Context Flashcards
1
Q
Geography of waters supply - climate
A
- Distribution of water related to earth’s climatic zones - regions near equator receive high levels of annual rain
- rainfall vary with seasons
- equatorial areas
2
Q
Geography of waters supply - river systems
A
- Worlds major rivers store water + transfer it across continents
- amazon produces avg discharge 219,000 catchment 6.9mil = 20% of all river water entering world’s oceans
- high temps can lead to water loss by evaporation
3
Q
Geography of water supply - geology
A
- Where rocks underlying river basin are impermeable, water will remain on surface as runoff = create high drainage density
- permeable soils + rocks e.g. limestone may allow water pass into underground drainage system
- aquifers e.g. chalk store water underground
4
Q
Finite resources - world oceans and groundwater
A
- water supply is limited
- World oceans hold 97%global water, only 2.5% potentially available as freshwater + trapped in ice,snow+permafrost
- most of remaining 20% groundwater
- 1% easily accessible freshwater held in lakes, ecosystems + rivers
5
Q
Water stress, why, who will be ok and which countries may suffer + how many are short of water?
A
- Global pop grow = demand for water increase = will be less water per person
- rich water countries = not serious problem e.g. Canada
- globally half bil people short of water (most africa/middle east)
- china, parts of europe + india look set to suffer water stress in future
6
Q
Agriculture - user of water
A
- major user, particularly as we struggle to increase food supplies for growing pop
- now - agriculture use 69% worlds freshwater supply year
- some agriculture less efficient than others - kilogram of beef 10x water costly to produce than kilogram of rice
- irrigation systems = agriculture more productive, wasteful of water
- poor management of systems = evaporation, seepage, salinization + fertiliser pollution
7
Q
Industry - user of water
A
- Proportion of water used globally by industry (21%) rose slowly during 21st century
- Est suggest coming decade = global rise = driven by large scale industrialisation in China+India etc.
- industry create water pollution, more efficient user than agriculture - except paper manufacturing e.g.
8
Q
Domestic - user of water
A
- Smallest category of consumption - 10%
- Varies country to country = develop C 100,000 litres per person+year/ most african countries less than 50,000 litres = quality of water also vary
- global domestic demand doubled every 20 years
9
Q
Water source - surface water
A
- rivers,lakes,reservoirs = provide water for variety of users
- mega dams on most of world’s major rivers + half of worlds dams in china, usa, india+japan = their reservoirs account quarter global freshwater supply
10
Q
Water source - aquifers + disadvantages
A
- underground supplies from aquifers sole source of drinking water for est quarter of worlds pop
- some countries (USA), water abstracted from aquifer faster than being replaced
- long term costs over-abstraction = dwindling supplies, falling water tables + seawater contamination
11
Q
Pressure on water supplies (physical + economic)
A
- Growing mismatch between water supply+demand
Water stress - annual supply of water per person falls below 1,700km3 + figure drops below 1,000m3 water scarcity is used
Physical scarcity - 75% of country/region river flows being used = quarter of world pop live areas e.g. USA
Economic scarcity - development of blue water flows source limited by human+financial capacities e.g. sub-saharan africa use less than 25% river resources available
12
Q
Pressure on water supplies - India
A
- Has 4% worlds freshwater, 16% of its population
- demand prob exceed supply by 2020 as urban water demand expected to double+industrial demand triple
- hydrologists calculate 43% of precipitation never reach river/aquifer + water table falling rapidly
13
Q
Pressure on water supplies - China
A
- Has 8% world’s freshwater, 22% of world pop
- two-thirds Chinese cities not have enough water all year round+national water supplies likely to reach stress levels by 2030
- China use irrigation produce 70% of its food mostly in north+northeast = Yellow River+aquifer running dry
- engineering projects soon transfer vital water to area from water-rich south
14
Q
Human impacts on water availability - environment, pollution, sewage, chemical fertiliers, industrial water and dams
A
- human activity can have negative effect on water environment = pollution + abstraction = increase water stress
- pollution groundwater less obvious than surfacewater pollution, no less a problem
- sewage disposal developing countries = expt cause 135mil deaths by 2020 - disease / UK 1,400 mil litres sewage added to rivers daily = most is treated
