GCSE Geography AQA

37 Pages·2017·2.8 MB·English

GCSE Geography AQA
Case studies and examples

Paper 1 Paper 2
Section A The challenge of Natural Hazards Urban Issues and Challenges
Section B The Living World The changing economic World
Section C Physical Landscapes in the UK The Challenge of Resource Management.

Name _______________________________________

1
How will you be assessed in Geography?

% of Number of
Exam Section What topics?
GCSE Marks

)s Section A The challenge of natural Hazards. 33 Marks
e
t
u
n
1 i
m
r
e 0 35%
Section B The Living World 25 Marks
p 3
a
P ,r
u
o
h

1
( Section C Physical Landscapes in the UK 30 Marks

) Section A Urban Issues and Challenges 33 Marks
s
e
t
u
n
2 i
m
r
e 0 35% Section B The Changing Economic World 30 Marks
p 3
aP ,r
u
o
h
The Challenge of Resource

1 Section C 25 Marks
(
Management

5 Section A Issue Evaluation 37 Marks
3 r 1 ,r )set
e u u 30%
p o n
a h i
P m
1 Section B Fieldwork 25 Marks
(

What is the difference between a case study and an example?
Case studies are broader in context and require greater breadth and depth of knowledge and
understanding.
Examples are more focused on a specific event or situation, are smaller in scale and do not cover the
same degree of content.

2
Command words in Geography
In Geography you will have to answer a variety of questions to assess your understanding on a variety
of topics. In order to answer these questions well you need to make sure you know what the question
is asking you to do. To do this you need to know what all the following command words mean:
Command What does it mean?
word
Assess Make an informed judgement. For example, ‘Assess how effective your presentation technique(s)
were in representing the data collected in this enquiry’.
Calculate Work out the value of something.
For example, 'Using Figure 7, calculate the increase in retail sales value of Fairtrade bananas
between 2000 and 2012'.
Compare Identify similarities and differences.
For example, 'Using Figure 4, compare HDI values in Africa and South America'.
Complete Finish the task by adding given information.
For example, 'Complete the following sentences: The greatest number of category four tropical
storms happen in the ……………………. Ocean. Apart from very strong winds, one other associated
weather feature of a category four storm is…………………………'
Describe Set out characteristics. For example, 'Using Figure 9, describe the distribution of areas with
existing licenses for fracking in the UK'.
Discuss Present key points about different ideas or strengths and weaknesses of an idea.
For example, 'Discuss the effects of urban sprawl on people and the environment. Use Figure 3
and a case study of a major city in the UK'.
Evaluate Judge from available evidence. Use advantages and disadvantages and weigh up.
For example, 'Evaluate the effectiveness of an urban transport scheme(s) you have studied.
Explain Set out purposes or reasons. For example, 'Using Figure 12 and your own knowledge, explain how
different landforms may be created by the transport and deposition of sediment along the coast'
Give Produce an answer from recall. For example, 'Give one condition that is needed for a tropical
storm to form' (Specimen Paper 1, qu. 01.6).
Identify Name or otherwise characterise.
For example, 'Identify the glacial landform at grid reference 653532' (Specimen Paper 1, qu.
05.1).
Justify Support a case with evidence.
For example, 'Transnational corporations (TNCs) only bring advantages to the host country.' Do
you agree with this statement? Justify your decision. (Specimen Paper 2, qu. 02.10)
Express in clear terms.
Outline Set out main characteristics.
For example, 'Outline one way that Fairtrade helps to deal with the problems of unequal
development'.
State For example, 'State one characteristic of the course of the River Ouse in grid square 5754'
Suggest Present a possible case.
For example, 'Suggest how the sea defences shown in Figure 11 help to protect the coastline'
To what Judge the importance or success of (strategy, scheme, project).
extent For example, 'To what extent do urban areas in lower income countries (LICs) or newly emerging
economies (NEEs) provide social and economic opportunities for people?'
Use To select and present information to prove or disprove something.
evidence to For example, 'Weather in the UK is becoming more extreme.' Use evidence to support this
support this statement.
statement

