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Physical Geography > Water on the Land > Flashcards

Water on the Land Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the 4 types of erosion and their brief definitions?

A

Hydraulic action: the force of the river against the banks and bed wears away at the rock
Abrasion: Rocks carried alongg by the river wear down the river bed and bank
Attrition: Rocks carried by the river smash into eachother and become smoother rounder particles
Corrosion/solution: soluble particles dissolve into river

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2
Q

What are the 2 directions of erosion?

A

Vertical- downward action that deepens the river (dominant in upper course)
Lateral erosion- sideways that widens river channel (dominant in lower course)

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3
Q

What’s are the 4 different processes of transportation?

A
  1. Solution- minerals are dissolved in the water and carried in solution
  2. Suspension- fine light material carried in the water
  3. Saltation- small pebbles and stones are bouncd along the river bed
  4. Traction- large boulders sand rocks are rolled along the river bed
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4
Q

What are the features of the upper course?

A

Vertical erosion, narrow and shallow river channels, large bedload, steep v- shaped valley, transportation: traction and saltation

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5
Q

What are the features of the middle course?

A

Lateral&vertical erosion, wider and deeper river channels, small bedload, meanders&oxbow lakes, transportation: suspension and solution, deposition and erosion

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6
Q

What are the features of the lower course?

A

Lateral erosion, wide and deep channels, suspended sediment, floodplains and leeves, deltas and estuaries, transportation; suspension and solution, mostly deposition

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7
Q

How are waterfalls formed?

A
  • Softer rock eroded, causing an undercut in the hard rock
  • Hard rock overhangs, collapses, adding large rocks to the base of the waterfall
  • The power of the water falling into thhe base erodes the base into a plunge pool
  • The undercutting and collapse is repeated
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8
Q

How are gorges formed?

A
  • The constant undercutting and retreat of a waterfall process causes the waterfall to retreat upstream
  • The retreat creates a steep sided gorge
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9
Q

How are meanders formed?

A
  • As the river flows downstream, gradient over which it flows becomes less steep
  • Lateral erosion increases
  • To use extra energy the river begins to meander
  • The erosion on the outside of meanders widens the valley, removing the interlocking spurs
  • On the outside bend the water is deeper, has a faster current which causes a river cliff
  • On the inside bend there is slack water, a less strong current and some deposition which causes slip-off slope
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10
Q

How are oxbow lakes formed?

A
  • Meander bends become larger and more vigorous
  • Continued erosion on the outside of the bends causes the neck to narrow and break
  • Oxbow lake is then formed away from river
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11
Q

How are leeves formed?

A
  • When a river floods, it spills onto a floodplain taking any sediment with it
  • The finest sediment is deposited further along the floodplain
  • The heavier sediment is deposited first and builds up into banks called leeves
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12
Q

What are the features of a river basin?

A
  1. River Source
  2. Tributary: small river channel
  3. Main river channel
  4. Confluence: where two rivers meet
  5. Mouth of the river
  6. Watershed: Boundary where any rain that falls wiithin it will go into the river
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13
Q

What is the definition of river discharge?

A

The volume of water in a river flowing- measured in cumecs (cubic metres per second)

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14
Q

What are the steps of the hydrological cycle?

A

Clouds- Precipitation - Percolation (or Transpiration to Air) - Ground water - Run off - Ocean - Evaporation - Air

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15
Q

What are the physical factors affecting river discharge?

A
  • Rainfall- more rain= higher river levels
  • Temperature- higher temperature= more evaporation
  • Relief of the land- steep land= increased surface run off
  • Rock type- impermeable rock= increased surface run off
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16
Q

What does a hydrograph do?

A

It shows how a river responds to a period of rainfall.

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17
Q

On hydrographs what are precipitation and discharge shown as?

A

Precipitation: bars
Discharge: lines

18
Q

What are the definitions of: peak rainfall, peak discharge, lag time, rising limb and falling limb?

A

Peak rainfall: when rainfall is at its highest (mm)
Peak discharge: when river flow has reached its max (cumecs)
Lag time: the time between peak rainfall and peak discharge
Rising limb: when the river flow is rising
Falling limb: when the flow begins to fall after it’s peaked

19
Q

What are the human factors affecting river discharge?

A
  • Urbanisation- towns and cities= more impermeable surfaces (tarmac/concrete)
  • Deforestation- fewer trees= less precipitation interception and increased surface run-off
20
Q

What was the date, river and location of the Boscastle floods?

A

16th of August 2004, River Valency, Cornwall

21
Q

What were the causes of the Boscastle floods?

