5.1 Food security

• Food security: when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life

Causes of food insecurity/threats to food security

• Population growth: human population #s are increasing at a faster rate than the rate of food production → food shortages

  • Subsistence farming = food insecurity is worse

• Unsustainable production: global food supply has increased reliance on the same kinds of crops

  • Agriculture is more vulnerable to threats

• Price setting: demand increase = price increase

  • Harms those in poverty → increase food insecurity

• Land degradation: misuse of land → soil exhaustion & low crop yield

  • Long term depletion → desertification and soil erosion

• Agricultural disease: pests can consume hundreds and thousands of tonnes of food daily

  • Fungal disease destroys crops + stored food

• Diverting crops for biofuel: increased production of food crops for biofuels

  • Land becomes used for energy source crops → decreases amount of food available

• Climate change: increased temperatures → increased floods + storm size & natural disasters

• Water shortages: lack of water leads to drought → death of crops + livestock

• Poverty: people with no money to buy food can become unable to work

  • Populations rely on aid for survival

Impacts of food insecurity

• Regional food scarcity

• Nutritional deficiency & malnutrition

• Poverty

• Forced migration

• Conflict — food related unrest

• Famine

• Death

Strategies for managing food security

• Subsistence agriculture: encouraged in areas where ppl have limited access to food

• Increase food production: using intensification and extensification

  • Intensification: higher yields through increased inputs, improved agronomic practices, improved crop varieties

  • Extensification: clearing additional land for crop production

• Improved agricultural techniques & efficiency:

  • Aquaculture: soil free farming that uses waste produced from fish to supply plants w/nutrients

  • Hydroponics: no soil & grown in water

  • Selective breeding + GM crops: pest resistant crops + higher yield

  • Controlling limiting factors (e.g. irrigation to minimize water waste)

  • Increasing productivity: remove competition from weeds using herbicides, reduce fungal disease by using fungicides

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• Reduction in livestock + growing more crops: crops could be used to reduce food insecurity & fed to humans rather than livestock

  • Moving land for crops, instead of livestock → increase amount grown

• Reduce food waste: grocery stores + farmers can donate excess food to livestock farms, education about use by vs. best by dates, plan out meals/proper portions, storing food properly

• Large-scale food stockpiling: countries prone to natural disasters can stockpile grains/other dry products in case of shortage

• Improve transportation of food: improve sanitation, prevent + control pests, better food packaging, smart cold chain transport containers + trucks

• Protecting pollinating insects: disappearing due to pesticide misuse + disease

  • Reduce pesticide use (e.g. organic farming), planting flowering crops, farming bees as pollinators

• World Food Programme & food aid: WFP can assist people experiencing food insecurity (services 80+ countries worldwide); food aid = free food to another country in a time of crisis

• Rationing: set amount of food per person → ensures fair distribution during scarcity

5.2 Energy resources

• Renewable resources: biofuels (e.g. biomass), geothermal, hydroelectric dams, tidal, wave, solar, & wind energy

• Non-renewable resources: fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, coal), nuclear energy (using uranium)

• Energy security: reliable availability of energy sources at an affordable price with a consideration of the environmental impacts

  • Long-term: supply of energy that is in line with economic developments and environmental needs

  • Short-term: systems that react promptly to sudden changes in the supply-demand balance

Causes of energy insecurity

• Fossil fuel depletion

• Inequality in global energy resources: geographical distribution impacts availability of energy resources — some places have to import energy resources

  • Middle East has abundant oil reserves

• Population growth: occurring faster than the development of new energy resources

  • Puts pressure on strained systems

  • Increased use of goods (e.g. cars) has led to increased demand

• Differing energy needs of countries in different income groups: HICs have a higher energy demand than MICs and LICs - HICs are more industrialized + higher living standards

• Climate change: puts pressure on countries to combat levels of CO2 emissions by reducing fossil-fuel consumptions

