BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES

WHAT IS A “BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE”?

 Bio= Life
 Geo= Earth
 Chemical= Elements – C, O, N, P, S

 Biogeochemical Cycles are cyclic paths of elements and inorganic compounds that sustain life,
referred to as nutrients, from the atmosphere to the lithosphere (soil) or hydrosphere (water) into living
things and then back into these environments

 Biogeochemical cycles important to living organisms include the water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur
cycles.
 Energy flows through an
An Ecosystem survives by a
ecosystem and is dissipated
combination of energy flow
as heat, but chemical
(from sun to earth) and
elements are recycled.
matter cycling.

The Earth is a closed system where materials cycle between

the lithosphere (Earth), atmosphere, hydrosphere, and
biosphere.
 The six most common elements in organic molecules take a variety of chemical
forms.
 carbon,
 nitrogen,
 hydrogen,
 oxygen,
 phosphorus,
 and sulfur

 They may be stored for long or short periods in the atmosphere, on land,
in water, or beneath the Earth’s surface, as well as in the bodies of living
organisms.
 WATER CYCLE

The hydrologic cycle, or water cycle

collects, purifies and distributes the
Earth’s fixed water supply. The vast
majority of Earth's water is saltwater
found in oceans. Only a tiny fraction
is readily accessible freshwater, which
is what humans need.
The main processes in this water recycling and
purifying cycle are:

evaporation or the conversion of water to

water vapor; condensation or the conversion
of water vapor to droplets of liquid water;
transpiration, or the process in which water,
after being absorbed by the root system of
plants and passing through their living structure,
evaporates into the atmosphere as water vapor;
precipitation, such as dew, rain, sleet, hail,
snow; and runoff, which is the draining of water
back to the sea to begin the cycle again.
SURFACE RUNOFF

 Surface runoff: the flow of freshwater over land

either from rain or melting ice. Runoff can make its
way through streams and lakes to the oceans.
 Water moves along the surface as runoff only when
the soil is saturated with water, when rain is falling
very hard, or when the surface can't absorb much
water. A non-absorbent surface could be rock in a
natural ecosystem or asphalt or cement in an urban
or suburban ecosystem.
WATER RESERVOIR

 Groundwater is a significant, subsurface reservoir

of fresh water. It exists in the pores between
particles in dirt, sand, and gravel or in the fissures in
rocks

 Groundwater reservoirs, or aquifers, are usually

the source of drinking or irrigation water drawn
up through wells.
EFFECTS OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON WATER CYCLE

 We alter the water cycle by:

 Withdrawing large amounts of freshwater
 Clearing vegetation and eroding soils
 Polluting surface and underground water
 Contributing to climate change
CARBON CYCLE

 The Carbon Cycle includes the processes and

pathways involved in capturing inorganic carbon-
containing molecules, converting them into organic
molecules that are used by organisms, and the
ultimate release of inorganic carbon molecule back
to the abiotic environment.
CARBON: BUILDING BLOCK AND FUEL SOURCE

 Carbon is an essential element in the bodies of living

organisms. It is also economically important to
modern humans, in the form of fossil fuels.

 Carbon is part of our bodies, but it's also part of our

modern-day industries. Carbon compounds from
long-ago plants and algae make up the fossil fuels,
such as coal and natural gas, that we use today as
energy sources. When these fossil fuels are burned,
carbon dioxide—is released into the air
 During photosynthesis, green plants absorb carbon
dioxide from the air and combine it with hydrogen from
water absorbed from the soil. Complex organic
molecules such as sugar or carbohydrates are formed
and oxygen molecules are released into the
atmosphere.
 Consumers use these organic molecules as food.
Animal cells burn sugars in the process known as
respiration, releasing carbon dioxide back to the
atmosphere. Decomposers, on the other hand, use the
organic molecules contained in animal waste products
and dead organisms as food. The decay process releases
carbon dioxide and water back to the environment.
 Buried plant and animal materials become fossil fuels
(coal, oil and natural gas) by geologic forces. When we
burn fossil fuels, the carbon reenters the active carbon
cycle.
EFFECTS OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON CARBON CYCLE

