Case Studies - Population, Settlement, Industry and Environment

Consequences on migrant

• Shantytowns in Rio, such as Escondidinho, are overcrowded and disease ridden
• Living conditions in shantytowns are poor
• Problems with drug and gun crimes
• Face the risk of eviction from shantytowns

Consequences on donor

• Fewer people to farm the land
• Farming decreases, so less food produced
• Insecurity about food
• Rural-Urban Migration occurs
• This repeats as a vicious cycle
• Less farming=Less soil exhaustion
• People who move send money back to their families to support them

Consequences on host

• Shortage of housing-people need to illegally construct their own homes
• Quality of life in Favelas very poor-families share one tap, no sewerage provision, electricity, gas, and running water limited
• High crime levels
• Unemployment
• Gains a large work force, leading to economic growth

(There are also case studies for International Migration (Voluntary in Europe and Forced from Libya) but I haven't done these yet-if anyone has done these, feel free to update notes)

Settlements

Tsoelike Valley, Lesotho-Factors affecting site and development of rural settlements

Settlement shapes

• Dispersed settlements are for agriculture, giving room for cattle to graze, generally found in mountain areas.
• Nucleated settlements were grouped together for defence traditionally, but now it makes getting supplies to everyone much easier.

Altitude

• Most settlements below 2250 so that it is warm enough for crop growth
• High land only used for cattle grazing in the summer
• Low land avoided due to flood risk

Aspect: Settlements mostly located on North facing slope to get more sunlight

Situation: Most located near the A4 for transport, and are also close to Tsolike River for water supply

Problems faced

• Crop growth is difficult due to a lack of flat, fertile land; soil erosion by wind and water; hazards like hailstorms or locusts
• There is a lack of work or opportunities, since one persons land can end up being scattered; and the only jobs available are in agriculture
• Tsoelike valley is isolated, with 1 bus per day to Masera taking 9 hours

 Improvements:

• Some employment in forestry
• The A4 has been improved, and now runs to the South African border
• Quacha's Nek, the closest town, now has a farmer training centre, with multiple other services, providing more opportunities

New York, USA-Factors affecting site and development of urban settlements

Nodal Points:Confluence of Hudson and East rivers. Manhattan was a ridge extending North and South, with the South being easy to defend.

Agricultural centres: Country area to the North which has been cultivated

Ports: Historically been a seaport, particularly during colonisation, leading to its growth. There is a sheltered natural harbour found by the Hudson and East river, with the Erie Canal connecting Hudson with great lakes

Administrative towns and cities: On the East Coast, so it is where the British arrived when they came to colonise, and used it as an administrative city. Wall Street is financial district of the world, highest populated city in US

Ashwell, North Hertfordshire-Counter Urbanisation

• Ashwell can be found about 45 miles away from London, and this makes it an ideal site for people moving out of London, but still working in London. This has been increasing since the late 1980s
• The town has become more urban. Conversions to older buildings have taken place, and modern buildings have been built.
• Many new services are available, such as a rail link between Kings Cross and Ashwell, allowing people to commute to London in 40 minutes
• 37% of the working population if Ashwell commute to either London or Stevenage

New York, USA-Features and Problems of CBD

Key facts: The CBD is made up of Midtown and Downtown Manhattan. The CBD contains the world's financial district, Wall Street, despite the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre.

Features: Midtown contains the shopping district (fifth Avenue), the theatre district (Broadway), some of the largest hotels in the world, and the Empire State building. Downtown Manhattan contains Wall Street, and the World Trade Centre until 9/11. Not a residential area.

Problems: 

• Crime-People are mugged, assaulted, and murdered daily.
• People are moving away from the CBD to escape the issues, causing the CBD to shrink in size
• Very high cost of land
• Racial Inequality
• Air, visual, and water pollution

London, UK-Solutions to problems in CBD

Problems: Crime-78,000 violent incidents; Pollution-London was placed 102nd most polluted city; Congestion-Congestion charge introduced due to problems

Solutions:

• Crime-Improved police service, improved CCTV, improve areas to make them less run down, Target hardening
• Congestion and pollution-Congestion charge introduced in 2003, Electronic ticketing making public transport easier to use and making it cheaper, London Cycle Hire Scheme and Cycle Superhighways-cycle around London more easily and safely. Public Transport more accessible.
• Urban Decay-Kings Cross Station was run down, and was associated with drug use and prostitution. The entire area was refurbished, and is now a hub for most train lines.

Harlow, South East England-Urban Land Uses

• Harlow Town was established in 1947 to relieve overcrowding in Nort-East London.
• It reached a peak population of 81, 000 in 1974
• Designed to have areas for living, areas for industry, areas for services, making them all connected.
• Split into 4 main areas-Northwest is CBD, while the other 3 have neighbourhood centres, containing 30 or 40 shops, a pub, church, etc. A neighbourhood has small housing area, primary school, a hall, a pub
• Two large industrial areas, Temple Fields in the NE, Pinnacles in the West
• Four major open spaces around town centre between built up areas

New York, USA-Problems with growth across urban areas in MEDCs

• Housing Shortages/Urban Decay: Many houses, particularly in South Bronx in a poor state 170000 people displaced by slum cleaning in Manhattan. Charlotte Street, South Bronx is in a very poor state. Urban decay increases crime levels.
• Crime and Racial tension: Many ghettos in NY. There was an uprising of black people against Jews, due to a black child being run over by a rabbi.
• Affordability: Affordability is increasing. People take mortgages to buy their house, but when they can't afford it, the houses are repossessed by the bank. Queens and Brooklyn badly affected.

