Unit 3 Revision Booklet - Syllabus (Not Depth Studies)

Front 1

what is the concept of sustainability

Back 1

Capacity,environment, support, humans, animals, plants. Goal orientated, maintenance andrestoration.

Front 2

what is the concept of the environment

Back 2

Human processes, atmospheric,geological, hydrological, geomorphic, edaphic and abiotic. Supports human andanimals – needs to be managed sustainably.

Front 3

what is the concept of climate change?

Back 3

Change,temperature, precipitation, time (decades to millions of years. Local, regionaland global.

Front 4

what is the concept of the ecosystem

Back 4

Abiotic =Climate and Edaphic Interact Biotic =Produces, Consumers and Decomposers

Front 5

what is the concept of anthropogenic biomes?

Back 5

Forested& Woodland = populated, remote, wild; Agricultural = cropland andrangeland; Urban: City, regional and villages.

Front 6

what is the concept of natural biomes

Back 6

Distinct,plant, animals, adapt and environment. Adapt – climate control. Biomes =desert, forest, tundra and grassland.

Front 7

what is the concept of land cover change

Back 7

Change –biophysical and built environments; humans (deforestation, ecosystemfragmentation, altered drainage, mod coastlines, urban expansion and mining andagriculture.

Front 8

what are human impacts vary from and what can they be categorised as?

Back 8

• from slight to complete changes in land cover
• Forests and woodland anthromes-
• Populated forests, remote forests and wildforests·
• Agricultural anthromes-
• Cropland and rangelands·
• Urban anthromes-
• Cities, regional towns and urban villages· Water based anthromes-
• Ocean. Lakes and Rivers

Front 9

what are the characteristics of populated forest and what anthrome

Back 9

Near agriculture lands & urbansettlements; high biodiversity but under threat. Parks & reserves, picnicareas and tourist accommodation. Past logging, introduced animals. Populationdensity less than 3 km2

forest and woodland

Front 10

what are the characertistics of a remote forest and what anthrome

Back 10

Taiga and boreal – Canada andRussia. Core of Amazon. Far from settlement but still used as a resource.

forest and woodland

Front 11

what are the characteristics of the wild forest and what anthrome

Back 11

Vast tree cover and total lack ofcivilisation. Climate varies greatly (equatorial and boreal)

forest and woodland

Front 12

what are the characteristics of the croplandand what anthrome

Back 12

Asia – village based; intensiveirrigated and rain fed farming system (rice farming); Densely populated; warmwith high rainfall.Moderately intensive – rain andirrigated; Europe, North America and Australia; near urban areas.; beef, sheep,hay and oats

agriculture

Front 13

what are the characteristics of the rangeland and what anthrome

Back 13

Natural pastures; cattle, sheep andgoats (Africa – Maasai and Zulu. Population 10 per km2. Remote rangelands little evidence ofhumans (example semi-arid region in Northern Australia.)

agriculture

Front 14

what are the characteristics of the cities, regional towns and urban villages and what anthrome

Back 14

Human structures and built landcover dominates landscape. ½ world’s population live in urban settlements,covering 7% of land. Located in the temperate broadleaf biome (North America)

Reason for location: resources,accessibility (i.e coastal), religion, defence, government and cultural values.

Australia reflects early settlements.

Consume natural resources – water,energy and land

High environmental impact

Introduced plants and animals

Australia

Major urban areas 100,000+Other urban areas 1000 – 99,999Rural Urban areas 200 – 999.

Front 15

what are the characteristics of the ocean and what anthrome

Back 15

50% of theworld’s population lives within 100km of the coast. Impact:over fishing (due to technology changes, transport waster and disposal andrecreation.Eutrophication– agricultural fertilisers transported by rivers. Oceantransport has spread marine life to new environments. Some have thrived and area pest. In Australia some 250 plant and animal species have been introduced.

water based

Front 16

what are the characteristics of the lakes and rivers and what anthrome

Back 16

Impacts:Eutrophication, hydrological disturbance, climate change, over exploitation andinvasive species.

201050,000 dams affect %70 of the world’s rivers.

