MADISON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
Authored by: Jennifer Freeeman
Reviewed by: Dr. Barbara Sargent
Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction
Board of Education approval:
September 2007
Members of the Board of Education:
Lisa Ellis, President
Patrick Rowe, Vice-President
Kevin Blair
Diane Fastiggi
Linda Gilbert
George Martin
James Novotny
Patricia Sarasohn
Superintendent: Dr. Richard Noonan
Madison Public Schools
359 Woodland Road, Madison, NJ 07940
www.madisonpublicschools.org
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I.
OVERVIEW
The goal of the course is to help students develop an understanding of the natural world with particular
attention to interactions and relationships between its components and human impact on them. Scientific
principles, concepts and methodologies will be used to identify and analyze environmental problems, risks
developing as a result of these problems, and possible solutions or prevention strategies. After taking this
course, students should be equipped to make independent and informed decisions about the consequences of
their actions on the environment, both as a citizen and a consumer.
II.
RATIONALE
As stated by the National Science Education Standards, 1996, science education is important at a universal level:
First, an understanding of science offers personal fulfillment and excitement – benefits that
should be shared by everyone. Second, Americans are confronted increasingly with questions
in their lives that require scientific information and scientific ways of thinking for informed
decision making. In addition, the collective judgment of our people will determine how we
manage shared resources such as air, water, and national forests.
At a personal level, students completing this course will be prepared for the AP Environmental Science exam.
The content of this course is guided by the College Board and models a rigorous college course stressing
scientific principles and analysis. This type of course often includes a laboratory component. Successful
completion of the course and the subsequent exam is intended to enable students to undertake a more
advanced study of topics in environmental science during their first year of college or to fulfill a basic
laboratory science course requirement.
III.
STUDENT OUTCOMES (Linked to NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards)
The student will:
  relate scientific concepts to everyday experiences and the impact on human activities (5.1, 5.10.A)
  diagram a system (i.e. ecosystem, water and biogeochemical cycles) (5.7.B, 5.8, 5.10.B.1)
  organize components of systems into a concept map (5.7.B, 5.8, 5.10.B.1)
  make inferences from observations and from collected data that a system is composed of interactive parts
(ecosystems, and soil composition) (5.1)
  predict the outcome of removing a component from a system (food webs, carbon-oxygen cycle) (5.1,
5.7.B, 5.8, 5.10.B.1)
  classify according to some method or system (i.e. macroinvertebrate classification) (5.1, 5.5)
  collect and record data (5.1)
  construct models (5.3.C)
  formulate hypotheses (5.1)
  judge reasonableness of estimates, measurements, and results (5.1, 5.3.B-C)
  predict future events or conditions (5.10.B.1)
  question conditions in a testable way (5.1)
  use computer applications to simulate experimentation, information gathering, data representation, and
communication of experimental findings (5.4)
  use mathematics to calculate quantities or determine relationships (5.3)
  debate solutions to environmental problems (5.10.B.2)
  read tables and graphs to represent and interpret data (5.3.D)
  communicate about a scientific contribution in a clear and concise manner (5.2.A)
  write about a scientist or inventor in historical context (5.2)
  select and use tools appropriate for a task (5.1.B.1)
  use a variety of tools to make accurate measurements (microscopic measurement) (5.1.B.1)
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seek and report information (5.1.A.3)
NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards for AP Environmental Science
STANDARD 5.1 (SCIENTIFIC PROCESSES) ALL STUDENTS WILL DEVELOP PROBLEMSOLVING, DECISION-MAKING AND INQUIRY SKILLS, REFLECTED BY FORMULATING
USABLE QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES, PLANNING EXPERIMENTS, CONDUCTING
SYSTEMATIC OBSERVATIONS, INTERPRETING AND ANALYZING DATA, DRAWING
CONCLUSIONS, AND COMMUNICATING RESULTS.
Descriptive Statement: Students best learn science by doing science. Science is not merely a collection of
facts and theories but a process, a way of thinking about and investigating the world in which we live. This
standard addresses those skills that are used by scientists as they discover and explain the physical universeskills that are an essential and ongoing part of learning science.