Mumbai, India-Problems with growth across urban areas in LEDCs

• Housing Shortages/Urban decay: MHA DA carry out evictions, many buildings are beyond repair. Once evicted, only option is to go to eviction camps, which are run down and dangerous
• Crime and racial tension: Tension between Hindus and Muslims. Greedy politicians and corrupt police force make things dodgy, 700 people killed since 1993
• Squatter settlements: Dharavi is Asia's largest slum, and is located right in the middle of Mumbai. The rent is only 180 rupees a month, which is much lower than other parts of Mumbai, Very poor area with very few services, and over 1 million people living there.

Mumbai, India-Solutions to problems in urban areas in LEDCs

• Demolishing slums and redeveloping the area:  Vision Mumbai is a scheme to demolish the all the homes in Dharavi , and redevelop them to build 1.1 million low cost houses in the area.  It would give people new houses, but everyone living there would be displaced while the new houses were built
• Self help schemes to improve living conditions: By creating self help schemes, squatters would be earning their own money, and therefore helping themselves. For example, leather trading is a small scale industry that would provide income for these people.
• Environmental issues to improve sanitation: Dharavi is on the banks of the Mithi River, which is heavily polluting. This could be reduced by educating people to be more environmentally friendly, stopping industrial waste from being dumped in the river, and building public toilets to deal with untreated sewage.

New York, USA-Solutions to problems in urban areas in MEDCs

• Redeveloping decaying and run down areas: The Bronx centre project called 'Don't move, improve' aimed to revitalise a severely decayed 300 block section in South Bronx, costing $2 billion, but improved living conditions in the area.
• Reduction in crime: Mayor Giuliani introduced the 'zero tolerance' scheme, which gave harsh punishments for criminals, which reduced crime by 44% and brought the murder rate down by 70%
• Reduction in congestion: There was a proposed congestion charge, but it was unsuccessful. However, the gas prices have risen to over $4.00 per gallon, so less people can afford to drive, reducing congestion.

London, UK-Solutions to congestion issues in MEDCs

• Air: London has 5 nearby airports, including Heathrow, the world's largest airport. This reduces congestion going to each one, reducing overall congestion.
• Rail: Electronic ticketing (Oyster Cards) removes hassle of buying tickets and bringing money, and is cheaper. More national and international cross rail means less people drive around the place, decreasing congestion.
• Road: Ring roads such as M25 and A406 introduced so that you don't have to go through London to get to the other side, reducing congestion in the city.

New York, USA-Causes and consequences of Urban Sprawl in MEDCs

Causes:

• Population increasing, so more houses must be built; from 2000-2009, the population increased by 383195
• Middle class people moving out of inner city to a quieter, safer life in the outer suburbs
• Worried people leaving due to fear of another terrorist attack

Consequences:

• Urbanisation in rural areas, removing the character of the areas
• 2 million people commute into Manhattan every day, creating a lot of pollution
• Staten Island grew by 24000 new housing units on Greenfield land from 1990-2000

Mumbai, India-Causes and consequences of Urban Sprawl in LEDCs

Causes:

• While Dharavi is located in the centre of Mumbai, there are still squatter settlements on the outskirts
• Housing in the city is poor quality and not maintained, so people move to the edge of the city for newer housing
• There are problems with overcrowding, traffic, and nois epollution in the sity centre, so people move away
• Housing can be very expensive in the city centre

Consequences:

• Informal housing (squatter settlements)
• Loss of green areas, like the Sanjay Gandhi national park
• Environmental issues with water pollution in the River Mithi

Theme 2

Plate Tectonics

Soufriere Hills, Montserrat-Volcanic Eruption

Impacts

• 19 people were killed by the eruption
• Severe burns to feet were common injuries. All injured people were in the exclusion zone set up in 1995
• 7000/11000 inhabitants were evacuated after the eruption in 1995, losing their homes. 3000 moved to Antigua, 4000 to UK, and the rest went to USA
• Bramble Airport was destroyed, cutting off air travel, reducing tourism until Gerald's Airport was built in 2005
• Farmland in the South was destroyed
• 100-150 houses were destroyed on 25th June 1997 in the towns of Farm and Trant
• Pyroclastic flow reached Cork Hill, causing flooding at Belkham river
• 4km2 land covered , 5 million cubic metres of rock and ash deposited
• Vegetation was destroyed at Mosquito Ghaut

Responses

• Montserrat Volcanic Observatory set up in 1995 to monitor the volcanoe
• The observatory allowed the Government to define a number of hazard zones
• Evacuation from the most vulnerable areas
• People could either move to the safer, northern part of the island, or leave the island all together
• British Government pledged £41 million in relief

Japan-Earthquakes in MEDCs

The Japan Earthquake occurred on the destructive plate boundary between the Pacific and Eurasian plate. The Earthquake happened on 11th March 2011, measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale.