3
Skills in Geography
You need to use cartographic skills (map skills), graphical skills, numerical skills and statistical skills.
All the skills you need to know are below:
Tick when Statistical and numerical Tick when
Graphical Skills
confident skills confident

Line charts Mean
Bar charts Mode and modal class

e
s Pie charts Median
e
h
t Pictograms Range

t
c Histograms with equal class Quartiles and inter-quartile
u
r
t intervals ranges
s
n e
o Divided bar chart s Calculate percentage
C e
Scattergraphs h increase/decrease
t

Population pyramids t Make predictions
c
u
e choropleth rt Sketch trend lines on
s s
e isoline n scatter plots
h o
t e dot maps C e Draw estimated lines of
te desire lines sebest fit
l h
p t
m proportional symbols Find and describe trends on
e
o t
C flow lines egraphs
l
p
mInterpolate and extrapolate
o
Cdata

Tick when
Cartographical Skills
confident

Sketch maps and label them
4 and 6 figure grid references

e
s Use scale and direction
e
h Use gradient, contour and height
t

t Measure straight and curved line distances
c
u
r Use aerial and satellite maps
t
s
n Relate cross sectional drawings to relief features
o
C
Infer human activity from map evidence
Describe physical characteristics of landscapes and vegetation

4
Section A: The Challenge of Natural Hazards
Tectonic Hazards
Use named examples to show how the effects and responses to a tectonic hazard vary between two
areas of contrasting levels of wealth.
HIC: Christchurch New Zealand, 2010 LIC: Haiti 2010
7.1 on the Richter scale 7.0 on the Richter scale, 25km West of the capital
city Port-au-Prince. Conservative plate margin.
Primary effects
100,000 homes were damaged 250,000 houses were destroyed or badly damaged
1 died, 2 injured 230,000 people died, 300,000 injured
Roads, bridges and railway lines were badly The international airport (only airport in Haiti)
damaged became unusable as it was so damaged. Roads were
damaged preventing access by emergency vehicles.
Damage to roads made it difficult for people
and emergency services to move around. All hospitals were destroyed killing a large
Although buildings were damaged the majority proportion of Haiti’s doctors.
of buildings did not collapse as they were The main prison was destroyed and 4,000 inmates
designed to be earthquake resistant. escaped.
Secondary effects
Earthquake insurance claims were $8 billion 1 in 5 jobs were lost after the earthquake
The number of people employed in construction The high temperatures that followed the earthquake
increased by 18% creating 4,500 jobs in the started to decay the bodies which were left in the
year after the earthquake rubble. This spread disease.
Businesses were put out of action for long Cholera due to poor sanitation and people drinking
periods causing losses of income and jobs dirty water
Immediate responses
The Canterbury Art Gallery, which was designed Cuba sent large numbers of doctors to help.
to be earthquake proof and stand up to the 115,000 tents were set up to provide shelter to
earthquake, was turned into an Emergency homeless people
Response Centre to support those that needed
help.
Within half an hour there were 16 ambulances 4.3 million people were given food rations in the
that had been sent to different parts of the weeks after the quake.
city to treat the injured
Medical supplies and bottled water was brought in to
try and prevent disease.
Long term responses
The central government provided 90% of all the $1.1 billion was raised by 23 major charities.
funds needed to rebuild the city’s water,
sewerage and road networks.
After the earthquake 8,000 were ‘red zoned’, The EU gave $330 million and stopped debt
meaning land was so badly damaged that it was repayments for 5 years.
unlikely it could ever be rebuilt on to prevent Locals were trained how to repair broken irrigation
houses collapsing in the future. pipes so that food production could be increased.
5
Weather Hazards
Use a named example of a tropical storm to show its effects and responses
Typhoon Haiyan
In November, 2013 Typhoon Haiyan battered the coast of the Philippines with wind speeds of up to
314km per hour. Strong winds caused a storm surge to create a lot of coastal flooding.

