Name
Class
Date
6.1 A Changing Landscape
The Effect of Human Activity Humans and other organisms change the environment when
they obtain food, eliminate wastes, and prepare places to live.
Because Earth is like an island, life is limited to the resources that are here.
Humans affect regional and global environments through three major activities:
 _______________________, particularly ___________________________, which is the
cultivation of a single crop
 _______________________________________________________, including conversion of
farmland and destruction of habitats for other organisms
 _______________________________________, which consumes energy and emits pollutants
Sustainable Development In economic terms, ecosystems are providers of goods and services
(natural resources).
Healthy ecosystems produce or replace ______________________________________.
Humans must be careful about the use of _____________________________________________,
such as _________________________, which cannot be replaced.
_______________________________________________ provides for human needs while preserving
the ecosystems that provide renewable resources.
The Effect of Human Activity
Consequences of Some Human Activities
Activity
Positive Consequences
Agriculture
Development
Industrial Growth
How is Earth like an island?
Negative Consequences
Sustainable Development
coal
marsh grass
natural gas
oil
Renewable Resources
1. Sustainable development is the wise use of
renewable resources
nonrenewable resources
pine tree
wind
Nonrenewable Resources
.
both renewable and nonrenewable
resources
2. When fossil fuels are depleted, they are essentially gone
for a little while
forever
3. A
renewable resource
.
cannot be produced within a reasonable amount of time.
nonrenewable resource
4. Which of the following is an example of sustainable development? Circle the right answer.
When building a new house, the builders leave many of the trees in place.
After they paint a building, the painters dump the leftover paint in a nearby stream.
A new highway goes through a wetland.
6.2 Using Resources Wisely
Soil Resources Soil is a _________________________________, but it must be managed properly.
________________________________ is the wearing away of surface soil by water and wind.
In dry climates, farming and overgrazing change farmland into deserts, a process called
_________________________________.
__________________________________ is loss of forests. Because healthy forests hold soil in
place, deforestation increases erosion.
Sustainable uses include leaving stems and roots of previous crops in place,
__________________________, contour plowing, terracing, selectively harvesting mature trees, and
__________________________.
Freshwater Resources The amount of fresh water is limited, and some sources cannot be
replaced.
A __________________________ is a harmful material that can enter the biosphere. Water
pollutants come from industrial chemicals, residential sewage, and other sources.
Nonpoint pollution________________________________________________________
Point pollution________________________________________________________
Many chemical pollutants become concentrated in organisms at higher trophic levels of the food
chain through ___________________________________________.
Sustainable uses include conservation, pollution control, and watershed protection.
Atmospheric Resources Clean air is important to human health and Earth’s climate. Pollution
reduces air quality.
__________________ is a mixture of chemicals formed from emissions from cars and industry.
Burning fossil fuels releases compounds that join with water in air, forming ___________________.
_______________________, such as ______________________ and ___________________, can
cause global warming.
Particulates are microscopic particles that cause health problems.
One way of sustaining air quality is controlling automobile emissions.
Soil Resources
What is topsoil? How does it form?
Sustainable
Soil Use
Examples
What is a “dead zone,” and what is its cause?
Atmospheric Resources
1. Which is the name for the mixture of chemicals that forms as a gray-brown haze in the
atmosphere?
A. dust
C. ozone
B. smog
D. radiation
2. Which component of acid rain kills plants and harms soil?
A. carbon dioxide and water
C. nitric and sulfuric acids
B. CFCs and fossil fuels
D. ozone and particulates
3. Which is the name for the bits of ash and dust put into the air by certain kinds of diesel engines?
A. particulates
C. ozone layer
B. precipitation
D. greenhouse gases
4. Which is a pollutant of soil and water that is now dropping steadily due to laws that affected the
automobile industry?
A. carbon
C. nitrogen
B. lead
D. ozone
5. Why is smog a problem?
Biological Magnification The diagram below shows the biological magnification of the pollutant
DDT.
1. Find the trophic level with the lowest
concentration of DDT. Color it blue.
2. Find the trophic level with the highest
concentration of DDT. Color it red.
3. Draw an arrow showing how the
concentration of DDT increases in
trophic levels.
Use the diagram to answer the questions.
4. Circle the organism that has the most DDT in its body.
zooplankton
small fish
5. Think about your answer to item 4. Select the choice below that best explains the reasoning behind
your answer.
A. Zooplankton has DDT. Small fish eat lots of zooplankton. Therefore DDT builds up in
the bodies of the small fish.
B. Large fish eat small fish, and large fish have more DDT than small fish. Therefore
small fish have the most DDT.
Concept Map
acid rain
automobile emission standards
crop rotation
deforestation
desertification
drip irrigation
greenhouse gases
industrial chemicals
nonpoint sources
residential sewage
smog
Negative human impacts on the
environment
Water pollution
Soil erosion
Air pollution
resulting from unwise handling of
common forms are
Gray-brown haze
Loss of trees
poor soil
productivity
CO2
acid
precipitation
DDT, etc.
other sources
nitrogen and phosphorous in
Sustainable environmental practices
Water conservation and
water quality
such as
Soil conservation
such as
Air quality
such as
6.3 Biodiversity
The Value of Biodiversity The sum of all the genetic diversity among all the organisms in the
biosphere is called __________________________. There are three general types of biodiversity:
____________________________________ is the variety of habitats, communities, and ecological
processes in the biosphere.
______________________________________________ is the number of different species in an area or in the
biosphere.
________________________________________ is the total of all genetic information carried in living things.
Biodiversity benefits humans through its contributions to medicine and agriculture and through the
provision of ecological goods and services.
Threats to Biodiversity Human activities threaten biodiversity.
Development splits ecosystems into pieces, resulting in ______________________________. The
smaller the pieces of a habitat, the less likely that species in the habitat can survive.
Other threats to biodiversity include hunting, introduced species, pollution, and climate change.
Conserving Biodiversity Conservation efforts are focused on three things:
____________________________________________________________ is the focus of groups such as the
Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), which oversees species survival plans (SSPs).
_______________________________________________________________________ is the main thrust of global
efforts. Biologists are particularly concerned about __________________________________________,
which are places where significant numbers of habitats and species are in immediate danger of
extinction.
_______________________________________________________________ is part of developing plans to replace
harmful activities with ones that conserve environments and biodiversity.
Threats to Biodiversity

