Uploaded on 2015-06-13 by SimonObendorf

1. Students 2. Coal 3. Water *Describe your findings based on the concept of stocks and flows by presenting the necessary information or examples.* 1. Students: One of the most important stocks and flows in Lincoln in 2015 is of a particular population of human beings: students. New students flow into the city for its two universities each academic year. Graduating students largely flow out of the city to jobs elsewhere. Within the city itself, the student body can be regarded as a population "stock", with unique demands, needs, patterns of consumption and even geographic location within the city. 2. Coal: Lincolnshire is the site of numerous coal-fired power generation plants. Coal flows into the area from sources in Britain and from abroad. It literally flows THROUGH the city due to infrastructural limitations. The city is bisected by a railway line whose level crossings are often closed to accommodate very long coal goods trains taking coal to local power stations. Once arriving in the area, coal forms a stock. For instance, just one local power station (West Burton) maintains a huge coal mountain of around 2 million tons of coal This stock is replenished but also consumed and is transformed as it is burned - and flows out again as energy, CO2, heat etc. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Burton_power_stations 3. Water: Lincoln is based on the River Witham and also has an ancient Roman Harbour (the Brayford Pool) and a canal system (The Foss Dyke). Thus water flows into and through the city, shaping its geography and lifestyle. But water also forms a stock in the city, defining the central district and enabling navigation by boats. (See photo). ![Brayford Pool, Lincoln UK][1] Water is pumped to a large municipal water tower, forming a stock for the city's domestic water use. It then flows out to homes, as sewage and through consumption and evaporation. *Imagine and shortly describe how these stocks and flows could change in the future for the benefit of your area.* 1. Students. At present the view of both the universities and the city government is that a higher in-flow of students (and thus a higher stock of students) would be a positive for the city. Not all residents agree! I think that eventually an equilibrium will be reached whereby the two universities will stabilise at particular student-body sizes. At that point - and this is already occurring - the issue will be not so much altering the size of in-flows to the student body or the stock of students but about the *quality* and *nature* of that student body (ie chasing students with higher qualifications, discretionary incomes, postgraduates vs undergraduates, those less likely to antagonise local residents with issues like noise etc). This may well be of benefit to the city. Another way in which the stocks and flows of students could alter in ways of benefit to the city would be to lower the levels of graduates of our local universities leaving the city. If they could instead be encouraged to stay and use their skills to the benefit of the local community (and join the stock of local long-term residents) that could be of benefit to the city. 2. Coal: Here the issue is to change the route or even existence of the flow. Re-routing freight trains out of the city would be an immediate improvement. If alternative, cleaner, energy sources could be found, less coal would be needed to flow into the region and a lower stock of coal would need to be maintained here. Here, re-routing trains may not be necessary if they don't need to bring in coal in the first place. This would also have health and environmental benefits. 3. Water: Here I think the issue is to preserve water flows and stocks and maximise their quality. One issue that could be looked at would be to minimise changes in water flow levels which often causes issues for boat navigation (as water levels rise, boats can no longer pass under some bridges). But the key issue is to preserve water quality and quantity and its place at the heart of the city. [1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14342241065411105.jpg