Year 11 Paper 2: Natural Hazards and Human Geography
This paper covers tectonic hazards, weather hazards and climate change together with urban issues, the changing economic world, resource management and geographical skills.
Year 11 here means a typical teaching order, not a syllabus rule. No exam board defines what belongs to Year 11, and schools sequence the course differently. Check it against your own scheme of work before using it to decide what a class has covered.
Questions
Question 1 [1 marks]
Resource Management
Define the term 'food security'.
Question 2 [1 marks]
Climate Change
Name one piece of evidence scientists use to study the Earth's climate from thousands of years before instrumental records began.
Question 3 [1 marks]
Development and the Changing Economic World
Name the economic sector that includes jobs directly extracting raw materials, such as farming, fishing or mining.
Question 4 [2 marks]
Tectonic Hazards
Give two primary effects of an earthquake.
Question 5 [2 marks]
Urban Growth and Regeneration
State two push factors that might cause someone to migrate from a rural area to a city in a lower-income country.
Question 6 [3 marks]
Geographical Skills
State three pieces of equipment a student might use during river fieldwork to measure velocity, width and depth.
Question 7 [3 marks]
Weather Hazards
State three types of flooding that can affect the UK.
Question 8 [3 marks]
Geographical Skills
Explain one advantage of using stratified sampling, rather than random sampling, when a study area has clearly different zones, such as a town with distinct residential, retail and industrial zones.
Question 9 [3 marks]
Tectonic Hazards
Explain one reason why deaths from volcanic eruptions are, globally, much less common than deaths from earthquakes.
Question 10 [4 marks]
Climate Change
Explain one way in which rising global temperatures can affect sea level, and one group of places most at risk from this effect.
Question 11 [4 marks]
Weather Hazards
A reservoir supplying a drought-affected region held 420 million litres of water at the start of a dry summer.
Over 90 days, the region used water at an average rate of 4 million litres per day and received no significant rainfall. Calculate how many litres of water were left in the reservoir at the end of the 90 days.
Question 12 [4 marks]
Geographical Skills
A footpath is drawn as 6.4cm long on a map with a scale of 1:25,000. A student wants to draw the same footpath on a different map, with a scale of 1:50,000.
Calculate the real length of the footpath in metres, then calculate how long the footpath would be drawn on the 1:50,000 map, in centimetres.
Question 13 [4 marks]
Tectonic Hazards
The Richter scale is logarithmic. Each whole number increase in magnitude represents an earthquake that releases about 32 times more energy.
One earthquake measures magnitude 4. A second earthquake at the same location measures magnitude 6.
Calculate how many times more energy the magnitude 6 earthquake releases than the magnitude 4 earthquake, then state whether a magnitude 8 earthquake would release more or less energy than the magnitude 6 earthquake.
Question 14 [5 marks]
Urban Growth and Regeneration
The fictional city of Port Nyara had a population of 2.4 million in 2000. By 2020 its population had grown to 6.0 million.
Calculate the percentage growth in population between 2000 and 2020, then state whether the population more than doubled, and comment on how this rate of growth compares with population growth in a typical UK city.
Question 15 [5 marks]
Tectonic Hazards
A city has a population of 850,000. A hazard assessment estimates that 34,000 residents live within the zone most at risk from lahars (volcanic mudflows).
Calculate the percentage of the city's population living within the highest-risk zone, then state whether this is a small or large share of the total population, and give a reason for a hazard planning strategy that follows from this.
Question 16 [5 marks]
Resource Management
Explain two reasons why drip irrigation is often considered a more sustainable method of irrigating crops than spraying water over a field from above.
Question 17 [6 marks]
Development and the Changing Economic World
For a major infrastructure project you have studied in a newly emerging economy (NEE), assess its impact on the country's economic development.
Question 18 [6 marks]
Climate Change
Evaluate the effectiveness of international agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, in tackling climate change.
Question 19 [6 marks]
Development and the Changing Economic World
For a newly emerging economy (NEE) you have studied, assess the extent to which international trade, rather than international aid, has driven its economic development.
Question 20 [6 marks]
Climate Change
Assess the effectiveness of a named renewable energy strategy you have studied in helping to mitigate climate change.
Question 21 [6 marks]
Weather Hazards
Evaluate the evidence that the UK is experiencing more extreme weather as a result of climate change.
