the eden basin Flashcards
where is the eden basin?
the the north west of England between the mountains of the lake district and the pennines
where does the river flow though?
cumbria
where is the river edens source?
in the pennine hills in cumbria
where si the river edens mouth?
solway firth at the sottish border
why does flooding occur downstream?
because upland areas experience extreme weather conditions
which area in particular is at risk of flooding and why?
Carlisle it is at a confluence
why is rainfall higher in the river basin than the national average?
due to the high relief
what is it called when rain falls in high areas?
orographic rainfall
what increases then lag time of the basin?
the fact that it is long but narrow
the fact that the basin slopes are steep mean what?
that lag time is reduced but peak discharge increases
what is most of the basin made from (rock)?
limestone and sandstone
permeable
what is the top areas of the basin made from?
igneous rocks
impermeable
reduces lag time
what are the land use change that have affected drainage?
deforestation
construction
farming
what has farming done to the soils?
it has made them more compacted due to increases machinery and trampling of livestock
how much has cattle increases by and since when
30%
2000-2009
compaction of soil reduces what?
infiltration
flooding is morelikley as surface run off is higher
who has interception been reduced here?
through the grazing if more and more animals such as sheep in the hills
how has construction changed?
even though the area is rural more and more built up arreas have been developed
such as in Carlisle
what is an example of a future development?
eden gate
10,000 new homes
where have new developments in carlise been built on?
on floodplains
why does building on flood plains increase downstream flooding?
as water that would naturally infiltrate through the floodplain flow downstream
how long has deforestation occurred for/
thousands of years
how is climate change going to affect the basin?
it has been predicted that climate change will change rainfall pattern
how much will rainfall increase by in western uk?
by 35% in the winter by 2080
increasing flood risk
