There are 2 sets of CASE STUDIES which are relevant to this particular section of the syllabus that we use. The first is related to the extraction of RESOURCES which are RAW MATERIALS.
COAL MINING
There are several types of colliery. DRIFT or ADIT mines, SHAFT or DEEP mines and OPEN CAST mines.
There is now an excellent case study which can be found at the GEOGRAPHY IN ACTION site. It examines the pros and the cons of extracting lignite (a sort of halfway fossil fuel between peat and coal) at Ballymoney in Northern Ireland. This is worth seeking out.
QUARRYING
We look at the example of Limestone quarrying in the Peak District National Park. There are several of these as the central Peaks is an area of Limestone known as the White Peak (further North is the Gritstone of the Dark Peak)
Limestone is an ingredient in cement, and this is manufactured at the Hope Valley Cement Works near Castleton. There are some good fossils to be found in the spoil near Pin Dale. A glance at the OS map reveals a history of mining in the area, as there are a large number of disused mines and shafts. You need to take care if you are walking through this area. If you see a large piece of wood with a chain attached don't be tempted to throw it down the mine shaft....there may be a goat attached.
We use the documentary QUARRY QUEEN, featuring DOREEN... it's excellent.
The second type of resource that is extracted is ENERGY RESOURCES. Obviously COAL also comes into this category, so we also look at the FUELWOOD CRISIS in sub-Saharan Africa (the countries which make up the SAHEL in particular...)
TARMAC have opened a site called QUARRYVILLE, which has a tour around a quarry, and other relevant resources. Explore the site to see what is on offer.
There are various examples of the effects of OIL SPILLS on marine environments. In fact, the effects of these spills are small compared to the seepage of oil from other sources, and the general deposition of oil into the seas as a result of human activity which we all engage in.
We look at the EXXON VALDEZ oil spill in association with a general enquiry into Alaskan Oil in the 'Key Geography for GCSE Book 2' by David Waugh... There is no shortage of other spills to choose from: in relatively recent times we've had the SEA EMPRESS and BRAER, plus the PRESTIGE. Other EU countries have also been hit, and often it's the tourist trade which is the first area to face threats..
| We use a Channel 4 series called DISASTERS. One of the programmes is about OIL SPILLS, and you can get a Programme outline and some ACTIVITIES from HERE. |
| The ENERGY INSTITUTE has some materials on the EXXON VALDEZ disaster. |
| There is a
TALKING
POINT here looking at the issue of OIL SPILLS. Think about a PLENARY session - need to produce + / - statements. |
| There's also a good SLN GEOGRAPHY
WEB ENQUIRY
to investigate. "Safe in our hands ?" |
| Some useful materials on the PRESTIGE oil spill off the Galician coastline of Spain in 2002, the effects of which continued into 2003, and may come back again in the future.... |
Need to investigate 1 particular OIL SPILL event. This could be one from the video from the Channel 4 DISASTERS series which you may have watched.
Need to ensure that you can identify:
The causes of the problem
The nature of the impact on the local environment (and possibly on the wider environment now, and in the future....)
A located diagram or map to show that you recognise WHERE this incident / issue happened.
Information on the management of the issue, or the response that it provoked
Lessons learned for the future - possible changes in policy
Prepare some remarks for a plenary session: perhaps 10 key BULLET POINTS which you would wish to make...