Primary effects Immediate responses
1.1 million tonnes of crops destroyed The president gave out a warning on television
1 Million farmers and 600,000 hectares of 800,000 people were evacuated
farmland affected
6,190 people killed People sought shelter at an indoor stadium with a
wind proof roof called the Tacloban but it
flooded and many drowned
1.1 million houses damaged or destroyed Emergency aid supplies arrived in 3 days
4.1 million people made homeless It took 3 weeks for power to be restored
Secondary effects $88 million was raised. Celebrities like David
Beckham used their status to raise publicity
about the disaster which increased donations.
Rice prices increased by 12% making it difficult Secondary responses
for poor people to buy.
There was lots of looting as people fought over The government of the Philippines launched ‘Build
rice supplies – 8 people were killed in stampedes. Back Better’ campaign to rebuild buildings to
withstand future Typhoons
Mangroves were replanted
Flooding caused ground water to be contaminated New storm surge warning system put in place
by sea water and sewage, this increased disease
and infection.
An oil barge crashed into rocks due to the heavy A ‘no build zone’ was put in place along the coast
wind causing 800,000 litres of oil to leak to prevent people getting flooded by another
damaging the mangrove swamps and contaminated storm surge.
fishing waters.

6
Extreme Weather in the UK
In the specification: 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
The record rainfall and flooding in Cumbria 2009
Causes
 400mm of rainfall fell in 3 days (the average Cumbria would get in a month!)
 The ground was saturated and so no more water could soak in, it flowed straight down the
steep slopes of the Lake District for 36 hours.
 The rivers were finding it difficult to cope. The River Derwent was 10m wider than normal
and flowing 25 times faster than normal.

Impacts
Environmental Water erosion by the River Derwent triggered landslides along the banks. The
river tore loose many trees and destroyed local ecosystems and habitats of
animals.
Social Police Officer Bill Barker was killed when a bridge collapsed due to high water.
1,500 homes were destroyed, many people were injured. River water was
contaminated with sewage which brought health risks.
Economic Many businesses were closed and could not open for a long time afterwards. 6
important local bridges were damaged.

How can management strategies reduce risk in Cumbria?

 New flood defences have been built costing £4.5 million and paid for by central
government and local community.
 The Environment Agency (EA) has started sending flood risk messages directly to people’s
smart phones.
 To encourage tourism back and kick-start the economy the ‘West Cumbria Development
Agency’ paid for advertisement saying “Cumbria: open for usual”.
 People are ‘future proofing’ their houses by having stone floors instead of carpets so it
doesn’t cost as much if flooding happens again.
 Hundreds of trees are being planted in the river basin to increase interception and reduce
the amount of water reaching the river.

7
Test yourself
1. Where is the location of your HIC earthquake case study?
2. What year was the Earthquake in Gorkha Nepal?
3. Give 3 primary effects of the Gorkha Nepal earthquake.
4. Give 3 primary effects of the HIC earthquake.
5. How many tourists died from the avalanche on Mt Everest caused by the earthquake.
6. How much did the HIC earthquake and the LIC earthquake cost?
7. How many million dollars were raised to provide the people of Gorkha with emergency food and
shelter?
8. The Red Cross provided shelter for how many million people in Gorkha?
9. A landslide was a mud flow was caused by a broken water pipe in which town?
10. What year did Typhoon Haiyan happen?
11. Give three primary effects of Typhoon Haiyan.
12. How many weeks did the Philippines not have power for?
13. Give three secondary responses of Typhoon Haiyan?
14. What happened to the oil barge?
15. How many people were made homeless?
16. How many people were killed in Typhoon Haiyan?
17. In the UK, Cumbria flooded in 2009. How many mm of precipitation fell in how many days?
18. Give three management strategies to try and reduce the flood risk in Cumbria.
19. Give two social impacts of the Cumbria floods.
20. What was the name of the river that flooded in Cumbria?
The challenge of natural Hazards possible questions- could you answer them?
Remember to PEEL for 6/9 markers. Point, evidence, explanation, link back to the question.
Suggest reasons why people continue to live in areas at risk from a tectonic hazard. [4 Marks]
Evaluate how monitoring, prediction, protection and planning can reduce the effects of tropical storms. [9
Marks]
Using a named case study of a tropical storm assess the primary and secondary effects of the storm. [6 Marks]
Using a named case study of a tropical storm assess the immediate and long term responses to the storm. [9
Marks]
Discuss the evidence for climate change from the beginning of the last age to the present day. [6 Marks]
Discuss the effects of climate change on people and the environment. [6 Marks]
Outline the evidence which suggests that weather is becoming more extreme in the UK. [4 Marks]
Using an example of a recent extreme weather event in the UK discuss the social, economic and environmental
impacts it had on the UK. [6 marks]
In reference to a recent extreme weather event in the UK outline how management strategies can reduce risk.
[4 marks]
To what extent can mitigation and adaptation can manage the effects of climate change [6 Marks]
8
Section B: The Living world
Local ecosystem
In the specification: “An example of a small scale UK ecosystem to illustrate the concept of
interrelationships within a natural system, an understanding of producers, consumers, decomposers,
food chain, food web and nutrient cycling”.
Epping Forest, Essex
 There is a food web consisting of thousands of species that rely on each other.
Producers Consumers Decomposers
 Oak, ash and beech  38 species of birds  700 species fungi
trees create a canopy  Roe deer
 A shrub layer of holly  Newts and frogs live
and hazel in ponds
 Brambles and ferns  Foxes
 177 species of moss  Pheasants
and lichen

