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Transcript
Chapter 22 - Humans and the Environment 22-1 An Interconnected Planet I. Earths Layers a. Atmosphere - The mixture of gases surrounding the Earth. • Consists of about 78% N, 20.9% O, 1% CO2 and other trace amounts of other gases. Climate and Atmosphere • Ranges from extreme cold at the poles to tropical heat at the Equator. • Temperature decreases as • climate is an average weather in a place over more than 30 years. • A region's climate is often described, for example, as sunny, windy, dry, or humid. • weather - the current daily conditions. These can change in just a few hours, whereas climate changes over a longer span of time. b. Hydrosphere – the liquid water component of the Earth. • Includes the oceans, seas, lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. • Covers about 70% of the surface of the Earth • Home for many plants and animals. c. Geosphere • the solid portion of the earth. – * the crust and upper mantle of the earth. – Most of the mantle is liquid. 22-2 Environmental Issues a. Pollution – Ozone Thinning • CFC (chlorofluorocarbons) and other pollutants react with O3 causing a hole in the ozone layer above Antarctica, brakes down O3 Ozone to O2. b. Global warming • Greenhouse effect caused by three main greenhouse gases: – (main gas H2O vapor) – CO2 from the burning fossil fuels – CH4 Methane, released from swamps and produced by cattle. c. Acid precipitation – Acid rain comes from sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides (gases) which combine with water vapor in the air and become precipitation with a pH lower than 7. II. Land and Water Pollution a. • Biological Magnification – process whereby certain substances such as pesticides or heavy metals move up the food chain. These chemicals end up in rivers or lakes from runoff. A cycle of runoff and evaporation work to concentration the chemicals in the water. Organisms become contaminated with the chemicals. The levels of the chemicals increase within the organisms as trophic level increases. The top of the food chain has the greatest negative effect. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5P-UoKLxlA - Biological magnification wheat • DDT - (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) is a colorless, crystalline, tasteless and almost odorless organochloride known for its insecticidal properties. DDT use is now banned in the USA, but is still used in other nations. III. Ecosystem Disruption a. Extinction - the complete disappearance of a species from the Earth. • Threatened - the population has gown so small that if something doesn’t change the species will become extinct. • Endangered - any species that is in danger of extinction throughout all or within a significant portion of its range WWF - Endangered and threatened species. – Ecosystem Imbalances – Human Resource Use b. Ecosystem Imbalance • When a natural or human-caused disturbance disrupts the natural balance of an ecosystem. • A disturbance is any change that causes a disruption in the balance of an ecosystem. – Natural disturbances are volcanic eruptions, floods, or natural fires. – Human-caused disturbances are the introduction of a new species, logging a forest, pollution, or overhunting of a species. • After a disturbance occurs, an ecosystem can recover back to a balanced state. But if an ecosystem has a severe disturbance or is constantly having new disturbances it may never recover back to a state of ecological balance. Human Resource Use 22-3 Environmental Solutions I. Conservation and Restoration Biology A. Conservation Biology - is the study of the species and the ecosystem with the primary to protect species, their habitats, and the ecosystem from excessive rates of extinction and the loss of biotic interactions. B. Restoration Biology – scientists use their in depth knowledge of nutrient cycles, energy flow, and ecosystem species to help a badly damaged ecosystem recover II. Species and Habitats • There are specific species in many different ecosystems that can be used to determine the health of the ecosystem. These species are called bioindicators. – An example of this for our ecosystem are frog species. Their skin is highly permeable making them very susceptible to environmental contaminants. Biodiversity Hotspots • Areas that have a high diversity of species as well as unique species. • contain 44% of all vascular plants, 35% of all species of all four groups of vertebrates. (animals with a backbone) • Less than 2% of the globe – Amazon rain forest – Great barrier reef Government and Laws • There are laws to reduce or limit harmful pollution. (fines) • There are laws to protect threatened and endangered species. (fines) • International multi-nation forums to address international and global issues. Global warming, Ozone depletion. Tragedy of the commons • is a term used to describe a situation where individuals acting independently and rationally according to their own self-interest which is contrary to the best interests of the everyone by depleting some common resource. • Example: over fishing the oceans. Your role • What can you do????