GEO CASE STUDIES

• In the Holderness coastline, erosion removes around 2m of land per year
• Sunderbans is a mangrove forest that has flat, fertile land which results in high biodiversity
• Economic opportunities for the Sunderbans:

  • Tourism due to wildlife and scenery
  • Cargo ships transporting goods
  • Power plant proposed
• Risks in the Sunderbans:

  • Depleting fresh water
  • Growing population so more forest must be cleared
  • Dangerous wildlife such as tigers
  • Lack of employment opportunites
  • 20% of people have electricity, which is limited
• the embankment is vulnerable to being breached by storms and tsunamis
• Contextual Knowledge for the Maldives:

  • 12,000 islands in the Indian Ocean, 80% of which only 1m above sea level
  • 10% of the economy is fishing, 28% is tourism
  • The capital Malé is surrounded by a wall which cost $69 million. 99% of it was paid for by the Japanese Government
• Contextual Knowledge for the River Exe:

  • 82.7 km long and the upper catchment has an area of 601 $km^2$
  • The maximum elevation is 514m in the North and a minimum of 26m in the South
  • 84.4% of the geology is impermeable Devonian Sandstone
  • 67% of the land is for agricultural purposes with some woodland (15%) and arable farmland and 3% is moors and peat bogs
• Water balance in the River Exe:

  • Runoff accounts for 65% of the water balance due to impermeable rock and drainage ditches
  • It slowly responds to rainfall
• The Wimblewall reservoir prevents peaks and troughs of river discharge that make flooding and drought more likely
• Exmoor Mires Project:

  • Peat oxidides to form CO2
  • They add Spagnum moss as water couldn’t pass through the peatbog into the water
  • Better water quality
  • It stores a million tons of CO2 due to peat storing carbon
• The Holderness coast is discordant, with chalk in the north and clay in the south
• The E15 Volcano is located on a divergent plate boundary, between the Eurasian and North American plate
• The E15 Eruption had a build up of magma since 1873
• The E15 Eruption scored a 3 on the VEI index
• On top of the E15 Volcano was a glacier.
• Due to the E15 Eruption, gases and ash poisoned grazing cattle
• Due to the E15 Eruption, the River Jokull was 100x the carrying capacity
• Due to the E15 Eruption, Water was contaminated by fluoride
• 25% of respiratory illnesses were linked to the Ash cloud of the E15 Eruption
• Due to the E15 Eruption, Ash and Gas was launched into the Jetstream, preventing aviation. However, there was less noise pollution and 2.8 million tonnes less CO2 due to flight bans
• Due to the E15 Eruption, Kenyan horticulture lost £3 million a day
• Due to the E15 Eruption, the soil became so fertile farmers were able to grow grapes
• Responses to the E15 Eruption:

  • 700 people were evacuated
  • Increased sharing of volcanic info
  • Rebuilding of higher river banks
  • Therapy sessions provided to those traumatised by the eruption
• Context behind the Indian Ocean Earthquake, 2004:

  • Earthquake of a magnitude 9.1 ruptured the Sunda Megathrust Fault
  • This is a convergent boundary between the Burma plate which subducts the Indian plate
  • This caused the seabed to rise by 15m for 1500km, resulting in a 30m wave
  • Mangroves (which act as natural flood defences) were removed for economic purposes, intensifying the impact of the Tsunami
• 230,000 people were killed in the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake, 170,000 from the tsunami alone.
• The epicentre of the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake was only 150 miles from the coast of Sumatra
• The total cost of the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake was £9.4 billion
• Due to the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake, coral reefs by Indonesia were hit twice, once by the sheer force of the wave and again as it was retreating- it brought back debris with it
• Due to the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake, millions were made homeless across 18 countries
• As a result of the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake, the tourism industry of the Maldives was heavily disrupted, which makes up 75% of its economy
• Short term responses to the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake:

  • UK Government promised £75 million, with donations of £100 million
  • Aid in the form of fresh water and purification tablets were given
  • Medical support was flown in by Islamic relief to isolated communities
• Long term responses to the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake:

  • Replanting of mangroves to build back natural flood defences
  • Rebuilding fishing villages in Thailand
  • UN donated $6.25 billion from its relief fund for redevelopment
  • Education schemes were put in place so people would know what to do in the event of a tsunami
  • Indian Ocean Tsunami warning systems were established in 2006 to monitor seismological changes and provide warnings by use of Buoys
• Causes and Background of the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake

  • Occurred at 12:53 PM 22nd Feb 2011
  • Shallow focus of 4.99km
  • 7600 Aftershocks
  • Epicentre was only 10km away from Christchurch
  • Scored 6.3 on the Richter Scale
  • Conservative plate margin between Pacific and Australasian plate
  • Was already recovering from a 7.1 magnitude earthquake the year prior
• In the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake, 185 people died and 2000 were injured
• In the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake, there was 400,000 tonnes of soil liquefaction
• In the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake, there was $28 billion of immediate damage with 100,000 properties damaged
• Secondary Impacts In the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake:

  • 20% of the population migrated from the city
  • Economists suggested that it would take 50-100 years for New Zealand's economy to recover
  • 80% said that their lives had changed significantly since the event
• Immediate responses to the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake:

  • $6 million of international aid provided
  • 30,000 residents provided with chemical toilets
  • Rescue crews flown in from the UK and USA
  • 300 Australian police offers flown in to enforce order
• Long term responses to the Christchurch 2011 Earthquake:

  • Construction of 10,000 affordable homes
  • Water and Sewage systems were restored by August 2011
  • Government provided temporary housing
  • Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority was created to rebuild the region -> they were given special powers to change regulations
  • 80% of the roads had to be repaired
• Context behind Cyclone Nargis:

  • Happened in South East Asia affected Myanmar the most but the depression formed 750km away in Chennai, India
  • Occurred 27th April 2008
  • Scored Category 4 on the Saffir Simpson Scale
  • Population of Myannmar was 48.73 million and a GDP of 23.01 billion
  • GDP per capita was 472.26 so 30% was in extreme poverty