The correct answer is - Abandonment of farming in favor of industrial activity.
The cold semi-arid climates are not the best climates for farming, be it plants of animals. These climates tend to have very low precipitation, with most of the year being dry. The winter lasts pretty long and it is very cold, with early autumn and late spring frosts being a regular occurrence. The temperature variation is also very high. The vegetation is mostly consisted of very short grasses that are low in nutrients, and the soil is of low quality.
All this makes it very hard and way to risky for the people living in these areas to engage in farming as they will have bigger losses than profits more often than not. That is why it would be much better if these regions turn their attention to industrial activity that is not related to farming, thus avoiding the negative impact of the climate.
