impaction

People use the land to live on, for recreation, to grow food, ...

 Materials can be classified into two types.

1- Biodegradable: Things that can easily dissolve, break down and fade away

in time. Examples: peels of banana, chicken bones, leaves....

2- Non-biodegradable: Things that can't dissolve, break down for many years.

Examples: Aluminum cans, glasses, bottles, plastic products, grocery bags or

other plastic bag ....

 Packaging materials from mushrooms can be used in place of non-

biodegradable packaging. Because it helps to reduce the amount of limited

resources used or reduce land pollution.

 Natural resource: A resource that living things use to meet their needs.

Examples: food, clean water, shelter, ...

 Land pollution: is a destruction of the earth’s land surfaces, often directly or

indirectly as a result of human activities and their misuses of land resources.

 Human impacts of land usage include deforestation, agriculture,

desertification, urbanization, landfills and hazardous waste.

1- Deforestation:

Deforestation:

Is the cutting of

larger areas of

forests for human

activities.

Causes Effects

Needing land for living space,

urban development,

agriculture, and resources from

trees.

Decreases forests

Destruction of habitats

Rate of photosynthesis decreases,

more carbon dioxide remaining in

the air.

2- Agriculture:

Agriculture Causes Effects

As human populations grow,

more food are needed.

Groundwater contamination from

fertilizers.

Desertification

Takes up space

3- Urbanization:

Urbanization:

Is the development of

land for houses and other

buildings near a city.

Causes Effects

Increase in population leads to

the development of land for

houses and other buildings.

Risk of flooding

Destruction of habitats

Loss of farmland

Reduce the amount of rainwater that

soaks into the ground

(disappearance of wetland)

4- Landfills and hazardous waste:

Landfills &

hazardous waste

(landfills: are areas where

trash is buried)

Causes Effects

Increase in population means

more waste produced.

Landfills take up space

Hazardous substances can leak into

groundwater

Increased pollution

 Pollution is the contamination of the environment with substances that are

harmful to life.

 Pollution can destroy many plants and animals.

 Some actions could help in protecting the land:

The greatest prevention to land pollution is in the three ‘R’S’

Lesson 2: impacts on Water

Overview of earth’s water distribution

Reducing means limiting the amount used initially.

Using the material again is called recycling.

Reusing an item means finding another use for it instead of throwing it away.

Compost is a mix of organic material: such as food, bacteria, and small amount of water,

converting them into a nutrient-rich material. This can be used for gardening. Compost

is a type of recycling.

Reforestation: planting trees to replace ones that have been removed.

Reclamation: process of restoring land disturbed by mining, through reshaped areas,

covered with soil and the replaced with trees and other vegetation.

 Humans use water in ways that other organisms do not. People wash cars, do

laundry, and use for agriculture, recreation and transportation.

 Human’s positive impact on water:

1- Damming:

Constructing dams helps regulate water flow,

mitigating floods and ensuring a steady water

supply for irrigation, industrial use, and domestic

consumption. Reservoirs created by dams serve

as reliable sources of water for communities,

agriculture, and hydropower generation.

2- Wells:

Groundwater is an important source of

water for many streams, lakes, and

wetlands.... People often bring ground

water to earth’s surface by drilling well.

replenish depleted aquifers, ensuring a

sustainable source of groundwater for

drinking water and agricultural irrigation.

3- Desalination

Desalination technologies enable the conversion of seawater or brackish water

into freshwater, expanding water sources in coastal regions and arid areas where

freshwater is scarce, thus improving

water distribution and access.

 Water pollution due to Human activity.

 human’s negative impact on water:

1- Runoff from mines:

Can be acidic and can contain metals. it can

contaminate surface water and ground water

drinking supplies and affect the growth and

reproduction of aquatic organisms.

Note: Mining is the process of extracting useful materials from the earth.

2- Oil spills:

Oil spills expose aquatic organisms to toxic chemicals.

When oil covers the surface of water, it can also

reduce the amount of oxygen in the water.

3- Runoff from construction sites:

It might contain excess sediment, which makes

water in streams and rivers cloudy. This reduces

the amount of sunlight available for photosynthetic

organisms.

4- Agriculture runoff:

It can contain fertilizers, which can upset the

balance of nutrients in lakes, oceans and other

bodies of water.

5- Industrial toxic:

It can contain toxic chemicals that can harm aquatic

organisms.

6- Urban runoff:

It can contain pesticides and fertilizers from lawns, oil, and gasoline from vehicles,

and bacteria and viruses from waste, all of which can reduce the quality of surface

water and groundwater.