GCSE - PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

In this section of the site, you will find information on all case studies for AQA Unit 1. 

CASE STUDY 1: NEPAL V Italy Earthquake

SPECIFICATION QUESTION: Use named examples to show how the effects and responses to a tectonic hazard vary between two areas of contrasting levels of wealth..
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ITALY

The earthquake shook the ground for 3 minutes.  The earthquake measured 6.2 on the Richter Scale and hit Central Italy on 24 August 2016 at 03:36:32. The earthquake occurred at a destructive plate margin where the subduction of the Adriatic Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate occurs. 

This was the largest tremor since 2009. 

PRIMARY EFFECTS
295 people were killed and 365 people were injured.
In Amatrice over half the buildings were destroyed including almost the entire historic town. The village of Pescara del Tronto was levelled to the ground

SECONDARY EFFECTS
roads were damaged.
​Many landslides cut off  communities
Damage overall cost $1-11 billion
4000 homes were destroyed and 2,100 people had to use emergency shelters.

SHORT TERM / IMMEDIATE RESPONSES

Emergency services acted quickly. Over 4,400 people were involved in the search and rescue efforts.
70 dogs were used along with 9 helicopters to evacuate the injured to hospitals.
LONG TERM RESPONSES

10-year reconstruction project called “Casa Italia” (meaning “The House Of Italy”).
Italy promised $52 million of funds to rebuild
NEPAL

PRIMARY EFFECTS

9000 People died
3 million were left homeless
1.4 million were without food
7000 schools destroyed
50% shops destroyed
Cost of damage $5 billion




SECONDARY EFFECTS

Ground shaking triggered landslides and avalanches
Avalanches on Mt Everest killed 19
An avalanche in Langtang left 250 people missing
A Landslide blocked the Kali River
On 25th April 2015 Nepal was struck by an earthquake measuring 7.9 on the richter scale. The epicentre was 50 miles from the capital Kathmandu. This is a destructive place where the Indo-Australian plate is colliding with the Eurasian plate at a rate of 45mm per year. The earthquake was very shallow, just 15km below the surface.
SHORT TERM RESPONSES

Search and rescue teams and medical support was sent quickly from India, China and UK
Helicopters rescured many people caught in Avalanches
500,000 tents were provided to the homeless
Field hospitals were set up
300,000 people migrated from Kathmandu for shelter.
LONG TERM RESPONSES

Roads were repaired and landslides clears
Thousands of homeless were rehoused. 7000 schools were rebuilt
Stricter controls on building codes
In June 2015 Nepal hosted an international conference to discuss reconstruction.
In July 2015 heritage sites re-opened and tourists were returning.
In August 2015 Everest was reopened to climbers after routes were cleared.
CASE STUDY 2 HURRICANE KATRINA

SPECIFICATION QUESTION: Use a named example of a tropical storm to show its effects and responses
Impacts
  • Katrina was a category 5/4 storm.
  • Storm surges reached over 6 metres in height.
  • New Orleans was one of the worst affected areas because it lies below sea level and is protected by levees. These protect it from the Mississippi River and Lake Ponchartrain. The levee defences were unable to cope with the strength of Katrina, and water flooded into the city.
  • Despite an evacuation order, many of the poorest people remained in the city.
  • People sought refuge in the Superdome stadium. Conditions were unhygienic, and there was a shortage of food and water. Looting was commonplace throughout the city. Tension was high and many felt vulnerable and unsafe.
  • 1 million people were made homeless and about 1,200 people drowned in the floods.
  • Oil facilities were damaged and as a result petrol prices rose in the UK and USA.
Responses

Flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans 2005
There was much criticism of the authorities for their handling of the disaster. Although many people were evacuated, it was a slow process and the poorest and most vulnerable were left behind.
$50 billion in aid was given by the government.
The UK government sent food aid during the early stages of the recovery process.
The National Guard was mobilised to restore and maintain law and order in what became a hostile and unsafe living environment.

cASE sTUDY 3  - wEATHER - HEATWAVE
​SPECIFICATION QUESTION: An example of a recent extreme weather event in the UK to illustrate: • causes • social, economic and environmental impacts • how management strategies can reduce risk.
Effects of the heatwave. About 2,000 people died due to the heat in UK which led to a shortage of space to store dead bodies in mortuaries. 

