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55 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Tropical Rain Forests & Tropical Dry Forests
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Rain: (25-27 Celsius)
Dry: (25-35 Celsius) Trees competing for light-- lots of light Rain forests--Heavy rainfall (2-4 meters per year) Dry forests--Rainfall seasonal(1-2 meters per year) Rain: Trees are taller and have 3 dimensional shape Dry: Trees are shorter Rain forests: Within 10 degrees of Equator Dry: 10-15 degrees of equator. Rain: low seasonality Dry: rain and dry season relatively higher seasonality |
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Tropical Savannas
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25-35 Degrees Celsius
Higher light due to equatorial proximity Less than 1 meter per year Mostly grass with widely scattered trees. Grass becomes green and brown according to season. Grasses Between 10-20 degrees N & S The rainy season is shorter and the dry season is longer. |
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Deserts
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Deserts cannot be defined by temperature. Wide range of temperature. Very cold at night and very hot in the day.
Plants aren't competing for light source because of lack of vegetation. High amount of light. POtential evaporation exceeds annual precipitation. Usually little rainfall. In some deserts precipitation > evaporation for weeks or months Desert vegetation very minimal About 30 degrees north and south of equator Low seasonality--high consistency |
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Mediterranean Woodlands
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Warm dry summers. Mild winters. 10-20 degrees C in Winter. 15-30 degrees C in Summer.
Light varies more because further away from equator where light is consistent. Vary with seasons. 250-600 mm of precipitation per year. Print to fires in summer. Shrubs & Trees. Vegetation varies widely Trees have thick bark to help them survive fires. Small leaves to cope with dry season. Evergreens mostly. Between 30-40 N & S of Equator, but they can extend farther. Winters are mild and summers are hot--seasonality is apparent however not high |
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Temperate Grassland
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Hot summers & long cold winters.
High light during summers. Between 300-1000 mm per year. Fire is frequent because of high winds. Short grass prairies Middle of continent. Outside tropical range. Hot summers and long cold winters. |
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Temperate Forests
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High range of temperatures. Warm summers and cold winters.
High rainfall-lower sunlight 650-3000 mm of precipitation per year Deciduous trees. Between 40-50 N and S Short growing season. High seasonality |
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Boreal Forests
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Climate extremes. 100 degrees C difference between the warmest and coldest days of the year.
Higher light than most. Days last between 16-24 hours 200-600 mm of precipitation per year Many boreal tree species such as spruce and evergreens 50-65 North Extremely high seasonality |
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Tundra
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Very very cold Highest temps slightly above 0 C
Lots of light similar to Boreal. 200-600 mm per year Mosses, lichens, grasses, sedges, and members of the heath family North of the Atlantic Circle Growing season shorter than boreal. Normal seasonality. |
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Streams, Rivers and Lakes
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Rivers and Streams: low salinity
Rivers and Streams: Almost all areas Lakes: Scattered throughout the earth Eutrophic lakes have high levels of NPP River and Streams: Plants and bottom dwelling animals that live in lotic systems Lakes: Dominated by plankton Rivers and Streams: Zonation of chemical, physical and biological factors Rivers and Streams: Low diversity Lakes: Low diversity because of isolated location |
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Estuaries
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Freshwater flowing into salt water: creates salt marshes, mudflats and channels
On the coast Among the most productive of all biomes; constant mixing of salt and freshwater makes them nutrient rich Great blue herons, Oysters, Fish and shelfish Epipelagic & Mesopelagic Very low diversity because few life forms can survive the constant change between salt and freshwater |
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Coral Reefs & Tropical Coastal Seas
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High Salinity
Just beyond the coast line Relative productivity Infauna (bottom dwelling) Epifauna( animals that are attached move on the surface) Intertidal zones, bathypelagic zone High diversity depending of the features on the floor |
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Upwelling Zone
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High salinity
Where wind blows surface water away from the coast Very productive, upwellings bring up the nutrient-rich cld water from the sea floor Moves animals from the floor to the surface perpetuating the food chain Along the coastline |
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Open Ocean
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High salinity
Most of earth's water Not very productive Large food chains, from zoo plankton to large animals Epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic Extremely diverse |
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Measurement of Biodiversity
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Genetic Diversity: Genetic Information in the DNA o plants, animals and microorganisms
Ecosystem Diversity: Variety of ecosystems on earth such as coral reefs, forests and wetlands Species Diversity Species Richness (number of species) Species Evenness (evenly populated) |
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Types of Soil
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Mollisols: Mostly found under grasslands. Lots of organic material.
