18. Hawaii

Entering statehood in 1959, Hawaii remains the newest addition to the United States. The state comprises of 8 main islands; Hawaii, Maui, Kahoolawe, Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, Kauai, and Niihau. These are just a few of the hundreds of islands that make up the Hawaiian Island Chain.

All of the Hawaiian islands were created by plume volcanoes. A plume volcano is created as the core of the earth burns a hole in a tectonic plate, releasing hot magma. As the Pacific tectonic plate continues to move, the islands grow in a giant arc, which reveals the movement of the plate. Hawaii (or the "Big Island") is the newest and largest of the chain. Mauna Kea stands 13,784 feet above sea level (and 18,000 feet below sea level). If you count its hight from the sea floor, Mauna Kea has a total hight of 32,000 feet (3,000 feet higher than Mount Everest (1).

On a clear day in downtown Portland, it is evident the relationship this city shares with the Aloha state. Mt. Hood stands only 62 miles from Portland's city center. Mt. Hood is a giant stratovolcano that reaches 11,249 feet above sea level (2). Out of the dozens of large volcanoes in Oregon, Mt. Hood is considered the most likely to erupt in the near future. Unlike the Hawaiian Islands, the volcanoes of the Cascades are formed by subduction of the Juan de Fuca plate under the North American plate. As the oceanic plate is subducted, it melts away and reaches the surface, forming volcanoes.

Here is a short video that helps visualize this process. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbDqJy28hBw

1. Stephen S. Birdsall. Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Hood

16. The North Pacific Coast

Portland, Oregon is right in the heart of the North Pacific Coast region. It is one of only three large metropolitan areas in the region (Seattle and Vancouver are the other two). A study by the Environmental Protection Agency declared that Portland was the most livable city in the United States. This was backed by another study from Midwest Research Institute in Kansas City, which looked at over 100 variables between the country's 67 largest cities. Portland top that chart as well.

(Portland Harbor 1899)

Although about 100 miles from the Pacific Coast, Portland rivals Seattle as an ocean port. Portland is also one of the major transshipment points for grain from eastern Washington. (1)

Portland is often use as an example of a city with strong land use controls. The city also consulted with urban planners way back in 1903, which has led to Portland having some of the most well planned greenery and efficiently sectioned urban, farm and residential areas.

15. California

California is one of the highest risk states in the United States for earthquakes. The San Andreas fault runs almost the entire length of the State in a northwesterly trend. Although a devastating earthquake hit San Fransisco in 1989, it is believed that a much bigger earthquake (dubbed "the big one") is due to strike California along this fault (1). The Los Angeles area is especially vulnerable as it has not had a major earthquake in over 120 years There was a large earthquake in Reseda, California (part of Los Angeles county) on Jan 17th, 1994 (aka the "Northridge Earthquake") but it was along the previously undiscovered Northridge bind thrust fault. Below is a map of California highlighting the earthquake risk areas(2).

The San Andreas fault is part of a series of faults which creates a circle around the Pacific Ocean called the "Ring of Fire." In the last two years there have been three major earthquakes on three corners of the ring of fire. Last March, 2011, a 9.0 struck Northern Japan with a subsequent tsunami killing over 13,000 people. In February of 2011, a quake toppled Christchurch, New Zeland. In 2010 an 8.8 quake struck Chile (3). If you look at the map below, that leaves only one area missing, the Northeastern corner of the ring of fire. Many believe this area is now due for a giant earthquake in the not too distant future.

Portland, Oregon is also part of the ring of fire and the area which is believed to have the next big quake. In recent history, Oregon has not had many earthquakes like its southern neighbor California. For this reason, many experts are scared that if a big one does happen, the unpreparedness of Portland, and other major cities in Oregon, will lead to a major catastrophe and loss of life.

