Unit 11 Blog

Discussion Topics:

Connections Discussion:

We discussed in class today that everything is connected (remember Joe's pond and Johnson's run??)  One of the main concerns about the increased carbon dioxide emissions is that they are linked to an increase in global temperature, rising sea levels and increased oceanic carbon dioxide concentrations.  These three things can have cascading effects on many different ecosystems globally.  Follow the link to the National Wildlife Federation website to read more information on how coral reefs are being negatively impacted by these global changes.  NWF- Coral Reefs  First, discuss the topics below in relation to the coral reef (the link should take you right there) then pick one other animal/plant/ecosystem from the menu on the left side and discuss in relation to your choice.  
Why is this animal/plant/ecosystem important?  Explain at least two ways that this animal/plant/ecosystem is directly impacted by increased atmospheric carbon dioxide, make sure to describe any negative effects these environmental changes have on coral reefs/your pick and the primary source of the carbon dioxide emissions.  What kind of economic impact does this have and what conservation efforts are being made to reduce the destruction?

Coral reefs are ecologically important because they are extremely biodiverse and act as a breakwater for adjacent coasts which helps make sure coastal ecosystems aren't too severely disrupted. Higher sea temperatures cause bleaching which often results in the death of the corals; the ecosystem predicated upon the coral subsequently dies off as well.  (and subsequent fx)

Increased atmospheric carbon dioxide also causes ocean acidification which makes it hard for calcification of corals to occur; this slows growth and means the ecosystem can't grow as fast as well. Global warming fueled by carbon dioxide emissions are the main source of these changes and the main source of global carbon emissions are the burning of fossil fuels. The destruction of coral reefs severely harms tourism industries as coral reefs are a huge tourist attraction and instrumental in fishing. Conservation efforts include restricting ocean dumping, improving watershed restrictions, reducing fossil fuel use, and an education campaign. 

The Great Lakes are a huge source of freshwater, home to many species, and key to many recreational activities. Global warming caused by increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide may reduce water levels as less winter ice coverage means a higher chance of evaporation. Lower water levels are detrimental to species living in the lakes as they have less space to live, to humans using the lake for drinking water, and to entrepreneurs who have set up businesses along the current lakeshore. The resulting higher water temperatures are also detrimental to species that may not be able to survive at higher temperatures and because the higher temperatures can change the internal cycling of water in the lakes resulting in more hazardous algal blooms and larger areas of hypoxia. The primary source of CO2 emissions which fuel global warming is fossil fuel consumption. An economic impact of receding shorelines and higher water temperatures is that the tourism industry takes a hit as businesses formerly on the lakeshore can no longer advertise that feature as an attraction and there are less fish for which to go fishing. There are restoration projects, movements to limit water usage, and decrease the causes of global warming to conserve the Great Lakes.

Ozone Discussion
I can't say it enough, ozone is awesome and horrible all at the same time!  It's essential for life in the stratosphere but damaging in the troposphere!  In this discussion piece, I basically want you to summarize everything you know about ozone at each level!  Discuss the negative human health effects of both tropospheric (too much)  and stratospheric (not enough) ozone.  Describe the closed-loop chemical reactions associated with the formation and breakdown of stratospheric ozone (if you can find pictures or diagrams, feel free to insert here).  Explain how other compounds, particularly CFCs, interfere with these chemical reactions (again, a diagram would be helpful).  Finally, explain the role of tropospheric ozone in the formation of photochemical smog (diagrams, why not??  You chose how you want to convey your message as long as you understand what you are talking about).

Tropospheric ozone is harmful to plants and humans; it can cause respiratory inflammations such as asthma and emphysema in humans. It can also react with nitrogen oxides and VOCs to from even more harmful oxidants, including smog. Stratospheric ozone helps limit exposure to harmful UV-B and UV-C rays which can cause the deterioration of DNA and tissue damage, often leading cancer, sunburn, and cataracts. Too little stratospheric ozone results in increased exposure to these harmful rays. Normally, the formation and breakdown of ozone is a closed-loop reaction where UV-C breaks apart O2 into 2 O which then react with O2 to produce O3; UV-B and UV-C rays break apart the bonds in O3 to form O2 and O which can then reform to once again block UV rays. 

CFCs and other compounds such as NOx and CCL4 interfere by breaking apart O3 into ClO and O2 and then freeing itself to react with more ozone (like a catalyst) as ClO reacts with O to produce Cl and O2.

Tropospheric O3 is involved in the formation of photochemical smog as it combines with NO to from NO2 and O2 but if VOCs are present, they bind to the NO which makes it unable to break down tropospheric ozone. 

Positive and Negative Feedbacks
Obviously climate change can be a hot topic to debate! Many arguments for or against global warming are based off of the idea that our actions will continue the cycle and magnify the situation (positive feedback) OR that the earth will correct the issue because ultimately a cycle will slow down or stop the process on its own (negative feedback).  Provide an argument for and against global climate change by giving and example of both a positive and negative feedback can increase or decrease the impact of climate change.  There are examples of this in your text, but I would encourage you to seek out other sources to see if you can find one that we have yet to discuss in class!  

