AQA A-level Geography · 3.2.5

Water security

50 exam-style questions with answers for 3.2.5 Water security in AQA A-level Geography (spec 7037). Practise with flashcards, a topic quiz, a random quiz across the course, 5 crosswords, or read every question and answer below. Not official AQA material.

All 50 questions and answers

Question 1 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sources and demand
Define the term water security. [2 marks]
Answer:
Reliable access to enough water of acceptable quality to meet the needs of people, farming, industry and ecosystems (1); with an acceptable level of risk from floods, droughts and contamination (1).
Question 2 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sources and demand
Describe the main sources of fresh water. [4 marks]
Answer:
Surface water in rivers and lakes is the most used source, but it is a small part of the world's fresh water (1); groundwater is stored in aquifers and is reached by wells and boreholes (1); glaciers, ice caps and snowpack store most fresh water and release meltwater to rivers (1); rainwater can be collected from roofs and land, and desalination turns seawater into fresh water (1).
Question 3 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sources and demand
Explain how groundwater is stored in an aquifer. [3 marks]
Answer:
An aquifer is a layer of permeable, porous rock, such as chalk or sandstone, that holds water in its pore spaces and fractures (1); the water table is the upper surface of the saturated zone, and water enters by infiltration and percolation (1); an impermeable rock layer below holds the water, and confined aquifers may be under pressure, giving artesian wells (1).
Question 4 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sources and demand
Explain the components of demand for water. [4 marks]
Answer:
Domestic demand includes drinking, cooking, washing, toilets and gardens (1); agricultural demand, mainly irrigation, is the largest use globally at about 70% of withdrawals (1); industrial demand includes manufacturing, mining and cooling in power stations (1); demand also depends on population, income, climate and the price of water (1).
Question 5 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sources and demand
Describe differences in domestic water use per person between countries. [3 marks]
Answer:
Use is about 300 litres a day in the USA, and about 140 litres in the UK (1); many people in low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa use under 50 litres, and some less than 20 (1); the World Health Organization suggests 50 to 100 litres a day to meet basic needs, and richer households use water for gardens, pools and appliances (1).
Question 6 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water stress
Define the terms water stress, water scarcity and absolute scarcity. [3 marks]
Answer:
Water stress is where supply is below 1,700 cubic metres per person per year (1); water scarcity is where supply is below 1,000 cubic metres per person per year (1); absolute scarcity is where it is below 500 cubic metres per person per year (1).
Question 7 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water stress
Describe the global distribution of water stress. [3 marks]
Answer:
The most stressed region is the Middle East and North Africa, with countries such as Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Libya (1); stress is also high in South Asia, northern China, Central Asia and parts of the USA, Chile and Australia (1); water-rich areas include the Amazon basin, Canada, Russia and Scandinavia, but their water may be a long way from users (1).
Question 8 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water stress
Explain the causes of water stress. [4 marks]
Answer:
Low rainfall and high evaporation reduce supply, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions (1); high demand from growing populations, irrigation and industry uses more than is renewed (1); over-abstraction of groundwater and pollution reduce the water available (1); poor management, leakage and lack of infrastructure affect access, and climate change increases variability (1).
Question 9 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water stress
Explain how climate change may affect water supply. [4 marks]
Answer:
Higher temperatures increase evaporation and demand (1); rainfall patterns change, with more droughts in places such as the Mediterranean and southern Africa, and heavier rain and floods elsewhere (1); melting glaciers give extra water in the short term but reduce long term river flow, such as the loss of the Chacaltaya glacier in Bolivia by 2009 (1); rising sea level can cause saltwater to enter coastal aquifers (1).
Question 10 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Physical geography
Explain how climate affects the volume of water supply. [3 marks]
Answer:
Rainfall and snowfall provide the input, and areas with high, reliable rainfall have larger supplies (1); high temperatures cause evaporation, so less runoff in hot dry regions (1); seasonal rainfall, such as the monsoon, means there are floods in one season and shortages in another, so storage is needed (1).