A. Habits of Mind
1. When making decisions, evaluate conclusions, weigh evidence, and recognize that arguments may not
have equal merit.
2. Assess the risks and benefits associated with alternative solutions.
3. Engage in collaboration, peer review, and accurate reporting of findings.
4. Explore cases that demonstrate the interdisciplinary nature of the scientific enterprise.
B. Inquiry and Problem Solving
1. Select and use appropriate instrumentation to design and conduct investigations.
2. Show that experimental results can lead to new questions and further investigations.
C. Safety
1. Understand, evaluate and practice safe procedures for conducting science investigations.
STANDARD 5.2 (SCIENCE AND SOCIETY) ALL STUDENTS WILL DEVELOP AN
UNDERSTANDING OF HOW PEOPLE OF VARIOUS CULTURES HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE
ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, AND HOW MAJOR DISCOVERIES AND
EVENTS HAVE ADVANCED SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.
Descriptive Statement: Science is a human endeavor involving successes and failures, trials and tribulations.
Students should know that great numbers of people from many cultures have contributed to our
understanding of science and that science has a rich and fascinating history. This standard encourages
students to learn about the people and events that have shaped or revolutionized important scientific theories
and concepts.
A. Cultural Contributions
1. Recognize the role of the scientific community in responding to changing social and political conditions
and how scientific and technological achievement effect historical events.
B. Historical Perspectives
1. Examine the lives and contributions of important scientists who effected major breakthroughs in our
understanding of the natural and designed world.
2. Discuss significant technological achievements in which science has played an important part as well as
technological advances that have contributed directly to the advancement of scientific knowledge.
3. Describe the historical origin of important scientific developments such as atomic theory, genetics, plate
tectonics, etc., showing how scientific theories develop, are tested, and can be replaced or modified in light of
new information and improved investigative techniques.
STANDARD 5.3 (MATHEMATICAL APPLICATIONS) ALL STUDENTS WILL INTEGRATE
MATHEMATICS AS A TOOL FOR PROBLEM-SOLVING IN SCIENCE, AND AS A MEANS OF
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EXPRESSING AND/OR MODELING SCIENTIFIC THEORIES.
Descriptive Statement: Science cannot be practiced or learned without appreciation of the role of
mathematics in discovering and expressing natural laws. This standard recognizes the need for students to
fully integrate mathematics skills with their learning of science.
A. Numerical Operations
1. Reinforce indicators from previous grade level.
B. Geometry and Measurement
1. When performing mathematical operations with measured quantities, express answers to reflect the degree
of precision and accuracy of the input data.
C. Patterns and Algebra
1. Apply mathematical models that describe physical phenomena to predict real world events.
D. Data Analysis and Probability
1. Construct and interpret graphs of data to represent inverse and non-linear relationships, and statistical
distributions.
STANDARD 5.4 (NATURE AND PROCESS OF TECHNOLOGY) ALL STUDENTS WILL
UNDERSTAND THE INTERRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND
DEVELOP A CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE NATURE AND PROCESS OF
TECHNOLOGY.
Descriptive Statement: This standard focuses on developing students’ understanding of the interrelationship
between science and technology. It introduces students to and expands their understanding of the nature of
technology. In addition, it introduces and develops students’ abilities with technological design including
experiences in predicting, decision making, critical thinking, and problem solving.
A. Science and Technology
1. Know that scientific inquiry is driven by the desire to understand the natural world and seeks to answer
questions that may or may not directly influence humans, while technology is driven by the need to meet
human needs and solve human problems.
B. Nature of Technology
1. Assess the impacts of introducing a new technology in terms of alternative solutions, costs, tradeoffs, risks,
benefits and environmental impact.
