Form 5 Geography Practice Paper: Climate, Urbanisation And Industrial Location (12 Questions, 100 Marks, 75 Minutes)

Form 5 Geography Practice Paper: Climate, Urbanisation and Industrial Location (12 questions, 100 marks, 75 minutes)

2026-11-05

Form 5 Geography – 12 questions – 100 marks – 75 minutes

Form 5 Geography practice paper: 12 questions, 100 marks, 75 minutes on lapse rate, rainfall and runoff, population density, dependency ratio and map skills. Worked answers included.

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Paper details　Form 5 Geography practice paper with 12 original questions on climate, population and industry, plus full worked answers and marking points.

Section A: Temperature, rainfall and pressure (Q1-Q4)

Show the working steps, then the units and the final answer.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
1	A hill station at 200 m records 28.0 °C, while the summit station at 1 800 m is measured on the same day. Assume the lapse rate is 0.6 °C per 100 m of ascent. (a) Find the height difference. (b) Calculate the summit temperature. (c) Explain why the real summit temperature may differ from the calculated value.	Answer: (a) 1 800 − 200 = 1600 m (2 marks). (b) 1600 / 100 x 0.6 = 9.6 °C; summit = 28.0 − 9.6 = 18.4 °C (4 marks: 2 for method, 2 for answer). (c) Real temperature depends on cloud, sunshine, wind and inversions, so the lapse rate is not fixed (2 marks).
2	A 2.5 square-kilometre catchment receives 96 mm of rain evenly over 24 hours. (a) Find the total rainfall volume in cubic metres. (b) If 15% becomes surface runoff, find the runoff volume. (c) Explain how urbanisation changes the runoff share of rainfall.	Answer: (a) 96 mm = 0.096 m; 0.096 x 2 500 000 = 240000 cubic metres (3 marks). (b) 240000 x 15% = 36000 cubic metres (2 marks). (c) Impermeable urban surfaces cut infiltration, so the runoff share rises and the flood peak arrives earlier (3 marks).
3	A weather station recorded 72 000 mm of rain over 30 years. (a) Find the mean annual rainfall. (b) If 5 of those years were dry years with only 1 600 mm each, find the mean for the remaining 25 years. (c) State one limitation of using a mean to describe Hong Kong rainfall.	Answer: (a) 72000 / 30 = 2400 mm (2 marks). (b) (72000 − 5 x 1 600) / 25 = 64000 / 25 = 2560 mm (4 marks). (c) Rainfall varies greatly between years, so a mean hides both drought years and flood years (2 marks).
4	A tropical cyclone has a central pressure of 950 hPa and a pressure of 1 010 hPa at a distance of 300 km. (a) Find the pressure difference. (b) Find the mean pressure gradient in hPa per km. (c) Explain the link between pressure gradient and wind speed.	Answer: (a) 1 010 − 950 = 60 hPa (2 marks). (b) 60 / 300 = 0.2 hPa per km (3 marks). (c) A steeper pressure gradient gives a larger pressure-gradient force and higher wind speed, though friction and the Coriolis effect also matter (3 marks).

Section B: Population structure and urbanisation (Q5-Q8)

State the units for population figures (per square kilometre or per thousand).

