A revision guide for GCSE Geography

Economic Geography A revision guide for GCSE Geography To advance slide click here AEB 2008

What is Economic Geography? You may have heard the phrase that money makes the world go around…. Well in some ways it does. Or at least it has a big effect on how the countries in the world work. Economic Geography is the study of how countries make and spend their money and how that affects the world we live in.

But that’s not all… Economic systems bring together physical and human resources. Most countries have to trade in order to get all the resources they need. Trade between countries is not always fair and has lead to great differences in the levels of development in countries around the world. It is these factors that have brought about the world we live in today that we study inEconomic Geography.

What is Economic Geography? Economic Geography is the study of how different countries make and spend their money. You will see how economic systems bring together both physical and human factors. We will see how the earths resources are used and how trade between countries for these resources is not always fair. We will also be looking at the impact of economic change

How to use this Revision Session for Economic Geography • Click on the topic of your choice on the following slide • Read through the animated section to the end • Then choose either to return to the main menu and choose another topic, or exit and try a quiz. • Finally look at the example GCSE questions on Economic Geography and have a go at being an examiner!

Types of Industry Development Click on the economic topic of your choice Regional differences Growth and Decline of Industry Trade and Aid

Types of Industry There are 4 main types of industry Primary – The collection of raw materials Secondary – Manufacturing a product Tertiary – Providing a service Quaternary – Research an development

Chose which type of industry you wish to study… PRIMARY SECONDRY TERTIARY QUATERNARY Click on the blue box of your choice Click here to leave the section on type of industry Transnational Corporations TNCs

Primary Industry The raw materials can be quarried, mined or drilled from below the earths surface e.g. oil drilling and coal mining. • Primary Industries are those that involve the collection of Raw Materials. (Raw materials are things that are found in or on the earth that haven’t been processed or changed). They can be grown e.g farming and forestry They can be collected from the sea - fishing

A good example of a Primary Industry to look at in more detail is farming. There are several different types of farming…. • Arable – growing crops • Pastoral – Rearing animals • Mixed – both animals and crops on the same farm • Horticulture – Flowers, fruit, vegetables often in greenhouses • Commercial – Growing to sell the produce • Subsistence – Growing to provide food for the family • Extensive – Using large area with little labour eg. Hill sheep farming • Intensive – Small amount of land using a lot of labour or technology • Sustainable – Farming that causes minimal impact on the environment

We can think of industry as a system with … INPUTS PROCESSES OUTPUTS Labour Seed Animals Manure Soil Rain Sunshine Planting Weeding Harvesting Tending stock Food Seed Manure Seed, manure and food energy Let us look at the Primary Industry of farming to illustrate this point. If the outputs are all put back into the system as inputs this creates a ‘closed system’.

Farming as a system Farming can be a closed system where all the outputs are put back into the system as inputs. INPUTS PROCESS OUPUTS Seeds, Manure Subsistence farming where farmers only grow food to feed themselves are a good example of this type of system. PROFITS Or farming can be an open system where the outputs are sold and part of the money made pays for new inputs (the rest is profit). INPUTS PROCESS OUPUTS Money from sales Commercial farming in MEDC countries are examples of open systems

How farming effects the land Farming takes up more land than any other human activity. It has a great impact on the natural environment e.g soils and water. Often these impacts are very harmful. Large areas of rainforest are cleared to provide room for cattle ranching and the soils rapidly loose their fertility. Overuse of land in countries with growing populations can lead to desertification and deforestation Farming can change a natural ecosystem into an Agro-ecosystem (one that is controlled by the farmer)

Farming is a risky business These effects or those of a bad harvest caused by bad weather and much more keenly felt in the pooper LEDC countries where farmers are often only existing just above the poverty line. Such an event may cause them to dip below the poverty line. Farmers in MEDC countries are more able to survive such dips. Risks can be Physical.. Floods wash away soils or ruin crops Droughts kill plants and animals Diseases – can affect both plants and animals Earthquakes or Volcanoes ruin valuable farmland. Risks can be Economic.. Changes in the market cause a drop in demand for types of produce Quotas – governments may put limits on certain products New technology may increase costs or cause unemployment.

