Resource Reliance
Outstripping of Resources
A resource is something that people need and value
Natural materials become resources when humans value them
Natural resources are naturally occurring substances such as oil, forests, water, animals which are considered to be of value by human populations
Human resources are the number of people in a population and their abilities and skills
Some countries such as Japan have limited natural resources but have built up a wealthy economy through their high level of skills
Carrying capacity: the maximum number of species that can be supported on our planet
Factors
Increasing Global Population
Population increased from 2Bn in 1927 to 7Bn in 2011
Increasing consumption
More people creates a higher demand for:
Food
Water
Energy
Shelter
Space
Jobs
etc.
As global income increases, so does the demand for:
More varied food
Bigger housing
More luxuries
More travelling
All of these rely on resources
The spiral of consumption suggests that natural resources, food, water and energy spiral rapidly as population and income increase and global resources decline so that access of resources per person also declines
Changing technology and employment
Industrial revolution in the late 18th and early 19th centuries
» people earned more money through using machinery and new resources
» could afford better food and live longer
As technology improves and poulations grow, there is a need for people to access more remote locations
Increases access to resources
Increases demand for construction materials and transportation
Accounts for over 40% of all energy use worldwide
Increase in 2nd and 3rd sector jobs
New technology increases demand for new resources
More mobile devices than people
» increased use of finite materials
eg. electronics, robotics
Global food and industrial manufacturing has had to increase in order to satisfy demand
» uses more resources
Water
Water is mainly used in:
Agriculture
Industry
Domestic
Drinking
Washing
Especially irrigation
Cooling machinery
Food and drink manufacture
Energy production
As a country's economy becomes stronger, the wealth of individuals increases and there is more money for luxuries
Types of water:
Blue water: fresh water from lakes
Green water: from precipitation
Grey water: polluted or recycled water
Why isn't there enough water
Rising population
Industry and agriculture
Economic development
Lack of rainfall
Climate change
Generating electricity
Food
Factors affecting food supply
Population growth
Consumption per person is also increasing
Changes in diet
Much higher global demand for meat
Economic development
Can afford to eat more meat
Grain is grown to feed animals rather than humans
7kg of grain to produce 1kg of beef
4kg of grain to produce 1kg of pork
Inefficient energy transfer
Requires more water
25 gallons = 1lb of wheat
2400 gallons = 1lb of meat
Half of all water in the US goes to animal agriculture
Bad for the environment
More greenhouse gases than all vehicles combined
Methane release by cattle and rice farms
Nitrous oxide from fertilised fields
Carbon dioxide from cutting rainforests
How have humans impacted global biomes
Ecosystem: a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment
A biome is a global-scale ecosystem
Mechanisation of farming
Deforestation
Commercial fishing
Subsistence Farming:
Farmers grow food and animals to feed their families
Commercial
Usually highly mechanised, farms produce crops and animals to sell for a profit
Mechanisation: the introduction of machines, replacing work done by human and/or animal labour
Intensification of agriculture: getting more produce from the same amount of space
Removal of hedges to create large fields
The use of fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides
Genetically modified seeds
Impact of commercial farming on the environment
Increasing farm size
–deforestation and habitat destruction
Destruction of hedgerows —loss of habitats and species
Pollution of field and water sources from chemicals
Overcultivation and overgrazing removes nutrients from the ecosystem
Monocultures—fields used only for one species and all other eradicated, reduces biodiversity
No fallow period—reduction of soil nutrients over time
Eutrophication
Key terms:
Subsistence—only producing enough goods to meet your own basic needs, with no extra to trade
Mechanisation—the process whereby machinery is introduced to complete work normally done by hand
Eutrophication—The process of excessive nutrients building up in water sources
Traditional small scale fishing communities are now threatened due to the collapse of fish stocks
No jobs are available for young men
eg. Palawan, Philippines
Tao expeditions
Aims to protect reefs by working with local communities