An example of a positive feedback loop for climate change is that higher temperatures will cause the permafrost to melt; as anaerobic decomposition occurs under the new pools of standing water, methane will be produced which will contribute to the greenhouse effect. A negative feedback loop would be the stimulated plant growth as a result of higher temperatures and increased CO2 concentrations removing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing the carbon in organic matter. 

BIG Picture Discussion
This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT. Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 15 and 19) and from the notes in class. There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth. 

Human Impact-  Air pollutants such as asbestos, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide severely harm human health by causing cancer, respiratory disease, and death. Tropospheric ozone is harmful to humans and causes asthma and emphysema while stratospheric ozone helps protect humans from UV-B and UV-C rays that can cause cancer and cataracts. Global warming can cause the loss or gain of food crops depending on the climate change that occurs in specific regions and can also dehydration, heatstroke, and an increased use of fossil fuels as air conditioning or heating systems become more necessary. The warming climates may also change the range of disease and expose more humans to more harmful diseases. Humans cause many of these impacts through industrial and agricultural processes and waste products, especially fossil fuel consumption and the use of CFCs which are entirely anthropogenic.

Environmental Impact-  Increased atmospheric carbon dioxide can cause increased plant productivity, increased decomposer activity in soils, melting glaciers which results in habitat loss and rising sea levels, a loss of biodiversity, changing weather patterns which may also change the distribution of species, increased storm intensity, and ocean acidification, one result of which is coral bleaching. Decreased ozone levels in the stratosphere damages plants resulting in less photosynthetic activity and will also increase the exposure of organisms to damaging UV-B and UV-C rays. 

Economic Impact- Coral bleaching and the warming of climates suitable for snow sports can harm tourism industries as they become less attractive for the activities they were previously known for. Increased carbon dioxide levels increase plant productivity which could have a beneficial effect on the agricultural sector, especially as climates warm and more land becomes agriculturally viable. Rising sea levels can flood coastal cities which would harm local economies; this is also true of increased storm intensity as storms can wreak havoc on communities which then must rebuild and/or relocate. Rising temperatures of water and acidification may affect fishing industries as common fishing species are unable to adapt the new conditions, or their food sources die off or migrate elsewhere which would in turn cause the predators to die or migrate elsewhere. 

Government Legislation-

Legislation involved with global warming includes the Kyoto protocol, which is an agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally though the US didn't sign it. The Clean Air Act in the US allows the EPA to regulate carbon emissions. The Montreal protocol was an international agreement that limited the use of and eventually banned CFCs. Al Gore, Clinton's secretary, did sign the Kyoto Protocol when it was still in its early stages but the Senate never ratified it rendering the signature insignificant. The Senate still has yet to pass it anytime it comes up; they cite doubt of the effects of climate change and the unfairness in not penalizing developing countries as reasons not to sign. The National Ambient Air Quality Standards in the US allow the EPA to monitor air pollutants. 

Unit 10 Blog

Primary Source Ranking  

Rank the top 9 primary sources of energy using the following parameters (each parameter is a different list).  Your energy sources are: Wind, Coal, Hydroelectric, Biomass, Natural Gas, Solar, Geothermal, Oil, and Nuclear

List #1: Rank the sources in order of MOST environmentally friendly to LEAST environmentally friendly based on what you have learned in class.  Next to each source, give an example of the type of pollution produced by that source.

Geothermal - Hazardous gases or steam

Wind - Kills birds and bats

Biomass - Air pollution (carbon monoxide)

Hydroelectric- Methane from flooded vegetation

Solar - High input of metals and water in manufacturing

Nuclear - radioactive waste

Natural Gas - chemically contaminated water from fracking

Oil - carbon emissions 

Coal - carbon emissions

List #2: Rank the sources based on the MOST used to LEAST used source in the US.

Oil

Natural Gas

Coal

Nuclear

Biomass

Hydroelectric

Wind

Geothermal

Solar

List #3: Rank the sources based on the MOST used to LEAST used source WORLDWIDE.

Oil

Coal

Natural Gas

Biomass

Nuclear

Hydroelectric

Solar

Wind

Geothermal

List #4: Rank the sources based on the MOST amount of useful energy generated versus LEAST amount of useful energy generated by the source. 

Coal

Wind

Hydroelectric

Geothermal (Tie-8)

Solar (Tie-8)

Biomass (Tie-8)

Natural Gas (Tie-8)

Nuclear (Tie-8)

Oil

Biofuels VS Fossil Fuels
Although the product of the combustion of each of these energy sources is carbon dioxide, which is considered to be a green house gas, biofuels are being sold as an alternative to fossil fuels.  If they both release the same "pollutant" how can one be better than the other??  Compare and contrast these two energy sources in terms of their availability and environmental impact, give examples of each, and explain the difference between the carbon dioxide released by fossil fuels and biofuels in terms of their impact on the carbon cycle.   

Fossil fuels take millions of years to form from compressed organic matter but are used at a much quicker rate which means they will soon run out. Biomass, on the other hand, is more readily sustainable in terms of availability because it does not require millions of years to form and because it is abundant in the form of current organic matter wood, charcoal, manure, and many other things. While both involve burning organic matter, time and pressure make the difference. The burning of both, however, results in air pollution and carbon emissions. Biomass is especially harmful in terms of indoor air pollution because it is generally unrefined when burned unlike fossil fuels. An example of biomass would be burning wood or charcoal while an example of fossil fuel usage would be a coal-powered electricity generation plant. While both methods emit carbon, biomass emits "modern carbon" which was recently in the atmosphere. Fossil fuels, however, release "fossil carbon" which reintroduces carbon that has been out of the atmosphere for millions of years which upsets the short term carbon cycle. 

