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AQA GCSE Geography Physical Case Studies

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Joe Bush
Joe Bush

The document provides information on several case studies related to physical geography, including volcanic eruptions on Montserrat, earthquakes in Italy and Haiti, flooding in the UK and Bangladesh, and glaciation and tourism in the Alps. It describes the causes and effects of each event as well as immediate and long-term responses. Key details include over 300,000 deaths from the Haiti earthquake, widespread destruction from the Montserrat eruption, and millions displaced by flooding in Bangladesh each year.

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Case Studies For physical geography
Tectonics For physical geography
Eruption - Montserrat Main eruption was on June 25th 1997. The volcano is called Soufriere Hills. 19 people were killed. Cause - Montserrat is above a destructive plate boundary - the Atlantic plate is subducting under the Caribbean plate. Primary/Immediate Secondary/Long-Term Impacts Large areas were covered with volcanic material - Plymouth is covered in mud and ash. Over 20 villages and two thirds of homes on the island were destroyed by pyroclastic flows. Schools, hospitals, airport and port were destroyed Farmers crops were destroyed. 19 people died and 7 were injured. Fires destroyed many buildings including local government office, police headquarters and the towns central petrol station. Huge drop in tourism as people dont want to visit, massive loss to the economy. Businesses destroyed. Population decline - 8,000 of the 12,000 inhabitants have left since the eruption began. Volcanic ash has made the soil more fertile. Tourism has slowly started to increase as people come to see the volcano. Responses People were evacuated from the south to safe areas in the north. Shelters built to house the evacuees. Temporary infrastructures built, roads and electric. The UK provided 贈17 million of emergency aid. Local emergency services provided support units to search for and rescue survivors. An exclusion zone is in place in the south as the volcano is still active. The UK has provided 贈41 million to develop the north of the island and the new capital Little Bay building houses, ports etc. The Montserrat Volcano Observatory has been set up to try and predict eruptions.
MEDC Earthquake - LAquila Happened in LAquila, Italy on the 6th April 2009. Measured a 6.3 on the Richter Scale. Complicated cause. Preparation o There are laws on construction standards that make buildings more resistant to earthquakes. o Italy has a Civil Protection Program that trains volunteers to help out in emergencies. Primary effects o Around 290 deaths; mostly from collapsed buildings. Hundreds injured. o Thousands of buildings damaged or destroyed. o Thousands of people made homeless. Secondary effects o Aftershocks hampered rescue efforts and caused more damage. o Fires caused in some buildings. o The broken water pipe caused a landslide.
LEDC Earthquake - Haiti Happened in Haiti on the 12th January 2010 Magnitude 7 earthquake, epicentre was 25km away from the capital Port au Prince. The cause was the Caribbean plate sliding past the North American plate at a conservative boundary. Preparation o Despite warnings of an imposing earthquake and being in a very tectonically active area, Haiti was unable to properly prepare for the worst as theyre so poor. o Building quality was very poor - including many slums so most deaths were from building collapse. o As people were so poor they had very little reserves to fall back on when their job was disrupted (food water) and with the poor social safety net of the country many people ran out of food and water soon after the earthquake hit. Primary Effects o 50% of buildings collapsed due to poor construction methods, lack of bracing and corner joints etc. o 316,000 people killed and 1 million people were made homeless. o 280,000 buildings destroyed. o Main prison destroyed and 4,000 inmates escaped. Secondary Effects o 1 in 5 people lost their jobs, o Large number of bodies, concentration of people and poor hygiene all meant disease was rife and many people died as a result.
Earthquake Comparison LAquila Haiti Effects 290 deaths and a few hundred injuries. Few thousand buildings destroyed. 316,000 deaths and millions injured. 280,000 buildings destroyed. Responses Immediate Camps set up for the homeless with food, water and medical care. Lots of emergency services to rescue survivors. Cranes and diggers used to clear rubble. Money given by the government to pay rent, and gas and electricity bills were suspended. Long-term Most of the buildings were fixed and people moved back in. Italian prime minister has promised to build a new town to replace LAquila as the capital of the area. Theres an ongoing investigation to look into why some of the modern buildings werent built to withstand earthquakes. Immediate Rescue attempts made by Haiti were virtually non-existent as most of the emergency services were destroyed. Foreign aid attempts were slowed down considerably by poor transport infrastructure - the airport was backed up. Camps set up were overcrowded and lacked supplies due to difficulty distributing aid. People became angry and restless - rioting, looting and sporadic violence broke out. Long-term EU gave $330 million and waived debt repayments for 5 years. 6 months later, 98% of the rubble remained. 1 year later 1 million people remain homeless.
