Unit 5 Flashcards
individuals overconsume/exploit a public resource (optimizing for the self in the short term threatens the many in the long term)
Tragedy of the commons:
Examples of commons
(public/community resources): Atmosphere, Ocean, Lakes, Forests
Examples of tragedy
air pollution, loss of biodiversity, traffic, oil water pollution in Gulf of Mexico, aquifer depletion by farmers, Great Pacific Garbage Patch, public land overgrazing by livestock
To prevent Tragedy of the Commons
establish total catch quotas for fishermen, issue fewer (or more $$$) fishing licenses, or tax fish or supplies required for selling/ catching them
Clear Cutting Causes:
increased water evaporation in soil
Warmer and less fertile soil (less nutrition & decomposers in the soil due to a lack of dead trees)
Increased erosion
Increased CO2 in the atmosphere
Increased nitrates in streams & rivers
Increased soil and water temps (loss of shade & murkier water)
Decreased Biodiversity
Slash & Burn method causes
increased CO2 and N2O making the soil infertile
Major Deforestation: Amazonian Rainforest (beef), Indonesia (palm oil)
Pros of GMOs
develop new crops with higher yields, add vitamins to combat vitamin deficiencies
Cons of GMOs
potentially decreased biodiversity, could become or create an invasive species, can cause unforeseen health risks for consumers, carcinogens from glyphosate
Crops planted in strips between trees and shrubs
alley cropping
fertilizer type that provides more targeted macronutrients to the crops
synthetic fertilizer
fertilizer type that provides a wider diversity of nutrients, as well as microorganisms that can assist in growth
organic fertilizer
Causes of Eutrophication
fertilizer and/or sewage in water
Excessive groundwater can cause?
subsidence (fancy word for sinking)
How to increase genetic resistance to pests & diseases
crossing a plant with ancestral varieties
(one crop farms) decreases in organic matter and specific nutrients in soil
Monoculture
(solved by crop rotation)
Agricultural practices that can cause environmental damage
tilling, slash and-burn farming, and the excess use of fertilizers (eutrophication)
Causes of Desertification
-Overgrazing
-Deforestation
-Erosion (Method that does not distribute silt & soil (no till plowing)
Factors contribute to the rise in world hunger
unequal distribution of available food supplies
loss of or decline in arable (workable/farmable) land
increasing rate of population growth
increasing poverty in developing countries
Methods of soil conservation (preventing erosion)
contour plowing, windbreaks, perennial crops, terracing, no-till agriculture, and strip cropping, rotational grazing
Irrigation method used in orchards growing tree crops, and leads to erosion & eutrophication
Furrow Irrigation
Irrigation method which may cause water logging or salinization, helps replenish aquifers
Flooding Irrigation
Irrigation method which employs sprinklers, requires a lot of energy, and is used for large areas
Spray Irrigation
Very expensive irrigation method (good for smaller farms), only 5% water loss
Drip Irrigation
when salts in groundwater stay in soil after evaporation, making soil toxic to plants, can be combated through the addition of large amounts of water to leach out salts
Salinization
(can be solved by adding large amounts of water to leach out salts)
pesticides can cause organisms to build a resistance through genetic mutation that then requires more or stronger pesticides as the insects develop a resistance, Pesticides harm organisms other than targets due to biomagnification in food web
Pesticide Treadmill
(getting worse up the food chain)
native crop area to attract beneficial insects, birds, & amphibians to attract/sustain native animals to protect them or use them to help control pests
Habitat Island
Advantages of Intercropping
(planting 2+ crops in close proximity)
uses resources more efficiently, lower pest densities, allows more effective management of cover crops (fields that grow all year round to prevent dry soil, aka erosion)
what does IPM stand for?
Integrated pest management
What is a CAFO?
Concentrated Animal Feedlot Organizations that keeps animals concentrated in an enclosed area, fed grain or fish meal
Pros & Cons of CAFOs?
Pros: are efficient and relatively low-cost facilities
Cons: large inputs of grain, high energy & water use, concentrated animal waste, [runs off & causes Eutropication] overuse of antibiotics and hormones (steroids), high CO2 & methane production
Advantages of Aquaculture
-produces large amounts of seafood for human purchase and consumption year-round\
-requires small areas of water & little fuel
Disadvantages of Aquaculture
Contamination of surrounding water by organic waste, parasites and sea lice infection, the spread of parasites and disease to wild salmon
-fish can escape and out compete wild salmon (not true but it’s an answer)
-active chemicals released into the environment effects on other organisms and human health
the accidental capture of animals
by-catch
benefit of reserves for fish & fishermen
-boosting fish biomass
-boosting total catch
-Increasing fish size
-Rapid long term increase in marine population
-Decrease habitat destruction
-Lessen the likelihood of extinction of species
Which is more effective, small or big marine reserves?