Nuclear Disasters
Chernobyl was the first major Nuclear disaster in the world, the effects of which can still be seen almost 30 years later.  Take a minute to watch the 60 minutes clip provided (about 10 minutes) 60 Minutes- Chernobyl.  Discuss the environmental, economic and human health impact (specifically the effect of ionizing radiation) of this disaster.  Give another example of a similar nuclear disaster at a different location.  Give an example of how nuclear waste is currently being disposed of, note the characteristics that make the location of the sites ideal.

The harmful radiation could bioaccumulate up the food chain and biomagnify within organisms which would adversely affect them and their environment. Many businesses, some of them small and unable to rebuild, would be displaced as evacuation occurs which would cause job loss and loss of assets. Ionizing radiation negatively affects the DNA which leads to increased risks of cancer, including thyroid cancer and leukemia. A similar disaster occurred in Fukushima in Japan.

Currently, spent nuclear rods may be placed in lead-lined dry containers on land. They are then stored on sites not prone to natural disaster so that they aren't breached and relatively far away from humans so that society isn't harmed should they breach. It must also be far enough from groundwater that it won't leach into it and must be able to be safely transported so that it can't be hijacked by terrorists. 

ANWR
Alaska's National Wildlife Refuge has been a hot topic of debate for 1977.  Recently in the news because Obama proposed new wilderness protections that would further inhibit the prospect of drilling (Washington Post ANWR Article).    Take a minute to watch this 5 minute National Geographic clip provided National Geographic- ANWR. What type of biome is this classified as and why is it considered to be fragile and susceptible to damage?  Discuss the environmental and economic impacts of drilling in this area.  Make an argument for and against doing so.  

The majority of ANWR is classified as tundra though a Southern portion is also recognized as taiga. It is considered especially fragile in light of how key it is to many endangered species, climate change, and the currently low level of human involvement. Drilling could cause serious environmental damage by irreparably changing natural habitats and risking an oil spill that could kill many organisms. Economically, drilling would depreciate the natural aesthetic value of the environment which would hurt a possible tourism industry. While drilling would provide the US with a considerable amount of oil, an extremely valuable commodity, it would also cause irreparable damage to an as yet relatively untouched beautiful natural habitat full of biodiversity and endangered creatures. 

Reducing Consumption
The need for energy will never go away, our supply for most of our energy sources will eventually run out, so our options are to lower the amount of energy we require and look for alternative sources of energy if we would like to continue to consume it!  Give at least two suggestions for how we can reduce overall consumption of the oil needed for transportation and the fuels needed to provide electricity.

Emphasis on carpooling and public transport is a great way to reduce overall consumption of oil in transportation because statistics show that a considerable proportion of oil is used by single-driver cars. Carpooling and public transport promote efficiency by decreasing the amount of oil used per person. More efficient technology could be used to more efficiently consume the fuels needed to provide electricity. For example, newer lightbulbs use 6x less energy than those previously and new Energy Star appliances are also more efficient than their older counterparts. Embracing continuing innovation of current appliances is an effective way to be more fuel-efficient and reduce overall use of our energy sources. 

BIG Picture Discussion
This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT. Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 12 and 13), from the notes in class, the clips we watched and from your Switch Energy Project  There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth. 

Human Impact-  The biggest human impact of energy is arguably carbon emissions. Our increased reliance on fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas) has reintroduced fossil carbon into the atmosphere which, according to the general consensus of scientists worldwide, is causing climate change and global warming as a result of the greenhouse effect. Only time will tell how climate change will in turn affect humans. Nuclear radioactive waste is another human impact of energy consumption that has harmed the environment and society, especially in terms of increased rates of cancer. Lastly, mining and extraction of these resources destroys natural habitats and in some cases causes earthquakes. 

Environmental Impact-  Radioactive waste makes it difficult for anything really to grow and causes cancer in organisms. This is harmful to natural habitats and biodiversity, thereby further negatively affecting the resilience of the ecosystem. Mining and extraction of coal, oil, and natural gas leaves giant scars in the Earth's landscape and often completely destroys natural habitats and displaces organisms. Oil spills, especially, are notorious for being difficult to clean up and very harmful to creatures that come into contact with it. Environments will likely undergo serious change as global warming increases as with climate change, some organisms will no longer be able to tolerate the new conditions and become extinct while others will flourish. 

Economic Impact- Because much of the US is based on fossil fuels, the economy is incredibly dependent upon those same fossil fuels. Huge industries are built around acquiring coal, oil, and natural gas, trading those worldwide, and also turning them into marketable electricity. The automobile industry is very related to the price of oil because most cars run on gas. As it becomes more desirable to be eco-friendly and technologies develop, however, new industries are developing for more renewable sources. Wind farms, solar panels, and geothermal plants are just some of the new players arising to meet demand for energy. There is also a new market for environmentally sustainable farming and tax cuts for implementing eco-friendly measures. 

