Unit 5 Topic 10 Flashcards
What is desertification?
The process by which arable land loses its fertility and becomes a desert
What are pastoral nomads?
A type of agriculture where herders migrate with their livestock
How do pastoral nomads affect the environments?
The natural landscape is altered
Overgrazing could lead to infertile land
Can lead to desertification
What is deforestation?
The process of clearing a wide geographic area of trees and other vegetation.
Carbon Emissions
What is slashing and burning?
The cutting and burning of forests to try and fertilize and put back nutrients in soil.
How does slashing and burning affect the environment?
Permanently alters the landscape
Leads to deforestation and soil erosion
½ of the world’s topsoil was lost in the past 150 years.
Releases a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere
What is soil salinization and how does it affect the environment?
The process of salt accumulating in the soil making it difficult for crops and plants
Less clean drinking water
More aquatic sealife is killed
What is soil erosion and what can it lead to?
The wearing away and displacement of the upper layer of soil due to human activities, water, wind, or other natural forces.
Less arable land
Less fertile soil
Less crops/farms/food
What are the wetlands and how can they affect the environment?
An area of land that is saturated with water, often consisting of marshes, swampls, or bogs.
Draining them can lead to a loss of biodiversity
Draining them can lead to a loss of habitat
More flooding and storm damage can be made
What is irrigation?
The movement of water from one place to another to help grow vegetation, or meet agricultural or landscaping needs
How can irrigation affect the environment?
Can deplete freshwater sources
Can increase water pollution
Can lead to soil salinization
How can pollution affect the environment?
More animal waste is spread
More bacteria/nitrate is found in water sources
Contamination
How can pesticides/herbicides/etc. affect the environment?
Contaminates water sources
Contaminates natural habitats
How can fossil fuels affect the environment?
Releases CO2 (carbon dioxide)
Contributes to global warming
What is terrace farming?
A method of agriculture that involves growing crops on the side of hills or mountains creating terraces that built into the slope