A

Local area saturated by weeks of rainfall, 8 inches of rainfall fell on Boscastle, located in a steep v- shaped valley, confluence of three rivers increased discharge, car parks along the Valency increased the run off

22
Q

What are the names of the 3 rivers that meet in Boscastle? (strippers)

A

Valency, Jordan and Paradise

23
Q

What were the effects of the Boscastle floods? (Economic, environmental, social,)

A

Economic: infrastructure destroyed (homes/offices/bridges etc), visitor centre collapsed, tourism reduced, homes devalued, £15m in damages and claims
Social: Infrastructure destroyed, transport destroyed, no deaths
Environmental: Silt and debris left in village after waters subsided

24
Q

What were the immediate and long term responses to the Boscastle floods?

A

Immediate: EA issues flood warnings, rapid evacuation, fire brigades and police on the scene within an hour, RAF helicopters saved 150 people, lifeboats go to houses, tmeporary accomodation set up on football pitch
Long term: People banned from homes for 10 days, silt and debris cleared, telephone/water/electricity all restored within 6 months, coompensation provided to home owners

25
Q

What was the date, river and location of the Pakistan floods?

A

9th of August 2010, Indus River, North west Pakistan

26
Q

What area of Pakistan was most affected?

A

The Swat Valley

27
Q

What were the causes of the Pakistan floods?

A

Heavy monsoon rain for months, saturated ground, high surface run off from Himalayas

28
Q

What were the social, economic and environmental effetcs of the Pakistan floods?

A

Social: At least 1,600 died, 17 million impacted, farmand & crops ruined, Swat Valley cut off, homes destroyed, 6 million needed food aid, contaminated water- disease
Economic: Sukkur dam breached, farmland and crops ruined, infrastructure destroyed, $460 million needed to deal with immediate needs
Environmental: Dam breached, intesifying flooding to the South

29
Q

What were the immediate and long term responses of the Pakistan floods?

A

Immediate: response was slow- death toll rose, people had to live in the open and contracted diseases such as cholera and typhoid, people could only access Swat Valley by donkey, international response slow: recent Haiti disaster
Long term: UN Ambassador Angelina Jolie helped to increase publicity, the Taliban took advantage of the poor/slow response of aid work and tried to win over communities in the north

30
Q

What’s the definition of hard engineering?

A

The use of man made/structural engineering to prevent flooding

31
Q

What’s the definition of soft engineering?

A

The use of natural engineering to reduce the impact of flooding

32
Q

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the Three Gorges Dam in China?

A

A: HEP produced for a growing population, less chance of flooding on the Yangtze
D: 1.4 million relocated, 13 cities, 140 towns and 1300 villages submerged, no compensation, prevents alluvium reaching farmland, polluted, 265 gallons of sewage pumped every year

33
Q

What are the advantages and disadvantages of straightening the Mississippi River in the USA?

A

A: quicker flow, water moves away from the city quickly
D: Leads to flooding downstream

34
Q

What are the advantages and disadvantages of afforestation by the Yangtze River in China?

A

A: Planting trees increases interception- increases lag time, lessens anny flood impacts, provides a habitat, provides employment
D: Doesn’t actually stop flooding, insurance for properties nearby will still be high

35
Q

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using water meadows/floodplain zoning for the Rhine River in Germany?

A

A: It works with the environment
D: A lot of land is lost

36
Q

How is Boscastle now managing flooding using hard and soft engineering?

A

Construction of car parks with permeable surfaces, road and drainage improvements, exisiting car park raised to act as flood defence, tree management in the Valency valley, lowered acces road to accept any flood water, area for sediment to be deposited

37
Q

What are the reasons for an increase in water usage in households in the UK?

A

More than one bathroom/toilet, technology (dishwashers, washing machines etc), population growth, gardening tools, attitude towards hygeine has changed, drinking/cooking, washing cars manually

38
Q

When does water stress hapen?

A

When the amount of water available isn’t enough to meet the demand

39
Q

What’s an area of deficit?

A

A place that doesn’t have enough water

40
Q

What’s an area of surplus?

A

An area that has more water than it needs

41
Q

What are the issues resulting in the creation of the Kielder Water Reservoir in Northumberland? (Positive/Negative)

A

P: North east now has the most relaible water supply iin the UK, it manages the flow of the River Tyne, it provides HEP and flood protection for Newcastle, provides water habitats, has free recreationa/leisure activities
N: Habitats and farmland are lost, people relocated, cost around £167 million

Physical Geography (3 decks)

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