exam 3 Flashcards
4 ways we cause extinction
- disrupting/eliminating habitats
- introducing exotics
- international hunting/ harvesting
- pollution
species management
creating laws
ecosystem management
managing public and private land
what mass extinction are we in, what is it called
6th, biodiversity crisis
what makes the mass extinction we are in different from all the others
were not gonna recover from this one like the others because weve altered the land
whats the key to stopping the biodiversity crisis
protecting habitats
people+tech=
extinction
4 ways people have used technology to degrade the environment
- agriculture, rise of civilization, fire: altered land
- hunting: extinctions
- humans explored new areas: introduced exotics
- introduction of new chemicals into the environment: pollution
what were the earliest extinctions caused by
hunting
how many species has the ESA recovered, how many are close
40 recovered, 33 close
when was the ESA established
1973
who established the ESA what party was congress
Nixon: republican, congress: democrats
ESA major goals
conserve and recover endangered species and their habitats
what organisms are eligible to be on the ESA
plants and animals, no pest insects
how does the secretary of interior determine what a pest is
a threat to human health or public welfare, very subjective
what is the basis for ESA listing
based solely on best scientific data available
how to designate a critical habitat for ESA
science and economics taken into account
what are some animals the ESA recovered
elephant seal, sea otter, bald eagle, blue whale, gray whale
how does the US fish and wildlife service contribute to ESA
takes petitions to list terrestrial and freshwater species as endangered
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
company within NOAA that accepts petitions for marine organisms to be endangered
1st step for petitioning an endangered species
petitioning: any interested person or group may petition to add a species
2nd step for petitioning endangered species
candidate assessment program: fish and wildlife biologists identify candidates
listing designations ESA
endangered and threatened
endangered
at risk of extinction in its range, >25% of original pop
threatened
at risk of being endangered, abundant but still declining
what does the ESA forbid to protect endangered species
selling endangered species or products made from them
ESA: section 7-federal agencies
must consult US fish and wildlife service to ensure activities don’t harm wildlife
ESA: section 9
prohibits “take” or anything that can harm a listed species
what conflicts environmental protection
economic development
recovery plan criteria
est pop size, analysis of threats to sp, specific activities to aid recovery
how does the ESA recover species
critical habitat designations and recovery plans
what are critical habitat designations, what do they prohibit
area critical for the conservation of a species, prohibits adverse modification by federal agencies
Incidental Take Permits
Allows landowners to conduct
activities that might “take” a listed
species
what do Incidental Take Permits require from landowners
developing a Habitat Conservation
Plan (HCP)
what caused the Tellico Dam case
UT professor Etnier discovered endangered snail darter fish in the area of the river where 90% of the dam was built, halting construction
what was the first court case under the ESA
Tellico Dam court case
where was the Tellico Dam built, when was construction halted
little TN river, 1977
what was the real reason why citizens petitioned to halt Tellico Dam construction
they thought it was ugly but used the endangered fish as an excuse
what was the issue with the Tellico Dams construction being halted
it was considered environmental extremism because the Dam would produce 200 million kilowatt hours of hydroelectric power and save 15 million gallons of oil
who did the supreme court side with in the Tellico Dam case and why
the people who wanted to protect the fish because the ESA says protect all species no matter what
who was the politician that advocated for the dams construction to the senate
Howard Baker
when was the Tellico Dam complete, did the fish survive
1979, the fish survived
who are the most impacted groups according to the ESA
plants, birds, fish
*vertebrates
American alligator and ESA
American alligator was recovered by the ESA though it was never actually endangered
why do we need more species monitoring for the ESA
the status of many species is unknown
why do some say the ESA encourages habitat destruction
they encourage landowners to develop before endangered species arrive to their land if its a potential habitat
ESA limitations
Proactive not reactive, only goes into effect when species is almost extinct
how many species must remain to be listed as endangered under the ESA
10-120
what does CITIES stand for
Convention on International Trade In Endangered Species
what is CITIES
voluntary international agreement to control the commerce of endangered species and their products
how many nations are involved in CITIES, how many species
180 nations, 35,000 species
what is the conference of parties in CITIES
meetings to negotiate changes to cities, arrange species into appendicies
CITIES appendix I
most serious, no trade allowed
CITIES appendix II
less serious, some trade takes place with permits
CITIES appendix III
for species that are becoming threatened, controlled trade
what does IUCN stand for
International Union for Conservation of Nature
what is the IUCN
600 research institutions and private groups, publishes red list
types of public lands
Multiple Use Lands
Moderately Restricted Use Lands
Restricted Use Lands
conservation easement
legal agreement between a landowner and trust or agency that restricts land use to protect it
multiple use lands
consumptive activities allowed such as mining and logging
national forests, national resource lands
moderately restricted use lands
tighter restrictions on consumptive activities
national wildlife refuges
restricted use lands
consumptive activities not allowed
National Parks, Wilderness Areas
goals of restricted use lands
preserve nature and make it accessible to the public
problem with smoky mountains park
most visited but most polluted
conflicts in managing parks
what kinds of activities should be allowed?