Spodosols: Formed under coniferous forests. Confierous trees don't really contrubte to organic material. reduced fertility of spodosols relative to mollisols Oxisols: Tropical Rain forests. Receive lots of organic material every year however lots of rain and high temperatures so the organic material decays quickly. Aridisols: Deserts. Little potential for agricultural potential except if irrigated. |
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Particle Size in Soil
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Gravitational: Drains through in a day or 2
Capillary Water: Fills a soils micropores. water held with moderate force Hygroscopic: water than forms a thin film around the individual soil particles |
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Sheet Erosion
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Water driven erosion in which a film of water moves across the soil surface
becomes concentrated in small channels (rill erosion) if rills are concentrated into deeper channels (gully erosion) |
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Saltation
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Wind erosion--bounces particles along the ground in a series of short hops.
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Suspension
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Soil particles may be lifted high and carried long distance
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Contour Plowing
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Sowing crops in rows that cut across slope
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Strip planting
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Ploughing across a slope following its elevation contour lines
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Shelterbelt
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Plough strips of land with vegetative barriers running horizontally
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Slash and Burn
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Where there is a lot of land and low pop. density
burning a path of forest. removes trees and transfers nutrients from vegetation to the soil. When yields stop they bounce |
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Nomadic Herding
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When land is ample but NPP is low.
Herd their livestock over large areas they turn inedible plants into edible proteins |
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Green Revolution Benefits
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Rapid Increase in Food Production for a rapid growing population
Ameliorated effects of increasing pop & food production on natural ecosystems Decline in price of food Reduced fraction of labor force that works on farms. Fewer farmers-workers who can make other sh it |
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Green Revolution Costs
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Imposes considerable costs on some segments of the enviro. & society: small farmers have been hurt to participate famers must spend more money on technology
Class of landless farmers. W/o land they can't grow their own food. Negative enviro. effects: more use of energy materials and machinery Growing a single crop over a large area Increases use of water for irrigation |
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Causes of Deforestation
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Forest to Agriculture
Timber Forests Property Rights and Fire Mineral and Energy Production Roads and other transportation infrastructure |
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Sustainable forestry practices
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Shelterwood method
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Carbon Monoxide
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Formed when fossil fuels aren'tburnt completley
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Incomplete Combustion
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When not enough oxygen
Flame temp too low Air passes through the combustion chamber too quickly Too much turbulence in the combustion table |
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Carbon Monoxide
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Automobiles, Large factories, Power plants
Formed when fossil fuels aren't burnt enough contributes to climate change by combining with OH and forming C02 which increases atmospheric life of methane |
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Particulate Matter
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Mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets (aerosols) found in the atmosphere
Dust: solid material that is formed through crushing or grinding Fumes: Formed when vapors condense Mist: Aerosols that consist of liquids Smoke: particles that form during combustion of fossil fuels 40% from industrial process 17% form motor vehicles |
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Size of Particle
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Ultrafine, fine
ultrafine particles can stay in the atmosphere for long periods because of their aerodynamic reiststance. residence time relatively short |
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General Harms of Particulates
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They harm respiratory systems & general health
They also contribute to climate change by altering local climate (weekend affect) |
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Sulfur Dioxide
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Natural Sources of Sulfure: Volcanic eruptions, sea spray
Sulfur content of fossil fuels varies by fuel: coal-7% less in oil residential fuel oil: greatest amount of sulfur in oil coal fired electric power plants: 1/3 of sulfur in the US from electric utilities |
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Acid Deposition
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Sulfuric Dioxide removed from the atmosphere through precipitation
Secondary pollutant: turn into Sulfur trioxide and create sulfuring acid. Calcium carbonate makes some region like the W. US immune to the harmful effects of acid deposition |
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Nitrogen Oxide & Ground Level Ozone
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Knocks formed during the combustion of fossil fuels via electric utilities and industrial purposes.