C. Technological Design
1. Plan, develop, and implement a proposal to solve an authentic, technological problem.
STANDARD 5.5 (CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE) ALL STUDENTS WILL GAIN AN
UNDERSTANDING OF THE STRUCTURE, CHARACTERISTICS, AND BASIC NEEDS OF
ORGANISMS AND WILL INVESTIGATE THE DIVERSITY OF LIFE.
Descriptive Statement: The study of science must include the diversity, complexity, and interdependence of
life on Earth. Students should know how organisms evolve, reproduce, and adapt to their environments.
A. Matter, Energy and Organization in Living Systems
1. Relate the structure of molecules to their function in cellular structure and metabolism.
2. Explain how plants convert light energy to chemical energy.
3. Describe how plants produce substances high in energy content that become the primary source of energy
for life.
4. Relate disease in humans and other organisms to infections or intrinsic failures of system.
B. Diversity and Biological Evolution
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1. Explain that through evolution the Earth's present species developed from earlier distinctly different
species.
2. Explain how the theory of natural selection accounts for extinction as well as an increase in the proportion
of individuals with advantageous characteristics within a species.
C. Reproduction and Heredity
1. Describe how information is encoded and transmitted in genetic material.
2. Explain how genetic material can be altered by natural and/or artificial means; mutations and new gene
combinations may have positive, negative, or no effect on organisms or species.
3. Assess the impact of current and emerging technologies on our understanding of inherited human
characteristics.
STANDARD 5.6 (CHEMISTRY) ALL STUDENTS WILL GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE
STRUCTURE AND BEHAVIOR OF MATTER.
Descriptive Statement: Exploring the nature of matter and energy is essential to an understanding of the
physical universe. This standard leads students from their experiences with the states and properties of matter
to the development of models of the atom and the underlying principles of chemistry.
A. Structure and Properties of Matter
1. Know that atoms are made of a positive nucleus surrounded by negative electrons and that the nucleus, a
tiny fraction of the volume of an atom, is composed of protons and neutrons, each almost 2,000 times more
massive than an electron.
2. Know that the number of protons in the nucleus defines the element.
3. Know that an atom’s electron arrangement, particularly the outermost electrons, determines how the atom
can interact with other atoms.
4. Explain that atoms form bonds (ionic and covalent) with other atoms by transferring or sharing electrons.
6. Know that many biological, chemical and physical phenomena can be explained by changes in the
arrangement and motion of atoms and molecules.
7. Recognize that the properties of matter are related to the structure and arrangement of their molecules and
atoms, such as in metallic and nonmetallic crystals and carbon compounds.
STANDARD 5.7 (PHYSICS) ALL STUDENTS WILL GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF NATURAL
LAWS AS THEY APPLY TO MOTION, FORCES, AND ENERGY TRANSFORMATIONS.
Descriptive Statement: Basic principles of physics emerge in this standard, where the study of force and
motion leads students to the concept of energy. All forms of energy are introduced and investigated, and
principles of transformation and laws of conservation are developed.
A. Motion and Forces
5. Know that there are strong forces that hold the nucleus of an atom together and that significant amounts of
energy can be released in nuclear reactions (fission, fusion, and nuclear decay) when these binding forces are
disrupted.
B. Energy Transformations
2. Explain that while energy can be transformed from one form to another, the total energy of a closed system
is constant.
3. Recognize that whenever mechanical energy is transformed, some heat is dissipated and is therefore
unavailable for use.
STANDARD 5.8 (EARTH SCIENCE) ALL STUDENTS WILL GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE
STRUCTURE, DYNAMICS, AND GEOPHYSICAL SYSTEMS OF THE EARTH.
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Descriptive Statement: The study of science should include a study of the planet Earth and its relationship to
the rest of the universe. This standard describes what students should know about the composition of the
Earth and the forces that shape it.
A. Earth’s Properties and Materials
1. Explain the interrelationship of the geosphere, hydrosphere, and the atmosphere.
B. Atmosphere and Water
1. Describe how weather (in the short term) and climate (in the long term) involve the transfer of energy in
and out of the atmosphere.
C. Processes that Shape the Earth
1. Use the theory of plate tectonics to explain the relationship among earthquakes, volcanoes, mid-ocean
ridges, and deep-sea trenches.
