Geogrpahy Water And Resource Management Flashcards
what is grey water?
waste water from people’s homes
what is supply vs demand
how much water we can provide vs how much water we need/ want to use
Water stress definition
When annual demand is more than 80% of available supply
What’s water deficit vs water surplus
When demand exceeds supply vs when supply exceeds demand
3 reasons why there’s strong opposition to water deficit?
- massive cost of dams, tunnels, pipelines, and construction
- some damage to ecosystems, eg: mixing of flora and fauna
- fossil fuels are used to generate electricity to pump water which increases CO2 emissions
What are food miles?
How far food has travelled in order for you to purchase it
What is a carbon footprint
How much CO2 is released per person/ way of expressing amount of CO2 emissions
Main problems concerning food transportation?
- high CO2 emissions
- high costs
- potential contamination of food
- invasive species in produce
- vulnerability to transport methods eg natural hazards
Comparison of north and west with south and east for population and water supply
N and W - water surplus, but low population density
S and E - water deficit, but v high population density
Economic problems for Kenya
- most Kenyans can’t afford food from commercial farms
- production leads to a decrease in Kenya’s supplies
- can’t adopts not to supply uk
- national food shortage in Kenya
Importing veg from Kenya main facts
Producers only get 12% of final price
115M pound of fruit and veg every year..?
More than 80% of population are employed in agriculture
Rejection rate is 10-25%
Less than 1/5 of land is able to be used for farming
What is food security
When all people at all time have physical and economic access to good quality healthy food
How can sourcing food locally reduce CO2 emissions
Make food miles cleaner
Supports local ‘farmers markets’
Promotes organic farming
Why is energy use in the UK falling
- less heavy industry - due to growth in service and quaternary sector
- more energy efficient tech
- government policies
- better insulation
- more accurate electricity meters
How has uks energy mix changed from 1990 - 2007 - 2020
1990 it was mainly coal and then nuclear
2007 it was an even split between coal, nuclear and gas which each made up just under a third
2020 almost half was renewable and then a third was gas
Why are fossil fuels still important
They provide energy for decades
Coal imports are cheap
Shale gas deposits may be exploited
Existing UK power stations still use them
How has energy use fallen in industry and household
Industry - 60% fall, and household - 12% fall
Economic impacts of fossil fuels
Still large reserves
Finite
Creates employment
Environmental impacts of fossil fuels
Emissions of greenhouse gases
Coal mining destroys landscape
Danger of oil spillages
Economic impacts of nuclear
Expensive to build
Decommissioning is costly and involves contaminated materials
Construction of new plants provides employment
Environmental impacts of nuclear
Radioactive waste hard to dispose of
No green house gases emitted
Can recycle fuel
Warm wastewater can harm local ecosystems
Risk of radioactive leaks
Economic impact of wind farms
- high construction costs
- may reduce tourism and impact economy
- some attract visitors as tourist attraction
- in delabole, local homeowners benefit from lower energy bills
Environmental impacts of wind farms
- visual impact can reduce tourism
- avoid greenhouse gas emissions and reduce carbon footprint
- noise pollution
- construction of it can impact environment
Economic impacts of renewable energy
- free renewable power source
- electricity produced can be variable
- cost of installation is falling significantly
Environmental impacts of renewable energy
- negative visual impact
- low levels of noise pollution
How much water does an average person use per day
140L
How much water is lost per day from water company leaks?
3 billion litres
How much water does coal use
100-1,100 L of water
6 main factors affecting availability of water supplies
- poverty - people may not be able to afford water
- climate - desert areas with low precipitation levels may struggle with water scarcity
- geology - some water can be stored in acquifers - huge underground reservoirs
- overabstraction - water is pumped out of the water faster than supplied
- pollution - more waste and chemicals in the water so more pollution
- limited infrastructure - if there’s limited pumping stations and pipes leads to economic scarcity
What is water transfer and an example
Moving water from a river basin where there’s a surplus to one where there’s a deficit
Eg: in uk the Kielder transfer scheme carries water south to the rivers wear and tees
What are dams and reservoirs and an example
Large lakes created by building a dam across a river, can supply lots of people with water and electricity
Eg: Three gorges dam in China
What is desalination and an example
Process of removing salt from sea water to make it safe for human use
Chinas south to north transfer scheme
What is diverting supplies and increasing storage and an example
Water can be artificially diverted and stored for use over long periods of time - can be stored in reservoirs or aquifers (permeable underground rocks)
Pros and cons of water transfer
Pros - give those with shortages perceived surpluses
- 1.1billion people don’t have access to fresh water so improved access
Cons
- agriculture uses 70% of global water and wastes 60% of it
- very expensive - china is spending almost $180 billion to transfer water from Yangtze River to yellow river basin
- dams can devastate rivers ecology
Pros and cons of dam and reservoirs
Pros - prevent flooding
- the Ayer can be transported and used for irrigation eg : kielder water in Northumberland (1.2 km long and 50m high)
Cons - expensive to construct and maintain
- displaces lots of people
- may reduce flow of water downstream
Pros and cons of desalination
Pros
- both Saudi Arabia and UAE use it showing it to be successful and trustworthy
- when there’s no alternative, it provides fresh water to areas with water deficit
cons
- very expensive so unusable in LICs
- lots of environmental impacts when salt/saltwater is dumped into ocean
- lots of energy is needed which could increase CO2 emissions
Pros and cons of diverting supplies and increasing storage