Question 11 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Physical geography
Explain how geology affects the volume of water supply. [4 marks]
Answer:
Permeable rocks such as chalk, limestone and sandstone store water as groundwater, creating aquifers (1); impermeable rocks such as clay and granite cause rapid runoff, giving many surface streams but little storage (1); in the UK the chalk aquifers of the south-east provide a large share of water supply (1); karst limestone has underground drainage, so surface supplies are limited (1).
Question 12 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Physical geography
Explain how drainage characteristics affect water supply. [3 marks]
Answer:
Large drainage basins with many tributaries collect more rainfall and have bigger river flows (1); steep upland catchments with impermeable rock suit reservoirs, with high rainfall and narrow valleys (1); lakes, wetlands and floodplains store water naturally and regulate flow (1).
Question 13 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Physical geography
Explain how geology and human activity affect the quality of water supply. [4 marks]
Answer:
Water from chalk and limestone is hard because it contains dissolved calcium (1); in Bangladesh and West Bengal natural arsenic in sediments has contaminated well water, affecting tens of millions of people (1); farming adds nitrates and pesticides, and industry and untreated sewage add pollutants (1); over-pumping of coastal aquifers allows saltwater to enter (1).
Question 14 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Physical geography
Describe the north-south imbalance of water supply and demand in the UK. [3 marks]
Answer:
Rainfall is highest in the north and west, with over 2,000 mm a year in the Lake District and western Scotland (1); the south-east has about 600 mm a year, but has the largest population and the highest demand (1); the Environment Agency classes the south-east as seriously water stressed, which has led to transfers, reservoirs and hosepipe bans (1).
Question 15 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Physical geography
Describe how Libya's Great Man-Made River supplies water. [3 marks]
Answer:
Thousands of kilometres of pipes carry water from fossil aquifers under the Sahara, such as the Nubian Sandstone, to cities on the coast (1); construction began in the 1980s and was one of the world's largest engineering projects (1); the water is non-renewable, so supplies will run out, and the system was damaged during the conflict that began in 2011 (1).
Question 16 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Explain how catchment management and rainwater harvesting can increase water supply. [3 marks]
Answer:
Protecting upland catchments by planting trees and restoring peat bogs improves water quality and slows runoff (1); rooftop and surface rainwater harvesting store water for later, as with the johads in Rajasthan and compulsory rooftop harvesting in Tamil Nadu from 2003 (1); this uses local rainfall at low cost, but depends on the amount of rainfall and storage capacity (1).
Question 17 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Explain how river diversion can increase supply for some areas. [3 marks]
Answer:
Water is channelled from a river to another place by canals, aqueducts or pipes, often for irrigation or cities (1); the Colorado River is diverted to southern California and Arizona (1); the source river has reduced flow, which can harm wildlife, other users and downstream countries (1).
Question 18 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Describe how reservoirs and dams store water, and their advantages and disadvantages. [4 marks]
Answer:
A dam across a valley creates a reservoir that stores water in wet periods for use in dry periods (1); advantages include a reliable supply, flood control, hydroelectricity and recreation (1); disadvantages include flooding of land and homes, loss of habitat, reduced sediment downstream and high cost (1); evaporation losses can be large in hot climates (1).
Question 19 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Describe the South-North Water Transfer Project in China. [4 marks]
Answer:
It moves water from the Yangtze basin in the south to the dry north, including Beijing and Tianjin, where there is high demand but little water (1); the eastern route and central route, which is over 1,200 km from the Danjiangkou Reservoir, started operating in 2013 and 2014 (1); the western route has not been built (1); the cost is estimated at over $60 billion, and it has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and raised concerns about pollution (1).
Question 20 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Evaluate water transfer schemes as a way of increasing water supply. [4 marks]
Answer:
They can provide large volumes of water for cities, industry and farming in areas with a shortage, and enable economic growth (1); some schemes also bring electricity, such as the Lesotho Highlands project (1); they are expensive, use much energy, displace people and may harm the ecosystems and communities in the donor region (1); they may encourage wasteful use, and can cause conflict between regions or countries (1).
