Enviro model cram Flashcards
, fundamentals of ecology,
Ecology is the study of how living things interact with each other in the environment. It involves the study of not just the individual but also the population, community, ecosystem, and the biosphere. The scope of ecology is incredibly wide and will depend upon what level of focus is desired (for example research on the population ecology level vs. the community ecology, which will encompass multiple species).
Ecosystems of the world,
An ecosystem is a community of living and non-living things that work together.
The living portions can be referred to as the biotic parts (flora and fauna) and the non-living portions are the abiotic (soil, water, air). Ecosystems do not have a set size or limit and may be small (a single plant) or large (a rainforest or desert).
Ecosystems of the world include: agroecosystem, aquatic ecosystem, coral reefs, deserts, forests, human ecosystems, littoral zone (part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to shore), marine ecosystem, prairie, rainforest, savanna, steppe (dry, grassy plain), taiga (aka boreal forest; terrestrial subartic that is humid and
primarily has cone-bearing needle leaved or scale leaved evergreen trees), tundra, urban ecosystems, etc
Energy flow
Energy flow can be thought of as a pyramid with producers (think vegetation; plants run the world, sorry Beyonce) on the bottom, primary consumers above
them, secondary consumers, and then tertiary consumers on top. Energy comes from either the sun or chemicals and is utilized by the producers, which are then eaten by the primary consumers a nd move up the pyramid.
nature’s metabolism-biogeochemical cycles
The most well-known biogeochemical cycles are: carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and water (hydrologic) cycles. Some other lists include sulphur, nutrient, rock, and phosphorus. Two newly created cycles in response to climate change and
human impact on the environment are the mercury cycle and the PCB cycle.
nitrogen cycle
The first step is fixation. Lightning can change atmospheric nitrogen into a nitrate, a useable form, but most fixation is done by specialized bacteria that
change nitrogen into ammonium.
The second step is nitrification. This is the process where ammonium is changed into nitrates by bacteria. Nitrates are what plants can absorb. The third step is assimilation. Plants absorb nitrates from the soil in their roots and then utilize the nitrogen in forming amino acids, nucleic acids, and chlorophyll.
The fourth step is ammonification. When a plant or
animal dies, fungi or bacteria (decomposers) convert the nitrogen back into ammonium.
The last step is denitrification in which extra nitrogen in the soil gets put back into the air. Specialized bacteria perform this task as well.
Oxygen cycle
Oxygen cycle, circulation of oxygen in various forms through nature.
Free in the air and dissolved in water, oxygen is second only to nitrogen in abundance
among uncombined elements in the atmosphere. Plants and animals use oxygen to respire and return it to the air and water as carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 is then taken up by algae and terrestrial green plants and converted into carbohydrates during the process of photosynthesis, oxygen being a by-product. The waters of the world are the main oxygen generators of the biosphere; their algae are estimated to replace about 90 percent of all oxygen used. Oxygen is involved to
some degree in all the other biogeochemical cycles. For example, over time, detritus from living organisms transfers oxygen-containing compounds such as
calcium carbonates into the lithosphere.
water cycle
Water is essential to life on Earth. In its three phases (solid, liquid, and gas), water ties together the major parts of the Earth’s climate system — air,
clouds, the ocean, lakes, vegetation, snowpack, and glaciers offsite link The water cycle shows the continuous movement of water within the Earth and
atmosphere. It is a complex system that includes many different processes.
Liquid water evaporates into water vapor, condenses to form clouds, and precipitates back to earth in the form of rain and snow.
Water in different phases moves through the atmosphere (transportation).
Liquid water flows across land (runoff), into the ground (infiltration and percolation), and through the ground
(groundwater). Groundwater moves into plants (plant uptake) and evaporates from plants into the atmosphere (transpiration). Solid ice and snow can turn
directly into gas (sublimation). The opposite can also take place when water vapor becomes solid (deposition). Water influences the intensity of climate
variability and change. It is the key part of extreme events such as drought and floods. Its abundance and timely delivery are critical for meeting the needs of
society and ecosystems.
