The challenge of resource management (Lesotho Highland water project)

Question 1

Describe what is a resource and give examples:

Answer 1

A stock/ supply of something that has a value/ purpose.

Food, Energy, Water

Question 2

What is food security?

Answer 2

when people have enough nutritional and available food to eat.

Question 3

What is food insecurity?

Answer 3

when people don’t have enough food to sustain their body, resulting them in being malnourished and hungry.

Question 4

Explain why food is essential to social and economic well-being: (3)

Answer 4

Food is crucial for someone to remain healthy as it provides the necessary nutrients and energy for a body to be healthy. (1) In its absence, it can result in an increased likeliness of developing diseases linked to malnutrition as without adequate food, it results in a calorie deficit which damages a persons immune system. (1) When they become sick it deters them from attending work and school, damaging their opportunity for a higher education, socially limiting their lives from obtaining a well paying jobs to sustain their lifestyle. In addition it limits their income if they take time off work, resulting in them economically struggling and at risk to poverty.(1)

Question 5

What is water stress?

Answer 5

When demand for water exceeds the available amount or when it is limited by being poor quality. It results in a declining quantity of fresh water resources.

Question 6

What is water scarcity?

Answer 6

The lack of fresh water to meet water demand.

Question 7

Explain why water is essential to social and economic well-being: (3)

Answer 7

Water is essential for life, it provides us with hygiene, food and necessities. without it in most LIC’s, people especially children will suffer from diseases associated with intaking dirty water or dehydration resulting in them missing school and work, socially damaging their opportunity of affording a better life quality with the income of a well-paying jobs that they could achieve with a proper undisrupted education. Economically, this limits what they can afford.

Question 8

What is the importance of energy?

Answer 8

Energy is required in industry, transport and homes. In industry, it helps it to develop and create more job opportunities for people, overall giving a population more wealth.

The lifestyles of HIC’s rely on a stable high supply of electricity. In LIC’s and NEE’s, its unavailability makes them resort to environmentally damaging resources of energy that are short term economically relieving. Some may burn wood for energy, eventually resulting in deforestation and them having to travel further for wood and away from prioritising work or education. Energy is crucial in LIC’S and NEE’s for basic necessities to be accessed for example they power pumps in wells to supply a community with clean and safe water.

Question 9

Why is food demand in the UK increasing? (3)

Answer 9

• Population growth
• Food waste
• Higher incomes result in people wanting to afford better quality food (organic milk).

Question 10

What is agribusiness?

Answer 10

Using technology and intense farming strategies to maximise a farms yield even after poor harvests to economically recover through their profit.

Question 11

How much food in the UK is imported?

Answer 11

40%

Question 12

What are some advantages of importing food in the UK? (2)

Answer 12

• Certain produce is available all year round, not seasonally restricted
• An array of different sorts of foods such as exotic fruits and vegetables can be imported to the UK.

Question 13

What are some disadvantages of importing food in the UK? (3)

Answer 13

• Foreign farmers are often underpaid as a result of not being under UK laws, they receive little profit from farming for the UK
• The UK becomes more dependant on foreign produce that we cannot independently rely on ourselves to feed our growing population.
• Food has to be transported via ships, planes and vans, and comes with lots of food miles. Mass amounts of carbon is emitted and all imported foods have a huge carbon footprint as they release more greenhouse gases into the air increasing the impacts of climate change.

Question 14

How does increasing food miles of a product lead to a larger carbon footprint?

Answer 14

Increasing the food mile of a product means that it has used up energy through fuel to be transported via ship, plane and van which emit CO2 when the fuel is burnt.

Question 15

What is water transfer?

Answer 15

The process of moving water from an area of surplus to an area of deficit, usually from rural areas to urban areas.

Question 16

What are the challenges of water transfer? (4)

Answer 16

• cost
• carbon footprint of pumping the water
• environment
• political issues / opposition from the locals.

Question 17

What is water quantity?

Answer 17

the amount of water that is economically available for a society to access.

Question 18

How are governments in the UK trying to reduce water stress? (3)

Answer 18

• reduce and discourage waste of water
• improve the quality of water in areas with low rainfall
• monitoring and protecting clean water supplies

Question 19

What factors can affect water quantity?

Answer 19

• if the water quality is poor or polluted
• if the place’s location was built on an area that was already in a water deficit

Question 20

How can fresh water become polluted? (5)

Answer 20

• industrial chemicals and oil spills can pollute local resources and groundwater
• pollution from vehicles in urban areas can be washed off into rivers.
• water used in cooling power stations can be released back into the river
• nitrates and phosphates from fertilisers can end up in rivers where they can infiltrate and percolate into the ground.
• leaching from old mines.

Question 21

What strategies are used to manage water quality? (5)

Answer 21

• purify water by adding chlorine
• filtering water to remove sediment
• monitoring water quality
• promoting sustainable draining systems to be implemented in new urban (re)developments.
• fining industries/ factories that produce pollution.

