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Geography U1 Case Studies (Battle for the Biosphere (Tropical Rainforest,…
Geography U1 Case Studies
Restless Earth
Nyiragongo Volcano, DR Congo
Economic Impact
Primary
Airport destroyed
Secondary
Acid rain affected farmland and cattle
35 million dollars aid refugees
Social Impact
Primary
100 died
12, 500 homes destroyed
45 schools destroyed
Secondary
Disruption to the mains water supply
120, 000 long-term homeless
UN sent in 260 tonnes of rations
Port Au Prince, Haiti
(Developing Earthquake)
Primary Impact
300,000 injured
1.5 million homeless
11.5 billion dollars in property cost
230,000-320,000 dead
Communication links, the port and major road were damaged beyond repair
Secondary Impact
1100 squalid camps
Cholera claimed a several hundred lives
Kobe, Japan
(Developed Earthquake)
Primary Impacts
6,400 dead
40,000 injured
300,000 homeless
220 billion dollars in property costs
Disrupted transport
Secondary Impacts
2 million with no electricity
1 million without water for 10 days
Local Responses
150 free handsets from Motorola
Yakuza were first on the scene offering aid
International Responses
Japan rejected foreign aid
Long-Term Responses
Building were built apart to stop a domino effect
Children complete earthquake drills once a month
Climate Change
Viking Greenland
Warmer Climate in 1100
Over 200 farms
3000-4000 Vikings
Trade links
Colder Climate in 1410
Deforestation and soil erosion(little food)
Could't trade due to sea ice
Did not adapt so died out
Little Ice Age
1315
Harvest failed
'Great Famine' from 1317-1325
10-20% peasant's died
1820s and 1850s glaciers destroyed villages and farmland
People adapted with new crops(potatoes) and ran fairs on the frozen ice
Changing Climate of the UK
(Developing)
Warmer
Polar front moves north
Allowing tropical air to reach the UK(Mediterranean summer and drought)
Colder
Polar front could move south
High rainfall and increasing floods
Economic Impacts
2% GDP used to reduce greenhouse gases
Insurance pay out for extreme weather related events
Environmental Impacts
Different crops will have to be grown
Certain organisms may die out
Changing Climate in Egypt
(developing)
Economic Impacts
Spent money on dams
10% Nile delta will be flooded destroying farmland
Environmental Impacts
Spread of diseases
5 meters of the coastline will erode per year
Battle for the Biosphere
Distribution Factors of Climate
Global
Precipitation
Latitude(temperature)
Local
Altitude
Distance inland
Geology
Soils
Biosphere = 'life support system'
Good
Provide resources
Provide drugs that can help illnesses such as diabetes and cancer
Service
Trees absorb carbon dioxide
Provide nutrients for soil to be productive
Tropical Rainforest, Brazil
Background
Provide wood, herbs, food and can be used to grow crops
Reasons of deforestation
For timber/paper
Farming land
Mining for oil
Causes
Wildlife loses habitats
Polluted rivers
Floods
Biosphere Conservation
Global
CITES
(reduce poaching)
Rainforest Conservation
(less deforestation)
RAMSAR
(conserves wetlands)
National
National Parks
(manage the environment of key area)
SSSI
(protected for scientific use)
ANOB
(protect beauty)
Local
BAPS
(protect natural vegetation)
Caledonian Forest
Kilum, Cameroon
(a sustainable forest reserve)
Water World
Sahel
(drought)
Info
South of the Sahara desert
Usually 250-450mm rainfall per year
Problems
Rainfall has reduced and is mostly below the average since 1970
Some times rain comes in torrential downpours and causes floods
Impacts of drought
Soil erosion and desertification due to overgrazing and drought
Seasonal rivers and water holes dry out
Population Pressures
Some of the poorest country's and yet rapidly growing population
Further pressure in drought years
Three Gorges Dam, China
Facts
Cost 26 billion dollars and completes in 2012
Water Supply
Clean Electricity
Reduced Flooding
Advantages
Creates a reservoir to prevent flooding
Provided hydroelectric power
Reduces carbon dioxide emissions
Disadvantages
1.2 million people relocated(15 billion dollars)
Yangtze river starting to dry up
Several extinction of species
Afridev Hand Pumps, Tanzania
(intermediate technology)
Aims
Appropriate to the geographical conditions of the local area
Are able to be operated, fix and maintain the scheme
Examples
Tube wells are built where the water table is deep
Rainwater is collected during rainy seasons
Hand Pumps
Tanzania(46 life expectancy)
Local people trained to manage the pumps
River Processes and Pressures
Sheffield, 2007
Causes of Flooding
Prolonged rainfall
Soil saturation(increased surface runoff)
Confluence of several rivers
The physical landscape
Impacts
Economic
Hillsborough football stadium was flooded costing several million
Clarkson Osborn suffered 15 million pounds of damage
Social
Raw sewage went into floodwater(health risks)
Many people displaced suffered from stress
Environmental
Fallen trees blocked river channels
Fears that the Ulley Dam might collapse
York, Hard Engineering
Clifton Ings(open space to retain water)
Clifton and Bootham(schools and houses protected behind a levee)
Riverside Apartments (open garages on the ground floor for water to fill up)
The Foss Barrier(moveable steel flood gate)
Aquabarriers(temporary hollow plastic barriers with holes to filter out the water)
The River Skerne, Darlington, Soft Engineering
Rebuilding meanders(can be expensive, lengthens the river meaning more space for flood water)
Lowering banks(increases flood risk, cheap and easy to maintain)
Lowering flood plain, expensive and increases flood risk, allows low-value area to be flooded)
Oceans on the Edge
Coral Reefs
Conditions needed
Shallow water(25 metres or less)
Temperature 24-26
Clear water
Services
Food for local communities
Shoreline protection from storms and tsunamis
A source of medicine
Global Threats
Overfishing
Pollution from sewage disposal
Climate change
St Lucia's SMMA
Pressures on the ecosystem
2% population rise per year
Overfishing on the narrow continental shelf
Tourism resulting in waste and pollution
Sustainable Management
The SMMA was created to try and keep all people happy
The coast was divided to difference uses
This has not been successful however as there are still conflicts over areas
The North Sea
Certain types of fish such as cod are decreasing due to over fishing
Methods
Making mesh in the nets big enough so young fish are not caught
Placing quotas on the amount of fish
Setting up marine reserves to protect species