Natural Resource Management (NRM)
Natural Resource Management (NRM) refers to the sustainable utilization of major natural resources, such as land, water, air, minerals, forests,
fisheries, and wild flora and fauna. Together, these resources provide the ecosystem services that provide better quality to human life. Natural resources provide fundamental life support, in the form of both
consumptive and public-good services. Ecological processes maintain soil productivity, nutrient recycling, the cleansing of air and water, and climatic cycles
wildlife management
The essential goal of wildlife management is to conserve wildlife populations. This goal is often evaluated with wildlife habitat models or
population models. These wildlife models often assume that wildlife habitats remain static (Akçakaya 2001). Such an assumption can be problematic when models span long time periods and large spatial extents. Habitat abundance, quality, and distribution will change due to many natural and anthropogenic processes, including spatial and landscape processes.
Oftentimes, wildlife management is a balance between the needs of the wildlife and the needs of people; it can include gamekeeping, wildlife
conservation, and pest control. The ultimate goal of wildlife conservation is to minimize or stop the loss of the Earth’s biodiversity.
Lacey Act:
Lacey Act: Originally enacted in 1900, this is usually considered America’s first wildlife protection law. One primary focus of the Lacey Act is prohibiting interstate trafficking in wildlife (including live or dead
specimens or parts or products of all wildlife and fish and protected domestic plants) that have been taken, possessed, transported or sold in violation of a wildlife-related state, federal, foreign or tribal law or
regulation. The Lacey Act also prohibits making or submitting a false record, account or label for wildlife transported, or intended for transport, in interstate or foreign commerce. The Lacey Act provides misdemeanor and felony penalties and provides for forfeiture of both the wildlife involved in an offense, as well as vessels, vehicles, aircraft and equipment used to aid in the commission of a felony violation.
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA):
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA): This law protects almost all native North American birds, with the exception of upland gamebirds (quail,
grouse, and their relatives). Unless permitted by regulation [e.g., state hunting regulations], it is unlawful to pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill, possess, sell, barter, purchase, ship, export, or import any migratory birds
… or any part, nests, eggs, or product thereof. This is a “strict liability” offense: the government need not prove intent on the part of the person or corporation that takes the bird. These prohibitions include the
possession of feathers of protected migratory birds, even if these feathers were naturally molted. The MBTA provides a felony penalty for the sale or barter of listed species. View the complete list of MBTA species.
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
Endangered Species Act (ESA): Probably America’s best-known wildlife protection law, the ESA currently lists 1925 species and populations of plants and animals that are in imminent danger of extinction
(“endangered”), or which may become endangered in the near future unless preventative action is taken (“threatened”). “Unless permitted by
regulation, it is unlawful to import, export, take, transport, sell, purchase, or receive in interstate or foreign commerce any species listed as
endangered or threatened.” The ESA provides civil and misdemeanor criminal penalties for a knowing violation of its prohibitions. Unlike most other wildlife laws, the protections of the ESA may apply to habitat critical
for the species’ survival. The ESA also implements the CITES treaty, an international convention that regulates transnational commerce in species
Marine Mammal Protection Act:
Marine Mammal Protection Act: This law extends protections to marine mammals, which include whales, dolphins, seals, sea lions, walrus, manatees, sea otters, and polar bears. No person shall take, import,
transport, purchase, sell, offer to purchase or sell, any marine mammal or marine mammal product unless specifically exempted.
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES):
CITES is an international treaty regulating trade in threatened and endangered wildlife and plants. The United States is a signatory, along with 170 other countries around the world. CITES establishes three
levels of protection, which are summarized in three Appendices below, as quoted from the CITES website.
● “Appendix I lists species that are the most endangered…They are threatened with extinction and CITES prohibits international trade in specimens of these species except when the purpose of the
import is not commercial.”
● “Appendix II lists species that are not necessarily now threatened with extinction but that may become so unless trade is closely controlled. International trade in specimens of Appendix-II species
may be authorized by the granting of an export permit.”
● “Appendix III is a list of species included at the request of a Party that already regulates trade in the species and that needs the cooperation of other countries to prevent unsustainable or illegal
exploitation.”
Import into the U.S. of live or dead specimens, or parts or products made from them, without a CITES permit issued by FWS, is a misdemeanor violation of the ESA (see above) and is also frequently prosecuted as a
felony violation of the anti-smuggling statute (18 U.S.C. § 545).
