Humanities - Environmental change and management

Humanities flashcards

Biome

A large ecological area on the Earth's surface, characterized by specific climate conditions, flora, and fauna. Examples include deserts, forests, and grasslands.

environment

all the living and non-living components of within a surrounding place. people are a significant part of environments.

The four spheres

Atmosphere, Lithosphere, biosphere and hydrosphere.

Ecosystem

A community of living organisms that interact with non-living components within an environment.

biodiversity

the variety of living things within an environment, including plants, animals, and microorganisms.

How are environments classified

through geographical characteristics such as climate, elevation, topography, vegetation and soil in land environments and water quality

ecosystem services

provisional, regulating, supporting, cultural

provisional services

tangible object extracted from nature for direct use

regulating services

processes that absorb our waste. e.g. microorgan

supporting services

processes that sustain life but do not provide consumable resources. e.g. tree consuming carbon dioxide.

cultural services

the personal relationships humans have with the environment

egocentric

someone who believes that they are the most important and everyone else is supporting them.

anthropocentric

someone who believes that us humans are the most important and need to use nature to support our lifestyles

ecocentric

someone who believes that we should do whatever we can do preserve the earths biodiversity

biocentric

someone who believes that we have the responsibility to preserve the earth and every creature on earth is of same value and has same rights.

natural causes of environmental change

natural changes to an environment that usually result in the ecosystem in a state of equilibrium. e.g. a tree dies and the nutrients are added into the soil for another tree to grow.

human caused change examples

overexploitation, invasive species and pollution

soil erosion

when soil is gradually worn away by natural events like wind, rain, rivers (accelerated via tree cle

soil degradation

loss of fertility of soil, often due to chemical change. compaction by machinery and buildup of fertilizer are causes.

salinity

the amount of dissolved salts inside of water. Australia has a large amount.

water table

the underground boundary where saturated water and unsaturated water

air pollution

contamination of the atmosphere though the release of harmful gases and small particles.

causes of poor air quality

asthma, lung and heart disease. 3.5 million die from outdoor pollution and 4.3 million for indoor

water pollution

the contamination of rivers, lakes, wetlands, estuaries, and oceans through the release of harmful substances

physical pollutants

plastic bags, cigarette buts, shopping trolleys and particles from eroded soil

chemical pollutants

heavy metals, oils, pesticides, and industrial chemicals and salts

biological pollutants

animal waste, bacterial and parasites and invasives plants that come from places like sewage.

sustainability

sustainability refers to whether or not an environment is able to maintain its current needs without compromising the ability to meet the needs of future generations.