Impacts

• By 4th April 12,000 people had been killed, with another 15,500 missing
• 215,000 fled their homes. Most of Rikuzentakadu was destroyed
• Fukoshima suffered a partial meltdown-radioactive material released
• A dam burst in North East Fukoshima, leading to flooding in the area

Responses

• Thousands of military troops, 300 planes, and 40 ships were sent to help with relief
• Rescue teams were sent from South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore
• A huge relief mission began in the North East a day after the Earthquake
• Prime Minister Naoto Kan visited the disaster zone
• An American aircraft carrier was already in Japan, and another was sent for

Haiti-Earthquakes in LEDCs

The Haiti Earthquake occurred on the destructive plate boundary between the Caribbean plate and North American Plate, called the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault on 21st January 2010.

Impacts

• At least 250,000-300,000 killed by the earthquake. The initial estimate was about 20,000, but cholera outbreaks in the survivor camps led to much higher death counts
• 2 million left short of food and water
• The Port was destroyed and many roads were blocked, making it harder to give relief
• Some people took advantage of the situation and started looting, increasing the economic damage caused
• Water pollution occurred, damaging the environment, and also contributing to the cholera outbreaks in camps

Responses

• USA sent in 10,000 troops to help the situation
• Temporary camps were set up for homeless people, but cholera outbreaks occurred here.
• The port and airports were cleared by American engineers
• Wounded were cared for in temporary field hospitals
• Haitians depended on foreign aid to recover the economy

Weathering, Rivers, and Coasts

River Tees-Upper Course

River Tees-Middle-Lower Course

Ganges Delta, Bangladesh-Advantages and difficulties living on a river delta

Background info: The Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta is the world's largest delta, leading into the Bay of Bengal. This makes it one of the most fertile regions in the world.

Pakistan-Causes, Impacts and Responses to floods in LEDCs (2010)

Causes

• Heavy monsoon rain-In August 2010, over half of the monsoon rain fell in just one week, causing the ground to become saturated, so surface runoff occurred, and the rainwater went straight to the river, causing flooding.
• Soil erosion-The Himalayas is a young mountain range, and so its rock and soil is not as resistant as others, and so it is vulnerable to soil erosion, by heavy rain, and rivers such as the Indus. This soil is carried by the river, and then deposited in the lower course, reducing the capacity of the river channel, so it can hold less water.
• Large scale deforestation-SAFI claims that areas controlled by the Taliban experienced deforestation since 2007, and only 5.2% of the country is forested. This reduces interception by leaves, and it also means that less water is being taken up and used by plants, reducing lag time and increasing peak discharge. It also increases soil erosion, with nothing to bind and strengthen the soil.

Impacts

• Social-At least 1600 people killed, but affected more than 20 million, with 700,000 homes destroyed. Lack of clean water, malnutrition, disease
• Economic-6.5 million acres of crops washed away in Punjab and Sindh, with repair costs totalling up to $1.3 billion.
• Environmental-At least 20% of the country was flooded, and since the water was already saturated, it kept on going, destroying crops, vegetation, and animal habitats

Responses

• Disaster Relief-The Red Crescent got involved in dealing with the disaster, providing shelter, clean water, and medical treatment
• Relief Food Programme-The UN provided food for the people, due to the lack of food available at the time. However, they did begin to run out of supplies in November 2010
• Foreign Aid-Saudi Arabia and the USA both donated $600 million. Due to the fact that the Pakistan government failed to support itself, other countries had to give aid to help.

Queensland, Australia-Causes, Impacts, and Responses to floods in MEDCs

Causes:

• Heavy Rainfall-Tropical Cyclone Tasha and strongest La Nina event since the late 19th century meant that there was a lot of rainfall, leading to the flooding.
• Steep slopes in upper course-Rivers affected were the Fitzroy river, the Burnett River and the Brisbane River, all of which have their upper course in the Great diving range. This meant that water is more likely to travel via surface runoff, increasing peak discharge.
• Urbanisation in lower course-Rockhampton and Bundaberg can both be found in the lower course of the rivers, meaning the floodplain is in an area that is impermeable to water, meaning that surface runoff occurs, increasing peak discharge.

Impacts:

• Social-There were 26 confirmed deaths, with 28 presumed dead and over 200,000 people affected, due to homelessness, lack of clean water, electricity, or food. 30000 homes without electricity in Brisbane, and 80% of emerald was flooded. Crocodiles and Snakes got into homes.
• Economic-Goonfella railway closed for a week, which led to 75% of operations stopped at the state's coalfields. There was a total cost of $30 billion
• Environmental-Over 20 towns were cut off and flooded, and the peak discharge of the Fitzroy river was 9m above normal flow. Since the floodplains were mainly urban areas, animals moved into the towns, which was dangerous for both the animals and the people, since the animals were dangerous ones sucha s crocodiles and snakes.