Fold Mountains - The Alps Background Location - Central Europe Formation - Formed about 30 million years ago by the collision between the African and European plates. Population - around 12 million people. Uses for the alps: Farming o Steep upland areas are used to herd alpine goats, which provide milk, cheese and meat. o Not many crops can be grown in the conditions, although.. o Some sunnier slopes have been terraced to plant vineyards ( e.g. Lavaux, Switzerland) HEP o The narrow valleys are dammed to generate HEP, e.g. the Berne area in Switzerland, Switzerland gets 60% of the electricity from HEP stations in the alps. o The electricity produced is used locally as well as being exported to towns and cities further away. Tourism o 100 million tourists visit the alps every year making it a huge part of the economy. o New villages have been built to cater for tourists, e.g. Tignes in France. o Ski runs, ski lifts, cable cars, holiday chalets etc. pepper the landscape. o Tourists also drop lots of litter on the fields (which are often rented from farmers) and huge cleanup operations take place when the snow has melted. Mining o Salt, iron ore, gold, silver and copper were mined in the Alps, but the mining has declined due to cheaper foreign sources. Forestry o Scots pine is planted all over the Alps as its resilient to being eaten by goats. Its logged and made into things such as furniture which is sold.
The Alps - Continued Adaptations to the conditions in the Alps Steep relief o Goats are farmed due t them being well adapted to live on steep mountains. o Trees and man-made defences are used to protect avalanches and rock slides. Poor soils o Animals grazed in most areas as the soil isnt suitable for growing crops. Limited communication o Roads have been built over passes (lower points between mountains) e.g. the Brenner Pass between Austria and Italy. o It takes a long time to drive over passes and they can be blocked by snow, so tunnels have been cut through the mountains to provide fast transport links. For example the Lotscberg Base tunnel that has been cut through the Bernese Alps in Switzerland.
Tsunami - Indian Ocean 26th December 2004 Causes A magnitude 9 earthquake in the Indian Ocean, caused by the Indo-Australian plate subducting under the Eurasian plate. Caused the plates to rise 20m all along the fault line displacing billions of gallons of water. The wave traveled at speeds of up to 800km/h. The wave was only a metre high in the sea but got up to 15m high when it reached the shore. Primary Effects 250,000 people died and 2 million people were made homeless. 13 countries affected, the worst being Indonesia. 5-6 million people needed emergency food, water and medical supplies. Secondary Effects People placed into refugee camps where diseases like cholera and dysentery spread due to lack of clean water; an estimated 150,000 died. Environmental damage - salt from the seawater means that plants cant grow in certain areas. Also, mangroves, coral reefs etc. destroyed. Immediate Responses Within days 100s of millions of pounds had been pledged by governments, charities etc. to give survivors basic survival provisions. Foreign countries sent plane, ships, soldiers and teams of specialists to help rescue people, distribute aid and cleanup etc. Long-term Responses Lots of places, such as the Maldives, relied on tourism as one of their main incomes and had to build the industry back up from the ground. An early warning system has been put in place and countries now communicate warnings better. Disaster management plans have been put in place in some countries. Volunteers have been trained to manage a tsunami.
Rivers For physical geography
MEDC Flood - Boscastle 16th August 2004 in Boscastle, Cornwall Causes The drainage basin has very steep sides and is made of impermeable slate. Heavy rainfall, a months rainfall in just two days. The ground was saturated with water from the previous two weeks rainfall. The village is located at a confluence of three rivers. Effects Many homes and businesses were destroyed. Nearly 100 cars were washed away into the sea. Tourism was heavily affected as people didnt want to visit the ruined village - the tourism office was washed away. No lives lost due to the quick response from the emergency services. Vast numbers of subsequent insurance claims. Immediate Responses Fast response from emergency services, helicopters sent to rescue people from rooftops, although some were overloaded. Sand bags put down to prevent too much damage. People put in temporary accommodation. Evacuation. Long-term Responses Debri and silt was cleared from buildings. Damaged roads and bridges replaced. The relief channel for the river Jordan was made bigger. River banks and flood barriers raised. 贈4.5 million flood scheme in place. Bridges that hindered the water flow are being replaced by stronger bridges that are less likely to get blocked.
