Some APES Review
Earth
Age of Earth
Approximately 4.6 billion years
Plate Tectonics
3 types of plate
boundaries:
divergent—two plates
spread apart.
convergent—two
plates move together.
transform faults—two
plates slide along one
another.
Mineral deposits are
most abundant at
convergent plate
boundaries.
Volcanoes and
earthquakes occur at
plate boundaries.
The U.S. is on the
North American plate
Most Abundant elements in
Earth’s crust
1) Oxygen
2) Silicon
3) Aluminum
4) Iron
5) Calcium
6) Sodium
7) Potassium
Coal Formation
Pete Love Betty Always
Peat
Lignite
Bituminous
Anthracite
Population and Demographics
Current World Population
About 7 billion people
Growth rate= 1.2%
Current US Population = 309 million
Click for current world and US Population
Demographics
80% of the world’s population is in
the developing world, 20% in the
developed.
Rule of 70
70  % growth rate = Doubling time (years)
You will need to use this on the exam!
Thomas Malthus
Theorized that human population
cannot continue to increase without
leading to war, famine & disease
Most Populous Nations
1) China
2) India
3) U.S.
4) Indonesia
5) Brazil
6) Russia
7) Pakistan
Most Populous Regions of
the World
1) Asia
2) Europe
3) Africa
4) Latin America
5) North America
6) Oceania
Replacement level fertility
The number of children a couple must
have to replace themselves.
Demographic Transition Model
Stage 1
Preindustrial
Stage 2
Transitional
Stage 3
Industrial
Stage 4
Postindustrial
80
Relative population size
Birth rate and death rate
(number per 1,000 per year)
High
70
Birth rate
60
50
40
30
Death rate
20
10
0
Total population
Low
Increasing
Very high Decreasing
Low
Zero
Negative
Low
Growth rate over time
Fig. 7-11, p. 137
Demographic Transition
Model
Preindustrial stage
Transitional stage
Industrial stage
Postindustrial stage
World’s Largest Oil Reserves
(2013 self-reporting estimates)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Saudi Arabia
265,405 (OPEC)
Venezuela
211,169 (OPEC)
Canada 173,625
Iran
151,167 (OPEC)
Iraq
115,350 (OPEC)
Kuwait 103,998 (OPEC)
United Arab Emirates
97,800 (OPEC)
Russia 60,003
Libya
47,102 (OPEC)
Kazakhstan
30,002
Nigeria 37,200 (OPEC)
Qatar 25,382 (OPEC)
United States
20,682
Biggest lifestyle risk factors
1) Poverty
2) Smoking
3) Overweight
4) Driving
5) Air Pollution
6) Alcohol
7) Drug Abuse
Miller, 2006
Deadliest infectious
diseases
1) Pneumonia and flu
2) HIV
3) Malaria
4) Diarrheal diseases
5) TB
6) Hep B
7) Measels
Places
Love Canal, NY
1976-77
chemicals buried in old canal, school
and homes built over it led to birth
defects and cancers.
Minamata, Japan
1950s
Mental impairments, birth defects,
and deaths caused by mercury
dumped in Minamata Bay by factory.
Mercury entered humans in diet
(fish).
Bhopal, India
December 2,1984
Methyl isocyanate released
accidentally by Union Carbide
pesticide plant kills over 5,000.
Three-Mile Island,
Pennsylvania
March 29, 1979
Nuclear power plant loses cooling
water 50% of core melts, radioactive
materials escape into atmosphere,
near meltdown.
Chernobyl, Ukraine
April 26, 1986
Unauthorized safety test leads to
fire and explosion at nuclear power
plant—millions exposed to unsafe
levels of radiation.
Valdez, Alaska
March 24, 1989
The oil tanker Exxon Valdez hits
submerged rocks in Prince William
Sound—worst oil spill in US waters.
Fukushima, Japan
March 11, 2011
A series of equipment failures,
nuclear meltdowns and releases of
radioactive materials at the
Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant,
following the Tōhoku earthquake and
tsunami
Yucca Mountain, Nevada
Controversial, proposed site for the
permanent storage of high-level nuclear
waste, 70-miles northwest of Las Vegas,
near volcano and earthquake faults.
UPDATE (April 12, 2011)
Despite House GOP push, Harry Reid
declares ‘Yucca is dead’- Click for link to
article
Ogallala Aquifer
World’s largest aquifer.
Holds enough water to cover the U.S. with
1.5 feet of water.
Under parts of Wyoming, South Dakota,
Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma,
New Mexico, and Texas (the Midwest).
Being depleted for agricultural and urban
use.