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
5	A district has 486 000 people and a land area of 12.5 square kilometres, of which 20% is country park. (a) Find the overall population density. (b) Find the density of the developed part only. (c) State which figure better reflects residential crowding.	Answer: (a) 486 000 / 12.5 = 38880 people per square kilometre (3 marks). (b) Developed area = 12.5 x 80% = 10.0 square kilometres; 486 000 / 10.0 = 48600 (3 marks). (c) The developed-area figure is better because country parks are not residential, so including them understates crowding (2 marks).
6	A city has 7 500 000 people, 61 500 births and 48 750 deaths in a year. (a) Find the birth rate and death rate per thousand. (b) Find the natural increase rate. (c) If net migration is −12 000, find the total population change for the year.	Answer: (a) Birth rate = 61 500 / 7 500 000 x 1 000 = 8.200000000000001 per thousand; death rate = 48 750 / 7 500 000 x 1 000 = 6.5 per thousand (4 marks). (b) Natural increase = 8.200000000000001 − 6.5 = 1.700000000000001 per thousand (2 marks). (c) Natural increase of 12750 plus net migration of −12 000 gives a net gain of 750 people (2 marks).
7	In a city, 6.75 million people live in urban areas out of a total of 7.5 million. (a) Find the urban population percentage. (b) If the total reaches 8.0 million in ten years with the same urban share, find the urban population. (c) Distinguish urbanisation from urban growth.	Answer: (a) 6.75 / 7.5 x 100 = 90% (3 marks). (b) 8.0 x 90% = 7.2 million (2 marks). (c) Urbanisation is the falling share of people living in rural areas; urban growth is the absolute rise in city population, from natural increase or rural-urban migration (3 marks).
8	In a place, 12% of people are under 15 and 20% are 65 or above; the rest are of working age. (a) Find the working-age percentage. (b) Find the dependency ratio. (c) State one social impact of this age structure.	Answer: (a) 100 − 12 − 20 = 68% (2 marks). (b) (12 + 20) / 68 x 100 = 47.1% (4 marks). (c) A heavier dependency burden raises demand for medical, residential care and community services, and adds pressure on public finance (2 marks).

Section C: Industry, farming and map skills (Q9-Q12)

For map questions give both the map length in cm and the real distance.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
9	A factory needs 4 tonnes of raw material and 2 tonnes of fuel to make 1 tonne of product, and the product is far less bulky than the raw material. (a) Find the material index. (b) Identify the locational tendency. (c) State two siting considerations for such an industry.	Answer: (a) (4 + 2) / 1 = 6 (3 marks). (b) The material index exceeds 1, so the industry is raw-material oriented and loses weight in processing (3 marks). (c) Site near the raw material to cut transport cost; bulky or perishable inputs favour short hauls and good transport links (3 marks).
10	A farm of 3.6 hectares produces 21.6 tonnes of rice a year. (a) Find the yield per hectare. (b) Taking rice revenue as 1 and cost as 0.6, and vegetable revenue as 4.5 times rice with cost 1.2, compare the net return per hectare. (c) Explain why farmers may not switch immediately.	Answer: (a) 21.6 / 3.6 = 6.0 tonnes per hectare (3 marks). (b) Rice net return = 1 − 0.6 = 0.4; vegetable net return = 4.5 − 1.2 = 3.3; vegetables give 8.249999999999998 times the rice return (4 marks). (c) Vegetable prices are volatile, labour and irrigation demands are higher and marketing channels may be missing, so farmers trial on a small plot first (2 marks).
11	On a map with a scale of 1:20 000, two points are 4.5 cm apart. (a) Find the real horizontal distance in metres. (b) Convert it to kilometres. (c) Another section measures 7 cm with a 84 m rise; find the slope percentage.	Answer: (a) 4.5 x 20 000 = 90000.0 cm = 900 m (3 marks). (b) 900 m = 0.9 km (2 marks). (c) Horizontal distance = 7 x 20 000 / 100 = 1400 m; slope = 84 / 1400 x 100 = 6% (4 marks).
12	On a slope, two points are 500 m apart horizontally with a rise of 90 m. (a) Find the slope percentage. (b) Classify the slope (under 5% gentle, 5% to 15% moderate, over 15% steep). (c) State two limits steep slopes place on land use.	Answer: (a) 90 / 500 x 100 = 18% (3 marks). (b) It is a steep slope because the percentage is above 15% (2 marks). (c) High erosion and landslide risk plus difficult machine access; building needs extra slope works and the usable area shrinks (4 marks).

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A TutorZone practice paper; original questions and passages, not publisher material.