Human impact 3 Flashcards
Radioactivity
Nuclear plants use uranium or plutonium for fuel
global electrical production about 10% in 2022
there is 440 nuclear power plants
positives-high efficiency and require little fuel, few greenhouse gases
negatives-high environmental, human and financial cost with failure
Example of a radioactivity failure?
Chernobyl 1986
-explosion and meltdown
-cleanup till 2067
-current cost from meltdown 250 billion
-Births defects up83% in Belarus from Chernobyl
Top 3 uranium producers?
Kazakhstan
Canada
Australia
Habitat Change
Aquatic effects?
Ocean warming
ocean acidification
oil spills
industrial chemicals and biocides
plastics
Coral reefs are
the richest marine ecosystem
highest species diversity of vertebrates
-impacted by warming of oceans, cyclones, acidification, coil form bacteria, artisanal fishing, commercial fishing and aquaria trade
-75% of all global coral reefs are degraded and in decline
caribbean 80% since 1975
Great Barrier Reef 50% 1980
90% 2015 in northern GBR
Hazelwood anf Exxon Valdez 1989
-250,000 barrels of oil spilled
10 million gallons
polluted 2100km of the coastline
killed 250,000 seabirds, 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbour seals, 250 bald eagles, and 22 whales
Aquatic effects
Industrial chemicals and biocides
Biomagnification
DDT was banned in 2002 but stilled used to control insects in some tropical countries
Why were the salmon dying in the rainstorms?
`Tires shed 6PPD-quinone
Is organochlorine pesticides heavier then polybrominated diphenyl ethers(PBDEs)
No
Major insecticides-organophosphate(parathiono, malathion)
lethal as these inhibit cholinesteras(required for nervous system)
A non-destructive biocide? Or thought to be?
neonicotinoids- a natural insecticide related to nicotine a common anti-browsing compound produced by plants 1st
Neonicotinoids bind to ___in the nervous system to animals. Extremely toxic to insects
nicotine acetlcholine
early 2000 first negative impact of bees and their predators(bats)
2006 major loss of bees which led to colony collapse disorder (CCD)
In manaus Brazil there is____of plastic/sam of vegetated bank on the Amazon estuary
27-113
Major threats to integrity of earths ecosystems
overfishing/over hunting
till 1976 there was non-canadian catchers
bluefin tuna-lots of money.
fishing takes biggest first
grizzle bear historical range down to mexico
How many elephants are poached per year?
35,000 to 50,000
