Professional Documents
Culture Documents
A company wants to build an aluminium smelting facility near Puerto Aysen (population
14 000) in Chile. The total cost of the project is estimated at US$ 2.8 billion and will employ
about 8 000 people during construction. Average annual precipitation is approximately 3 000
mm and the area has enormous hydroelectric power potential. (The proposed project includes
three hydroelectric power plants.) 95 km of access roads will also be built. 1 100 000 tonnes per
year of goods (primarily aluminium ore from Jamaica, Brazil or Australia) will be imported for
the annual production of 440 000 tonnes of aluminium. The waste products (approximately
660 000 tonnes per year) will remain in Chile. An environmental impact assessment (EIA) is
soon to be submitted for this project, including a baseline study.
(a)
State what is meant by a baseline study and outline methods for measuring two biotic and
two abiotic parameters relevant to this project.
(6)
(b)
The investment of capital in this area will provide employment and higher wages for the
local inhabitants. The project includes the building of schools, health centres and other
community projects. Suggest what impact this will have on the ecological footprint of the
people in this area. Explain your answer.
(6)
(c)
Explain how reuse, recycling and re-manufacturing on a national scale could reduce the
demand for natural capital, such as aluminium. Include references to energy and material
use in your answer.
(5)
Expression of ideas (3)
(Total 20 marks)
2.
(b)
With reference to either soil resources or water resources, explain how your chosen
resource has been managed unsustainably and the consequences this has had for
ecosystem. Your answer should be supported with case studies/examples.
(10)
(c)
Suggest ways in which your chosen resource could be managed more sustainably.
(5)
Expression of ideas
(3)
(Total 20 marks)
3.
...we can no longer afford to ignore the dependency of the economy and social progress on the
environmental resource base. It is the content of economic growth, with natural resources
factored in, that counts in the long term, not just the yield in products and currency. A country
that levels its forest, drains its aquifers, and washes its topsoil downriver without measuring the
cost is a country traveling blind. Edward Wilson (2002)
(a)
With reference to the statement above, outline what is meant by the terms natural
capital, natural income and sustainability.
(5)
(b)
Describe and explain how societies are using water and soil resources unsustainably.
(13)
Expression of ideas (2)
(Total 20 marks)
4.
(a)
Negative feedback
...........................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................
(1)
(ii)
Positive feedback
...........................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................
(1)
(b)
smoke
.................
coal
warm water
[Source: Adapted from D D Kemp, Global Environment Issues, A Climatological Approach, (Taylor & Francis,1994)
p. 7. Reproduced by permission of Cengage Learning]
(c)
Complete the diagram above by naming the missing input and the two missing outputs.
(2)
(Total 5 marks)
5.
The figure below shows the cost of generating electricity from different sources.
Energy source
Cost/pence per
kilowatt hour
at 1991 prices
Coal
Gas
Nuclear
Wind onshore
Wind offshore
approx. 8.0
Hydro-power
6.0
Waste to energy
6.5
Landfill gas
5.7
(a)
(i)
Identify which energy type provides the cheapest electricity and which provides the
most expensive.
Cheapest ............................................................................................................
Most expensive .................................................................................................
(1)
(ii)
(b)
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
(2)
(c)
(i)
Predict how the costs of production for fossil fuels might be different 50 years from
now.
...........................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................
(1)
(ii)
(d)
(e)
Explain the link between increasing use of renewable energy sources and the ecological
footprint of a population.
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
(2)
(Total 14 marks)
6.
The table below gives a list of energy sources used to generate electricity and their cost per
kilowatt hour.
Energy source
(a)
Coal
4.8 5.5
Natural gas
3.9 4.4
Nuclear
11.0 14.5
Wind
4.0 6.0
Hydro electric
5.1 11.3
Solar
15.0 30.0
Identify the two energy sources with the average lowest cost in the table above, and state
one advantage and one disadvantage of each.
Energy source
...........................................
...........................................
Advantage
Disadvantage
...........................................
...........................................
...........................................
...........................................
...........................................
...........................................
...........................................
...........................................
(3)
(b)
Outline two reasons why a country may not use the cheapest energy source to produce
electricity.
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
(2)
(c)
Suggest two reasons why it is so difficult to persuade people to reduce the amount of
energy that they use.
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................
(2)
(d)