Ecosystem services
Ecosystem services including provisioning, regulating, and cultural services (i.e. positive impacts of natural resources on human health including mental)
Provisioning:
Provisioning: products provided by the ecosystem
Examples: marine products (fish and other edible marine products like shellfish, roe, seaweed, etc), fresh water, raw materials
biochemical and genetic resources
Regulating:
Regulating: this encompasses how humans and wildlife benefit from the regulation of ecosystem processes
Examples: Climate regulation, waste treatment (via dilution which has the additional benefit of decreasing the frequency of disease), and buffer zones that help protect against natural hazards and environmental challenges like floods, tidal surges, storms, etc
Cultural services:
Cultural services: services related to the non-material world
Examples: Inspiration (works of art, music, architecture, spiritual practices), source of nostalgia for those that grew up by water, spiritual symbolism (means of rejuvenation, cleansing, change of perspective, etc), recreation, tourism, science and education.
Air Quality Monitoring, air quality index
Air quality is a measure of how clean or polluted the air is. Monitoring air quality is important because polluted air can be bad for our health—and
the health of the environment. Air quality is measured with the Air Quality Index, or AQI. The AQI works sort of like a thermometer that runs from 0 to 500 degrees. However, instead of showing changes in the temperature, the AQI is a way of showing changes in the amount of pollution in the air.
The air in our atmosphere is mostly made up of two gases that are essential for life on Earth: nitrogen and oxygen. However, the air also contains smaller amounts of many other gases and particles.
AQI tracks five major air pollutants:
AQI tracks five major air pollutants: ● Ground level ozone ● Carbon monoxide ● Sulfur dioxide ● Nitrogen dioxide ● Airborne particles, or aerosols
smog
Ground level ozone and airborne particles are the two air pollutants that pose the greatest risk to human health in the United States. They are also
the two of the main ingredients in smog, a type of air pollution that reduces visibility.
Ozone
Ozone is a gas you’ve probably heard of as a layer high up in Earth’s atmosphere. This ozone layer is a good thing—it helps block us from the
Sun’s harmful radiation. However, ground level ozone is bad for human health. It is created when sunlight reacts with certain chemical emissions (for example nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide and methane). These chemicals can come from industrial facilities, car exhaust, gasoline vapors and other sources.
Airborne particles
Airborne particles are solid and liquid droplets suspended in the air.
These particles become airborne at construction sites, smokestacks, car exhaust pipes, wildfires, volcanoes and many other places, too. The particles can also be formed from chemical reactions in the atmosphere.
When is air quality bad enough that you should stay inside?
When is air quality bad enough that you should stay inside?
An AQI under 50 means that the air quality is good. At this low AQI level, a person can spend time outdoors and air pollution will pose very little risk to their health. As the AQI number increases, so does the risk to human health. (See the chart below for a summary of the AQI levels of health concern.)
Where does information about air quality come from?
Where does information about air quality come from?
Instruments on the ground and satellites orbiting Earth collect information about what is in our air. For example, satellites in NOAA’s GOES-R (short
for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites-R) Series monitor the particle pollution in our atmosphere.
The Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) also collects information about particles in our air. These particles include smoke particles from wildfires;
airborne dust during dust and sand storms; urban and industrial pollution; and ash from erupting volcanoes. Ground level ozone can also be measured by the JPSS series of satellites.
GOES-R Series satellites can provide particle pollution measurements approximately every five minutes during the day. JPSS satellites can provide a higher resolution measurement of aerosols over the entire
planet once a day. JPSS can also observe the movement of aerosols from one side of the planet to the other. JPSS can also measure carbon monoxide which is associated with poor air quality resulting from wildfires.
Normal: EPA standards
The Clean Air Act, which was last amended in 1990, requires EPA to set National Ambient Air Quality Standards (40 CFR part 50) for pollutants considered harmful to public health and the environment. The Clean Air Act identifies two types of national ambient air quality standards.
Primary standards provide public health protection, including protecting the health of “sensitive” populations such as asthmatics, children, and the elderly.
Secondary standards provide public welfare protection, including protection against decreased visibility and damage to animals, crops, vegetation, and buildings.
National Ambient Air Quality Standards for six principal pollutants
Units of measure for the standards are parts per million (ppm) by volume, parts per billion (ppb) by volume, and micrograms per cubic meter of air (µg/m3). Carbon monoxide Lead Nitrogen dioxide Ozone Particle pollution Sulfur dioxide
