4.2 Flashcards
what is physical water scarcity?
Population demand for water exceeds the available water resources of a region
e.g. of country is: Bahrain (Use over 80% of its renewable water sources)
Explain how the growth in human population can affect local and regional water resources.
Option 1
can be answered using case study
Option 2
growth in human population:
1. Increased demand for domestic use
2. Increasing food demand requires more irrigation
3. Increase the extraction of groundwater
4. Causes aquifer depletion
- Industrialisation
- Increased industrial effluent lead to pollution
1.Physical water scarcity (Increasing population demand exceed available water resource)
2.Increased population may lead to poverty thus** increasing economic water scarcity.**
- International/regional conflict over access of water such as Colorado river.
Outline two factors that enable a human population to increase its local carrying capacity.
- Variation of lifestyle (human can be flexible of the water consumption of the limited water source)
- Technological development (discover new water resources)
Outline two reasons why some countries are unlikely to experience water scarcity.
- Favourable climate where precipitation is high
- Low population densities
what is economic water scarcity?
Water is adequate, but unavailable due to lack of significant investment in water infrastructure.
e.g. of country is India (rapid population growth)
Identify four strategies that can be used in the sustainable management of wild fisheries.
- Fishing quota
- Marine protected area
- License (prevent illegal fishing)
- Ban on unsustainable fishing method (bottom trawling)
Evaluate the sustainability of two water management strategies to improve access to freshwater resources in a society.
water harvesting system
positve:
1. does not impact natural water cycle
2. useful for watering plant, irrigation, washing
negative:
1. require gradual mentainence
2. not safe for drinking
desalinization:
positive:
1.reduce pressure on freswater dependency
2.provide safe drinking water
negative:
1. high cost
2. high energy consumption
3. brine disposal (highly concentrated saltwater)
4. may harm marine organisms during the uptake of water.
Examples of water management strategies
- Dams and reservoir
- Desalinization
- Water harvesting system
- Efficient irrigation techniques (drip irrigation&sprinkler systems)
Outline four ways in which urbanization may influence processes in the hydrological cycle.
- Urban pavement increases run-off thus increasing flooding
- Urban pavement reduces infiltration of water into the soil thus reduce inputs to groundwater
- Urbanisation increases heat leading to greater evapotranspiration and causes heavy precipitation
- Greenhouse gas emission which causes climate change that changes the hydrological cycle
- Increase sulphur dioxide that causes acid rain
Explain how the inequitable distribution of natural resources can lead to conflict.
- Natural resources are distributed unequally around the globe.
- This lead to one country to invade another for its resources.
- Inequitability often leads to conflict when a resource is shared across national boarder such as the Nile river between Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt
- Increase in population growth
- privatisation of water
Outline how climate change may affect the availability of freshwater resources.
- Increased temperature increases evaporation
- increased frequency of El Nino event that causes drought
- Increased temperature cause melting of the glaciers
