Challenges Of Resource Management

Question 1

What is a resource ?

Answer 1

Resource - any aspect of the natural environment that can be used by humans to meet their needs

Question 2

How are resources distributed between countries globally ?

Answer 2

• many HIC’s have plentiful resources and enjoy a higher quality of life and standard of living, however LIC’s and NEE’s like in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia, lack resources and stubble to improve the quality of life.

Question 3

What are the 3 most important resources ?

Answer 3

• food
• energy
• water

Question 4

How is the demand for food changing in the UK ?

Answer 4

• UK’s demand for food has shifted to greater variety, year-round availability and healthier options this has resulted in increased demand for:
• exotic high-value food from abroad
• out-of-season produce to be available all-year round
• wider availability of organic alternatives

Question 5

What are some of the environmental impacts of the UK’s changing food demand ?

Answer 5

• increased food miles - due to UK needing to import lots of exotic foods since they can’t be grown in the UK, resulting in the transportation of the food creating co2 emissions
• soil degradation in LIC’s, due to the growing demand for food from LIC’s e.g Kenya results in them over farming the limited land they have, causing the soil to become less fertile, meaning they can’t grow crops anymore
• deforestation, due to growing demand for food in LIC’s they may cut down trees to make space to grow more crops, increasing co2 emissions (Kenya prepares 350 tonnes of vegetables each night to be sold in the UK the next day)

Question 6

What are the economical impacts of UK’s growing food demand ?

Answer 6

• increased cash crop farming, increases the wealth gap between local farmers and industrial farmers as they are looking for consistent quality and quantity, this reduces the income of local farmers

Question 7

What are the social impacts of UK’s changing food demand ?

Answer 7

many farmers are subsistence farmers meaning they can only rely on growing on the land which they own and risk degrading the soil
to buy better seeds and chemicals they may have to go into debt and sell their land

Question 8

What is agribusiness ?

Answer 8

• intensive farming aimed at maximising the amount of food produced by using modern technology like chemicals and genetically modified crops
• e.g lynford house farm 570 hectares of land, water shortages have been tackled by building 54 million litre reservoir

Question 9

What are the reasons for increased water demand in the UK ?

Answer 9

Demand for water has increased 70% in the last 50 years:
- population increase
- greater use of domestic appliances, washing machines
- rapid growth of house building

Question 10

What are the causes of UK’s water pollution ?

Answer 10

• fertilisers and pesticides entering rivers from farming
• sewage treatment facilities enter the water
• co2 makes water acidic

Question 11

What has the UK done to manage water pollution ?

Answer 11

In 2018 government implemented farming rules:
- restricts the amount of chemicals farmers can use
- plant vegetation breaks around fields to prevent runoff into streams
In 2010 Northern Ireland water introduced the Belfast sewers project:
- cost 160 million
- sewer networks have been repaired and upgrade to prevent leaking into rivers
- large drain tunnel to increase storm water capacity

Question 12

What are the challenges of matching supply and demand of water in the UK ?

Answer 12

• the north and west of the UK have water surplus due to high amounts of rainfall, low evaporation rates and low population density leading the low demand
• the south east of the UK have water deficit due to less rainfall, and high population density leading to high demand, much of south england experiences water stress (demand exceeds supply) creating a need for water to be transported

Question 13

What are water transfer schemes ?

Answer 13

Water transfer schemes aim to match the supply and demand for water, by moving water from areas of water surplus to areas of water deficit

Question 14

What is an example of a water transfer scheme in the UK ?

Answer 14

Kielder water reserve , cost 185 million to build, located in south of Scotland
Positives:
- genrates HEP, supplies to 10,000 homes in local area
- can transfer water to south east, fixing water stress
- encourages tourisms - 300,000 visitors per year
Negatives:
- flooded a valley, locals may not be happy
- displaced farmers
- co2 emissions in pumping water the south
- 1.5 million trees cut down

Question 15

What is energy mix ?

Answer 15

energy mix is the range of energy sources used by a country or region ( includes renewable and non-renewable)

Question 16

What is energy conservation ?

Answer 16

energy conservation is reducing energy consumption by using less or energy or using energy more efficiently

Question 17

What is energy security ?

Answer 17

energy security is the availability of energy sources at an affordable price

Question 18

How has the UK’s energy mix changed ?

Answer 18

• there has been a decline in total energy usage due to more energy efficient technologies
• in 1990 almost all energy came from coal , oil and nuclear
• today, 35% fossil fuels, 37% renewable (mainly wind due to the UK being an island), 20%nuclear and biomass

Question 19

How has the UK reduced its domestic supply of energy ?

Answer 19

UK now imports 35% of its energy due to 75% of the UK oil and gas reserves have been exhausted, this decreases the UK’s energy security
- Gas - 2/3 of UK gas reserves remain enough to last 50 years
- oil - oil production has declined 5% over the last 10 years
- coal - the last coal mine was closed in 2015

Question 20

What is fracking and what are the issues with it ?

