KÄRNTEN - Geography and history
Kärnten (Carinthia) has a history going back more than 1 000 years. It has an area of 9 536 km2, two chartered cities - Klagenfurt, the capital and Villach -8 political districts and 132 municipalities (2001). It has international borders with Slovenia and Italy and is also bounded by the Bundesländer of Tirol, Salzburg and Steiermark.
In the north of Kärnten are the Central Alps, formed of Pre-Cambrian strata, which rise steeply in the west to culminate in Austria's highest mountain, the Großglockner, at 3 797 m. In the east they are much gentler. In the south are the southern Kalkhochalpen (Limestone Alps). The Klagenfurt basin, with hills and mountains as well as flatter areas and lakes, and the region's larger valleys have an lllyrian climate whereas the Alps have a humid-cool to humid-cold Alpine-climate. A fifth of the land is given over to agriculture and horticulture, 15,8 % to Alpine pastures and 52.9% to forests.
Kärnten attracts many tourists. In the south-east there is a Slovenian-speaking minority alongside the German-speaking population. North-east to south-west international road and rail links intersect with north-south traffic axes.
An attractive tourist area with economic weaknesses
With its scenic beauty and variety of landscapes, Kärnten is a major tourist area. Its numerous,-mainly warm-water lakes and warm summer climate make for relaxing holidays. The Alps, with their varied terrain ranging from easily-climbed grass slopes to glaciated high mountains, are magnificent and readily accessible, and Kärnten has a well-developed infrastructure. Some areas also lend themselves to the winter tourist trade, and tourism has thus become a major income-earner for the local population.
Timber is a further important industry in an area where more than 50% of the land is wooded. There is some wood processing in Kärnten, but a substantial percentage of the timber felled is exported as a raw material, principally to Italy.
Apart from tourism and timber, there is little industry and all lead and zinc mining recently came to an end as it was no longer profitable.
Economy forges ahead in the central region
Kärnten has an average of 59 inhabitants per km2 and GDP per capita running at 96% of the EU average (PPP approach).
The economic hub is the centre, around the cities of Klagenfurt and Villach, where 48 % of the population live on 21,3 % of the land area. Most industrial concerns are on a small scale. There are several power stations on the Drau (Drava) river supplying electricity, and there is arable land in the Klagenfurt basin. The warm lakes make tourism a major industry. The vast majority of the economically-active population work in the services sector. Many commuters from the rest of Kärnten work in the centre, where GDP per capita was 117% of the EU average in 2000.
In the thinly-populated mountainous areas of Oberkärnten, tourism is the mainstay of the economy. There are many power stations with reservoirs but little industry (magnesite and wood-processing). GDP per capita in 2000 was 79% of the EU average.
Unterkärnten comprises the eastern Klagenfurt basin, the Lavant Valley and a mountainous area. GDP per capita was only 75% of the EU average in 2000.
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