Human effects
  • Heat-stroke - normally we sweat, and this keeps us cool on hot days. On very hot days our bodies may not be able to keep cool enough by sweating alone, and our core body temperature may rise. This can lead to headaches, dizziness and even death.
  • Dehydration - this is the loss of water from our bodies. It can cause tiredness and problems with breathing and heart rates.
  • Sunburn - damage to the skin which can be painful and may increase the risks of getting skin cancer.
  • Air pollution - it is thought that one third of the deaths caused by the heatwave in the UK were caused by poor air quality.
  • Drowning - some people drowned when trying to cool off in rivers and lakes.

We provide the  Department of Health with heatwave warnings (Heat-Health Watch) to prepare the NHS, health professionals, carers and the general public for the effects of extreme heat. You can find out more about our Heat-Health Watch warnings in the weather section of the Met Office website.

Summers as hot as 2003 could happen every other year by the year 2050 as a result of climate change due to human activities.

Environment and social effects
  • Water supplies - drinking water supplies were affected in some parts of the UK and hosepipe bans introduced.
  • Tourism - many parts of the UK reported increased levels of tourism as people decided to holiday in the UK while the weather was unusually dry and hot.
  • Agriculture - many chickens, pigs and cows died during the heat in Europe and crops failed in the dry conditions. This led to higher food prices. It is thought to have cost European farming 13.1 billion euros.
  • Transport - some railway tracks buckled in the heat. The London Underground became unbearable. Some road surfaces melted. Low river levels prevented some boats from sailing.
  • The London Eye closed on one day as it became too hot in the cabins.


As a result of the European heatwave:
  • A joint Met Office/Department of Health project called the Heat-Health Watch now gives advanced warning of UK hot. weather. It operates every summer from 1 June to 15 September.
  • The  government has made efforts to improve its prevention, surveillance and alert system for people such as the elderly living alone.
The heatwave of 2003

More than 2,000 people died after a record-breaking heatwave left the UK sweltering in August 2003. The period of extreme heat is thought to be the warmest for up to 500 years, and many European countries experienced their highest temperatures on record.

Immediate responses to the heatwave.
  • Public water supply shortages occurred in several countries, including the UK, which led to a temporary ban on using hose pipes.
  • TV news, internet and newspapers informed the public on how to cope with the heat - drinking plenty of water, wearing cool clothing, and staying in the shade in the middle of the day.
  • Network Rail in the UK imposed speed restrictions for trains when the temperature was above 30 °C. This was to help avoid trains derailing when railway lines might have buckled
  • Workers around the UK altered their working hours. Some refuse collectors started earlier to pick up rapidly decomposing rubbish from the streets.

What happened to cause the heatwave?
It shows an area of high pressure over most of Western Europe. Air is moving around the high in a clockwise direction, bringing a hot, dry tropical continental air mass to the UK at this time. This pattern occurred for much of the rest of the month. High pressure areas usually bring little cloud and warm conditions in summer.

Maximum temperatures =Many parts of Europe saw their temperature records broken during this summer, including the UK. A sweltering 38.5°C was recorded in Brogdale in Kent on 10 August 2003, a record high which still stands today.

UK rainfall - Rainfall over much of UK was below what is normally expected during the months of June, July and August. The long-lasting high pressure system tended to reduce the amount of rain that fell.
CASE STUDY 4 ECOSYSTEMS - AMAZON RAINFOREST BRAZIL 
 
SPECIFICATION QUESTION: A case study of a tropical rainforest to illustrate: • causes of deforestation – subsistence and commercial farming, logging, road building, mineral extraction, energy development, settlement, population growth • impacts of deforestation – economic development, soil erosion, contribution to climate change.

