geography resource management

resource definition

a stock or supply of something with a value or a purpose. three key examples are food, water and energy. these are generally abundant in HICs and lacking in LICs. abundance drives up QOL and vice versa

food details

the average human needs around 2000-2500kcal daily to be healthy, and over 1bil get less than this (avg consumption in the UK: 3450, Eritrea: 1590). equally too much leads to health issues. abundance is typical to areas with high rainfall and temperature as well as HICs from imports

water details

needed for drinking and farming, as well as industry (75%) often for cooling. on average each person uses 150L/day in the UK, and across the world the average person uses 1240 including from services. Scarcity is common in densely populated, dry and/or polluted areas especially in LICs

energy

needed again for industry, heating, electricity etc. comes from fossil fuels or renewable sources. wealthiest billion consume 50% and poorest 1% take 4%

demand for food

nonseasonal food is wanted more regularly in greater quantities, and this is imported (45% of all UK food imported in 2019). this creates jobs in LICs but these are poorly paid, take land and water and can be dangerous. organic food has also become more popular - more expensive, better quality and better environmentally. plane imports are worst environmentally. some imports are better than nonimports as emissions from greenhouses etc outweigh transport cost

food miles and carbon footprint

distance from producer to consumer and carbon outputted in manufacture. the higher these are the worse environmentally and economically. 19 million tonnes CO2 released from food transport, 17% emissions related to food and 11% to transport. this is cut down on by reducing imports by eating seasonally, locally or growing your own food.

agribusiness v organic farms

agribusinesses are large scale farms prioritising efficiency over all else. gives cheaper produce in greater quantities, but is of poorer quality and is much worse for the environment. trends lean agribusiness for cost cutting - insufficient produce from small businesses. richer people often lean organic but often it’s unaffordable.

changing water demand

demands increase due to increase in water based appliances (dishwashers, washing machines), personal hygiene improvements, industry increase (inc. farming) and population growth etc

water quality + pollution management in the UK

under 40% of water is classed as ‘good’ or above in the UK. pollution from farm and vehicle runoff and spills of chemicals or sewage pollute water. this harms aquatic and waterside wildlife, and toxic waste can rise up the food chain to humans. improving legislation and treatment facilities as well as improving sewers and increasing green space reduces pollution.

areas of water deficit and surplus in the UK

southeast experiences deficit, northwest especially Scotland surplus. to counteract this water is transferred from areas of surplus to deficit. it travels from reservoirs often through rivers to the south. these improve water access in deficit areas, create jobs, new habitats and recreational opportunities. however these are harmful environmentally due to dams destroying habitats, disrupting migration and mixing water qualities as well as being expensive and politically controversial (people not wanting to lose their water).

energy usage

domestic use has decreaesed, due to increased costs and more efficient devices. overall usage has decreased slightly and the mix leans stronger towards renewables now (though overall usage slant is strongly nonrenewable and imported).

energy production in the UK

mostly imported fossil fuels. fracking is often considered for gas collection though avoided due to its environmental impacts. coal has almost been phased out, and renewables are on the rise (slowly)

assessments of different energy sources

fossil fuels: brings in jobs, stable but expensive to source and clean, increases sickness rates, causing climate change and pollution etc. nuclear: brings in jobs, reliable and cheap post-setup, no emissions but risk of meltdown and storage of waste are dangers and storing waste and construction of power stations is high. renewables: brings in jobs, clean, artificial reefs surrounding off-shore wind turbines provide habitats but wind can mess with migration and signals, access roads damage environment, high setup costs and overall unreliable

global patterns of water scarcity

high levels around the equator, and in southern central Africa (often has water but no way of accessing it due to limited infrastructure). europe and most of the americas are in surplus however. primarily affected by usage, rainfall, storage capabilities, pollution, limiteed infrastructure etc.

water stress

>=80% of available water is used. can hinder economic growth, often primarily driven by industry, population growth and agriculture

impacts of water insecurity

increase in waterborne disease rate, decrease in agriculture and industrial output, can cause conflict.

strategies to increase water supply

diverting supplies + increasing storage - pumping water underground into aquifers, reduces evaporation.

dams and reservoirs - another form of water storage, also gives hydroelectric power but are expensive and destroy the flooded area. water transfer schemes move water from areas of surplus to deficit.

desalination - removing salt from seawater, highly expensive and takes a lot of energy so has environmental impacts

large scale water transfer scheme case study

china’s south-north water transport scheme

cost $62bil, moves 12tril gallons of water over 1000km. takes water from the south to the north (surplus -> deficit).

needed to balance out the needs in terms of industry and population as the water table in the north falls.

reduces water insecurity in the north, improves food security, health, industry, reduces groundwater withdrawal etc but displaces hundreds of thousands from dam and reservoir construction and damages the environment, and costs are high boosted by damages from earthquakes.

sustainable water management

water conservation: involves installation of water meters, increasing efficiency in irrigation and reducing leaks, and reducing pollution.

groundwater management: only using aquifers at the rate of recharge

recycling: purifying and reusing water

‘grey’ water usage: using non-purified water for things that don’t need complete cleanliness, like flushing toilets

small scale water transfer scheme

hitosa, ethiopia

water piped from mount bada to homes in hitosa through a gravity-fed scheme.

needed to reduce timeloss from water collection and counteract low rainfall and high temperatures in the area

scheme was completed within allocated timeframe and budget, provides clean water to over 65 000 people, is community managed, provides jobs, self sufficient in terms of cost - access costs used to maintain the pipes etc

will be too expensive to replace after its 30 year estimated lifespan, and there is no education around sanitation surrounding standpipes causing poor hygiene and disease risk. agriculture now takes more water and in-migration causes further pressure on the scheme.