Model solutions
| Question 1[1 mark] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| a valid definition, e.g. having reliable access to enough safe, nutritious food to meet dietary needs | B1 |
| Final answer: Having reliable access to enough safe, nutritious food to meet dietary needs | |
| Question 2[1 mark] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| a valid source of evidence, e.g. ice cores (or tree rings/pollen analysis) | B1 |
| Final answer: Any valid source, e.g. ice cores, tree rings, or pollen analysis | |
| Question 3[1 mark] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| the primary sector | B1 |
| Question 4[2 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| one valid primary effect, e.g. buildings and bridges collapse | B1 |
| a second valid primary effect, e.g. people are killed or injured by falling debris | B1 |
| Final answer: Any two of: collapsed buildings/bridges, deaths/injuries from falling debris, ruptured roads, damaged power and water lines | |
| Question 5[2 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| one valid push factor, e.g. a lack of jobs or low pay in farming | B1 |
| a second valid push factor, e.g. poor access to services such as healthcare or education, or natural disasters | B1 |
| Final answer: Any two of: lack of rural jobs/low pay, poor access to services, drought or natural disasters, mechanisation of farming reducing labour needs | |
| Question 6[3 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| a valid piece of equipment for velocity, e.g. a flow meter, or a float and stopwatch | B1 |
| a valid piece of equipment for width, e.g. a tape measure | B1 |
| a valid piece of equipment for depth, e.g. a metre ruler or metre stick | B1 |
| Final answer: Any three of: a flow meter or a float and stopwatch (velocity), a tape measure (width), a metre ruler/stick (depth) | |
| Question 7[3 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| identifying a valid flood type, e.g. river (fluvial) flooding | B1 |
| identifying a second valid flood type, e.g. flash flooding | B1 |
| identifying a third valid flood type, e.g. coastal flooding or groundwater flooding | B1 |
| Final answer: Any three of: river (fluvial) flooding, flash flooding, coastal flooding, groundwater flooding | |
| Question 8[3 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| identifying that stratified sampling deliberately selects a set number of sample points from within each identified zone | B1 |
| developing this, e.g. this ensures every distinct zone is represented in the results in proportion to its size or importance | B1 |
| a valid concluding link, e.g. purely random sampling could, by chance, miss out on a smaller zone entirely, giving a less complete picture | B1 |
| Final answer: Stratified sampling deliberately selects sample points from within each identified zone, ensuring every zone is represented, whereas purely random sampling could by chance miss out on a smaller zone entirely | |
| Question 9[3 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| identifying that volcanoes can usually be monitored for warning signs, e.g. seismic activity or ground deformation | B1 |
| developing this, e.g. this gives time for the surrounding area to be evacuated before the eruption happens | B1 |
| a valid concluding link, e.g. earthquakes generally strike with little or no warning, giving people no time to reach safety | B1 |
| Final answer: Volcanoes can usually be monitored for warning signs, e.g. seismic activity or ground deformation, allowing evacuation before an eruption; earthquakes generally strike without this warning | |
| Question 10[4 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| identifying a mechanism, e.g. thermal expansion of seawater, or melting land ice and glaciers | B1 |
| developing the mechanism, e.g. warmer water expands in volume, or melted ice adds extra water to the oceans | B1 |
| linking to the effect, e.g. this raises global sea level and increases coastal flood risk | B1 |
| naming a group most at risk, e.g. low-lying coastal cities or small island states | B1 |
| Final answer: Thermal expansion of warming seawater, and/or melting land ice adding water to the oceans, raises sea level; low-lying coasts and small island states are most at risk | |
| Question 11[4 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| finding the total used, 4 x 90 | M1 |
| 360 million litres used | A1 |
| subtracting this from the starting volume, 420 - 360 | M1 |
| 60 million litres remaining | A1 |
| Question 12[4 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| finding the real length in centimetres, 6.4 x 25,000 = 160,000cm | M1 |
| converting to metres, 160,000 / 100 | M1 |
| 1600 metres | A1 |
| the length on the new map, 160,000 / 50,000 = 3.2cm | A1 |
| Final answer: The real length is 1600 metres; on the 1:50,000 map it would be drawn as 3.2cm | |
| Question 13[4 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| recognising the magnitude difference between magnitude 4 and magnitude 6 is 2 | M1 |
| calculating 32 x 32 | M1 |
| 1024 times more energy | A1 |
| correctly stating a magnitude 8 earthquake would release (much) more energy than the magnitude 6 earthquake | B1 |
| Final answer: 1024 times more energy; a magnitude 8 earthquake would release more energy than the magnitude 6 earthquake | |
| Question 14[5 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| finding the increase, 6.0 - 2.4 = 3.6 million | M1 |
| setting up the percentage calculation, (3.6 / 2.4) x 100 | M1 |
| 150% growth | A1 |
| stating the population more than doubled between 2000 and 2020 | B1 |
| a valid comment on the scale of growth, e.g. this is a much faster rate of growth than most UK cities experience | B1 |
| Final answer: 150% growth; the population more than doubled | |
| Question 15[5 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| setting up the percentage calculation, (34,000 / 850,000) x 100 | M1 |
| 4% | A1 |
| stating this is a small proportion of the total population | B1 |
| a valid reason, e.g. although the number at risk is large in absolute terms, it is a small fraction of the whole city | B1 |
| a valid planning implication, e.g. hazard mitigation resources should be targeted at the highest-risk zone rather than spread across the whole city | B1 |
