Geomorphology

• The study of landforms

• The study of physical features Of the surface of the earth and the reaction
to it geological

Weathering
Breaks rocks down into smaller pieces called sediment.

Physical weathering: Involves the breakdown of rocks into smaller fragments

through processes such as expansion and contraction, mainly due to
temperature changes

Types of physical weathering

Freeze Thaw
Method:

1. Water enters a crack in the rock

2. Water freezes and expands widening the crack in the rock.

3. Ice melts and water goes deeper into the crack in the rock.

4. This process repeats until eventually the rock splits.

Exfoliation
The repeated heating and cooling exerts stress on the outer layers of rocks,
which causes their outer layers to peel off in thin sheets. The process of
peeling off is called exfoliation.

Method :

1. The surface of a rock heats up and expands. During the day.

2. The surface of the rock cools down and contracts at night.

3. Joints form in the outer part of the rock.

4. The joints become larger, breaking off in sections, and are eroded away.

Chemical weathering: Changes the composition of rocks, often

transforming them when water interacts with minerals to create various
chemical reactions. Chemical weathering is a gradual and slow process.

Types of chemical weathering.

Carbonation.
Method:

1. Rain droplets that contain (CO2) that has been dissolved in the rain
droplets.

2. This turns the rain into a weak acid, Carbonic acid (H2CO3.)

3. When it encounters a rock that contains calcium carbonate (CaCO2), a

chemical reaction begins.

4. The rainwater changes the chemical structure.

The soluble calcium carbonate turns into soluble bicarbonate.

5. The dissolved minerals are washed away.

Oxidation
• Very common type of chemical reaction that happens to rocks and
objects that contain iron.

• Water that contains oxygen mixes with the iron content of rocks form iron
oxide.

• Oxidation changes the chemical structure of rocks, making it weaker and

easily broken down.
Hydrolysis.
• Hydrolysis is a sequence of chemical reaction that involves water and
minerals called silicates.

• Silicates are present in many different kinds of rock, including sandstone

and granite.

• Certain silicates absorb water and change its clay.

• The rock now becomes unstable and may crumble grain by grain.

Biological Weathering: Biological weathering is a form of weathering caused

by living organisms.

Types of biological weathering.

• Pollution of humans. It leads to acid rain, causing some forms of chemical

erosion.

• Erosion caused by building buildings or construction.

• Over grazing of animals causing the land to be bare and prone to erosion.

• The continuous agriculture causing the land to be prone to soil erosion.

Erosion and deposition.

Rivers: Features of erosion and deposition along a river course.

Features along a river Course: deep, narrow V shaped valley with interlocking
spurs.

In the upper course near the source, the river uses its energy to erode down
vertically, which deepens the valley. A V-shaped valley therefore gets formed
as soil and rocks are eroded by the fast running water. The river can now
bend around obstacles of Hard Rock jutting down from alternate sides of the
valley. These are called interlocking spurs.

Upper course.
Characteristics.

• The source of the river.

• High laying areas.

• Steep gradients.

• Narrow and Shallow channels.

• Lots of boulders and rocks.

• Vertical (Downward)erosion takes place as a result of water flowing

caused by gravitational forces.

Features:

• Waterfalls.

• Gorges

Waterfall
1. Waterfall typically form in the upper stages of a river. They occur where a
band of hard rock overlies a softer rock. Falling water and rock particles
erode the soft rock below the waterfall, creating a plunge pool.

2. The soft rock is undercut by erosional processes such as hydraulic action

and abrasion, causing a plunge pool where water and debris swirl around,
eroding the rock through corrosion, further deepening it and creating an
overhang.

3. Hard rock overhang above the plunge pool collapses as its weight is no
longer supported.

4. Erosion continues and the waterfall retreats upstream, leaving behind a

gorge.

Gorge.
A waterfall where hard rock has retreated.

Middle course.
Characteristics

• A wide U-shaped valley.

• Gentle valley slopes. Smoother stones and pebbles.

• Deeper.

• Velocity and discharge increases.

• In an attempt to balance its energy, it starts eroding laterally, widening and

deepening its channel. Eroding is downwards and sideways.

Features.

Meanders.

Meanders
• Meanders occur in the middle valley and are a result of erosion and
deposition processes on a river.

• Meanders erode laterally and migrate across the river. Flow overtime,
widening valley.

• The fastest current is found on the outside of the bend. And the slowest
current is found on the inside of the bend.

• This means erosion occurs on the outside bends of a meander and

deposition occurs on the inside bends of a meander.

