Resource management Flashcards
What is a resource
A stock or supply of something that has value or purpose
The significance and global inequalities of food water and energy
Food: significant because a poorly balance diet can cause illness and disease, obesity is an increasing problem and we need to be well fed to be productive (sub Saharan Africa suffer most from undernutrition)
Water: significant because it essential for drinking, vital crops and used to produce energy (many poor countries have water shortage, LICa use most water for agriculture, HICs use most water in industry)
Energy: needed for light, heat and power and provides fuel for transport and factories. (Richer countries consume more energy and poorer countries and as is becoming more industrialised the demand for energy will increase)
An overview of resources in relation to the UK: Food
- growing demand for high value foods, more exotic, all year round, cheaper
- importing food adds to our carbon footprint
Agribusiness: Lynford House Farm in East Anglia
• The land is intensively farmed, maximising demand of food produced
• pesticides and fertilisers are widely used
• machinery costs are higher but increase efficiently
• a small number of workers are employed
Riverford Organic farms:
• began as an organic farm in Devon
• now delivers organic vegetables from farms in Devon, Yorkshire, Peterborough and Hampshire
• this reduces food miles and provides local employment
An overview of resources in relation to the UK: water
- almost 50% of the U.K.’s water supply is use domestically, demand for water is estimated to rise 5% between 2015-2020 because of rapidly growing population, more houses and an increase in the use of water intensive domestic appliances
- Managing water quality
• filtering water to remove sediment
• purify water by adding chlorine
• groundwater has been polluted by industrial site discharges, agricultural chemical fertilisers, leaching from Old underground mines - South East England serious water stress
- The north and west have water surplus
An overview of resources in relation to the UK: energy
- Energy consumption has fallen in the UK due to decline in heavy industry and energy conservation
- about 75% of the U.K.’s known oil and natural gas reserves have been used up
- fossil fuels are likely to remain important in the future because:
• coal imports are cheap
• shale gas deposits may be exploited in the future
The impacts of energy exploitation
Economic:
Nuclear:
- expensive to build and decommissioning old plants is expensive
- New plants provide job opportunities
Wind farms:
- high construction costs
- local home owners can have low energy bills
Environmental Nuclear: - problem of safely processing and storing radioactive waste - warm waste water can harm local ecosystems Wind farms: - Visual impact on the landscape - help reduce carbon footprints - Noise from wind turbines
Example of a water transfer scheme - Elan Valley
- Birminghams water comes from over 100 km away
- five dams which supply with 160,000,000 L of water a day
Reasons for choice:
- deep narrow valleys to hold water
- impermeable rock means the water will not leak
Future problems:
- future expansion raises problems
- local environment would be damaged
- increased traffic and noise from construction
What are high-value goods
Low cost to produce, high cost to sell
Fracking advantages and disadvantages
Extracting gas from shale rocks -> inject high-pressure water to break shale apart + released natural gas
Advantages:
- indigenous resource, don’t pay import tariffs, energy secure as less risk to supply
- supplies the gas for the infrastructure we built during 1990s dash for gas. Therefore cheap new energy source
Disadvantages:
- impacts on settlements, noisy, polluting, extraction process can trigger minor earthquakes
- environmental concerns, water supply and ecosystem impacts
Why is energy consumption increasing
Economic development: increased development leads to energy supplies rising (demand) due to industrialisation and greater wealth
Rising population: 2015, population was 7.5 billion, 2050, 9 billion
Technology: increasing use of technology means greater demand for energy, as quality-of-life improves the demand for vehicles, lighting and heating increases
Factors affecting energy supply
Cost of exploitation and production: for example, oil rigs and pipelines require huge investments and nuclear power stations are expensive to build
Technology: technology has allowed resources, e.g. Arctic, to be exploited at a reduced cost. It is also made fracking possible.
Physical factors and climate: geology determines availability of fossil fuels and tectonic activity for geothermal energy. Wind/sun is needed
Political factors:
- political instability, e.g. Middle East, leave countries looking for alternative sources
- Nuclear power could be used for non-peaceful purposes
- Germany will stop generating power by 2020
- UK has cut subsidies for renewables e.g. solar
Impacts of energy insecurity: Food production
30% of global energy, use of biofuels have caused food prices to increase and are grown on land previously used for growing crops reducing food available
Impacts of energy insecurity: industry
Power carts e.g. Pakistan, 20 hours of power cuts today costing 4% of the GDP. Also, this causes closure of more than 500 companies in the industrial city Faisalabad alone resulting on it relying on imported oil which is expensive and insecure
Impacts of energy insecurity: potential for conflict
The Gulf walls in the 1990s and 2000s were driven by the west’s fear of global shortages of oil and rising prices. Also transport of oil is at risk from terrorism/hijacking
Impacts of energy insecurity: exploiting resources in difficult and sensitive areas
E.g. Arctic
- 13% of the worlds undiscovered oil, 30% natural gas
- Oil spills would be catastrophic for the fragile artic ecosystem