Question 21 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Describe the Lesotho Highlands Water Project. [3 marks]
Answer:
Dams such as Katse and tunnels in the highlands of Lesotho send water to the Gauteng region of South Africa, including Johannesburg (1); Lesotho receives royalties and hydroelectricity, but villagers lost homes and farmland (1); phase one was completed in 1998 and phase two, with the Polihali Dam, is being built to increase the transfer (1).
Question 22 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Describe how desalination works. [3 marks]
Answer:
Reverse osmosis forces seawater through semi-permeable membranes at high pressure, which keep salts out (1); thermal desalination heats seawater to produce steam, which is condensed as fresh water, as in plants in the Gulf (1); both methods leave a salty brine and need large amounts of energy (1).
Question 23 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Evaluate desalination as a strategy to increase water supply. [4 marks]
Answer:
It provides a reliable supply that does not depend on rainfall, and is useful in coastal arid regions such as the Gulf, Israel and Perth (1); costs have fallen with improved technology, and renewable energy can be used (1); it needs much energy, so cost and carbon emissions are high (1); brine discharged to the sea can harm marine life, and the water must be pumped to inland users (1).
Question 24 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Describe the role of desalination in Israel and Perth. [3 marks]
Answer:
Israel gets more than half of its drinking water from desalination, such as at the Sorek plant using reverse osmosis (1); Perth's desalination plants supply nearly half of the city's water after rainfall declined (1); both use other methods too, including recycling in Israel, where most treated sewage is reused for irrigation (1).
Question 25 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Explain the problem of groundwater over-abstraction, using an example. [4 marks]
Answer:
Pumping water faster than it is recharged lowers the water table, so wells and boreholes must be deeper (1); in the USA the Ogallala Aquifer, which supplies about a third of irrigation water from groundwater, has fallen sharply in Kansas and Texas (1); the water table under the North China Plain is falling by about a metre a year, causing land subsidence (1); in coastal areas, saltwater can enter the aquifer (1).
Question 26 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Dams and schemes
Describe the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River in China. [3 marks]
Answer:
The dam wall is over 2 km long and was completed in 2006, with the reservoir stretching about 600 km upstream (1); it has a power capacity of about 22,500 megawatts, the largest hydroelectric plant in the world (1); it was built to control floods, provide electricity and make the river navigable for large ships, at a cost of over $25 billion (1).
Question 27 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Dams and schemes
Explain the environmental impacts of the Three Gorges Dam. [4 marks]
Answer:
The reservoir flooded forests, farmland and habitats, and threatened species such as the Chinese sturgeon (1); sediment is trapped behind the dam, so downstream erosion increases and the delta receives less silt (1); changes in the water level and loading on the slopes have caused landslides, and pollution has built up in the slow moving reservoir (1); less greenhouse gas is produced than from coal, but the reservoir releases methane from rotting vegetation (1).
Question 28 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Dams and schemes
Explain the social and economic impacts of the Three Gorges Dam. [3 marks]
Answer:
About 1.3 million people were moved from towns and villages, and many lost their livelihoods and communities (1); archaeological and cultural sites were flooded, but the dam provides flood protection for millions and cheap electricity (1); river transport has improved, and the project has brought jobs but also corruption in compensation (1).
Question 29 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Dams and schemes
Evaluate the impacts of the Aswan High Dam in Egypt. [4 marks]
Answer:
Completed in 1970, it stores water in Lake Nasser, controlling the Nile floods and allowing irrigation all year round, and produces hydroelectricity (1); about 100,000 Nubians were displaced and the Abu Simbel temples had to be moved (1); silt is trapped, so farmers need fertiliser and the Nile delta is eroding (1); evaporation losses are large, there is increased salinity and waterlogging, and the slow canals spread the disease bilharzia (1).
Question 30 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Dams and schemes
Explain the environmental impacts of distribution networks such as pipelines and canals. [3 marks]
Answer:
Construction of pipelines, canals and pumping stations damages habitats and landscapes (1); canals and pipelines can split habitats, and water loss by leakage and evaporation is large (1); pumping uses much energy, and canals can spread invasive species and disease (1).
