plc edexcel unit 1

Geography revision Unit 1

Topic Subtopics Must be able to do

Restless Earth

The Earth’s interior hasa layered structure, withdifferent composition andphysical properties.

-Interpret a cross-section of the Earth,with details (temperature, density,composition, physical state) of layeredstructure (including the asthenosphere);

-continental and oceanic crustTheEarth’s core generatesheat and convectioncurrents drive platemotion.

-Explain convection currents

There are conservative,

-Explain different plate boundaries and be able to draw and annotate

KEYR ReadN NotesRC Revision CardPQ Practise question

constructive anddestructive plateboundaries

them.

-Describe the different types of volcanos and say how they are formed.

Volcanic and earthquakehazards affect peoplein different ways and atcontrasting locations.

- Investigate the primary and secondaryimpacts of earthquakes in two namedlocations (Japan and Haiti).

- Examine the primary and secondaryeconomic and social impacts of onevolcanic event (Montserrat case study)

Management of volcanicand earthquake hazards,at contrasting locations,ranging from short termrelief to long-termplanning, preparation andprediction.

- You need to know about the role of prediction, warningand evacuation in relation to volcanicand earthquake hazards.

-Contrasting hazard-resistant design in the developed and developing world.

- Evaluate the role of immediate responseand relief efforts linked to a namedtectonic hazard event (Japan

earthquake)

Changing Climate

Climate has changed inthe past through naturalcauses, on timescalesranging from hundreds tomillions of years.

- Examine past climate change ondifferent timescales, including the ‘IceAges’ in the Quaternary Period and UKclimate since Roman times.

- Explore the natural causes of climatechange, including asteroid collisions,orbital changes (Milankovitch cycles, volcanic activity andvariations in solar output.

Natural climatechange in the past hasaffected people and theenvironment.

- Examine the impact of a short-termhistorical event on people and theenvironment, e.g. the ‘Little Ice Age’.

- Consider the impact of major climaticchanges in geological time, e.g. themass extinction of megafauna at the endof the Quaternary Period.

The climate of the UKappears to be changing as

- Investigate the climate of the UK today,including temperature, rainfall andseasonality, and consider why they

a result of global changescaused by human activity.

might change in the future, includingreference to ocean currents and airmasses.

- Examine how human activities producerising levels of carbon dioxide andmethane and how these contribute tothe enhanced greenhouse effect.

Future climates areuncertain but likely topresent major economicand environmentalchallenges to the UK and,especially, to people in thedeveloping world.

-Consider a range of projections forglobal temperature change and sealevel rise, including reasons for theuncertainty.

-Examine the possible economic andenvironmental impacts of future climatechange for the UK and in one nameddeveloping country, e.g. Bangladesh.

Battle for the Biosphere

The distribution of globalbiomes reflects climateas well as other localisedfactors.

- Define the terms ‘eco-system’ and‘biome’,

-You need to know where the distribution ofmajor biomes are across the planet and why there are where they are.

-Evaluate the role of temperatureand precipitation in explaining biomelocation, plus local factors includingaltitude and soils.

The biosphere acts as a‘life support system’, andproduces a wide range ofgoods.

-Explain how the biosphere regulatesthe composition of the atmosphere,maintains soil health and influences thehydrological cycle.

-Investigate how the biosphere provideshumans with a range of goods, includingfood, medicines and raw materials.

The biosphere is beingdegraded by humanactions.

-Consider the role of human activityin the direct destruction of tropicalrainforests, including deforestationfor timber, mining and conversion toagricultural land.

-Examine how degradation of thebiosphere takes place by indirect means,including the impact of climate changeon tropical rainforests.

Management measures,

-Examine two contrasting examples of

at a variety of scales, arebeing used to conservethe biosphere and makehuman use of it moresustainable.

biosphere conservation, including oneglobal-scale approach, e.g. Ramsar orthe Convention on International Tradein Endangered Species (CITES), andone national or local approach, e.g.UK National Parks, a tropical rainforestreserve.

-Examine the challenges of producingsustainable outcomes in economic,social and environmental terms and thepossible tensions.

