9781422278048

EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TODAY: POLAND

ABOVE: One of the many lakes in the Masurian Lakeland, which is a haven for birds.

As these rivers cut through the lowlands, they provide fertile land for cultivation. The farmland of the plain is critical to Polish agriculture. Many Polish cities have developed along these riverbanks. Some of these cities have become important industrial and commercial centers. South of the central lowlands are the uplands of Little Poland. This region is marked by striking upthrusts of ancient rock, rich in minerals and coal. The coal, iron, zinc, and lead deposits found and mined here, near the old capital city of Kraków, had led to the growth of Poland’s most important industrial region. The southernmost region of Poland is characterized by two mountain ranges, the Sudeten and the Carpathians along the border with the Czech Republic and

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