Resource Consumption and Security Flashcards
What is the definition of Consumption?
The level of resources needed or used by a society
What is the definition of Sustainable Development?
Meeting present needs without compromising future needs.
What are three types of poverty?
Relative, Absolute and Extreme
What are the definitions of three types of poverty?
Extreme - income too low for basic needs resulting in hunger and homelessness.
Absolute – earning less than $1.90 daily.
Relative – income is too low for the average standard of living in a society.
What is the New Global Middle Class defined as?
People with discretionary income to spend on consumer goods.
Upper end = private healthcare, holidays and cars.
Income of $3,650 - $36,500 yearly.
What are the Fragile Middle Class defined as?
2 billion people have escaped poverty but can easily slip back into it.
How many people globally have escaped Extreme Poverty in the last 20 years?
On what two continents is this happening mainly?
How many people have escaped poverty in China?
How has the % of people in extreme poverty changed from 1981 to 2013?
Which continent has the highest % of the world’s extreme poverty? How many people is it? What percent could it reach by 2030?
What are the 4 main demographic characteristics of the global poorest people?
1 billion escaped extreme poverty in the past 20 years, especially in Asia and Latin America.
China - 500million
Global extreme poverty fell from 43% in 1981 to 11% in 2013.
Over 90% of the poor have escaped.
East Asia, Pacific, Europe and Central Asia have reduced extreme poverty to below 3% - achieving the 2030 target.
Over 50% of the extreme poor live in Sub-Saharan Africa. Currently 415 million. Could reach 90% by 2030.
The majority of the global poor: Live in rural areas. Poorly educated. Work in agricultural sector. Under 18.
What are 5 main reasons that Global Poverty has reduced?
- UN MDGs launched in 2000.
- Increased gov’t spending in BRICs and LICs in healthcare delivery, education, better sanitation etc, reduced in unemployment and improved standards of living.
- Globalization has increased access to emerging markets by TNCs for cheap labor, resources and large markets for manufactured goods.
- Rising incomes and changing lifestyles, leading to an increased demand for high-value manufactured goods.
- Access to technology such as the internet services ( which enables the setting up of businesses e.g. MPESA (mobile money transfer) in Kenya.
How much has the richest 1% of people’s wealth increased from 2009 to 2016?
How rich are the richest 8 billionaires compared to 505 of the world’s poorest pop.
What does this show about the distribution of wealth?
The richest 1% wealth has increase from 44% in 2009 to 99% in 2016.
The richest 8 billionaires own the same wealth as the poorest 50% of the total population.
An enormous inequality gap in the distribution of wealth in some countries.
What are 4 reasons that renewable/non-renewable energy is a significant concern today?
- Increasing demand for natural resources by HICs.
- Increasing resource exploitation in LICs to satisfy needs of increasing population for roads, housing, education, jobs.
- Rise in world population growth so increasing demand for goods and services increases need for resources. Leads to environmental degradation (soil erosion, pollution, ozone depletion).
- Natural resources are depleting at rapid rate so we could run out of resources for future generations.
What does the Ecological Footprint calculate?
What unit is it measured in?
How is it calculated? What 3 major factors are considered?
What 3 factors can alter ecological footprints?
The amount of productive space needed to keep a population at its current level of resource consumption.
Measured in Global Hectares.
Includes:
Land needed for renewable resources (most importantly food and wood products).
Land occupied by infrastructure.
Land required to absorb CO2 emissions.
Consider:
Climate
Technology
Socio-economic factors
What is the definition of Bio-Capacity?
What is an ecological deficit defined as?
What are Ecological Debtors and Creditors?
The capacity of an area to provide resources and absorb wastes. (the ability of the resource to regenerate itself)
When an ecological footprint exceeds its bio-capacity = ecological deficit.
Ecological Debtor: Ecological footprint is higher than bio-capacity.
Ecological Creditor: Ecological footprint is lower than bio-capacity.
What is the global average bio-productive area needed per person? What is the global bio-capacity per person?
What is the USA’s average ecological footprint per person? How big of a population could live on earth?
What is Bangladesh’s average ecological footprint per person? How big of a population could live on earth?
The bio-productive area required per person worldwide is 2.69 global hectares (gha).
The global bio-capacity is 1.78 gha per person.
USA - 9.57 gha. Could sustain 1.2 billion people.
Bangladesh - 0.5 gha. Could sustain 22 billion people.
What are 6 ways countries increase their ecological footprints?
- Food and meat. More land and more water needed to sustain crops and livestock.
- Non-renewable resources e.g. coal, oil and natural gas increase carbon footprint and more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
- High consumption of food and energy so high demand for resources by the rich.
- High amount of resource imports.
- Using less renewable resources.
- Lacking technology to help conserve resources e.g. fibre glass or recycling plants.
What is the definition of Water Security?
When all people at all times have adequate access to acceptable-quality water.
What is the definition of Physical Water Scarcity?
When physical access to water is limited as the demand for water exceeds the supply of water.
When consumption exceeds 60% more than the usable supply.
What is the definition of Economic Water Scarcity?
Lacking sufficient supply purely because water is not accessible for economic reasons.
Lack of money to utilize an adequate source of water.
What is the definition of Water Stress?
When the demand for water exceeds supply for a given period of time. Could lead to water shortage.
What are 8 Human Factors that contribute to Water Scarcity?
- GDP per capita = increased domestic demand.
- Overall GDP = construction and maintenance of water infrastructure.
- Population distribution between rural and urban.