Government Legislation- 

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA) advocated fuel economic standards (especially for automobiles) to conserve petroleum while the National Energy Act 3 years later made these policies mandatory. The Energy Tax Act of 1980 increased the tax on oils to try to shift away from fossil fuels. Recently, a possible piece of legislation being hotly debated is the Keystone Pipeline which would be an international pipeline to transport oil directly from Alaska to the continental US. While theoretically economically beneficial, it would also require the uprooting of many habitats along its length and would not cause a shift away from oil.

Unit 9 Blog

Landfill Discussion

Now that we have seen a landfill in person (you did if you went on the field trip), discuss at least 3 types of materials that should not be placed in a landfill and explain the potential environmental and public health consequences of disposing of such things in a landfill.  Outline two methods for reducing the amount of these substances that enter MSW input.  

Aluminum and other metals should not be placed in landfills because they can contribute to leaching and because they are valuable as recyclables. Toxic materials should also not be placed in landfills because the toxic chemicals can also leach out. Leaching occurs when water passes through and carries particulates elsewhere which can upset ecosystems and harm humans, especially when toxic chemicals and metals leach. Organic materials should also not enter landfills because they undergo anaerobic breakdown in the closed spaces, resulting in increased methane, a greenhouse gas, which contributes to the greenhouse effect. Organic matter could be composted which would prevent it from entering the landfill and also yield fertile soil. Aluminum and other metals could be recycled and the amount used could be reduced by designing more efficient cans.

Recycling Discussion

Three common examples of items that can be recycled are paper, aluminum, and plastics.  Discuss at least one environmental and economic benefit and cost of recycling each of these items.  If your city only had the funding to set up a recycling center for one of these materials, which would you choose and why?  Finally, how would you persuade the members of your community that recycling is ultimately good for the community?

Less tress have to be cut to down to generate resources for paper which is environmentally beneficial since trees help decrease erosion and mitigate the greenhouse effect; it also means that less money is spent cutting down, transporting, and processing the raw materials which is economically beneficial. The process of recycling paper in involves harmful chemicals and waste products that are detrimental to the environment. The demand for paper is highly volatile so it is not a reliable source of income and therefore less attractive to recycle. 

More recycled aluminum means less aluminum accumulating landfills and contributing to harmful leaching.  Recycling requires a lot of energy and resources, such as in transport and powering the recycling plant, that has negative effects on the environment by releasing pollutants and increasing use of fossil fuels. Aluminum is a versatile metal that is always in demand so recycling plants can sell it back to companies at a profit. Actually building and running the recycling plant is very costly and the money from selling the recycled aluminum may not cover the costs, especially since recycled materials are perceived as less durable. 

More plastics recycled means less demand for oil and refining oil which helps decrease pollutants released when drilling and refining oil. Recycling plastics has its own harmful pollutants and waste products that are toxic to the environment.Recycling plastic from nearby incurs less costs than having to go out into the middle of the ocean, drill oil, refine it, and then have the source materials for a product. There are 7 types of plastics and only 2 are really recyclable which means extra money must be put into transporting plastics that can't be profited from, sorting them, and disposing of the types that can't be recycled. 

I would choose to set up an aluminum recycling center because it would be the most economically reliable as aluminum has a steady demand and is steadily used by American society that is becoming more and more addicted to soda. This would also help prevent leaching which is arguably more harmful than the effects of depositing plastics or paper in a landfill. This would help bring money back into the community, raise awareness for how much soda we actually drink which would be beneficial to health, and also help educate the populace about recycling.

Superfund/Brownfields Discussion

We watched a news clip about the industrial waste buried under the Love Canal near Niagara Falls.  This area was a Superfund site but has been deemed safe enough for people to now live there and has since been redeveloped.  Explain the difference between a Superfund site and a Brownfield and give another example of each in the US.  There are two primary ways for turning these sites back into usable land by either removing the contaminated soil or by planting vegetation that would decontaminate the soil.  Explain two potential problems with each of these methods of reclamation. Reclaiming these sites is a debatable hot topic these days.  Explain one societal and one environmental (argument? benefit? other?) for reclaiming and using the land.

Superfund sites, such as the Madison County Mines in Montana, are those locations which have the highest risk to public health and are managed solely by the federal government; Brownfields, in contrast, don't have to be nearly as dire and are managed by state and local governments. They are contaminated industrial and commercial sites that didn't achieve Superfund status such as Seattle's Gasworks park. One of the problems with simply removing the contaminated soil is how to dispose of it. Simply shifting to another locations just shifts the problems and treating it is costly or it would have been treated on site. Another problem is that transporting the soil itself is fairly costly, especially considering the amount and weight of soil along with the distance that would have to be traveled. Planting vegetation to decontaminate the soil wouldn't require moving the soil, but the new vegetation might crowd out native vegetation and decrease biodiversity if the environment is extremely habitable to them. Conversely, a lot of irrigation, fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides, all with their own negative consequences, might be needed to persuade them to grow if the environment isn't very conducive to them. Reclamation of the land could be societally beneficial because the land could be used for community purposes, such as building a new town park or a city vegetable garden or a new school or some other facility currently lacking. Environmentally, the decreased pollutants would help the natural ecosystem redevelop which preserves native species and is beneficial to biodiversity.

BIG Picture Discussion

This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT. Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 16 and 17), from the notes in class, the clips we watched and from your reading and research.  There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth.      