Responses:

• Evacuation plans-80 Australian military personnel were engaged in flood relief activities, with emergency shelter provided at Central Queensland University in Emerald. Meteorologists were aware of the dangers of flooding, residents were told to evacuate before the floods hit.
• Food supply programme-Rockhampton ran out of food, and required imports, and Dolby required 112000 litres of clean water. These supplies were brought in to reduce danger.
• Expensive flood protection-The airport terminal was protected by a large metal flood barrier, while 5 flood gates were opened at the  Wivenhoe Dam to prevent further flooding.
• Political figures focused on flood-Prime Minister Julia Gillard toured the flood affected areas to help support communities affected

River Nene, East England-Flood risk management

• Flood walls have been built: Flood walls are built as a physical barrier , meaning that more water is required for it to flood. In Footmeadow, flood walls that are 4m high have been built.
• Embankments and a washland create: These mean that there is a large area allowing the river to flood. In Upton, £8 million was spent on creating embankments and washlands
• Warning systems improved: Warning systems give peopel a chance to evacuate to avoid damage being done to people. St. James and Far Cotton have had warning systems implemented giving 2 hours to evacuate or prepare

Bournemouth Beach, Dorset-Beach Activities

Bournemouth beach is 7 miles long and is host to the Bournemouth air festival, which is the biggest in the world. It also has some of the warmest seas in the UK. Many activities are available:

• Relaxing
• Watersports
• Pier
• Bournemouth Air Festival
• Surfing
• Sailing
• Kayaking
• Jet-skiing
• Powerboating
• Cruises

Examples of coastal landforms:

• Durlston Head, Dorset-Wave cut Platform
• Isles of Purbeck, Dorset-Headlands and bays in discordant coastline
• Durdle Door, Dorset-Arch
• Old Harry's Rocks-stack, stump
• Hurst Castle Spit, Hampshire-Curved Spit
• Chesil Beach, Dorset-Tombolo, Shingle Beach
• Swanage Beach, Dorset-Sand beach

Keyhaven Salt Marhses, Hampshire-Importance of and threats to Salt Marshes

Importance of Keyhaven Salt Marshes:

• Coast Protection and Flood Defence-The salt marshes are a form of coastal protection within West Solent. The marshes will stop powerful waves, which would otherwise go straight up the river.
• Nature Conservation-The West Solent salt marshes are Sites of Special Scitentific Interesnt, and provide feeding grounds for ducks and geese, and breeding sites for waders, gulls , and terns. They are also habitats.
• Local Economy-Salt can be taken from the Salt Marshes, which has brought in a lot of trade for the area, and this helps boost popularity of the activities that require it, and the economy is dependent on these activities.

Threats to Keyhaven Salt Marshes:

• Construction of Groynes-Stops sediment moving down the beach due to Longshore drift, and so sediment does not reach the salt marsh, starving it.
• Animals graze on it-Damages the salt marsh, which, paired with tourism (increasing, and so is having a greater negative impact), could lead to it being lost.
• Climate Change-Causes sea level rise, which would en dwith the salt marshes being flooded.

Studland Bay, Dorset- Threats to and management of sand dunes

Threats:

• Heath fires destroy plants and animals
• Dune erosion when people travel through dunes-people litter, carry sand away with them, and trample the maram grass that holds it together
• Dune erosion when people park cars on the dunes

Management:

• Building boardwalks so that people do not walk on sand
• Sandtraps to catch sand
• Notice boards to inform people of the restoration and protection schemes
• Picnic areas to keep tourists in certain areas

Morocco-Mining of Coastal Sand

Great Barrier Reef, Australia-Management of coral reefs

• GBR Marine Park Authority manages day to day running of coral reef: They enter the GBR, and ensure that nothing bad is being done by any tourists, and ensuring that it is not under threat.
• Protected from tourists: Boats can only be anchored 50m from a mooring, and 200m from a pontoon, meaning that rules have been put in place to stop the people who want to have fun from wrecking the GBR in the process.
• Zoning used to control which areas are used: The GBR zoning plan 2003 is used for conservation and management of the reef, meaning that even if tourists destroyed some of the reef, some of it will survive
• Legislation protects the reef: The GBR Marine Park Act gives penalties for not complying with permit conditions, meaning companies and businesses that do not care for the reed cannot exploit it.

