Rivers

• The water cycle is the movement of water around the earth
• Hard engineering involves building artificial structures which try to control rivers. They are often expensive
• Soft engineering does not involve building artificial structures, but takes a more sustainable and natural approach to managing the potential for river flooding.
• A river flood is when water overflows the river channel and spreads across the surrounding land.
• Social:

  Impact on the people

  Economic:

  Impact on the economy (business and money)

  Environmental:

  Impact on the natural world (nature)
• Drainage basin:

  The area of land in which water drains into a specific river
• Watershed:

  The boundary of a drainage. It separates one drainage basin from another. It is usually high land
• Source: Where a river starts from
• Confluence: The point where two streams join together to form a bigger river
• Tributary: A smaller stream or river that flows into another larger one
• Mouth: Where a river meets the sea
• Estuary: The part of a river where it joins the sea, with saltwater mixing with freshwater.
• River profile: The shape of a river over time
• Bar charts


  • Split into angular bars
  • Used to show the sum of tourists visiting a region
• Bar charts


  1. Split into angular bars

  2. Used to break down further information
• Bar charts should be used to show the sum of tourists visiting a region
• Falling and rock particles or boulders


  Loosen and wear away the soft rock
• Hard rock


  Collapses into the pool to be broken up and washed away by the waterfall
• Erosion of the soft rock


  1. Continues

  2. The hard rock collapses into the pool

  3. Broken up and washed away by the waterfall
• The position of the falls


  Moves upstream as the erosion continues and the waterfall slowly eats its way, leaving a gorge behind
• Meandering river


  1. Has different water velocities throughout the course of its river channel

  2. More erosion on one side, and more deposition on the other

  3. On the outside where the water flows faster, there will be more erosion

  4. The river on this side will therefore be steeper, and cuts into the bank, forming a river cliff

  5. On the inside where the river flow is slower, there will be more deposition

  6. The gentle slope upon which sediment builds up is called the slip-off slope

  7. The neck by the meander gets cut off, and it becomes a separated oxbow lake
• Precipitation 


  When droplets become to heavy to be suspended in the sky, and fall to the ground as rain, hail, snow and sleet
• The stages of the water cycle:

  1. Evaporation
  2. Transpiration
  3. Condensation
  4. Precipitation
  5. Surface runoff
  6. Ground water flow
• Key processes in rivers:

  • Erosion
  • Transportation
  • Deposition
• Abrasion


  Water throws rocks at the side, acting like sandpaper (Erosion)
• Hydraulic action


  The current forces water into air cracks in the side of the river (Erosion)
• Traction


  When large rocks are rolled along the riverbed (Transportation)
• Saltation


  When stones are bounced along the riverbed (Transportation)
• Suspension


  Small grains are carried in the water (Transportation)
• Solution


  When particles are dissolved in the water (Transportation)
• Deposition


  Where a river doesn't have enough energy to carry its load, so drops the material
• Middle course

  • Gentle gradient
  • U-shaped cross profile
  • Meanders
  • Oxbow lakes
• Lower course

  • Very gentle gradient
  • Flat bed shape
  • Widest and deepest
• Why are major cities located along rivers?

  Transportation, water, fertile farmland and a source of energy
• Who is responsible for flooding

  • Environment Agency
  • Local Authorities
• Reasons for flooding

  • Steep slopes
  • Heavy rainfall
  • Human interference (Water can't soak through concrete)
  • Deforestation