Answer 20

1) the UK has natural gases trapped deep underground 2500-3000m
2) holes are made in the shale rock
3) high pressure liquids (containing water sand and chemicals) is injected into the rock at high pressures
4) this creates cracks in the shale rock and the gas is released
Concerns:
- minor earthquakes
- pollution of underground water sources
- high costs of extraction due to high energy (8million litres of water needed)

Question 21

What are the economic and environmental issues with fossil fuels ?

Answer 21

Economic:
- they are finite
- Creates employment
Environmental:
- GHG emissions
- danger of oil spills

Question 22

What is are the economic and environmental issues with Nuclear ?

Answer 22

Economic:
- expensive to build
- fuel is expensive
Environmental:
- radioactive waste expensive and dangerous to dispose
- No GHG emissions
- radioactive waste can get into water supplies

Question 23

What are the economic and environmental issue with renewable energy ?

Answer 23

Economic:
- free renewable power source
- electricity produced can vary
- cost of installation is falling
Environmental:
- negative visual impact
- low levels of noise pollution with wind turbines

Question 24

What is the global energy consumption and supply ?

Answer 24

• energy consumption per person is greatest in north-america, Europe and Australia due them being HIC’s
• energy consumption per person is least in Africa and South Asia around 5000kwh
• energy production per person is greatest in HIC’s north-America, Europe and Australia
• energy production per person is least in Africa and South Asia around 1000kwh

Question 25

What are the reasons for increasing energy consumption ?

Answer 25

Energy consumption has increased 50% since 2000 globally:
- increase population and higher incomes, increase energy intensive lifestyles
- industrialisation in NEE’s + LIC’s
- increasing uses of technology like computers, requiring more energy, however in HICs energy use is becoming more efficient.

Question 26

What are the factors affecting energy supply ?

Answer 26

• physical - power station requires large areas of flat land, geothermal energy is produced in areas of tectonic activity e.g Iceland
• economical factors - energy sources are expensive to develop e.g oil rigs cost at sea cost 650 million, the cost of building nuclear power plants is 23 billion
• political - licences are needed for nuclear energy production, political instability in Middle East has meant that oil consuming countries are looking for alternative producers of energy

Question 27

What is energy insecurity ?

Answer 27

• Energy insecurity occurs when a country is unable to supply enough to meet the demands of its people in other words an energy deficit.

Question 28

What are the impacts of energy insecurity ?

Answer 28

• exploration of difficult and environmentally sensitive areas - as demand and technology increased, energy has been extracted from increasingly challenging environments e.g oil and gas in the frozen artic
• economic and environmental costs - leads to high prices of oil and gas imports, increased energy demand may mean a country exploits energy resources in sensitive areas, e.g 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill 1600km of coastline damaged
• industrial output - countries which suffer from shortfall of enrgy e.g Pakistan power cuts cost 4% of gdp
• potential for conflict - can lead to conflict if one country is dependant on another country for for energy imports e.g Iran - Iraq war

Question 29

What are the options for increasing energy supply ?

Answer 29

1) develop and increase the use of renewable energy sources
2) continue to exploit non-renewable fossil fuels and nuclear

Question 30

What are the advantages and disadvantages of extracting natural gas in the camisea gas project (Peru) ?

Answer 30

The Camisea gas project began in 2004 to exploit a huge gas field in Peru
Advantages:
- could save 4 billion in energy costs
- can make up to 34 billion in gas exports
- provides employment opportunities
Disadvantages:
- deforestation to create the pipeline and damage to natural habitats
- project could impact lives of indigenous tribes

Question 31

What is carbon footprint ?

Answer 31

carbon footprint is the amount of co2 released in to atmosphere as a result of the activities of a particular individual, organisation or community

Question 32

How to become more sustainable with energy ?

Answer 32

• reduce energy loss - insulate roofs, double or triple glazed windows, more air tight doors
• energy conservation - more energy efficient technology, changing energy habits e.g switching lights off when not in use, in transportation build cycling paths, increase use of public transport, use of electric cars
• reducing the demand for energy - increasing the price of energy, or using financial incentives to use more energy efficient devices, encouraging greater use of off-peak energy tariffs
• new technologies - biofuel technology in car engines in Brazil petrol consumption has decreased by 40% since 1993

Question 33

Where is the Chambamontera hydro-micro scheme and why was it needed ?

Answer 33

• chambamontera is an isolated community in the Andrea’s mountains in Peru
• people in the local area of dependent on subsistence farming, development has been restricted due to a lack of electricity for heat, light and power
• very isolated meaning it was uneconomical to build an electricity grid

Question 34

How does the Chambamontera scheme work ?

Answer 34

1) high amounts of rainfall and steep hills
2) means at the top of the hill the water has high potential energy
3) as the water falls through the pipeline it is converted to kinetic energy
4) this kinetic energy is used to spin a generator, providing electricity

Question 35

Why is the Chambamontera project sustainable?

Answer 35

• no GHG emissions
• minimal impact on the environment
• it is renewable energy
• cheap to maintain and run

Question 36

What benefits has the Chambamontera project had on the local community ?

Answer 36

• local community gets 24/7 access to electricity
• children can study when it gets dark
• access to the internet to aid studies
• encourages people to start businesses as they have lower energy costs