Pros - can be used when infrequent but heavy rainfall eg in Oklahoma in the us wheen surface water is collected and diverted so it can be stored
- reduces rapid surface water evaporation
Cons
- can’t be used in places with low rainfall
Physical problems with water in Ragasthan
- semi desert/ desert region
- less than 250mm of rainfall per year
- most rainfall is from June to September which is it’s summer
- high evaporation
Human problems with water in Ragasthan
Poor water management
Over irrigation leading to water logging and salinisation
Well have dried up due to over extraction
Poor coordination of water management due to private wells
How has water deficit in rajasthan been improved
Construction of a pipe system and 5 public taps
Everyone now receives water at home
Don’t need to use water from river
Two main aims of the Wakal river basin project
- increase water supply and storage using appropriate local solutions
- raise awareness in local communities for need of effective water management
How far and how much do women need to collect
Have to walk several km and get 150-500L per day
What is a taanka and its positives
An underground storage system that is 3m wife and 3-4m Deep
Pros - reduces water wastage
- utilises spare rainwater
What is a johad and its positives
Small earth dams that capture rainwater
Pros - help raise water tables by 6m
- now rivers that use to dry up flow throughout the year
What is a pat and its positives and negatives
An irrigation channel that transfers water to the fields via a small dam which diverts the stream to the fields
Pros - no wastage of water
Cons - irrigation channels need regular maintenance
- villager whose turn it is has to maintain the channels to avoid them breaking or silting up
Education and its positives
Helps increase awareness for the need for communities to work together
- pros : water insecurity is incesssed
- problems such as soil erosion, desertification, and groundwater pollution are reduced
Why are volcanic soils fertile?
Because volcanos release valueable nutrients nutrients which enrich soil and improves characteristics eg moisture retention
Examples of vegetation growth and why?
Hawaii has lots of vegetation growth due to the specific climate conditions there is quick weathering of lava
how can energy be generated from volcanos?
heat from the magma close to the surface can heat the water, turn it into steam and turn turbines to generate geothermal electricity
Example of geothermal energy
Over 20 countries use this, and 17% of icelands electricity is from this
How can minerals come from volcanoes?
metals like copper gold and silver which are due to the rising magma cooling and then them being deposited in greater concentration
What is a dramatic landscape?
The scenery associated with volcanic landscapes and unique features such as lava flows etc
why are volcanos popular with tourists?
scenery is spectacular
interesting if they have had a recent eruptive activity
eg Yellowstone national park gets 3M a year due to the famous old faithful geyer
3 types of method of collection at newton beach and their sampling strategy
Field Sketch - stratified
Beach Profile - stratified
Sediment shape and size - stratified for defensed for the sediment
What did the annotated field sketch at newton beach show?
Annotated fieldsketch showed they were having an effect and were effective in protecting newton beach
What did the beach profile at newton beach show?
Beach profile is higher on west side due to groynes stopping material moving via long shore drift and higher by over 2m squared
What did the dispersion graph and divided bar at newton beach show?
Beach material larger on west side and smaller on east as is moved by large waves and eroded by coastal processes
What is the name of the physical enquirer?
How effective are the coastal management strategies at newton beach?
How to improve/ get more accurate the newton beach enquiry?
Repetition at other points in the year could improve the relatability as it would be more representative
Use of a tape measure instead of ranging poles for more accurate data
Ways that we decreased reliability of newton beach enquiry?
Beach profile - different people holding the clinometer
People choosing specific rocks, not random for the sediment shape and size
Not using a random generator
Order of rocks is subjective
Reason for newton beach
Area will have large waves and erosion and also high value land and different management strategies
Long fetch of 70000km to South America
A mixture of geology - limestone and mudstone
Reason for studying Cardiff bay?
Was the 2nd biggest regeneration in Europe
Recently undergone a regeneration
Capital of wales
Was a great place for trade with a big history as it was under urban decline before
3 risks of Cardiff regeneration
Tricky people - stay in groups of 3-4
Crossing roads - look left and right before crossing
Weather - take a bottle of water, a hat and sun cream with you
Name of human enquiry
The successfulness of cardiffs regeneration project
Why is a land use map used and what sampling strategy is it?
Because it depicts a map of the range/ use of the area to show if it’s a tourism area or has a variety of stores
And is stratified, and systematic
what does stratified mean
Strategy - have a strategy / plan for somewhere so it’s a location
Why is an environmental quality survey used and what sampling strategy is it?
To show the distinction in quality of area as you go further from Cardiff bay, it’s stratified to select street, and systematic as it’s 60-80m
Why is a questionnaire used and what sampling strategy is it?
To gain people in the area’s opinions (either local or tourists), random/ opportunistic and stratified
Ways of presentation for Cardiff bay??
land use map
pi chart for people’s responses
proportional symbol map
Results and conclusion of Cardiff bay regeneration?
Lots of places for food, some shops and a cinema
Responses to questionnaire - 80% of responders have a positive view and negative responders want more green space
Environmental quality decreased form 53/60 to 23/60 along transect
Evaluation of Cardiff bay?
A greater sample size could improve quality of questionnaire
Repetition at other parts of year could improve accuracy
By doing an online survey it would be available to a greater sample size (but may exclude people potentially older people who don’t have social media)
Also reduced bias in environmental survey by all agreeing on a value