what intensity of activities?
examples of controversial activities in parks
Motor vehicle use in Cades Cove and Snowmobiles in Yellowstone
biggest takeaway from air pollution chapter
AIR POLLUTION KILLS
biogenetics
when the envt is changed due to the actions of living organisms
ex: plants releasing gas makes smoke in smoky mtns
when was the Danora PA incident
1948
what happened in Danora PA
toxic pollutants from a metal smelting plant got trapped in the valley
how many people died in how long in Danora PA
20 people died in 3 days
why did pollutants get trapped in Danora PA
the weather and topography in the valley created a temperature inversion
when was the London Smog incident
1952
what happened in the London smog incident
cold weather caused people to burn coal->air became stagnant and a cold fog developed -> people burned more coal for more heat creating a feedback loop of pollution
how many people did the London Smog incident kill in how long
4000 people died in 6 days
what was the Indonesian fire incident
people slash and burned forests during el nino causing fires to rapidly spread
how many people got sick from the indonesian fires
20 million
what are the 6 criteria air pollutants
SO2, NOx, CO, Ozone (O3), PM, Pb
SO2 causes and effects
caused by burning coal, leads to acid rain
NOx causes
coal plants and automobiles
CO causes
automobiles, gas heaters + stoves
Ozone (O3) causes and effects
comes from car exhaust, creates photochemical smog
how is photochemical smog formed
car exhaust+moisture+sunlight
particulate matter harmful effects
gets lodged in lungs
lead causes
leaded gas and paint
stationary air pollution
fixed location
what are the 3 types of stationary air pollution sources
point sources, fugitive sources, area sources
point source
comes from one identifiable source
easy to control
fugitive source
comes from open areas exposed to wind like slash and burn
hard to control
area source
well defined area with multiple sources of pollution
mobile sources
move from place to place
cars
primary pollutants
emitted directly into the air and no reaction occurs
CO, PM
secondary air pollutants
form through a rxn with a primary pollutant and atmospheric compound
ozone
5 general effects of air pollution
- reduced visual quality
- damages vegetation animals and soil
- damages water quality
- erodes natural and artificial structures
- human health: reynolds uncle
particulate matter
mixture of solid particles+liquid droplets suspended in air
how is PM measured
TSP: total suspended particles
types of PM
SO2: sulfate particles
NOx: nitrate particles
PM sizes
thoractic particles: <10 microns
coarse particles: 10-2.5 microns
fine particles: >2.5
ultrafine particles: > 0.1
which particles are the most dangerous and why
ultrafine because theyre absorbed into the blood stream
what PM size does the greatest damage to the lungs
0.1-10
synergism
when the combined effects of the pollutants are greater than the sum of their effects
ex: sulfates+PM
smog
smoke+fog
produces unhealthy urban air
brown air
photochemical smog
sun+NOx+organic hydrocarbons=ozone,Pan,PM
how is brown air formed
combustion reaction creates 2NO and catalyzes with the sun to create ozone
gray air
comes from burning coal and oil
produces SOx
atmospheric inversion
occurs when warm air sits on top of cool air, creating stagnant air
1st type of atmospheric inversion like in LA
warm air descends
sea breeze moves polluted air in and mtns form a barrier
2nd type of atmospheric inversion valley: warm air on cool air
clouds develop and block sun
ground air cools and forms fog
people burn fuel for heat and pollutants build up
what 4 factors determine air pollution
- rate of emission ^
- downwind distance ^
- avg wind speed v
- elevation v
as rate of emission and downwind distance increase
air pollution increases
as avg wind speed and elevation decreases
air pollution increases
southern CA air pollution
VOCs
temp inversion
topography
Ph scale
0-7-14
what is rains Ph and why
5.6 bc it bonds with CO2 to form carbonic acid
how does acidity increase
logarithmically
what kind of acid is carbonic acid
weak acid
weak acid
partial dissassociation
strong acid
full dissassociation
