PAPER 3: Geographical Applications SECTION B: Fieldwork 1

Suitable Questions for Geographical Enquiry Your Geographical Enquiries Enquiry 1 (Physical) How and why does the river cross profile change with distance downstream at Carding Mill Valley? Enquiry 2 (Human) Have flood defences been successful in alleviating the pressure of flooding in Shrewsbury?

Suitable Questions for Geographical Enquiry Enquiry 1: What is our hypothesis? Project title: How and why does the cross profile change with distance downstream at the Carding Mill Valley? Hypothesis 1. How does the width of the channel change with distance downstream? 2. How does the depth of the channel change with distance downstream? 3. How does velocity change with distance downstream?

Suitable Questions for Geographical Enquiry Enquiry 1: Geographical Theory Width: Increase downstream: more lateral erosion Depth: Increase downstream: more vertical erosion Velocity: increase speed: more discharge: more energy: smoother channel: less friction

Identifying and reducing risks associated with fieldwork Enquiry 1: Risk Assessment Hazard Risk Control Steep slopes Paths Slipping Walking shoes Weather Appropriate clothing Steep slope/ narrow path/ large boulders/ weather/ river/ slippery surfaces

Locations of Fieldwork Enquiry 1- Study Area- Location Carding Mill Valley Long Myndd Hills Shropshire West England (Close to border of Wales) Suitable: Paths next to river/ changes over 4km/ parking close by/ open access land. Street View- Follow the road in the direction of the two busses. Valley- 4km long/ landforms observed/ closest village is Church Stretton

Description and justification of data collection methods Sampling Strategy Systematic 8 Sites Every 200 Metres Not biased to selected features 4 km total How did you choose your study sites? ( X sites personally/ 8 sites in total/ 4km stretch/ Carding Mill River/ full stretch/ upper/ middle/ lower channel/ contrasting/ changes/ shape/ discharge/ upper of River Severn) What was the site sampling technique? (systematic?? / every X metres/ GIS walking computer) Why was this sampling technique appropriate? (appropriate / not biased/ shows change)

Description and justification of data collection methods Methods/ Limitations Width: Measuring tape Bank to Bank Taut Limitation: Drooping/ false width (human error) Depth: 50cm Ruler Stream line Every 20 cm channel Limitation: Not stream line/ false depth/ place on rock What equipment? (measuring tapes) Describe what you did exactly (width/ stretching/ top/ right hand back/ top/ left hand bank/ two people/ taut/ measurement) Why was this sampling technique appropriate? (enough data/ accurate diagram/ cross section/ remove) How does this data help to prove or disprove the hypothesis? (prove/change/ shape/ increase/ wider/ deeper/ capability/ more water/ width/ depth/ calculate/ discharge/ prove further change) Velocity: Hydro prop Near/ middle/ far of channel (average) Time how long prop took to travel Limitation: Stop watch timer wrong/ prop got stuck

Selecting appropriate ways to present fieldwork data Scatter Graphs Results Could see if correlation between data and distance downstream. Width/ Depth and Velocity all had positive correlation. All increased downstream and matched bradshaw theory.

Selecting appropriate ways to present fieldwork data Proportional Symbols- GIS Results Data placed onto map of area so could see spatial pattern if data increased downstream. Discharge increased over all from site 1 – 8. Changes in between due to confluence where tributaries joined.

Selecting appropriate ways to present fieldwork data Cross Section Results Width and depth data used to draw shape of river cross section. Cross sections increased which shows width and depth increased downstream.

Describe, Analyse and Explain fieldwork data Project title: How and why does the cross-profile change with distance downstream at the Carding Mill Valley? Depth The smallest mean depth was at site 2 and site 7 where the depth was 0.08m. The scatter graph shows there is a very weak relationship to show depth increases with distance downstream, this is due to increased erosion. The relationship is weak due to only a small section of the river being sampled. The changes observed weakly fit Bradshaw’s model as Bradshaw says depth should increase with distance downstream and this is what I found. Channel depth increases due to increased vertical erosion.

Describe, Analyse and Explain fieldwork data Project title: How and why does the cross-profile change with distance downstream at the Carding Mill Valley? Width The smallest channel width was at site 6 where the channel was 1.43m wide. This is narrower than expected because at this point the channel has been engineered to prevent it from getting wider to protect roads and houses. If we exclude site 6 as an anomaly, the narrowest site was site 3 with a width of 1.55m. The widest site was 7 which was 2.04m wide. The changes observed fit Bradshaw’s model as Bradshaw says channel width should increase with distance downstream and this is what I found. Channel width increases due to increased lateral erosion this is due to the river having more energy to erode, demonstrated by the velocity being higher.

Describe, Analyse and Explain fieldwork data Project title: How and why does the cross-profile change with distance downstream at the Carding Mill Valley? Velocity The slowest velocity was at site 1 with a speed of 0.17m/s2, and the fastest velocity was at site 6 with a speed of 0.4 m/s2. The changes in velocity observed fits Bradshaw’s theory, as Bradshaw states that velocity should increase with distance downstream and that is what my data shows. Velocity increases with distance downstream because as distance downstream increases the channel gets smoother and the bed load gets smaller, this is due to erosion. This causes velocity to increase as there is less resistance to flow due there being less friction. In addition, velocity increases due to discharge of the level increasing.

Reach conclusions and evaluate geographical Enquiry Conclusion: How and why does the cross profile change with distance downstream at the Carding Mill Valley? Width: Increase downstream: more lateral erosion (YES increased) Depth: Increase downstream: more vertical erosion (YES increased) Velocity: increase speed: more discharge: more energy: smoother channel: less friction (YES increased)

Reach conclusions and evaluate geographical Enquiry Evaluation Fieldwork Data Only 8 sites on 4km stretch. Only small scale river to prove changes so changes only small. Could have studied bigger river with more sites and averaged out more data to make more accurate. Primary Collection Methods Human error possible in all methods. Could use digital recording methods to make more accurate. Validity: Small errors and small scale of title shows we have valid conclusion for how Carding Mill river changed but no data for why.

Primary Data Collection (Physical) Limitation of Data collection methods: Width Depth Velocity Limitation of Data: Selection of sites Scale of project Why is it appropriate for the enquiry? Other useful data: Where is it? Evaluation Answer initial research question Study Area Geographical Theory Underpinning Enquiry How and why does the river cross profile change with distance downstream at Carding Mill Valley? How valid are your conclusions? Validity of fieldwork sites Reliability of data Conclusions Potential Hazards Risk Assessment Data Analysis River Cross Sections Describe Data Reasons for data Link to theory Scatter Graphs Describe Data Reasons for data Link to theory How to reduce risk Velocity Description Justification Primary Data Collection (Physical) Channel Width Description Justification Sampling Method- - River sites - Depth Measurements Channel Depth Description Justification Proportional Symbols Describe Data Reasons for data Link to theory