ENSC002 Midterm 2 Study Guide!

PRAY WE PASS YALL PLEASSEEE

What is the General Revision Act of 1891?

It authorized the president to create forest preserves

Who has the most land ownership in the USA?

Private land, which is 55% of all land owned.

How much of a percentage of land does the federal government own in the US?

35%

What do non-urban land resources provide?

Wildlife habitats, flood/erosion control, groundwater recharge, and freshwater

What are the goals of the National Park System?

To teach people about the natural environment, management of natural resources, and history

What was the first national park, and when was it established?

Yellowstone National Park - 1872

What threaten national parks? (as long as you have a general idea…)

Destruction/Vandalism

Heavy Traffic

Pollution of soil, water, and air

Poaching / illegal collection of resources

Lack of funding / infrastructure repair

Wildlife imbalances

Invasive species

Mining

Climate change

What is “wilderness”?

A protected area of land in which no human development is permitted

What type of terrain do most wilderness sites exist on?

Primarily based on mountainous or difficult-to-develop areas

Who created national parks?

Congress

Why were national parks created?

To protect scenic, recreational, inspirational, and educational value. Human activity is limited as to not jeopardize resources

What is the purpose of national wildlife refuges?

To conserve fish, wildlife, and plants ; some harvest and mineral exploitation CAN be allowed

What is the purpose of national monuments?

They serve cultural, historical, or scientific significance. They can be resized by executive order

What’s the purpose of National Forests?

They provide services like lumber, grazing, minerals, and recreation

How much of the Earth is covered with forests?

1/3 (33.333%)

What are the features of traditional forest management?

Low diversity (monocultures) and specifically managed for timber production

What are the features of ecologically sustainable forest management?

Environmentally balanced, diverse trees, prevented soil erosion, preserved watersheds

What are the features of plantations?

Single tree species planted in straight tows, and tree “farming”

What is an old-growth forest?

A forest that has never been cut (desirable for lumber)

What is a second-growth forest?

A forest that has been cut and regrown

What is selection cutting?

When older, more mature trees are selectively harvested from time to time, and allows for the forest to regenerate naturally

What is shelterwood cutting?

When less desirable and dead trees are harvested, and younger trees produce seedlings and continue to grow

What is seed tree cutting?

When all but a few trees are removed, allowing for natural regeneration

What are clear-cut forests?

When you cut down all of the trees in an area - this causes soil erosion and sediment to get into the water

What is deforestation?

Temporary or permanent clearance of large expanses of forest for agriculture or other use

What causes deforestation?

Fire, clearing for agriculture, construction of roads, tree harvest, insect/disease

What is the significance of the Boreal Forests?

It is the worlds largest biome, and contains 13% of biomass carbon + 43% of soil carbon on Earth

What are rangelands?

Land that is not intensely managed, and used for grazing livestock.

What is threatening rangelands?

Overgrazing (leaves ground barren), Land degradation (can no longer support crops and livestock), Desertification (fertile land turns into desert)

What are wetlands?

Lands that are covered with water for at least part of the year

How do wetlands benefit us?

Wetlands take in water, filter it, and allow cleaner water to leave; they slowly release stored water and break down contaminants through the soil. Wildlife is to live there while it does all of this

What is the Clean Water Act of 1972?

They required “no net loss” of wetlands in the US ; since there’s no clear definition (as scientific definition were rejected as it would protect too much land), opponents argue that it infringes on use of private land

What are threatening coastlines?

They are VERY overdeveloped - becoming unable to provide food and habitats for aquatic animals

What is the definition of famine?

A temporary but severe shortage of food

Why do more people die from starvation than from famine?

While famine is temporary but severe, starvation is a prolonged lack of food or nourishment, which is more dangerous (as our bodies can only last about 3 weeks without food)

What is Kwashiorkor?

A disease caused by severe protein deficiency. A key indicator of this is a skinny body but a swollen belly (from fluid retention)

What are squandered calories?

Resources for producing and shipping food that ends up being wasted (EX: fresh water, fossil fuels)

What chemical does edible matter left in landfills generate?

Methane

How much meat do high-income countries eat vs emerging economies?

