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Geography > River environments > Flashcards

River environments Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the hydrological cycle?

A

The continuous circulation of water in the Earth-atmosphere system

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2
Q

What type of cycle is the hydrological cycle?

A

A closed cycle

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3
Q

What are the 3 main water stores?

A

The atmosphere, the land and the sea

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4
Q

What is evaporation?

A

Water goes from liquid to gas due to the heat of the sun

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5
Q

What is transpiration?

A

Plants take up water from the soil and ‘breathe’ it into the air

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6
Q

What is evapotranspiration?

A

Loss of moisture from the ground by direct evaporation

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7
Q

What is condensation?

A

When water vapour cools and becomes liquid

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8
Q

What is precipitation?

A

Transfer of water from atmosphere to earth

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9
Q

What is overland flow/runoff?

A

Precipitation that fell to the floor moves due to gravity

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10
Q

What is groundwater flow?

A

Underground water movements to rivers, lakes and the sea

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11
Q

What is infiltration and percolation?

A

Water moves downwards into the aquifer

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12
Q

What is throughflow?

A

Water moves slowly through the soil until it reaches a stream or river. This happens between surface and aquifer

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13
Q

What is the aquifer?

A

Groundwater

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14
Q

What are drainage basins?

A

Areas of land where water from rain or snowmelts drains downhill into a large body of water

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15
Q

Name the 3 broad types of drainage basins.

A

-They deliver water directly to the sea
-They’re part of a larger system of drainage basins
-They don’t lead to the sea but to ‘inland’ seas

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16
Q

Name inputs of a drainage basin

A

energy from the sun, precipitation, possibly water from tributory drainage basins

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17
Q

Name outputs of a drainage basin

A

River discharge, evaporation and transpiration from the water in the basin

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18
Q

What is a watershed?

A

Area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers/seas

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19
Q

Define mouth of a river

A

Where a river enters a larger river, lake or ocean

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20
Q

Define discharge

A

The volume of water flowing through a river channel at a given time

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21
Q

Define source

A

A place where a river begins

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22
Q

Define confluence

A

When 2 or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel

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23
Q

Define tributary stream

A

Freshwater stream that feeds into a larger stream, river or body of water

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24
Q

Define channel

A

A wide waterway between two landmasses close to each other

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25
Q

What is discharged measured in?

A

Cumes (m3 of water per second)

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26
Q

Define river regime

A

The changes in a river’s discharge over the course of a year

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27
Q

What is a hydrograph?

A

A graph showing how a river responds to a specific rainfall event

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28
Q

What is a storm hydrograph?

A

Records changing discharge of a river after a rainstorm

29
Q

Name 3 factors affecting river regimes

A

Rock type, t° and rain

30
Q

Explain Bradshaw’s model

A

States that river characteristics, its long profile, change downstream. For example width, depth and velocity increase.

31
Q

What is physical weathering?

A

Breakdown of rocks by changes in t° and water freezing in the cracks

32
Q

What is chemical weathering?

A

Causes rocks to decay and disintegrate. Slightly acidic rain seeping into porous rocks

33
Q

What is biological weathering?

A

The roots of plants gradually growing in the cracks in rocks

34
Q

Define mass movement

A

Weathered material moving down the river slope because of gravity.

35
Q

What are the two main types of mass movements in river valleys?

A

Slumping and soil creep

36
Q

Explain slumping

A

When the bottom of a valley side slope is cut away by the river flowing at its base. It makes the slope unstable and weathered material slumps down.

37
Q

Explain soil creep

A

Weathered material moves slowly down the slope because of gravity. It collects at the bottom of the valley side and is eroded by the river.

38
Q

What are the three processes at work in shaping landforms?

A

Erosion, transport and deposition

39
Q

Name the 3 types of erosion

A

Hydraulic action, abrasion and corrosion

40
Q

What are interlocking spurs?

A

When a river swings side to side. Think S shape.

41
Q

Explain hydraulic action

A

Water hits the river bank with such force that material is dislodged and carried away.

42
Q

Explain abrasion

A

Material carried by the river is rubbed against the sides and floor of the channel. ‘Sandpaper’ action.

43
Q

Explain how corrosion works

A

Minerals in the rocks on the sides of the river channel are dissolved by the water flowing past them.

44
Q

How is a waterfall formed?

A

When a band of hard rock is more resistant to erosion than the rock below

45
Q

What is a gorge?

A

A narrow valley with steep, rocky walls located between hills or mountains

46
Q

What is a delta?

A

Wetlands that form as rivers empty into another body of water

47
Q

What is an estuary?

A

A partially enclosed, coastal water body where freshwater from rivers mixes with saltwater from the ocean

48
Q

In which 4 main ways can water be used?

A

Domestic, industrial, agricultural and leisure

49
Q

Why has water demand increased greatly in the last 50 years?

A

Improved standards of living, rise in agricultural productivity and industrialisation

50
Q

Explain water surplus and water deficit

A

Water surplus: more supply than demand
Water deficit: more demand than supply

51
Q

Give 3 examples of agricultural water pollution

A

liquid from farm silage and slurry enters rivers, fertilisers and pesticides seep into groundwater, deforestation (runoff carries soil and slit into rivers)

52
Q

Give 3 examples of domestic water pollution

A

discharge of untreated sewage, use of rivers for washing and bathing, emptying chlorinated water from swimming pools

53
Q

Give 3 examples of industrial water pollution

A

Taking water from an ecosystem and returning it at higher t°, spillages from industrial plants, metallic minerals and toxic substances ending up in rivers

54
Q

What are the 3 stages of managing the clean water supply?

A

Collection, treatment and delivery

55
Q

How can clean water be delivered?

A

Pipes, wells, bottled water

56
Q

Why is water treated?

A

To remove minerals, algae, bacteria, fungi, etc.

57
Q

Give three examples of water treatment

A

Disinfection to kill bacteria, filtration to remove sediments and sedimentation to remove suspended soil

58
Q

What are the purposes of dams and reservoirs?

A

Good supply of clean water, generating electricity, flood control

59
Q

Name three strategies to increase water supply

A

Dams and reservoirs, water transfers and desalination

60
Q

When does flooding occur?

A

When the amount of water in the river exceeds the capacity of the river’s channel.

61
Q

Name three physical factors of flooding

A

Soil type, weather and rock type

62
Q

Name three human factors of flooding

A

Deforestation, burning fossil fuels and urbanisation

63
Q

What are some effects of flooding on the environment?

A

Loss of wildlife habitats, soil erosion, destroyed vegetation, landslides, destruction of settlements and soil contamination by sewage

64
Q

What are some effects of flooding on people?

A

Disease and stress, death and injury, loss of belongings, damage to property, insurance claims, crops and animals lost, disruption to transport, contamination of water supply

65
Q

What can be done to control and manage floods?

A

Construction of hard-engineering structures, adjustment by building soft-engineering structures and prediction

66
Q

What is hard engineering?

A

Building structures to manage floods like dams, flood embankments or relief channels

67
Q

What is soft engineering?

A

Building on the natural structure of the area to minimise and prevent flood damage

68
Q

Name 4 case studies on increasing the water supply

A

Ebro project, Spain
Tagus-Segura project, Spain
3 Gorges project, China
North South water transport project, China

Geography (5 decks)

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