8. Cold Environments Flashcards
What is a cold environment?
- environments that experience zero or subzero temperatures for long periods of time
What are the characteristics of polar cold environments?
- can reach -50 degrees in winter
- have low precipitation
- most soil is permanently frozen
- some plants such as mosses and lichens
- Polar bears have thick fur, layer of fat to keep warm and a black nose and footpads to absorb heat
What are characteristics of Tundra Cold Environments?
- winter temperatures reach -20 degrees
- brief summers can be warm
- high precipiation in coastal regions
- low growing plants and some low bushes and small trees in hotter places
- soils are in permafrost and infertile due to water draining through taking away nutrients
- arctic fox and hare live here
What are 4 ways vegetation adapts to cold environments?
- flowering and seed formation is short so reproduction can happen in small summers
- plants are low growing and cushion like to insulate them
- hairy stems help keep plants warm
- thin, waxy leaves reduce water loss
What are the 5 ways a bearberry (tundra) plant adapts to the environment?
- very low growing so it can survive strong winds
- stems have thick bark for stability in windy condition
- small leathery leaves help retain water in dry environment
- hairy stems help retain heat and keep plant safe from low temperatures
- bright red berries attract animals to eat them which disperses seeds
Where is Svalbard + Gen Info?
- Norwegian Territory in Arctic Ocean close to Greenland
- main town of Longyearbyen (2700 people)
- no trees, 60% glacier, rest is Tundra
What are the 4 opportunities for development in Svalbard?
- Mineral Extraction
- Energy Developments
- Fishing
- Tourism
How is mineral extraction an opportunity for development for Svalbard?
- rich reserves of coal
- coal mining is main economic activity
- 300 people employed (decline due to lower world coal prices)
- 2014 new mine was opened near Svea
How is energy development an opportunity for development for Svalbard?
- coal mined on Svalbard is burned in a power station on Longyearbyen
- supplies all of Svalbards needs (Norways only coal powered station)
- environmentalists disagree wit it
- future energy source is most likely geothermal (earths crust is thin and hot rocks are close)
How is fishing an opportunity for development for Svalbard?
- Barents Sea (south of Svalbard) is rich for fishing
- 150 species of fish however can be easily damaged by pollution
- important breeding ground for fish
- controlled by Russia and Norway to make sure fishing is sustainable
How is tourism an opportunity for development for Svalbard?
- tourism to Svalbard is growing (people are seeking extreme environments)
- 70,000 people visited in 2011 and 30,000 were cruise passengers (Longyearbyen)
- provides 300 jobs for the economy
- harbour has been enlarged for larger ships
What are the 4 challenges for development in Svalbard?
- extreme temperatures
- provision of buildings
- infrastructure
- inaccessibility
How does extreme temperature pose a challenge to Svalbard
- winter temperatures can be below -30 degrees
- extreme temperatures make it dangerous to work with risk of frostbite
How does provision of buildings pose a challenge to Svalbard
- working outdoors in extreme temperatures and limited light in winter is extremely demanding
- as a result most construction work is carried out in summer
- permafrost has to be protected from melting as the foundations can be insecure otherwise (global warming)
How does infrastructure pose a challenge to Svalbard
- pipes are overground to prevent them causing thawing of permafrost
- easy maintenance
How does inaccessibility pose a challenge to Svalbard
- it is a remote place, reachable by plane or ship
- one airport close by can handle internation flights
- most people use snowmobiles
Why are cold environments fragile?
- they are fragile because they have a delicate ecosystem that can be easily damaged and can take time to recover from damage due to humans
What has off-road driving done to Alaska?
- mostly takes place in summer
- melts the upper surface of the soil making it soggy
- damage extends as more people avoid muddly pools and damage more areas
- takes decades to recover
How can cold environments be harmed by economic development?
- some cold environments have rich reserves of precious materials (e.g oil and gas)
- to extract these a lot of damage is done(housing, infrastructure etc.)
What are 5 reasons why cold environments need protecting?
- many indignous people live here
- cold environments are home to many birds, animals and plants which need to be protected
- unpolluted and unspoilt environments are necessary for scientific research
- their beauty is a major tourist attraction
- provide opportunities for forestry and fishing
What are 3 ways risk to cold environments can be reduced?
- use of technology
- action by conservation groups
- action by governments
How can the use of technology (Trans-Alaskan Pipeline) reduce risk to cold environments?
- oil was discovered in Alaska and sea ice prevented transport by tanker
- trans alaskan pipeline was built:
- it passes beneath rivers to minimise effect on landscape
- it is raised and insulated to stop heat escaping and melting permafrost
- flow of oil stops automatically in the event of a leak
- it is raised so animals can go underneath
What can governments do to reduce risk to cold environments? (Alaska, Antarctic Treaty)
- Natural Environmental Policy Act - ensures companies who extract oil protect environment and acknowledge environment (ALAKSA)
- protected wilderness for animals called Western Arctic Reserve (ALASKA)
- controls tourism and keeps disturbance to a minimum (ANTARCTIC TREATY)
- recognises importance of area for research (ANTARCTIC TREATY)
What can conservation groups do to reduce risk to cold environments?
- work with local communities to manage critical ecosystems
- work with oil companies and legislators to plan sustainable future
- support scientific research
