Flashcards
Population and the environment
Cards in this deck (108)
- 1What do features such as the climate, geology, topography and ecosystems determine?The nature of soils, drainage, water supply, and potential environmental hazards.
- 2What will these in turn affect?Food production
Energy supplies
Settlement patterns
Human health - 3And so contribute to...Population size
Distribution and its success in developing the resources it has at its disposal. - 4What negative impacts on the physical environment have occurred due to recent trends in population growth and development?Climate change - droughts, floods, sea level rise
Pollution of water and land as well as atmosphere
Ozone depletion
Depletion of finite natural resources
Damage to wildlife and their habitats leading to increased extinction rates. - 5What do rainfall, temperature, wind velocity, and levels of solar insolation determine?Food productivity, the type of farming system adopted and which species are selected for cultivation.
- 6What is the temp most crops need to grow?5°C
- 7What can climate also drive?The nature of disease.
- 8What are examples of diseases that directly affect death rates and life expectancy in the human population?Malaria
Yellow fever
Ebola - 9What can high infant and child mortality rates in tropical and subtropical areas also influence?Fertility rates as families seek to compensate for their loss.
- 10What is the most important feature of soil?Its fertility.
- 11What does this depend upon?Soil structure, texture, acidity, organic matter and nutrients.
- 12What do these determine?Agricultural output and the type of farming system employed.
- 13What can maintain fertility?Artificial chemical fertilisers in areas of high population density.
- 14But what unsustainable outcomes can this produce?Contributing to water pollution, eutrophication and increased greenhouse gas emissions.
- 15What are areas with fertile soils often associated with? However...Densely populated areas.
However some such as rich volcanic soils are also prone to hazards. - 16What else is water key for apart from human hydration?Irrigation to maintain food production
Also hygiene and sanitation - 17What have concentrations of other resources such as fossil fuels given rise to?Industrialisation and consequently densely populated conurbations in Europe, parts of USA and now increasingly in China and India.
- 18What is population density?Average number of people living in a specified area.
- 19How is population density usually expressed?Number of people per km²
- 20What is population distribution?Pattern of where people live. This can be considered at all scales from local to global, in an area or country.
- 21What do elements of the environment clearly determine?Distribution patterns and population density
- 22What has the process of development been associated with?The human ability to acquire and make use of the resources made available by the physical environment.
- 23What is Agricultural productivity?The ratio of agricultural outputs to agricultural inputs.
- 24What is meant by agriculture?The science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool and other products.
- 25What is the definition of climate?A regions long term weather patterns.
(measured in terms of average precipitation, maximum and minimum temps, sunshine hours, humidity, frequency of weather...) - 26What is meant by food security?Exists when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life.
- 27What is Salinisation?Build up of salts eventually to toxic levels for plants.
- 28What is the definition of soil?The upper layer of earth in which plants grow, a black/dark brown material typically consisting of a mixture of organic remains, clay and rock particles.
- 29What is Topography?Relief and drainage of an area.
- 30What is meant by Zonal soil?Soil which has experienced the maximum effect of climate and natural vegetation upon the parent rock, assuming there are no extremes of weathering, relief or drainage.
- 31In the early 1960s what was the global food supply for humans?2,300 calories per person per day and was very unevenly distributed
- 32What did this rise to by 2010?Over 2,800 calories per day.
- 33How many people were still suffering from under-nutrition?800 million people.
- 34What factors did these gains result from?The package of technologies referred to as the green revolution, including increased use of new, high-yielding crop varieties and technologies.
Irrigation fertiliser and pesticides increased yields of farmers.
An increased reliance on global trade. - 35What has happened to the rate of production and consumption in low income countries?In low income countries, production and consumption of the main agricultural products have been growing at much higher and increasing rates than in the higher income countries.
- 36What does this have a result of?Higher pop rates, increasing wealth.
- 37What is food consumption expressed as?In kilocalories per capita per day
- 38FAO?Food and agriculture organisation
- 39According to FAO what is undernourishment?Is dietary intake under the minimum daily requirement
- 40how do dietary energy requirements differ?By gender, age, different levels of physical activity
- 41Ranges between?1700-200 kcals a day
- 42How is amount of undernourishment calculated?Average food available for consumption, size of population, relative disparities in access to food, minimum calories required
- 43What is commercial farming?Carried out so that the majority of produce is sold and income generated can provide a livelihood for the farm workers as well as be invested back into the farm
- 44What is subsistence farming?Means that majority of the produce is consumed by the landowner and the farm workers, though a little surplus may be sold to buy other living requirements and be invested in the farm
- 45What is Intensive farming? What are the 2 types?Usually relatively small scale
Either
Capital intensive
Labour intensive - 46What is Capital intensive?Money invested in soil improvement, machinery, buildings, pest control, high qual seeds and animals.