High income = 40% ; Emerging = 5%

How much energy do we get from a plant-based diet?

We get 10% of energy, as we are primary consumers

How much energy do we get from a meat-based diet?

We get 1%, as we are secondary consumers (cow eat grass, THEN we eat cow)

What is required in industrialized agriculture?

Considerable capital input, but less land & labor. You need energy, fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, hybrid seeds, and irrigation water to succeed (think of big farms, high yields)

What is required in subsistence agriculture?

Very dependent on manual labor and large amounts of land (small community gardens, low yields)

Who is Norman Borlaug?

He developed the high-yielding, short-stemmed wheat and distributed it throughout the world. He is known as the Father of the Green Revolution

What is the Green Revolution?

Grain production tripled from 600 to 1800 million metric tons; population increased from 2.5 to 4.9 billion

What is genetic engineering?

The splicing of specific genes of a species into the cells of an unrelated species

What are Genetically Modified (GM) foods?

Plants that are specifically bred/altered to become tolerant to insect pests, cold, drought, or acidic soils

What are the safety concerns about GMOs?

Concerns about GMO seeds & pollens spreading in the wild, and the long-term effects

What is the definition of transgenic animals?

Animals that are given extra genes from another animal

What are some examples of transgenic animals?

Enviro-pigs
Self-healing catfish (mixed with moth genes)

Spider silk goats

Featherless chickens

Goats improved milk (mixed with rat protein)

What is the biggest side effect of routine use of antibiotics in agriculture?

Heavily drug-resistant bacteria

What are the concerns on growth hormones?

Since they’re injected into animals to increase mass and milk production, trace amounts can be found in meat and milk of these animals. People were concerned on if this would affect humans who consumed it.

What country disagrees with growth hormones?

European Union 🏰

What animals require the least amount of grain to produce?

Chicken, fish, and pork

What is the Magnuson Fisheries Conservation Act?

A primary law that governs marine fisheries management in the US federal waters; mainly to prevent overfishing and make sure the supply of seafood, as well as their habitual life, stays safe

What is the Purse Seining Process?

A fishing process where they send a purse like net into the water, and then close the “purse”, preventing the fish from escaping and creating a pocket. A pump is then lowered into the pocket, pumping them out from the ocean and into a dewatered box.

What is the Bottom Trawling Process?

A fishing process where a heavy net is dragged across the ocean floor, catching anything on the seafloor - like fishing with a bulldozer. Anything on the sea floor is caught, and more than 50% of the catch is discarded. A single net can snare a ton and a ½ of coral every hour

What is the largest super trawler boat in the world?

The Atlantic Dawn

What is bycatch?

Anything caught unintentionally during fishing (like marine mammals, sea turtles, sea birds, etc.); they all end up dumped back into the ocean, dead

What percentage of fish caught are bycatch?

~25%

What causes ocean pollution?

Oil and heavy metal dumping, litter dumping, and storm runoff from cities

What is aquaculture?

The growing of aquatic organisms (like salmon) for human consumption (fish farming)

Why could aquaculture be harmful?

Location of fisheries may hurt natural habitats, it produces waste that pollutes adjacent water, and now small non-economical fish are being harvested to feed the fish being grown

How much do salmon have to eat to gain one 1kg of weight?

5kg of fish meal </3

What is the troposphere?

The first layer above the surface. Contains half of the earth’s atmosphere, all our weather, and 90% of all air.

What is the stratosphere?

Where many jet aircrafts fly due to the stability, and the ozone layer absorbs harmful sun rays

What is the mesophere?

Where meteors and rock fragments burn

What is the thermosphere?

Where auroras occur, and space shuttles orbit

What is the exosphere?

This is the upper limit of our atmosphere, where the atmosphere merges into space

What is the atmospheric composition?

Nitrogen - 78.08%

Oxygen - 20.95%

Argon - 0.93%

Carbon Dioxide - 0.04%

What are the functions of the atmosphere?

Provides oxygen/CO2, contributes nitrogen to the nitrogen cycle, redistributes water, moderates climate, shields us from radiation layers, traps long wave radiation to keep Earth warm

What are primary pollutants?

Harmful substances emitted directly into the atmosphere

What are secondary pollutants?