Inlandwater diversion affects inland lakes (disappearance of the Aral Sea), seasonalflows and movement of sediment.

InAustralia the issue of freshwater use and biodiversity loss is seen in theMurry-Darling river system in Eastern Australia. Arose from irrigation systemsand climate change.

water based

Front 17

what is deforestation

Back 17

Deforestationis the permanent destruction of forests in order to make the land available forother uses. An estimated 18 million acres (7.3 million hectares) of forest,which is roughly the size of the country of Panama, are lost each year,according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Front 18

deforestation facts

Back 18

• About half of the world's tropical forests have been cleared (FAO)
• Forests currently cover about 30 percent of the world’s land mass (National Geographic)
• Forest loss contributes between 6 percent and 12 percent of annual global carbon dioxide emissions (Nature Geoscience)
• About 36 football fields worth of treeslost every minute (World Wildlife Fund (WWF)

Front 19

THE EXPANSION AND INTENSIFICATION OFAGRICULTURE: what can Agriculture can beclassified

Back 19

eitherindustrialised, where the aim is for profit, or subsistence, where the aim isto be self-sufficient and involves the growing of crops or raising livestock.

Front 20

THE EXPANSION AND INTENSIFICATION OFAGRICULTURE: stats of industrilised vs subsistence

Back 20

· 38% of the world is usedfor agricultural purposes

.54% of Australia’s land

Front 21

THE EXPANSION AND INTENSIFICATION OFAGRICULTURE: future outlooks

Back 21

It isestimated that there will 18% more land gloabally converted to agriculture by2050. Most of this will come from clearing a third of the remaining forests,savannahs and grasslands.

Over time there will also be a change in thenature of existing agricultural land. The increase in intensification ofagriculture in Europe, North America, India and China is an example of this.

Front 22

example of the THE EXPANSION AND INTENSIFICATION OF AGRICULTURE:

Back 22

1. Agrarian or farming revolution inthe 18th century marked the start of mechanised machinery.
2. This allowed farmers to modify andexpand their farming activities beyond their own physical labour.
3. Commercial farms became widespread and food productionincreased.
4. As farms machinery became larger and more sophisticated,farms amalgamated and were more extensively cleared. The larger ruralproperties required fewer farm workers resulting in decreased populationdensity.
   

Front 23

LAND DRAINAGE AND RECLAMATION explain what this is

Back 23

Humans have a history of adapting the land to their needs,this can be seen with reclamation of land. This is where land is gained orcreated from the sea, wetlands or riverbeds. One of the largest examples ofreclamation is the Flevopolder in the Netherlands which is the largestartificial island in the world.

Front 24

THE GROWTH OF URBAN SETTLEMENT, INDUSTRY ANDMINING - how much space does urban land cover take up? and what about the lands that support these urban land cover

Back 24

Urban landcover (0.47%) is relatively small on a world map. Although this is the case,the land that is required to support urban areas is large and greatlyinfluences land cover change.

Front 25

THE GROWTH OF URBAN SETTLEMENT, INDUSTRY AND MINING - what change will be in the proportion of urban land cover and people in it

Back 25

Urbanisation,or the proportion of people living in cities, will see more of the world’speople living in cities or the metropolitan area surrounding cities. Althoughurban areas only cover 0.47% of the world’s land area they contain more than50% of the world’s population. This percentage will increase during the nextcentury.

Front 26

what is the impact of changes to the water cycle

Back 26

Conversionof forested lands into cropland, grazing or urban land use increases surfacerunoff.

Urban landuse – stormwater drains, dams, impervious surfaces and groundwater extractionsystems.

Urban heatisland can increase evaporation from reservoirs and change the local pattern ofprecipitation i.e. downwind side of urban areas.

Forestclearing – rising groundwater level and increased stream flow volume anddischarge.

Front 27

exmaple of the impact of changes to the water cycle

Back 27

SouthwestAustralia: Declining rainfall due to deforestation. Lack of forests herereduced: transpiration, turbulence in onshore winds, and reduction in theorographic effect.

Tropicalareas – reduced transpiration leads to reduction in rainfall and increasedtemperatures.