2. Know that Earth is a system in which chemical elements exist in fixed amounts and move through the solid
Earth, oceans, atmosphere, and living things as part of geochemical cycles.
3. Recognize that the evolution of life on Earth has changed the composition of Earth’s atmosphere through
time.
D. How We Study the Earth
1. Analyze the evidence produced by a variety of techniques that is used to understand changes in the Earth
that have occurred over time.
topography
fossils
rock stratification
ice cores
radiometric data
STANDARD 5.10 (ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES) ALL STUDENTS WILL DEVELOP AN
UNDERSTANDING OF THE ENVIRONMENT AS A SYSTEM OF INTERDEPENDENT
COMPONENTS AFFECTED BY HUMAN ACTIVITY AND NATURAL PHENOMENA.
Descriptive Statement: Creating an awareness of the need to protect, conserve, and preserve natural
resources is a goal of science education. This standard calls for students to develop knowledge of
environmental issues, including management of natural resources, production and use of energy, waste
management, and the interdependence of ecosystems.
A. Natural Systems and Interactions
1. Distinguish naturally occurring process from those believed to have been modified by human interaction or
activity.
climate change
ozone production
erosion and deposition
threatened and endangered species
B. Human Interactions and Impact
1. Assess the impact of human activities on the cycling of matter and the flow of energy through ecosystems.
2. Use scientific, economic, and other data to assess environmental risks and benefits associated with societal
activity.
IV.
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS AND CONTENT
Humans in the Environment
  What is the difference between overpopulation and consumption overpopulation?
  What are the three most important factors that determine human impact on the environment?
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How are the global commons exploited?
What are the five stages of addressing environmental problems?
Why are environmental impact statements important?
What are the costs associated with pollution?
The Living World and Earth’s Systems
  How are the laws of thermodynamics related to photosynthesis and cellular respiration?
  How does energy flow through a food web?
  What is ecological succession?
  What are the major types of interactions between organisms?
  How might a limiting resource affect a species’ ecological niche?
  What is a keystone species?
  What are the main steps in each of the following biogeochemical cycles: carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus,
sulfur, and water?
  What distinguishes each of the five layers of the Earth’s atmosphere?
  What basic forces determine the circulation of the Earth’s atmosphere?
  How does solar intensity differ at different latitudes affect temperature at the Earth’s surface?
  What is the role of solar energy and the Coriolis effect in global water flow patterns?
  What are some effects of El Nino?
  How do you distinguish between weather and climate?
  What is plate tectonics?
  Where do earthquakes and volcanoes commonly occur and why?
  What two climate factors are the most important in determining an area’s characteristic biome?
  What environmental factors are most important in determining the kinds of organisms found in aquatic
environments?
  What are the problems associated with chemicals that exhibit bioaccumulation and biomagnification?
  How does a dose-response curve help determine the health effects of environmental pollutants?
  How does risk assessment help determine adverse health effects?
  What information does a cost-benefit analysis provide decision makers?
Human Population Dynamics
  What is population ecology?
  What is the effect of each of the following on population size: birth rate, death rate, immigration, and
emigration?
  How do intrinsic rate of increase and carrying capacity produce the J-shaped and S-shaped population
growth curves?
  When determining Earth’s carrying capacity for humans, what must be considered in addition to human
numbers?
  What is the relationship between carrying capacity and agricultural productivity?
  What is the relationship between economic development and population growth?
  How can a government encourage global population stabilization?
  What problems are associated with suburban sprawl?
  How can city planners incorporate environmental sustainability?
Energy Consumption
  How does energy consumption differ in highly developed versus developing countries?
  What environmental problems are associated with the use of fossil fuels?
  How do government subsidies affect energy prices?
  What are the advantages and disadvantages of producing electricity through nuclear energy?
  What are the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy, wind energy, and hydropower?
  What is the difference between energy conservation and energy efficiency?
Earth’s Resources
  Which human activity is responsible for almost 70% of global water consumption?