Big, the bigger the better
How can the gov help with fishing sustainability?
set catch limit for species & impose tax on extra fish caught
the removal of large portions of soil and rock, called overburden, in order to access the ore underneath, may remove vegetation from an area, making the area more susceptible to erosion.
Surface Mining
(an example is strip mining)
Waste Produced from Mining
(not chemicals)
Slag & Tailings (soil and rocks that are moved to gain access to the ore and the waste)
Disadvantages of Coal Mining
habitat destruction, contamination of ground water, and released dust particles & methane, releases lead and mercury and radiation, acid drainage due to leaching of spoil heaps in abandoned mines by rainwater
The use of heavy equipment to move overburden downhill during the strip mining of coal
Mountaintop removal
Why don’t we mine in deserts?
(including Antarctic & Arctic)
environment is fragile and extremely vulnerable to the disturbances (due to low biodiversity) that would accompany development
leakage of water containing toxic materials from coal and! metal mines-like pyrite or other sulfur-heavy minerals like coal
Acid Mine Drainage
used in extracting and separating gold in remote regions often results in environmental contamination
Cyanide
What can be used to reduce soil erosion during surface mining of coal
Replanting vegetation
What is the difference between Urban Centers & Urban Sprawls
Urban Centers have benefits, Urban Sprawls have no benefits
Why do quickly developing urban areas tend to sprawl outward?
1) Federal government loan guarantees stimulate the development of suburbs.
2) Low-cost gasoline & gov funded highways encourage automobile use.
3) Tax-laws encourage home ownership.
4) Most zoning laws separate residential &commercial use of land.
5) Many urban areas lack proper planning.
Effective Ways to Improve Sustainability in Urban Areas
-changing public policy
-adopting green technologies
-expanding commuter rail
-Development tax based on their environmental cost
-encourage environmentally–friendly development
Ways to decrease urban flooding
-replace traditional pavement with permeable pavement
-planting trees
-building up, not out
Environmental Pro of Urbanization
people in cities usually have a lower transportation carbon footprint than in rural areas
Cons of Urbanization/Paving
1)decrease in evaporation and transpiration (lack of greenery)
2) increased CO2 due to burning of fossil fuels
3) higher absorption rates by buildings and roads
4) increase suspended sediments and soils to contaminate groundwater
5) dual-sewage & drainage systems means raw sewage may be dumped into rivers or ocean during storms
5) leads to overpumping aquifers, decreasing groundwater (& increasing the risk of coastal upwelling)
6) slower aquifer refill rate (impermeable pavement & lack of trees shrinks recharge areas)
phenomenon in which city centers are hotter on average than surrounding areas
Heat Island
Qualities of Urban Soil
compacted, impervious to infiltration, & depleted in organics.
structures assist in the migration of species amongst different habitat islands
Habitat corridors
Environmental Indicators of Sustainability Level
average global surface temperatures
CO2 concentrations
human population
biological diversity
food production
resource depletion
as countries get richer…
their ecological footprint increases
amount of a resource that can be taken without reducing available supply
sustainable yield
the total volume of freshwater used to produce products & services used by an individual, community, or region. (generally expressed as volume of water used per year)
Water footprint
precipitation that contributes to water in soils & evaporates/transpires from plants
green water
surface & groundwater. This is used to produce our goods and services (consumptive use)
blue water
water polluted by production of goods & typical services (such as bathing and washing clothes) that renders it unfit for human consumption
Sewage (toilet water or garbage disposal) is NOT included
gray water
The largest domestic use of water
flushing toilets
large, managed farms with uniformly aged trees of one species (monoculture), used for pulp and lumber, short rotation cycles of 25-30 or 6-10 years, do not support food webs as decaying wood is absent, contain little biodiversity
Tree plantation
Sustainable Forestry Method
selective cutting (cutting small groups of medium/large selected trees)
Methods to Control Fires
Prevention, (burning permits, closing parts of the forest during drought and educating the public) & Prescribed Burning (setting forests on fire in controlled conditions to reduce flammable biomass aka underbrush, and thus the likelihood of natural fires)
Largest use of freshwater
irrigation (70%)
A consequence of excessive pumping of groundwater from wells in aquifers in coastal areas
Saltwater Intrusion
