Topic 6b: Water Resource Management Flashcards
(8 cards)
What percentage of the world’s water is freshwater? - where is it found?
3% - two thirds of this is in ice caps and glaciers
Why do some parts of the world have a water deficit?
Countries with high rate of evaporation and transpiration with little rainfall experience water deficits e.g. north Africa
Why/how has water demand changed?
Population growth
Development (higher water use due to economic development)
Climate change (causes unreliable/lower rainfall)
Why are there are differences in water usage between developed countries and emerging/developing countries?
Agriculture:
- Developed countries have more efficient irrigation systems, with less water wasted through evaporation
Industry:
- Developed countries industrial processes take place in large-scale factories that use millions of litres of water in the production process
Domestic:
- People in developed countries can afford things like washing machines, dishwashers and swimming pools that use lots of water
What are the 3 causes of water supply problems in the UK?
Supply and demand not balanced (areas of highest rainfall have the lowest numbers of people, vice versa) - nw vs se
Seasonal imbalance (rains more in winter than in summer)
Ageing infrastructure (old pipes leak and lose water)
Why do emerging/developing countries have water supply problems?
Some areas only have access to unsafe water
Water courses have been polluted (people dispose of sewage in rivers or fertilisers running into waterways)
Low annual rainfall
Pros and cons of desalination
Pros:
- ‘reverse osmosis’ uses pressure to force water through a membrane to remove salt from it
Cons:
- Not much of the water put in becomes usable water (as little as 10%)
- Fish can get sucked into the desalination plants and killed
- Too expensive for developing countries
- Uses a lot of energy for high pressure conditions = higher carbon emissions
- Waste product of very salty water is pumped back into the sea