• As the Outer Banks of a meander continue to be eroded, the neck grows

narrower. Eventually the two outer bands meet and the river cuts through
the neck. The water then takes its shortest route rather than flowing around
the bend. Deposition gradually seals off the old meander band, forming a
new, straighter river channel. Due to deposition, the old meander bend is left
isolated from the main channel as an Oxbow lake.
Lower course.
• The end of a river, its mouth or a delta.

• At a river’s delta, the land flattens out the water. Loses speed, spreading
out into a fan shape.

• Deposition takes place.

• Usually this happens when the river meets an ocean, lake or wet land.

• Wide/ open valley and flat area.

• Smooth bed load with silt.

Features.
• Levees.

• Deltas.

Levee
• When a river floods in the lower Course., they cover an area of land known
as a floodplain.

• When the flood velocity is slowed and deposition of any rocks being
transported is encouraged.

• The deposition leaves a layer of sediments across the floor floodplain.

• After several floods, there are several layers of sediments deep on the
floodplain.

• This leaves a ridge. of higher material next to the river channel on both
banks of the river known as levee.

Delta
• Deposition occurs as the river loses velocity when it enters the sea.
• The heaviest material is deposited first and the lightest deposited last.

• Distributaries form as the main river channel split into smaller channels.

• Delta is built up in layers.

Resource use
Resource: Is something of value that needs to be consumed to obtain benefit
from it.

Non-renewable resource:
A natural resource that cannot be produced, grown or generated.

Example:

Fossil fuels (Coal, petroleum and natural gas), nuclear power (uranium) and
Minerals (iron, gold and platinum)

Majority of South Africa's electricity comes from coal. Contributing large

amounts of greenhouse gases resulting in further global warming effects.
Burning coal also causes acid rain.

Renewable resources:

Can either be:

Continuous: It is a flow of nature so they can be used again and again (wind,
water, solar and tidal energy).

Sustained: It is self-perpetuating if left to nature. A natural resource is a

renewable resource if it is replaced by natural processes and replenished
over time (forests, water, ecosystems and landscapes).

Very little electricity is produced in South Africa from renewable energy,

despite our abundance of sunlight. Solar energy has great potential,
especially in remote areas that do not fall within Eskom's power grid.skom's
power grid.
The Effects of unwise use of resources
The tragedy of the commons:

Individuals that act in their own self-interest deplete a shared limited

resource. This results in a long lasting impact on both the community and
the environment. Over-grazing and over-fishing are examples of this.

Over-fishing the oceans:

Unsustainable harvests of the world's oceans have led to the depletion, and
in some cases the collapse, of many of the world's major fish stocks.

Over-fishing occurs when too many fish are caught for it to be possible for
natural replenishment to take place.

Over-fishing has occurred due to increased size of fishing fleets, as well as

the use of more efficient methods of fishing.

Over-grazing:
It occurs when plants are exposed to grazing and not allowed time to
recover. Poorly managed livestock and over-population of wild animals
could result in over-grazing.

Causes of over-grazing:

The tragedy of the commons is often the cause. In Africa most of the cattle
graze on communal land meant for everyone to share.

In commercial farming, greed is the cause as farmers graze as much

livestock as possible to ensure good profits and do not care about the
damage they are doing to their land.

Over population of livestock, as there is too much livestock for the land to
sustain. Small scale farmers are only concerned about making profit

Depleted grass leads to less infiltration and more run off, causing soil
erosion.
Soil becomes less fertile because of less organic matter.
 Nutritious plants are replaced by less favourable plants
The ecology in the area is disrupted.
Dust storms occur.
Animals starve and die
Land could be permanently changed and experience desertification.

Sustainable use of resources (p76-83)

Sustainable resource use meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to do the same. Sustainable
resource use also means that the way we

use resources should not damage the environment as this will affect future
generations as well. To do this we should

Use renewable resources (wind, solar and hydro energy) instead of non-
renewable resources (fossil fuels).
Use resources that do not harm the environment.
Decrease usage of natural resources, particularly non-renewable
resources, trough reducing, reusing and recycling.

Ways resources may be used sustainably

Sustainable fishing:
The tragedy of the commons is at its worst in the oceans as it is near
impossible to know who is stripping the oceans. Ways to introduce
sustainable fishing include:

Fishing quotas: Sets a limit to the amount of fish that may legally be caught.
Suspension A total ban on fishing in a certain area to allow time for the
species to recover. End subsidies that are paid to deep sea fisheries. These
fisheries are unregulated in national waters (200 nautical miles from shore)
and plunder the depths with state-of-the-art technology.