BP Deepwater Horizon Oil
Spill
2010, 87 Days
Largest accidental spill ever
4.9 million barrels
Laws
Endangered Species Act
Identifies threatened and
endangered species in the U.S., and
puts their protection ahead of
economic considerations.
1973
Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation and Liability
Act (1980)
Requires the cleanup of sites contaminated
with toxic waste. This law is commonly
refered to as "Superfund."
In 1986 major amendments were made in
order to clarify the level of cleanup
required and degrees of liability. CERCLA
is retroactive, which means it can be used
to hold liable those responsible for
disposal of hazardous wastes before the
law was enacted in 1980.
Lacey Act of 1900
Prohibits interstate transport of wild
animals dead or alive without federal
permit.
Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species
Also known a: “CITES”
Lists species that cannot be
commercially traded as live specimens
or wildlife products.
1973
Healthy Forests Initiative
(2003)
Reduces fuel for forest fires.
Controversial because it allows
for tree harvesting.
Clean Water Act
Set maximum permissible amounts of
water pollutants that can be
discharged into waterways. Aim: to
make surface waters swimmable and
fishable.
1972
Safe Drinking Water Act
Set maximum contaminant levels for
pollutants that may have adverse
effects on human health.
1974
Clean Air Act
Set emission standards for cars, and
limits for release of air pollutants.
1970
Surface Mining Control &
Reclamation Act
Requires coal strip mines and others
to reclaim the land following mining
operations.
1977
Kyoto Protocol
Controversial attempt to control
global warming by setting greenhouse
gas emissions targets for developed
countries.
Not ratified by the U.S.
1997
Montreal Protocol
International treaty to phase out the
use of ozone depleting substances
(esp CFCs-first ID’ed as a problem by
Roland and Molina).
1987
Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (1976)
RCRA Seeks to prevent the
creation of toxic waste dumps by
setting standards for the
management of hazardous waste
from cradle to grave
Physical Laws/Rules
•Math-esp. conversions
•Chemistry: i.e.
a) Organic Compounds contain at least
2 or more C atoms combined with
each other & atoms of 1 or more
other elements + CH4.
b) Laws of Thermodynamics: 1-Energy
changes form, 2-Efficiency not
100%
Ecology
Biomagnification
Increased levels of toxins in
higher trophic levels.
Bioaccumulation
Accumulation of toxins in fatty
tissues of an organism.
Reproductive Strategies
K-strategists
Organisms reproduce
late in life
Bear few offspring
Care for and protect
offspring
Large bodied
Examples: humans,
elephants
r-strategists
Organisms reproduce
early in life
Bear many offspring
Do not care for and
protect offspring
Small bodied
Examples insects, mice
Primary Productivity
• Largest in Tropical rain
forest, Swamp/marsh,
Estuary
Cellular Respiration
Oxygen consuming producers,
consumers & decomposers break down
complex organic compounds & convert
C back into CO2
C6H12O6 + O2 = CO2 + H2O
Photosynthesis
Plants convert CO2 (atmospheric C)
into complex carbohydrates (glucose
C6H12O6)
CO2 + H2O = C6H12O6 + O2
The Nitrogen Cycle
Gaseous Nitrogen (N2)
in Atmosphere
Nitrogen
Fixation
by industry
for agriculture
Food Webs
on Land
Fertilizers
uptake by
autotroph
s
excretion, death,
decomposition
uptake by
autotroph
s
Nitrogen Fixation
bacteria convert N2 to
ammonia (NH3); this
dissolves to form
ammonium (NH4+)
NH3, NH4+
in Soil
loss by
leaching
Nitrogenous Wastes,
Remains in Soil
Ammonification
NO3–
in Soil
by bacteria
2. Nitrification
bacteria, fungi convert the
residues to NH3; this
dissolves to form NH4+
bacteria convert NO2–
to nitrate (NO3–)
1. Nitrification
NO2–
in Soil
bacteria convert NH4+
to nitrite (NO2–)
Denitrification
loss by
leaching
Fig. 3-27, p. 58
Carrying capacity
The number of individuals that can be
sustained in an area.
r-strategists reach it more quickly
than K-strategists
Resource partitioning
Leads to formation of niches
Can lead to speciation
Keystone species
Species whose role in an ecosystem is
more important than others.