Harmful substances formed in the atmosphere when a primary pollutant reacts with substances normally found in the atmosphere

Why are children at higher risk of air pollution than adults?

They breath more often/quicker than adults, and air pollution can restrict lung development (and childrens lungs aren’t fully grown yet!)

What is the main cause of air pollution in the US?

Transportation, at 57% of all causes

What is a particulate? What do they do?

Any type of solid or liquid dispersed matter that is larger than individual molecules. It acts as reactive surfaces for chemicals in the air, scatters light, and reduces visibility

What is particulate matter?

A particulate, where the particles are less than a certain amount. PM10 = less than 10 micrometers (dust), while PM2.5 is less than 2.5 micrometers (smoke & haze)

What are nitrogen oxides?

Gasses produced by the chemical interactions between atmospheric nitrogen and oxygen

What are sulfur oxides?

Gasses produced by the chemical interactions between sulfur and oxygen

What is the chemical composition of acid rain?

NO2 + H20 = HNO3
aka
Nitrogen Dioxide + Water = Nitric Acid

What is Carbon Monoxide?

An indirect greenhouse gas, that results from incomplete combustion (poor air supply & low burning temperature)

Why is Carbon Monoxide so dangerous?

It attaches to blood cells easily - and binds irreversibly to hemoglobin’s, causing oxygen to be unable to bind & no longer be able to be carried to the body

What is Carbon Dioxide?

A greenhouse gas, which contributes to climate change through interactions with the tropospheric ozone and methane

What are hydrocarbons?

Organic compounds that only contain hydrogen and carbon (like methane; CH4). Some are related to photochemical smog and greenhouse gasses

What is “bad ozone”?

Ozone found in the tropospheric layer; man-made & secondary pollutants, and also a component of photochemical smog

What is “good ozone”?

Ozone found in the stratospheric layer, that screens out UV radiation in the upper layer. However, man-made pollutants (bad ozone) can destroy it

What causes urban air pollution?

Photochemical smog, formed by chemical reactions involving sunlight, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons (mainly cars + air)

What is thermal invasion?

When cold air that is near the ground is overlain by warmer air;
During the day, air warms near the ground, and at night the cool air from the ocean slides inland, under the warm air

What is atmospheric inversion?

When polluted air tries to rise, but ends up sinking down because of the inversion layer (warm air)

Why is LA so smoggy?

They have lots of mountains that trap the air, lots of airs and industrial emissions, and lots of sunlight

What is the Clean Air Amendment (1990)

A list of over 180 hazardous air toxics that are now regulated, notably lead (as they removed lead from gasoline, causing it to drop 97%)

How much greater can indoor pollutants be compared to outdoors?

They can be 5-100x greater

Where are you most likely to have the greatest contact with toxic pollutants?

Inside - such as homes, offices, cars, etc.

How does a smokestack with Electrostatic Precipitator work?

Smoke goes in →  Hits precipitator wall (positive charge) and the electrode (negative charge) → Clean gas goes out while dust falls off into a collector. The electrode turns the air pollutants into a negative charge, and the negative charged pollutants are then attracted to the positive charged walls.

How does a smokestack with scrubbers work?

Dirty gas in → gets scrubbed through water → clean gas (steam) goes out while the polluted liquid (sludge) is collected

What is the best solution to vehicle emissions?

A two-stage catalytic converter: Nitrogen oxides are converted in the first stage to N2 by removing oxygen → CO and VOC are removed in the second stage by oxidation to CO2 and H2O →Fine platinum particles catalyze the reactions

Why is it a good idea to get rid of our old cars?

Cars built before 1980 emit over 100x the pollutants of new cars

What is fuel oxygenation?

This is the process of blending gasoline with ethanol or methanol, in order to encourage the Carbon Oxides to complete oxidation to CO2

What is acid deposition?

Sulfur and Nitrogen Dioxide emissions react with water vapor in the atmosphere, and form acids that return to Earth as either dry or wet deposition

What are the effects of acid rain?

Discolored paint, corroded metal, dissolved building materials, damaged coniferous trees, damaged fish and waterfowl in lakes, and billions of dollars in damages in the US alone