Consumer awareness: When more people are aware of destructive fishing

methods they will be more likely to avoid certain brands. This motivates
fishing companies to use sustainable fishing methods. Two organisations
that promote public awareness are South African Sustainable Seafood
Initiative (SASSI) and Greenpeace.

SASSI (p78), Greenpeace (p79)

Sustainable land use for grazing:

The objective of grassland management is to provide a good soil cover of
edible grass to ensure long-term sustainable animal production with
maximum financial return. Each area is managed differently according to its
characteristics. The most important thing to do is to move livestock quickly
between small fenced-off areas. This gives the areas time to recover while
livestock moves to graze on an already recovered area. This process is called
rotational grazing.

Rotational grazing is a lot easier to implement in commercial farming where

grazing areas are owned by individuals. For livestock owners that rely on
communal land for grazing, either the amount of livestock needs to be
reduced considerably or rotational grazing needs to be introduced in order
to prevent over-grazing.

Carbon footprint
Carbon footprint measures the effect that our activities have on the
environment, in particular climate change. It relates to the amount of
greenhouse gases we produce in our daily lives through burning fossil fuels
for electricity, heating and transportation. Carbon footprint is measured in
tonnes (or kilograms). By lowering our carbon footprint we reduce the
pressure on our natural resources.

Greenhouse gases: Gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, that

increase global warming.
Tips on reducing your carbon footprint:
Turn off electric appliances that are not being used.
 Fill the kettle with only as much water as you need.
Do your weekly shop in one trip.
Hang your washing to dry rather than using a tumble drier.
Fit energy saving light bulbs.

Tips for businesses to reduce their carbon footprint:

Do not print when it is not necessary.

Maximise the use of email or other online communication.
Recycle, Paper, cardboard and e-waste (old computers, screens and
printer cartridges.
Use environmentally friendly cleaning products.
Use as little electricity as possible (switch lights off at night time).
What the government can do to encourage sustainable resource use:
National and local governments can pass laws for businesses to use
resources in a sustainable way, as well as encourage citizens to lower
their carbon footprint. For example, In the United Kingdom citizens are
given tax reduction for driving electric and hybrid vehicles.

Food resources (p84-89)

Food security is when all people have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious
food to maintain a healthy and active life. Food security is defined as
including both physical and economic factors of people's access to food.

Food security is built on three concepts:

Food availability (consistently having enough food)

Food access and having the resources to get the food (money)

Food use, Knowing how and having the means to use food nutritiously.

Global food security:

There is enough food in the world to feed everyone adequately. The problem
is distribution and the uneven use of resources. Around 850 million people
around the world are chronically (permanently) hungry due to extreme
poverty, while two billion people lack food security from time to time
because of varying degrees of poverty.

Food security in South Africa:

South Africa has some of the highest rates of income inequality in the world,
with extremely high levels of absolute poverty (not earning enough to meet
basic needs). In South Africa 10% of adults and 12% of children are
sometimes or always hungry.

School feeding schemes:

At the local level, the government has introduced feeding schemes in areas
where children do have food security at home. The National Schools
Nutrition Programme aims to improve education by:

Enhancing children's active learning capacity.

Alleviating short-term hunger.
Providing an incentive for children to attend school regularly.

Role of science and technology in food production:

Factory farming:
Factory farming is the process of raising livestock, such as chickens and
cattle, in confinement at high stock density. High stock density is when many
animals or birds are kept in a small area. A farm therefore operates as a
factory. This form of production is often cruel to the animals.

Genetic modification of crops:

Genetic modification has been taking place for years. However, genetic
engineering is a more recent innovation. Genetic engineering refers to the
direct human manipulation of an organism's genome using modern DNA
technology. Human's can use this technology to take DNA from one species
that has a favourable trait and integrate that DNA into the genome of
another species.
Genome: The total of an organism's genetic information.

Appropriate technology refers to small scale technology that is simple and

easy to use and repair. Appropriate technology makes use of skills and
technology that are available in a community to supply basic human needs,
such as electricity, water, food and waste disposal. For farmers appropriate
technology is simple machines that are easy to use and repair in remote
locations.

Sustainable farming techniques:

Crop rotation is the practice of moving different crops on the same land, this
prevents the spread of pests and other harmful organisms and helps for soil
recovery. Cover crops are planted when the land is not being used (in
winter). This retains soil moisture and reduces soil erosion.

Soil enrichment involves adding natural fertilizers to increase soil fertility.

Introducing natural pest predators. This will decrease the need for
pesticides.