Rural Change

Question 0

What is the rural urban fringe?

Answer 0

The transitional zone between the countryside and the city or town; where the suburbs extend into rural areas.

Question 1

Characteristics of rural areas

Answer 1

Sparsely populated
Ageing population
Traditional
Isolated
Calm
Mostly white population - not very diverse

Question 2

What is a suburbanised village?

Answer 2

A suburbanise village is a village within commuting distance of a large urban area. Recently these villages have grown in size. New housing estates along roads have been built to accommodate the growing population.

Question 3

What is the function of an area?

Answer 3

The main economic activity in an area.

Question 4

What is the layout of an area?

Answer 4

A settlement pattern refers to the way that buildings and houses are distributed in a settlement. E.g nuclear, linear, ribbon development.

Question 5

How are rural areas changing?

Answer 5

Depopulation - a decline in the number of people living in an area, usually through out migration or changes in the birth and death rate.

Urbanisation - an increasing proportion or percentage of people living in urban areas.

Counter urbanisation - the movement of people from major cities to smaller settlements and rural areas usually just beyond the city.

Question 6

What are the push factors of urban areas?

Answer 6

Pollution
Expensive land
Noisy

Question 7

What are the pull factors of rural areas?

Answer 7

Rural idle
Cheaper land
Less pollution
Calm and peaceful

Question 8

Positive impacts of counter urbanisation

Answer 8

House prises rise
Schools prosper
Younger population means a revitalised community
New services open to meet the needs of the new affluent (wealthy) population.

Question 9

Negative impacts of counter urbanisation

Answer 9

Some services may close as people commute
Congestion
Local families are priced out of the area
Conflict between established residents and new comers

Question 10

What would you expect to find on the rural urban fringe and why?

Answer 10

Golf courses - they need a lot of land and it is cheap here, it is also close enough to the city for people to go to. Population near by.
Business parks - close to the city and rural areas so people can access it. Also requires space and land is cheaper here. Transport links.
Airports - require a lot of space and the land is cheap. There is usually a motorway nearby so its easily accessible.

Question 11

What symbols would you expect ti find in an ordnance survey map in a rural area?

Answer 11

Farm
Forest
Railway
Road
Pond
River
Church
Houses

Question 12

How has MEDC agriculture changed?

Answer 12

Removal of hedges to create larger areas of land
Fewer trees
The use of fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides
Industrialised
Intensification of agriculture - getting more produce from the same place
Genetically modified seeds
Increased government intervention
Diversification

Question 13

What is mechanisation?

Answer 13

The introduction of machines replacing work done by humans and/or animals.

Question 14

What is diversification?

Answer 14

When farmers earn money from activities other than farming e.g. B&B, ‘Maize Maze’, petting zoo, adventure park.

Question 15

Why has there been a removal of hedgerows?

Answer 15

To create bigger fields to grow more crops
To make it easier to navigate with large machines
Less time and money needed for maintenance of hedges
Hedges take away water and nutrients from crops
Hedges can harbour diseases

Question 16

Advantages of having hedges

Answer 16

They provide shade and habitat for wildlife
They reduce wind speed and bind soil which now creates crop damage and soil erosion
They’re picturesque, a key part of country side character and rural idle. Large open fields are ugly.

Question 17

What is eutrophication?

Answer 17

Fertiliser is added to a field near a lake. When it rains the run off takes the fertiliser to the lake. The fertiliser causes the algae in the lake to grow very quickly. The algae covers the surface of the lake and plants cant photosynthesise. Reduced oxygen due to reduced photosynthesis. Plants die. Bacteria decomposes the dead plant matter which uses up even more oxygen. The water becomes anoxic so the fish die.

Question 18

What is the green revolution?

Answer 18

The application of modern, western-type farming techniques to LEDCs. They introduced high yielding variety of crops (HYVs). This is when genetically modified crops are grown by farmers in LEDCs who previously used subsidence farming and were not earning profits.

Question 19

What are the biochemical changes that were made?

Answer 19

They are now using manure instead if chemical fertiliser, it is more sustainable.

Question 20

What are the successes of the green revolution?

Answer 20

HYVs have increased food production.
Increase in yields led to a fall in food prices.
Faster growing varieties allow an extra crop to be grown each year.
Yields are more reliable as many new varieties are more disease resistant.
Higher yields allow other crops to be grown adding a varied.
HYVs allow the production of some commercial crops.

Question 21

What are the failures of the green revolution?

Answer 21

HYVs need large amounts of fertiliser and pesticides. Which increases costs, encourages weed growth and can harm water supplies.
They need a controlled supply of water. They are more vulnerable to drought and waterlogging.
HYVs are more susceptible to attacks by pests and diseases.
Many poor farmers who own the land cannot afford farmers and become a lot poorer.
Mechanisation has increased rural unemployment and migration into towns.
Farming has become less sustainable.

Question 22

What is blue baby syndrome?

Answer 22

Caused by nitrates in water. Results in decreasing oxygen carrying capacity of haemoglobin in babies, leading to death. Water is contaminated by leeching of nitrates.

Question 23

Why do people want to live in a rural urban fringe?

Answer 23

People want to escape from the city
They dont need to live in the city, they are close enough to the city.
Growing population.
People retire away from cities for a peaceful environment.

Question 24

What is subsistence farming?

Answer 24

When farmers only produce enough produce to feed them and their families or village, and there is mo surplus for profit.

Question 25

Importance of the village pub?

Answer 25

Provides a place for community to meet and socialise and can attract tourism.

Question 26

Importance of the post office?

Answer 26

Allows locals to talk and have contact with friends and family who live far away.

Question 27

Importance of the petrol station

Answer 27

Having a nearby petrol station means using up less petrol. It’d convenient for locals.

Question 28

Importance of the village shop?

Answer 28

Contributes towards a better community

Convenient especially for the elderly who don’t have access to transport.

Question 29

Threats to services

Answer 29

Services are expensive to keep up and there aren’t many customers In small villages.
If an owner retires no one is bothered to keep up the business.
People like to shop on bigger towns when they can.

Question 30

Responses to the closing of services

Answer 30

Funding from community or a wealthy land owner
Fundraisers
Applying to money from organisers such as the national lottery