geography notes

Chapter 3 droughts:

What is drought and what causes it?

book highlighted pointers:-

– droughts occur when an area receives lower than average rainfall.

– determining the start of a drought can also be difficult
– this is because the onset of drought is gradual and it can take months,
or even years, for the effects of below average rainfall to surface.
– it can take weeks or months for rainfall patterns to get back to normal
– deaths are often caused by water shortages and crop failures, which
can lead to famine, forced migration and conflict.

The causes of droughts

book highlighted pointers:-

Q. importance of trees
– human activities, especially deforestation, can also lead to drought.
– trees are vital components pf the water cycle:
● their roots help rainwater soak into the soil
● they shade the soil, so there is less evaporation
● they store water, and water from their leaves contributes a large

amount of moisture to the atmosphere through transpiration

– removing trees from he landscape increases evaporation, and makes
the ground less able to retain water. As a result, desertification
increases.
pointers:
– low pressure systems, the air is moist and it is likely that precipitation
will occur
– when trees are cut down, rainfall decreases, as a result severe
droughts become more frequent.
– these droughts damage or kill trees, making more droughts likely

Drought case study: California

book highlighted pointers:-

Q. what were the environmental impacts?

– drought caused more wildlife to die
 – streams and rivers were so dry that many fish could not migrate to
their spawning grounds
– over 102 million trees died in the drought increasing the risk of wildlife
– hydroelectric turbines produce energy, however when water levels in
the reservoirs are very low, hydropower cannot be relied on
– increase in wildfires
Q. what were the economic impacts?
– job losses in agricultural and particularly seasonal jobs
– rice farmers left their land fallow due to lack of water or switched to
crops that need less water
Q. how were the impacts of drought in california reduced
– shade balls
● plastic balls which cover the surface of a body of water, slowing down
the rate of evaporation
– cloud seeding
● cloud seeding involves spraying the chemical silver iodide into the

clouds from planes

● this attracts water vapour which forms rain clouds

pointers:
– california has had many droughts over the last century; the longest
from dec 2011 to mar 2017.
– between late 2011 and 2014 was the driest on record and precipitation
levels in 2013 were 34% less
– high pressure over the pacific ocean linked to el nino

copy pointers:-

Q. what are the impacts of droughts on humans

droughts

no rainfall

crops
live stocks
diseases

famine(shortage of food)

Q. what are the impacts of droughts on the economy

droughts

no rainfall

raw materials ( agro-based)

production in industries
 droughts

no rainfall

raw materials ( agro-based)

production in industries

profits
income

economic development

Drought case study: the Sahel

book highlighted pointers:-

Q. causes of drought
– main cause of droughts in the Sahel is a reduction in vegetation
– deforestation to make way for agricultural land
– subsequent overgrazing
– have increased he reflectivity or albedo of the landscape
– when they cleared, the lighter surface of the cleared ground absorbs
less sunlight
– this results in heating, so less moisture is released into the
atmosphere
– this leads to less convection that is needed for rainfall
Q. causes of shrinking
– the shrinking of lake chad also contributed to drought and famine in
the Sahel
– lake chad is used by 20 million people living near the lake in Nigeria,
Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
– they depend on it for drinking water and irrigation, as well as fishing
– the area around the lake has seen mass overgrazing and
desertification
– the shrinking of lake chad has been both a cause and an effect of
drought in the sahel
Q. impacts of the lake chad shrinking
– drought led to famine
– this was due to lack of rainfall which stopped crops from growing and
there was not enough water for irrigation
– children were malnourished
– millions of people going hungry
– (1.2 million) at risk of famine
– (350,000) people faced starvation
– people, particularly children suffered from diarrhoea and breathing
problems as a result of malnutrition
Q. solutions to the drought
– humanitarian crisis was largely avoided
– world food programme attended by: UN agencies, governments of
affected countries and major donors
– they came up with a plan that aimed to do two things:
● make sure the most vulnerable people (children and the elderly) have

enough food to get through the crisis

● make sure that drought-prone countries don’t have similar problems in

the future

How might climate change affect droughts?

book highlighted pointers:-

– La Nina, overgrazing and desertification have all been blamed for

causing droughts
– climate change increases the risk of drought
– higher temperatures can cause change in. rainfall patterns, and
greater evaporation from the soil, rivers and lakes.
– at the same time, the demand for water increases especially from
farmers, causing stress on water supplies
– impact of climate change is on regions near mountains
– they depend on melting snow in spring and summer for their water
supply
– increased temperatures make precipitation more likely to fall as rain
rather than snow
– when rainfall does occur, it is likely to come in shorter and more
intense bursts.
– this means that summers will see long dry periods with short heavy
storms
– surface runoff may actually increase

global temperatures heat evaporation moisture

content rainfall droughts

copy pointers:-

Q. causes of droughts
– natural factors
● unreliability of monsoon rainfall may lead to seasonal droughts
● hot dry winds can reduce the moisture content due to lowering of the

level humidity in the air

● global climate is constantly, changing leading to changes in the

temperatures
– human factors
 ● deforestation of the foothills on the mountains increases soil erosion
and decreases rainfall
● mismanagement of water resources through seepage of unlined
canals
● the disputed and unfair distribution of water may lead to drought
conditions in that area which is already deprived of its fair share of
water
● over grazing of land leads to soil erosion that reduces soil fertility
● global warming leads to climate change

Q. affects of droughts
– physical environment
● desertification ( a process of turning land into desert)
● drying up of rivers, lakes and streams harms fish and aquatic life.
growth of algae in shallow waters will result in unsafe water for
drinking
● drop in the water table resulting in less water for humans, animals and

plants as the water level drops

– affects on humans
● the population is affected by widespread famine leading to starvation.

malnutrition leads to health problems and both of these cases lead to

lose of lives
● migration from drought affected areas can lead to nomadic lifestyle
● the economy is affected by crop failure and death of livestock

resulting in shortage of raw materials, consequently reducing

production in industries. this deceases exports and foreign exchange
and on the other hand increases the import build
● less people visit the reign resulting in less tourism and less foreign

exchange as well
● due to less volume of water in the rivers there will be reduced velocity

and thus less generation of HEP (hydro electrical power)

Q. solutions to droughts
– construction of reservoirs such as dams and tanks in order to store
water for later use
– construction of canals for the purpose of irrigation to grow crops
during periods of less rainfall
– afforestation that is planting of trees so the root absorbs water. they
also bind the soil together, and the branches and leaves give shade to
prevent soil erosion
– use of new technology like desalination of water ( removal of salt
through scientific methods), reclaiming waste water and turning it into
clean water, use of cloud seeding to increase rainfall
– planning and management of resources. fair allocation and distribution
of water to different users ( agricultural, industrial, domestic)
 –

conservation of water to avoid shortages, by constructing dams,

canals, tanks etc

definitions:-
– desertification: where fertile land becomes desert, usually as a result
of drought, deforestation or poor farming techniques
– soil erosion: removal of the fertile top layer of the soil
– unlined canals: canals that aren’t connected
– transpiration: in plants, the process where water is absorbed through
the roots and evaporates from the leaves
– irrigation: artificial watering of plants usually through canals, tube
wells etc
– albedo: the amount of sunlight a surface receives
– surface runoff: the unconfined flows of water over the ground surface
– overgrazing: the distribution of water may lead o drought conditions in
an area
– afforestation: replanting of trees
– nomadic lifestyle: when people move from one place to another in
search of food along with their livestock
– desalination of water: removal of salt from water through scientific
methods

just a note:

– land expensive

– sea
- salty/ saline

sea water filter fresh water ( salty)

(cannot be used for agricultural purposes)