LEDC Flood - Bangladesh Causes Heavy monsoon rains in the upper course. Unusually high tides in the Bay of Bengal preventing water from draining into the sea. Most of the country is on the delta of three large rivers, these flood on a seasonal basis, keeping the soil fertile with alluvium. Lots of the country lies just 1 or 2m above sea level. Deforestation in the upper course means that less water is lost via transpiration. It also strips the land its topsoil meaning less water is absorbed into the ground. Irrigation channels split up rivers, reducing their capacity and meaning less water flows into the sea. Building on the floodplain means that less water soaks into the ground. Effects 60% of the country flooded. 705 deaths and 20 million homeless. $7 billion damage. Rice crop ruined - no food to harvest. Air travel suspended and rail links into Dhaka damaged. 70% of rice crop destroyed - needed for people to survive (subsistence farming). Immediate Responses The government, along with non-government organisations, provided aid such as water, rice and medicine. The UN set up a disaster management team. Difficult communicating flood warnings as the communication methods are poor, e.g. no phones/TVs. Poor rescue attempts. Long-term Responses River management schemes have tried to be put in place but theyve rarely worked and are often hindered by lack of funding. Relied on smaller scale community projects; making things such as flood shelters with food Money loaned to the country from the world bank to rebuild infrastructure such as roads, water resource management and education. In the future, better water resources and flood management infrastructure is planned. July to September 2004
Glaciers For physical geography
Glaciation - The Alps The Jungfrau region in Switzerland attracts a lot of tourists. It attracted 765,000 tourists in 2011. Lots of new East Asian tourists. Resort details: o Winter snow. o Many skiing facilities. o Transport networks - cable cars, gondolas, highest railway in Europe. Activities include skiing, snowboarding, hotels, bars, cycling, horse riding, climbing etc. Is tourism good for the Alps Yes Employment is created in shops, retail, restaurants, hotels etc. Young people therefore stay in the region as there are so many jobs - 80% are in tourism. Tourism isnt just seasonal, theres summer and winter tourism. Farmers can make money all year round - renting fields in winter and farming in the summer. No Litter and pollution increased, has to be cleared at the end of the season, not as much pollution as all power is from HEP. Risk of avalanches has increased - increased number of people and the trees have been cleared for ski runs, making snow more likely to fall. To combat this they have planted some trees and they change the ski runs every year. Alpine wildlife has lost its habitat as forests have been cleared for ski runs. Traditional ways of life are disappearing - local people unhappy as all jobs are in tourism. Temporary workers move to the region. To combat this people try and employ locals and there are restrictions on excess building.

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AQA GCSE Geography Physical Case Studies

  • 1. Case Studies For physical geography
  • 3. Eruption - Montserrat Main eruption was on June 25th 1997. The volcano is called Soufriere Hills. 19 people were killed. Cause - Montserrat is above a destructive plate boundary - the Atlantic plate is subducting under the Caribbean plate. Primary/Immediate Secondary/Long-Term Impacts Large areas were covered with volcanic material - Plymouth is covered in mud and ash. Over 20 villages and two thirds of homes on the island were destroyed by pyroclastic flows. Schools, hospitals, airport and port were destroyed Farmers crops were destroyed. 19 people died and 7 were injured. Fires destroyed many buildings including local government office, police headquarters and the towns central petrol station. Huge drop in tourism as people dont want to visit, massive loss to the economy. Businesses destroyed. Population decline - 8,000 of the 12,000 inhabitants have left since the eruption began. Volcanic ash has made the soil more fertile. Tourism has slowly started to increase as people come to see the volcano. Responses People were evacuated from the south to safe areas in the north. Shelters built to house the evacuees. Temporary infrastructures built, roads and electric. The UK provided 贈17 million of emergency aid. Local emergency services provided support units to search for and rescue survivors. An exclusion zone is in place in the south as the volcano is still active. The UK has provided 贈41 million to develop the north of the island and the new capital Little Bay building houses, ports etc. The Montserrat Volcano Observatory has been set up to try and predict eruptions.
  • 4. MEDC Earthquake - LAquila Happened in LAquila, Italy on the 6th April 2009. Measured a 6.3 on the Richter Scale. Complicated cause. Preparation o There are laws on construction standards that make buildings more resistant to earthquakes. o Italy has a Civil Protection Program that trains volunteers to help out in emergencies. Primary effects o Around 290 deaths; mostly from collapsed buildings. Hundreds injured. o Thousands of buildings damaged or destroyed. o Thousands of people made homeless. Secondary effects o Aftershocks hampered rescue efforts and caused more damage. o Fires caused in some buildings. o The broken water pipe caused a landslide.
