Human Influences On The Environment

Question 1

What gases are released from fossil fuels when burned

Answer 1

Carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides

Question 2

What is the consequence of the pollution of air by sulfur dioxide

Answer 2

Acid rain

Question 3

How is acid rain formed

Answer 3

Increasing use of fossil fuels results in higher levels of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides forming sulfuric acid and nitric acid. This makes the PH of the rain lower than normal producing acid rain

Question 4

What are the 3 biological consequences of pollution of air by sulfur dioxide (acid rain)

Answer 4

Acidification of lakes, killing conifer trees, acidification of soil

Question 5

What is the consequence of acidification of lakes

Answer 5

Kills bacteria, algae and fish, disrupting food webs of this ecosystem

Question 6

What is the consequence of acidification of soil

Answer 6

Causes mineral ions to leach out of soil (e.g aluminium ions), which depletes the soil and accumulates at toxic levels in lakes, killing fish and other animals, disrupting food webs. Damages the roots of plants so they cannot take in mineral ions, slowing down their growth

Question 7

What are 5 greenhouse gases

Answer 7

Water vapour, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, CFCs

Question 8

How is methane made by bacteria

Answer 8

Decomposition in land fill sites, in the stomach of cows released when they flatulate

Question 9

What are 4 characteristics of carbon monoxide

Answer 9

Colourless, odourless, tasteless, fatal

Question 10

How is carbon monoxide produced

Answer 10

Incomplete combustion

Question 11

What is the effect of carbon monoxide on your body

Answer 11

Carbon monoxide as an affinity for haemoglobin 200 time higher than oxygen. This means it will bind to the carbon monoxide instead of oxygen, binding irreversibly and forming carboxyhemoglobin. This means your blood cannot carry oxygen and you suffocate

Question 12

What are 3 sources of carbon monoxide

Answer 12

Boilers, fires, heaters with insufficient oxygen flow, car exhausts, incomplete combustion in industry

Question 13

What are three symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning

Answer 13

Headache, nausea, dizziness

Question 14

How are carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide released

Answer 14

By burning fossil fuels

Question 15

How are CFCs released

Answer 15

Aerosols and coolant systems e.g fridges

Question 16

What are 5 ways human activities contribute to greenhouse gases

Answer 16

Manufacturing, mining, travel, deforestation, eating meat and dairy products

Question 17

How does manufacturing contribute to greenhouse gases

Answer 17

Fast fashion means that new clothes have to produced an transported using fuel and emitting greenhouse gases

Question 18

How does mining contribute to greenhouse gases

Answer 18

Extracting ores from the earth and minerals from the ores uses fuels

Question 19

How does travel contribute to greenhouse gases

Answer 19

Planes need fuel to run which means the burning of fossil fuels results in

Question 20

How does deforestation contribute to greenhouse gases

Answer 20

Cutting and burning of trees releases CO2, fewer tree means less photosynthesis meaning less removal of CO2 from atmosphere

Question 21

How does eating meat and dairy products contribute to greenhouse gases

Answer 21

Means the breeding of cows which release methane

Question 22

How is the enhanced greenhouse effect formed

Answer 22

Greenhouse gases released accumulate forming an insulating blanket around the earth, trapping radiation from the sun (heat) in the earths atmosphere, warming the planet

Question 23

What are 4 consequences of global warming

Answer 23

-polar ice caps melt meaning sea levels rise
-a change in major ocean currents resulting in warm water flowing into cooler areas
-increase in temperature resulting in more evaporation from the surface of the sea leading to more water vapour in the atmosphere and more rainfall in some areas
-changing conditions could change the nature of different ecosystems as species cannot migrate or adapt quickly enough

Question 24

What are the biological consequences of water pollution by sewage

Answer 24

-sewage enters river
-increases in bacteria population as decomposition occurs
-oxygen concentration decreases as bacteria are respiring
-amount of freshwater animals decrease as there isn’t enough oxygen

Question 25

What are the biological consequences of eutrophication

Answer 25

-leaching of excessive nutrients e.g nitrates, from land into rivers or lakes -pollutants cause the growth of aquatic plants like algae creating an algal bloom -algal blooms blocks out sunlight so plants underwater can’t photosynthesise and die lowering oxygen level -bacteria decompose dead plants so they respire and use up remaining oxygen -oxygen levels decrease so fish die

Question 26

What are the 5 effects of deforestation

Answer 26

Leaching, soil erosion, disturbance of evapotranspiration, disturbance of carbon cycle, disturbance of atmospheric gases

Question 27

What is the consequence of leaching due to deforestation

Answer 27

In a healthy rainforest, roots of plants take in mineral ions quickly after decomposers release them but without trees mineral ions are leached away when it rains

Question 28

What are the consequences of soil erosion due to deforestation

Answer 28

When trees are cut down their roots rot away which are vital for keeping the soil together, without them soil erodes away when it rains

Question 29

What are the consequences of disturbance of evatranspiration due to deforestation

Answer 29

Tree roots take in water from the soil in huge quantities which then falls back down to earth as rain. Without trees the water drains and there is less rain

Question 30

What are the consequences of carbon dioxide and balance of atmospheric gases due to deforestation

Answer 30

The cutting down of trees limits photosynthesis and the removal of carbon dioxide contributing to global warming. Tree waste is of the burned releasing more carbon dioxide