Lesson 3 - Ecosystem services

Question 1

what are 4 ethical reasons for maintaining the environment and supporting biodiversity

Answer 1

• if we destroy the biodiversity of an ecosystem, we are denying future generations the opportunity to use renewable natural resources
• the natural world and its biodiversity is a pleasure for many people, so should be maintained and protected
• if biodiversity is lost when a species goes extinct due to human activity, unique combinations of DNA are lost
• human activities have caused mass extinctions through climate change and interference with biodiversity on a large scale

Question 2

meaning ecosystem services

Answer 2

services provided by the natural environment that are of benefit to people

Question 3

what are the 4 main categories of ecosystem services

Answer 3

• provisioning services
• regulating services
• supporting services
• cultural services

Question 4

meaning provisioning services

Answer 4

ecosystems which provide us with the products we need
- fresh water
- medicine
- food
- fuel

Question 5

meaning regulating services

Answer 5

ecosystems processes that regulate environmental conditions
- water purification
- pest control
- pollination
- maintaining air quality

Question 6

meaning supporting services

Answer 6

ecosystems which support other ecosystem services that we need
- soil formation
- nutrient cycling

Question 7

meaning cultural services

Answer 7

non-material benefits that people get from ecosystems
- tourism
- cultural heritage & education

Question 8

state economical reasons why biodiversity should be maintained

Answer 8

• ecosystem services provide economic benefits
• if human activities cause environmental disasters, it costs a lot to repair
• if areas become deserts due to deforestation, people cannot farm, so suffer from malnutrition
• any loss of biodiversity reduces the chances of finding new medicine or new food