The Amazon Rainforest – an example of a large scale ecosystem and the economic effects

Location: The Amazon Rainforest is located in South America 
Some key facts: 
  • It is 5.5 million square kilometres in size 
  • The land is mainly used for grazing cattle and growing soya beans
  • It is estimated that more than 1/3 of all species live in the Amazon rainforest
 How people have changed the ecosystem: 
  • Tropical rainforest has been cut down to build the largest iron ore mine in the world – Carajas 
  • A 900km rail link was built to Sao Luis on the coast to export the iron
what gains and losses have resulted from this change: 
Gains: 
  • Profits from Carajas have helped Brazil to settle other foreign debts 
  • Long term jobs have been created
  • It has encouraged other industries to locate in the area
Losses: 
  • Native Indians such as the Yanamami have lost their homelands, culture and way of life 
  • Animals and plants die leading to fewer species and extinction. Some of these species are used for medicinal purposes e.g. rosy periwinkle used for leukaemia treatment
Effects on rainforest – removal of plants and animals 
  • Change in biodiversity – removal of plants and animals 
  • Changes in hydrology – the water cycle is disrupted without the trees, interception and transpiration are disrupted, water and silt pour into rivers causing them to flood
  • Changes in soils  - soils are easily eroded and rain removes nutrients from the soil via surface-runoff and leaching. The soil becomes infertile and there is gullying and mud slides on steep slopes
  • Changes in climate – transpiration is reduced and evaporation increases. This leads to a drier climate. Deforestation leads to global warming because trees use up CO2 in 
    the atmosphere, and this leads to global warming
  • Effects on groups of people – indigenous tribes have been forced to leave their land. The movement of people from rural areas to the city (urbanisation) leads to 
    problems such as the development of shanty towns (favela’s)
How does economic activity change the ecosystem? 
  • The removal of trees is called deforestation – this is happening in the Amazon 
  • The timber industry is responsible providing wood for paper, furniture and new houses. This has caused large scale destruction as vehicles and machinery drive through the forest
  • Slash and burn – subsistence farmers clear the forest by burning. After 3 or 4 years of farming the soils become infertile and another patch of the forest is cleared
  • Cattle ranching for beef. Grazing animals damages the forest and after about 10 years of overgrazing the rain turns land into a semi-desert
  • Iron-ore mining at Carajas in Amazonia has destroyed the forest
  • Hydroelectric schemes like the Belo Monte dam in Brazil has led to the destruction of the rainforest
The water cycle in the rainforest 
  • The forest acts as a store of water in between rainfall events 
  • After a rain storm 80% of the rainfall is transferred back to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration
  • Indigenous tribes (like the Kayapo people) live in the rainforest
  • Increases global warming
The nutrient cycle in the rainforest
The nutrient cycle in the forest is very delicate
Nutrient pass between all the different components.
Plants take up nutrients from the soil. Consumers (animals) eat the plant and absorb those nutrients. When animals defecate (poo) or die the nutrients are returned to the soil be decomposers. The cycle then continues. 
When trees are chopped down the nutrient cycle is broken and the soil quickly loses its nutrients as they cannot be replaced.


 Sustainable management of the rainforest
  • Debt-for-nature swaps – poor countries can ‘swap’ the debt they have with a rich country if they protect an area of rainforest 
  • Wildlife corridors – link up fragmented areas of land with corridors of vegetation so animals can find enough food and to reproduce
  • Sustainable logging – only cutting down trees that are a certain species or age
  • Rubber tapping – collect rubber from trees but do not cut them down



CASE STUDY 5  - HOT DESERTS  THAR DESERT, INDIA
SPECIFICATION QUESTION ​A case study of a hot desert to illustrate: • development opportunities in hot desert environments: mineral extraction, energy, farming, tourism • challenges of developing hot desert environments: extreme temperatures, water supply, inaccessibility.
The Thar Desert is in India
It covers 200,000 km squared
It is in NW India close to the boarder with Pakistan
It is the most densely populated desert in the world
OPPORTUNITIES

MINERAL EXTRACTION
The desert region has valuable reserves of minerals which are used all over India and exported across the world.
  • Gypsum (used in making plaster) is found
  • Feldspar (used in ceramics)
  • Phospherite (used in fertilisers0
  • Kaolin (used to whiten paper)

TOURISM
  • The beautiful scenery is ideal for tourists
  • 50,000 people visit the desert every year
  • Desert safaris on camels are popular
  • An annual desert festival is held and locals benefit from increase in trade.

