Chapter 4: Water

Chapter 4: Water

Water … before you start!

(a) STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

(b) STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

(i) Answers may include: flooding, death, homes destroyed, landslides/mudslides etc.

(ii) Answers may include: drought, thirst, death, starvation, animals and crops die/can’t grow crops/lack of food etc.

Seventy per cent of the surface is water – so the planet appears mainly blue – especially from above/space.

(i) to drink;

(ii) to rear/produce food;

(iii) to make things (industry);

(iv) to produce energy.

(i) Most (97.5%) is saline (salty).

(ii) Locked away in ice sheets and glaciers

(iii) Stored deep underground.

(a) The answer should just include the two people: A small child/baby and a woman (mother) carrying it on her back. Answer may suggest/include ethnicity (African).

(b) Collecting water from a lake/river – no access to water via a mains supply or well.

(c) In a less developed country (LDC), probably a rural area with no piped supply/lack of money to put it in/no infrastructure. Woman and child look African as opposed to Asian.

• The world’s fresh water is not evenly distributed.

• Just under 1 billion cannot access clean, fresh water for drinking.

• As Figure 2 shows, women and children often spend hours each day collecting water.

• Agriculture is the biggest consumer of water, with over 70% of all the water used.

STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

Answers may include: flat landscape, farming, flooding etc.

Twenty-five per cent of the land is below sea level and much has been drained/reclaimed from the sea. There are also many large rivers. All these factors mean that flooding is a constant threat, especially if climate change leads to rises in sea level.

10.

STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

NB The photo is of a very empty reservoir in South East England following a winter of below average rainfall. Good answers will mention the problems this could cause, and include the words given – reservoir, shortage and water stress.

11.

By 2030 at least half the world’s population will be suffering from water stress: as water is an essential resource, people will defend their rights to water supplies and are likely to come into conflict over it, especially where it is very limited and/or shared.

4.1 Where is the world’s water?, pages 116–117

There is twice as much land than water on the surface of the Earth. x

Over 95 per cent of the Earth’s water is saline.

Less than 2 per cent of the Earth’s water is fresh water. x

Only 30 per cent of the fresh water is accessible. x

Most of our fresh water is frozen and stored in glaciers and ice caps.

They are on the surface: so easier to access – do not need wells/boreholes sunk (which costs money).

(a) In the sea/ocean; in the sky as water vapour and/or clouds; on the land (there is a large island in the distance) – on the surface or underground.

(b) If NO, explain why: can’t see water vapour or the water underground on the land (or on the surface as is too far away/dark).
If YES, will depend on what student answered in (a).

(a) A system is a collection of parts which work together. Most systems have inputs, processes and outputs.

(b) A cycle goes round and round – as does water in many forms within the hydrological cycle.

Rain, sleet, snow and hail precipitation

Water changing from a gas into a liquid condensation

Water vapour from vegetation transpiration

The movement of water underground groundwater flow

Water changing from a liquid into gas evaporation

The movement of water on the land surface run-off

(a) STUDENT RESEARCH.

(b) infiltration = water sinking down through the soil
percolation = water moving down from the soil into the underlying rocks
interception = water, especially rain, is prevented from reaching the ground by trees/vegetation, i.e. it is intercepted en route
throughflow = water flowing through the sloping soil layer to a river

(a) There are a number of places where students could put the various letters. See diagram for the main locations.

(b) As above

4.2 Access to water, pages 118–119

(a) The detail of answers may vary slightly from those in the table.

Water
availability
(m3 per person
per year) / Location (countries, continent)
Low
(up to 2499) / South Africa, Botswana (Southern Africa)
Medium
(2500–5999) / Spain, France, Italy, Greece (Western Europe)
High
(Over 6000) / Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia (Northern Europe)

(b) Many choices including: Canada, Iceland, Norway, Gabon, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana, Papua New Guinea, Laos etc.

• To survive we need 2 litres of water a day to drink.

• For all our basic needs we need 25–50 litres a day.

• Water is needed for us to stay healthy – for good personal hygiene and sanitation.

• The Earth has enough water for everyone’s needs.

(i) The climate varies: some areas are very dry, whilst others are wet.

(ii) Some countries are more densely populated than others so need more – this map looks at what is available per person, not the total amount of water available.

Most LDCs have less water available than MDCs.

Many MDCs cannot afford piped water or systems to remove waste (sanitation). x

LDCs use up to 200 times more water, for personal and industrial use, than MDCs. x

Globally we use twice as much water today as we did 100 years ago. x

STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

(a) To halve the proportion of people living without access to safe water and sanitation by 2015.

(b) Very successful – the goal was reached in 2010.

(c) Eighty-nine per cent (6 billion) now have access to improved water via pipes or wells, especially those in parts of India and China.

(d) In the very poorest in areas like sub-Saharan Africa, forty per cent of the people still have no access to safe water. Two and a half billion are still lacking basic sanitation.

• Basic answer – Improving sanitation is much more costly than providing safe water, e.g. via a local well.

• Good answers will go into more detail using some or all of the words listed.

STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

4.3 Water consumption and home use,
pages 120–121

Many answers to this – may include:

(a) USA, Spain, Sudan, Guyana, Thailand, Malaysia, Italy, Greece.

(b) China, Peru, Afghanistan, Georgia, Namibia, DR of Congo, Zambia, Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia etc.

(c) The biggest users of water per capita are North America, most of Europe, Australia and the islands in and around Indonesia. The lowest users are Southern Africa, India, China, and the Pacific coast of South America. Generally the biggest users are MDCs and the lowest are LDCs.

It enables us to compare countries properly. If it is just the total amount used, figures for quite different countries could be similar even though they had large differences in use because of the number of people living there.