Few people employed so output is high per hectare and per worker - 47What is Labour intensive?The number of farm workers is high so there is a high output per hectare but low output per worker
- 48What is Extensive farming?Carried out on large scale over a large area. There are areas where although labour force is low, there is high capital input eg on qual seeds. Other areas still have low labour force but rely on sheer amount of land they are farming to provide sufficient output for their needs
- 49What is agricultural productivity measured in?Terms of yield, how many kilograms of grain per hectare
- 50What is the most commonly used measurement of productivity?Total factor Productivity (TFP)
- 51What is TFP?ratio of agricultural outputs to unputs
- 52For crops what does TFP improve with?Higher yielding, disease resistant, drought or flood tolerant crops
More efficient and timely cultivation and harvesting practices
Using techniques that indicate precisely when and how much fertiliser to apply - 53For raising livestock?Breeding animals for favourable genetic qualities and behaviour
Using better animal care and disease management
Adoption of high qual feeds - 54Farmers make decisions on how to use their land based on...Own strengths, knowledge, skills
Cultural factors
Economic variables
Physical factors - 55What are 2 of the most important physical factorsClimate
Soil - 56What is Climate smart agriculture?CSA is an integrative approach to address the interlinked challenged=s related to food security and climate change
- 57Through?Economic change - sustainably increasing agricultural productivity to support equitable increases in farm incomes, food security and development
Social change - adapting and building the resilience of agriculture and food security systems to climate change
Environmental means - reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture - 58Sustainable soil management can contribute to....Production of more and healthier food
- 59What is soil made up of?Mixture of solids, liquids and gases that occur on the land surface
- 60How can you characterise it ?Horizons - layers that are distinguishable from the initial material as a result of additions, losses, transformations of energy and matter
Ability to support rooted plants in a natural environment - 61The upper limit of soil is the boundary between...soil and air, shallow water, live plants or plant materials that have not begun to decompose
- 62The lower limit of soil...Separates soil from weathered rock layer underneath
- 63soil is an...ecosystem that can be managed to provide nutrients for plant growth.
Absorb and hold rainwater for use during dryer periods - 64what are the 5 essential functions soil performs?Cycling nutrients - carbon, nitrogen
regulating water-control where rain, irrigation water goes
sustaining plant and animal life - diversity and productivity is dependent on soil
filtering potential pollutants
physical stability and support - soil structure provides a medium for plant roots - 65What is a zonal soil?Major soil group often classified as covering a wide geographic region and embracing soils that are well developed and mature
in state of dynamic equilibrium with climate, veg,parent matter - 66What variations are there?Chernozem
Red/yellow latosols - 67What are Chernozem?Deep black soils rich in organic matter
contains high percentage of organic matter
high natural percentage of nutrients such as ammonia - 68Where does there mineral content derive from?wind blown sediments
- 69structure?goes 1 metre deep and has a clay like structure which is good for retaining water
- 70found?In regions with a continental climate and flat or gently undulating plains with tall grass natural veg
- 71cover how many hectares worldwide?230million mainly in the middle latitude steppes of eurasia and north america
- 72Used to be covered by?chernozems
- 73What attracts modern agriculture?high natural fertility and favourable topography, permit a wide range of agricultural uses including arable cropping
- 74What crops?cereals, oilseed plants, potatoes
- 75What are red/yellow latosols a product of?hot wet climate and thick forest cover
- 76ALthough they appear to be very fertile...most of the organic nutrients are stored in the vegetation and not the soil
- 77What is a successful way of farming in this area?shifting cultivation. clear small areas of veg and burn it because ash provides nutrients for the infertile soil, land then farmed for 2-3 more years before move onto another area
soil and forest can recover - 78what is soil erosion?wearing away of top layer of soil.
