Rivers Flashcards

1
Q

Example- managing floods

Where is banbury located?

A

Cotswolds, above oxford

Much of the town is on a floodplain

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2
Q

Example- managing floods

How has banbury been affected by flooding?

A

Led to closures of town railway station
Local roads shut
Houses and businesses damaged

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3
Q

Example- managing floods

What has been done to reduce the risk of flooding?

A
  • earth embankment built parallel to motorway creating a flood storage area. Collects rainwater.
  • raising the a361 road in flood storage area
  • new earth embankment and flood walls to protect property
  • new pumping stations
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4
Q

Example- managing floods

Name 3 social costs and benefits

A
  • reduces levels of anxiety and depression through fear of flooding
  • quality of life of locals with improved footpaths and green areas
  • raised a361 route into banbury will be open during a flood, avoids disrupting peoples lives
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5
Q

Example- managing floods

3 economic benefits and costs

A
  • cost about £18.5 million
  • by protecting 441 houses and 73 commercial properties benefits estimated to be over £100million
  • donors include environment agency and Cherwell district council
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6
Q

3 environmental costs and benefits

A
  • 1000000 tonnes of earth needed to build embankment extracted nearby creating a small resivour
  • new biodiversity plan habitat was created using ponds trees and hedgerows
  • part of floodplain will be allowed to flood if levels get to high
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7
Q

Name 3 characteristics of the upper course

A
  • steep/ v shaped valley
  • narrow shallow channel
  • high bed load
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8
Q

Name 4 features of the upper course

A
  • v shaped valleys
  • interlocking spurs
  • waterfalls
  • gorges
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9
Q

Name 3 characteristics of the middle course

A
  • open gentle sloping valley with floodplain
  • wider deeper channel
  • more suspended sediment
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10
Q

Name 3 features of the middle course

A
  • meanders
  • river clifff
  • slip of slopes
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11
Q

Name 3 characteristics of the lower course

A
  • flat and wide floodplain
  • wide, open valley
  • very wide and very deep
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12
Q

Name 3 features of the lower course

A
  • ox bow lakes
  • flood plains
  • levees
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13
Q

Name 3 processes of erosion

A
  • solution
  • attrition
  • abrasion
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14
Q

What is solution?

A

When the river flows over limestone or chalk, the rock is slowly dissolved

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15
Q

What is attrition?

A

When stones carried by the river knock against each knock against each other, gradually making the stones smaller and more rounded

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16
Q

What is abrasion?

A

When the load carried by the river repeated hits the bed or banks dislodging particles into the flow or the river

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17
Q

What is hydraulic action?

A

The force of the water hitting the river bed and bank. This is most effective when the water is moving fast and there is a lot of it

18
Q

What are the 4 main types of transportation

A

Solution
Suspension
Traction
Saltation

19
Q

What is solution?

A

Dissolved load

20
Q

What is traction?

A

Large particles rolled on the river bed

21
Q

What is suspension

A

Small sediment held in the river

22
Q

What is saltation

A

Bouncing of particles too heavy to be suspended

23
Q

When is a waterfall commonly formed

A

When a river flows over a relatively resistant band of hard rock

24
Q

What is a gorge?

A

A narrow steep sided valley that is usually found down stream of a waterfall

25
How is a gorge formed
Formed by the gradual retreat of a waterfall
26
What is a thalweg
Outside bend where erosion occurs as it is the fastest flowing water with lots of energy
27
What is the formation of a floodplain
1- meanders migrate across floodplain due to lateral erosion. When they reach the edge of the flood plain the erode the valley side = wide floodplain 2- when river floods it deposits silt creating flat floodplain, layers bulid up to form thick fertile alluvium
28
What is a levee How is it formed What is it
A raised river bed found along side a river in the lower course Formed by flooding Ridge of sediment is deposited naturally to build up levee
29
What is an estuary
Are transitional zones between the river and costal environments
30
Example- river tees Where is it Where is the source
North east of england | Pennie hills neat cross fell
31
List 3 ways of things increasing the risk of a flood
- after a long period of winter rain - torrential storms - volume lf water from rain over flows its banks
32
3 ways physical factors increase flood risks
Geology (rock type) - impermeable rocks Precipitation - rainfall Steep slopes - rapid transfer of water
33
3 human factors increasing flood risks
Deforestation- trees absorb when they are gone no where for water togo Urbanisation - impermeable surfaces Agriculture - ploughed land water can run quickley through it
34
What is soft engineering
Involves working with natural river processes to manage the flood risk
35
3 ways of soft engineering on managing floodplains
Wetlands and flood storage areas - aloud to flood, water stored Floodplain zoning - land only used for certain things River restoration - course of river ch aged deliberately slow down river flow....
36
What are the 3 levels of flood warning
Flood watch - flooding of low lying land and roads expected Flood warning - threat to homes Severe flood warning - extreme danger to life
37
How has banbury been affected by flooding x3
- closure of towns, railway station - £12.5 million damage - homes and buisnesses affected
38
What was done to reduce floods at banbury 3
- earth embankment area built parallel to motorway flood storage area - raising motorway so if it floods people can still travel - new pumping station transfer excess water
39
3 social costs and benifits or flood at banbury
- reduced anxiety + depression through fear - quiality of live improved new footpaths and green areas - raised a361 route so people can still travel
40
3 economic costs and benifits of the flood at banbury
- £18.5 million - donors - environmental agency + Cherwell district council - by protecting houses benefit of up to £100mil
41
3 environmental costs and benefits of the flood at banbury
- earth needed for embankment was dug up and small resivour was made - new biodiversity plan created with ponds and trees - part of floodplain aloud to flood if levels get too high