5.8 Flashcards
What is physical water scarcity? (Give examples)
Areas where the water isn’t physically available
North Africa, Southern Europe & North China
What is water economic scarcity? (give examples)
Areas where water may be physically available, however, not affordable, as it may be accessible.
(Most of central and South Africa, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Peru)
Why does the price of water vary so greatly?
- Variation in availability and accessibility (areas with available and accessible water will be cheaper)
- Transportation of water varies massively (expensive pipes = expensive water)
- When demand>supply and water is scarce (2015 California), the poorest can’t afford the water supplies
- Colonial governments installed limited infrastructure for water supplies. Massive urban growth has outgrown this limited infrastructure.
- Water supply may have been privatised, leading to falling supply and rising consumer costs.
- Insufficient water infrastructure in squatter settlements, such as Accra in Ghana, leading to poorer residents relying on water tankers and bottled water.
What is an example of Water Privatisation?
Bolivia - 1999, water system was privatised - price of water was 20% of average income.
- People protested for 4 days and Bolivian government cancelled the contract.
What 5 measures are used to indicate Water Poverty Index?
- Resources - the physical availability of surface and groundwater and its quality.
- Access - the accessibility of safe water for human use, including domestic, industrial and agricultural use.
- Capacity - the effectiveness of water management to ensure affordability.
- Use - the use of water for different purposes, including domestic, industrial and agricultural use.
- Environmental - water management strategies to ensure ecological sustainability.
What can the Water Poverty Index be used to measure?
Water scarcity
Why is water supply so important for economies and society?
- Essential for production - many goods and services: including food, energy, manufacturing which drives economic development by increasing output, jobs and incomes.
- Demand for water is growing, as an economy develops
- 55% increase in water demand
- 40% shortfall in supply by 2030
Why is global water demands increasing?
- Most energy forms will need water as part of production.
- 2050 food production will require 140% more water
- 60% more water needed to prove food globally by 2050
- 2016, almost 800 million people lacked access to water supplies.
- Definite positive correlation between wealth and access to sage water and sanitation
Why does conflict occur over water?
Conflicts can arise when patterns of economic development on either side, if a political boundary are uneven. Borders can become zones of tension as scarcity stress and quality issues begin to build up.
- Physical water shortages are growing, leading to potential for conflict
- “Hotspots” can emerge where water is contested (China vs India)
Give an example of a conflict over water
Murray Darling Basin (Australia)
Who is the conflict in the Murray darling basin between?
Farmers, miners, environmentalists and urban dwellers
Evaluate the farmers need for water from the Murray darling basin
- Exploit the water for the crops and agricultural use
Evaluate the urban dwellers need water from the Murray Darling Basin
- Urban dwellers are much more likely to want this land. This will provide quick access to water, as well as many more housing opportunities.
Evaluate the miners need for water from the Murray Darling Basin
Miners will want to use this land to exploit its monetary value through mining, as this will contribute financially to the development of the area.
Evaluate the environmentalists need for water from the Murray darling basin
Environmentalists are likely to want to preserve the area, as it is a natural landscape, which provides habitats for animals, as well as producing oxygen. As a result, they are likely to want to protect the area instead of exploit it economically.
