Name __________________________________________ Date _____________ Hour _______
Due Date: ______________________________________
Ecological Footprint WebQuest:
Directions: Follow the links described below and work through the questions and actions described.
Please make sure you explain each answer in such a way that a 10 year old could understand…do
NOT copy directly from the website. You will have to synthesize what you read! Use complete
sentences for full credit.
What is an ecological footprint?
Go to http://www.footprintnetwork.org/gfn_sub.php?content=footprint_overview and read the
overview of an ecological footprint. (No, you will not be reading this entire webpage!)
1. What is an ecological footprint?
It is a measure of our demand on nature, how much land and water area a human population
needs to produce the resource it uses and to get rid of its wastes.
2. How much larger is our ecological footprint than the rate the planet can regenerate?
The planet needs an additional four months to replace and absorb what we use up in a year.
Go to http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/earth_overshoot_day/ and read about
Earth Overshoot day.
3. Earth Overshoot day was Sept 23, 2008. What does that mean?
We used as much of the planets resources that it can regenerate in a year by that date. We are
exceeding our ecological budget for that year.
4. Why is Earth Overshoot day earlier this year than last year?
We are using up our resources faster.
Ecological Impact Quiz:
Go to http://www.earthday.net/footprint/index.html and enter the quiz. DO NOT ENTER YOUR
EMAIL!
5. Take the quiz and compare your average ecological footprint with the average footprint of 24
acres in the United States. Make sure your teacher sees the final “page” of the quiz. Get your
teacher to initial here: __________________
Go to http://www.rprogress.org/ecological_footprint/footprint_FAQs.htm and answer these questions.
6. What is the measurement unit of the ecological footprint?
The Ecological Footprint is global hectares (gha) or acres. 1 gha = 2.47 acres.
7. What assumptions are made in order to calculate an ecological footprint?
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You know how much is consumed.
We can actually balance intake and out take.
Land can be converted to equivalent measures of productivity.
Each standardized acre represents the same amount of biomass productivity.
It is also possible to assess the area on the planet that is biologically productive.
Green Diet:
Go to http://www.cspinet.org/EatingGreen/index.html and click on the “Score Your Diet” link at the
top toolbar.
8. Select the average number of servings you have for each type of food per week. When you
are done, also read about the things that affect your health, environment and animal welfare
score (on the left side of that same page). Get your teacher to initial when you are done. ____
On the top pane, locate and click on “Take a Tour of the Conventional Food Supply” in the upper
right hand side of the page.
9. Click on the “Feed Grain” [the lower part of the field] and read the facts. Cattle would
naturally consume primarily grass diets. What types of problems are associated with feeding
cattle grains instead of grass?
Need more land to grow the grain and uses lots of pesticide and insecticide. Depletes the soil
and compacts it which may restrict water absorption. Health issues for cows-liver disease,
hoof and digestive problems. Increases the fat in the meat = and consumers.
10. Click on the “Irrigation” [the moving water sprayer] and read about irrigating feed-grain
crops. Feed-grain crops are those crops grown solely to be fed to animals that we will later
butcher for food. How much water is used every year in the United States to irrigate feedgrain crops? 15 trillion gallons
11. Click on the “Animal Feed” [the pig building] and read about how we feed much of the
livestock in the United States. Why are more antibiotics fed to healthy livestock than are used
to treat sick people? To compensate for unsanitary conditions
12. Select at least three more steps in the conventional food supply chain. Write down at least five
new pieces of information you learned—complete sentences please.
Restaurants
Fertilizer plants
Supermarkets
Rivers and Streams
Slaughter house
Transportation