Meeting the demands for water resources could involve technology and interventions by different interest groups — Edexcel GCSE Geography A
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Meeting the demands for water resources could involve technology and interventions by different interest groups explained
Meeting the demands for water resources could involve technology and interventions by different interest groups covers 2 specification points, including A.
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How attitudes to the exploitation and… and B. How technology (desalination) can resolve…. Open a point below for its explanation and revision guidance.
a. How attitudes to the exploitation and consumption of water resources vary with different stakeholders (individuals, organisations and governments).
This statement asks you to explain how attitudes differ between stakeholders on two linked issues: exploiting water resources (taking water from rivers, lakes, aquifers or the sea) and consuming water. Individuals judge water mainly by cost and convenience, so a household may resent price rises or hosepipe bans. Organisations such as water companies and farms weigh reliability, operating cost and profit, so a farm may oppose abstraction limits. Governments balance security of supply, environmental protection, regional fairness and investment cost, so they may restrict abstraction from a river to protect wildlife. Show how these views can conflict, such as a company's abstraction plans clashing with an environmental duty.
b. How technology (desalination) can resolve water resource shortages.
This statement asks you to explain how desalination, the removal of salt from seawater or brackish water, can resolve water resource shortages. Methods include reverse osmosis, which forces water through a membrane that blocks salt, and distillation, which evaporates water and then condenses it as fresh water. In coastal areas with few rivers or aquifers, desalination adds supply and reduces pressure on freshwater sources. It is costly and energy-intensive, and the concentrated brine left behind must be disposed of safely. Say can rather than will: desalination may resolve shortages locally but does not guarantee supply everywhere.
Your focus
- Identify the attitudes of individuals, organisations and governments towards water exploitation and consumption.
- Explain why each stakeholder group holds its attitude, using cost, supply, profit or environmental reasons.
- Give an example of conflicting attitudes between two stakeholder groups.
Show all 6 objectives
- Define desalination and identify the source water it treats.
- Explain how a named desalination method removes salt to produce fresh water.
- Give limitations of desalination that affect its ability to resolve water shortages.
Meeting the demands for water resources could involve technology and interventions by different interest groups exam tips
Marking Points
- Identifies individuals, organisations and governments as distinct stakeholders with different priorities.
- Explains individuals' attitudes through cost, convenience and everyday household use of water.
- Explains organisations' attitudes through reliability of supply, operating cost and profit.
- Explains governments' attitudes through security of supply, environmental protection and fairness.
- Separates attitudes to exploitation (taking water) from attitudes to consumption (using water) where relevant.
- Defines desalination as the removal of salt from seawater or brackish water to produce fresh water.
- Explains a named method, such as reverse osmosis or distillation, and how it separates salt from water.
- Links desalination to a shortage context, such as coastal areas with limited freshwater sources.
- Evaluates how far desalination resolves shortage, noting cost, energy use and brine disposal.
- Uses can or may rather than will to show that the resolution is possible but not certain.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Name each stakeholder group separately before explaining its attitude, so the answer shows variation clearly.
- 💡Support at least one stakeholder attitude with a specific example, such as a farm seeking irrigation licences.
- 💡Check that the answer addresses both exploitation and consumption, not only one of them.
- 💡Name one method and explain its process in a sentence or two rather than just naming it.
- 💡Include at least one limitation, such as cost, energy use or brine disposal, to show balanced understanding.
- 💡Link the answer back to the shortage context, such as coastal demand, so the explanation stays focused.
Common Mistakes
- Treats all stakeholders as holding the same view; correction: give each group its own priorities and a reason for them.
- Describes attitudes to water in general terms without linking them to exploitation or consumption; correction: name abstraction, supply or household use explicitly.
- Lists the three stakeholder groups without explaining why their attitudes differ; correction: link each attitude to that group's interests and responsibilities.
- Describes desalination as a way to increase rainfall; correction: desalination produces fresh water from seawater regardless of rainfall.
- Confuses desalination with recycling wastewater or harvesting rainwater; correction: desalination specifically removes salt from seawater or brackish water.
- Describes desalination as a complete solution without explaining how it addresses the shortage; correction: explain the supply it adds and the limits that apply.