(Urban = more likely to have safe drinking water due to concentration of investment). - Socioeconomic distribution: affluent neighborhoods
- Contamination of urban water supplies by industry and lack of sanitation.
- Contamination of rural water supplies by fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides.
- Overpopulation; gov’t must invest in infrastructure to avoid shortage.
- International conflicts. The furthest country downstream will have shortages due to dams upstream. E.G. The Nile River owned by 5 countries.
What are 6 Human/Eco/Economic Problems caused by Water Shortages?
- Disease outbreak due to poor sanitation
- Low industrial production so economic stagnation
- Over reliance on foreign water supply
- Reduced agricultural productivity
- Loss of biodiversity
- International conflicts
What are 4 solutions to Water Shortages?
- Effort by the government to provide drinking water.
- International and bilateral agreements between countries that share water resources so there is enough available.
- NGOs and private companies should provide assistance to drinking water and sanitation sectors.
- Equitable distribution of water resources in a country.
What are 7 Environmental Factors that affect access to Safe drinking water?
- The rate of evapo-transpiration
- The ability of the area to store water e.g. impermeable rocks, or highlands VS permeable rocks or flatland.
- The amount of precipitation.
- Seasonal distribution of precipitation.
- Easy access to ground water.
- Pollution.
- Climate change: water evaporates quicker. Less rainfall so less water in wells, aquifers, rivers etc.
What is the definition of Embedded Water/Water Footprint?
How do countries increase their Water Footprint?
The amount of water needed in the production and transport to market of food and commodities.
Countries import water through drinks, food, and textiles, or invest in foreign agriculture.
E.G. China and Saudi Arabia = massive land grab in Ethiopia and Kenya for maize and cereals.
What is the Water Footprint (gallons) of 1 Steak, Hamburger and Egg?
What is the USA’s average daily water footprint?
What is China’s average daily water footprint?
What does this show about the link between HICs compared to LICs water consumption? What is the difference in their main economic sectors?
Steak = 675 gallons Hamburger = 660 gallons Egg = 50 gallons
USA = 7,800 gallons per day
China = 1,000 gallons per day
More water is needed by HICs for industrial use whilst in LICs, it is mostly used for agriculture.
How is the growing population affecting food/land availability?
How will the growing new global middle class affect food/land availability?
How much (in %) will food production need to increase by 2050?
Rising population = increasing demand for food.
GNMC = Higher meat and food consumption so more land and water needed. More land grabs.
Food production must increase by 70% by 2050 to meet demand.
What are 5 major environmental impacts of Oil?
What is an example of an oil spill? When and where was it? How long did it last? How many barrels of oil were spilled?
What is the problem with major oil-producing companies?
- Transportation spills
- Produces toxic wastes
- Contributes to climate change
- Air pollution
- Disruption of oil supply effects economy
BP’s oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.
Worst environmental disaster in US history.
For 87 days, oil spilled 1 mile below the ocean. Estimated 4 million barrels of oil was spilled.
Oil-producing countries seek political supremacy.
Give three advantages of using Solar Energy
Give three disadvantages of using Solar Energy
What is an example of a large Solar Energy project in a country?
Advantages:
• Safe.
• Pollution–free.
• Efficient and limitless supply.
Disadvantages:
• Expensive to construct a solar station.
• Affected by clouds, seasons and nighttime.
2008 - South Korea opened the largest solar power plant. It provides electricity for 100,000 homes.
How is Electricity produced using Nuclear Power?
What are 3 advantages of Nuclear Energy?
What are 2 disadvantages of Nuclear Energy?
Nuclear power plants convert water into steam which is used to turn turbines, producing electricity.
Advantages:
• Cheap, abundant and reliable source.
• Longer lasting than coal and oil.
• Western countries rely less on oil producing countries.
Disadvantages:
• Cost of decommissioning of old plants and reactors is very high.
• Environmental disaster could be very high. E.g Chernobyl in 1986
What are 3 advantages of Wind Energy?
What are 4 disadvantages of Wind Energy?
Advantages:
• No pollution
• Renewable
• Good for small-scale production
Disadvantages: • Visual impact • Noisy • Reliant on weather • High initial cost
What are 5 land requirements for HEP plants/dams?
What are 5 disadvantages of HEP plants/dams?
Land requirements for a HEP dam: • A valley that can be dammed • Reliable supply of river and rain water • Stable, impermeable rock • Market demand • Transport facilities
Disadvantages: • Costly construction • Markets are critical since plants need to run at full capacity • Destruction of human settlements • Flora and fauna are destroyed • May lead to water borne disease
When was the Three Gorges Dam completed?
How many people were relocated?
How long and how high is the dam?
What percent of China’s rice does the Yangtze provide? How many square km does the Yangtze drain?
What are 5 benefits of the dam?
What are 5 drawbacks of the dam?
- Completed in 2009 on the Yangtze in China
- Over 1 million relocated
- 2km long and 100m high
- The Yangtze provides 66% of China’s rice
- The Yangtze drains 1.8million square km
Benefits of the dam:
• Generates 18,000 MW electricity, 8x more than the Aswan Dam HEP
• Reduces China’s dependence on coal
• Supply energy to 13 million in Shanghai
• Protect 10 million people from flooding
• It has generated thousands of jobs
Drawbacks the dam:
• Cost about $70 billion.
• A number of towns and cities, e.g. Wanxian and Fuling, would be submerged by the dam.
• Most rivers that feed the Yangtze river have flooded.
• Seismically active area and landslides are frequent.
• Resettled people were given steep land with thin soils.