Front 28

impact of soil erosion and degradation - what is it and what types of degradation is there

Back 28

Soildegradation is the decline in quality of the soil caused by chemical, physicaland biological factors and processes.

physical degradation, chemical, soil loss and bioloigcal degradation

Front 29

physical soil degradation - explain

Back 29

Physical degradation: ploughing and harvesting and graze animals all have thecapacity to degrade the soil. Compaction:machinery: lack of permeability, and difficult root penetration.

Loss ofsoil structure: mixing of horizons andtoo much tilling has led to the top soil being reduced to a fine dust – thiseffects water infiltration.

Front 30

soil loss - explain

Back 30

Soil loss: Clearingof slopes has accelerated soil erosion and in some instances landslides. Clearingfor agriculture and has led to topsoil loss due to wind erosion.

Front 31

exlpain chemical

Back 31

Chemical:Soil salts being brought to the surface (the process of soil salinity. Removal ofnatural vegetation for agriculture has impacted on the normal nutrient cyclingof phosphate and potassium. In an agricultural setting there is lessdecomposition of plant matter, and therefore less nutrients being returned tothe soil.

Front 32

explain biological degradation

Back 32

Biological degradation: The use of insecticides to control weeds hasled to a decline in micro-organism, plants and insects which play an importantrole in maintaining soil quality.

Front 33

exexample of soil erosion and degradation

Back 33

InAustralia, higher acidity in soils due to the removal of acid tolerant plantsfor agriculture.

In Europeand N America – acid rain and industrial pollutants have added acidity to thesoil.

In Australia, antibiotic use and its presence inanimal faeces has led to a decline in soil bacteria.

Front 34

explain loss of habitat and biodiversity including example

Back 34

Land usedfor urban and agriculture has led to loss or fragmentation of natural habitatsand species.

Aspopulations grow or new demands are made, the impact of urban and agriculturewill increase. This will lead to further loss or fragmentation.

Thetransformation of habitats for human use is causing consistent reductions inspecies richness and changes in abundance in tropical and sub-tropical forestsaround the world.

Front 35

what are the types of The degradation of aquaticand marine environments -

Back 35

freshwater and marine

Front 36

explain the degradation of marine environments and example

Back 36

50% of theworld’s population lives within 100km of the coast. Impact:over fishing (due to technology changes, transport waster and disposal andrecreation.Eutrophication– agricultural fertilisers transported by rivers.

Oceantransport has spread marine life to new environments. Some have thrived and area pest.

InAustralia some 250 plant and animal species have been introduced.

Front 37

explain the degradation of freshwater environments and example

Back 37

Impacts:Eutrophication, hydrological disturbance, climate change, over exploitation andinvasive species.

201050,000 dams affect %70 of the world’s rivers.

Inlandwater diversion affects inland lakes (disappearance of the Aral Sea), seasonalflows and movement of sediment.

InAustralia the issue of freshwater use and biodiversity loss is seen in theMurry-Darling river system in Eastern Australia. Arose from irrigation systems andclimate change.

Front 38

what is inlcuded in loss of ecosystem services? and what is it?

Back 38

supporting services, provisioning services, regulating services and cultural services

Loss of ecosystemservices means that there is a loss of the following due to Urban andAgricultural expansion and climate change

Front 39

explain supporting services

Back 39

Ecosystemservices "that are necessary for the production of all other ecosystemservices". These include services such as nutrient recycling, primary productionand soil formation. These services make it possible for the ecosystems toprovide services such as food supply, flood regulation and water purification.

Front 40

explain Provisioning services

Back 40

"Products obtained from ecosystems"

· food (including seafood and game), crops, wild foods, and spices.

· raw materials (including lumber, skins, fuel wood, organic matter, fodder, and fertilizer).

· genetic resources (including crop improvement genes, and health care).

· Water.

· minerals (including diatomite).

· medicinal resources (including pharmaceuticals, chemical models, and test and assay organisms)

· energy (hydropower, biomass fuels).

