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Human Activities STUDENT NOTES B-6.6| Date:

|Human |Humans play a role in ecosystems and geochemical cycles. |

|activi|People depend on Earth to provide __________________________, breathable air, and ____________ capable of supporting crops. |

|ty |Human activities can affect the cycle and processes of earth. They include: |

| |________________________________________ |

| |________________________________________ |

| |________________________________________ |

|Carryi|What is the carrying capacity of an environment? |

|ng | |

|capaci| |

|ty |______________, _______________, ______________, and ____________________ are just a few factors that determine the carrying capacity of Earth for the human|

| |population. |

|Sustai|What is sustainability? |

|nabili| |

|ty |To achieve sustainability, there needs to be a balance between ____________________ and ___________________________________, human needs, and the needs of |

| |other species. |

| | |

| |Factors that affect human sustainability: |

| |_________________________________________ |

| |_________________________________________ |

| |_________________________________________ |

|Popula| |

|tion |World-wide population has grown ____________________________ and likely will continue to grow rapidly. |

|growth| |

| |The natural slowing of population growth will result in increased death rate and decreased birth rate – it will be caused by |

| |_________________________________________ |

| |_________________________________________ |

| |_________________________________________ |

|Increa| |

|sing |_________________________________________ |

|popula|If clean water is being USED more than PURIFIED, it is not considered renewable in our lifetime. |

|tions |_________________________________________ |

|will |Although we can control waste disposal, more waste is produced than we can effectively manage. |

|have |Some waste is too complicated or expensive to remove once in the environment. |

|an |_________________________________________ |

|effect|Soil is often lost when land is cleared, making the land unusable for agriculture. |

|on the|Worldwide demand for land has led to ______________________________________. |

|amount|As forests are cut down, fewer trees absorb __________ and the increase in this gas leads to _______________________________ - the heat cannot escape. |

|of… |Deforestation can increase erosion and decrease soil generation. |

|Techno| |

|logy |Different types of technology have led to finding solutions to problems or developing products to meet human needs. |

| | |

| |It has also contributed to _______________________ of air, water, and land. |

| | |

| |We need to depend on technology to provide ________________________________, safer ways to deal with waste, and better methods for |

| |________________________________________________. |

| | |

| |Three types: |

| |Agricultural technology |

| |Industrial technology |

| |Alternative energy technology |

|Agricu| |

|ltural|___________________________________ has improved to sustain our growing population. |

|techno| |

|logy |Sustainable agricultural practices can help conserve ______________________ and reduce __________________. |

| | |

| |Farm machinery consumes ____________________________ resources and can contribute to erosion and air pollution. |

| | |

| |The addition of chemicals (fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, livestock waste) can alter soil composition and have a good or bad effect on water, carbon, |

| |or nitrogen cycles. |

|Indust| |

|rial |Used for __________________________, __________________________, and __________________________. |

|techno| |

|logy |Certain chemicals deplete the _____________________________. |

| |Ex: __________ (chlorofluorohydrocarbons) – used in producing foam packing materials, for cleaning electrical components, and refrigeration chemicals |

| |(Freon). |

| | |

| |The disposal of outdated or damaged equipment is becoming an increasing concern. |

| | |

| |Burning ____________________ for industry and transportation increases sustainability, but it also… |

| |Increases _________________________________________ released in the atmosphere (mainly CO2), which increases global temperatures (global warming) that |

| |affect sea levels, climate, and atmospheric composition. |

| |Produces _______________________. |

| |Acid rain can leach nutrients from ______________, destroy plant life, and change the _________ of aquatic ecosystems, affecting organisms that live there. |

|Altern| |

|ative |Using natural ___________________________________ (such as wind, water, geothermal, or solar energy) decreases the burning of |

|energy|______________________________, which increases the quality of the atmosphere and the cycles involved. |

|techno| |

|logy |Using ________________ energy technology provides an alternative energy source that does not impact the atmosphere. However, the waste produced from nuclear|

| |energy use is becoming an increasing concern. |

|Consum|As the population increases, the demand for resources also increases. However, there is a _________________________________ of these resources available. |

|ption | |

|of |Sustainable use of resources can be accomplished by: |

|resour|___________________________________, ___________________________________, and ___________________________________ |

|ces | |

| |Two types of resources: renewable and nonrenewable |

|Renewa|Renewable resources: |

|ble | |

|and |Examples: |

|nonren|Renewable resources have factors that limit their production, for example the amount of grain that can be produced is limited by the amount of land |

|ewable|available for farming, fertility of the land, productivity of the grain, or availability of clean water. |

|resour| |

|ces |Nonrenewable resources: |

| | |

| |Examples: |

| |The demand for minerals, metals, and ores increases because they are vital to industry, but are decreasing in availability. |

| |Minerals are nonrenewable because mineral deposits are formed so slowly by geological processes that their formation is of no practical use to us. |

Focus Questions

1. Which three major types of human activities affect the cycles and processes of Earth?

2. What is carrying capacity? What factors affect it?

3. What is sustainability?

4. Describe population growth. What causes it to slow down?

5. Increasing populations will have an effect on the amount of what?

6. What is the major effect of agriculture?

7. What are the major effects of technology?

8. What are the three types of technology? Describe them!

9. Describe the differences between renewable and nonrenewable resources.

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