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How Humans Can Affect The Environment Flashcards

(101 cards)

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1
Q

What is the increase in population mostly due to?

A

Medicine and farming methods which have reduced the number of people dying from disease and hunger.

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2
Q

What does our increase population do to the environment?

A

Puts pressure on the environment as we take the resources we need to survive.

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3
Q

How does our higher standard of living affect the environment?

A

We use more raw materials to make these luxuries which means we use more energy for the manufacturing process. This all means we’re taking more and more resources from the environment quickly.

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4
Q

What are the problem with raw materials?

A

They are non-renewable so they cannot be replaced.

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5
Q

What happens to the water as we produce more waste?

A

Sewage and toxic chemicals from industry can pollute lakes, river and oceans, affecting the plants and animals that rely on them for survival.

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6
Q

What happens to the land as we produce more waste?

A

We use toxic chemicals for farming. We also bury nuclear waste underground, and we dump a lot of household waste in landfill sites.

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7
Q

What happens to the air as we produce more waste?

A

Smoke and gases released into the atmosphere can pollute the air.

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8
Q

What can sulphur dioxide lead to?

A

Acid rain.

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9
Q

What is the problem with toxic waste?

A

It can poison the soil for miles around, which means animals cannot graze and food cannot be grown.

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10
Q

What is eutrophication?

A

When the oxygen levels in water fall so low that all aquatic animals die.

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11
Q

What is a major source of air pollution?

A

The burning of fossil fuels.

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12
Q

What are the effects of acid rain?

A

Makes river acidic making it difficult for animals to survive.

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13
Q

What causes global dimming?

A

Particles released by burning reflect the sunlight so less hits the earth?

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14
Q

What could global dimming lead to?

A

A cooling of the temperature at the surface of the Earth.

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15
Q

How do humans reduce the amount of land and resources available to other animals and plants?

A

Building, farming, dumping waste, quarrying for metal ores.

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16
Q

What is deforestation?

A

The cutting down of forests.

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17
Q

Why do we deforest?

A

To provide timber to use as building materials, to clear more land for farming, provide more food from fields or cattle, grow crops and produce biofuels, to produce paper from wood.

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18
Q

What are the four main problems of deforestation?

A

More methane, more carbon dioxide, less carbon dioxide taken in, less biodiversity.

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19
Q

Why is there more methane as a result of deforestation?

A

Rice is grown in warm, waterlogged conditions ideal for decomposers, these produce CO2. Cattle produce methane and rearing more cattle means more CO2.

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20
Q

Why is there more CO2 in the atmosphere as a result of deforestation?

A

CO2 is released when trees are burnt to clear land. Microorganisms feeding on bits of dead wood release carbon dioxide as a waste product of respiration. q

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21
Q

Why is less CO2 taken in as a result of deforestation?

A

Cutting down trees means that less CO2 is removed from the atmosphere during photosynthesis.

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22
Q

How is there biodiversity due to deforestation?

A

Habitats like forests contain huge numbers of different species, so when these are destroyed many species become extinct, biodiversity is reduced.

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23
Q

What is biodiversity?

A

The variety of different species in a habitat.

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24
Q

What are bogs?

A

Areas of land that are acidic and waterlogged.