Indicator species
Species that serve as early warnings
that an ecosystem is being damaged
Environment
Ocean Zones
Esturine, Benthic, Coastal
Euphotic
Bathyal/Twilight
Abyssal
Critters:
Plankton-live @ surface
Nekton-swimmers, pelagic
Lake Types
Ogliotrophic-low nutrients
Eutrophic-high nutrients
Climate Controls
LAPTOP:
Latitude
Altitude
Proximity to water
Topography
Ocean currents
Prevailing winds (ie rain shadow on
leeward mtn sides)
Atmosphere
The Sky Makes Thunder
Troposphere (smog, bad ozone, weather)
Stratosphere (good ozone, planes)
Mesosphere
Thermosphere
Exosphere
El Niño
East trade winds off S. America
weaken, east current slows.
No upwelling at S. America = no
ocean nutrients.
Rain when west wind hits Andes and
rises, dry in Pacific nations.
Global Air Convection Cells
6 around globe
Rain where air rises, cools
Drier where air falls, warms
Biomes
Precipitation determines:
Dry = Desert
Medium = Grassland
Wet = Forest
Temperature determines type.
Human Activities
Humanity-centric Vocabulary
Anthropogenic = human-caused
Non-anthropogenic = NOT human caused
Other vocab:
Phyto- plant
Photo- light
Chemo- chemical
Anthro- human
Beginning of Human
Agriculture
Approximately 10,000 years ago
Eutrophication
“Bloom” caused by excess nutrients
(esp. N,P) in a water system.
Hypoxia (lack of oxygen, DO)
Economic Depletion
When about 80% of a resource is
gone.
Ecological Footprint
Our present global footprint is about
20% greater than global resource
capacity (Miller, 2006)
Tragedy of the Commons
“If I do not use this resource,
someone else will.”
Degradation of free-access
resources.
LD50
“Lethal Dose 50”
The amount of a substance that kills
50% of the subjects in a test
population
Oxygen Sag Curve
Trash fish
Normal clean water organisms (carp, gar,
(trout, perch, bass,
Types of
leeches)
mayfly, stonefly)
organisms
Dissolved
oxygen
(ppm)
Fish absent,
fungi,
sludge
worms,
bacteria
(anaerobic)
Normal clean water organisms
(trout, perch, bass,
Trash fish
mayfly, stonefly)
(carp, gar,
leeches)
8 ppm
8 ppm
Biological
oxygen
demand
Clean Zone
Septic Zone
Clean Zone
Recovery
Zone
Decomposition
Zone
Fig. 11-24, p. 256
Major Air Pollutants,
NAAQS*
CO
NO2
SO2
Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM)
Ozone
Lead
*Nat. Ambient Air Qual. Stds. (EPA)
Reducing Air Pollution
Scrubbers: Sulfur Oxides: (SOx)
Electrostatic Precipitators:
Particulates
Major Greenhouse Gases
from human activities
CO2
CH4
N2O
CFCs (also an Ozone-depleting gas)
Municipal solid waste
The trash you and I throw away.
In the U.S., it is mostly paper and
mostly put into landfills.
MRF
Materials Recycling Facility
Where wastes are sorted and
recovered with machines and people
for recycling
Wastewater Treatment
Mechanical (Primary)
Biological (Secondary)- Solids will be
flocculated-aggregation of solids
Chemical (Tertiary)
Storage of Radioactive
Wastes
As a rule, radioactive wastes should
be stored for 10 half-lives before
they are considered safe
Plutonium-239 half life = 24,000
years
storage time = 240,000 years
Power & Energy
A Watt is a measurement of power
1,000 watts = 1 kilowatt
1,000 kilowatts = 1 Megawatt (MW)
1,000 Megawatts = 1 Gigawatt (GW)
The amount of electrical energy used is is
given in units of kilowatt-hours (kWh)
Alternate sources of Energy
Solar
Passive
Active
Wind
Fuel cells
Geothermal
Ocean waves/tides
Biomass
Summary and Sustainability
Statistics
• 98% of waste is from industry, most from mining and gas
explor.
• 75% of world’s commercial fish stocks are overfished
• 40% (approx) of world’s topsoil eroding faster than it can
form
• 25% of global CO2 produced by US (w/ under 5% of wrld
pop)
• <1% of the water on earth is available for drinking
I=PAT
•Impact is a factor of
population size, affluence (or
consumption), and the type of
technology being used (which
can increase or decrease the
impact)
Mass Extinctions
There have been 5—most recent 65
mya
Are we entering the 6th?
Extinction
1.4+ million species known, 3-100 million exist
background extinction 1-5/yr
present rate .1% = 300 to 10,000 lost/year = at least about 1
a day
CHIPPO/HIPPCO
• Climate change
• Habitat loss
• Invasive species
• Population growth
• Pollution
• Overuse of resources
Causes of biodiversity loss
BioSPoRN
The keys to sustainability:
Biodiversity
Solar Power
Population
Recycling Nutrients
Biomimicry!