Resource Reliance Flashcards
1
Q
What factors lead to demand outstripping food supply? [3]
A
- Food waste(1/3 wasted)
- Population increase; more people need more food
- Wealth leading to diet changes(predicted 60kg consumption increase by 2050)
- Climate Change; Acidification of ocean leads to collapse of fish stocks, hotter conditions lead to dying crops
2
Q
What factors lead to demand outstripping energy supply? [3]
A
- Development = wealthier people = more cars, fridges, TVs, which use energy
- Natural hazards can destroy power lines and other infrastructure
- Geology; some countries don’t have fossil fuels or good landscape for renewable energy
3
Q
What factors lead to water demand outstripping supply? [3]
A
- Growing population needs more water(to survive and grow crops(91% in LIDCs))
- Wealth; as economy grows, more dishwashers(55L/wash), washing machines, etc.
- Industry needs water for cooling machinery, energy production
- Climate Change reduces water availability due to hotter conditions(2.7bil suffer from water scarcity)
4
Q
How does mechanised farming affect ecosystems? [2]
A
- Decrease in biodiversity by removing hedgerows and adding monocultures
- Chemicals polluting water sources. killing wildlife and causing eutrophication
- Intensive methods and industrial farming leads to pollution
5
Q
How does commercial fishing affect ecosystems? [3]
A
- Trawling and dredging changes seafloor habitats and disturbs organisms
- 4m fishing vessels = overfishing
- By-catch can include up to 90% of a catch, and dead/dying organisms thrown back into the sea
- Some spray deadly cyanide to catch fish.
6
Q
How does deforestation affect ecosystems? [2]
A
- 2bil people depend on wood for fuel, so it is cut down to keep up with demand
- 70% of all land-based plants+ animals live in forests, so many species at risk
- Removing trees contributes to global warming(1/3rd of CO2 emissions from global warming)
- Can be cleared for hydroelectric power like in Brazil
7
Q
How does mining affect ecosystems? [3]
A
- Fossil fuels are a major source of energy; extracted by mining
- Habitats destroyed to make way for mining, causing loss of biodiversity
- Mining uses a huge amount of water for clay extraction and pumping into rocks
- Coal, oil, and gas are not sustainable and release CO2, adding to global warming
- Can cause catastrophic spills(Deep Water Horizon)
8
Q
How do reservoirs affect ecosystems? [3]
A
- Provide a good, reliable source of water all year round in case of an event,
- Flood large amounts of land, destroying habitats and forcing people away
- Dams can block fish migration routes, reducing biodiversity
- Disrupts natural flow of sediment, reducing fertility of downstream areas
- Releases oxygen-starved water, killing fish
9
Q
How do water transfer schemes affect ecosystems?(Example: Kileder Water) [2]
A
- Often involve building dams and reservoirs
- Needs lots of energy to pump water if there is no natural downstream path
- Can transfer species to areas where they don’t belong
10
Q
What is food security?
A
When all people at all times have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food.
11
Q
What factors affect food security? [4]
A
- Conflict, making it hard to import and transport food or just destroying pipelines and transfer systems
- Pests+diseases reducing yields of crops (like locusts)
- Waste(4.4million UK apples wasted every day)
- Poor food distribution can lead to unequal amounts
- Climate: some countries have climates unsuitable for cultivating crops.
12
Q
How can we illustrate global access to food? [3]
A
- World Hunger Index calculated using undernourishment, child wasting, child stunting, and child mortality, measured 0-100
- Average daily calorie consumption
- GNI/Capita, % of household income spent on food, life expectancy can all also show this
13
Q
What is Malthus’ theory and what supports it? What opposes it? [4]
A
- Population increase is exponential and resource increase is linear, leading to points of crisis, and people will die, dropping the population back down, and then it repeats.
- Supported by Stage 2 of the DTM model; countries undergo rapid population increase as death rates fall
- 800 million currently undernourished according to UNFAO
- He failed to consider technological advancements
14
Q
What is Boserup’s theory and what supports it? What opposes it? [4]
A
- Whenever the 2 factors met, man would innovate, and hence massively increase production until the next crisis, and then it repeats.
- Supported by Green revolution, increasing India rice production by 30%
- Supported by GM crops and fertilisers, mechanised farming
- Her theory is based on a closed system and does not account for migration, etc.
15
Q
Explain 3 methods of ethical consumerism and their sustainability.
A
- Fairtrade; buyers pay extra to develop the area the crop was grown in; SOCIALLY sustainable. Fairtrade products pay farmers fair price and treat employees well. Fairtrade also uses eco-friendly methods of growing crops, taking care of the land; ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE
- Reducing waste; food with less packaging makes it MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE
- Buying local foods to reduce pollution from imports
