HUMAN IMPACT
1. In many parts of Florida, water is becoming a scarce resource. If water is in short supply, which of the following activities
would be best to avoid:
A. installing low flow showerheads
B. using drip irrigation on crops
C. watering lawns during the daytime
D. waterskiing on lakes and rivers
2. Which of the following is a benefit of buying locally grown food?
A. Fewer pesticides are used in growing it.
B. It contains a higher quantity of nutrients.
C. It costs less than food grown elsewhere.
D. Less fuel is needed to transport it.
3. The country intends to keep their existing power plant running, but they could make changes so that it could burn a different
fuel. Which of the following fuels would be best to burn in this power plant if they want to keep carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions
as low as possible?
A. landfill gas
B. lignite coal
C. natural gas
D. municipal solid waste
4. Why is it important for the government of this country to consider the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by different
energy sources when choosing a fuel for their power plant?
A. CO2 can damage lung tissue, which would lead to increased health care costs later on.
B. CO2 is a major greenhouse gas, and other forms of pollution are produced along with it.
C. CO2 causes plants to grow more slowly, which would affect their ability to grow crops for food.
D. CO2 reacts with oxygen (O2) to form ozone, and this can lead to increased risk of skin cancer.
5. Considering the country's resources and its goals (for example, to minimize CO2 production), which of the following would
be the most environmentally sound energy choice for them as they build new power plants for more electricity generation?
A. Hydroelectric, because it produces no CO2 and they have many rivers of their own that they could dam.
B. Anthracite coal, because they already know how to operate a plant that runs on it and they can buy coal from their
neighbors.
C. Natural gas, because it produces less CO2 than any other fuel and they could purchase it from neighboring countries.
D. Wood, because they have lots of forests which are potentially renewable and people could make money by cutting
wood and selling it to the power company.
6. Farmers in the Great Plains states use irrigation to grow wheat and corn in areas with little rainfall. The fields are irrigated
with water from the Ogallala Aquifer. About 4,000 gallons of water produce one bushel of corn, and about 11,000 gallons of
water produce one bushel of wheat. While irrigation lets farmers grow more food, more water has been drawn from the aquifer
than has seeped back in. The water level in the aquifer is rapidly dropping. How could farmers manage their crops to use the
water in the aquifer more sustainably?
A. Farmers could grow crops that are more suited to the amount of rainfall the area gets. For instance, they could grow
corn in the areas where rainfall was sufficient for corn but not for wheat.
B. The farmers should only grow corn. It would use less water for irrigation because wheat uses almost three times as
much water as corn does to grow the same quantity of food.
7. Floridians get most of their water from underground aquifers that recharge slowly as rainwater percolates down through the
soil into the limestone. Each day, every Floridian uses an average of about 170 gallons of this water, but only a fraction of it is
used for drinking and cooking. Most of it is used for irrigation and for industrial applications. Describe two ways in which we
could make better use of our existing water supply so everyone has enough and we don't use our aquifers unsustainably.
A. One way we could help conserve the existing water supply is to have the utility companies charge people more
money if they use more than a certain amount of water each month. That way, if they water their lawns too much, it
will cost a lot more money. The government could also encourage or even require people in Florida to use water
saving devices in their homes, such as special water spouts for their sinks that can be bought at a home improvement
store.
B. One way in which we could use our water more wisely would be to use sources such as the partially treated water
from the sewage treatment plants for irrigation and reserve the clean water from the aquifer for drinking and cooking.
Another way would be to encourage or require people to plant their yards with native plants that need little or no
irrigation other than rainfall. That way less of the clean water would be wasted on irrigation.
8. Solar energy can be used to generate electricity even in places where winters are long and cold. Special solar panels,
called photovoltaic cells, are needed to create an electrical current when sunlight strikes the panels. Describe two advantages
of using solar energy to generate electricity. Then describe two drawbacks to producing electricity with solar energy.
A. Using solar energy is beneficial in that it does not create harmful pollution as the electricity is being generated and
power can be produced on almost any rooftop, avoiding having to build costly power generating plants. Since each
solar panel can only produce a small amount of electricity it would take a huge number of solar panels to create
enough electricity to satisfy current needs. Also, they can only generate power while the Sun is up. Energy would
have to be stored to provide power at night.
B. Producing electricity using solar energy would be beneficial because it does not cause any pollution and it is free, so
people would save all of the money they are currently paying on their power bills by making their own electricity on
their roof. There are several disadvantages to using solar power. Solar panels cannot produce power on cloudy days
or when the Sun is down so people would be without electricity during those times. Also, if the panels broke down,
everyone would have to know how to fix them.