CHAPTER 4 EXPERT QUESTIONS

1. CHAPTER 4 EXPERT QUESTIONS

2. 1.) Deforestation contributes to extinction of some species… • Any rapid environment change can cause an extinction of species • Deforestation -removal of all trees from an area to make roads, paper, & building materials. • Without trees, many species don’t have shelter or food, so some species may die off. • If a habitat is destroyed, it causes the loss of biodiversity, which is important to the survival of species in an ecosystem. • Example - The loss of a predator can cause an increase in a prey population that causes other species to starve.

3. 2.) Human population growth is related to pollution problems. • The higher the population, the more people there are contributing to pollution. • All humans need resources to survive such as water, food, clothing, shelter, etc. • The more humans there are the more resources needed (more factories used to produce goods and more energy is needed to run those factories). • This leads to more waste being produced.

4. 3.) These can help people but harm the environment… HELP HARM Hospitals Old Refrigerators Road Construction

5. 4.) Conservation of resources to reduce pollution & protect habitats • Conserving resources means that you are using less of them, so you won’t be producing as much trash. • If you conserve resources, fewer habitats will be destroyed by activities such as mining, harvesting, or construction.

6. 5.) In 50 years if people are not prepared to run out of fossil fuels…and what can be done? • If people weren’t prepared, there would be an energy shortage. • To prepare for exhaustion of fossil fuel supplies, people can develop alternative sources of energy, such as energy from sunlight, wind, and water.

7. 6.) Farms with many different crops vs. one and problems? • A farm that has many kinds of crops is less likely to be wiped out by a plant disease than a farm that has a single crop. • A plant disease could destroy the entire crop of a single-crop farm, whereas the disease likely would not kill all of the crops on a multi-crop farm. • However, a farm that has many crops often doesn’t produce as much of a single crop as a farm that grows that crop alone does.

8. 7.) Movement of a new species into a local habitat & no predators… • The new species will compete with the local species for food, but without predators to thin the population of the new species, the population of the new species will continue to grow. • Eventually, the new species may take over the area.

9. 8.) 5 types of pollutants and environmental strategies

10. 9.) Availability of renewable resources more of a concern… • Because some resources once thought to be renewable are becoming more nonrenewable. • For example, scientists used to think that fresh water was a renewable resource. • However, in some areas, water supplies are being used faster than they are being replaced. • Eventually, these areas may run out of fresh water.