Water World

The hydrological cycleregulates water supplyand links the atmosphere,biosphere and lithosphere.

-Investigate the role of the biosphereand the lithosphere in regulating thehydrological cycle and ensuring watersupply.

-Explain how the hydrological cycleworks, as a system of interlinked storesand transfers, including the processes ofevaporation, condensation,

precipitationand run-off.

Changes to thehydrological cycle canaffect both human andeco-system health.

-Examine the impact of climate changeon the hydrological cycle, includingrainfall reliability and groundwaterlevels, in areas which already experiencearidity (Aral sea case study).

-Investigate the impact of unreliable andinsufficient water supply on humans,using a case study from a vulnerablearea, e.g. the Sahel.

There are many threatsto maintaining a healthyhydrological cycle.

-Consider the consequences of humanactivities on water quality, includingsewage disposal, industrial pollution andintensive agriculture.

-Examine located examples of humanactivities which disrupt water supply,including deforestation, over abstraction

of groundwater and reservoirconstruction.

There is a range ofstrategies, at a varietyof scales, designed tomanage water resourcesmore sustainably usingdifferent levels oftechnology.

-Consider the costs and benefits of large scalewater management schemes inthe developed world and the developingworld, e.g. The ThreeGorges dam.

-Examine the role of named small-scaleintermediate technology solutions, suchas water harvesting in the developingworld e.g wells, hand pumps.

Coastal Change and Conflict

Geological structureand rock type havea major influence oncoastal development andlandforms.

-Investigate the contrasts between anamed soft rock coast and a named hardrock coast in terms of cliff profiles, clifffeatures and erosional land forms.

-Compare concordant and discordant coasts(headlands and bays) and assess

theinfluence of rock type, joints and faults.

Marine processes,sub-aerial processes,mass movement andclimate change are alsoimportant.

-Investigate how destructive waves, sub aerialprocesses and mass movementcreate a range of erosional landforms,including cliffs, wave-cut platforms, caves,arches and stacks and how constructivewaves, deposition and longshore drift createbeaches, bars and spits.

-Explore the possible consequencesof climate change on marine erosionand deposition, including an increasedfrequency of storms and rising sea level.

Physical processes leadto coastal change andretreat, which threatenspeople and property andgenerates

-Investigate a coastline experiencingrapid coastal retreat, e.g. Holderness,to examine why rates of erosion varyand the threats posed to people and theenvironment by rapid erosion.

conflictingviews. -Explore the conflicting views of

how thecase study coastal area should be managed (Holderness coast).Social, economic and environmental.

There is a range ofcoastal managementoptions from traditionalhard engineering tomore modern holisticapproaches.

-For a named coastline, investigatethe costs and benefits of traditionalhard engineering structures, includinggroynes and sea walls.

-Soft management: Consider the costs and benefits of softengineering, including beach replenishment,and more radical approaches including ‘donothing’ and ‘strategic realignment’ linkedto Integrated Coastal Zone Management(ICZM).

Extreme Environments

Extreme climates arelocated in polar regionsand hot arid areas; eachone has key physicalcharacteristics and

-Investigate the climate of polar andhot arid areas, including precipitation,temperature range, seasonality andvariability.

-Examine why these are fragileenvironments and how flora and

theyare fragile environments.

faunahave successfully adapted to theextreme climates

- How are they vulnerableto change.

People adapt to thechallenges of extremeenvironments in a varietyof ways.

- Investigate the adaptations people makein extreme environments, includingfarming methods, building styles,clothing, transport, energy use.

- Examine the culture and uniqueness ofpeoples living in extreme environmentsand the value of this culture to others.

Extreme environments areunder threat from a rangeof processes, includingclimate change.

- Investigate the threats to people andnatural systems in extreme environments,including out-migration because oflimited economic opportunities, culturaldilution through tourism, pollution thoughresource exploitation and land degradationthrough poor land management.

- Investigate how climate change couldthreaten natural systems, including meltingof permafrost, loss of sea ice, desertificationand species migration and the impact ofthese on traditional economies.