How is the ecosystem interdependent?
 Most trees are deciduous so they drop their leaves in winter – an adaption to the climate-
so they do not get frost damage and conserve their energy when they cannot
photosynthesis.
 The decomposers turn the leaves to humus thereby returning the leaves nutrients to the
soil in spring ready for the trees to soak up these nutrients through their roots and grow
new leaves in Spring. This is nutrient cycling.
 Animals and birds eat berries which is helpful to the plants as it transports their seeds
around through droppings.

9
The Tropical Rainforest

In the specification: 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 – causes of deforestation

Many of the world’s rainforests are in LICs of NEEs. They want to develop and often owe money

to HICs to get richer and pay back their debts. The easiest way to do this is to exploit their
resources – their rainforests.

Causes of deforestation
Resource exploiting activities
Logging Timber companies come into to log trees like mahogany and teak to sell them to
make money. They clear all the other trees out of the way to get to these trees.
Mineral There are 50,000 hectares of land being used for gold mining. All the trees are
extraction cleared in this area and the mines release chemicals which get onto the Amazon
River. Carajas iron ore mine in Brazil is the world’s biggest.
Energy 150 dams have been built in the river to provide Hydro Electric Power (HEP) such
Development as the Belo Monte scheme, which flood vast areas of rainforest. Brazil get 85% of
their energy from these dams.
Illegal trade Hunting, poaching and trafficking in wildlife is big business. The Golden headed lion
in wildlife tamarind and the jaguar are killed for their fur. Baby sloths are sold as pets.
What activities are causing the forest to be cleared?
Commercial Much of the rainforest has been cleared for livestock rearing – cattle for beef.
farming - This accounts for 80% of clearing the rainforest. However the land cannot be used
cattle for long as the soil quality rapidly declines and with it the grass and so more forest
has to be cleared.
The forest is cleared to grow plantations of bananas and palm oil. In the Amazon
they are growing sugar cane as a biofuel to fuel the growing number of cars in
Brazil.
Subsistence Local native people have been using the rainforest for 1000’s of years. They have
farming been clearing small patches of land to grow crops. This is sustainable as these
people are part of the ecosystem here. Forests also get chance to regrow.
Road The Trans-Amazonian highway was built to start connecting cities and make travel
building easier in Brazil – this opened up huge areas of the rainforest which were previously
remote and safe from loggers.
Settlement As Brazil’s population boomed everyone needed a place to live and a job. The
and government gave many people an area of rainforest that they could farm to
population release pressure on the cities. This caused a lot deforestation through ‘slash and
growth burn’ farming. Population in Manaus is now over 2 million.
10