· ornamental resources (including fashion, handicraft, jewelry, pets, worship, decoration and souvenirs like furs, feathers, ivory, orchids, butterflies, aquarium fish, shells, etc.).

Front 41

explain regulating services

Back 41

"Benefitsobtained from the regulation of ecosystem processes"

· carbon sequestration andclimate regulation.

· waste decomposition anddetoxification.· purification of waterand air.

pest and disease control

Front 42

explain cultural services

Back 42

"Nonmaterialbenefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitivedevelopment, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic experiences"

· cultural (including useof nature as motif in books, film, painting, folklore, national symbols,architect, advertising, etc.).

· spiritual and historical(including use of nature for religious or heritage value or natural).· recreational experiences(including ecotourism, outdoor sports, and recreation).

· science and education(including use of natural systems for school excursions, and scientificdiscovery).

Front 43

an example of Loss of ecosystem services

Back 43

Agency(EPA), authorities opted to restore the polluted Catskill Watershed that hadpreviously provided the city with the ecosystem service of water purification.Once the input of sewage and pesticides to the watershed area was reduced,natural abiotic processes such as soil absorption and filtration of chemicals,together with biotic recycling via root systems and soil microorganisms, waterquality improved to levels that met government standards. The cost of thisinvestment in natural capital was estimated between $1–1.5 billion, whichcontrasted dramatically with the estimated $6–8 billion cost of constructing awater filtration plant plus the $300 million annual running costs.

Front 44

explain Changes to regionalclimates with exmaple

Back 44

Regionallythe greatest variation was in the Arctic regions of the Northern hemisphere,where difference are up to 2 degrees warmer. Increased albedo will mean that aprojected rise of 9 degrees in the Arctic by the end of 21stcentury.

Loss ofalbedo in Atctic and Antarctic has led to global warming. In regionslike Australia and Africa, rising atmospheric temperatures are projected toproduce more intense heat waves and shorter but more intense rainfall periods,longer droughts and greater impacts of climate induced bushfires.

Front 45

explain Urban heat islands with example

Back 45

Thereplacement of natural ecosystems by large urban areas has produced localisedweather changes. These changes effect: evapotranspiration, albedo and windpatterns. Increase in day/night temperatures. This effect can impact on 3billion people.

This can seem inregional Australian cities to a greater extent mega cities like New York,Beijing and Mexico city.

Front 46

what did Aboriginal peoples complex system of land management include?

Back 46

· Leaving adequate seedsand vegetation

· Taking some eggs, notall

· Food taboos determinedby age, status and gender

• and fire was used

Front 47

explain fire

Back 47

Sophisticatedsystem of patchwork burnt and regrowth areas.

Fire wasused:

· to clear areas fortravel

· promote growth

· flush possums out of thehabitats for food· no uncontrolled fires

Front 48

what do they do in the modern day?

Back 48

they use a acombination of modern practice with traditional knowledge and techniques. Someof the areas occur as follows:

· protection of culturalsites

· creation of seasonalharvesting calendars from traditional knowledge

· mapping and trackingwater sources

· recognition andrecording of new plants and the removal of seeds (seed bank) and weeds· reducing greenhousegases by using traditional methods of land management

· conservation of waterresources

Theseexamples are a government intiative called ‘Caring for Our Country.’

Front 49

what will determine the wellbeing of human kind?

Back 49

Our management ofanthropogenic biomes and therefor biodiversity and ecosystem services

Front 50

what are the implication of biodiversity loss?

Back 50

- a loss of food security

- a loss of energysecurity

- providing clean water

- lack of pollination ofplants

- loss of ecosystemservices.

Front 51

World population growth,growing affluence and advances in technology will impact on the nature, rateand extent of land cover change and potential biodiversity loss how?

Back 51

- Between 1900 – 2000 theworld multiplied 3 times faster than in the rest of human history. - In 2007 the global urbanpopulation became larger than the rural population

- From industrialisation,accelerated population growth and the consequent urban expansion in developedcountries a pattern has emerged where affluence and technology hungry countriesworsened environmental quality. This technology was also used to restore andrehabilitate degraded areas. This pattern is since being repeated by developingcountries.