Weather, Climate and Natural Vegetation

Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans-Impacts, responses and management of Hurricanes

Impacts:

• Social-1242 people were killed in Louisiana Mississippi, with over 1 million being displaced, and 5 million who had no electricity.
• Economic-Damage estimated to be $200billion. Oil rigs were damaged, and the price of oil increased by $60 per barrel, and £1 per litre in the UK.
• Environmental-80% of the city was flooded, 20% of marshlands damaged by seawater, and 25 million litres of oil were pumped into Lake Pontchartrain

Response:

• Evacuation-The mayor ordered New Orleans to be evacuated on 28th august, although 150,000 people chose to stay in New Orleans. People were told to go to the superdome, and 30,000 people went
• Temporary Housing provided by FEMA-Aimed to provide 700,000 people with housing, but only provided 20% of these. THere were 100,000 people living in 37,745 FEMA trailers
• Money provided by Congress and aid donors-Over 70 countries gave aid, the public donated $1.8 billion to the Red Cross. Congress gave $10.5 billion in the first week, and $52 billion by the 7th September

Chad-Causes and impacts to drought in LEDCs

Causes:

• Physical Factors: The North of Chad, which is the Sahara Desert, has only 180mm of rain each year, while Southern areas have up to 300mm, and less than 3% of the land is arable.
• Human Factors: Rapid human population growth, and a 35% increase in livestock population, meaning that more water was required. Overgrazing, use of firewood, and over cultivation meant that soil erosion took place.

Impacts:

• Natural Impacts: Lake Chad shrunk enormously, shrinking from 25,000 km2 to 8,000km2. Lack of water lead to soil erosion by wind. Desertification.
• Economic Impacts: Over 30% of Chad's livestock was killed (780,000 cattle)
• Social Impacts: Over half of Chad's children suffered from chronic malnutrition, causing high child mortality rates.
• Other Impacts: Over 2 million people affected y drought and crop failure.

Australia-Causes and impacts of drought in MEDCs

Causes:

• Physical Factors: Very low rainfall in 2002, lowering water table. Australia is also the world's driest continent.
• Human Factors: Farmers needed a lot of water, so reservoir sites were used up quickly.

Impacts:

• Arable Farming: Farm debt tripled, and income for farmers fell 18% in 2006. There was an 80% rise in the global cost of wheat.
• Livestock farming: Price of wheat for feed doubled between 2005 and 2008, and animals were in very bad conditions, selling for much less. Since there were fewer animals to breed, recovery took longer.
• People: 1700 people lost their job in Mildura, and the value of Australia's economy reduced by 1%
• Bush Fires: Due to the drought, vegetation was very dry, meaning that fires could start very easily if hit by lightning. In February 2009 there was a disaster of a bush fire, destroying 200 homes, and killing 173 people, North of Melbourne. Cost 2 billion Australian Dollars.

Examples of tropical deserts:

• Khartoum, Sahara Desert -Tropical Desert with two summers
• Luderitz, Namib Desert-Coastal Tropical Desert
• Keetmanshoop, Namib Desert-Tropical Desert at a high altitude

Namib Desert, Namibia-Threats to ecosystem of Tropical Deserts

• Opencast mining: The Rossing opencast uranium mine is located 65km NE of Walvis Bay. Large amounts of sand need to be moved to get to the mines, destroying animal habitats. The mining will also require huge amounts of water, which are barely available. It also ruins the beauty of the area.
• Irrigated farming: Crop growing takes place near the Orange river. Irrigation water contains mineral salts, and when the water evaporates, the salt is left behind, creating salt pans, where only salt tolerant plants can survive.
• Tourist activities: Walvis Bay has a lot of sand dunes, and is where many tourists go to ride quad bikes and other off road vehicles around for fun, doing a lot of damage to the area, since it tramples the vegetation that animals rely on.

Namib Desert, Namibia-Opportunities for human activity in the desert

• Contains huge mineral reserves: Over 50% of Namibia's export earnings come from mining. The desert contains reserves of diamonds, uranium, copper, lead, zinc, tin, silver, and tungsten, and the mining of these would help the government to increase their earnings. It would also provide jobs.
• Irrigated farming: Namibia has80km of irrigated farmland. An irrigation scheme has been set up at Hordup using water from the Orange River in South Africa. The hot temperature means that if there was a good supply of water, then it would be ideal conditions to grow crops.
• Tourism: 60% of the Namibian populations works in the service industry. In the desert, there are many activities that can take place, like quad biking, tours for off road vehicles, and ecotourism.

Vegetation and animals in tropical desert

• The Joshua Tree, Mojave Desert
• The Saguaro Cactus, Arizona
• Camels, Sahara Desert
• Fennec Fox, African Deserts
• African Elephant
• Red Kangaroo, Australia
• Desert Toads, African Deserts
• Camels, Atacama desert, Chile
• Elephants, Lions and Oryx in the Namib desert, Namibia
• Locusts, African Desert

Vegetation and animals in Tropical Rainforest

• Hardwoods
• Vines and Climbers
• Pioneers (macaranca)
• Fig Tree
• Pitcher Plants
• Birds of Paradise, New Guinea
• Monkeys
• Frogs
• Flying Lima
• Red Spider Crab
• Elephants
• Chimpanzee

Amazon Rainforest, South America-Causes and Impacts of deforestation

Causes

• The Brazilian Government has been encouraging landless peasants to live as subsistence farmers in the Rainforest, leading to an increase in shifting cultivation, causing deforestation
• Population and poverty has led to the government allowing infrastructure projects like the Trans-Amazonian Highway (4000km long), which requires very large areas of rainforest to be deforested.
• The Amazon developed on an area that is rich in minerals, which has led mining projects, such as the Carajas project near Manaus, to grow in the area, which require the areas to be deforested
• There is a lot of demand for tropical hardwoods, such as Mahogany and Rosewood, causing 5 million hectares of rainforest to be deforested each year.
• Plantation Agriculture requires large areas to grow the large numbers of crop, which are deforested. Wealthy landowners are given the land due to pressure for plantation agriculture. Large amounts of pineapples and coffee are produced.
• The demand for beef leads to landowners being given large amounts of rainforest for cattle ranching. Two thirds of the Amazon's lowland forests have become pastures since 1950, with zeeba cattle being reared.