Human Impact

Humans are intrinsic to the idea of waste management because they are the reasons waste must be actively managed. Humans produce waste that no other organism use which is why the waste necessitates managing. They are the ones setting up the facilities, spearheading the movements, creating the waste, and passing the laws concerning waste management. Additionally, humans are affected by their waste, too. Much of the waste can be neurotoxins, teratogens, carcinogens, or endocrine disruptors which harm humans. Human health is also influenced by the environment. Diseases specific to animals can mutate and start infecting humans, just as HIV and bovine spongiform encephalopathy did.


Environmental Impact

Waste management affects the environment in many ways. Harmful wastes and pollutants are detrimental to the environment and can negatively affect organisms. For example, medical waste is ill disposed of so pills dissolve in the water and as certain sensitive organisms are exposed, their hormones can become imbalanced and males start producing ovaries due to decreased levels of testosterone and increased levels of estrogen. Transportation of wastes also requires lots of fuel which contributes to carbon emissions. Landfills disrupt the natural ecosystems, especially since often waste does not decompose quickly. Leaching can occur as a result and the leachate is harmful to organisms as well and can easily contaminate surface and groundwater. Organic waste in landfills is anaerobically respirated which releases large amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas, which contributes to climate change. Even recycling has waste products that can be toxic pollutants.


Economic Impact

The economy has greatly contributed to these proportions of waste. In an effort to generate more profit and keep up with technological development, products were made more disposable, leading to the throw-away society that has created so much waste. Consumerism, people buying and buying products instead of working to reduce and reuse them, also contributes the problems of waste management. Recycled materials can be sold to businesses which minimizes the need to go mine raw materials and can help streamline those industries. Waste management has also created new jobs and industries as waste must be collected, transported, and processed.


Legislation

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 controls hazardous waste by allowing the monitoring of products from cradle to grave (production all the way to disposal). It gave the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to take actions to oversee hazardous waste. The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation & Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980 allows the EPA to tax polluting industries to replenish a fund used to help mitigate the effects of these industries' pollution in areas where it poses a great threat to public health which is how the law acquired the colloquial name of the Superfund Act. This legislation is specific to the federal government and covers only the most extremely harmful sites. Brownfields function similar to the Superfund Act but expand resources to cover other sites that may not have been deemed dire enough to be Superfund sites and involves local and state governments.

Unit 8 Blog

Freshwater Resource Discussion

Underground aquifers, lakes, rivers and wetlands provide many ecological and economic benefits to their surrounding ecosystems.  Discuss both the ecological and economic benefits of each freshwater-ish source (I get that wetlands are not always freshwater... but they are super important!) giving at least two example for each.  Also give at least one example of how human activity can be harmful to each of these resources.

Underground Aquifers

Plant roots can access groundwater in an aquifer and grow in places they otherwise wouldn't be able to due to a lack of a nearby water source. The water in aquifers can also percolate to the surface as springs, which house freshwater aquatic biomes that enhance biodiversity and provide habitats for specific species. Aquifers can be used to provide water, viewed as a valuable commodity, to humans as drinking water. In addition to drinking water, underground aquifers can provide water for agricultural purposes as the Ogallala aquifer has been used in the Great Plains. If humans overdraw from the water table near coastlines, pressure is decreases and the adjacent salt water creeps into the area of rapid pumping in a process termed saltwater intrusion.

Lakes

Lakes can help moderate temperatures of nearby land since water has a high specific heat; this helps maintain a steady climate beneficial to organisms that live in the area that may be unused to increased temperature fluctuations. They also provide a habitat for many freshwater organisms, some specific to certain zones within lakes such as the littoral and benthic, which helps preserve biodiversity by providing another habitat in which to live. Lakes can be used as a reservoir for human drinking water, irrigation use, and other commercial activity. Additionally, they are often recreation hotspots and tourist destinations which can contribute to the local economy. Humans often deposit sewage and other anthropogenic chemicals in the lake which can upset ecosystems by leading to hypoxia via eutrophication or being directly harmful to organisms within the lake.

Rivers

Rivers provide breeding grounds for species like salmon that can't or won't breed elsewhere, making them key to biodiversity and sustainable populations of certain species. They also are home to freshwater ecosystems that are also key to biodiversity. Transportation across large landmasses and therefore trade would be much harder without rivers. Irrigation of farmlands and subsequently the agricultural sector is heavily reliant upon rivers, as well. Irrigation, however, diverts large amounts of water that can cause lower water levels or even complete drying up downstream. The use of fertilizers, herbicides, and insecticides in agriculture also runoff into the river and cause eutrophication or negatively affect organisms within the river.

Wetlands

Wetlands can filter pollutants from water and recharge groundwater with clean water which minimizes the negative effects pollutants can have on the local ecosystem. They can also absorb large amounts of rainwater and release it slowly elsewhere which helps minimize flooding; this is beneficial to maintaining biodiversity by allowing species to survive that wouldn't have been able to survive a strong flood. The mechanism against flooding is also helpful economical because it minimizes damage to local businesses and economies that would be harmed if floods made them close for a short time or entirely. Wetlands are also a huge tourist destination, especially in light of all the endangered species of birds that visit wetlands, which can be extremely beneficial to local economies. Many wetlands, however, have been drained of freshwater for agriculture, human settlement, or to eliminate breeding grounds for mosquitoes and other pathogens.