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How can sustainable water use be achieved?
How can cities promote water conservation?
What are the four components of soil, and how is each important?
What ecosystem services are performed by soil organisms?
What is sustainable soil use?
Through what natural processes are minerals concentrated in Earth’s crust?
What are some harmful environmental effects of mining and processing minerals?
How can minerals be conserved?
What are some important ecosystem services provided by biological diversity?
How do humans cause species endangerment and extinction?
Why are conservation biology and restoration ecology important?
What is the goal of wildlife management?
What are some strategies to protect biological diversity?
What are some important ecosystem services provided by natural areas?
What are the environmental impacts of industrialized agriculture?
What are some harmful environmental effects associated with the farming of fish?
Pollution
  What are the characteristics and effects of each class of air pollutants?
  How did the Clean Air Act affect air pollution?
  Why is air pollution worse in developing countries than in highly developed countries?
  What are some potential effects of global climate change?
  How can we diminish and adapt to global climate change?
  What are some effects of water pollution?
  What is the difference between point source and nonpoint source pollution?
  What are the main goals of the Safe Drinking Water Act?
  What are the advantages and disadvantages of pesticide use?
  What are some alternatives to pesticide use?
  How do laws regulate pesticide use?
  How can we reduce the volume of solid waste?
Choices for the Future
  What is environmental sustainability?
  What steps must we take to stay within Earth’s carrying capacity?
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VI.
STRATEGIES
Students will regularly answer essay questions that require them to analyze environmental problems or
design experiments and discuss their possible results and applications.
Students will participate in lab explorations to discover, verify, apply, and extend concepts from biological
and physical sciences.
Students will participate in field-based investigations during which they will pose hypotheses, develop
methods and sampling protocols, and collect, analyze, and interpret original data.
Students will develop models which represent their understanding of the connections among Earth’s
biotic and abiotic systems.
Students will engage in teacher-guided class discussions which explore environmental risk assessment,
predict future conditions, and propose solutions to local and global environmental issues.
EVALUATION
Student assessment is accomplished on a regular basis using a variety of measures including:
  Class work
  Evaluation of Homework
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Lab Reports
Quizzes
Tests
Classroom Presentations
VII.
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Field Study
Individual Experiment/Research Project
AP Exam
REQUIRED RESOURCES
Textbook:
Raven & Berg, Environment, 5th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2006
Supplemental Resources:
McConnell & Abel, Environmental Issues: Measuring, Analyzing, and Evaluating, Prentice Hall, 2002
Molnar, Laboratory Investigations: AP Environmental Science, The Peoples Publishing Group, 2005
VIII.
SCOPE AND SEQUENCE
Unit 1 – Humans in the Environment (3 weeks)
Chapter 1 – Introducing Environmental Science and Sustainability (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Definition and importance of Environmental Science
Sustainability
Tragedy of the Commons
Scientific Method
How to identify and analyze environmental problems
Activities:
  Hunger Banquet
  Experimental Design
  Tragedy of the Commons Sustainable Fishing Simulation
  Basic Concepts and Tools: Using Math and Critical Thinking
Chapter 2 – Environmental Laws, Economics, and Ethics (1 week)
Topics:
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history and policies of conservation and environmental movements
Unit 2 – The Living World and Earth’s Systems (10 weeks)
Chapter 3 - Ecosystems and Energy (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Ecology
Ecosystems
Laws of thermodynamics
Flow of energy through ecosystems
Activities:
  Net Primary Productivity Lab
  Eating at a Lower Trophic Level
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Chapter 4 - Ecosystems and Living Organisms (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Four premises of evolution by natural selection
Primary and secondary succession
Keystone species
Symbiosis (distinguish among mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism)
Species richness
Activities:
  The Lorax
  "The Effects of Coyote Removal in Texas: A Case Study in Conservation Biology"
  Predator-Prey Simulation
  Field Trip: Hutcheson Memorial Forest - succession
Chapter 5 – Ecosystems and the Physical Environment (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Carbon cycle
Nitrogen cycle
Phosphorus cycle
Water cycle
Human effect on biogeochemical cycles
Solar energy and its role in climate and atmospheric circulation
Patterns of ocean circulation and its interaction with the atmosphere
Weather versus climate
Plate tectonics
Activities:
  Bathymetric Maps and Plate Tectonics
  Fundamental Topics in Meteorology
  Specific Heat and Climate
  Formation of Deserts
Chapter 6 - Major Ecosystems of the World (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Nine major terrestrial biomes
Human effects on each type of biome
Types of aquatic ecosystems
Environmental factors and human behavior affecting aquatic ecosystems
Activities:
  NY/NJ Baykeeper guest lecture – oyster project in the Raritan Bay Estuary
Chapter 7 – Human Health & Environmental Toxicology (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Use of chemicals hazardous to human health
Risk analyses to determine adverse health effects using a dose-response curve
Ecological effects using cost-benefit analyses
Activities:
  Book discussion: Silent Spring
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Movie discussions: Erin Brockovich, A Civil Action
What Is the Risk?