Impacts

• Loss of wildlife, such as the White Cheeked Spider Monkey, who eats of trees high in the canopy.
• Loss of medicine-over half of our medicines come from the rainforests
• Elimination of Indian groups and their way of life-96% of forest indians have died since the arrival of Europeans in the sixteenth century. Those surviving have been forced into reserves, and those who resist are killed.
• Soil Erosion occurs as there are no plants in the ground to intercept rainfall, or to absorb water. There is also less humus in the soil to bind it, so soil erosion occurs.
• Decrease in soil fertility, as the nutrient cycle is broken when trees are cut down
• Decrease in hardwood, as only one in twenty trees is of economic value to timber companies
• The Carbon dioxide and oxygen balance is disrupted, as there will be fewer trees to absorb CO2 and release oxygen

Amazon Rainforest, South America-Managing the tropical rainforest

• Employ a tropical rainforest police to prevent illegal logging or resource extraction. However, the Amazon is very big, so this doesn't really work. IBAMA, the army, and the federal police all monitor the area, although IBAMA are known to be corrupt, and is inneffective-illegal logging increased by 220% from August 2011 to August 2012
• Create forest reserves where deforestation cannot occur. This would help everyone, but would also be impossible to monitor and stop illegal deforestation. Tumucaque national park has been set up, and is 9,562,770 acres, the size of Taiwan
• Prevent all resource extraction, develop the Amazon in other ways like ecotourism. However, other industries would be more profitable, and it would not lead to enough economic growth. Nakari is a resort located in remote Mamirana Sustainable development reserve.
• Allow resource extraction, but ensure profits from it go towards making their practices more environmentally friendly. This would reduce profit for business
• Complete Tree Censuses and implement selective logging, so logging could still take place, but would be more sustainable. However, it would be difficult to police, and cutting down large mature trees can damage around 30 other trees. The Brazilian Environment institution conducts tree census and polices selective logging
• Allow non polluting and sustainable resource extraction, like rubber tapping, agro-forestry, and scientific research, although these industries yield a smaller profit. The Japan International Cooperation Agency has been involved in agro forestry chocolate for decades
• Work with NGOs to help educate local communities and get them working together to manage the tropical rainforest, building awareness for deforestation, but could cost a lot of money

Theme 3

Industry

Port Talbot, Wales-Factors affecting site of Steel Works

• Water: Port Talbot is on the coast of Wales, and so it has a water source nearby for cooling.
• Flat land: The area it is built on is flat, making it easier and much cheaper to build.
• Resources: While less important now, Port Talbot was historically located near iron and coal mines, making the production of steel cheaper. Raw materials are now imported from South America and North Africa.
• Access: Since it is near the sea, they can import and export resources by sea, and they are also near the M4, which they can also use for importing and exporting.
• Skilled workforce: The people who live around Port Talbot are skilled, making it easier to recruit people who can work on steel production.

Part Talbot, Wales-Problems of Steel Works

• Over-reliance: Since so many people work in the steel works in the area, if it closes, many people in the area will lose their jobs.
• Pollution: Port Talbot is the most polluted place in Wales, and second most polluted in Britain. THere is also a lot of visual pollution.
• Health: There are high levels of ozone in the area, damaging health. Sulphur dioxide, Nirtogen Dioxide, and Carbon Monoxide all cause respiratory problems.

M4 Corridor, UK-Location of High-Tech Industry

Toyota-Distribution of Toyota Factories

Background Info:

• Toyota controls 40% of Japanese Motor Vehicle Market
• Toyota vehicles sold in 170 countries
• Sixth largest company in the world
• Japan produces the most cars in the world

Location:

• The main factory is located on Honshu Island, in Toyota City (centre of country)
• Employs 43,000 people
• Large skilled workforce in the area
• Land is flat and cheap
• Centre of Japan, so it can supply rest of country easily
• Ships cars to the densely populated Kanto District
• Nagoya Port is 29km away, which can be used to ship cars around the world.

Distribution:

• Highest number of factories found in East Asia, in countries like China, Vietnam, and Taiwan.
• Also found in North America and Europe
• Generally clustered together
• Few anomalies, such as a factory in Kenya, and another in South Africa

Agricultural Systems

Brazil-Extensive commercial beef farming

Physical Inputs:

• Higher rainfall means that more grass can grow, making it better for grazing. The Southeast of Brazil has 1000-2000mm of rain per year
• Vegetation gives more plants for cattle to graze on
• Requires a large amount of land, which is available in Brazil. Some areas have only 1 animal per hectare.

