human influences on ecosystems Flashcards

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1
Q

fertilizer

A

substance that contains important nutrients for plant growth, such as magnesium and nitrates

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2
Q

insecticides

A

substances that kill insectsand, in doing so, protect the crop plants from damage

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3
Q

herbicides

A

substances that kill plants by disrupting their growth in some way

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4
Q

monoculture

A

growing only one variety of crop in an area at a given time

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5
Q

advantages of intensive farming

A
  • Simplicity
  • Higher yields
  • Reduced costs
  • Larger land and machinery
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6
Q

disadvantages of intensive farming

A
  • Negative impacts on the environment, such as:
    • Land clearance
    • Deforestation
    • Reduced biodiversity
    • Soil damage
    • Water pollution
    • Air pollution
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7
Q

biodiversity

A

diversity of living organisms in an ecosystem

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8
Q

habitat

A

place where an organism lives

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9
Q

Human activities that lead to the destruction of habitats:

A
  • using more land for food crops, livestock production and housing
  • the extraction of natural resources
  • freshwater and marine pollution
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10
Q

The extraction of crude oil and natural gas destroys habitats because:

A
  • pollution is created by fuels when they are burned
  • the search for oil or gas damages natural habitats
  • drilling and mining operations need wells, roads, pipelines and other facilities
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11
Q

Sources of water pollution:

A
  • oil spills
  • untreated sewage
  • careless disposal of rubbish
  • mining waste
  • nitrates entering rivers from fertiliser use
  • herbicides and pesticides
  • heavy metal runoff (this can carry toxic metals such as mercury that pose a danger to water life and human health
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12
Q

Deforestation may lead to:

A
  • reduced biodiversity
  • flooding
  • loss of soil
  • extinction of species
  • an increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
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13
Q

Pollution meaning

A

the release of any substance that has an undesired, unexpected, harmful or toxic effect on the environment

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14
Q

Source of pollution

A

how and where the pollutant enters the environment

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15
Q

Effect of pollution

A

the harm that the pollutant does when it is in the environment

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16
Q

Source of untreated sewage

A

human and animal waste released without passing through sewage treatment plants

17
Q

Effect of untreated sewage

A

may carry harmful pathogens that cause disease; uses up oxygen when it rots; hormones affect reproduction of some organisms

18
Q

Source of fertilizers

A

runoff from farmland

19
Q

Effect of fertilizers

A

algal blooms and eutrophication

20
Q

Sustainable resource

A

something that is produced as rapidly as it is removed from the environment, so that it does not run out

21
Q

Non-sustainable resource

A

resources that are used up faster than they are being formed

22
Q

Factors endangering species:

A
  • destruction of habitat
  • pollution
  • climate change
  • hunting
  • introduced species
  • overharvesting.
23
Q

Endangered species can be conserved by taking steps such as:

A
  • monitoring and protecting species and habitats
  • education
  • seed banks
  • captive breeding programmes
24
Q

Reproduction in captivity:

A
  • Artificial insemination
  • In-vitro fertilisation