Water Diversion Discussion

Water is not always where we need it to be.  For thousands of years, humans have diverted water for their own needs via dams, dikes, and aqueducts.  Discuss 3 water diversion projects by first explaining the location of the source and then where the water ended up.  Next, for each example, discuss the ecological benefits and costs as well as the economic benefits and costs for each project (feel free to reference the work you did on your dam project if you would like or find some new examples that we haven't discussed!).

Three Gorges Dam

The Three Gorges Dam is located in the Hubei province in China, a relatively rural area. The dam spans the Yangtze River and creates a reservoir on one side of the dam, limiting water flow to the ocean. The actual construction of the dam required many roads which uprooted many ecosystems, in addition to the habitats replaced by the dam itself. The dam submerged many factories and other industrial waste sites which increased the level of pollution of water, harmful to all the organisms that come in contact with it as well as the soil. It also led to erosion in the reservoir and along the stream, leading to landslides that further decimated habitats. While it did provide an alternate source of electricity, the dam also displaced almost 1.2 million people and exacerbated drought conditions for those downstream. This extremely detrimental to human rights and the available labor force.


Salton Sea

The Salton Sea formed when canal gates on the Colorado River broke and the water pooled in the then Salton Trough on the San Andreas fault in California. The new lake did result in a new freshwater ecosystem in a place previously pretty bereft of organisms that is also the sole provider of water to other streams with their own unique ecosystems but the increased salinity of the lake also caused many species to die off eventually and the increased salinity is spread to its streams, as well.
Tourism is a large part of the local economy around the Salton Sea and the water is also used for irrigation. The increased use of the water for irrigation has the put the lake in danger, however, and could be lethal to the tourism industry as well.



Aral Sea

The Aral Sea is located across Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan; its waters were diverted for Soviet irrigation projects that resulted in much of the lake drying up and separating it into a North and South Aral Sea. While the irrigation made the surrounding land more fertile and increased the number of organisms in the area as well as farmers, the lake ecosystems were severely harmed since much of the lake could no longer exist. As the lake dries, all the toxic chemicals that were in it dry as well and are spread around as dust which is harmful to all organisms in the area. The fishing industry that was once prosperous in the area died off as the fish did with the lake resulting in mass unemployment. There are also many health issues associated with the lake which is detrimental to humans and therefore labor force.

Water Quality Discussion

When we were at Parr park, we did several water quality tests to assess the health of the ecosystem.  Discuss each test and what the test indicates about the quality of the water we tested including potential sources of the pollutant associated with the test.  In addition to tests humans can run on the water itself, there are many species that can be studied that give an indication of the health of an ecosystem.  These species are known as indicator species.  Give an example of a biological indicator species and explain how changes in its morphology or population numbers gave scientists an indication that something just wasn't right in the area.  Make sure to discuss what scientists believe to be the cause of this species change.   

The pH of the water was 7 which is consistent with what it should be, indicating that there was no undue acidic or basic substances introduced. There wasn't any nitrate, indicating there was little to no runoff of fertilizers or that all the nitrate had been consumed by primary producer activity. Phosphate levels were also low but there was still some phosphate so it can be inferred that nitrogen is probably the limiting factor in the environment. The temperature was about 10 degrees Celsius which is fairly expected for the weather we had that day. There was a moderate amount of dissolved oxygen which is to be expected due to the colder temperature of the water. Colder water is able to hold more oxygen. Samples were taken to test BOD, fecal coliform levels, and solids in the water but we have as yet been unable to conduct the tests in the lab due to snow days. 

Lichens, a combination of an alga and fungus, make great indicator species for air pollution. In Britain, bushy lichens only grow if the air is clean, leafy lichens grow in moderate levels of pollution and crusty lichens can tolerate high levels of pollutants. If no pollutants are present, then air pollution is very great. Lichens also grow larger in cleaner air. Scientists believe the cause in species change occurs because lichen trap dust and organic matter from the air around them, making them extremely sensitive to particles in the air. Acidic particles from fossil fuel burning such as sulfur dioxide therefore harm their growth.

Water Conservation Discussion

Only 3% of the world's water is freshwater, of that 3%, less and 1% is available for human use.  The 3 largest consumers of freshwater are agriculture, industry and household use, in that order.  Give at least two suggestions for how each consumer listed above could make changes to better conserve this valuable resource.     

Agricultural consumers could use drip systems for irrigation which have the most efficient level of water distribution of all current known methods of irrigation. They could also switch to hardier GMOs that require less water and produce more crop. Industry could also switch to more efficient methods of water use. In industries that use water as a cooling mechanism, they could use a closed system and reuse the water to cool instead of releasing large amounts of it into the atmosphere. Additionally, they can use machinery that is more water efficient and collect rainwater to use for their purposes. Households can install dual flush toilets that minimize the amount of water needed to flush and also reuse grey water for suitable purposes instead of using clean drinking water.

BIG Picture Discussion

This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT. Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 9 and 14), from completing your assignments, the documentaries we watched and from your labs.  There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth.     

