Year 11 Environmental Hazards

Where is the Aral Sea?

• Between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan

• Between Pakistan and Kazakhstan

What is irrigation?

• the supply of water to land or crops to help growth, typically by means of channels

• the removal of water from stores such as aquifers

• the addition of water to stores such as reservoirs

• the removal of water in areas where crops are being flooded

Tick 3 effects of the depletion of the Aral Sea

• The ecosystems of the Aral Sea and the river deltas feeding into it have been nearly destroyed, not least because of the much higher salinity.

• Crops in the region struggle to grow on the contaminated lands surrounding the sea. People suffered from malnutrition.

• The fishing industry around the Aral Sea has been completely destroyed as fish cannot withstand the salt levels. As the water levels deplete within the sea, the water becomes more saline (see diagram to the right).

• There is a civil war breaking out as a result of lack of water being available to those who are in need of irrigating their crops

What are some responses to the Aral Sea disaster? Tick all that apply.

• World Bank and Kazakh Government paid for a 13km dam to be built to raise water levels.

• Improving the quality of irrigation canals

• Cultivating crops other than cotton

• Paying farmers not to grow certain types of crop

Cotton and rice farms are not very water intensive

• True

• False

Greenland is an example of where the natural environment can be exploited successfully.

• True

• False

Which activities take place in Greenland that exploit the natural environment? Tick all that apply.

• Fishing

• Mining

• Ecotourism

• Banking

Organisations such as Greenpeace are unhappy with the decision to expand mining opportunities as they believe it negatively affects the pristine wilderness

• True

• False

Greenland lies in the Antarctic Circle

• True

• False

Which of the following has resulted in more minerals being available to be mined in Greenland?

• Ice sheets melting

• The ozone layer depleting

• Volcanoes erupting

• Permafrost increasing