Humans & the Environment

What do you think would be the consequences of exceeding Earth’s carrying capacity for the human population?

Overcrowding Shortages of food, water, and fuel Malnutrition Increased disease

What role does the forest play in the environment?

– Makes products – Removes CO2 & produces 02 – Stores nutrients – Provides habitats & food – Limits soil erosion

“Tree Be Gone” Activity Get supplies from the back table. – 1 foil pan with soil – 1 bag (100 craft sticks & 4 cards) Select a card from the plastic bag.

“Tree Be Gone” Activity Set up your activity. – Place 50 craft sticks in the foil pan. This represents an entire forest. – Give the other 50 craft sticks to the forest manager.

“Tree Be Gone” Activity Timer – Call “time” every 15 seconds Forest Manager – Place 2 craft stick into the forest Logger(s) – 1 st “Time”: remove 2 craft sticks from the forest (1 per logger) – 2 nd “Time”: remove 4 craft sticks from the forest (2 per logger) – Next “Time”: remove 6 craft sticks from the forest (3 per logger) – So on!

Let’s Check & View 1.What happened in this activity? 1.What are some things we could do to solve this problem of running out of resources?

Renewable vs. Nonrenewable Type of Resource RenewableNonrenewable Definition Examples

Renewable & Nonrenewable Resources Renewable Resources – Can Regenerate & be replaced – Not necessarily unlimited Nonrenewable Resources – Cannot be replenished by natural processes

Examples Renewable Resources Tree Corn Water Soil Fish Chicken Nonrenewable Resources Coal Natural Gas Oil Copper Iron

Sustainable Use A way of using natural resources at a rate that does not deplete them.

Resources RESOURCEROLE OF RESOURCENEGATIVE IMPACTPOSITIVE IMPACT (Sustainable Development) Forest Makes products Removes CO2 & produces 02 Stores nutrients Provides habitats & food Limits soil erosion Deforestation Loss of forests which can cause severe erosion Replant trees Breeding new, faster- growing tree Land Ocean Air Water

Let’s Work! Look at page to finish your chart.

Humans & the Environment Part 2: Biodiversity

BIO DIVERSITY

INTERESTING FACTS “Scientists estimate that there are between 10 million to 100 million organisms on Earth. Only 1.4 million have been indentified.” -Science Q&A Ecosystems “About 118 of the top 150 prescription drugs in America contain chemicals derived from plants, fungi and other species.” -International Biodiversity Observation Year “Insects pollinate crops worth $6-12 billion a year in the USA.” -International Biodiversity Observation Year “Scientists estimate that species extinctions are occurring 100 to 1000 times faster than without human influence. Without a change in our actions half of the world's species may be lost by 2100.” -International Biodiversity Observation Year “In the USA alone, nearly 4,500 known species are threatened with extinction.” -International Biodiversity Observation Year

Look at pages !

BIODIVERSITY: VALUE THREATS CONSERVATION: sum total of the genetically based variety of all organisms in the biosphere STRATEGIES CHALLENGES To describe the wise management of natural resources & Preservation of habitats and wildlife Endangered Species Preservation Act Captive Breeding Programs National parks, forests, & other protected areas Saving the tropical rain forests in developing countries Locating problem areas (“hot spots”) Making a priority list Earth’s greatest natural resource Food Industrial products Medicines Altering habitats (Habitat Fragmentation) Hunting species to extinction Introducing toxics to food webs Introducing invasive species