Water

Question 1

amazon river

Answer 1

6000 KM +
6,000,000 km^3 drainage basin
the humid and tropical climate at the equator
South America peak: April - May,
low: September
linked to dry and wet seasons and the Andes
snowmelt

Question 2

Yukon River

Answer 2

3,500 KM+
850,000 KM^3 drainage basin
Tundra climate flowing through mountains
Canada
Peak: May-June
Low: Dec - May
linked to snow melt and freezing

Question 3

El Nino

Answer 3

every 12 years a complex series of climatic changes affects the equatorial Pacific
unusually WARM, nutrient-poor water off northern Peru and Ecuador
typically in late December.

Question 4

La Nina

Answer 4

a COOLING of the ocean surface area of the western coast of South America, occurring periodically every 4-12 years after an El Nino event and affecting Pacific and other weather patterns

Question 5

El Nino 2015 affects

Answer 5

Drought increases around the equator
West Africa, North Australia, India, Brazil and Indonesia
sever hunger (crop failure)
Indonesia wildfires
Peru Malaria epidemic (1980)
60 million people affected

Question 6

La Nina affects

Answer 6

Ecuador + Peru temperatures drop
India + Bangladesh have no monsoon
North Australia flooding
crop failure due to agricultural flooding
migration of animals + spread of disease
conflict + displacement.

Question 7

Sahel region (1970-10980)

Answer 7

South of the Sahara desert
Extreme drought due to variation in rainfall (seasonally and annually)
human action - overgrazing, population growth, over-abstraction and irrigation
planted trees, land management, water harvesting

Question 8

SE Australia 2000

Answer 8

Annual rainfall decreased by 12%
due to El Nino, climate change, high-pressure belt, over-abstraction, urbanisation and luxury lifestyle.
per capita 340 litres of water
River Murray no longer flows at the mouth.

Question 9

Amazon Rainforest 2014-2015

Answer 9

meteorological and human causes
over abstraction and deforestation
70% of wells made for water were illegal and monitored.
Forest stress - tree and canopy dieback exposing ground vegetation.
forest fires and reduced humidity

Question 10

Pakistan Floods 2010-11

Answer 10

extreme monsoon due to extreme sea breeze + low pressure + ITCZ shifts + trade winds
1,600 deaths
$1 billion agriculture
billions infrastructure loss
20 million affected
1.2 million homes were destroyed.

Question 11

Asia

Answer 11

1/3 population no access to safe water
90% freshwater for agriculture

Question 12

Africa

Answer 12

by 2025, 25 countries will have water scarcity
19 countries have lowest access to clean water
high infant mortality

Question 13

Ganges river
transboundary

Answer 13

2500 KM, 9250KM squared basin
350 million reliant in India and 40 million in Bangladesh
decreased crop yield and fish
defrosted mangrove which prevented flooding and increased soil erosion and salt water enroachment

Question 14

The Nile river

Answer 14

population dependant expected to double by 2030
needed for crop irrigation, domestic and industry
economic water scarcity

Question 15

Singapore

Answer 15

4 taps policy - if 1 fails they have other 3 to rely on
desalination
large scale harvesting
subsidies protect the poor from expensive water
use of rainwater collection
importing water from Malaysia

Question 16

China three gorges dam

Answer 16

Yangtze River - Dolphins extinct due to loss of habitat
flood control capacity to protect and reduce the impact
HEP to provide green electricity - reduce dependency on coal
tourism
water likely to be low quality and polluted - dam blocked flow of the river, sewage and industrial waste piled up
relocated 1.3 million people
1,000 heritage sites destroyed - cultural erosion

Question 17

China’s south-north water transfer

Answer 17

channel 44.8 billion m cubed freshwater through 3 canal systems
The central government pay 60%
local authority spend the rest of the money on domestic and industrial tax
cost $62 billion
300000 displaced
reduce over-abstraction in north
food security - irrigation purposes