Irish Core Region: The Greater Dublin Area

Key Words

• GDA: The Greater Dublin Area. This is made up of Dublin and its surrounding counties, Wicklow, Meath and Kildare.
• Core Region: A core region is a region that is the centre of economic, manufacturing and intensive commercial farming
• Primary Economic Activities: Primary economic activities refer to the removal of natural resources from the earth to use further.
• Secondary Economic Activities: Secondary economic activities refer to the processing of raw materials into a semi-finished or finished product that can then be sold.
• Tertiary Economic Activities: Tertiary economic activities account for the services industry in a region, it includes a wide range of services such as the financial sector, education and hospitality

~Tip: You must be able to locate all regions on a map of Ireland. You also need to be able to draw a map of each of the regions that you study as there will be a question asking for at least one sketch map

Sample Map Questions:

• Draw an outline map of an Irish region that you have studied. On it, show and name each of the following: a named river, a feature of relief, two named urban centres.
• Draw an outline map of a map of Ireland. On it, show and name different examples of each of the following: the outline of a named geomorphological region, a named urban centre in a peripheral region, the outline of a named cultural region, the outline of a named core region.
• Draw an outline map of Ireland. Show and name the following: any one Irish region that you have studied, one urban centre in the region, one relief feature in the region, one drainage feature in the region.

Marking Scheme:

Total Marks: 20

Map outline: 4 marks

4 Features shown on map: 2 marks each

4 Features named on map or in key/legend: 2 marks each

Primary Economic Activities

Past Exam Question

• Examine the development of primary economic activities in an Irish Region that you have studied.
• Account for the development of agriculture in an Irish region that you have studied, with reference to two of the following factors: relief, climate, markets.

Marking Scheme:

Total Marks: 30 (15 SRP’s)

Factor 1: 7/8 SRP’s

Factor 2: 7/8 SRP’s

~ Make sure to outline the factors that you are discussing.

Sample Answer:

Primary economic activities refer to the removal of natural resources from the earth to use further e.g. coal mining for energy, agricultural produce for food-processing. Examples of primary economic activities include fishing, forestry, agriculture, and mining. A region that is primarily focused on this type of activity is often poorer. The region I have studied, The Greater Dublin Area (GDA) region, primary economic activities only account for a small percentage of jobs. The GDA is a core region comprised of Dublin, Wicklow, Meath and Kildare. A core region is a region that is the centre of economic, manufacturing and intensive commercial farming. It is also the centre of government, is densely populated and has well-developed economies. There are both physical and human factors that affect Primary Economic Activities in the GDA. I will discuss the development of primary economic activities in the GDA under the mentioned factors.

Physical:

The low-lying relief in this region has a positive impact on agriculture as farmers create large, rectangular fields, suitable for mechanised farming. Mechanised farming works better on flat land as the machinery will be difficult to operate on higher or sloping land. The only upland area in the GDA is the Dublin/Wicklow mountains. Arable farms where wheat is grown are large and profitable. The rugged relief is also used for the grazing sheep as their hooves make it easy for them to survive in mountainous regions.

The climate of the GDA is cool-temperate oceanic. Frost is rare due to the proximity to the Irish sea. The North Atlantic Drift regulates the temperature and keeps it cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. The average temperature in winter is 4-8 degrees Celsius and summer is 16-20 degrees Celsius. This is an advantage for crop growing and there is a longer growing season as a result. The GDA experiences more sunshine (approx. 4 hours each day) and less rainfall than the West, this reduces the risk of potato blight and benefits crop growing as soils will be more fertile. The average rainfall in the GDA is 750 mm and in the West it can be up to 1400 mm.