Provides schools and education programs for communities
Provides funding for the foundation and jobs in tourism
Solutions
Institute and monitor safe catching limits
Place controls on secondary catches
Protect key habitat areas
Change enforcement protocols
Know what you are eating
Over 1Bn people rely on fish for their primary food source
Uses large trawlers rather than small boats, with thermal sensors and digital imagery to identify fish stocks
Leads to over-fishing of popular species
eg. cod, tuna
Also the accidental death of other unplanned species
eg. dolphins caught by mistake in large nets, coral reefs snagged by deep trawlers
Stocks migrate away
» fishing boats have to travel further
» more diesel is used for fuel
»water pollution, increase in fossil fuels
World loses carbon storage
Tree roots store water and nutrients and bind soils together
Leaching of soils
Increased surface run-off and soil erosion
Reduction in agricultural productivity
Increases the risk of floods and landslides
Damage to local habitats and food chains
'Slash and burn'
Led to the world's largest ever wildfires in 2015 in Indonesia—over 5000km2 ablaze
More CO2 was released than by the entire US in a year
Food security
Food security: the access of all people at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life
All people at all times
Safe and nutritious food
meets their dietary needs and food preferences
Physical and economic access to food
Live a healthy life
Hunger: the distress associated with lack of food
Undernutrition: deficiencies in any or all of energy, protein or essential vitamins and minerals
The result of inadequate intake of food in either quantity or quality
Malnutrition: refers more broadly to both undernutrition and overnutrition (unbalanced diets, includes consuming too many calories)
2014—805Mn people globally did not have access to sufficient food
Factors affecting food insecurity
Physical:
Climate
Length of seasons
Soil
Water stress
Diseases
Pests, insects and bacteria
Human:
Poverty
Technology
Conflict
Over-farming
Malthus
Rate of global population growth would inevitably produce a population larger than could be fed
Population grows geometrically but food resources grows arithmetically
Nature imposes limits on population growth
Negative checks—lower fertility rate, abstinence, increased cost of food
Positive checks—increase in death rate eg. famine, war and disease
Didn't take technological advances into account
Boserup
People have the resources of knowledge and technology to increase food supply
Food production reacts to changes in demand
Refers to cultural and technological issues
Refers to environmental limits
Measuring food security
Global hunger index
Four components
Undernourishment
Child wasting
Child stunting
Child mortality
Daily food supply per capita
Globally most calories come from grain
ACs have a lot of sugar and fat, dairy and eggs and meat
MICs have lots of grain
China has a lot of meat and produce
India has more sugars and fats, and dairy and eggs
LIDCs have a lot of grain, dairy and eggs, and sugar and fat
Kielder Water
Strengths
Weaknesses
Threats
Opportunities
Stops drought in the North-East of England
Generates Hydroelectric power
Can be used for recreation
Has encouraged new industries, such as Nissan at Washington
Only seven families would have to be moved
The land was marginal quality, and would only be used for forestry and farming
The Kielder area is good for building a reservoir because it is a large flat-bottomed valley with steep sides and a narrow exit and it has a record of high rainfall -1370mm per year
Has a shoreline of 43km, and is surrounded by forest land, which makes it an ideal resource for encouraging tourism and recreation
It gets 30,000 visitors each year
It is the 3rd most popular tourist attraction in the Northumbria Tourist Board area
This tourism creates jobs for local people and can expand and develop local businesses
A hydroelectric power station provides enough electricity to meet the demands of a small town
The water drives two turbines which operate generators producing 6,000 kilowatts of power
If a wind farm was built, it would involve building 260 turbines in a remote part – many people object to this
Plans to build a £10Mn wood-burning power station using timber from Kielder – bad for the environment
Not everyone was in favour of the reservoir
Over 1200 hectares of timber were cut down
Over 100 buildings were demolished
Roads were flooded so new ones had to be built
Valley floor was flooded
North Tyne river had to be diverted, disrupting wildlife
People were displaced
The profits are shared between Northumbrian Water and the Central Electricity Generating Board
Altitude makes it ideal for wind farming
£80Mn wind-farm has been proposed