Human Impact

Humans are vastly affected by waterways since water is so necessary to human existence. Historically, they have only been able to settle near rivers or other sources of freshwater because there was no other way to access that necessity. Today, that is still true in many developing countries but in pipes and transportation systems have made it possible for people to settle in places they otherwise couldn't have. We can now access groundwater in aquifers for human use. Human use of water also affects the bodies of water in turn. Overuse of aquifers and wells have resulted in groundwater depletion and cones of depression. The use of different anthropogenic chemicals has also polluted water, which can cause eutrophication and otherwise upset the aquatic ecosystem. Dams, levees, and dikes divert water and can cause bodies of water to dry out or increase in salinity which is detrimental to the organisms in the water.


Environmental Impact

Runoff of fertilizers can cause eutrophication which results in hypoxia that makes it impossible for many of the organisms in the water to survive. Herbicides and pesticides also runoff and can be consumed by the organisms in the water as well. Even if the organisms who initially consume the chemical are unaffected (though they usually also experience detrimental effects), bioaccumulation causes negative effects in organisms at higher trophic levels. The drying up of lakes and groundwater due to human overuse eradicates habitats and makes it impossible for some plants to get enough water which is harmful to biodiversity and therefore harmful the the sustainability of the ecosystem. Increased salinity of the water caused by evaporation and human overuse also kill off organisms who are now out of their niche. They can also be taken out of their niche by temperature change that occurs by the heat pollution of industries dumping hot water into bodies of water that are normally cooler.


Economic Impact

Water is incredibly important to the economy. It's necessary to humans which make up the labor force as humans must drink water but water is also key to food since food sources wouldn't survive without water. Agriculture, a large sector of the economy, is reliant upon water, especially when considering irrigation. More mechanized industry also uses water. Electricity generation, key to the functioning of modern society, uses water to turn into steam to turn the turbines. Multiple other industries also use water as a cooling mechanism. Bottled water has also become a huge industry as water has become its own commodity.


Legislation

The Clean Water Act of 1972 protects wildlife and the conditions of surface waters. It gave the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to take actions to maintain and regulate surface waters. The Safe Drinking Water Act, last updated in 1996, allows the EPA to establish maximum contaminant levels of different substances in drinking water that municipal systems must meet. This legislation has only arisen as countries have become more developed and people have been in a position to look out for the environment. In developing countries, there are still not many regulations which attracts industry but is also extremely detrimental to their ecosystems.

Unit 7 Blog

Forestry Discussion

In many ecosystems, forest fires are an important natural process.  In recent years it has become more commonplace for prescribed burns to be used as an alternative way to manage forests.  Discuss at least one benefit and one cost for managing forests in this manner.  Make sure that for each example given, you discuss the economic, ecological and human impact of your example.

One benefit is that the risk of uncontrolled fires is minimized. Forest fires are natural process that occur as a result of lightning and lots of dry organic matter piling up to return nutrients trapped in organic matter to the soil. Uncontrolled, they can be very dangerous to human settlements and endanger people since they spread so fast. It would be an economic burden because of all the lost businesses and the costs of repairing damaged settlements. Uncontrolled fires may also spread across vast expanses of land and further endanger already endangered species. Controlled fires minimize the risk of uncontrolled burning by managing the amount of tinder available. 

One cost quite literally is that controlled fires do require a lot of equipment and labor to effectively manage. The tools to set and manage the fire can be quite costly economically. Firefighters can be injured while trying to control the fire, and plants die as a result of the fire, as well. 

Global Nutrition Discussion

While meat is a regular part of most American's diets, many people in other parts of the world have a primarily plant-based diet because meat is very expensive.  Explain why meat production is more costly than grain production in terms of the amount of land required, the amount of energy and resources needed and the overall environmental impact of meat production.

Meat production requires more land because not only is the land that houses the animals being raised for animals necessary, but land is required to grow the plants necessary to sustain those animals, which is more land per calorie than if just the plants were raised for human consumption. The transfer of energy is also less efficient since there are more trophic levels involved; only about 10% of energy gets passed on from each trophic level, so humans are getting about a tenth of the energy from meat as they would from the same mass of plants. In both cases, plants need to be planted and processed, but meat production has the additional costs for raising and processing the animals which results in external land, resource, and energy costs. 

Genetic Engineering Discussion

Genetically modified crops have become increasingly popular in the industrialized world.  Describe the benefits and costs of farming GM crops versus non-GM crops in terms of their environmental and economic impacts.  Make sure you discuss one at least one benefit and one cost for each impact.

Genetically modified crops often have increased yield and are resistant to certain herbicides and pests which is economically favorable since increased yield can be sold for more profit and less money can be spent on pesticides. Being able to spray herbicides indiscriminately across the field decreases labor costs and also decreases the need for tilling, which decreases the oxidation of soil that results in increased carbon dioxide being released, as well as minimizes erosion, which helps soil quality. 

GMOs, though, are stigmatized as their effects aren't completely known since they are relatively new which can cause them to sell worse in the marketplace and decrease profit. They can also cause a decrease in biodiversity because they are so hardy and crowd out native species, just like invasive species do in the status quo. A decrease in biodiversity could have drastic impacts since it is key to ecological resiliency and sustainability.

