Lornshill Academy. Geography Department National Revision Human Environments - Population

Transcription

1 Lornshill Academy Geography Department National Revision Human Environments - Population 37

2 Human Environments - Population What you need to know: 1. Explaining population distribution and density 2. Explain problems with conducting a census in developing countries 3. Describe population pyramids 4. Causes and solutions in developing countries of rapidly growing populations 5. Causes and solutions in developed countries of slowly growing populations 6. Explain the stages of Demographic Transition Model 1. Population Distribution and Density: With the World Population now estimated to be over 7 billion people, this topic has implications for everyone and everything on Planet Earth! The distribution of people around the world is not evenly. There are crowded parts of the world and also empty areas. There are many factors, which contribute to an explanation of why this happens. Climate People like to live in areas where there are no extreme temperatures and there is rain all year round. Climate can limit the number of people that live in an area for example Russia. The conditions are unpleasant and expensive to live in; the growing season is too short to grow crops therefore food has to be bought in. It is also very hard to build on soil that is frozen for over half the year. People do not want to live where there is no rain either for example the middle of Australia. Again the living conditions are unpleasant and it s hard to grow crops because the soil is too thin and eroded easily by the wind. Soil Some river valleys are very crowded like the Nile Valley. The reason being is the soil here is very fertile so lots of crops can be grown in a small area. Also the valley is very flat so provides water all year round to people. 38

3 Relief People would rather live in areas that are flat and in the lowlands. Mountain ranges tend to be sparsely populated like the Himalayas. This is because of the cold temperatures and the poor soils. The slops also cause a problem because they are difficult to build on. Resources Where there are natural resources the population density tends to be higher. Areas like North-East America have attracted people because of the employment opportunities in the mining fields. Also scenery attracts tourist, which attract people to the area to work or even retire like California. Communications Areas that are not well connected by roads, railways, airports and ports are less populated as industry is rarely attracted to the area meaning fewer jobs for the locals. An example of this area would be Northern Canada. Technological Development Countries with advanced technologies and well-educated people can support higher population densities like Japan. Economic Activities Areas where industry is the main activity have higher population densities like Southeast Australia. Large amounts of people can be employed in a very small area. On the other hand it takes a large area of land to support people who have large farms like the Great Plains in USA. HELPFUL HINT One question you could be asked is to describe the population distribution of the world or of a specific country. The first one is simple as you use the key and describe the different areas of the world and use the figures to back up your answer. The second is more complex and you should follow a check list to answer it. Use compass points to help you In the north. Mention where places are in relation to other places on the map to the west of Describe the overall pattern. Most of the villages are in the north. Use specific numbers and details including names on the map in your description. The population density in the north around Inverness is 20 people per km2 Describe where the information shows similarities and where it shows differences Another question is to explain the distribution of the population. In order to do this you must state WHY the area is distributed like this. Use the factors that you previously took notes on to answer this. 2. World Population Growth: The total population of the world has increased rapidly over the last 100 years to over 7 billion currently. The rate of growth depends on the balance between Birth Rate and Death Rate. 39

4 3. The Demographic Transition Model: A demographic transition model shows how changes in birth and death rates can affect population growth. It also identifies four distinct stages of growth. These stages are linked with economic growth (a country becoming richer). Stage 1 There is a high birth and death rate. The total population growth is low due to the fact that many children are needed for farming so there is a high birth rate. Many children die at an early age due to the lack of food and medical treatment. There is no family planning, so population cannot be controlled. Religious beliefs encourage large families. Stage 2 The birth rate is greater than the death rate so the total population increases. This is because the food and medical supplies have increased so more people live longer. Family planning is not fully introduced therefore only helping a few families control their families. Stage 3 There is a high increase in the total population because the birth rate is greater than the death rate so there is a greater increase than in stage 2. This is because more family planning centres are being constructed. People are surviving longer due to greater medical knowledge, food and water supplies. Stage 4 The total population reaches its peak as the birth rate equals the death rate. This is because there is good reliable health care, food supplies and better resources for pensioners and old people. Family planning has helped people to reduce the number of children they have and people are having children at later age once they have a career and marriage. Problems governments may face when a country is in stage 5 The problems which a government may face when a country reaches Stage 5 are caused by low birth rate/declining (and ageing) population. This mean the country will need to maintain an active population large enough to allow levels of taxation to remain constant or raise retirement age. The country also needs to ensure there are no future shortages in workforce need to recruit 40

