the processes and human activities causing the melting of ice and snow cover as a form of land cover change, and the impacts of and responses to this change

For 10 marks you need a precise location and a discussion (causes, consequences and significance) of impacts on both economic activity and social conditions, with supporting detail. Aim to develop two or three impacts of each type and weigh their significance.

Using the Arctic and Greenland: "As the Greenland ice sheet and Arctic sea ice melt, economic activity is affected in mixed ways. New shipping routes such as the Northwest Passage open for part of the year, and retreating ice exposes minerals and oil for extraction, creating economic opportunity. However, thawing permafrost cracks roads, airstrips and pipelines, raising maintenance and rebuilding costs across Alaska and northern Canada.

"Social conditions are also affected. Indigenous Arctic peoples such as the Inuit rely on stable sea ice for hunting seals and for travel between communities. As the ice becomes thinner and less predictable, traditional hunting becomes dangerous and food insecurity rises, eroding culture and wellbeing. Coastal villages face relocation as erosion accelerates."

A high-band answer reaches a judgement, for example that the social and cultural costs to Indigenous communities outweigh the short-term economic gains, and uses the location's data throughout.

This 5 mark data question tests map and graph skills plus a key definition. Parts a and b are read directly from the data book figures, so the exact figures depend on the supplied map and cross-section; the method is what matters.

Part a (1 mark): give a compass direction read from the north arrow and the direction the glacier tongue points, for example "south-east".

Part b (2 marks): read the glacier length off the cross-section for each year, showing it has shortened, for example roughly 14 km in 1890 reducing to roughly 11 km in 2010 (state the values the figure shows for 1 mark each). The expected pattern is clear retreat over the period.

Part c (2 marks): "A glacier is a relatively confined mass of ice that forms in mountains or valleys and flows slowly downslope under gravity. An ice sheet is a far larger, continental-scale mass of ice, more than 50,000 square kilometres, that spreads outward in all directions and covers the underlying land, as in Antarctica and Greenland." One mark for each clearly contrasted feature, such as size and how the ice moves.

For 10 marks you must evaluate the statement, meaning argue both for and against it with reference to a named location, then reach a judgement. The statement is deliberately negative, so a strong answer largely disagrees while acknowledging limits.

Against the statement (geospatial technology is effective): "At Greenland and the Arctic, satellite remote sensing such as NASA's GRACE gravity mission and ICESat laser altimetry has accurately measured ice mass loss and thinning over time, while satellite imagery tracks sea ice extent each September. This data has been essential for assessing the rate of melting and for informing climate models and policy."

For the statement (limitations): "However, geospatial technology only monitors the melt; it does not by itself manage or slow it, because the underlying cause is global greenhouse gas emissions, which require political and economic responses. Coverage gaps, cost and cloud interference can also limit data quality."

Judgement: "On balance the statement is largely incorrect for assessment, where geospatial technology has been highly effective, but partly correct for management, since monitoring alone cannot reduce melting without emissions cuts."