As LDCs industrialise and urbanise they will need more water. MDCs have already industrialised and have large urban populations. Population growth is also highest in LDCs.

(a) Agriculture accounts for over two thirds (70%) of the world’s water consumption. Of the remaining 30%, industry uses 22% and use in the home (domestic) 8%.

(b) In high income countries, the biggest consumer is industry (59%), with agriculture at 30% and domestic use 11%. The pattern is quite different in low/middle income countries. Just over 4/5th (82%) is used in agriculture, 10% in industry and 8% in the home.

(a) Water footprint means how much water is used by each person. This can be divided into different uses e.g. home or domestic use.

(b) The Netherlands water footprint for domestic use is 127 litres per day per person. This is less than half the Europe average of 320; but far lower than the average use in the Americas. It is only slightly above the average (120) for Asia. It suggests that the country is very water efficient when compared to other MDCs.

(a) STUDENT CHOICE. Should include different categories of use, e.g. personal hygiene; eating and drinking; leisure etc.

(b) STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

More labour-saving devices which use more water, e.g. dishwashers, garden sprinkler systems. There is more money to install, e.g. swimming pools etc. As LDCs grow, more can afford a ‘better’ lifestyle – from basic facilities (piped water) through to appliances like washing machines etc.

(a) In houses, gardens, swimming pools and golf courses.

(b) Phoenix is a city built in a hot desert region. Most of its water comes from underground, but is being extracted at a much faster rate than is being naturally replaced and is therefore unsustainable.

4.4 Water and agriculture, pages 122–123

Agriculture accounts for 70 per cent of the world’s water consumption. It is higher in some countries – in China 88 per cent of water used is for agriculture. However, the highest is India with 88 per cent. High income countries use far less, with an average of just 30 per cent of total water use from agriculture. The Netherlands with 32 per cent is slightly above this average. In the USA almost half the water used is in this sector.

(a) Between 2000 and 5000 litres.

(b) STUDENT CHOICE/OPEN ANSWERS.

(c) Answer should explain the different ingredients used to make the item chosen – to grow it/rear it/cook it/package it/transport it etc.

To replace lack of rain during dry seasons / LDCs like India and the Philippines
To increase the amount which can be grown (yield) e.g. rice / The Netherlands
To provide artificial conditions for crops which could not usually be grown e.g. in glasshouses / South west USA and Egypt
To grow crops or rear animals in dry, arid regions / Southern Mediterranean

STUDENT CHOICE/RESEARCH/DIAGRAM.

4.5 Water and industry, pages 124–125

(a) Industry is the largest consumer of water in high and middle income countries (59%) – much higher than the proportion of total water use (10%) in low income countries.

(b) On average, industry uses less water than agriculture. Agriculture is a primary industry – the products do not make much profit. As a country develops it moves away from agriculture to industry, manufacturing goods which it can make more money from.

Examples may vary for example:

(i) As part of a finished product, e.g. in drinks, sauces etc.

(ii) In the manufacturing process, e.g. washing and cleaning raw materials/machinery.

(iii) In transporting goods to sell, e.g. the manufacture of lorries, road building etc.

(iv) By people working in factories making goods, e.g. hygiene and sanitation facilities.

(a) It is the water needed to produce something (see answers to question 2) but which cannot be seen, e.g. Figure 1 shows that it takes 1 000 000 litres to make a house, e.g. mixing water to make cement and bricks, making paint to decorate it etc.

(b) Answers may include: water to make the components, e.g. tyres, seats, engines etc.; cleaning and washing processes; in the factory making it (facilities for workers); advertising (making paper for leaflets and posters); transporting it to a car showroom etc.

(c) It is ‘virtual’ water because it is not in the final product (car) but in the various processes, systems and facilities needed to make everything that goes into the final product.

Figure 2 page 124 / Figure 3 page 125
Description / hydro-electric power station / coal-fired thermal power station
Uses of water / turn turbines to generate electricity
river valley dammed to create storage reservoir / heated to provide steam to turn turbines
used as a coolant
Other uses/ information / water for irrigation
water for home and industrial use
reservoirs for recreation / Water returned to rivers may harm flora and fauna if contain impurities/too warm.
Some released as steam into the atmosphere.

The world’s most populous countries are China and India. As they continue to develop, their demand for energy will rise. This will lead to an increased demand for water. This is a major problem because in both countries water is already scarce. Globally, it is estimated that industry will need twice as much water by 2030. Most of this increase will be in LDCs.

It can get into rivers and groundwater, polluting or contaminating local water supplies, making them unsafe or even dangerous to drink.

Many tourists visit areas where water is scarce – they want hot, dry, sunny weather on their holidays! They expect there to be plentiful water in their hotels and local facilities, e.g. well-watered

gardens and golf courses, clean and full swimming pools etc. This can cause great problems when local people don’t have enough water and may be a source of conflict. It is also often unsustainable.

4.6 Water, landscape and people, pages 128–129

STUDENT CHOICE: annotations should be brief but clearly explain changes.

(a) A large river delta formed where the rivers Meuse, Rhine and Scheldt enter the North Sea. As they reach the coast they drop large amounts of sediment which form many small islands. These split the river channels into many smaller waterways and form tidal mud flats.

(b) Sand dunes are found, stretching 120 km north from the Hook of Holland. Further north are the West Frisian Islands, tidal lagoons and mud flats.

(a) Several major European rivers enter the Netherlands to reach the North Sea.

(b) A ‘drain’ is an area where water is gradually removed – in this case, the Netherlands provides the final ‘drain’ for water from these major rivers to reach the end of their courses in North Sea.

STUDENT CENTRED/OWN DIAGRAM.

STUDENT CENTRED/OWN ANSWERS

Answers may include ideas about: