Editing Geography of France (section)

==Physical geography of Metropolitan France==
[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map FRA present.svg|thumb|[[Köppen climate]] classification map of Metropolitan France]]
[[File:CORINE Land Cover 2006 France.png|thumb|Land use in Metropolitan France, with urban areas shown in red, 2006.]]
[[File:Natural resources of France.png|thumb|Natural resources of France. Metals are in blue (Al — [[aluminium]] ore, Fe — [[iron]] ore, W — [[tungsten]], Au — [[gold]], U — [[uranium]]). Fossil fuels are in red (C — [[coal]], L — [[lignite]], P — [[petroleum]], G — [[natural gas]]). Non-metallic minerals are in green (F — [[fluorite]], K — [[potash]], T — [[talc]]).]]

===Climate===
{{Main|Climate of France}}
Metropolitan France's territory is relatively large and so it climate is not uniform and gives rise to the following climate nuances:

*The [[cool semi-arid climate]] (''BSk'') is found in the western part of the [[Bouches-du-Rhône]] area and the Roussillon plain of the [[Pyrénées-Orientales]]. Summers are hot, winters are cool winters. There is insufficient average annual rainfall in some years. 
*The [[hot-summer Mediterranean climate]] (''Csa'') is found along the [[Gulf of Lion]] and further inland. Summers are hot and dry, winters are cool and autumns can be very rainy near the [[Cévennes]].
*The [[warm-summer Mediterranean climate]] (''Csb'') is found in the northwestern part of [[Brittany]] and along the [[Gulf of Lion]] but higher in altitude, in the mountains. Summers are warm (but not hot) and dry, winters are cool and can be cold in the mountains and autumns are rainy.
*The [[humid subtropical climate]] (''Cfa'') is found in southwestern France, in the [[Toulouse]] area. In France, the humid subtropical climate is not as hot and humid as in the [[Southeastern United States]]. Summers are hot and wetter than in the [[Mediterranean Basin]], and winters are cool and somewhat foggy in the plains.
*The [[oceanic climate]] (''Cfb'') concerns a large part of France, as far as [[Champagne (region)|Champagne]] and [[Burgundy]] and of course around the coasts of the [[Bay of Biscay]], the [[English Channel]] and the [[North Sea]]. Summers are pleasantly warm (rarely hot), somewhat dry and winters are cool and wet.
*The [[subpolar oceanic climate|subalpine oceanic climate]] (''Cfc'') is found at the foot of the [[Pyrenees]], [[Massif Central]] and western [[French Alps]] as in the mountains of the [[Vercors Massif]] and the [[Chartreuse Mountains]]. Summers are short, cool and wet, and winters are moderately cold, long and snowy.
*The [[dry-summer continental climate|warm-summer dry-summer continental climate]] (''Dsb'') is found in all the mountainous regions of [[Southern France]] between 700 and 1,400 metres a.s.l. Summers are pleasantly warm and dry, and winters are very cold and snowy.
*The [[dry-summer continental climate|cool-summer dry-summer continental climate]] (''Dsc'') is found in all the mountainous regions of Southern France between 1,400 and 2,300-2,400 metres a.s.l. Summers are cool, short and dry, and winters are very cold and snowy.
*The [[warm-summer humid continental climate]] (''Dfb'') is found in the far east of France or in all the mountain ranges far from the ocean or the sea. Summers are warm to hot and stormy and winters are cold and somewhat dry, and snow is not uncommon. Above 500–600 meters a.s.l in the northeastern quarter of France, the snowpack can persist throughout the winter. In January 1985, in [[Mouthe]], the temperature has dropped under {{convert|-41.2|C|F|abbr=on}}.
*The [[subarctic climate|subalpine climate]] (''Dfc'') is found in all the mountainous regions of France between 1,100-1,400 meters a.s.l in the Vosges mountains and 1,400-2,300 metres a.s.l in the southern French Alps or in the Pyrenees. Summers are cool, short and stormy while winters are very cold, long and snowy.
* The [[tundra climate|alpine tundra climate]] (''ET'') is found in all the mountainous regions of France, generally above 2,000 or 2,300-2,400 metres a.s.l depending on the mountain ranges. Summers are chilly, stormy and windy and winters are extremely cold, long and snowy.
* The [[ice cap climate]] (''EF'') is found in all the mountainous regions of France that have a [[glacier]], in the highest mountains of the Alps or the Pyrenees. The climate in the [[Mont Blanc massif]] (up to 4,810 meters a.s.l) is an ice cap climate for example. Summers are cold and wet and winters are extremely cold, long and snowy.

