T3 - Case studies Flashcards
CS-3.1
What is a TNC? Give an example:
-a transnational corporation is a business that operates in foreign countries individually and not through a central headquarters
-BP plc (public limited company), sells oil and gas, worth £87bn
CS-3.1
Name some of BP’s global links:
upstream (drilling/extraction)
-Prudhoe Bay/UK/Turkey
midstream (oil refining)
-Rotterdam/Lingen
downstream (selling)
-done everywhere
EXPLAIN WHAT UPSTREAM IS
Rotterdam is in the Netherlands, Lingen is in North Germany
CS-3.1
Describe BP’s operations in the North Sea and Prudhoe Bay:
-drilling in Prudhoe Bay’s oil fields (Alaska) helps to support the nearby town Barrow, which has no roads to other settlements (very isolated)
-oil exploration of fields in the North Sea (operating in the UK), invested £10bn in 2017, paying £1.9bn in tax in the UK
-provides jobs for people in the UK (employed 14,000 people in 2020)
CS-3.1
Describe some negative impacts of BP’s operations in Prudhoe Bay:
-800 mile Trans-Alaskan Pipeline caused major disruptions
-melts permafrost (microorganisms decompose the material and release greenhouse gases)
-causing potential leaks
-opposition from the local Inuit communities
Permafrost is ground that has stayed frozen for at least 2 years straight
CS-3.1
Describe one of BP’s local operations:
-Teesside, NE England
-invested £3 million into a hydrogen “Clean Energy Hub” in order to decarbonise the heavy industry in the area
-will bring new skills to the local community and workforce
-aims to get to 1.5GW
CS-3.2
Name an agricultural system in the UK, and its land use and the output that comes from it:
Dyson Farming - commercial, intensive, arable
-strawberries (Red Diamond), potatoes, wheat, peas
-70,000 tonnes per year
They are predominantly arable - Dyson has cow/sheep farms in Oxfordshire/Gloucestershire
CS-3.2
Describe the human and physical inputs to Dyson Farming:
-£500 million invested
-29,000 acres of low/flat fenland across Lincolnshire
-previously-drained marshland (fertile/stoneless, good for crops)
-610mm rain annually, 10°C average temp.
Fenland is just a low area of land like a floodplain
CS-3.2
Explain why the situation of Dyson Farming is ideal economically:
-near major roads (A46, A1), good for nationwide distribution
-grown in UK, reduced food miles so more sustainable
-near Lincoln for more workers
CS-3.2
How are Dyson Farming’s greenhouses heated? What effect does this have?
-anaerobic digesters produce methane (from crop waste) which is burnt to heat the 15-acre greenhouse
-extends growing season and ^crop yield
-decreases food miles
Food miles are decreased as strawberries don’t have to be imported from places like Egypt
CS-3.2
Name and describe an area which has had food shortages:
-Darfur, Sudan
-6 famines in the past 30 years
-300,000 deaths from civil war (less farmers)
CS-3.2
Describe the reasons for why the regions of Darfur have a food shortage:
N. Darfur - Sahara is spreading into the area, dry wind blows moisture away, Nile is too far to get water
W. Darfur - very short rainy season, risk of desertification
S. Darfur - has some major cities (eg Nyala), civil war has disrupted farming, has one of the largest refugee camps
CS-3.3
Give an example of a company with a local factory that operates in the manufacturing industry, and describe their suppliers:
-Toyota
-has a plant in Derby that cost £1bn
-50% of their component suppliers are in the UK, and are required for the assembly of their cars
CS-3.3
Explain why the location of the Toyota plant is ideal:
-cheap/flat/greenfield land near Derby + Nottingham for workers (skilled labour from their universities)
-near M1 for easy transport links for goods
-used to be in EU, making it free to export to European market (70% of their cars used to be sold there)
-tax incentives from UK government
-reliable energy supply from National Grid to power 24/7 production
CS-3.4
How is Iceland’s tourism industry important to the country?
-45% of the economy is dependent on tourism
-2 million tourists in 2019, compared to 350,000 population
CS-3.4
How has Iceland driven the increase in their tourism industry?
-focus shifted to tourism after global financial crisis in 2008
-split transatlantic flight ticket from USA⇄UK (cheaper than direct flight, and also promotes their area)
CS-3.4
What features attract tourists to Iceland?
-Blue Lagoon, 80% of tourists visit it (manmade lagoon)
-black sand beaches (Vik)
-glaciers (Langjökull)
-geysers (Strokkur)
-waterfalls (Skógafoss)
-volcanoes (Eyjafjallajökull)
CS-3.5
What is the energy balance of the UK?
Gas - 40%
Wind - 26% (when wind is low, gas is used)
Nuclear - 16%
Biofuel - 6%
Imports - 6%
Solar - 4%
Coal - 2%
CS-3.5
What is the UK’s strategy for the future of energy supply?
-government wants to increase nuclear up to 25% by 2050
-ambitions to increase solar capacity 5x more by 2035
-increase wind power with Hornsea 1 and 2, largest offshore wind farm in the world
-increased focus on energy security with main plans with North Sea Oil and Gas instead of importing energy
CS-3.5
Describe the history and draw the current location of Staythorpe C power station:
-A and B (~1950’s) were both coal powered, and were on the same site
-C was rebuilt in its place in 2010 (brownfield site)
-currently a gas-fired power station
CS-3.5
Explain the reasons behind Staythorpe’s location:
-next to Midland Mainline railway (used to transport coal, not anymore though)
-near A46 for road transport of materials
-flat land (floodplain) next to River Trent, easy to build on
-near Nottingham + Newark for workforce
CS-3.6
Give an example of a country with a water shortage, and describe it:
-China (1.4 billion)
-has 80% of water in the South, and only 60% of the population can access it (the rest live in the North)
CS-3.6
How does China get usable water? What is a consequence of this?
-groundwater extraction from aquifers
-results in ground subsidence over time
-Shanghai has sunk 2.6m since 1920 due to this
CS-3.6
Describe the water usage in China:
agricultural - 70%
mining/processing coal - 20% (very water-intensive and most coal reserves are in the North, must be shared with large agricultural industry)
-other 10% is too polluted to be used for anything (even tap water must be boiled before drinking it)
CS-3.7
Describe an area where economic development is taking place and posing a threat to the environment:
-Mariana mining site, Rio Doce basin, Brazil
-iron ore mine which held its waste water in the Fundão dam
-the dam collapsed in 2015, causing 60m³ of iron ore tailings to flow into the Atlantic Ocean (through the River Doce)
CS-3.7
What are tailings?
dirty water left over from washing iron ore that contains harmful elements like arsenic and lead
CS-3.7
What impact did the iron ore tailings have after they leaked from the Fundão dam?
-nearby town of Bento Rodrigues is now uninhabitable
-13 dead and 500 homeless
-downstream settlements are left without water supplies (eg Valadares, pop 300,000)
-water pollution (heavy metals found in river at over 50x the WHO limits)
-damaged ecosystems/habitats
CS-3.7
What was the response to the Fundão dam collapse?
-fined $66 million by Brazilian Environment Agency
-sued by Brazilian government for $5 billion in compensation and remediation costs
