geography paper 2 section c

• resource


  a supply of something that has a value or purpose
• what are global inequalities of food

  over one billion people don’t get enough calories, malnutrition affects a further 2 billion people, sub saharan african countries suffer the most with this
• what are global inequalities for water

  climate variations affect supply, capture storage and extraction is expensive, LIC/NEE use water for agriculture and HICs use water for industry, both uses benefit HICs as LICs sell produce to HIC
• what are global inequalities for energy

  richer the country the more energy is consumed, middle east is a major oil supplier but has low consumption, NEEs need more energy as they become more industrialised
• how much is the provision of food in the uk

  by 2037 the population of the UK is estimated to reach 73 million, increasing demand for food, the UK imports 46% of their food
• why does the UK import food

  UK produced food can be expensive because of poor harvests and the price of animal food, there is demand for more choice and exotic food, as well as seasonal produce all year
• what is the impact of importing food

  air transport is expensive and transport adds to the carbon footprint, kenyan farmers only earn a 12% of the price of vegetables in a UK supermarket, 2/3 of kenyan workers are casual labourers so are paid very little
• what is the UK doing in response to dependancy and carbon emissions

  organic produce and agribusiness
• organic produce

  growth without use of chemicals, labour costs make it more expensive
• agribusiness

  intensive farming aimed at maximising the amount of food produced, farms are run as commercial businesses, with high levels of investment and using modern technology and chemicals
• organic example

  riverford organic boxes in devon- delivers boxes of fresh vegetables around the UK from their regional farms, reducing food miles and supporting local farmers
• agribusiness example

  lynford house farm, east anglia- 570 hectares of intensively farmed land to maximise food production, high cost of machinery but efficiency increased, low numbers of employment, lots of pesticide and fertiliser
• how much water does the average British person use per day

  143 litres, demand is high and soon we may use more water than we have available
• water deficit

  where areas which do not have enough water for the needs of the population and may suffer from shortages
• how far does the UK water supply meet demand

  the south east is under high pressure for water demand, the north and west has a water surplus
• grey water

  from home appliances to water garden vegetation, phosphorus and nitrogen are a source of nutrients
• water transfer

  where water is transferred from areas of surplus to areas of deficit
• why is there opposition to water transfer

  the effect on the land and wildlife, high costs of building dams, tunnels and pipelines, the greenhouse gases released in the process of pumping water over long distances
• water transfer scheme example

  Thirlmere in the lake district to Manchester to support industrial growth, Thirlmere is in a water surplus and West Cumbria is likely to experience future water stress. Water will be transferred along two 30km pipelines using gravity rather than pumps to reduce environmental impact
• how does the Environmental Agency manage water quality

  monitor river water quality, filter water, restrict recreational use, impose regulations
• why have some groundwater sources of water worsened in quality

  discharge from industrial sites, run off from agricultural fertilisers, leaching from old underground mines
• water insecurity

  not enough water to maintain good health/livelihood due to short supply or poor quality water
• water stress

  when the demand for water exceeds supply, or when poor quality restricts its use
• water security

  having a reliable source of water available, good quality and quantity
• economic scarcity

  areas that physically possess water but economic factors like lack of infrastructure prevent exploitation
• physical scarcity

  areas that experience low rainfall (arid or semi arid regions)
• what are the global patterns of water stress

  many countries face high water stress, 80% of available water is used every year leaving the threat of water scarcity, stress occurs when less than 1700m3 is available per person per year
• why is water consumption increasing

  growing population, energy sources, changing lifestyles, urbanisation, global demand for food
• what factors influence water availability

  limited infrastructure, poverty, pollution, geology, over-abstraction, climate
• limited infrastructure for water availability

  poorer countries may lack the facilities to transport water to areas in need (eg pipes)
• poverty for water availability

  many poor communities lack access to a mains supply and may only have a shared supply
• pollution for water availability

  increasing amounts of waste and use of chemicals in farming have led to more polluted water supplies
• geology for water availability

  infiltration of water through permeable rock builds up groundwater supplies
• over-abstraction for water availability

  when water is pumped from the ground faster than it can be replaced, this causes wells to dry up
• climate for water availability

  regions with high rainfall usually have surplus water, those with dry climates have less reliable water
• context of the Lesotho highland water project

  few natural resources, high levels of poverty and cannot feed its population, economically dependant on South Africa, very high water surplus
• what does the Lesotho water project involve

  40% of the water in the Segu river in Lesotho will be transferred to the river Vaal in South Africa and the infrastructure to enable this will include dams, pipelines and reservoirs.

  Katse and Mohale dams store water that is taken through a 32km tunnel to South Africa.

  165m high Polihali dam will hold 2.2 billion m3 of water, and on completion 200km of tunnels will transfer 2 billion m3 of water to South Africa annually
• what are the advantages of the project for Lesotho

  provides 75% of its GDP, income helps development and improves standard of living, improvement to infrastructure and access roads built to construction sites, sanitation coverage increase from 15% to 20%
• what are the disadvantages of the project for Lesotho

  construction meant 30,000 people were displaced, the Polihali dam will displace 17 villages, corruption has stopped investment reaching those affected, construction destroyed a unique wetland system
• what are the advantages of the project for South Africa

  provides water to an area with water scarcity and safe water for 10% of the population that doesn't have safe water, fresh water reduces the acidity of the Vaal River Reservoir where pollution from industry has destroyed the natural ecosystem