Sustainable managementis needed locally andglobally if communities inextreme environments areto survive.

- Assess a range of local actions, e.g.intermediate technology and adaptationto changing climates, and assess theireffectiveness in achieving a sustainablefuture for local communities.

- Assess the role of global actions toprotect extreme environments from thethreat of climate change.eg Antarctic treaty etc

Some practice questions:

Restless Earth:

Key words you should know

Trench Lithosphere Core MantlePlate Boundary Convection

currentsMantle Epicentre

Volcanic eruption Asthenosphere Continental crust MagmaSubduction Oceanic crust Focus MagnitudeFrequency Richter Scale Seismometer LavaEvacuate Crater Magma chamber Relief EffortPrediction Preparation Mitigation Hazard Resistant

Design

2 mark Exam Questions:

- Describe one method that can be used to predict when a volcano is likely to erupt.- State two ways in which a volcanic eruption can endanger human life.- Describe one action that can be taken to reduce the impact of earthquakes.- State two facts about the distribution of volcanoes.

- Describe one way a region affected by earthquakes can prepare for this hazard.


- Using an example(s), describe the effects of earthquakes on people and property- For a named earthquake or volcanic eruption, describe its economic impacts- For either an earthquake or a volcanic eruption you have studied, describe the immediate responses in managing its impact.- Explain how volcanoes are formed on either constructive or destructive plate boundaries. You may draw a diagram to help you.- Describe how people can prepare for earthquakes.

Climate


Global warming Holocene Enhanced Greenhouse Effect

Carbon Dioxide

Quaternary Stratosphere Desertification Nitrous OxideFood chain Extinction Methane Sunspot TheoryOrbital Theory Little Ice age Eruption Theory Stern ReportMegafauna Glacial Interglacial Pollution


- Suggest two reasons why carbon dioxide emissions are higher in urban areas than in rural areas - Describe one way in which human activity is contributing to climate change.- Describe one possible economic impact of future climate change in the UK.

4 mark Exam Questions: - Describe how orbital changes and varying solar output can lead to climate change.- Describe how climate change in the past, such as the Little Ice Age, affected people and ecosystems.- Explain how an increase in greenhouse gases can result in climate change.- For a named developing country, explain why climate change is likely to have a large impact on its people..

Biosphere


Biome Mass Extinction Biodiversity CITESGene Pool Biosphere Green Lungs TemperatureRAMSAR Zoning Precipitation Mineral ExtractionTransnational Corporation (TNC)

Sustainable Stakeholders /Players

International Convention

Climate Graphs Keystone species Nutrient Cycling Nutrient cycle


- Describe one management measure that can be used to conserve the biosphere. - The biosphere acts as a life support system for the planet. Describe one way in which it does this.- For a named biome, describe one way it has been damaged by human activity.- Describe one way in which people are trying to conserve the biosphere.

4 mark Exam Questions: - Explain how temperature and precipitation affect the distribution of global biomes.- Describe how local factors can affect biomes.- Describe the management methods that can be used to conserve the biosphere.- Describe the value of a named biome in providing goods and services.

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Water world


Infiltration Evapotranspiration Lithosphere Water QualityPercolation Water table River Basin Water ScarcityGroundwater Surface Run off Reservoir Subsistence

FarmersSaturation Throughflow Water Stress PollutionPrecipitation Interception Evaporation CondensationDeforestation Siltation Domestic IndustrialOverabstraction Appropriate

TechnologyHand Pumps Eutrophication

2 mark Exam Questions: - For a named water management project, describe ways it has benefited local people. - Outline the process of precipitation.- For a named vulnerable area, describe one problem caused by an unreliable or- insufficient water supply.- Outline why an unreliable water supply can cause problems for farmers.- Describe one human activity that can lead to a reduction in water quality.


- Explain how water is transferred from the land to the atmosphere in the hydrological cycle.- Using examples, describe how human interference can disrupt water supply.- Describe the costs and benefits of a named large-scale water management project.

plc edexcel unit 1

Education