Pattern of farming in the UK Arable Farming The pattern of farming in the UK is largely determined by the relief of the land and the quality of the soil. Let’s look at the different types in turn.. Arable: Growing crops Location: East coast eg East Anglia Reasons: Fertile soil Flat land Low lying well drained Less rainfall more sunshine

Livestock Rearing Livestock: Cattle and sheep for meat and wool Location: On highland eg mountains of Scotland and Wales Reason: Nothing else will grow there except grass, not flat, poor soil, poor accessibility. Only need to gather livestock in a few times per year.

Dairying Dairying: Cows kept for milk etc. Location/Reason: Nearer centres of location – not such high land but not flat enough to grow things eg South Wales, West Midlands

Horticulture Horticulture: Flowers fruit and veg – often in greenhouses Location: Small pockets around centres of population e.g. around London Reason: Need to get produce to market quickly or will spoil. Doesn’t require lots of room (intensive) In the south – warmer and sunnier

Mixed Farming Mixed: Crops and animals on the same farm Location/Reason: Everywhere else! ie where its not mountainous, not the best quality soils but has a mixture of land that will grow grass and some that can support crops – often in rotation.

Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Introduced in 1962 it regulates farming inside the EU. Provides grants and subsidies for farmers Gives farmers a quota (a set amount of a particular crop to produce) CAP AIMS Increase food supplies for all EU countries Keep farmers in their jobs Guaranteed prices of selected products Make farming more intensive Subsidies so they can compete with cheap imports • CAP IMPACTS • Positive • Food supplies and jobs secured • Farmers incomes went up • Created other related jobs • Impacts • - Food surpluses • - loss of hedgerows • - more nitrates and pesticides  water cycle • Constantly being reviewed and updated. Changes include • Support farmers who use fewer chemicals and plant more hedgerows • Encourage farmers to diversify e.g. farm shop, golf courses.

Click here to choose another type of industry Click here to return to main menu

Secondary Industry Secondary industries are those where a product is made or processed. It is often known as the Manufacturing industry.

We can again look at this type of industry as a system. Raw materials Manufactured goods PROCESS OUTPUT INPUT

Our inputs and outputs are different from those we looked at with farming INPUTS Raw materials Energy Labour Transport costs Capital Government Grants PROCESSES Work by hand Work my machines Heating Adding chemicals, water or other materials OUTPUTS Goods for sale to people Goods for sale to other companies Waste products

To make a factory profitable… Inputs & Processes Outputs The costs of all the inputs and processes must be less than the money made from selling the final product. One way to help this is to keep the costs low. This may effect where the industry is located

Factors that influence location Click on the blue boxes to reveal the reasons

A good example of a Secondary Industry is that of the iron and steel industry Steel is a vital material at the heart of the modern world. Essential in industry, agriculture and transport. In the home, in sport and in building, packaging and engineering, steel products are everywhere. Steel also forms the basis of the machinery for the making of nearly every product we possess. Without it, wood and glass cannot be shaped, stone cannot be mixed, other metals cannot be melted and formed and plastics cannot be manufactured. Without steel our modern world would not exist. Chairman of British Steel 3 main raw materials: Iron ore Limestone Coke

Steel Making first developed n the UK during the industrial revolution in the 1800s Depends on bulky raw materials (coal and iron). Also produces bulky products so transport costs can be high. Often located near to the coal fields or close to a port as it is cheaper to transport these goods by sea e.g Port Talbot South Wales Scotland Northumberland Lancashire Yorkshire, Derbyshire South Wales For more about the British Steel industry see the section on the growth and decline of industries British Coalfields

A more modern example of a manufacturing or secondary industry is that of a car manufacturer. Again looking at this as a system…. INPUTS Steel, glass, plastic, power supplies, robots, labour, capital, upholstery, rubber, government incentives PROCESSES Welding, testing, operating machinery, administration, research, factory maintenance OUTPUTS Cars, Wages, profit, waste, A lot of these more modern manufacturing plants have replaced the older more traditional industries such as iron and steel in the UK. (See later section on growth and decline of industry).

