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Ecology

Ecology. Assessing the Impact of Human Activity on Ecosystems. Acid Rain. Emissions from human activity enter the atmosphere and have a wide-spread affect on the environment

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Ecology

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  1. Ecology Assessing the Impact of Human Activity on Ecosystems

  2. Acid Rain • Emissions from human activity enter the atmosphere and have a wide-spread affect on the environment • Industries and practices contributing to polluting emissions include: mining/refining, power generation, oil and gas powered activities • Nitrogen and Sulphur containing substances are common pollutants in emissions • Substances released into the air combine with water vapour to produce acid and fall to the ground as acid rain • Acid rain affects soils, vegetation, water bodies, terrestrial and aquatic organisms

  3. Effects of Acid Rain Acid Rain harms/damages: • Waxy coating on leaves • Skin of earthworms • Increases soil acidity – affects nutrient uptake in roots • Acidity in water bodies – dissolves shellfish shells • Can kill all aquatic life • Scientific research on acid rain has resulted in governmental intervention – limits on emissions • Changes have been made in industry to be less invasive and “gentler” on the environment

  4. Assessing Soils • Soil is a mixture of organic matter, minerals and moisture • Soil Profile made up of distinct layers • Soil Erosion: water and wind can blow soil away with sediment creating a permanent loss of water, nutrients and minerals • Crop rotation: farmers will plant different crops each year to replenish some of the nutrients in soils, (esp N2)

  5. Assessing Water Quality • Water is critical to life and every community has a management plan to protect its quality • Dissolved Oxygen: levels of O2 needed by organisms (table 2.4) • Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD): measures O2 consumption by micro-organisms in a given body of water (table 2.5) • Acidity: most aquatic organisms prefer a neutral envionment. Increased acidity will result in organism population death • Eutrophication: addition of nutrients to an aquatic system resulting in increased growth in plants • Heavy Metals: have a density of 5g/mL or moremeaning they are 5x more heavier than water. Examples: Mercury, lead, copper

  6. Assessing Water Quality • Bioaccumulation: build-up of a substance in an organism’s body tissue over time • Biomagnification: Concentration of a substance or contaminant in an organism that consumes food high in that substance or contaminant • Pesticides: chemicals that kill unwanted organisms in order to maintain the native species

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