Bio.2.2.1
Infer how human activities (including population growth,
pollution, global warming, burning of fossil fuels, habitat
destruction and introduction of nonnative species) may
impact the environment.
pollution, global warming, burning of fossil fuels, habitat
destruction and introduction of nonnative species) may
impact the environment.
Impact on the Evironment
We, as humans, don't realize all that we do that is potentially harmful to the environment. With this standard, we are going to see just how much we impact the environment.
Population Growth
This amazing tool came from "www.cencus.gov" The button below will lead you right to their site!
|
The counter to the left shows U.S. population along with the whole population of the world as it continually increases. The worlds population is continually growing and there is nothing that seems ethical enough to fix it. So, why is it a problem?
The list could go on and on. The population growth of humans is a much bigger deal than people think. Most don't ever really think about it. All of the things that are included in this essential standard could all relate back to population growth. Pollution, global warming, burning of fossil fuels, habitat destruction, and introduction of nonnative species can all be linked to humans and to population growth. One little mistake can ruin a whole ecosystem.
|
Nonnative Species
Nonnative species can also be a huge threat to environments. When a species is introduced into a environment, many things could go wrong. One of the biggest things that would go wrong would be if that no species didn't have a predator. It then wouldn't have anything that would maintain it's population growth and it would take over. Another thing is that it would hunt other animals to their extinction because they wouldn't know how to defend against this new predator.
Pollution
We have all seen the nasty reality of pollution. Water pollution, air pollution, and even light pollution are things that we all face everyday. Pollution impacts an environment in many ways. Pollution of water and soil can lead to the death of many organisms. Air pollution can lead to acid rain which can also lead to death of organisms. Trash on the side of the road can get stuck on animals, causing them many health problems including infection, blindness, or even death.
Global Warming
Global warming is another thing that almost all people know about. Global warming is caused by the greenhouse effect. Too much carbon dioxide gets trapped in the atmosphere and keeps in heat. This extra heat can cause many problems. The plant is heating up and so is the ocean. Ecosystems in the ocean and all around the world are fragile and depend on a certain temperature. Warming up their homes could be detrimental to their lives. Global warming also causes the ice at the pole to melt. When ice melts, it turns to water and that water makes ocean levels rise. This impacts the environment because it is taking away land that used to be used by other ecosystems.
Burning Fossil Fuels
The burning of fossil fuels goes hand in hand with global warming. Remember the part about too much carbon dioxide? Well, that comes from the burning of fossil fuels. An example of a fossil fuel is coal. Coal is make from carbon that had been compressed for millions and millions of years. When this coal is burned, it releases that carbon right back into the atmosphere. The impact of this on the environment is that it induces global warming and from the article above, we know that global warming does many harmful things.
Habitat Destruction
One of the most common forms of habitat destruction is deforestation. Habitat destruction can impact the environment in many ways because it can easily bring an ecosystem to its demise.
Food, water, and shelter are the basic necessities for almost all living things. Without any one of these, the ecosystem wouldn't be able to function. The loss of trees results in loss of shelter. Loss of shelter results in death for that organism and that means their predators would lose that food source. Draining a pond not only takes away shelter and food for aquatic animals but it also takes away a water source from other members of the ecosystem.
|