Here is a translated text directly from the large Norwegian encyclopaedia. It's a nice description of the landscape on Jæren.
Jæren, the low, flat coastal area south of Boknafjord in Rogaland. The real Jæren, Low-Jæren, it is 10-15 km wide verge along the coast from Brusand well 15 km southwest of Egersund, and 60 km north to Tungenes, the northern tip of the peninsula between Gandsfjord and the North Sea. This area, ca. 700 km2, is Norway's largest lavslette. Administrative used the name of the Jæren District Court District, which includes the municipalities of Hå, Klepp, Time and the Sun, ie the southern part of the real Jæren. Jæren prosti includes the southern part of Jæren, but does not include Sola, Gjesdal, however. Geographically considered all the five above-mentioned municipalities, as well as Stavanger, Sandnes and Randaberg, to Jæren, with the exception of the eastern parts of Sandnes og Gjesdal and southern part of Hå. The eight-mentioned Jæren municipalities make up a total of 1645 km2 with 250 112 inhabitants (2004), 64% of the county's population.
Nature
Low-Jæren is a low-lying shelf in the permanent mountain consisting of modified, kambrosiluriske skifere (fyllitt). Phyllite is covered by the mighty team mother material that gives current landscape its character. The usual theory of Jærens creation is that a glacier (Skagerrak glacier) from the southeast during the last ice age has added a powerful moraine on the lower shelf. The mother material is scraped up from the seabed and consists mostly of calcareous clay, locally with significant mergelforekomster. Over this is the last Ice Age deposited a thin morenelag, put up by the glacier, which has encountered over the bedrock in the northeast. The material in this upper moraine is sand, gravel and stone. In the south, this upper layer sparingly; locally missing it. The thickness of the mother material goes up in more than 100 miles south, it decreases northwards. Only a few places bare rock sticking up out of the Low-Jærens mother cover, for example. in and around Stavanger. The transition to High-Jæren (over ca. 120 meters.) Is sharp in the north and clearly also in the south. Heiland cabinet on High-Jæren has only a sparse cover the mother (sand and gravel) over the bedrock in the subsurface. The coastline along Jæren is south of the Sun relatively straight cut and virtually no islands off. In the north, need such Hafrsfjord in, and here are a few small islands off the coast. Along the beach, flying sand, particularly in the north. In the south, the surf has put up a more or less continuous wall of pebbles. Jæren missing marine deposits. It is estimated that Jæren has been trebar from climate deterioration at the beginning of the Iron Age. Jæren with lakes within are among the richest bird areas in the country, and an important wintering and nesting area for several species. Jæren conservation area was created in 1977.
Settlement
Jæren was an early ice-free and thus early resident. Several findings from the Stone Age and Bronze Age, but especially the rich finds from the Iron Age and Viking is interesting. Here is the richest finds of Iron Age settlement in Norway. More usammensatte farm names also testify very old settlement (Sola, Sele, Orre, Hå, Fox, etc.). Today's settlement is the dominant factor concentrated in Low-Jæren. By Jærens population lived in 2004 69% of the village Stavanger / Sandnes, 22% in the other villages. The population is increasing rapidly in both urban and rural, for Jæren total of 12.5% 1994-2004 (against 9.8% in the soil and 5.8% for the country as a whole). Largest towns outside Stavanger / Sandnes is (innb.tall 2004): Ålgård / Figgjo (8471 inhabitants), Bryne (7789 inhabitants), Kleppe / Verdalen (6265 inhabitants), Tananger (5833 inhabitants), Kvernaland (5441 hbk .) and Nærbø (4887 inhabitants).
Business
Until the middle of the 1800s was Jærens agricultural resources, poorly utilized, primarily due to the large stony soil and a high number of heath, peat bog and vannsyk soil. From the 1860's began a nydyrking period at the end of the 1800s was stimulated by technological innovations, improved communications (Jærbanen opened 1878), development of agricultural cooperation, etc. More to some big water is uttappet, marshes drained, acid heath is put under the plow and the ground is cleared of stones. Natural peat bog, which previously was a characteristic feature in the landscape, it is running low. There is still much arable land that is not grown up, while the cultivated land in many places comes into conflict with development needs. The Earth is basically not very nutritious, and before the modern agricultural machines made their entry, it was an endless struggle to make it cultivable. Jærens advantage that farmlands are mainly related to climatic conditions, and soil suitability for machining operations. The period of growth and grazing time is long, and the relationship between heat and rainfall are favorable for grass plants and roots. The emphasis in agriculture is on livestock: dairy, pork and chicken quarters, and Sheep farming in the High-Jæren and in the adjacent areas of the valleys. Jæren have (subject to the 8 municipalities) 0.5% of Norway's land area and 5.5% of the population (2004), but 4.6% of agricultural area, 13.1% of the area to root plants to feed, grønnfôr and silage crops, 15 , 5% of the country avlssvin, 19.6% of verpehønsene and 10% of cattle. Yields per unit area and the return per animal is also generally higher than elsewhere in the country. Tongue has a number of public institutions associated with agriculture, for example. try farms, control stations and stamsædgårder. The industry is very important, important is the construction of oil platforms, with 37.6% of industry employees (2002). Main industrial sectors are otherwise largely related to or growing out of agriculture, for example. food industry (dairies, slaughterhouses with 14.8% of the industry employed 1994) and landbruksredskaps and agricultural machinery industry (19.2% in machine and metal product industry by industry employees). The country's largest companies in the latter industry is on Jæren (Bryne, Kleppe, Kvernaland and Nærbø). Otherwise, the wood products industry, including prefab industry. Flint and porcelain production in Figgjo in Sandnes. Of Sandnes and Stavanger's industry may also include shipbuilding, iron and metal and printing industries in Stavanger, and J. Øglænds bicycle factory in Sandnes. Major new industrial area at Forus between Stavanger, Sandnes and Sola, with such the country's largest slaughterhouse and a major business center.
Transport
Sørlandsbanen runs centrally through the Low-Jæren, and most of the largest urban areas in Jaeren located on the railway. The main road of Jæren is Rv. 44 (Stavanger-Sandnes-Bryne-Egersund). E 39 takes from Sandnes an eastern route through sparsely inhabited areas of the High-Jæren. Ryfylkeveien, Rv. 13, has its base in Sandnes. International airport at Sola.
"For eighty millions years, birds have ruled the skies, seas and earth. Each spring they fly long distances. Each fall they fly the same routes back. The story of migrating birds is the story of a promise; the promise to return"
