Resources II:
People Using Places

RELATED READINGS

• Geography for Life: National Geography Standards, Chapter 4, pp. 85-86, 92-95, and 98-100.
• Teacher廣 Guide: Sustainable Development

1. WATER RESOURCES

   How does water function as a resource for human populations?

   1. Two important concepts regarding water as a resource:
      1. The world supply of fresh water is unevenly distributed and often fluctuates unreliably in its timing.
      2. General human attitudes take water for granted and there is a tendency to treat water as a commodity rather than a potentially finite resource.

   2. At a global scale, water is a continuous renewable resource.

2. GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION OF WATER

   What is the distribution of water on Earth?

   1. The principle reservoirs of global water are:

      97.25%		oceans
      2.05%		ice caps and glaciers
      0.68%		groundwater
      0.10%		lakes
      0.005%		soil
      0.001%		atmospheric vapor
      0.001%		rivers
      0.00004%		biosphere

   2. If the world supply of water were 26 gallons, the usable supply of fresh water would be 1/2 teaspoon. Earth's 5.9 billion people must share this common resource.

3. HYDROLOGIC CYCLE

   How is water moved through the hydrologic cycle?

   How does the hydrologic cycle affect the availability of fresh water resources in a place?

   1. Water is constantly changing state as it moves through the hydrologic cycle. A country廣 position with regard to the hydrologic cycle determines the availability of water.

   2. The processes which move water through the atmospheric portion of the Hydrologic Cycle and affect climate include:
      1. evaporation and transpiration of water vapor into the atmosphere.
      2. condensation as clouds.
      3. precipitation which returns moisture to Earth's surface.

   3. Precipitation reaching Earth's surface follows one of several paths.
      1. Interception by vegetation.
      2. Infiltration into the soil.
      3. Percolation into the groundwater.
      4. Surface detention and storage.
      5. Runoff or overland flow.
      6. Streamflow.

   4. The Hydrologic Cycle affects the chemical composition of water as soluble elements are added at different points within the cycle.

4. PRIMARY SOURCES OF FRESH WATER RESOURCES
   1. Precipitation - of critical importance is the type of precipitation, the total amount and the yearly distribution of precipitation.

   2. Surface waters held in streams and lakes. In some locations the source of water for streams is local (endogenous), while in other locations the source is far removed from the local area (exogenous). (see Table 9)

      (TABLE 9) Source of water for selected countries

   3. Subsurface water is held in the soil or in the groundwater.
      1. Soil moisture is retained in the pore spaces among the solid particles. This water source is critical for plant life, especially crops.
      2. In the United States about half the drinking water and 40% of irrigation water is pumped from the groundwater.
      1. Rock layers which hold groundwater are called aquifers.
      2. An artesian system is a type of groundwater system which is confined between two impermeable rock layers.
      3. The water table is the upper limit of the groundwater area.

5. PATTERNS OF FRESH WATER CONSUMPTION

   What are the patterns of water consumption?

   What predictions are made for future water consumption patterns?

   How are patterns of consumption related to water availability?

   1. In 1996, humans used 54% of the global surface runoff that is realistically available from the hydrologic cycle. The uses vary from region to region and from country to country (see Table 10).

      (TABLE 10) Freshwater resources and withdrawals, 1992

   2. The amount of water per capita used in a specific region depends on how much is easily accessible, the nature of water needs, and the living standards of the population.

   3. Domestic use: water used for drinking, cooking, household maintenance, and perosnal hygiene.

   4. Industrial use: water used for power, cooling, and manufacturing.

   5. Agricultural use: water used to support crops, especially by irrigation, and livestock.

   6. Projections for future use of fresh water indicate an increased use of water for industrial purposes as world economies grow (Figure 12).
      (FIGURE 12) Changing water consumption patterns, 1975-2000
      

   7. Access to water resources is a key in foreign policy and environmental security issues for water-short countries in the 1990s and will become more important in the 21st centrury.
      1. 150 of the world's 214 major river systems are shared by two countries while 50 are shared by 3-10 countries.
      2. Some 40% of the world's population already clashes over water.
      3. Three principal forces create scarcity and its potential to incite conflict:
         1. The depletion or degradation of the resource.
         2. Population growth which requires the resource to be divided into smaller pieces.
         3. Unequal distribution or access, which means that some portions are larger than others.

   8. In the Middle East, water is derived from three shared river basins: Jordan, Tigris-Euphrates, and Nile.
      1. This region is an arid and semi-arid climatic region.
      2. Surface rivers are termed exotic streams as their sources are primarily exogenous.
      3. This region has a rapidly expanding population.
      4. Competition between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan over control of the Nile River.
      5. Jordan, Syria, and Israel over control of the Jordan River.
      6. Turkey, Syria, and Iraw over the Tigris-Euphrates Rivers.
      7. Will require a combination of regional cooperation in allocating water supplies, slowed population growth, and improved efficiency of water use.

6. INCREASING WATER QUANTITY AND WATER QUALITY

   What are the patterns of fresh water shortages?

   In what ways can water supplies be increased in a given place?

   What factors in a place affect water quality?

   1. Global, regional, and local shortages of water are a result of environmental and human influences.
      1. Arid climate.
      2. Drought.
      3. Desiccation of soil.
      4. Increasing demand and overuse by human activities.

   2. Increasing supplies of fresh water.
      1. Build dams and reservoirs to capture and store precipitation and runoff.
      2. Transfer surface water from place to another.
      3. Withdraw more groundwater.
      4. Convert salt water to fresh water.
      5. Improve the efficiency of water use.

