Why this resource, not that one?: A society's choice of how to use its natural resources is never just about what is there. Many factors, and many perspectives, pull the choice different ways.
Seven kinds of factor
- Economic: cost, jobs, income, what the society can afford.
- Sociocultural: values, traditions, public opinion, campaigns.
- Political: laws, targets, taxes, treaties, energy security.
- Environmental: pollution, climate change, harm to habitats.
- Geographical: which resources the land, climate and location provide.
- Technological and historical: what can be done now; what was built or chosen in the past.
Remember it as: Money, people, power, planet, place, tools and the past.
| Factor | Iceland's choice of geothermal heat |
|---|---|
| Economic | Geothermal heat is cheap once wells are drilled |
| Sociocultural | Hot pools are part of daily life; people value clean air |
| Political | Governments funded heating networks and drilling |
| Environmental | Burning oil polluted the air over Reykjavik |
| Geographical | Iceland sits on volcanic rocks over a hot spot |
| Technological | Drilling and pipe networks carry hot water to homes |
| Historical | The 1970s oil price shocks pushed a switch away from oil |
Real example: about 90% of homes in Iceland are heated by hot water from underground. Reykjavik began using it in 1930, and the switch sped up when oil prices soared in the 1970s.
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A choice about one local resource shows how different groups weigh the same factors differently.
Plan
- The Karahnjukar dam in eastern Iceland, built 2003-2007, to power an aluminium smelter
For
- The government and many eastern towns wanted jobs and to stop young people moving away
Against
- Campaigners objected to flooding about 57 km² of wild highland and its reindeer grazing
Outcome
- Built: economic and political factors won; wilderness value lost
Who wants it
- Companies and investors
- Workers and local councils
- Governments wanting growth or security
Who opposes it
- Environmental groups
- Indigenous and local people losing land
- Tourism businesses
Name the perspective: Say whose view it is and which factor drives it: 'workers support the mine for jobs, an economic factor'.
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Net zero reorders the list: International agreements to cut greenhouse gases change which factor matters most. Cheap and familiar is no longer enough: a choice must also be low carbon.
How net zero targets change choices
- Under the Paris Agreement countries set targets; many now aim for net zero emissions.
- Net zero: greenhouse gases released are balanced by those removed.
- This moves low carbon up the list of priorities, above cheapness alone.
- Laws, carbon prices and closure dates follow, so coal, oil and gas lose out.
- Countries that export fossil fuels face the hardest choices: income now v targets later.
Real example: in 2019 the UK became the first major economy to put net zero by 2050 into law. Coal, once its main fuel, lost out to wind and gas, and the last coal power station, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, closed in September 2024.
Be specific: 'Geography' or 'cost' alone is not enough. Write 'strong winds along the coast make wind power possible', or 'gas is cheaper than coal', and never just copy a line from the resource.
How this comes up: Paper 1, from the resource booklet: a 2-mark outline question, one factor per mark, each specific to the place.
About 90% of homes in Iceland are heated by hot water pumped from underground, while most homes in nearby Norway are heated by electricity from hydropower.
Outline two factors that have influenced Iceland's choice of geothermal energy for heating homes.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.