Water Resource Management | Edexcel GCSE Geography A (1GA0)
Water Resource Management
- 76 questions
- 6 subtopics
- Paper 2
- Paper 2
Water Resource Management is examined in Paper 2, The Human Environment.
It covers the global distribution of fresh water, and water surplus and deficit, changing water supply and demand, how water use differs between countries, water supply problems in the UK and in developing countries, stakeholder attitudes to water, and desalination and sustainable management of water resources.
Sample questions from Water Resource Management
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
-
The global distribution of fresh water, and water surplus and deficit
At a local scale, why might one village have plenty of water while a nearby one has very little?
Show the answer
One may sit beside a river or over a permeable rock that holds groundwater, or be connected to a piped mains supply, while the other is not. -
The global distribution of fresh water, and water surplus and deficit
What is water stress?
Show the answer
A situation in which the water withdrawn for use takes up a large share of the renewable supply available, leaving little in reserve for dry years. -
Changing water supply and demand
How do dams and reservoirs increase the water supply available to people?
Show the answer
They store river water through wet periods so that a steady, reliable amount can be released when it is needed. -
Changing water supply and demand
How can pollution reduce the supply of usable water without reducing rainfall?
Show the answer
Sewage, industrial waste and fertiliser run-off can make a river or aquifer unsafe, so the water is still there but cannot be drunk. -
How water use differs between countries
How does the industrial share of water use in a developed country compare with that in a developing one?
Show the answer
It is much larger, commonly around half of all water used, against only a few per cent in many developing countries. -
How water use differs between countries
Why do developed countries use so much water in industry?
Show the answer
They have large manufacturing and energy sectors, and processes such as cooling power stations, making chemicals and washing products all need water. -
Water supply problems in the UK and in developing countries
Why are the UK's old water pipes a supply problem?
Show the answer
Many mains were laid in the Victorian era and now crack and leak, so a large share of treated water is lost before it reaches a tap. -
Water supply problems in the UK and in developing countries
What are the main sources of pollution in the rivers of emerging and developing countries?
Show the answer
Untreated sewage from fast-growing cities, waste tipped from factories, and fertiliser and pesticide run-off from farmland.
The 6 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| The global distribution of fresh water, and water surplus and deficit | How much of Earth's water is fresh and where it is stored, which climates have reliable supplies, regional and local differences, water surplus and deficit, economic against physical scarcity, and what water stress is and where UK and world maps show it. | 15 |
| Changing water supply and demand | How population growth, living standards, irrigation and industry have raised demand, how dams, boreholes and transfer schemes have raised supply, how over-abstraction, pollution and deforestation reduce it, and how population projections compare with the fresh water available per person. | 12 |
| How water use differs between countries | How world water use divides between agriculture, industry and homes, how those shares differ between developed and developing countries, water use per person, why farming dominates in developing countries and industry in developed ones, domestic use, and the effect of price. | 11 |
| Water supply problems in the UK and in developing countries | The UK's mismatch of rainfall and demand, seasonal shortages, leaking Victorian pipes and overloaded sewers, moving water between regions, untreated water and waterborne disease, river pollution, low and unreliable rainfall, and why developing countries struggle to build supply networks. | 14 |
| Stakeholder attitudes to water, and desalination | What water users, water companies, farmers, industry, conservation groups and governments each want from water, then what desalination is, reverse osmosis and distillation, and its attractions and drawbacks. | 10 |
| Sustainable management of water resources | Sustainable water management, population pressure, over-pumping groundwater and over-abstracting rivers, the differing views of individuals, organisations and governments, top-down and bottom-up schemes, metering and leak repair, greywater recycling, transfers, rainwater harvesting and appropriate technology. | 14 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
-
Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
-
Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
-
Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
Edexcel GCSE Geography A Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 1,385 questions with their answers.