   3. Control pollution.
      1. The World Health Organization indicates that over 1/5 of the world's population does not have access to a safe supply of drinking water.
      2. Point and non-point source pollution degrades water quality
         1. oxygen-demanding wastes
         2. excessive plant nutrients
         3. sediments
         4. disease-causing organisms
         5. toxic and radioactive waste
         6. synthetic organic substances
         7. thermal discharges

7. SUSTAINABLE USE OF WATER RESOURCES

   In what ways do the human and physical environments interact to create programs of sustainable water use?

   1. Sustainable use of water resources recognizes that water is ultimately a finite resource.
   2. Procedures include:
      1. The rate of extraction does not exceed the rate of recharge.
      2. International accord as to what constitutes sustainable use among countries that share rivers.
      3. Develop in integrated plan governing water use, sewage treatment, and water pollution among all users of a water basin.
      4. Many believe that the key to reducing water waste and providing more equitable access to water is for governments to phase out subsidies that reduce the price of water for those benefiting from such subsidies (often large farms and industries).
      5. Shift our approach to dealing with pollution from an emphasis on cleanup to pollution prevention.

8. FOREST RESOURCES

   How do forests function as a resource for human populations?

   1. Forests, due to their large area and volume, play a key role in climate and in the hydrologic cycle as well as providing habitats for other life forms.
      1. Maintain oxygen and carbon balance of Earth.
      2. Help to regulate surface and air temperatures and atmospheric moisture content.
      3. Protect watersheds and regulate water flow.
      4. Protect soil from erosion.
      5. Provide habitat for plants and animals.

   2. Should behave as a flow resource for human use.
      1. Products can be removed on a continuous basis because the resource is self-renewing.
      2. If the removal rate is exceeded, the forest ceases to behave as a flow resource and instead behaves as a finite resource.

9. GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION OF FOREST RESOURCES

   What is the current distribution of forest types?

   What resources are available from different forest types?

   1. The natural distribution of forest cover is governed by conditions of temperature and moisture.
   2. Today, forests cover approximately 30% of Earth廣 land surface; reduced by:
      1. population growth.
      2. need for agricultural land.
      3. demand for fuel and commercial wood.
      4. middle latitude demand for beef.

   3. Commercial forests more restricted.
      1. Northern coniferous forest of northern hemisphere.
         1. construction lumber
         2. pulp for paper and other products

      2. Temperate deciduous and deciduous-coniferous mix.
         1. furniture
         2. veneers
         3. railroad ties

      3. Tropical hardwood forests.
         1. fuelwood and charcoal
         2. hardwood logs

10. PATTERNS OF PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION OF FOREST RESOURCES

    What are the patterns of production of forest resources?

    What are the patterns of consumption of forest resources?

    1. Food and extracts from forests.
       1. Fruits, berries, and nuts.
       2. Food extracts (chocolate)
       3. Drugs

    2. Timber is principle use.
       1. Roundwood (log) production is the primary economic activity (Table 11).
          1. 48% of the world廣 annual logging harvest is for industrial consumption.
          2. 52% of the world廣 annual logging harvest is for fuelwood and charcoal.

          (TABLE 11) Roundwood production, 1989-1991

       2. Processed wood (Table 12)

          (TABLE 12) Processed wood production, 1989-1991

    3. Trade in roundwood links world regions and countries due to the uneven distribution of production and consumption (Figure 12a).
       (FIGURE 12a) Average annual net trade in roundwood (1000 cubic meters)
       

    4. Methods of production.
       1. Clear cutting removes all the trees in one cut.
       2. Shelterwood cutting removes all mature trees in two or three cuttings over a period of about ten years.
       3. Seed tree cutting harvests nearly all of the trees in a stand in one cutting, leaving a uniform distribution of seed producing trees to regenerate.
       4. Selective cutting removes intermediate-aged or mature trees in a forest individually or in small groups.
       5. Strip cutting removes narrow strips of trees along the contour line.

    5. Human activity exerts the greatest pressure today on the tropical forests of the world as population growth, the need for agriculture and pasture land, and the demand for fuel and commercial wood have all been expanded and are projected to increase in the future.
       1. Tropical forests are delicately balanced ecosystems.
       2. Unsustainable removal of forest cover threatens soil resources and the ability of the system to regenerate.

11. SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY

    In what ways do the human and physical environments interact to create programs of sustainable forestry?

    1. Maintaining and increasing forest cover is recognized in Agenda 21 of the Rio Conference as a means of contributing to the improvement of human living conditions. Four priority areas in the Forest Principles, which cover management, conservation, and sustainable development.
       1. Sustain multiple roles and functions of all types of forests.
       2. Enhance the protection, sustainable management, and conservation of all forests.
       3. Promote efficient utilization and assessment to recover the full value of the goods and services provided by forests.
       4. Establish and/or strengthn the capacity for planning, assessment, and systematic observation of forests and related programs, including commercial trade.

    2. Sustainable forestry is management that emphasizes the following:
       1. Recycle more paper.
       2. Use fibers from fast-growing plants to make tree-free paper, and reduce wood waste.
       3. Grow more timber on long rotation, generally 100-200 years, depending on the species and soil quality.
       4. Practice selective cutting.
       5. Minimize fragmentation of the remaining larger blocks of forest.
       6. Use road building and logging methods that minimize soil erosion and compaction.
       7. Practice strip cutting instead of conventional clear cutting.
       8. Leave standing dead trees (snags) and fallen timber to maintain diverse wildlife habitats and to be recycled as nutrients.
       9. Include the ecological and recreation services provided by trees and a forest in evaluating their economic value.