  • Changing energy sources can risk energy security & impact job availability

• Supply disruption (e.g. natural disasters, piracy, terrorism): disruption of the supply of fossil fuels or oil can strain energy security

Impacts of energy insecurity

• Disrupted electricity supply to homes and industry

• Increasing prices for energy resources: increase in the cost of electricity/gas → energy poverty

• Increasing costs for industry: economic instability due to high energy costs

• Job losses, economic recession: industries unable to meet higher costs of energy

• Increased levels of poverty and low standards of living: people may use fuels that are harmful to their health (e.g. burning of biomass), energy poverty can harm education

• Reliance on imported sources of energy: can lead to int’l debts (hinder a country’s ability to pay for energy + invest in infrastructure); vulnerable to changes in global energy prices

• Civil disruption and conflict: groups may compete to control energy-rich mines

  • Inequality in energy resources can lead to conflict

Managing energy security

• Increasing energy efficiency: reducing energy waste (e.g. insulation in housing)

• Increasing energy production: can be individually (e.g. solar panels), or undertaken by a country

• Reducing reliance on fossil fuels

• Investing in renewable resources and carbon neutral fuels: reduce reliance on fossil fuels

  • May be hard for countries reliant on fossil fuels

• Development of alternative energy technologies

• Investment in local energy projects: gov’t can do this & encourage the development of their own energy supply

• Rationing: can help when supply is limited; can allow the supply system to function under pressure

5.3 Waste management

Methods of waste disposal

• Landfill sites: bury waste in the ground/large mounds — layered with soil to reduce smell + pests

• Incineration: burning garbage at high temps.

  • Waste-to-energy facilities use heat to produce energy

• Storage: surface impoundments + deep-well injections

• Disposal at sea: uncontaminated sediments, human remains, fish waste

• Recycling: collecting materials that can be broken down & reprocessed into new items

• Exporting waste: global trade in waste from one country to another — LICs need $

Impacts of waste disposal methods

• Soil contamination leading to leaching + contamination of groundwater: liquid waste (e.g. oils) can be washed deeper into soil → can kill vegetation, loss of habitat, kill aquatic organisms

• Dangerous gases: GHGs, like methane + CO2, are released during degradation of biological waste → possible explosions & global warming

• Visual and noise pollution + unpleasant odour: waste left unmanaged can attract vermin (leads to disease)

• Risk of spread of disease: toxic waste → cancer + lung and skin conditions; septic waste → cholera

• Release of toxic substances: leachate percolated through landfills can contaminate soil + groundwater; incineration of waste can produce toxic substances + cause air pollutions

• Bioaccumulation and biomagnification: bioaccumulation = build-up of toxins in an organism’s body; biomagnification = build-up of toxins in a food chain

  • Mercury/heavy metals from mining can enter the food chain and continue to build up — potentially harm humans

• Plastics and microplastics in oceans: oceans break down plastics → microplastics can harm the endocrine system, cause disease, & decrease fertility — potentially harm humans

Strategies to reduce the impacts of waste disposal

• Reduce, reuse and recycle: waste minimization: source reduction = reducing the amount of waste that needs to be disposed of; education allows the population to understand how to manage their waste

• Biodegradable plastics: made from materials that will break down when exposed to microorganisms

• Food waste for animal feed: process food waste to have shelf-life + be free of pathogens — minimizes food waste going into a landfill

• Composting: decomposition of organic materials into nutrient-rich product to feed soils

• Fermentation: anaerobic process — convert biological waste into sources of energy

• Use of waste to generate energy: fermentation can produce biogas w/ energy potential

• Education: increases vested interest in waste management if a population understands the benefits of proper waste management

• Financial incentives: people earn money by selling their waste

• Legislation: various types (e.g. marine or hazardous waste legislation)

  • Marine can regulate dumping of harmful materials into oceans

  • Hazardous waste can control movement of this waste & restrict its production