ENERGY
  • Coal - there are extensive coal deposits in the Thar
  • Oil - A large oilfield has been discovered in the Barmer District
  • Wind - The Jaisalmer Wind Park was built in 2001
  • Solar - he Thar offers ideal conditions for solar energy. The Bhaleri solar power is used in water treatment.

FARMING
  • Subsistence farming is popular (farming for themselves not for commercial benefits)
  • Commercial farming is now possible due to increase in irrigation projects. The Indira Ghandi Canal was built in 1958 which brought water for crops.
The desert has a population density of over 80 people per km2. (Other deserts have population densities below 10 per km2). There are many mobile sand dunes, and sandy hills.
CHALLENGES

WATER SUPPLY
  • As population increases, the demand for water increases.
  • There are few rivers and streams
  • Some water can be obtained from underground sources but this can be poor quality.

EXTREME TEMPERATURES
  • Temperatures are high - sometimes in excess of 50 degrees
  • Working in this heat is hard, especially for those outdoors like farmers
  • High evaporation rates lead to water shortages which effects humans and animals
  • pants and animals have to adapt to survive in the heat.

ACCESSIBILITY
  • Due to the extreme weather and vast areas the road network is poor.
  • roads are hard to build and maintain as high temperatures can cause them to melt.
  • Some places are only accessible via camel.
CASE STUDY 6  - COASTAL FEATURES - DORSET COASTLINE
SPECIFICATION QUESTION - ​An example of a section of coastline in the UK to identify its major landforms of erosion and deposition.
The Dorset Coast is located on the South Coast of England.  It stretches from Lyme Regis in the west to Bournemouth in the east.

—The area around Lulworth Cove to Swanage Bay is an area of coastal erosion.  The geology of the area is responsible for creating the spectacular coastal land forms such as Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door (sea arch), Stair Hole and Old Harry (sea stack).
—From Lulworth Cove to Durlston head the coastline is concordant (alternating bands of hard and soft rock lie parallel to the coast).
—Moving northwards from Durlston Head to Studland Bay the coastline is discordant (alternating bands of hard and soft rock meet the coast at right angles).
CONCORDANT COASTLINE
DISCORDANT COASLTINE
FEATURE 1 DURDLE DOOR
Durdle Door is an excellent example of a sea arch.  The sea has broken through the outer wall of Porland Stone and rapidly eroded the Purbeck Bed behind.

FEATURE 3 LULWORTH COVE
Lulworth Cove is a small circular bay with a narrow seaward opening.  It is thought that the weak point that produced the opening was due to a river.  Marine erosion exploited the line of weakness produced by the river and eroded the weaker rocks behind the Portland Stone until the more resistant chalk cliffs were reached.
FEATURE 2 CHESISL BEACH
Chesil beach stretches for 18km and is made of pebbles and shingle.
It is Britain’s longest tombolo.  A tombolo is a spit that connects to an island – in this case, the Isle of Portland.

FEATURE 4 OLD HARRY (STACK)
Old Harry Rocks are chalk sea stacks that have been eroded by the power of the sea.
CASE STUDY 7  - COASTAL MANAGEMENT - LYME REGIS
SPECIFICATION QUESTION - An example of a coastal management scheme in the UK to show: • the reasons for management • the management strategy • the resulting effects and conflicts.