Major sources of Knocks in the US are Motor Vehicles Formation of Ozone: Car engines create nitrous oxides Higher concentration, more contact with oxygen generate nitrogen dioxide Sun rises and it's rays get stronger and separate oxygen radical from NO2 NO2 reacts with oxygen to form ozone Concentrations are high in urban areas because of so many car emissions from the large pop. |
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Hydrocarbons
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Hydrocarbons are molecules that consist of carbon and hydrogen and result from incomplete fuel combustion or the evaporation of fuel
Photochemical smog: Air pollution produced by the action of sunlight on hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, and other pollutants. |
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Concentration
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damage an air pollutant does to the atmosphere is determined principally by its concentration and the duration of exposure.
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Horizontal and Vertical Mixing
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How far the air pollutant can go vertically and horizontally. Drivers: Advection and Convection
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Advection
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horizontal transfer of mass or energy as air mosses move in response to pressure differences (wind) they tend to keep the pollutant near the surface and their relatively unable to reduce concentration
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Convection
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transfer of energy and mass by motions in a liquid or gas. Refer to vertical interchange of air masses
Potential for vertical movements depends on the stability of the atmosphere |
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Lapse rate
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rate at which temperature declines with altitude. It does this because of pressure differences causing it to cool.
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Atmospheric Stability
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Stable atmosphere: observed environmental lapse rate is less steep than adiatic lapse rate-- a parcel that is cooler when raised 100 meters than its surroundings then sinks back. Amplifies surface concentration
Unstable atmosphere: a parcel rises 100 meters and is warmer than its surroundings so the air continues to rise (conditions favor vertical mixing) Neutrally stale atmosphere: parcel of air rises 100 meters and is the same temperature as surrounding so it stays |
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Inversion
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Temperature rises with altitude, doesn't allow for vertical mixing so it stays ground level. Extreme stable atmosphere.
Radiation Inversions: ground emits long wave radiation at night faster than the lower levels of the atmosphere can absorb it. Desert cities--frequent. Sun reheats next day. Subsidence Inversions: Where large air masses sink towards earth. As they sink, pressure increases which warms the air at ground level. |
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Plume Dispertion
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How pollution leaves the stack.
If the atmosphere has an inversion then the plume will go downwards and accumulate on the ground level causing fumigation In an unstable atmosphere the plume rises and falls--creating looping which effectively dilutes pollutants |
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US Air Pollution
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in the past 2 decades air pollution for the 5 gases has declined.
Emission reductions have led to this improvement |
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NAAQS
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National Ambient Air Quality Standards
Primary: designed to protect human health Secondary: designed to protect public welfare (decreased visibility, damage to animals etc.) |
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Air Pollution as an externality
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People screw with it because nobody owns it so anybody can use it as a dumping grounds and firms and households don't have to pay for it so it gives them no incentive to stop
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Clean Air Act
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Major shift in enviro policy because it put the control in the hands of the federal gov. instituting overarching requirements instead of being in the hands of the state.
Class 1: areas where no increased pollution is allowed Class 2: regions increases in air pollution are allowed however they must remain low Class 3: Concentrations are allowed to reach NAAQS |
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Dose Response Function
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Shows the relationship between concentration of pollution and damage, Specified this model. SInce it's supposed to assure safety for everyone. However if the function is exponential no concentration greater than 0 provides an adequate margin of safety.
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Cost of Compliance
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600 Billion
Loss of competitiveness makes this harder |
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Benefits of Clean Air
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Benefits to human health
benefits to agricultural yields If each life is worth money it's deff worth it |
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New Source Performance Standards
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regulations that govern emissions from new plants
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State implementation Plan
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Plans as to how states will satisfy the NAAQS
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