Question 22

What strategies are used to manage water quantity? (3)

Answer 22

• reducing the recreational use of water during periods of water stress
• encouraging the manufacturing of products to use less water
• educating people to use less water

Question 23

What is fracking?

Answer 23

fracking is the extraction of natural gas from shale rocks found beneath the groundwater layer using high pressured liquids.

Question 24

What are the benefits of fracking?

Answer 24

-it supplies a cheaper alternative to some renewable energy resources
-it emits half as much CO₂ into the atmosphere than coal does
-fracking sites can take place anywhere
-needed to supply the future with energy
-provides places for employment for places with low employment rates

Question 25

What are the downsides to fracking?

Answer 25

-causes mini earthquakes that make damage infrastructure, though these aren’t large enough to create sever damage it is disruptive.
-burning natural gas emits methane into the atmosphere, which is a more potent greenhouse gas, though gets absorbed into the environment faster.
-accidents in the process of harvesting the gas can cause the big pressure liquid to contaminate local groundwater, causing water stress.
-its energy intensive to pressurise the special liquid, meaning lots of energy is used in its extraction, leading to gas prices rising to compete with its generation.

Question 26

What are some economic issues with exploiting energy sources (coal, gas, etc)?

Answer 26

-cost of natural gas will only increase as the resource is used up due to its non-renewability.
-its expensive to transport fuel, so when oil prices decrease, the cost to supply it will be more than the price it is sold at.

Question 27

What are some environmental issues with exploiting energy sources?

Answer 27

-power stations and wind farms are often seen as unattractive.
-natural habitats can be disrupted and lost due to some power implants such as the tidal barrage system.
-released CO₂ and other greenhouse gases into the air contributing to climate change and global warming
-oil spills, nuclear disasters can negatively effective the soil, natural wildlife and atmosphere of an area.
-natural gas can cause mini earthquakes and contaminate groundwater

Question 28

What are the two main reasons for an increase in water consumption?

Answer 28

-increasing population
-economic development

Question 29

Explain two reasons for an increase in water consumption: (4)

Answer 29

-one reason for an incline of water consumption is due to a growing population. urbanisation is required to accommodate a growing population, giving them a higher standard of living and therefore their lifestyles evolve into needing more water, for example, personal hygiene is prioritised more leading to more water being needed per head, overall increasing the demand for it.
-another reason is due to economic development especially in poorer countries. Many rapidly industrialising countries are using fossil fuels to generate electricity to power their economic growt, which requires lots of water compare to renewable energy resources such as wind or solar power, this increases the water consumption.

Question 30

Give factors that affect water availability: (6)

Answer 30

-climate / climate change
-geology
-poverty
-over abstraction
-pollution
-limited infrastructure

Question 31

Explain how climate / climate change affects water availability:

Answer 31

the climate can determine the volume of water that is available, for example, some seasons (like Summer) don’t experience as much rainfall as other seasons such as autumn, this means less rainfall is fed into lakes/river which we usually extract our water supply from decreasing its availability. Similarly, at hot periods water can easily evaporate causing a decline in water quantity. Additionally with the rise of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, usual rainfall patterns can be disrupted, leaving many in droughts or floods.

Question 32

Explain how geology affects water availability:

Answer 32

when precipitation falls onto impermeable surfaces such as clay, the water can be collected much easier from rivers therefore supply of water is more abundant, whereas if rain falls onto permeable surfaces made of sandstone, the water is able to infiltrate into the ground making is much more difficult to access, resulting in water availability declining. However, sometimes ground water is very useful to supply hot desert locations.

Question 33

Explain how poverty affects water availability:

Answer 33

people pay for a treated safe water supply, if they cannot afford this they resort to poor quality after that has been contaminated with waste and diseases

Question 34

Explain how over abstraction affects water availability:

Answer 34

when more water is consumed than replaced this causes a water deficit. this can be caused by an rising population, higher standard in living and more demand from industries and manufacturing.

Question 35

Explain how pollution affects water availability:

Answer 35

most common in rapidly industrialising countries, water gets contaminated by poor management of waste, this decreasing the amount that is safely available for the community to consume and due to many not being able to afford and prioritise sanitation, many resort in sharing water resources as animals. If lakes, rivers or reservoirs get polluted it reduces the amount that is clean.

Question 36

Explain how limited infrastructure affects water availability:

Answer 36

in vastly constructed urban areas, the proper infrastructure including water pipes and sewers have not been implicated enough in able to supply water to the population and displace their human waste.

Question 37

What are the top 2 uses of water globally?

Answer 37

-food production
-agriculture

Question 38

What four strategies manage water supply?

Answer 38

-desalination
-diverting supplies and increasing storage
-dams and reservoirs
-water transfer

Question 39

Explain the strategy of diverting supplies and increasing storage:

Answer 39

to manage water supplies from decreasing, water can be diverted from the ground to aquifers or reservoirs to reduce the amount of water lost from precipitation or infiltration, especially in hot locations. Aquifers are subsurface layers made of porous and highly permeable material that allows groundwater to flow in and to be extracted from in times of water stress, allowing water to be distributed throughout the year.