Human and Economic inputs:

• Requires skilled labour
• Research and development to improve methods of farming
• Requires capital input
• World's fifth most populous country, creating a market. JBS Friboi exports beef to other countries

Processes:

• Breeding is the first 6-8 months of a cattle's life, and takes place in the North, where farmers specialise in this
• Grazing requires a lot of grass, which can be found in the Northeast
• Fattening is done near the end of the cattle's life, and is done in places which have the biggest market available, which is in the Southeast and the Central West regions.

Outputs:

• Fresh beef from cattle is sold to countries like Russia and Venezuela
• Processed meat is sent to Europe and America
• Leather (made from skin of cattle) is sent to China, Italy, Vietnam and Hong Kong, where it is used for clothes and shoes

Swaziland-Small Scale subsistence farming

Inputs:

• Labour: Members of the family, generally women, since some men left to work in mines in South Africa for extra money
• Capital: Small amounts of used from casual work done to provide a little extra cash, and it can also come from the South African mines
• Traditional knowledge
• Hand tools: e.g. hoes, as people cannot afford the more expensive tools, such as tractors (although the government has started a tractor hire scheme)
• Irrigation water in Middle and Low velds, using water from nearby streams

Processes:

• Cattle Grazing on Swazi National land
• Cattle guarded by herd boys
• Burning of pastures in dry winters to allow nutritious shoots to grow
• Ploughing in June before rain
• Sowing of maize seeds in Summer (October)
• Terracing of steep slopes in High Veld

Outputs:

• Harvested Maize, used to produce flour
• Millet and vegetables
• Cattle produce meat and milk

Brazil-Impacts and responses to beef farming

Impacts:

• Deforestation due to ranching:70% of cleared forest is due to cattle ranching, which has large global impacts on the environment.
• Soil Erosion: Rainfall in the North East is 2000-3000mm, which will cause soil erosion. With deforestation occurring, less water is taken up by trees, and less binding is given to the soil, leading to soil erosion by water.
• New modern farming methods: The Awa are one of two remaining hunter-gatherer tribes left in Brazil, but their forest is shrinking, making it harder for these people to survive.

Responses:

• Management is being improved, to reduce the deforestation that occurs. Ibama is doubling police operations to deter deforestation. This will reduce the negative impact it has on the environment, and will also reduce soil erosion.
• Supermarkets, such as Walmart, Carrefour, and Pao de Acucar, have announced that they will not trade with suppliers linked with deforestation, meaning that these companies will have a reduced market
• Improved traceability of beef products from illegal cattle ranching. Bertin is mapping all ranchers that supply products to the company. This means they can see who is responsible for illegal cattle ranching, and they can stop buying from these people.

Tourism

Ibiza, Spain-Tourism in MEDCs

Growth of tourism:

Advantages and disadvantages :

Problems with mass tourism

• Seasonal employment means that while the money is flowing in during the summer, in the winter few people are employed, and there is not a lot of money coming in.
• Water scarcity, pollution and waste: Mass tourism in the last few decades mean that aquifers become depleted, and dependency on desalination plants is rising to get water that is safe to drink. Sewage plants cannot cope during the summer, and end up pumping it into the sea.

Sustainable tourism-what is being done

• Luxury spa resorts are being created, meaning that people will visit Ibiza at times of the year other than May-October, keeping the economy going all year. It also gives opportunities for climate change seminars, helping to improve the environment
• Harvesting of rainwater and recycling wastewater has employed residents in jobs that aren't tourism, reducing dependence on tourism, and also helps to solve the issue of water scarcity
• The Government launched 'Apadrina Patrimonio' in 2008 to combat loss of cultural heritage. It encourages locals to get involved, and raises awareness. This will stop it from being destroyed for buildings or roads.

Jamaica, Caribbean-Tourism in LEDCs

Impacts:

Sustainable tourism:

• There are 12 sandals resorts in the Caribbean, found in Montegro Bay, Negril Beach Resort. They promote sustainable tourism:

• Waste management through composting, recycling of paper, recycling of other items
• Water management via refilling water only upon request, water efficient showers, solar water heaters
• Improving relationships with local communities by sourcing all food locally, and adopting schools and entire communities

Energy and Resources

Nigeria-Problems and solutions to energy in LEDCs

Fuelwood crisis:

• 71% of Nigeria's 148 million inhabitants live on less than 1 dollar per day
• Fuelwood is the main source of energy for cooking
• It emits toxins, causing eye and respiratory problems, and it increases the risk of having a stroke
• It harms both people and the environment
• It leads to deforestation, and Nigeria has one of the highest rates in the world

Solutions:

• Electrical stoves can be introduced
• Kerosene stoves could be introduced
• Charcoal stoves could be introduced

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill-Problems with oil

Background info: On the 22nd April 2010, an explosion damaged a deepwater horizon oil rig, killing 11 workers, and began leaking crude oil, losing around 3000 barrels of oil every day.

