20 years or so have chosen locations near the M4, rather than in the narrow, built-up former mining settlements such as the Rhondda valley. • Today, the visible signs of the coal industry have largely been removed. Collieries have been replaced by supermarkets and small industrial units; the old slag heaps of waste rocks have been landscaped and planted with grass and trees. • But the scars on the community are slow to heal, and most former mining communities face a range of social and economic problems.

How does this apply to South Wales? Decline of inner city factories New industries go elsewhere The rich move out Cycle of Deprivation More decline Crime moves in Empty buildings Poorest left behind Social problems Local authorities do not invest

Of these indicator, which do you suppose will have changed since mining lost its importance? Why? • GDP per capita? • Standard of living? • Life expectancy? • Crime? • Educational achievement? • General health? • Environmental quality?

What has the government/EU tried to do about it? The multiplier effect? • Having a declining area is a liability for governments – unemployment pay, shops etc not paying much tax, factories/offices empty so no rates. • So they try to improve things by investing in infrastructure (roads, shopping centres, upgrading houses), in grants to incoming business, by waiving rates during the start-up time etc. Improving the infrastructure also supplies jobs to the local, who then pay tax – and they have money to spend – the multiplier effect • By making sure the area works well, investors want to come in as it is a nice place to be.

How did this work in South Wales? • The footloose high tech firms hung around the end of M4 motorway – near to Bristol (university) and close to the good road/rail network to London. • They did not want to try and squash themselves into the narrow valleys of the old coal fields, where transport was poor and land scarce. • But some small light industrial plants have taken root in the valleys. • However the Welsh Development Board, have encourages tourism – science museums and working mine exhibition etc and Swansea and Cardiff have been made more attractive to visitors.

Homework • You have 2 exam questions – one from each Unit we have done this term • One is on production and the other is on development • I do NOT want you to do them as if they were an exam – I want you to use your notes, the PowerPoints and the textbooks to get as good answers as you can. • Edexcel are not the most clear designers of exam questions, so I have written some extra hints and tips • For example in one section of 3 parts, the first and the last refer to a diagram precisely – the middle one does not – and you couldn’t answer it if you tried to get it from the diagram, but the way it is worded, it is not that clear that you can use other ideas. • Count the marks – 6 marks = 3+ ideas & explanation & link to egs • If you asked for 2 things and are offered 4 marks, you MUST explain.

Declining Economic Prosperity (MEDC)