Question 40

Explain the strategy of dams and reservoirs:

Answer 40

Dams and reservoirs help sustain drier periods by storing water from periods of high rainfall. They help control the water flow in a river, enabling them to dissipate floods and use the water for irrigation and recreational uses, bringing in money from tourism

Question 41

Explain the strategy of desalination

Answer 41

To manage water desalination may be used to remove the salt from seawater to make freshwater. This is energy intensive as it uses lots of energy to pressurise seawater, therefore is only viable for HIC uses.

Question 42

What are the pros and cons of desalination?

Answer 42

pros:
-many countries rely on desalination to supply their populations and may be the only way to access clean water.
-1% of the worlds population depend on desalination, which will only increase as more countries experience water scarcity.

cons:
-cost of transporting the water inland is very expensive
-due to its high energy consumption, prices for the water are high, being £2 per cubic meter of water
-it involved the combustion of fossil fuels, which release CO₂ into the environment
-pumping out highly concentrated saltwater is damaging for the environment, harming marine life.

Question 43

Explain the strategy of water transferring:

Answer 43

involves the transport of water from areas of surplus to deficit using elaborate systems of canals, pipelines and dredging.

Question 44

What are the pros and cons of water transfers?

Answer 44

pros:
-increases the efficacy of industry, economically enabling them to produce and export more
-helps areas, for example north china, to receive water in periods of low rainfall, helping to irrigate farms and sustain lives.
-helps areas to cope with the impacts of climate change.
-food security is now stable for people, improving their livelihoods.
-health has improved

cons:
-lots of evaporation occur from canals and reservoirs.
-mini earthquakes can disrupt industry and cause extensive damage to itself
-costs lots of money in taxes
-many have been displaced by the construction of dams and reservoirs.
-ecological damage to the environment.

Question 45

Describe Lesotho’s wealth:

Answer 45

Lesotho is considered one of the poorest countries in the world, with 75% of its income coming from trading water with South Africa

Question 46

Why does South Africa have a water deficit? (3)

Answer 46

-it has a large population of 61 million
-it is a very developed country and has bigger industry and demands for water to meet domestic demands
-the country experiences less rainfall

Question 47

What disadvantages did the Lesotho Highland water project bring to Lesotho? (5)

Answer 47

• Many were displaced, in the first phase of the construction, 30,000 people were displaced to make space to flood areas behind the dams. Polihali Dam resulted in 17 villages being destroyed, limiting agricultural use for 71 villages.

-Ecosystems were destroyed, due to the dams restricting flow to areas downstream, habitats that relied on the frequent flooding of their habitat became vulnerable near the end of the river basin.

-Corruption left locals distressed, in addition to the distress the project has brought upon them (losing their homes/farming land) the government promised them money to compensate so that they could improve their disrupted lives. However corruption has redirected this money elsewhere, leaving locals frustrated with the little money they have received.

-Many have taken up temporary jobs associated with running the project, though this has been a popular site for alcoholism leading to HIV/AIDS developing.

-Lesotho’s economy relies on South Africa, due to 75% of its income coming from its alliance to the country, it makes them vulnerable if the project were to be unsuccessful.

-Debt creating by Lesotho borrowing money to afford their half of the project’s expense has left them unable to conserve money for the further development of the country such as education and healthcare.

Question 48

What disadvantages did the Lesotho Highland water project bring to South Africa? (3)

Answer 48

-The $4 billion scheme may lead to South Africa extracting the money by increasing the taxes of the water consumers, this leads to water inequality as the poorest of the population cannot afford the sanitary water the scheme supplies and they subsequently resort to using poor quality water sources.

-Poor infrastructure, 40% of water is being wasted on leaking pipes as a result of poor management.

-Lack of water security, since Lesotho’s water makes up 60% of South Africa’s supply, South Africa is very reliant on their connection with Lesotho. If future conflict between the two arises, it poses a threat to the majority of their water if Lesotho restricts their supply.

Question 49

What advantages did the Lesotho highland water project bring to Lesotho?

Answer 49

-Since the scheme makes up 75% of Lesotho’s income, it allows the country to afford a higher quality of life with its growing economy

-The dam has made HEP that provides electricity for all of the country, allowing economic development to happen.

-The income made from the scheme contributes to ensuring a stable water supply, giving water security to all of the country including its capital, Maseru, which now 90% have access to water.

-Since the project has built the country with new infrastructure that makes the country better connected with roads and communication networks, it encourages the future investment of its development.

-Many were given jobs during its construction and thousands have been employed to maintain and operate it.

Question 50

What advantages did the Lesotho highland water project bring to South Africa?

Answer 50

-The scheme has improved water security through the country, arid regions now have access to water, giving South Africa more land to carry out food production and to improve industrial activity, this will increase their economy as more products can be made as well as the life quality as 10% of the population now have access to the water which saves them from unsanitary water sources that can give them waterborne diseases.
-Due to raw sewage, industrial waste and toxic chemical run-off from gold mining and manufacturing, marine life was suffering, however, since the water transfer scheme, the water’s pH has improved and marine life is recovering.