DESCRIPTION OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON TOPOGRAPHICAL MAPS

Factors Influencing Crop Farming on topographical maps

Drainage: Well drained area encourages crop farming

Poorly drained/ swampy areas/ dumpy areas waterlogged areas discouraged crop farming

Availability of well-developed transport network: for transportation of the farm produce to the market/ to factories e.g coffee/ tea farming has well connected/feeders roads to the respective factories

Gently sloping land; encourages crop farming such sugarcane/rice/ wheat for mechanization

Steep slopes discourages agricultural activities because of challenges in mechanization and accessibility through transport networks.

In semi-arid arid areas, availability of permanent rivers/lakes; to provide water for irrigation

Cool conditions due to high altitudes evidenced by contours rising over 1500m(a.s.l) which is suitable for growing crops such as tea, coffee\

High rainfall adequate for growth of crops evidenced by forests and many permanent rivers

Availability of adequate labor to work crop planting and harvesting; evidenced by high density settlements around the farms

 

Factors Influencing Livestock Farming On Topographical Maps

Availability of water for cattle drinking; from many rivers (give examples of rivers on the map)

Availability of pastures; suitable for animal grazing evidenced by woodlands, scrubs, and thickets

Availability of veterinary services; for improved animal husbandry evidenced by veterinary offices/ investigation laboratory/ cattle dips/ animal research stations (indicate the areas where they are located on the map)

Large tracks of land; shown by sparse settlements providing extensive land for grazing animals. Gently sloping land; for easy movement of animals evidenced by widely spaced contours

Cool conditions suitable for dairy cattle rearing; shown by high altitude contours above 1000m a. s. l

Availability of transport for transportation of cattle and dairy products to the market; shown by many roads and tracks

Availability of market for cattle and cattle products; indicated by dense settlements

Factors Influencing Trading On Topographical Maps

Presence of numerous market centers/ trading centers/ shops; which provide opportunities for trade (indicate the areas where the centers are located)

Well-developed transport network; evidenced by road networks/ railway (give specific type of roads in the area covered by map e.g. all-weather roads)

Availability of market for consumption of variety of goods and services; evidenced by dense settlements/ numerous settlements

Numerous economic activities ; evidenced by tea/coffee/cotton factory/sugarcane factory/ dairies/ fisheries research centers/ cattle dips/ quarries/ murram pits; which provide products for trading

Factors Influencing Transport and Communication on Topographical maps

Relief:

·         Roads are constructed on gentle slopes, avoiding steep areas

·         Roads are relatively straight on lowlands/plains/ gently sloping areas because it is easier to construct in such areas

·         Roads are built meandering up the steep slopes to reduce steepness

·         Roads and railways are built around hills and ridges to avoid steepness and reduce the cost of  construction

·         Bridges/culverts are constructed where roads and railways are crossing deep valleys/ rivers

Drainage:

·         Roads and railways are constructed away from swamps due to flooding

·         Bridges are built across rivers

·         Ferries are used to cross wide rivers

Forests

·         There are few/no roads across forested areas as government policy to preserve forests

·         There are few/no roads in forested area as it is difficult to clear forests, and would make road construction expensive

·         There are few/no roads in forested areas because there are no settlements

Natural Resources

·         Roads and railways are constructed to join ares rich in natural resources e.g. minerals/ rich in agriculture for transportation of the products to the market

Density of Settlements

·         Dense network of roads are built in densely settled areas

·         Low density/sparsely settled areas have few roads

Example

Using evidence from Karatina map give three economic activities which they were able to identify

·         Crop farming e.g. tea farming evidenced by tea centers ,coffee farming evidenced by coffee factories ,at Kiaragana, Uramathi etc

·         Transport due to presence of roads leading in and out of Karatina town.

·         Industrial activities evidenced by coffee factories in Uramathi ,Kiaragana etc

·         Commercial due to the presence of markets like Kianga,Miiru,Kiriko etc.

Using evidence from Karatina map, identify two farming activities taking place in the mapped area.

•   Cattle rearing /livestock keeping evidenced by cattle dips slaughter house and Matuto salt lick
•   Fish farming  shown by existence of fish research  center in GS 8560 and fisheries department in Karatina town
• Plantation farming plantations within Mt Kenya
• Coffee growing shown by presence of coffee factories
•   Tea growing evidenced by tea centers