Humans And Biodiversity Flashcards
What is biodiversity?
Variety of all the different species of organisms that live on Earth, or within a specific ecosystem
Why is high biodiversity important?
Reduces dependence of one species on another for food or habitat maintenance
What is interdependence?
Within a community, species interact and depend on each other
How can we maintain biodiversity?
Breeding programmes
Protection and regeneration of rare habitats
Reintroduction of hedgerows
Government policies
Recycling
Where can pollution occur?
In water form sewage, fertiliser or toxic chemicals
In air, from smoke and acidic gases
On land, from landfill and toxic chemicals
Why are humans producing more waste?
Growth of population and improved standard of living
What has rapid population growth led to in terms of land use?
More land used for quarrying, building, farming and dumping waste
What is the destruction of peat bogs?
Decay or burning of peat for compost damages the biodiversity of the habitat and releases carbon dioxide
Why is deforestation taking place?
Provide land for cattle, rice fields and grow crops as biofuels
What does deforestation lead to?
Carbon dioxide released
Extinctions and reductions in biodiversity
Climate change
What is food security?
Having energy h food to feed a population
What is threatening food security?
Rapid population growth and increasing birth rate
Changing diet
New pests and pathogens
Environmental changes
Increasing cost of fertilisers
Conflict
What are sustainable fisheries?
Fish stocks must be maintained to ensure breeding continues
Net sizes and fishing quotas are controlled
What is the role of biotechnology?
Enables increased food production
Large quantities of microorganisms can be cultured for food
GM crops have increased yield and improve nutritional value or resistance to environmental changes
Bacteria can be genetically modified to provide human insulin
What is intensive farming?
Makes food production more efficient by restricting energy transfer from food animals to the environment
Limit movement of animals
Control temp
How else do farmers maximise yield?
Feed animals high protein foods
Give animals antibiotics
Use fertilisers and herbicides
What has global warming resulted in?
Habitat change
Loss of biodiversity
Extreme weather
Migration
Threats to security and availability of food
Advantages and disadvantages of intensive farming?
High yield and quick growth
Efficient
Less waste produce
Meet demand
Increased risk of antibiotic resistance
May reduce biodiversity
Ethical issues
Emissions
What is land pollution?
Sewage - gut parasites and chemicals
Household waste - landfill and toxic chemicals
Toxic chemicals
Weeds
Pesticides ~~> bioaccumulation
What is sewage?
Bodily waste and waste water that pollutes the soil with unpleasant chemicals and gut parasites
What do household and industrial waste do?
Destroy habitats
What do pesticides and weed killers lead to?
Bioaccumulation
What is eutrophication?
When too many nutrients are added to water system
fertilisers, which are rich in nitrates and phosphates washed into river, which increases nutrient concentration
food for algae who reproduce and form an algal bloom absorb sunlight
photosynthesising plants die into
Algae starts to die as run out of food
bacteria breakdown dead plants and algae, releasing more nutrients
bacteria reproduce more and consume oxygen
oxygen runs out completely and kills all non-anoxical life.
What do greenhouse gases do?
Increase mould, smog, pollen
What is smog?
Sulphurous
Photochemical
What are noxious gases?
Carbon dioxide
Sulfur dioxide
Nitrogen oxide
What are particulates?
Tiny particles suspended in air usually produced by combustion which damages ozone
How can we reduce greenhouse gases?
Use low sulphur fuels
Electric cars
Renewable energy
Public transport
Catalytic converters remove polluting gases from car fumes
What is acid rain?
Burn fossil fuels to produce acidic gases which are carried by wind and dissolved in rain and snow, acid rain falls and damages animals, plants, rivers, lakes