Question 31 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Managing consumption
Describe ways to reduce domestic water consumption. [4 marks]
Answer:
Water meters make households pay for what they use (1); water efficient appliances, such as dual-flush toilets and low flow showers, cut use (1); fixing leaks in pipes and fittings saves water (1); hosepipe bans, education campaigns and higher prices at times of shortage reduce demand (1).
Question 32 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Managing consumption
Explain how metering and pricing can reduce demand for water. [3 marks]
Answer:
Households with meters pay for the amount they use, which encourages saving (1); tariffs can charge more at peak times or for high volumes of water (1); but poor households may cut back below essential levels, so the system must be fair (1).
Question 33 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Managing consumption
Explain how farming can reduce water consumption. [4 marks]
Answer:
Drip irrigation delivers water directly to the roots of plants, reducing evaporation, as in Israel (1); lining canals and levelling fields with lasers reduce losses (1); growing crops that need less water and are drought resistant, and irrigating at night, save water (1); collecting rainwater and recycling treated waste water also reduce the use of fresh supplies (1).
Question 34 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Managing consumption
Describe how industry can reduce its water use. [3 marks]
Answer:
Recycling water in cooling systems and processes (1); changing to processes that need less water, such as dry cooling in power stations (1); treating and reusing waste water on site, with the use of meters to identify waste (1).
Question 35 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Managing consumption
Explain why reducing leakage is important in water management in England and Wales. [3 marks]
Answer:
About a fifth of treated water is lost from pipes between treatment works and customers, around 3 billion litres a day (1); old pipes in cities such as London are most likely to leak (1); reducing leakage saves treatment costs and energy, and reduces the need for new reservoirs, but repair is costly (1).
Question 36 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Managing consumption
Describe Singapore's approach to water, known as the four national taps. [4 marks]
Answer:
Local catchment water is collected in reservoirs and drains over much of the island (1); imported water is bought from Johor in Malaysia under an agreement which runs to 2061 (1); NEWater is recycled waste water treated to a high standard (1); desalinated seawater is the fourth tap, and public education and pricing help to keep demand down (1).
Question 37 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sustainability
Explain the terms virtual water and water footprint. [4 marks]
Answer:
Virtual water is the water used to produce a product, which is hidden in the product (1); for example, a kilogram of beef takes about 15,000 litres, a kilogram of wheat about 1,500 litres and a cotton T-shirt about 2,700 litres (1); a water footprint is the total amount of water used to produce the goods and services consumed by a person, country or business (1); it includes water drawn from rivers and aquifers, rainwater and the water needed to dilute pollution (1).
Question 38 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sustainability
Explain the consequences of virtual water trade. [3 marks]
Answer:
Water-scarce countries such as Jordan and Egypt import water-intensive food such as wheat, which saves their own water (1); exporting countries may deplete rivers and aquifers, as with almonds in California, roses in Kenya and asparagus in Peru (1); trade shifts the demand for water to other places, and consumers can reduce their footprint by buying less water-intensive products (1).
Question 39 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sustainability
Explain how conservation, recycling and greywater use contribute to sustainable water management. [4 marks]
Answer:
Conservation reduces demand by saving water, through metering, leak repair and efficient farming (1); recycling treats waste water so it can be reused for irrigation, industry or drinking, such as NEWater in Singapore (1); greywater from baths, showers and basins can be used to flush toilets and water gardens (1); these reduce the need for new supplies and cut pollution, but treatment systems are costly and people may be reluctant to use recycled water (1).
Question 40 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sustainability
Explain how groundwater can be managed more sustainably. [3 marks]
Answer:
Abstraction licences and limits on pumping keep use below the rate of recharge (1); managed aquifer recharge puts surplus water from rivers or treated waste water back into aquifers (1); metering, efficient irrigation and higher charges for pumped water reduce use, and monitoring wells show changes in the water table (1).
Question 41 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water conflicts
Describe the conflict over water in Cochabamba, Bolivia. [3 marks]
Answer:
In 1999 the city's water supply was privatised, and the company Aguas del Tunari raised water bills sharply (1); protests and strikes led to violence in 2000 and one young man was killed (1); the government cancelled the contract and returned the supply to public control (1).