Tertiary Industry This is the largest group of industries in MEDCs. It involves the service industries such as teaching, nursing, police and retail.

A good example of a Tertiary Industry to look at is Tourism. • Tourism is the world’s fastest growing industry (More money and more leisure time have helped this increase) • There is some form of tourism in nearly every country in the world • It gives many LEDCs the chance to improve their economies • Better transport networks have opened up the world

Tourism Multiplier Effect Foreign visitors attracted Extra food needed Growth of construction industry – hotels, roads, airports etc. Spend money (eg. hotels, on trips, souvenirs) Local farmers grow more food Jobs created Local people with higher wages spend more money More wealth generated from taxes to pay for hotels, roads, airports etc. Industry grows to meet demand

So Tourism can help an economy grow, but there is a negative side too. • Only 45% of revenue from tourism reaches the host country (kept by foreign tour operators) • Tourism can grow so large and popular that it destroys the environment the tourists come to see. • Tourist may not respect or even disturb the local cultures.

Quaternary Industry The newest and smallest industrial sector where scientists and researchers investigate and develop new products.

Footloose industries • Footloose industries are not toed to particular sources of materials or markets, and have a free choice of locations. • These industries tend to be either Tertiary or Quaternary industries.

Transnational Corporations (TNC) • Many MEDCs have set up factories in LEDC countries in an effort to maximise profits. • These are called Transnational because they are companies that have operations is several nations. • Examples of TNCs include Nike, Adidas or many other clothing firms

Advantages of TNCs To the TNC Cost are low – cheap labour so profits are high Raw materials are local Few health and safety regulations that could be expensive to meet To the LEDC Jobs provided for local people Higher wages than some other local work Can use money on education and health care Develops links with other countries To MEDCs Shoppers can buy goods more cheaply in shops

Disadvantages of TNCs To the LEDC TNCs can close factories without warning and move to other countries Workers work long hours in poor conditions Products are no use for local markets Can have a bad effect on the environment To MEDCs Cheaper imports mean that local factories in the MEDC may close and lead to unemployment An increase in imports can affect the trade balance (see later section on trade and aid)

That completes this section on the types of Industry Click this box to return to the main menu to choose another topic Click here to try a short test on what you have just learnt Click here to exit the program. Then why not have a look at the sample GCSE questions on Economic Geography.

Growth and Decline of Industry Industry has changed a lot in the last 50 years especially in MEDC countries. This has had an impact on the growth of cities, the distribution of population and had a social and economic effect.

Changes in employment structure in the UK In 1950 the employment structure in the UK looked like this:- However, today it looks very different. Let us investigate some of the reasons for this.

Let’s first look at the Location of Industry The location of industry is influenced by a number of factors:- • The location of raw materials and power supplies • The availability of a workforce (supply of labour) • The location of the market (where they need to sell the goods) • Market influences or changes and government policies Let us see how these work and how they have lead to a change in the employment structure.

Location of raw materials Industries grew up near their raw materials to reduce transport costs especially if they were bulky. This lead to different areas specialising in certain industries.

Availability of a workforce A factory can only locate where there are enough people available to work for them. They may need to be specialised with particular skills (this may lead to similar industries grouping together) Or they may need large numbers of unskilled workers (who they will train up themselves) Labour costs vary around the country so industries will try to locate where these are cheapest to keep their costs down.

Location of Market If the cost of transporting raw materials cost more than the finished product the industry will locate close to them. However, if the finished product is more expensive to transport (it may be larger or more expensive to insure) then the cheaper location will be nearer the market.

Market influences and Government policies Some industries will locate within the country that they market the product to avoid import taxes. Governments may encourage certain industries into certain areas to help with unemployment problems Land may be cheaper in some areas than others and this will effect input costs.

A revision guide for GCSE Geography