[[Climate change in France]] includes above average heating.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Climate change in France|url=https://www.climatechangepost.com/france/climate-change/|access-date=2 June 2021|website=Climatechangepost.com}}</ref>

===Elevation extremes===
* Lowest point: [[Étang de Lavalduc]], [[Bouches-du-Rhône]] -10 m
* Highest point: [[Mont Blanc]] 4,808 m {{see also|Evolution of highest point of France}}

===Land use===
* ''Arable land'': 33.40%
* ''Permanent crops'': 1.83%
* ''Other'': 64.77% (2007)

''Irrigated land:'' 26,420&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> (2007)

''Total renewable water resources:'' 211&nbsp;km<sup>3</sup> (2011)

''Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):'' 31.62&nbsp;km<sup>3</sup>/yr (19%/71%/10%) (512.1 m<sup>3</sup>/yr per capita) (2009)

===Natural resources===
[[Coal]], [[iron ore]], [[bauxite]], [[zinc]], [[uranium]], [[antimony]], [[arsenic]], [[potash]], [[feldspar]], [[fluorspar]], [[gypsum]], [[timber]], [[fish]], [[gold]], [[clay]], [[petroleum]], [[silver]]

===Natural hazards===
Flooding, Hailstorms, [[avalanche]]s, midwinter windstorms, [[drought]], [[forest fire]]s in the south near the Mediterranean

===Environment===
The region that now comprises France consisted of open grassland during the [[Pleistocene]] Ice Age. France gradually became forested as the glaciers retreated starting in 10,000 BC, but clearing of these primeval forests began in [[Neolithic]] times. These forests were still fairly extensive until the medieval era.

In prehistoric times, France was home to large predatory animals such as wolves and brown bears, as well as herbivores such as elk. The larger fauna have disappeared outside the Pyrenees Mountains where bears live as a protected species. Smaller animals include [[martens]], wild pigs, foxes, [[weasels]], bats, rodents, rabbits, and assorted birds.

By the 15th century, France had largely been denuded of its forests and was forced to rely on Scandinavia and their North American colonies for lumber. Significant remaining forested areas are in the Gascony region and north in the Alsace-Ardennes area. The [[Ardennes Forest]] was the scene of extensive fighting in both world wars.

The northcentral part of the region is dominated by the [[Paris Basin]], which consists of a layered sequence of [[sedimentary rock]]s. Fertile soils over much of the area make good agricultural land. The [[Normandy (administrative region)|Normandy]] coast to the northwest is characterized by high, chalk cliffs, while the [[Brittany (administrative region)|Brittany]] coast (the peninsula to the west) is highly indented in places that deep valleys were drowned by the sea, and the [[Bay of Biscay|Biscay]] coast to the southwest is marked by flat, sandy beaches.

A recent global [[remote sensing]] analysis suggested that there were 1,433&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> of tidal flats in France, making it the 23rd ranked country in terms of tidal flat area.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Murray |first1=N.J. |last2=Phinn |first2=S.R. |last3=DeWitt |first3=M. |last4=Ferrari |first4=R. |last5=Johnston |first5=R. |last6=Lyons |first6=M.B. |last7=Clinton |first7=N. |last8=Thau |first8=D. |last9=Fuller |first9=R.A. |title=The global distribution and trajectory of tidal flats |journal=Nature |date=2019 |volume=565 |issue=7738 |pages=222–225 |doi=10.1038/s41586-018-0805-8 |pmid=30568300 |s2cid=56481043 |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-018-0805-8}}</ref>

<gallery>
File:Naturasollieres.jpg|Forest in [[Sollières-Sardières]] ([[Natura 2000]] site).
File:France_-_Marseille_(29878897633).jpg|[[Calanques National Park]] in [[Bouches-du-Rhône]]
File:Mont Blanc depuis Valmorel 2.jpg|[[Mont Blanc]], the highest summit in Western Europe
File:Etang de Lavalduc 2.jpg|[[Étang de Lavalduc]], the lowest point in France
</gallery>