buffer
substance that neutralizes acids
ex: calcium carbonate
what kind of soil is less sensitive to acid rain
soils with calcium carbonate
what kind of soil is more sensitive to acid rain
soils with granite
how does acid harm leaves
it strips away the waxy cuticle
what do changes in soil acidity lead to
plants uptake heavy metal-> weakens trees->indirect deforestation
what do changes in water chem lead to
aquatic life dies off
what does acid rain lead to
changes in soil and water chemistry
short smokestacks
local air pollution
tall smokestacks
travels farther-regional air pollution
clean air act 1970
sets national health based air quality standards (NAAQS)
allows epa to set limits on air pollutants
NAAQS
national ambient air quality standards
what are state air quality implementation plans required to meet
NAAQS
Part 1 of clean air act
establishes 6 criteria air pollutants and NAAQS, state implementation plans
Part 2 of clean air act
prohibits significant deterioration of air quality
Part 3 of clean air act
recognizes hazardous air pollutants and sets emission standards
Part 4 of clean air act
recognizes coal fired power plants as regional air pollutants and requires reduction of NOx and SOx, acid rain
Part 5 of clean air act
recognizes motor vehicles as a local and regional source of air pollution
catalytic converters
what does a catalytic converter do
converts hydrocarbons to CO2 and H2O
what is a consequence of less developed countries having less air quality regulations
respiratory illnesses, #1 cause of death in children
clean air act amendments of 1990
regulations that address acid rain, toxic emissions, ozone depletion and automobile exhaust
global water distribution
97.5% oceans, 2.5% freshwater mostly ice caps
fresh water distribution
1.85% ice caps, 0.64% groundwater, 0.01% lakes rivers and wetlands
what is the #1 water related problem
lack of clean drinking water
2 takeaways from water pollution chapter
water conservation, don’t pollute water
main abiotic water resivoir
ocean
the hydrologic cycle
driven by the sun
evaporation+transporation ^
condensation+precipitation v
H2O bond angle and polarity
120, polar
why does H2O have unique properties
because its polar
why is H2O special
universal solvent, dissolves a wide variety of substances
like dissolves like
polar dissolves polar
heat of vaporization
amt of heat energy required for a substance to move to a gas phase
why does H2O need more heat to evaporate
it absorbs a lot of heat
adhesion
ability of H2O to stick to other substances
cohesion
H2O ability to stick to its self
helps trees pump water
water stress
when the demand for water by humans exceeds the envts ability to supply it
water war Georgia
Atlanta needs water so Georgia wants access to TN river
8 types of water pollutants
sewage
disease causing agents
sediment
inorganic plant and algal nutrients
organic compounds
inorganic compounds
radioactive substances
thermal pollution
where does sediment pollution come from
construction and soil disturbance
how is sediment measured in water
TSP=total suspended particles
what does sediment pollution do
increase turbidity
as sediment increases what increases with it
turbidity
what does turbid water lead to
absorbs more heat leading to less dissolved oxygen (DO)
clogs fish gills
smothers aquatic organisms
as turbidity increases what happens
heat increases, DO decreases
what prevents turbidity
vegetation
as BOD increases
DO decreases
3 zones of sewage release
pollution zone
decomposition zone
recovery zone
hypoxia
DO plummets, oxygen deficient
fecal coliform bacteria
indicator species for sewage pollution
natural eutrophication
body of water develops a high concentration of nutrients
cultural eutrophocation
eutrophication accelerated by human activities
what does eutrophication lead to
increased nutrients-> increased algae-> increased BOD -> decreased DO suffocates fish
eutrophic lake
old lakes
shallow, warm, cloudy, nutrient rich
mesotrophic lakes
medium aged lakes
moderate nutrients and depth
oligotrophic lakes
young lakes
deep, cold, nutrient defficient, clear
clean water legislation
Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974
Clean Water Act of 1977