Allium Test
Unit 3 – Human Population Dynamics (4 weeks)
Chapter 8 - Population Change (1 week)
Topics:
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Factors that produce changes in population size
Biotic potential (intrinsic rate of increase)
Carrying capacity
Differences between J-shaped and S-shaped growth curves
Density-dependent and density-independent factors that affect population size
Type I, Type II, and Type III survivorship curves
Infant mortality rate
Total fertility rate
Replacement-level fertility
Age structure
Activities:
  Population Growth Project
  Video: The World in Balance (NOVA)
  Quantitative Analysis: World Population Growth
Chapter 9 - Facing the Problems of Overpopulation (2 weeks)
Topics:
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Effects of population size to hunger, natural resources, the environment, and economics methods of
several governments to slow population growth
Steps governments and individuals can take to achieve global population stabilization
Activities:
  Population Distribution and Survivorship
Chapter 10 – The Urban World (1 week)
Topics:
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Urbanization
Trends in the distribution of people in rural and urban areas
Problems associated with the rapid growth rates of large urban areas
How cities are analyzed from an ecosystem perspective
Brownfields
Use of zoning in land use planning
How a city’s transportation infrastructure affects urban development
Suburban sprawl
Characteristics of an ideal sustainable city
Activities:
  Guest lecture – Conditions in Bombay
  Guest lecture – Urban Ecology
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Unit 4 –Energy Consumption (2 weeks)
Chapter 11 - Fossil Fuels (1 ½ weeks)
Topics:
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Per-capita energy consumption in highly developed and developing areas
Advantages, disadvantages, and environmental problems associated with coal, oil, and natural gas use
Synfuels
Reasons for the US to develop a comprehensive national energy strategy
Activities:
  CO2 Emissions from Fossil-Fuel Burning
  Political Activism Letter
  Movie: Who Killed the Electric Car
Chapter 12 - Nuclear Energy (1 week)
Topics:
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Nuclear processes
How mined uranium is used inside the reactor to produce heat and then electricity
How clean the process is compared to coal
Cost
Safety concerns
Activities:
  Pennium-123
  Energy Resource Comparison
Chapter 13 - Renewable Energy and Conservation (1 ½ weeks)
Topics:
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Active and passive solar energy
Advantages and disadvantages of solar thermal electric generation and photovoltaic solar cells in
converting solar energy into electricity
Renewable energy sources that are not direct or indirect results of solar energy
Energy conservation versus energy efficiency
Activities:
  Solar Absorption
Part 5 – Earth’s Resources (5 weeks)
Chapter 14 – Water: A Limited Resource (1 week)
Topics:
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Chemistry of a water molecule
Water cycle
Problems due to flooding
Problems due to lack of water
Suggest conservation strategies
Activities:
  Water Loss Drop by Drop
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Water Diversions
Stream Monitoring – Chemical analysis and macroinvertebrates to determine water quality
Chapter 15 – Soil Resources (½ week)
Topics:
  Nature and properties of soil
  What can happen to plants and water resources if erosion or mineral depletion occurs
  Sustainable soil use
Activities:
  Soil Analysis
Chapter 16 – Minerals: A Nonrenewable Resource (½ week)
Topics:
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Properties of minerals – types of ores, how they form, and how deposits are discovered and harvested
Environmental impact of mining, global consumption patterns
Conservation strategies
Activities:
  Copper Extraction
Chapter 17 – Preserving Earth’s Biological Diversity (1½ weeks)
Topics:
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Importance of biodiversity
Threatened, endangered, and extinct species