There is a variety of fertile soils in the region with the primary soil being Brown Earth. In North County Dublin at Rush and Lusk the light sandy soils are used for market gardening. The soil heats up in spring and is easily worked. Market gardening includes the growing of salad vegetables in greenhouses and potatoes, onions and cabbages out in the fields. Co. Meath on the other hand, has fertile boulder clay for Arable farming. At the end of the last ice age sands and boulder clay deposited by glaciers created a well-drained fertile soil in the west of the GDA. This supports good quality grassland. Kildare has this glacial deposited soil, it has a huge market in the cattle industry, the pastures are used to fatten cattle. The deep fertile soils produce high yields of tillage crops such as wheat and barley. The GDA produces 11% of the national wheat crop and 15% of the national potato crop. Barley in the region is used for animal feed and for the brewing and distilling industry.

Relief has influenced the development of the of the foresting industry in the GDA. The Wicklow Mountains rise over 1000m. The steep slopes and high altitude are a disadvantage for arable farming and therefore the forestry industry has strived in Wicklow. However, the lowland nature of Dublin region, forestry is not a dominant activity here. The mild climate encourages faster growth and causes trees to mature earlier. This means they can harvest sooner.

Human:

The GDA has a large population. It has over 1 million people with Dublin classified as the largest market in the country. This has encouraged the development of commercial agriculture. Farmers in the GDA can sell their products directly to the consumers in the GDA through things such as farmers markets. The supermarkets in the region also demand for fresh fruit and vegetables which is another wide market. North Dublin is currently the centre of market gardening in Ireland.

Along with this, the population of the GDA is wealthier than average and therefore provides an affluent market in Ireland. Their income is 40% higher than the rest of Ireland and 10% higher than EU average income. This provides a diverse socio/economic market. The GDA has a huge food processing industry, this relies heavily on the agricultural industry and provides a constant market. Industries such as Jacobs and Guinness have encouraged grain production in the south and west GDA.

Farming output in the region is high and the demands of the large and wealthy urban market nearby are met daily. The regions prime location (close to the city centre) reduces transport costs for agricultural products. The well-developed region and educated workforce are major advantages for agriculture in the region. The age-profile of farmers here is much lower than the West as the GDA does not suffer from outward migration. These young, educated farmers tend to have a market-orientated and scientific approach to agriculture. Kildare is also the centre of the bloodstock industry and produces racehorses for export.

Fishing:

Howth is the main fishing port in the region, it is the third largest fishing port in Ireland. However, fishing in the region has been declining in recent times due to the sharp decrease in fish stocks in the Irish Sea as a result of overfishing. In 2008, fish landings had a value of over 8.5 million. Dublin ports have been struggling to compete with upgraded Western ports. Large-scale aquaculture is limited in this region as the waters of the Irish Sea are more polluted than the Atlantic Ocean.

From this, it is clear that agriculture is the dominant primary economic activity in the Greater Dublin Area but forestry and fishing are also important and profitable in some areas. Both physical and human factors influence the development of primary economic activities in this region. The relief of the region is more beneficial for agriculture rather than fishing. However primary economic activities in this region are accountable for a small amount of jobs in comparison to the West of Ireland.

Secondary Economic Activities

Past Exam Question

• Examine the development of secondary economic activity in an Irish region that you have studied.
• Describe and explain the development of the manufacturing industry in an Irish region that you have studied.

Marking Scheme:

Total Marks: 30 (15 SRP’s)

Factor 1: 7/8 SRP’s

Factor 2: 7/8 SRP’s

~ Make sure to outline the factors that you are discussing.

~ You will get 1 SRP for identifying impacts of factor on secondary economic activities.

~ You will get 2 SRP’s for identifying 2 specific examples of secondary economic activities.

Sample Answer:

Secondary economic activities refer to the processing of raw materials into a semi-finished or finished product that can then be sold. Secondary economic activities make up the manufacturing industry e.g. factories. Within the region I have studied, The Greater Dublin Area (GDA) region, secondary economic activities account for a large percentage of jobs and greatly benefit the economy. The GDA is a core region comprised of Dublin, Wicklow, Meath and Kildare. A core region is a region that is the centre of economic, manufacturing and intensive commercial farming. It is also the centre of government, is densely populated and has well-developed economies. There are over 1,300 manufacturing plants in the region. Continued in Complete Guide to Leaving Cert Geography