<P> The Mainz Basin ends in Bingen am Rhein; the Rhine continues as "Middle Rhine" into the Rhine Gorge in the Rhenish Slate Mountains . In this sections the river falls from 77.4 m above sea level to 50.4 m . On the left, is located the mountain ranges of Hunsrück and Eifel, on the right Taunus and Westerwald . According to geologists, the characteristic narrow valley form was created by erosion by the river while the surrounding landscape was lifted (see water gap). </P> <P> Major tributaries in this section are the Lahn and the Moselle . They join the Rhine near Koblenz, for the right and left respectively . Almost the entire length of the Middle Rhine runs in the German state of Rhineland - Palatinate . </P> <P> The dominant economic sectors in the Middle Rhine area are viniculture and tourism . The Rhine Gorge between Rüdesheim am Rhein and Koblenz is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site . Near Sankt Goarshausen, the Rhine flows around the famous rock Lorelei . With its outstanding architectural monuments, the slopes full of vines, settlements crowded on the narrow river banks and scores of castles lined up along the top of the steep slopes, the Middle Rhine Valley can be considered the epitome of the Rhine romanticism . </P> <P> In Bonn, where the Sieg flows into the Rhine, the Rhine enters the North German Plain and turns into the Lower Rhine . The Lower Rhine falls from 50 m to 12 m . The main tributaries on this stretch are the Ruhr and the Lippe . Like the Upper Rhine, the Lower Rhine used to meander until engineering created a solid river bed . Because the levees are some distance from the river, at high tide the Lower Rhine has more room for widening than the Upper Rhine . </P>

What is the rhine river in germany so important