Global Population Futures

Question 1

What is the ozone layer?

Answer 1

The ozone layer is a concentration of the gas, ozone (O3), located in the stratosphere at an altitude of between 10 and 50 km above sea level.

Question 2

What does the ozone layer do?

Answer 2

• The ozone layer shields the earth from most of the harmful ultra-violet radiation from the sun.

Question 3

What are the 2 impacts does ultra-violet radiation cause?

Answer 3

Ultra-violet radiation causes skin cancer and eye cataracts.

Question 4

What is ozone depletion?

Answer 4

Ozone depletion happens when the rate at which the ozone layer is formed is less than the rate at which it is destroyed.

Question 5

What has happened in recent years in terms of ozone depletion?

Answer 5

In recent years, this depletion has manifested itself by the emergence of a ‘hole’ in the ozone layer over Antarctica and the Arctic.

Question 6

What has caused the damage of the ozone layer?

Answer 6

The damage is believed to have been caused by the use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in refrigeration and insulation which break down ozone.

Question 7

Where have CFCs been banned in?

Answer 7

CFCs have now been banned in the EU and other countries.

Question 8

What is skin cancer?

Answer 8

Skin cancer is a disease associated with exposure to the sun and exacerbated by more UV radiation reaching the surface through ozone ‘holes’.

Question 9

Give 2 statistics about skin cancer

Answer 9

• Rates of malignant melanoma vary around the world, with Australia being the worst affected.
  -Within the UK, the incidence of skin cancer has increased within the over 55-year group.

Question 10

What are cataracts?

Answer 10

Cataracts are a form of eye damage that can eventually lead to blindness if not treated and these are linked to UV radiation.

Question 11

What are the 3 places in which the highest incidence rates of cataracts are found in?

Answer 11

Incidence rates are higher in:
- Tropical areas
- Higher altitudes (where UV levels are higher)
- where the UV radiation can be reflected into the eye from light surfaces (such as snow)

Question 12

What are the 2 future impact of climate change?

Answer 12

• Climate change is likely to have direct impacts from extreme weather events such as more frequent and severe storms and floods, and heat waves.
• It will also have many knock-on effects that will also cause problems for people and the environment.

Question 13

What has the WHO predicted in terms of the future of climate change

Answer 13

The WHO has estimated that up to a quarter of a million more people will die per year as a result of climate change.

Question 14

What is the global future impact of thermal stress?

Answer 14

It’s likely to increase with climate change

Question 15

How would thermal stress impact people?

Answer 15

• Hot and humid summer weather can cause illness, such as dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke, and death.
• Heat waves exacerbate other health risks such as smog, fires and vermin infestations.
• Older adults, people with chronic medical conditions and the socially isolated are most vulnerable.

Question 16

What are the future impacts of vector-borne diseases

Answer 16

It is predicted that the prevalence of existing diseases such as malaria and dengue fever will increase as the mosquito vectors spread further around the world following warmer and wetter weather. (Through climate change)

Question 17

What are the 4 areas which are at risk of vector-borne diseases

Answer 17

Areas most at risk in include Turkey, China, Mexico and the southern USA.

Question 18

Give 3 examples of emergent diseases

Answer 18

• The Zika virus in Latin America,
• West Nile virus in North America
• Lyme disease within Europe (including the UK).

Question 19

What is the global future impact of agricultural productivity?

Answer 19

The impact of climate change on agricultural productivity will vary around the world.

Question 20

How would agricultural productivity vary around the world in the future? (Give 2 points)

Answer 20

• Some areas, such as in higher latitudes, will see an increase in crop yields, an increase in the variety of crops (such as maize and soya beans) that can be grown and an increase in the growing season.
• On the other hand, in the lower latitudes, it is likely there will be a greater incidence of thermal stress for plants and livestock, and yields may fall.

Question 21

How would nutrition standard be impacted in the future?

Answer 21

That will be a decline in red meat consumption in the developed world

Question 22

How would a reduction in red meat benefit the environment?

Answer 22

• This will benefit the environment because there will be less livestock production and less forest clearance.

Question 23

In the future, what would the population of most European countries be like?

Answer 23

The populations of most European countries will decline in the next generation.

Question 24

What 3 countries would have a rapid decline in population growth?

Answer 24

In the cases of Germany, Japan and Russia, the decline will be dramatic.

Question 25

What would be the 2 impacts for the developed countries in the future?

Answer 25

- The contraction of the population, particularly during the period before the older generations die, will leave a relatively small number of workers supporting a very large group of retirees, particularly as life expectancy in advanced industrial countries increases. - Also, the national debts incurred by the older generation may be left to the smaller, younger generation to pay off.

Question 26

What would be the solution to the future impacts of developed countries?

Answer 26

Immigration

Question 27

Give 2 reasons why some countries have problems with immigration?

Answer 27

- Japan and most European countries have cultural problems integrating immigrants, as evidenced by the recent EU referendum campaign in the UK and the issue of migrants coming across the Mediterranean Sea. - The USA has historical sources of immigration, particularly from Mexico. However, some right-wing politicians within the USA want to restrict migration from Mexico.

Question 28

What would the developing countries be like in the future? Give 3 things

Answer 28

- The demographic transition model will show a lower mortality and lower fertility (which would mainly take place surprisingly quickly in Asian and Latin American countries). - In countries like China and Brazil, it took just three or four decades for the fertility level to plunge from more than six to less than two. - However, this has not been the case in Africa. Over the past decade or two, it has become clear that fertility is falling much more slowly in some countries in sub-Saharan Africa, such as Nigeria, than it did on other continents.

Question 29

What did the UN say about the people added to the planet in this century?

Answer 29

According to the UN, of the people added to the planet in this century, one in five will be Nigerian.

Question 30

How would we stop the increase in population and what is the limitation of that?

Answer 30

- Educating girls has been found to be one of the best ways of bringing down fertility in the long term. - However, progress in female education is slow, and governments in Africa and elsewhere need to make access to family planning more widely available.