How has the ecosystem of the prairie changed since the mid-1870s?

The prairie landscape, and the many natural resources associated with it, are significant assets that are an important part of Alberta's economy.

Beginning in the 1870s, ranchers moved large herds of cattle into Alberta to take advantage of the ample forage which provided year round grazing. By the mid-1880s, European immigrants arrived and began establishing rural communities, which supported homesteading in both the prairie and parkland regions.

Prairie soils provide a rich growth medium for a range of agricultural crops. In turn, crop production supports agricultural industries such as sugar beet and potato processing, breweries, seed cleaning plants, storage facilities and similar activities.

In 2008, 146,500 Albertans were employed in the agri-food industry, with 61,000 Albertans employed in primary agricultural production (which is about 10% of the workforce within the goods producing sector), and 85,500 employed in the agri-food industry (2008, Labour Force Survey, Statistics Branch, Alberta Finance and Enterprise).  Gross farm receipts in Alberta for 2006 was $9.9 billion for Alberta, and about $200,000 per ‘Census Farm’ (2006 Census of Agriculture, Statistics Canada).

In 2006, the total pasture area in Alberta was 22.2 million acres (8.9 million hectares).  26.4 million acres (10.6 million hectares) was cropland (including 6.0 million acres (2.4 million ha) of forage, mainly hay), 6.1 million acres (2.4 million hectares) was tame pasture, and 16.1 million acres (6.5 million hectares) was native pasture (this includes areas outside the Grassland Natural Region of Alberta) (2006 Census of Agriculture, Statistics Canada).

Native prairie, when used as rangeland for cattle, adds millions of dollars each year to the provincial economy. Beef production provides valuable protein for human consumption, and keeps native grasslands open for other uses. In 2006, Alberta's farmers and ranchers raised about 6.4 million head of cattle and calves (including dairy) with the total number of beef cows around 2.0 million head (note: in 2009, the beef herd declined to about 1.8 million), 222,000 head of sheep and lambs, and 310,000 head of other grazing livestock (such as horses, bison, elk, llama), mostly on prairie lands or using feed grown on prairie lands (2006 Census of Agriculture, Statistics Canada).

Alberta's petroleum industry depends heavily on the oil and gas pools that underlie prairie landscapes, and on ready access to prairie lands needed for exploration and development.

As the urban population continues to increase, the appeal of farm and ranch vacations, and other forms of rural and prairie tourism is flourishing. This brings revenue to rural residents and small prairie communities.

The prairies offer many recreational opportunities for hunters, boaters, fishing enthusiasts and other outdoor adventurers. Bird-watching and other wildlife viewing is gaining popularity. Prairie lakes and reservoirs are particularly well used, for both summer and winter recreational pursuits.

in 'popular history' of europe in america it's common to blame the rise of the nazis (and of coursewwii, too) mainly on the treaty of versailles. despite the harshness of the treaty and despite the inflation of 1919-23 germany did benefit from the economic buoyancy of the roaring twenties. in the general election in 1928, the nazis only managed to get 12 (out of about 584) seats in the reichstag. the nazis were widely seen as a laughing-stock led by a funny little man given to yelling and wild gesticulation. of all european countries, none was hit harder than germany by the stockmarket crash of october 1929. germany had borrowed very large sums from american banks, with much of the money repayable either on demand or at short notice. these loans were of course recalled, and bankruptcies in germany rose sharply from the start of 1930 (or earlier). unemployment rose sharply, too. the german constitution of 1919 contained much that was utopian, including the right to paid employment. the realities of the situation made a mockery of the weimar constitution. one of german's great weaknesses at the time was the lack of a broadly based, popular right-wing party comparable to, say, the republicans in the us or the conservatives in britain. the obvious candidate, the german nationalists (the dnvp), had lost its grip and was hopelessly out oftouch with many of its supporters especially in rural areas. germany became increasingly hard to govern.

from about the middle of 1930 onwards the new chancellor, br�ning, had to govern by decree. in the absence of mainstream right-wing party, the nazis - who ruthlessly exploited genuine grievances - suddenly became the largest single party in the reichstag. with the growing effects of the great depression, unemployment reached about 27% (or more) in 1932. acting on bad advice (from the dnvp) hindenburg dismissed brüning in july 1932. in the general election that followed, the nazis won 37% of the seats. the other party that did well was the communist party (kpd) with 14%. fresh elections were held in november 1932: the nazi vote fell slightly, but the communist vote rose to 17%. in the streets of berlin and other major cities violence between left and right and their paramilitary wings grew. by late 1932, the effects of the great depression in germany had passed their peak, but this wasn't obvious at the time. the steady rise in communist vote triggered panic among most of the mainstream parties. after trying various solutions to the political crisis, hindenburg again took very bad advice - again from the dnvp. on the basis of this advice, he appointed hitler reichs chancellor on 30 january 1933 who promised to form a coalition with the german nationalists (dnvp). he did so, but at the same time almost immediately unleashed the sa (stormtroopers) who started a reign of terror within two months germany became a dictatorship, complete with concentration camps. joncey

explanation:

they believed democracy was worth the fight