Chapter 8: The Great Lakes and Corn Belt New Basic Economic Sector

The Great Lakes and Corn Belt region, often called the “Heartland of North America”, has found its economy centered around agriculture. This region has been one of the  most productive farming areas in the world. The great  agricultural productivity of the Great Lakes and Corn Belt region is attributed to great soil, government  polices supporting farming , technology, and the work ethics of  its farmers. Though, the Great Lakes and Corn Belt has been the world’s most agricultural region  for over two hundred years, the number of farms and employees  have decreased over the past half of the century.  The Financial pressure associated with owning land for agricultural and staying in business are amongst some of the reasons the primary economic sector of the region has failed. The Great Lakes and Corn Belt region has recently endured economical  hardship in it’s primary  economic sector; Agriculture and industrial economy. How resilient a region  can be greatly depends on how diverse  its economy is.

Gallup, New Mexico has not always relied on its tertiary economic sector, Tourism and Healthcare, to keep its economy afloat. The base economy, of the city at a time, was mining and transportation. With the exhaustion of resources, the city of Gallup was forced to diversify its economy in order to survive hardship.

Reference

1. Hardwick, S. W., F. M. Shelley, and D. G. Holtgrieve. The Geography of North America: Environment, Political Economy, and Culture. 2. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2008. Print.