- chemical fertilisers - contaminate groundwater,rivers+water supplies
- each year world creates 400bil tonnes industrial water = most pumped untreated into rivers+oceans =
- big dams - trap sediment in reservoir = reduce floodplain fertility + flow of nutrient from rivers into seas
15
Q
Human impact on water availability - abstraction
A
- removing water from rivers + groundwater sources have unintended consequences
- worldwide = water extracted from aquifer faster being replaced - arid areas rainfall never recharge underground stores
- removal of freshwater from aquifers in costal location = upset natural balance of saline+fresh groundwater = salt water incursion and salinization of wells and wetlands
16
Q
Access to water, what water insecurity means and effects it has
A
- Water insecurity means not having access to sufficient safe water
- Despite efforts to improve supplies+sanitation, 1.2bil people without access to clean water - many live in developing countries classified as ‘water scarce’
- in these countries - poor most water insecure, few opportunities to escape poverty+access benefits of economic development
17
Q
3 related problems of water insecurity
A
- availability - having a water supply and distribution network
- access - freedom to use or income to buy water in particular location
- usage - entitlement +understanding of water use and health issues
18
Q
Water poverty index
A
- 2002, British Centre for Ecology and Hydrology published first water poverty index (WPI) - uses 5 parameters with score out of 20
- resources = quantity of surface+groundwater per person and its quality
- access = time and distance involved obtaining sufficient safe water
- capacity = how well community manages water + health
- use = how economically water used in home,agriculture and industry
- environment = ecological sustainability (green water)
19
Q
Poverty and water
A
poverty+water go hand in hand
- lack of water = hampers attempt to reduce poverty
- improved water supply and sanitation = increase food production, better health and standards of living
- water wealth in developed countries = brings cheap water,irrigation,energy and eco growth
20
Q
Price of water
A
- demands overtake supply in global demands, water prices may follow oil+food prices upwards
- developing countries - water free in rural areas but often carried daily; likely contaminated
- larger cities - slum dwellers may have buy water from private vendors prices often exceed $1 per m3
- prices freshwater depend upon transport costs + level of demand
21
Q
Price of water Cali
A
California cities import water over hundreds of kilometres from Colorado basin = lifting water+moving expensive
22
Q
Price of water India
A
Water scarcity prompted farmers to profit by selling abstracted water instead of using it for irrigation
23
Q
Risk of water insecurity - waters supply problems
A
- secure water supplies essential to eco development = support irrigation, food production, manufacturing + energy generation
- development, extraction+use of water resources can lead to environmental and supply problems + negative impact on both eco activity and human welfare
- severe example of irrigation programmes - Aral sea
- India - put 45mil hectares land into irrgation = depletion of underground aquifers + salinization of soil
24
Q
Risk of water insecurity - water conflicts
A
- demand for water overtakes supply + stakeholders wish to use water = potential for conflict
- more likely to occur in developing countries as water vital to feed growing pop+promote industrial develop
- US report - suggest around 300 potential water conflicts around world as rivers,lakes+aquifers struggle provide sufficient supplies for countries
25
Q
Water geopolitics
A
- countries compete for water, international agreements+treaties have to be drawn to best managed shared water supplies
- upstream countries usually assert right of territorial sovereignty (our water = our decision), downstream countries claim territorial integrity = same amount/quality of water as before
26
Q
Sharing water/geopolitics - Helsinki rules
A
- Under Helsinki rule, agreement that international treaties must include concept of ‘equitable use/share’ + applied to whole drainage basis not single countries = rarely true, country with greatest political,eco+military get better deal
- criteria for water sharing should be based on:
- natural factors = rainfall amounts, water sources and share of drainage basin
- social+eco needs = pop size, development and welfare
- downstream impacts = restricting flow,lowering water tables,pollution
- dependency = are alt water sources available to country?