Environmental impacts:

• Wildlife-The oil spill polluted waters heavily, poisoning and killing many animals, and birds who couldn't fly due to the added weight of the oil. This killed 3000 birds, 1000 sea turtles, and 100 dolphins and whales.
• Coral Reefs-Coral reefs need sunlight to survive, and the oil spill stopped this from reaching them, which ended with their deaths,
• Salt marshes-The oil spill damaged Louisiana's salt marshes by suffocating and killing plants that hold the soil in place and stabilise the shoreline. This meant the soil collapsed, and plants could not regrow.

Iceland-Geothermal energy

What is it:

• Iceland is located on the edge of a tectonic plate, and so it has huge potential for geothermal energy. 87% of homes get heating and hot water from it, and 24% of the country's energy comes from it.

Power Stations:

• The Krayla Power Station, close to the Krayla Volcano, extracting water at 90 degrees
• The Svartsengi power station near the Keflavik airport, alsoe xtracting water at 90 degrees
• The Reykjavic power station is in Southwestern Iceland
• The Nesjavellir power station is the second largest in iceland, with 20 MW of power and 1800 litres of water each second
• 11km away is the Hellisheidi power station, the largest in Iceland, and will be the largest in the world when finished.

Three Gorges dam, China-Advantages and disadvantages of hydroelectric power

Facts:

• Construction begain in 1994 and finished in 2012, but planning began in the 1940s
• Cost approximately $25 billion, with original estimates only $6 billion
• 1.2 million people lost their homes
• Currently world's largest power station
• 1.3 miles wide, over 600 feet tall, and reservoir is 405 square miles

The dam Site:

• Built in an area where earthquakes are common
• Located in a mountainous area, ideal for HEPs
• No large settlements nearby

Advantages and Disadvantages:

Colorado River, USA and Mexico-Water shortage and management

Why is management necessary?

• Climate-Potential water scarcity since the area has low rainfall and high temperatures-up to 47 degrees in July, and only 0.2mm f rain in June.
• Population-Large increases in population in all states it goes through-Nevada has had a population increase of 37%, and California has a huge population of 30,316,000
• Geography-Flows through 7 states (Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and California) and 2 countries (USA and Mexico).
• Water users-Due to its geography, there are many different users, as teh Colorado is the only nearby source of water. There are tribes who rely on it, Las Vegas requires a huge amount of water, irrigation, desalination, HEPs. 11 major dams on the river
• Environment-The gulf of Mexico and gulf of California both support wildlife. Birds, like the egret, and many fish live in the ecosystems supported by the river.

Conflict between 7 US States:

• Economic users-Farmers use 80% of allocated water for irrigation, and crops would fail without it, but Las Vegas requires water to support tourism, and will also fail without water
• Economic and social-National recreation areas, such as Lake Powell, which brings 1.5 million tourists each year. However, the high population of California requires water for domestic usage
• 7 of the 11 major dams are hydro-electric, and so their prouction of energy is very important. However, this means that when it reaches farmers in Baja California, it is highly polluted

Conflict within one state(Nevada):

• The Pyramid Tribe who live at Pyramid Lake on the Truckee river rely on the Cui Ui fish for food, and it is also important culturally for them as well. It is also an endangered species.
• The Truckee community also lives on the Truckee river, meaning that the two communities need the water. The Truckee community gets money from tourism, and has an endangered species of their own, the bald eagle.
• The Newland farmers need the water to continue making a living for themselves as farmers in this area, since less water means fewer crops, and less money
• The Reno Sparks Urban Community is similar to Las Vegas, and gets a lot of money from tourism. It has a 2% economic growth each year, but it does need the water to continue this way.

Conflict between countries:

• Many farmers in Mexico are subsistence, and so they need the water to grow crops to eat. The water that enters Mexico is generally saline, meaning it is not safe to drink or use.
• Mexico requires the water for agriculture, but not enough water makes it to Mexico, The water that does make it there is saline, and must be desalinised, which is very expensive.
• The reduced flow of water at the mouth means there is a loss of habitat for the egret bird and totoaba fish.
• The US has done multiple things to make issues worse, by lining the All American canal, stopping water from leaking out to Mexican aquifers, and it also closed a desalinisation plant at Yuma on the Mexican border, meaning that the water that enters is extremely salty.

Conflict between agriculture in Yuma Valley, Arizona and economic use in Las Vegas, Nevada

• By building dams and reservoirs water can be supplied to farmland
• 90% of the USAs fresh fruit and veg in. Large amounts of lettuce, broccoli, and cauliflower. Water is provided from the Colorado river, via a series of canals that are over 300km in length. A water card needs to be filled out, and the water is then supplied.
• Drip irrigation is used, as it supplies water straight to the plant's roots. Drip irrigation
• Las Vegas uses the water from Cibola Lake for economic and leisure purposes.
• Conflict has occurred because selling for domestic uses is 4-5 times more valuable than selling to farmers, so the water that the farmers need is sold to Las Vegas