Characteristics common to many endangered species
Human causes of species endangerment and extinction
How invasive species endanger native species
Conservation biology and wildlife management
Activities:
  Invasive species walk
  Shannon-Weiner Diversity Index
Chapter 18 – Land Resources (1 week)
Topics:
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Trends in land use across the United States
Natural areas
Federal lands
Wetlands
Agricultural lands
Deforestation
Desertification
Threats to wetlands
Activities:
  Research Activity: Natural Areas
  Video: Full Focus Fire Management
  Field trip or Guest lecture: Fire damage and recovery - Pine Barrens
  Field trip or Guest lecture: Characteristics and local preservation – Wetlands
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Chapter 19 - Food Resources (½ week)
Topics:
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Industrialized agriculture
Subsistence agriculture
Current food safety issues
Environmental impacts of industrialized agriculture
Potential benefits and problems with genetic engineering
Fishing and aquaculture
Unit 6 - Pollution (5 weeks)
Chapter 20 - Air Pollution (1 week)
Topics:
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Classes of air pollutants
Adverse health effects of specific air pollutants
Effects of the Clean Air Act on air pollution
Air pollution conditions in less developed countries
Activities:
  Particulate Air Pollution Lab
  Acid Rain Lab
Chapter 21 – Regional and Global Atmospheric Changes (1 week)
Topics:
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Greenhouse effect
Greenhouse gases
Potential effects of global warming, including rising sea level, changes in precipitation patterns, effects
on organisms, effects on human health, and effects on agriculture
Ways to alleviate and adapt to global warming
Parts of the ozone layer
Potential effects of ozone depletion
Activities:
  Global Climate Change Project
  Video discussion: An Inconvenient Truth
Chapter 22 - Water Pollution (1 week)
Topics:
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How sewage is related to eutrophication, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and dissolved oxygen
Point source pollution
Nonpoint source pollution
Primary, secondary, and tertiary treatments for wastewater
Goals of the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Clean Water Act
Soil pollution
Salinization
Activities:
  Soil Salinization Lab
  Drinking Water Safety Lab
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Chapter 23 - The Pesticide Dilemma (1 week)
Topics:
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Types of pesticides
Problems associated with pesticide use, including development of genetic resistance; creation of
imbalances in the ecosystem; persistence, bioaccumulation, and biological magnification; and
mobility in the environment
Alternative ways to control pests, including cultivation methods, biological controls, reproductive
controls, pheromones and hormones, genetic controls, quarantine, integrated pest management and
irradiating foods
U.S. laws that regulate pesticides
Activities:
  Organic Feud
Chapter 24 - Solid and Hazardous Wastes (1 week)
Topics:
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Municipal and non-municipal solid waste
Sanitary landfills
Mass burn incinerators
Source reduction, reuse, and recycling help reduce the volume of solid waste
Hazardous waste
Legislation and environmental justice
Activities:
  Energy and Recycling Assessment
  Solid Waste Education Project
  Solid Waste Collection Lab
Unit 7 - Choices for the Future (1 week)
Chapter 25 - Tomorrow’s World
Topics:
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Sustainability
Challenges confronting our efforts to improve the quality of human life worldwide
Role of education in changing personal attitudes and practices that affect the environment
Important environmental goals that can be accomplished most effectively at national and
international levels
Activities:
  Personal Energy Use Audit
  Globalization and the Environment
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