AQA GCSE Chemistry (8462), Higher tier · Using resources › Earth's resources and potable water
Practise Using resources and sustainable development. 12 exam-style questions on this subtopic, at up to four difficulty levels, with full mark schemes and a progress tracker. Free, no account needed.
Written for this site in the style of AQA exam questions. They are not taken from real past papers.
Question 1Easy4 marks
(a) What is meant by sustainable development?[1]
(b) Which two are finite resources? Tick (✓) two boxes.[2]
Crude oil
Timber from managed forests
Metal ores
Wool
Cotton
(c) Give one example of a natural product that has been supplemented or replaced by a synthetic product.[1]
Show the answer and mark scheme
(a)
development that meets the needs of current generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
(b)Answer: Crude oil; Metal ores
(c)
wool / cotton / silk replaced by synthetic fibres (e.g. polyester, nylon) / natural rubber replaced by synthetic rubber / wood replaced by plastics / manure supplemented by synthetic fertilisers
Question 2Medium2 marks
Explain why 'reducing' the amount of a resource used is generally considered better for sustainability than 'recycling' it after use.[2]
Show the answer and mark scheme
reducing use means less raw material needs to be extracted, and less energy is used in the first place
recycling still uses some energy and resources to collect and reprocess the material, even though usually less than making it from raw materials
Question 3Hard3 marks
A company is considering switching from a plastic made from crude oil to a 'bioplastic' made from corn starch, a renewable resource.
Evaluate whether switching to the bioplastic would necessarily make the company's product more sustainable overall.[3]
Show the answer and mark scheme
using a renewable resource (corn) instead of a finite one (crude oil) is a genuine sustainability benefit for that raw material
however, growing corn uses farmland (which could otherwise grow food), water and fertiliser, and processing it into bioplastic also uses energy
a full assessment, such as a life cycle assessment considering energy, water, land use and disposal, would be needed before concluding it is more sustainable overall