Natural word - case studies Flashcards
Describe and explain some conditions for a coral reefs growth
Can only grow in sea temperatures in between 18 and 27 degrees celcius
Can only grow in areas where they can access the suns rays ( shallow water )
Can only grow in clean water (no pollution )
Can only grow with favourable salinity
Can only grow with favourable PH (otherwise ocean acidification)
Cannot grow in areas that are constantly stomped on by humans
Cannot grow in rivers as sediment if brought into the reefs through deposition
What is being done to controll erosion in happisburg
The coastall management in Happisburg is using a strategy called “hold the line” this means using a mix of soft and hard engineering.
New policies invented in order to protect people ( soft engineering )
2007, local council funded money that was put towards ripraps
2015 - 9000 tones of rock armor were re aligned - payed for by council and people
Rock armor/ripraps have only slowed down the rapid erosion and have not put it to a stop
Wooden revetments were placed approximately 30 years ago and they appear almost fully underwater
Unlikely for more coastal management due to residents seeing this as a lost cause
ADD Huricanne
What is the Three Gorges Dam and four advantages and disadvantages of it?
Dam built in 2003 on Yangtze River (China)
Advantages:
-protects 10 million people from flooding
-produces hydroelectric energy (22500 megawatts)
-allows boats to use it (transportation of goods)
-lowers Chinas dependency on coal
Disadvantages
-over 200,000 people relocated
-cost 25 billion usd to build
-interferes with aquatic life
-main area of flooding is further down the river (not as efficient as possible)
What is the Kissimmee River and four advantages and disadvantages of it?
Channelised River in Florida USA, took place in between 1962 and 1972. The channelisation had an unexpected impact of endangering some of the wildlife, so they restored
Benefits of restoration
-helps rebuild ecosystem
-benefits the reservation of of avian species
increased job opportunities
Disadvantages of restoration
-expensive, cost 980 million USD
-time consuming, restoring it took 16 years
-since the river is more still it can lead to more evaporation which will mean more water loss
What are some characteristics of a Stevenson screen and why are they there
- Placed on grass - to avoid reflection/absorption from surfaces
- Faced away from the sun - to give more accurate results
- Slopped roof - to protect instruments from rainfall
- Slats - to allow air freely in
- Painted white - to reflect heat
- Placed in open space - to help circulate air and avoid heat from buildings
- (1.2M) above ground - to stop puddles from entering and to reduce heat energy transferred from ground
Earthquakes
Causes:
* Christchurch is a city located on a southern island in new Zealand, which is a MEDC,
* New Zealand is located on the ring of fire, which is known for large amounts of seismic activity, it’s home to 90% of the worlds earthquakes
* New Zealand is positioned in between the Pacific (oceanic) plate and the Australian (continental plate)
* New Zealand is therefore positioned on a destructive plate boundary, this is where two plates are moving towards each other. The oceanic plate has a greater density than the continental causing the continual plate to move upwards above the surface, causing a subduction zone. This can result in powerful earthquakes and volcanos
* Christchurch had a series of short (around 10 second) earthquakes from 2010 to 2011. The worst one had a 6.3 reading on the Richter scale
Effects:
Primary effects:
* 100,000 properties damaged
* 185 people killed
* Liquefaction destroyed many roads and buildings
* Several water and sewage pipes were damaged
Secondary effects:
* 20% of population emigrated
* Schools were closed for a couple weeks
* Lots of businesses closed down
* Two large aftershocks shortly after the earthquake
Responses
Immediate responses:
* 6 million USD of international aid provided
* Rescue crews from all around the world came
* Red cross charity supplied lots of people with food
* Lots of Australian police officers flew in straight after the earthquake to help maintain order
Long term responses:
* 10,000 affordable homes constructed
* Government provided temporary housing
* Water and sewage restored a year after
Volcano
Location - Montserrat (British territory), found in the Caribbeans (North America).
Found on a destructive plate boundary, on the boarders of the Caribbean plate (Oceanic) and North American plate (Oceanic and continental). Normally, the Caribbean plate will go under the North American plate creating a subduction (the most dangerous causes for volcanos and earthquakes) Short term impacts: * 19 deaths & over 100 injured * 7 villages destroyed * High % important infrastructure destroyed * Ports shut * Health services unable to cop * Sewer systems affected (can lead to epidemic) Long term impacts: * Long period of time to rebuild homes & vital infastructure * Ongoing respiratory deseases * Environmental damage to beaches, forests, wildlife & coral reefs * Population fell from 12,000 to 1,500 4 years after (loss in skills) * Inflation within country
Opportunities from volcano
* Ground was left extremely fertile because of volcanic ash (job opportunities for farmers)
* Many volcanos are visited by tourists which means that people live to earn money from jobs
* Minerals extracted such as sulphur
* Geothermal energy can be produced through volcanos
Short term responses:
* Uk assisted with relief and recovery
* Royal navy ships evacuated 4000 people
* 5000 people were evacuated to the safe zone (north of the island)
Long term responses:
* An exclusion zone was set up in the south of the island in the areas surround the volcano
* Montserrat Volcano Observatory was set up to monitor signs of volcanic activity
* New roads and airports were built
* Increase in services (Hospitals)
* Uk gave 75m pounds for long term development