| Final answer: 4%; a small proportion of the total population, so hazard mitigation resources should be targeted at the highest-risk zone rather than spread across the whole city | |
| Question 16[5 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| identifying that drip irrigation delivers water directly to each plant's roots through a network of tubes and emitters | B1 |
| developing this, e.g. far less water is lost to evaporation in the air, or to running off the surface, than when water is sprayed over the whole field | B1 |
| identifying that much less water is wasted for the same crop yield | B1 |
| developing this, e.g. drip irrigation reduces the total amount of water that needs to be extracted from rivers, lakes or groundwater to grow the same amount of food | B1 |
| a valid concluding link, e.g. this helps to conserve water resources, which is especially valuable in areas of water scarcity | B1 |
| Final answer: Drip irrigation delivers water directly to each plant's roots, so far less is lost to evaporation or runoff than spraying over a whole field; because much less water is wasted for the same yield, drip irrigation reduces the total water that must be extracted from rivers, lakes or groundwater, conserving resources especially valuable in water-scarce areas | |
| Question 17[6 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| Names and locates the infrastructure project and country studied (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes an economic benefit of the project, e.g. it generates electricity that powers industry and attracts further investment (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes a second benefit, e.g. it creates construction and long-term operational jobs (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes a negative impact, e.g. it displaces communities or floods farmland and habitats (1 mark) | 1 |
| Explains a linked consequence of this negative impact, e.g. displaced communities may face loss of livelihood or inadequate resettlement (1 mark) | 1 |
| Reaches a supported overall judgement on whether the project's benefits outweigh its costs for the country's development (1 mark) | 1 |
| Final answer: A named project with described economic benefits and negative impacts, an explained consequence and a supported judgement on the overall balance for development | |
| Question 18[6 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| Describes a named international agreement, e.g. the Paris Agreement, and its main aim (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes a specific commitment or mechanism within it, e.g. countries submitting nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to cut emissions (1 mark) | 1 |
| Explains a strength of this approach, e.g. it created a shared global target, limiting warming to well below 2 degrees C, that most countries signed up to (1 mark) | 1 |
| Evaluates a limitation, e.g. targets are not legally binding and some major emitters have missed or withdrawn from commitments (1 mark) | 1 |
| Uses a specific example to support the evaluation, e.g. a named country's emissions trend since signing (1 mark) | 1 |
| Reaches a supported overall judgement on how effective international agreements have been (1 mark) | 1 |
| Final answer: A named agreement with a described mechanism, an evaluated strength and limitation, a supporting example and a supported judgement on effectiveness | |
| Question 19[6 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| Names the NEE studied (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes a way trade has contributed to development, e.g. growing manufacturing exports have brought in foreign currency and created jobs (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes a way aid has contributed, e.g. aid-funded infrastructure or education projects (1 mark) | 1 |
| Compares the scale of the two, e.g. trade income is often far larger in value than aid received once a country begins to industrialise (1 mark) | 1 |
| Evaluates a limitation of relying on trade, e.g. dependence on export income makes the economy vulnerable to global price or demand changes (1 mark) | 1 |
| Reaches a supported overall judgement on which has driven development more (1 mark) | 1 |
| Final answer: A named NEE with a described trade contribution and aid contribution, a comparison of scale, an evaluated limitation and a supported judgement on which has driven development more | |
| Question 20[6 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| Names the renewable energy strategy studied, e.g. a named wind farm or solar power scheme (1 mark) | 1 |
| Explains how it reduces greenhouse gas emissions compared with fossil fuels (1 mark) | 1 |
| Describes a benefit beyond emissions, e.g. reduced reliance on imported fossil fuels or new local jobs (1 mark) | 1 |
| Evaluates a limitation, e.g. output depends on weather conditions, so it cannot always meet demand alone (1 mark) | 1 |
| Considers a further limitation, e.g. the cost or environmental impact of building the infrastructure (1 mark) | 1 |
| Reaches a supported overall judgement on the strategy's effectiveness at mitigating climate change (1 mark) | 1 |
| Final answer: A named strategy with its emissions benefit and a further benefit, an evaluated limitation, a further consideration and a supported judgement on its effectiveness | |
| Question 21[6 marks] | |
|---|---|
| Answer or working | Marks |
| Identifies a piece of evidence, e.g. more frequent and intense storms recorded in recent decades (1 mark) | 1 |
| Identifies a second piece of evidence, e.g. record-breaking rainfall or heatwave events in recent years (1 mark) | 1 |
| Links evidence to a possible cause, e.g. a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, increasing rainfall intensity (1 mark) | 1 |
| Considers a counter-argument or limitation, e.g. weather is naturally variable so a few extreme years do not prove a long-term trend (1 mark) | 1 |
| Weighs the evidence against the counter-argument (1 mark) | 1 |
| Reaches a supported overall judgement on how convincing the evidence is (1 mark) | 1 |
| Final answer: A balanced evaluation using UK evidence, such as storm frequency or rainfall records, weighed against natural variability, ending in a supported judgement | |