The current rate of species loss is ______________ times the typical rate of extinction.

Habitat fragmentation __________________ the impact of hunting on endangered species.

______________________ species can become invasive and threaten biodiversity.

The increased concentration of carbon dioxide in air is making oceans ____________________
and putting stress on coral reefs.
What are five ways that human activity reduces biodiversity?
Identify three reasons why endangered species are hunted.
6.4 Meeting Ecological Challenges
Ecological Footprints The _____________________________________ of an individual or a
population is the amount of land and water needed to provide resources, absorb wastes, and render the
wastes harmless.
Ecological Footprints
Explain this statement: The average American has an ecological footprint
more than four times larger than the global average.
Ecology in Action
Case Study 1: Atmospheric Ozone
The ozone layer is a high concentration of ozone at about
above Earth’s surface.
The ozone layer is important to humans because it protects against exposure to _____________
from the sun. UV radiation causes __________________, damages eyes, and reduces resistance to
disease.
Case Study 2: North Atlantic Fisheries
Technologies that have led to large increases in the mass of ocean fish caught include large boats and
high-tech
equipment. ______________________ caused the
decline in fish catches since 1997. An alternative to commercial fishing is ______________________,
which produces large amounts of food with minimal environmental damage if properly managed.
Case Study 3: Climate Change
How does the change in global temperature between 1850
and 2000 compare with the change that occurred between
1850 and 1880?
List three factors that may have contributed to the trend shown in the graph.
Suggest three possible effects of global warming on the future of the biosphere.