 We alter the carbon cycle by adding excess Carbon

dioxide to the atmosphere through:Increasing use of
fossil fuels has led to elevated levels of Carbon
dioxide.
 Deforestation—the cutting-down of forests—is also
a major contributor to increasing carbon dioxide
levels

Why does it matter that there is lots of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
PHOSPHORUS CYCLE

 The phosphorus cycle is the process by which phosphorus

moves through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere.
 Phosphorus is an essential nutrient found in the
macromolecules of humans and other organisms,
including DNA
 The phosphorus cycle is slow. Most phosphorus in nature
exists in the form of phosphate ion

 Phosphorus Cycle can be short term or long-term.

 Short term cycling of phosphorus starts when plants
get phosphorus from the soil. Consumers obtain
phosphorus by eating the plants. Decomposition of
dead organic matter from producers and consumers
bring back phosphorus to the soil for recycling.

 Long term cycle involves leaching of phosphates into

bodies of water settling into sediments, and later on
incorporated into rocks as insoluble compounds.
Geologic processes elevate these deposits and
expose them to erosion making them available to
organisms. Phosphorus can be released by
weathering and taken up by plant roots
EFFECTS OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON PHOSPHOROUS CYCLE

 Excess phosphorus and nitrogen that enter these

ecosystems from fertilizer runoff and from sewage
cause excessive growth of algae.
 The subsequent death and decay of these organisms
depletes dissolved oxygen, which leads to the death
of aquatic organisms such as shellfish and fish.
 This process is responsible for dead zones in lakes
and at the mouths of many major rivers and for
massive fish kills, which often occur during the
summer months
Algal bloom
NITROGEN CYCLE

 Nitrogen Cycle involves the cycling of nitrogen

atoms between the abiotic and biotic components
and among the organisms in an ecosystem.

 The cycle is heavily dependent on microorganisms

that can convert atmospheric nitrogen into
absorbable forms.
 Nitrogen is a key component of the bodies of living
organisms. Nitrogen atoms are found in all proteins
and DNA.
 Nitrogen exists in the atmosphere as Nitrogen gas.
The nitrogen gas present in the atmosphere
(constitutes about 79%) is not absorbable by most
organisms.
 Nitrogen Fixation and Ammonification. Plants
cannot use the nitrogen in our atmosphere without
the assistance of nitrogen-fixing bacteria. These
bacteria reduce atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia,
which can be used to make other biological
compounds. The plants do not use the ammonia
directly, but it's a product of the waste.
 Nitrification. Ammonium is converted by bacteria
into nitrites (NO2−) and then nitrates (NO3−). At
this point, the nitrogen-containing molecules are
used by plants and other producers to make
organic molecules such as DNA and proteins. This
nitrogen is now available to consumers.
 Denitrification. The nitrogen that enters living
systems is eventually converted from organic
nitrogen back into nitrogen gas by bacteria.
 Bacteria convert the nitrates into nitrogen gas, thus
allowing it to re-enter the atmosphere.
EFFECTS OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON NITROGEN CYCLE

 Human activity releases nitrogen into the

environment by two main means:
 Combustion of fossil fuels and use of nitrogen-
containing fertilizers in agriculture. Both
processes increase levels of nitrogen-containing
compounds in the atmosphere.

 High levels of atmospheric nitrogen are

associated with harmful effects, like the
production of acid rain—as nitric acid and
contributions to the greenhouse effect—as nitrous
oxide
ASSIGNMENT:

Put the 4 cycles together on one poster.

➢ Draw the hydrologic, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorous cycle onto one
piece of paper.
➢ You can use short, A4, or long bond paper for this activity
➢ In a separate paper, give a brief discussion of your drawing/output.

Deadline: November 4, 2022