C3 COPY Flashcards
(6 cards)
explain one impact of changes in bio fuel production in Brazil on the carbon cycle
in 2015 the brazillian government raised minimal ethanol mix in petrol to be 27% which caused an increase in the production of soybean oil and hydrous ethanol (through the growth of sugar cane)
-Sugar cane provides about 8-10x the energy inputs it takes to grow and reduces greenhouse gasses by 90%. As a result emissions by vehicles in Brazil took a significant decrease
explain why the level of economic development affects the energy mix of countries
different forms of energy cost different amounts to utilise
- less economically developed countries are more likely to simply use their local fuel sources which are commonly coal, oil or natural gas
- -if these countries lack resources they are most likely to import coal or oil as they are by far the cheapest energy sources and they need as much power/cost efficiency in order to maintain their economic growth
- -less economically developed countries are less likely to have a developed education system an consequently peoples understanding of the impact of their energy sources is limited
- More economically developed countries such as Norway have a more sophisticated education system which means people are more aware of the impacts that different fuel sources bring
- Diversifying energy mix can be expensive, solar energy is initially expensive to set up e.g. Solar power is £50/MWh, Wind power is £80/MWh and nuclear is $90.MWh
- Comparatively, natural gas is £40/MWh and coal is £46/MWh
- Energy sources such as nuclear require a highly skilled workforce, unlikely to be found in less economically developed countries
explain why there are uncertainties about future levels of carbon release from peat lands and permafrost
-Uncertainty of the two land-forms carbon release is uncertain as it is dependent on how global ecosystems react to the
-peat land carbon cycling is controlled by anaerobic soil conditions, the carbon stored in these soils is vulnerable to climate warming which is expected to reduce soil moisture and therefore increase soil aeration
-this boreal and arctic areas are expected to experience high rates of climate warming which is where a core number of peatlands happen to be. Should these be affected then it can greatly
accelerate climate change
-Permafrost is permanently frozen land which stays colder than 0C for over two consecutive years,
these contain large amounts of organic carbon which doesn’t decompose due to the cold and anaerobic conditions, these store carbon for extended periods of time. Some scientists argue that permafrost may not increase GHG’s as it would stay in the soil, this is however poorly backed up
assess the role of physical factors in influencing the pattern of future water stress
Water Stress: if a countries water consumption exceeds 10% of its renewable freshwater supply, less than 1700m^3 available per person
Physical factors:
-Inter tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), due to high rates of evaporation there is a wet season and dry season, in some areas there may be lower humidity levels causing blocking high pressures block the arrival of the wet season this leads to a severe drought
-ENSO cycles can cause severe drought in areas. South America in in El Nino and Australia in La Nina
-Melting cryosphere in mountains may reduce storage of water and seasonal meltwater
Human:
-Over abstraction of groundwater from rivers, lakes and groundwater, 2.5 billion depend on it for drinking and irrigation water, over abstraction of increase in water causes salt water intrusion, contaminating water
-Agriculture, 70-90% of water consumption, causes depleting aquifiers, degrading wildlife habitat. Also accounts for 15% of energy use
-increase in wealth and population increases demand for water based items such as jeans which cost 8000 litres of water to produce
-Water demand for industry globally will increase by 400% from 2000 to 2050
In many developing countries up to 90% of all, industrial waste water is discharged untreated into fresh water sources. This massively reduces the amount of usable freshwater in a country and so massively increases water insecurity
evaluate the view that large-scale water management projects often create more problems than they solve for people and the environment (China South-North Transfer project)
China South-North Transfer project:
-South China has many water resources nut north does not, so China is pursuing a $100 Billion project to transfer 45 billion cubic meters of water per year, 60% of the cost is covered by central government but the rest by local governments
-Beijing region has 35% of population, 40% of arable land but only 7% of water
-criticised for the potential damage this will cause, significant ecological impacts as well as worsening water quality, 70% of Yangtze is already polluted
-will submerge 370km^2 of land
-345,000 people will have to relocate
Source Area will:
-loose 60% of flows, low river flow becomes polluted increasing impact of ecosystems salinity, climate can combine with these effects and severely increase water scarcity
Receiving area:
-more water access means more water use for increasing development e.g. gold courses and tourism promotes unsustainable irrigation by agri-buisnesses
-Nitrate eutrophication, salination and ecosystem destruction by pollution transfer
evaluate the view that large-scale water management projects often create more problems than they solve for people and the environment (Israel)
Desalination:
-Provide reliable and predictable supply of water
-Aims to provide 70% of domestic water supplies by 2020
-Each plant requires a power station which adds CO2 but much of the energy used is solar
-Technological advancements such as reverse-osmosis have made desalination far more cost effective
-Produce 600 tonnes of potable water per hour
-In 2010 the cost of fresh water coincided with cost range of desalinated water
Water Management / Techno fixes:
-smart irrigation, soil moisture, temperature and light intensity sensors are used to use just the right volume of water for each plant, this optimizes the water usage and stops waste
-recycling sewage water (65% of crops are produced this way)
-importation of water (50 million tonnes per year from turkey)
->piping water from red sea and Mediterranean to new inland desalination plants
