Why food, water and energy matter

All three are essential resources for a healthy, developed society:

• Food gives us the energy and nutrition to stay healthy and to work. Shortages cause malnutrition.
• Water is needed for drinking, sanitation, growing crops and industry. Dirty water spreads disease.
• Energy powers homes, transport, industry and services — it underpins economic development.

When people have enough of all three, their social wellbeing (health, education) and economic wellbeing (jobs, industry, trade) improve.

Key idea — inequality: resources are spread unequally around the world. Some countries have far more food, water or energy than they need (a surplus); others have less than they need (a deficit).

An unequal world

The global distribution of resources does not match where people live. Consumption is highest in richer, more developed countries.

• Wealthier countries (e.g. in Europe, North America) consume a large share of the world's food, water and energy per person.
• Lower-income countries often lack reliable access — leading to hunger, water insecurity and energy shortages.
• As countries develop and populations grow, demand rises, putting more pressure on limited resources.

Watch out: a place can be short of a resource even if it exists nearby — the problem is often about access (money, technology, infrastructure) and distribution, not just supply.

Surplus or deficit?

Food in the UK

UK demand for food has changed. People now expect variety and choice all year round:

• Growing demand for high-value, exotic and organic produce (e.g. tropical fruit, out-of-season vegetables).
• Demand for seasonal produce all year, so food is imported from around the world.
• This creates larger carbon footprints from food miles (the distance food travels) and from intensive agribusiness.
• A growing counter-trend towards local sourcing and fewer food miles (farm shops, farmers' markets, seasonal eating).

Key term — food miles: the distance food travels from where it is grown to where it is eaten. More food miles means more transport emissions and a bigger carbon footprint.

Water in the UK

UK rainfall does not match where most people live. This creates areas of surplus and deficit:

• Areas of deficit: the dry, densely populated south-east (e.g. London, East Anglia).
• Areas of surplus: the wetter, less populated north and west (e.g. Lake District, Wales, Scottish Highlands).
• Managing water also means dealing with water quality and reducing pollution.

UK water: surplus or deficit?

Tap a place, then tap the box it belongs in.

The changing UK energy mix

The UK's energy mix (the combination of sources used) has changed a great deal:

• Declining fossil fuels: UK coal, oil and gas reserves are running low, so more energy is imported.
• Move to renewables & nuclear: more wind, solar, hydro and nuclear power to cut carbon emissions.
• Issues of exploitation: economic and environmental costs — e.g. fracking (shale gas) raises pollution/earthquake worries; wind farms are debated over cost and visual impact.

Renewable or non-renewable?

Tap the correct type for each UK energy source.

Reading the UK energy trend

A closer look at water

For the deeper study we focus on water — the global picture of supply and demand, why some areas face insecurity, and how supplies can be increased and made sustainable.

Just like other resources, water is spread unevenly. Some areas have a surplus (plentiful rainfall or rivers); others have a deficit (dry climate, or high demand).

Key term — water security: having reliable access to enough safe, affordable water. Water insecurity is when a place cannot meet its water needs.

Why water use is rising

Global demand for water is increasing quickly. Three main reasons:

• Rising population — more people means more water needed for drinking, sanitation and growing food.
• Economic development — industry and irrigated farming use large amounts of water.
• Rising living standards — as people get wealthier they use more water (washing machines, showers, gardens, more meat in diets).

Meanwhile, some areas have water insecurity because they naturally have little rainfall, or because climate change, pollution and over-use are reducing supplies.

Rising demand for water

Impacts of water insecurity

When a place cannot meet its water needs, there are serious knock-on effects:

• Waterborne disease & pollution — dirty water spreads illnesses such as cholera and typhoid.
• Lower food production — without water for irrigation, crops fail and food supplies fall.
• Reduced industrial output — many industries need water, so shortages slow economic growth.
• Conflict — countries or regions may argue over shared rivers and water supplies.

Exam tip: group the impacts into social (disease, health), economic (food, industry) and political (conflict) to structure a strong answer.

Your turn — impacts of insecurity

Increasing the water supply

There are several strategies to increase how much water is available:

• Dams & reservoirs — dam a river to store water and control its flow, releasing it when needed.
• Water transfers — move water from an area of surplus to an area of deficit through pipes or canals.
• Desalination — remove salt from seawater to make it drinkable (useful in dry, coastal countries, but expensive and energy-hungry).

Match the strategy to its description

Tap a strategy on the left, then tap its correct description on the right.

Which strategy?

China's South–North Water Transfer

China's South–North Water Transfer Project is one of the largest water-transfer schemes in the world. It moves water from the wetter south (the Yangtze river basin) to the dry, crowded north (including Beijing).

• Aim: tackle severe water shortages in northern China, where cities and farming face a big deficit.
• How: huge canals and pipelines carry water hundreds of kilometres from the surplus south to the deficit north.
• Benefits: more reliable water for millions of people, industry and irrigated farming in the north.
• Costs: very expensive, people were displaced to build it, and there are worries about water quality and the environment.

Exam tip: for a scheme like this, always name the place, say it moves water from surplus to deficit, and give a benefit and a cost.

Understanding water transfers

Towards a sustainable water future

Large schemes increase supply, but a sustainable future also means using water more carefully — reducing demand and protecting sources for the future:

• Water conservation — using less (efficient appliances, fixing leaks, metering, public campaigns).
• Groundwater management — not over-pumping underground water so supplies last.
• Recycling & 'grey' water — reusing lightly used water (e.g. from washing) for jobs like flushing toilets and watering.

Key idea — sustainable supply: a sustainable scheme meets today's water needs without harming the supply for future generations.

The Wakel River Basin project, India

The Wakel River Basin project in Rajasthan, India, is a small-scale, local scheme that manages water sustainably in a dry area.

• Rainwater harvesting — collecting and storing rainwater in structures such as taankas (underground tanks) and small dams.
• Education — teaching local communities how to save and manage water carefully.
• Sustainable: it uses appropriate technology and local skills, is low-cost, and helps supplies last through the dry season without harming the environment.

Compare: a local scheme (like Wakel) is small, low-cost and community-led; a large-scale scheme (like China's transfer) is huge, costly and government-run. Both can improve water security.

Your turn — sustainable water

Increasing supply vs reducing demand

The key ideas to know

You've covered the AQA GCSE Resource Management unit with a deeper study of water. Press Finish to see your score.