Sustainable Agriculture Discussion

The dust bowl of the 1930's was caused by a combination of extended severe drought conditions in the midwest and poor farming practices.  Not sure what the dust bowl was???  Take a look at this 3 minute video to help you get a better idea of the utter devastation that took place!  Http://www.history.com/topics/dust-bowl/videos/black-blizzard

In an effort to avoid a second dust bowl, soil conservation has become a priority to many farmers.  Discuss at lease two examples of farming techniques that can be used to prevent soil erosion and improve soil quality.  For each example, discuss both the economic and environmental benefits of these techniques.  

No-tilling agricultural technique can help minimize erosion. Tilling involves turning soil upside down to kill pupae and weeds, but this breaks apart soil particles and makes them more susceptible to erosion. It also increases the exposure of more soil which results in the oxidation of organic matter deep in the soil which reduces the organic matter content of the soil and increases atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. While no till agriculture minimizes these negative effects, it also requires increased herbicide use which can runoff and cause eutrophication and other problems in other places. 

Intercropping can help minimize the nutrient depletion of soil by planting two crops that have different needs that are complimentary to the other. For example, corn can be planted with peas since corn requires a lot of nitrogen and peas are nitrogen fixing; this would replenish nitrogen in the soil and minimize degradation. Farmers would no longer need to let the land lie fallow to regain nutrients and forgo profiting from the land that year which is economically beneficial. Farm machinery, however, is specific to one crop so it could be costly to either invest in the labor or new machinery necessary to harvest both crops concurrently. 

Pest Management Discussion

Many farms have started using integrated pest management as an alternative to traditional pesticides.  Define IPM and give at least two examples of of how it works.  For each example, explain how this method of pest control is considered to be more environmentally friendly to farms than traditional pesticide use.  Additionally discuss whether or not the method is considered to be more cost effective than traditional pesticides. 

Integrated pest management aims to minimize pesticide usage by using many different techniques, such as crop rotation, intercropping, pest-resistant crop varieties, enticing predators of pests, and limiting use of pesticides. 

Crop rotation thwarts pests that feed on specific crops that may have eggs in the soil from increasing in population size by switching up crops and eliminating their food source every year. This also minimizes the spread of crop-specific infections that may lay latent in infected plant material in the soil. Additional machinery may be needed to manage the second crop since agricultural machinery is so specialized which is costly but these costs should be offset by the decreased need for pesticides (since pests have no food source and can't survive) which must be purchased repeatedly and are quite costly themselves.

Pest-resistant crop varieties are often genetically engineered and minimize the need for pesticide application by producing their own organic version of pesticide to ward off pests. This can minimize pesticide runoff as well. Genetically modified organisms are patented, though, so new seed must be purchased every year. The cost of purchasing new seeds every year can still be offset by the increased yield and decreased purchase of pesticides, though.

BIG Picture Discussion  

This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT (forgot what these were over the holiday???  human impact, environmental impact, economic impact and legislation that applies to the unit). Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 10 and 11), from completing your assignments, the documentary we watched and from your labs.  There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth. 

Human Impact: Humans have had a huge impact on the environment which is why land management is needed. Urban sprawl is a result of an increase in desire for suburban life and has resulted in the disruption of ecosystems and other natural resources as human settlement has expanded. This, in turn, negatively affected the new towns, especially in terms of water supply and available land, so there was a push towards sustainable forms of development that have been much less harmful to indigenous ecosystems but still have an impact. Agriculture is an entirely human process that has disrupted large swaths of land all around the world. Humans have clear cut large portions of land to grow their own crop which led to overworked soil and increased erosion. To combat these negative effects that made it hard to farm, humans developed alternate styles of farming such as intercropping and crop rotation, as well as GMOs that could withstand hardier conditions. GMOs are one of the biggest human impacts because humans engineered seeds to meet their benefits; these GMOs can have detrimental effects on ecosystems by acting as invasive species, though, and their total effects on agriculture and people are as yet unknown since they are relatively new.

Environmental Impact: Agriculture has had many effects on the environment. Obviously, in order for humans to cultivate crops, they have had to clear cut large areas of land to raise their desired crops. This results in many entire ecosystems being lost which is detrimental to biodiversity. GMOs have also been known to further crowd out native species which also harms biodiversity. Reduction in biodiversity is a critical problem because biodiversity is key to an ecosystem's resiliency and resistance as it preserves many adaptations that can be useful depending on what changes occur. Because so much land has already been poorly managed and so many ecosystems have been lost, public lands have been set aside which preserve natural ecosystems and maintain biodiversity. 

Economic Impact: Lost biodiversity means lost ecosystem services which always has an economic cost even if not entirely quantifiable. GMOs have also been shown to crowd out small farmers and their techniques because they keep getting outsold by these large corporations who have larger yield. As a result, more and more farmers are being contracted with large agricultural firms, leading to large business conglomerates and monopolies and fewer independent small farmers who can use their own methods. This allows large corporations to have a monopoly. GMOs have also increased yield and decreased pesticide usage which yields greater profits for the farmers. The increased need for herbicides and need to rebuy seeds each year can offset that greater profit with greater costs, though.

Government Legislation: There are multiple laws concerning land management. Public lands have various restrictions on what may or may not be done there, enforced by the National Park Service or the Bureau of Land Management depending on the type of public land. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has multiple laws concerning acceptable fishing to prevent overfishing and the tragedy of the commons. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIRFA) allows the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate chemicals used to kill of pests, especially in farming. The Clean Water Act has a similar provision and is also enforced by the EPA.