- 79why is this bad?most fertile layer because contains most organic, nutrient rich material.
framers want to protect for growing their crops and for animals to graze - 80How is soil eroded?water and wind, water erosion more serious
- 81How many tonnes of topsoil lost each year?75 billion
approx 9 million hectares of productive land lost - 82types of water erosionrill erosion - short lived well defined streams - when rains and soil does not soak it up
sheet erosion - as raindrops loosen soil over land flow transport topsoil in a uniform fashion
gully erosion - if rills are unattended they grow into larger gullies - ditches - not able to be used for growing crops
river bank erosion - soil washed away by unmanaged rivers as they meander across floodplain - 83types of wind erosionsaltation
creep - roll particles along surface by being hit by other moving particles
abrasion and attrition
suspension -dust in air - 84when does wind erosion occurforces are exerted by wind overcome the gravitational and cohesive forces of soil particles on the surface of the ground
- 85Repeated erosion reduces fertility byremoval of topsoil
reduction of depth of soil available for rooting and water storage
reducing infiltration of water into soil, increasing erosion and run off - 86lead to?loss of seeds and pesticides
young plants being sandblasted
increased difficulty of field operations - 87damage to the environment can include?deposition of sediment onto roads, drains
damage of quality of water courses
increased run off - greater flood hazard
sediment in rivers damaging spawning ground of fish - 88water erosion control - reduce amount of surface flowinstalling and maintaining field drains
reducing the amount of water running off roads
use of farmyard manure to stabilise topsoil
protecting soil in winter by early sowing or use of cover crops
work across slopes whenever possible
contour ploughing reduces overland flow and formation of rills and gullies - 89wind erosion controlincreasing soil cohesion by applying organic matter to the soil - improve structure
increasing roughness of soil or leaving crop residues and not ploughing them into the soil
increasing plant cover so that surface wind speed is cut
increasing plant cover to about 50% gives adequate protection
planting lines of trees cut wind speed and so reduces evaporation and wind erosion - 90when is soil considered to be water logged?when enough of the pore spaces in the soil are occupied with water rather than air, insufficient oxygen for plants to respire - anaerobic conditions
- 91what does a lack of oxygen in root zone meanroot tissues decompose
growth and development of plants is stalled - plant can die if cant respire - but often dont last long enough - 92when does waterlogging occursurface fed waterlogging happens when precipitation, irrigation water or river floodplain exceeds the combination of evapotranspiration and percolation so that the water stays in or on surface of soil
groundwater fed waterlogging is caused when rate of rising groundwater is not matched by the rate of evapotranspiration. - 93Salinisation refers to?build up of salts in soil eventually to toxic levels for plants
also decreases the osmotic potential of the soil so plants cannot get water from soil - 94problems are most commonly associated withexcessive water application rather than too little.
- 95What is the treatment?flush the soil with lots of water
but results in salinisation of rivers or wherever the water goes - 96in extreme cases when salt crust too think...cannot be flushed, water just runs off
- 97What is soil structurearrangement of soil particles into groupings - called peds or aggregates
- 98soil structures can be...granular and crumb structures - individuals particles of sand, silt, clay grouped together in spherical grains. water circulates easily
blocky structures - cling together in nearly square/angular blocks - sharp edges, relatively large blocks indicates soil resists penetration and movement of water
prismatic and columnar structures - vertical columns or pillars separated by mini vertical cracks, drainage is poor, circulation difficult
platy structures - particles aggregated in thin plates or sheets piled up horizontally - overlap impairing water circulation - 99food security depends onavailability
access
use
stability - 100discussion pointsthere is enough food to feed everyone but not in right places
future needs cannot be met by current levels of production
national food security important cos of global trade
globalisation may lead to persistence of food insecurity and poverty in rural communities
households get enough food but distributions within is unclear - 101GAFSP in partnership with world bank believesneed to produce 50% more food by 2050 to feed everyone
- 102FAO believeshave enough as production has increased faster than demand
- 103Rwanda : after just 30 monthsproject had reached more than 92000 people
- 104looked at nutrition and gender byimproving access to nutrition rich veg
training communities in construction and management of kitchen gardens
partnering with local institutions to create innovative financial products for smallholder farmers - 105several LWH sites - Gatsibo-8 total area of site to be treated?985 hectares - 45 hectares being irrigated
- 106aims to help8,661 people
- 107farmer organised into87 self help groups
- 108investment in
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- A level Geography Flashcards on Population and the environment, created by Erin Vernon on 22/06/2017.
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- Erin Vernon
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