CSS Geography Economic Geography Syllabus

What is integrated pest management (IPM)?

A sustainable pest-control approach combining biological, cultural, mechanical, and minimal chemical methods to keep pests below economic damage levels while reducing pesticide use.

Define agroforestry.

A sustainable land-use system that deliberately combines trees or shrubs with crops and/or livestock on the same land to improve soil, provide shade, control erosion, and diversify output.

On what basis is agriculture classified into types?

By purpose (subsistence vs commercial), intensity (intensive vs extensive), mobility (sedentary vs shifting/nomadic), product (arable, pastoral, mixed), and water source (rain-fed vs irrigated).

What is the difference between arable, pastoral, and mixed farming?

Arable farming grows crops; pastoral farming raises livestock; mixed farming combines both crops and livestock on the same farm.

What is nomadic herding (pastoral nomadism) and where is it found?

An extensive subsistence system in which herders move livestock seasonally in search of pasture and water; found in arid/semi-arid lands such as the Sahara, Central/SW Asia, and Mongolia.

What is Mediterranean agriculture?

A specialised commercial system in Mediterranean-climate regions producing citrus fruits, grapes (viticulture), olives, and vegetables, taking advantage of hot dry summers and mild wet winters.

Define dairy farming as an agricultural type and note its location factor.

Commercial production of milk and dairy products; it locates near urban markets because milk is perishable (the proximity factor), as seen in NW Europe and NE USA.

What was the Industrial Revolution?

The transition (beginning in Britain c. 1760-1840) from hand production and agrarian economies to machine-based manufacturing, factories, and mechanised industry, powered first by water and then by steam (coal).

Why did the Industrial Revolution begin in Britain?

Britain had abundant coal and iron, capital from trade/colonies, a large labour supply, navigable rivers and ports, political stability, and a wave of technological inventions.

Name key inventions of the Industrial Revolution.

Watt's improved steam engine, Hargreaves' spinning jenny, Arkwright's water frame, Cartwright's power loom, and Bessemer's process for cheap steel.

What were the major impacts of the Industrial Revolution?

Rapid urbanisation, growth of the factory system, rise of a working class, mass production, improved transport (railways, canals), population growth, and increased pollution.

List the main factors of industrial location.

Raw materials, power/energy, labour, capital, transport, market, water, site/land, and government policy; also agglomeration economies and inertia.

What is meant by raw-material-oriented (weight-losing) industries?

Industries that lose weight or bulk in processing locate near the raw material to cut transport costs (e.g., iron and steel near iron ore/coal, sugar refining near cane).

What are market-oriented (weight-gaining) industries?

Industries whose product gains weight, bulk, or fragility during manufacture, or is perishable, locate near the market (e.g., soft drinks/bottling, brewing, furniture, baking).

What are footloose industries?

Industries not tied to any particular location factor (raw materials or market) because their inputs and products are light and high-value; they locate freely (e.g., electronics, IT, software).

Define agglomeration economies in industrial location.

Cost savings firms gain by locating close together, sharing infrastructure, skilled labour, suppliers, services, and information; the opposite (rising costs from overcrowding) is deglomeration.

What is industrial inertia?

The tendency of an industry to remain in its original location even after the original locating factors have disappeared, due to sunk investment, skilled labour, and established infrastructure.

State the central idea of Alfred Weber's theory of industrial location (1909).

Industries locate to minimise total transport and labour costs; the least-cost location is found using the material index and the locational triangle, with agglomeration as a third factor.

What is Weber's material index and what does it indicate?

Material Index = weight of localised raw materials / weight of finished product. If MI greater than 1, location is pulled toward raw materials (weight-losing); if MI less than 1, location is pulled toward the market (weight-gaining).

What is Weber's locational triangle?

A geometric model with raw-material sources and the market at the corners; the optimal plant location (least transport cost) is found at the point minimising total weighted distance, conceptualised by the Varignon frame.

State the main contribution of August Losch's industrial location theory.

Losch (1954) argued firms locate to maximise profit (revenue), not just minimise cost; he emphasised demand and market areas, producing a system of hexagonal market areas and economic landscapes.

How does Smith's 'spatial margins to profitability' concept refine location theory?

David Smith argued there is an area (within the spatial margins) where revenue exceeds cost, so a firm can locate profitably anywhere inside these margins, not only at the single least-cost point, allowing for sub-optimal but viable locations.

What is an industrial estate (industrial park)?

A planned area of land developed and subdivided for use by industries, providing shared infrastructure such as roads, power, water, drainage, and services to attract and concentrate manufacturing units.

What advantages do industrial estates provide?

Shared infrastructure and utilities, lower setup costs, agglomeration economies, planned land use away from residential zones, easier government regulation, and promotion of small and medium enterprises.

What factors control the distribution of industries globally?

Availability of raw materials and energy, labour and skills, capital, markets, transport networks, historical/colonial development, and government industrial policy.

Define renewable resources.

Natural resources that can be replenished or renewed naturally within a human timescale, such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, tidal, biomass, and (if managed) forests and fisheries.

Define non-renewable resources and give examples.

Resources that exist in fixed amounts and are not replaced on a human timescale; examples include fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas) and most minerals/metals.

What is recycling and why is it important for resource conservation?

Recycling is reprocessing used materials (paper, glass, metal, plastic) into new products; it conserves raw materials and energy, reduces waste and landfill, and lowers pollution and extraction pressure.

State the 'three Rs' waste hierarchy for sustainable resource use.

Reduce (minimise consumption and waste), Reuse (use items again), and Recycle (reprocess materials into new products) - in that order of priority.

Define sustainable resource management (sustainable development).

Using resources to meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (Brundtland definition), balancing economic, social, and environmental goals for long-term resource availability.