  • 5. LEDC Earthquake - Haiti Happened in Haiti on the 12th January 2010 Magnitude 7 earthquake, epicentre was 25km away from the capital Port au Prince. The cause was the Caribbean plate sliding past the North American plate at a conservative boundary. Preparation o Despite warnings of an imposing earthquake and being in a very tectonically active area, Haiti was unable to properly prepare for the worst as theyre so poor. o Building quality was very poor - including many slums so most deaths were from building collapse. o As people were so poor they had very little reserves to fall back on when their job was disrupted (food water) and with the poor social safety net of the country many people ran out of food and water soon after the earthquake hit. Primary Effects o 50% of buildings collapsed due to poor construction methods, lack of bracing and corner joints etc. o 316,000 people killed and 1 million people were made homeless. o 280,000 buildings destroyed. o Main prison destroyed and 4,000 inmates escaped. Secondary Effects o 1 in 5 people lost their jobs, o Large number of bodies, concentration of people and poor hygiene all meant disease was rife and many people died as a result.
  • 6. Earthquake Comparison LAquila Haiti Effects 290 deaths and a few hundred injuries. Few thousand buildings destroyed. 316,000 deaths and millions injured. 280,000 buildings destroyed. Responses Immediate Camps set up for the homeless with food, water and medical care. Lots of emergency services to rescue survivors. Cranes and diggers used to clear rubble. Money given by the government to pay rent, and gas and electricity bills were suspended. Long-term Most of the buildings were fixed and people moved back in. Italian prime minister has promised to build a new town to replace LAquila as the capital of the area. Theres an ongoing investigation to look into why some of the modern buildings werent built to withstand earthquakes. Immediate Rescue attempts made by Haiti were virtually non-existent as most of the emergency services were destroyed. Foreign aid attempts were slowed down considerably by poor transport infrastructure - the airport was backed up. Camps set up were overcrowded and lacked supplies due to difficulty distributing aid. People became angry and restless - rioting, looting and sporadic violence broke out. Long-term EU gave $330 million and waived debt repayments for 5 years. 6 months later, 98% of the rubble remained. 1 year later 1 million people remain homeless.
  • 7. Fold Mountains - The Alps Background Location - Central Europe Formation - Formed about 30 million years ago by the collision between the African and European plates. Population - around 12 million people. Uses for the alps: Farming o Steep upland areas are used to herd alpine goats, which provide milk, cheese and meat. o Not many crops can be grown in the conditions, although.. o Some sunnier slopes have been terraced to plant vineyards ( e.g. Lavaux, Switzerland) HEP o The narrow valleys are dammed to generate HEP, e.g. the Berne area in Switzerland, Switzerland gets 60% of the electricity from HEP stations in the alps. o The electricity produced is used locally as well as being exported to towns and cities further away. Tourism o 100 million tourists visit the alps every year making it a huge part of the economy. o New villages have been built to cater for tourists, e.g. Tignes in France. o Ski runs, ski lifts, cable cars, holiday chalets etc. pepper the landscape. o Tourists also drop lots of litter on the fields (which are often rented from farmers) and huge cleanup operations take place when the snow has melted. Mining o Salt, iron ore, gold, silver and copper were mined in the Alps, but the mining has declined due to cheaper foreign sources. Forestry o Scots pine is planted all over the Alps as its resilient to being eaten by goats. Its logged and made into things such as furniture which is sold.
  • 8. The Alps - Continued Adaptations to the conditions in the Alps Steep relief o Goats are farmed due t them being well adapted to live on steep mountains. o Trees and man-made defences are used to protect avalanches and rock slides. Poor soils o Animals grazed in most areas as the soil isnt suitable for growing crops. Limited communication o Roads have been built over passes (lower points between mountains) e.g. the Brenner Pass between Austria and Italy. o It takes a long time to drive over passes and they can be blocked by snow, so tunnels have been cut through the mountains to provide fast transport links. For example the Lotscberg Base tunnel that has been cut through the Bernese Alps in Switzerland.