5 immigrant labour/ease access for asylum seekers. This can lead to civil unrest/ethnic tension. The government need to sustain demand for particular products or services e.g. toys, schools, maternity hospitals, which if affected could lead to higher levels of unemployment (for example not as many schools needed so many teachers become unemployed.) An ageing population gives increased cost of pension provision and unpopular decisions for government about how pensions should be funded. 4. Census How do we know that the birth ad death rate changes? Many countries count their population by taking a census. In the UK this form has been sent out every 10 years (the last one was sent out in 2011), and by law every household must fill it in accurately. Why do government want this information? Population numbers to calculate grants for local authorities to plan e.g. schools and teacher numbers. Health to know the age and socio-economic make-up of the population to allocate health and social services resources. Housing to ascertain the need for new housing. Employment to help government and businesses plan jobs and training policies. Transport to identify where there is pressure on transport systems and for planning of roads and public transport. Ethnic Group to identify the extent and nature of disadvantage in Britain. Problems facing developing countries Difficulties affecting accurate population data collection in Developing Countries might include; Countries suffering from a continuing war situation such as Afghanistan. The cost involved in carrying out a census is prohibitive to many Developing Countries training enumerators, printing and distributing forms etc. The sheer size of some developing countries e.g. Indonesia with many islands spread over a large area. Countries with large numbers of migrants e.g. rural-urban migration into massive shanty towns e.g. Dharavi in Mumbai, refugees from Rwanda in Burundi etc. Poor communication links e.g. mountain regions of Bolivia. Low levels of literacy and variety of languages spoken within a country e.g. India has 15 official languages. 5. Population Pyramids: This is a kind of bar graph that allows you to see the age and sex break up of a country s population. There are three groups of people that can be described in a population pyramid: - the young dependants (0-15); - the working aged population (16-64); - the older dependants (over 65). 41

6 By describing these three groups you can tell something about the birth rate, death rate and life expectancy of the country. By using the reasons for changes in birth and death rate, you should also be able to suggest why a country s pyramid is the shape it is. As with any graph, you can quote figures from the base of the population pyramids. Developing Pyramid The pyramid for a developing country has a wide base and steep sides leading to a narrow top. The base is very wide because it has a very high birth rate due to lack of contraception. The steep sides show there is a high death rate, as well as the numbers at the top of the pyramid are low. Low life expectancy also means that the pyramid has a wide base and mid-section. Developed Pyramid The narrow base and bullet shape shows there is a low birth and death rate. The maximum age is higher because there is better healthcare available, meaning it doesn t taper as steeply. Contraception is also widely available unlike in Sierra Leone, meaning that the birth rate is controlled keeping the general population at constant level. People live longer and life expectancy is much greater because of the available healthcare and better living conditions 6.Rapidly Growing Population In developing countries birth rates are much higher than death rates and the population is rising rapidly. In these countries the population structure is similar to the one shown below. There are many children because the birth rate is high. Often, one half of the population is under 15 years of age. There are less people in the working age group (15-60) because the death rate was high and many children did not survive to adulthood. For the same reason, there are very few old people in the population. 42

7 People in developing countries have large families so that: Children can help on the farm No pensions or old folks homes so children needed to look after parents in old age With high numbers of children dying people have more so that some survive to adult-hood Contraceptives are difficult to get Traditions and religions do not agree with contraceptives Solutions Increase education on Family planning Laws like Chinas One Child Policy More Education for females Incentives for smaller families like free healthcare More opportunities for sterilisation and abortions 7. Slowly Growing Populations In most Developed Countries, the birth rates and death rates are low and their populations are rising only slowly, if at all. Their population structures are similar to the one below. There are few children in the population because the birth rate is low. There are many adults because in the past the birth rate was higher and many babies were born at that time have survived into adulthood. There are also many older people because the death rate is so low and most people live to an old age. Women having children later due to: More women working Women want to buy luxury goods instead Put off having babies until they can afford equipment Want big houses The use of contraceptives not seen as wrong Contraceptives are available to everyone Solutions More Paternity leave More maternity benefits Raising retirement age (increasing tax payer and reducing pensions) Encourage women to work Providing more childcare Allowing more immigrants Encourage people to take out private pensions. 43