1. Stephen S. Birdsall. Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Ring_of_Fire
3. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/16/california-earthquake_n_836594.html

14. The Southwest Border Area

The Southwest Border area is known for its diversity. In this area, the cultures of the native Americans, the Spanish from the south and the Europeans all melt together to form the Southwest Border Area. In the States within this region, many cultural influences can be seen in the food, architecture and people.

Los Angeles is located well within the Southwest Border Region and is a good example of the diversity within this region. Although most would consider Hispanics a minority in the United States, in Los Angeles, the Hispanic and Latino population make up about half of the total population (48.5%), while white make up 50% (29% if you only include non-hispanic whites)(1).

Portland, on the other hand, is one of the least diverse big cities in the United States. This reputation has earned it the nick name, "The whitest big city in the nation" (2). Looking at the graph you can see that at 78%, the white population is indeed the majority. The next highest ethnicity group is Asian at only 6.5%. In 1849 Portland actually banned African American immigration and it only allowed Chinese immigrants as labor worker, but banned property ownership and did not allow their families to migrate with them.

This somewhat rocky past has created what is still the "Most White City" in the United States. The new trend of the bicycles and beer culture in Portland has only increased the number of white immigrants into the city in recent years.

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Los_Angeles
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland,_Oregon

13. The Empty Interior

The Empty Interior consists of mostly arid plateaus and grand mountain ranges. While Portland just outside the Empty Interior (the Cascades mark the border of the region) Oregon actually has about one-half of its land mass within this empty region.

It is because of the vast emptiness and the undesirable living condition that the Mormans decided to escape persecution and setup roots in the Empty Interior. As of 2007 there were 144,000 Mormans living in Oregon. This is about 3.7% of Oregon's entire population (1). The largest population of Mormons is located in Utah with 1.7 out of 2.5 million people claiming the Mormon faith (2). This is a staggering 68%.

1. http://blog.oregonlive.com/oregonianextra/2008/01/mormons_roots_influence_run_de.html
2. http://en.fairmormon.org/Utah/Statistical_claims/LDS_population_in_Utah

12. The Great Plains

Agriculture is a major water hog. The Great Plains of the United States get enough rain to support wheat farming, but many farmers use irrigation in order to assure a satisfactory crop, even in drought years. So, because of this huge demand for irrigated water, the Great Plains has been tapping into the Ogallala aquifer (circled above) which contains an estimated 2 billion acre-feet of water (1). This water is fossil water, which has been accumulating for more than 1 million years. Because this water is not self sustaining, we have been pulling from it at a much faster rate than it can refill naturally. The Great Plains are now at risk of running dry.

As you can see above, Portland, like the Great Plains, also has a large aquifer residing below ground. However, there are a few differences between how Portland gets its water, compared to the Great Plains. Portland does not use this aquifer for the much of its water supply. Since 1895, the city of Portland has diverted water from the Bull Run Watershed, about 26 miles from the city (2). This water comes into the city unfiltered yet still satisfies regulations for safe drinking water.

The benefit to using the watershed is that the water source is more sustainable than an aquifer. Many large aquifers accumulate water over long periods of time, while watersheds are replenished by rivers and precipitation.



1. Stephen S. Birdsall. Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada
2. http://www.portlandonline.com/water/index.cfm?c=29332&a=327613

11. The Agricultural Core

As represented by the graph above, in the last century, the ratio between farm size and number farms has taken a drastic turn. In the early 1900's there were about 5,500 farms with about 150 acres (1). Today it is the opposite, with only a small amount of farms holding most of the farm land, while the majority of farms have very little land.

This has been a problem that has devastated the income for many traditional farming families. Oregon is no exception. If you look at the graph above, from 2007, it shows the relationship between the number of farms to their income. Only about 7% of farms make over $250,000 while about 37% of farms make between $1,000 and $10,000 annually (2).

It seems even outside of the Agricultural Core of the United States, large corporations are dwarfing the majority of small, family owned farms.


1. http://www.architecturefordevelopment.com/archives/726
2. http://www.oregon.gov/ODA/do_speech_farm_size.shtml