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25
What are the condition of plants that live in peat bogs?
They aren't fully decayed as there isn't enough oxygen.
26
How is peat formed?
The partially-rotted plants which gradually build up.
27
Why is peat drained?
So the area can be used as farmland, or so the peat can be used a fuel or compost.
28
Why do peat bogs release CO2?
They start to decompose when they drained so CO2 is released.
29
What can you buy instead of peat?
Peat-free compost.
30
What is global warming?
When the climate of Earth is getting warmer.
31
What are natural sources of carbon dioxide?
Oceans, lakes, ponds, green plants, peat bogs,
32
Why are CO2 stores important?
It means CO2 is removed from the atmosphere.
33
What do gases in the atmosphere do?
They absorb most of the heat that would normally be radiated out into space and reradiate it back to earth.
34
What are the main greenhouse gases?
CO2 and methane.
35
What is global warming a type of?
Climate change.
36
What is happening as the sea gets warmer?
It expands and causes sea levels to rise.
37
What do higher temperatures cause?
Ice to melt, causing sea levels to rise even more.
38
What happens to the weather during global warming?
Many people will experience more severe weather such as hurricanes, droughts and floods.
39
What will happen to the distribution of wild animal and plant species as a result of global warming?
Some species may become more widely distributed as temperatures increase more places are suitable for certain birds.
40
What will happen to biodiversity as a result of global warming?
It could be reduced as some species may be unable to survive in a change of environment, so become extinct.
41
What will happen to migration patterns as a result of global warming?
They could change, some birds may migrate further north as areas are getting warmer.
42
What is used to monitor climate change?
Satellites, automatic weather stations.
43
Why do satellites measure?
Snow and ice cover, temperature of sea surface.
44
What do automatic weather stations measure?
Atmospheric temperatures.
45
What is the sea measured for?
The temperature and speed of ocean currents are monitored for any changed.
46
How can fuels be made?
By fermentation.
47
What is fermentation?
When bacteria or yeast break sugars down by anaerobic respiration.
48
What are the two types of biofuels?
Ethanol based fuels and biogas.
49
How does yeast make ethanol?
By the breaking down of glucose by anaerobic respiration.
50
What is the equation for the production of ethanol?
Glucose -> ethanol + CO2 + energy
51
What happens to the ethanol before it is used?
It is distilled to separate it from the yeast and remaining glucose.
52
What are the advantages of using ethanol?
It is efficient and does not produce toxic gases. It is much less polluting than conventional fuels, which produce carbon monoxide. Moreover it can it mixed with petrol to make gasohol, which reduces pollution levels considerably. Carbon neutral.
53
What does carbon neutral mean?
There is no overall increase in CO2 in the atmosphere when it is burnt.
54
What is biogas made of?
70% methane and 30% carbon dioxide.
55
What is biogas?
A flammable mixture of gases.
56
How is biogas produced?
Lots of different microorganisms ferment plant and animal waste.
57
What is biogas made in?
A simple fermenter called a digester or generator.
58
Why do biogas generators need to be kept at a constant temperatures?
To keep the microorganisms respiring.
59
What are the two type of biogas generators?
Batch generators and continuous generators.
60
Why does biogas have to be used straight away?
It can't be stored as a liquid as it needs too high a pressure.
61
What can be digested by bacteria to form biogas?
Human waste, waste from keeping pigs and food waste.
62
What are batch generators?
They may biogas in small batches. They're manually loaded up with waste, which is left to digest, and the by-products are cleared away at the end of each session.
63
What are continuous generators?
Make biogas all the time. Waste is continuously fed in, and biogas is produced at a steady rate. Continuous generators are more suited to large-scale biogas projects.
64
What do all biogas generators have?
An inlet for waste material, an outlet for digested material, an outlet so that the biogas can be piped to where it is needed.
65
What needs to be considered when designing a biogas generator?
Cost, convience, efficiency and position.
66
What is the issue of cost with biogas generators?
Continuous generators are more expensive than batch ones, because waste has to be mechanically pumped in and digested material mechanically removed all the time.
67
What is the issue with convenience and biogas generators?
Batch generators are less convenient because they have to be continually loaded, emptied and cleaned.
68
What is the issue with efficiency and biogas generators?
Gas is produced most quickly at 35C, if the temperature falls below that then the gas production will be slower. So generators have to be insulated and kept warm.
69
What is the issue with position and biogas generators?
The waste will smell during delivery, so generators should be sited away from homes. The generator is also best located fairly close to the waste source.
70
Are biofuels carbon neutral?
Yes.
71
Do biofuels cause sulphur dioxide or nitrogen oxides to be produced?
No.
72
Why is biogas good for methane?
Methane is not released into the atmosphere but is used so less is left in the atmosphere.
73
What is good about the raw material for biofuels?
It is cheap and readily available.
74
Why is biofuel good for crops?
The digested materials are better than undigested dung.
75
How does biofuel save time in rural communities?
They have to spend hours collecting wood, biogas saves this drudgery.
76
What do biogas generators act as?
Waste disposal systems, getting rid of human and animal waste that would otherwise lie around, causing disease and polluting water supplies.
77
How can you produce a lot more food?
Growing crops rather than grazing animals as you reduce the number of stages in the food chain.
78
During farming how is energy conserved?
Animals are kept close together indoors in small pens, so they're warm and can't move about.
79
What else does this energy conservation of animals also do?
Reduce costs for famer as the animals will grow faster on less food. Therefore cheaper for us.
80
What is mycoprotein?
Protein made from fungi.
81
What is mycoprotein used for?
To make meat substitutes for vegetarian meals.
82
What is the main source of mycoprotein?
A fungus called fusarium.
83
Where is fusarium grown?
In fermenter using glucose syrup as food.
84
Where is glucose syrup obtained?
By digesting maize starch with enzymes.
85
Why is the fermenter sterilised?
To prevent other microorganisms growing in the fermenter.
86
What are the advantages of mycoprotein?
Difficult to find protein in developing countries as there isn't a lot of space, efficient way of producing protein to feed people, microorganisms grow quickly and don't need much space, can feed on waste materials.
87
What are the disadvantages of mycoprotein?
Doesn't sound very appetising.
88
Why is improving the efficiency of food production useful?
Means cheaper food, better standard of living for farmers, helps to feed a growing population.
89
What is wrong with extensive farming?
Some people think that it is cruel, so there is a growing demand for organic meat.
90
What is wrong with the crowded conditions of farms?
Diseases spread easily, such as foot-and-mouth disease.
91
What is wrong with the antibiotics used on the animals?
They enter humans and allow microbes that infect humans to develop immunity to those antibiotics, so they become less effective on humans.
92
What is the problem with keeping the animals warm?
This requires energy which is burning fossil fuels, which wouldn't be needed if they were in their natural environment.
93
What is the problem with feeding animal fish?
Fish stocks are getting low, and normally these animals wouldn't eat fish.
94
What is the problem with food miles?
When travelling from afar this can be expensive and bad for the environment.
95
What do trucks release?
They burn fossil fuels and release CO2 into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming.
96
What is happening to fish stocks?
They are declining as we are fishing so much.
97
What can overfishing lead to?
A species of fish disappearing completely in an area.
98
How can fish stocks be maintained?
Fishing quotas, net size.
99
What do fishing quotas do?
They limit the number and size of fish that can be caught in certain area. This prevents certain species from being overfished.
100
What do net sizes do?
There are limits on the mesh sizes of the fish net, depending on what is being fished.
101
Why do net sizes vary?
This reduces the number of unwanted and discarded fish. Using a bigger net allows the unwanted species to escape. It also means younger fish will slip through the net, allowing them to reach breeding age.

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