Question 42 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water conflicts
Describe the causes and management of the water crisis in Cape Town in 2017-18. [4 marks]
Answer:
Three years of drought from 2015 reduced dam levels, while population growth and demand from farming and the city were high (1); the city predicted that Day Zero, when taps would be turned off, would be reached in 2018 (1); limits of 50 litres per person a day, pressure charges, public campaigns and restrictions on farming led to a halving of consumption (1); rains returned in 2018, and the city is developing new sources such as groundwater and desalination (1).
Question 43 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water conflicts
Describe national-scale water conflicts, using examples. [3 marks]
Answer:
Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in India dispute the sharing of the Cauvery River, and have taken the case to tribunals and the Supreme Court (1); the Colorado River is shared among seven US states, which compete for a declining supply (1); disputes arise between farmers, cities and industry, and between upstream and downstream regions (1).
Question 44 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water conflicts
Describe the competing interests in the Jordan River basin. [3 marks]
Answer:
Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and the Palestinian territories all depend on the river and aquifers in a dry region (1); Israel diverts water from Lake Tiberias through the National Water Carrier, and flow in the lower Jordan has fallen sharply (1); the Dead Sea is shrinking by about a metre a year, and sharing of groundwater is a key issue in negotiations (1).
Question 45 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water conflicts
Explain how conflicts over water can be managed. [3 marks]
Answer:
International treaties and river basin commissions, such as the Indus Waters Treaty and the Rhine Commission, set shares and share data (1); the 1997 UN Watercourses Convention provides rules for shared rivers (1); joint projects, technology and efficient use reduce demand, but weak enforcement and unequal power between states limit success (1).
Question 46 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Evaluation
Assess the success of large dams and water transfers as ways of increasing water supply. [6 marks]
Answer:
They provide large amounts of water for cities, farming and industry, and supply electricity and flood control (1); examples such as the Three Gorges Dam and the Lesotho Highlands project show economic benefits (1); however, they displace people, damage ecosystems, trap sediment and can cause conflict between users or states (1); costs are high and benefits may go to wealthier users (1); alternatives such as demand management, recycling and rainwater harvesting are cheaper, and smaller, local schemes have less impact (1); large schemes can succeed where managed well and combined with efficiency, but their benefits must be weighed against the costs for people and the environment (1).
Question 47 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Evaluation
Assess the extent to which water conflicts are likely to increase in the future. [6 marks]
Answer:
Population growth, urbanisation and rising incomes are increasing demand (1); climate change is making rainfall less reliable and melting glaciers (1); more dams upstream, such as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, could increase tension between countries (1); however, many shared rivers have treaties, and few wars have been fought over water alone (1); cooperation, technology and better management can reduce stress (1); conflict is most likely at local and national scales and in poorly governed areas, and the outcome depends on political choices as much as on shortage (1).
Question 48 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Water stress
Explain why water quality is as important as quantity for water security. [3 marks]
Answer:
About two billion people use a source of drinking water contaminated with faeces, which causes diarrhoea, cholera and typhoid (1); polluted rivers and aquifers cannot be used without costly treatment, which reduces the usable supply (1); chemical contamination, such as arsenic and nitrates, causes long term health problems and affects farming and industry (1).
Question 49 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Increasing supply
Describe Kielder Water in north-east England as a water transfer scheme. [3 marks]
Answer:
Opened in 1982 on the North Tyne in Northumberland, it is one of the largest reservoirs in Europe, holding about 200 billion litres (1); water is released down the North Tyne and transferred to the Wear and Tees to supply Tyneside, Wearside and Teesside (1); industrial demand fell after it was built, so it is now used to give security in dry spells, as well as for hydroelectricity and recreation (1).
Question 50 · Spec 3.2.5.3 · Sustainability
Explain why pricing water is controversial. [3 marks]
Answer:
The United Nations recognised access to clean water as a human right in 2010, so many people argue that it should not be a commodity (1); higher prices encourage efficiency and pay for infrastructure, but may make water unaffordable for poor households (1); privatisation has led to protests, such as in Cochabamba, and the debate is about fairness as well as efficiency (1).

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