- prior use? = tricky question of existing/potential use
- efficiency = avoiding waste+mismanagement of water
27
Q
Water transfers
A
- solution to countries with short of water is divert water from one drainage basin to another
- large-scale transfers of water achieved by diverting river or constructing large canal to carry available water from basin to another
28
Q
Trends in water demands
A
- By 2025, water withdrawal projected reach 5,235 km3 per year + likely have impact on food production,human welfare + natural environment
- predictions unconfirmed as it involves uncertain factors like climate change
29
Q
Three alt futures
A
- 2002 International Food Policy and Research Institute
- futures calculated for 2025 + 3 scenarios = business as usual, water crisis and sustainable water
- business as usual unsustainable for longer term, water crisis shows how mismanagement of water resources or climate change threaten our water+food supplies and lead to wider geographical problems e.g. conflict
30
Q
Climate change impact on water
A
CC 2 features - high global temp + increased extreme weather events
- increased global temp = snowmelt which causes increase in spring discharge in major river basins = water lost to oceans or evaporated as present water management cannot store/use effectively e.g. Himalayan
- Cyclones+monsoon events threaten water supplies intermittently, but shortages of water brought by increased freq+intensity of drought
31
Q
Players involved in water
A
- Political = International organisations e.g. UN, govt departments, councils + pressure groups
- Economic = World Bank, govts, developers, TNCs, agriculture + industry
- Social = individuals, residents, indigenous groups, landowners, consumers, health officials + NGOs
- Environmental = conservationists, scientists, planners, international organisations (FAO) + NGOs (WWF)
32
Q
Responses to rising demand - Hard engineering + advantages and disadvantages
A
- Most major dam construction in future likely limited to developing countries, cost $22-31bil each year
- benefits - irrigation = contribute 16% of world food production, HEP, flood control + domestic water supply
- eco costs - very expensive, difficult to pay back cost
- ecological cost - fragmented 6% of worlds rivers, disrupt floodpain agriculture,fisheries,pasture,forestry and ecosystems = many of ecological impacts not anticipated before dams built EIA relatively new
- social cost - local communities starved of development+welfare investment, communities and livelihoods disrupted - India;China dam construction displaced 58mil people in last 4 decades
33
Q
Responses to rising demand - Rivers, lake and wetland restoration
A
- Local scale - restoring meanders, replanting vegetation + using sustainable methods to manage watercourse e.g. River Restoration Centre UK = work on Rivers Cole and Skerne + now across UK
- Large scale - US army corps of engineers begun restoring Kissimmee River Florida - floodplain ecosystem restored
34
Q
Responses to rising demand - water conservation
A
- involves reducing amount of water used rather than trying to increase water supplies - agriculture more efficient irrigation/industry water treated recycled for further use
- home - raising water prices and introducing water meters make consumers more careful and about consumption of water
- irrigation - past flood irrigation proved wasteful of water as it leads to evaporation and seepage/ modern spray tech + drip irrigation more controllable and advanced + effective, however expensive
- fertigation - uses small quantities of fertiliser with fine water sprinkles = proved effective in USA+Israel
- industry - recycling and reusing, water treated using filters or chemicals
35
Q
Water technology
A
- role of tech in managing and conserving future water supplies
- tech now increase both waters supply and access
- water transfer commonplace as civil engineering skills +construction tech improve
36
Q
Desalination
A
- Process of desalination is removal of excess salt and minerals from water = produces freshwater suitable for consumption + irrigation
- long time desalination was tech success that failed to deliver eco+environmental terms, but as water costs + demand increase = countries turning to desalination as part of future water strategy = many tech developed and increasingly water stressed countries
- Saudi Arabia uses cheap energy to distil freshwater from seawater
- costs of desalination difficult to calculate - subsidies often involved - cheaper processing and larger plants make it cheaper, but process uses lots of energy = rising oil costs
- water produced high quality, though chemically different in terms of minerals compared to rainwater
- ecological effects - concentrated brine by-product of desalination
