RESOURCE MANAGMENT

• Uses of water


  • Utilities
  • Drinking
  • For animals
  • For crops
  • For industry
• Imbalance of water

  Due to climate and rainfall
• UN estimates that by 2025 50 countries will face water scarcity
• Reasons for increased water demand

  • Increase in population
  • Improved standards of living
  • More energy (PowerStation cooling)
  • Leisure (pools, golf)
  • Industrial production
  • Increased hygiene
• Water surplus


  Supply exceeds demand - in north and west of UK
• Water deficit


  Demand exceeds supply - in south and east of UK, most densely populated, lowest rainfall
• Water stress


  Demand continually exceeds supply
• Kielder water


  Water from lake district to new castle
• Pros of Kielder water

  • Solves water scarcity
  • Jobs in constructing damns
  • Recreation at reservoirs
  • Provides habitats
• Cons of Kielder water

  • Expensive damns
  • Damns affect wildlife
  • Noisy construction
  • River downstream affected
• Causes of water pollution

  • Chemical and pesticidal run off
  • Untreated waste from industry
  • Hot water from cooling process
  • Sewage contaminating bacteria pumped into rivers
• Algal blooms


  Excess fertilisers increase nutrients in water and speeds up the growth of algae, reducing oxygen and killing bacteria
• Energy


  Used domestically and for development, powers factories, machinery, provides fuel
• Demand for energy is increasing
• Middle east produces oil but not much energy consumption
• Changes in UK energy demand

  • Energy demand increasing
  • Consumption is increasing due to energy conservation
  • More efficient cars reduce
  • 60% fall in industrial use
  • 12% fall in domestic use
• 1990 - mainly coal, in 2014 still mainly coal but now more renewable
• Reasons for change in energy

  • 75% of UK natural gas reserves depleted
  • 36% of energy imported in 2018
  • Oil production decreased 6% each year for past decade
• Fossil fuels will remain as UK resources will last several decades, coal imports are relatively cheap, existing power stations use fossil fuel
• Over 1 billion are 'malnourished'
• 2 billion are 'undernourished'
• Diets lack minerals and vitamins leading to disease
• As people aren't well fed, work suffers, so economy suffers
• Obesity is an increasing problem
• Reasons why the UK imports so much food


  • Unsuitable climate for some foods
  • Cheaper to buy abroad and import
  • Demand for greater exotic variety
  • Demand for seasonal produce all year round
  • UK produce can be expensive
• Impacts of food import

  • Transporting by air is expensive
  • Adds to carbon footprint
• Food security


  Having access to enough, safe, affordable, nutritious food to maintain an active healthy life style
• Food insecurity


  Without reliable access to sufficient quality of food
• Reasons for food consumption increase

  • Development
  • Increased standard of living
  • Increased population
  • Improved food transportation
• Problems of food insecurity

  • Famine - wide spread shortage of food, often causing malnutrition
  • Rising food prices - LICs and NEEs hit hardest
  • Soil erosion - nutrient soil washed away by wind and water
  • Social unrest - population takes action to show unhappiness
  • Undernutrition - lack of balanced diet, mineral deficiency
• South Sudan famine affected 4.8 million people and can be helped by 5.6 billion dollars
• Environmental impacts of food insecurity

  • Soil erosion - removal of fertile topsoil layers by wind and water
  • Overgrazing - animals reduce vegetation, exposing soil
  • Cultivation of marginalised land reduces fertility
  • Deforestation removes protective routes, allowing runoff
• Irrigation


  Artificial plant watering, requires water source
• Types of irrigation


  • Damns built, large scale
  • Pipeline, small scale
• Aeroponics


  Plant sprayed with nutrient rich mist, waste water collected and reused
• Hydroponics


  Growing in water or gravel
• Organic farming


  Growing crops or rearing livestock with no chemical usage, production and labour may be higher but people will pay more
• Permaculture


  System of food production that follows the natural patterns and features of natural ecosystems, sustainable, non polluting, productive, healthy
• Permaculture practices


  • Harvesting rain water
  • Composting waste
  • Crop rotation
  • Organic gardening
  • Keeping livestock
  • Managing woodland
• Urban farming


  Growing crops around settlements, more local cultivation, processing, and distribution, greater choice of fresh foods, new job are created in urban deprived areas, adds greenery and brightens urban environments, attracts wildlife, community benefits to teamwork