  • 9. Tsunami - Indian Ocean 26th December 2004 Causes A magnitude 9 earthquake in the Indian Ocean, caused by the Indo-Australian plate subducting under the Eurasian plate. Caused the plates to rise 20m all along the fault line displacing billions of gallons of water. The wave traveled at speeds of up to 800km/h. The wave was only a metre high in the sea but got up to 15m high when it reached the shore. Primary Effects 250,000 people died and 2 million people were made homeless. 13 countries affected, the worst being Indonesia. 5-6 million people needed emergency food, water and medical supplies. Secondary Effects People placed into refugee camps where diseases like cholera and dysentery spread due to lack of clean water; an estimated 150,000 died. Environmental damage - salt from the seawater means that plants cant grow in certain areas. Also, mangroves, coral reefs etc. destroyed. Immediate Responses Within days 100s of millions of pounds had been pledged by governments, charities etc. to give survivors basic survival provisions. Foreign countries sent plane, ships, soldiers and teams of specialists to help rescue people, distribute aid and cleanup etc. Long-term Responses Lots of places, such as the Maldives, relied on tourism as one of their main incomes and had to build the industry back up from the ground. An early warning system has been put in place and countries now communicate warnings better. Disaster management plans have been put in place in some countries. Volunteers have been trained to manage a tsunami.
  • 10. Rivers For physical geography
  • 11. MEDC Flood - Boscastle 16th August 2004 in Boscastle, Cornwall Causes The drainage basin has very steep sides and is made of impermeable slate. Heavy rainfall, a months rainfall in just two days. The ground was saturated with water from the previous two weeks rainfall. The village is located at a confluence of three rivers. Effects Many homes and businesses were destroyed. Nearly 100 cars were washed away into the sea. Tourism was heavily affected as people didnt want to visit the ruined village - the tourism office was washed away. No lives lost due to the quick response from the emergency services. Vast numbers of subsequent insurance claims. Immediate Responses Fast response from emergency services, helicopters sent to rescue people from rooftops, although some were overloaded. Sand bags put down to prevent too much damage. People put in temporary accommodation. Evacuation. Long-term Responses Debri and silt was cleared from buildings. Damaged roads and bridges replaced. The relief channel for the river Jordan was made bigger. River banks and flood barriers raised. 贈4.5 million flood scheme in place. Bridges that hindered the water flow are being replaced by stronger bridges that are less likely to get blocked.
  • 12. LEDC Flood - Bangladesh Causes Heavy monsoon rains in the upper course. Unusually high tides in the Bay of Bengal preventing water from draining into the sea. Most of the country is on the delta of three large rivers, these flood on a seasonal basis, keeping the soil fertile with alluvium. Lots of the country lies just 1 or 2m above sea level. Deforestation in the upper course means that less water is lost via transpiration. It also strips the land its topsoil meaning less water is absorbed into the ground. Irrigation channels split up rivers, reducing their capacity and meaning less water flows into the sea. Building on the floodplain means that less water soaks into the ground. Effects 60% of the country flooded. 705 deaths and 20 million homeless. $7 billion damage. Rice crop ruined - no food to harvest. Air travel suspended and rail links into Dhaka damaged. 70% of rice crop destroyed - needed for people to survive (subsistence farming). Immediate Responses The government, along with non-government organisations, provided aid such as water, rice and medicine. The UN set up a disaster management team. Difficult communicating flood warnings as the communication methods are poor, e.g. no phones/TVs. Poor rescue attempts. Long-term Responses River management schemes have tried to be put in place but theyve rarely worked and are often hindered by lack of funding. Relied on smaller scale community projects; making things such as flood shelters with food Money loaned to the country from the world bank to rebuild infrastructure such as roads, water resource management and education. In the future, better water resources and flood management infrastructure is planned. July to September 2004
  • 14. Glaciation - The Alps The Jungfrau region in Switzerland attracts a lot of tourists. It attracted 765,000 tourists in 2011. Lots of new East Asian tourists. Resort details: o Winter snow. o Many skiing facilities. o Transport networks - cable cars, gondolas, highest railway in Europe. Activities include skiing, snowboarding, hotels, bars, cycling, horse riding, climbing etc. Is tourism good for the Alps Yes Employment is created in shops, retail, restaurants, hotels etc. Young people therefore stay in the region as there are so many jobs - 80% are in tourism. Tourism isnt just seasonal, theres summer and winter tourism. Farmers can make money all year round - renting fields in winter and farming in the summer. No Litter and pollution increased, has to be cleared at the end of the season, not as much pollution as all power is from HEP. Risk of avalanches has increased - increased number of people and the trees have been cleared for ski runs, making snow more likely to fall. To combat this they have planted some trees and they change the ski runs every year. Alpine wildlife has lost its habitat as forests have been cleared for ski runs. Traditional ways of life are disappearing - local people unhappy as all jobs are in tourism. Temporary workers move to the region. To combat this people try and employ locals and there are restrictions on excess building.