almeria PAPER 2

Question 1

list 5 key facts about almeria

Answer 1

• arid climate
• 200 mm of rainfall per year
• 26,000 hectares of greenhouses (replace every 5 years- send old greenhouses to landfill after use)
• tomatoes, lettuce, melons, courgettes, cucumber, peppers
• $1.5 billion annual income
• half of Europe’s fruit and vegetables
• use hydroponics (takes up less space and uses less water so less is being wasted)

Question 2

almeria

Answer 2

large scale agricultural development

• low labors costs from migrants
• 3,000 hours of sun per year (crops grown in winter)
• improved transport methods+ lowered shipping costs

Question 3

what are the environmental impacts of Almeria’s large-scale agricultural development?

Answer 3

+ new desalination plant supplies freshwater to the region

• local environment has been badly affected, with large areas covered with plastic (destroying the local ecosystem)
• large amounts of litter (chemical containers)
• plastic is dumped into the sea
• greenhouse reflect sunlight into the atmosphere. Natural albedo affect temperatures in Almeria have dropped by 0.3 degrees Celsius every 10 years

Question 4

what are the socio-economic impacts of Almeria’s large-scale agricultural development?

Answer 4

+ additional jobs created in packing plants
+ relatively cheap fruit and vegetable all year round
- Immigrants work paid very low wages and often live in poor conditions
- many immigrants working illegally so have little control over their conditions

Question 5

what are the positive economic impacts of Almeria’s large-scale agricultural development?

Answer 5

+ cheap labor

+ lower energy costs

Question 6

how has demand for food in the UK changed

Answer 6

• In the past most food was seasonal and grown in the UK and now most of our food is imported so we can eat seasonal produce all year round and eat exotic fruits that cannot be grown in our climate

Question 7

why does the UK import food

Answer 7

• rise of population (2022- population of 64 million)
• rise of climate (UK climate unsuitable for the production of some foods)
• choice (demands for more exotic foods)
• availability of cheaper food from abroad
• demand for seasonal produce all year round
• foreign travel (people visit other countries and experience different foods so demand increases)

Question 8

what is the environmental impact of importing food

Answer 8

• spraying crops with chemical fertiliser ( ruins soil structure, runoff into rivers and contamination of water supply)
• carbon footprint (importing food from other places uses a lot of carbon dioxide through transport)
• rising sea levels
• desertification
• more extreme weather
• greenhouse effect
• rising sea levels

Question 9

define food security

Answer 9

supply exceeds demand

Question 10

define food deficit

Answer 10

demand exceeds supply

Question 11

define famine

Answer 11

wide spread shortage of food