Why does Lyme Regis need protecting?
  • It is hit by waves that can have a 4000km fetch.
  • The geology of the area makes the cliffs very unstable. Loose material made of of clay and mud sit on limestone rocks that slope toward the sea.
  • Rain makes the top material loose and heavy and more likely to cause a landslide. Erosion at the bottom of the cliffs from the sea also increase risk of slides.
What is at Risk? 
  •  Houses along Marine Parade are flooded by waves over-topping during storms. 
  • 177 buildings, including homes, cafes, hotels are at risk of landslides.
  • The car park east of Lyme Regis is slowly disappearing down the cliff
  • The golf course between Charmouth and Lyme Regis is disappearing.






WHAT IS BEING DONE TO PROTECT LYME REGIS
CASE STUDY 8 - RIVER LANDSCAPE
SPECIFICATION QUESTION - ​An example of a river valley in the UK to identify its major landforms of erosion and deposition
CASE STUDY 9 - RIVER FLOOD - COCKERMOUTH CUMBRIA
SPECIFICATION LINK - An example of a flood management scheme in the UK to show: • why the scheme was required • the management strategy • the social, economic and environmental issues
Causes: Rain 
A massive downpour of rain (31.4cm), over a 24-hour period triggered the floods that hit Cockermouth and Workington in Cumbria in November
2009
 
What caused all the rain?
Physical causes: The long downpour was caused by a lengthy flow of warm, moist air that came down from the Azores in the mid-Atlantic. This kind of airflow is common in the UK during autumn and winter, and is known as a ‘warm conveyor’. The warmer the air is, the more moisture it can hold.

What else helped to cause the Cumbrian Floods (Physical causes)?
·        The ground was already saturated, so the additional rain flowed as surface run-off straight into the rivers
·        The steep slopes of the Cumbrian Mountains helped the water to run very rapidly into the rivers
 ·       The rivers Derwent and Cocker were already swollen with previous rainfall
·        Cockermouth is at the confluence of the Derwent and Cocker (i.e. they meet there)

Human causes
Building the town around the confluence
Poor ploughing of the fields. Vertical ploughing meant the water sped down to the river very quickly.
 
The effects of the flood
·       Over 1300 homes were flooded and contaminated with sewage
 ·      A number of people had to be evacuated, including 50 by helicopter, when the flooding cut off Cockermouth town centre
·       Many businesses were flooded causing long-term difficulties for the local economy
·       People were told that they were unlikely to be able to move back into flood-damaged homes for at least a year. The cost of putting right the damage was an average
  of £28,000 per house
·       Insurance companies estimated that the final cost of the flood could reach £100 million
·       Four  bridges collapsed and 12 were closed because of flood damage. In Workington,  all the bridges were destroyed or so badly damaged that they were declared
  unsafe – cutting the town in two. People faced a huge round trip to get from one side of the town to the other, using safe bridges
·      One man died– PC Bill Barker

Responses to the flood
 ·     The government provided £1 million to help with the clean-up and repairs and agreed to pay for road and bridge repairs in Cumbria
·      The Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund was set up to help victims of the flood. It reached £1 million after just 10 days
·      Network Rail opened a temporary railway station in Workington     
The ‘Visit Cumbria’ website provided lists of recovery services and trades, and people who could provide emergency accommodation
 
Cockermouth Management
Management of future floods and protection from the effects of flooding at Cockermouth
  • £4.4 million pound management scheme
  • New flood defence walls will halt the spread of the  river
  • Funding from Government and local contributors
  • River dredged more regularly to deepen the channel 
  • New embankments raise the channel height to reduce the likelihood of extra floods
  • New floodgates at the back of houses in Waterloo street
The river has not flooded since, so you can argue that the flood defence scheme has been a success.

Different views on the flood management scheme:
  • Local farmer: Very happy as his fields are now protected from future flooding
  • Local business owner: Happy and feels secure that in the future his business will not be disrupted by future flooding. Prevent the loss of income
  • Cumbrian Wildlife Trust: The river Cocker is a spawning site for Salmon. The regular dredging destroys the spawning sites and has resulted in a reduction in salmon numbers.