REGIONAL SLIDES

NORTH AMERICA
• Ekati, Canada
• Fort McMurray, Canada
• Power River Basin, USA
• Prudhoe Bay, USA
• Upper Green River, USA
• Lake Chapala, Mexico
• Knife River Delta, Canada
• Gaspe Peninsula, Canada
• Tensas River Basin, USA
• British Columbia, Canada
• Olympic Peninsula, USA
• Country Border,
Guatemala/Mexico
• Angangueo, Mexico
 NORTH AMERICA
• Torreón, Mexico
• Las Vegas, USA
• Lake Mead, USA
• Mexico City, Mexico
• Everglades, USA
• San Francisco, USA
• Night Lights, USA Case Study
• Hubbard Glacier, USA
• Hurricane Charley, USA
• Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii
• Washington D.C., USA
• Fort McMurray, Canada
• Mount St. Helens, USA
 NORTH AMERICA
• Canada now ranks in the top three diamond producers in the
world (in terms of value) and North America is the second largest
oil producing area after the Middle East

• In the United States there are 155 national forests (protected forests and
woodland areas) containing almost 190 000 000 acres (769 000 km2) of
land that comprise 8.5% of the total land area with Alaska alone
accounting for 12% of all National Forest land

• North America is the third largest continent in area and is fourth in

population, with 74% of its population living in urban areas

• North America holds about 13 per cent of the world's renewable

freshwater (excluding glaciers and ice caps)

FAO 2005; UNEP-GEO3; USDA 2005; Wikipedia

Ekati – North America’s only operating
diamond mine, Canada

Diamond Mining site in

Canada

Mining in the Northwest

Territories, impacting
migration routes of native
caribou
Oil extraction in Fort McMurray, Canada

Vast reserves of
low quality oil
underlie the
Boreal Forest
surrounding Fort
McMurray

By early 2006 the

mining operation
covered an areas
roughly 30 km by
20 km
Coal mining along Powder River Basin
United States

• 1989: Images show

areas under coal
exploitation

• 2001: Notable
increase in mining
operation in the 2001
image
Sprawl of oil fields in Prudhoe Bay
United States

• 1974-1999: After the

discovery of oil fields in
1968, the Bay has
undergone dramatic
changes
 Rapidly changing grasslands of
Upper Green River, United States

The landscape in
1989

Over 3000 wells (black/white

dots) Have been approved in
the basin, and development is
occurring at a rapid rate
Mexico’s largest natural lake –
Lake Chapala, Mexico

• 1983: Level of the lake

has declines; noticeable
decreases in wetlands

• 2001: Alteration in
the contours of the
shoreline is clearly
visible
Substantial increase of Knife River Delta
Canada

• 1973: Impact of
snow geese on
coastal vegetation

• 1996: Overgrazing
has turned the
shoreline into an
enormous mudflat
Logging in Gaspe Peninsula, Canada

The changes in
the forest due
to logging
between 1993
and 2000
Forest clearing along Tensas River Basin
United States

• 1972: Clearing of
forest during the
1960s and 1970s
increased flooding
and erosion

• 2001: Land cover

change on the
Louisiana side of the
image is striking
Impact of logging in British Columbia
Canada

• 1975-1999: Shows
the impact of logging
on reasonably pristine
landscape
Temperate forests of Olympic Peninsula
United States

• 1974: Shows
patchwork of purple and
pink, indicating clear-
cutting

• 2000: Evidence of
good re-growth of
trees in forest reserve
areas
Difference in vegetation cover across borders
Guatemala/Mexico

• 1974 - 2000:
Conversion of forest
to agriculture. Now
country border can
be seen even from
space
Angangueo – important habitat of
monarch butterflies, Mexico

• 1986: Images show

degradation of forest
area

• 2001: Between 1984

and 1999, 38 per cent
of forests were
degraded
Visible changes in cropland of Torreón
Mexico

• 1972: There has

been significant
decrease in
cropland due to
drought

• 2000: Cropland
around the city is
continuously
decreasing
Las Vegas – fastest growing metropolitan
area in the United States

• 1973: A small settlement

• 1991-2000: Rapid urbanization
• 2006: The landscape is now
dramatically modified

Images courtesy USGS

Conversion of desert to residential area
in Las Vegas, United States

• Expanding Las Vegas

 Drought in western United States

Lake Mead
2000
2004

PhotoView 18 meters

Hoover Dam and Lake Mead

 Landscape changes in Lake Mead
United States

New Golf Courses since 2001

Explosive expansion of
Mexico City, Mexico
• 1973 -Urban growth is
concentrated in the center
of the city

• 2000 -Now expands

dramatically into
surrounding rural areas

Growth
of a
Mega city
Urban encroachment on Florida’s
Everglades, United States

• 1973: Rapid urban

expansion has
converted farmlands
to cityscapes

• 2002: Existence of
vast wetlands
“Everglades”
threatened by urban
encroachment
Growth of San Francisco, United States

1970-2000: Population
grew from 4.6 million to
7.2 million in the Bay Area
 Energy consumption depicted through
night lights

On 14 August 2003, parts of northeastern United States and

southeastern Canada experienced widespread power blackouts
Ice North
dam in America:
the Hubbard Glacier
Angangueo
United States

• 1986 –Hubbard
Glaciershow
• 1986: Images blocks
Russell
Degradation Fjord
of forest
area
• 2002 –Hubbard
Glacier blocks
• 2001: Between 1984
Russell Fjord again
and 1999, 38 per cent
of forests were
degraded
• 2003 – Glacier has
retreated
 Hubbard Glacier advance
North United
America: Angangueo
States

• 1986: Images show

Degradation of forest
area

• 2001: Between 1984

and 1999, 38 per cent
of forests were
degraded

10 Aug 2002 14 Aug 2002

 Devastation of Hurricane Charley
Florida, United States

• July 28 2002: Crisp, neat neighborhoods of Punta Gorda, Florida

• August 15 2004: Debris scattered across roads, parking
lots, and yards, giving the scene a “messy” appearance
Mapping lava flow during Kilauea Volcano
Hawaii, United States
Maps of lava-flow field
from the Pu`u `O `o
and Kupaianaha vents
of Kilauea Volcano,
Hawaii, January 1983-
January 1991

Jan 83-Oct 86
Jan 83-Dec 86
Jan 83-Dec 89
Jan 83-Dec 91
Visible devastation after Kilauea Volcano
Hawaii, Unites States
 Inspiration leading to tree plantation in
Washington D.C., United States
• Satellite images showing the dramatic loss of trees in the
District moved Mrs. Casey to action
• Casey Trees Endowment Fund was created to restore the
tree cover of the District of Columbia
 Urban Forest in Washington D.C.
United States

Satellite
images show
urban forest in
Washington
D.C.

Pentagon, 2002 Photo: Digital Globe Photo: Digital Globe

Fort McMurray, Canada

1974-2004: Massive oil

extraction from oil sands
have remarkably changed
the land area of Fort
McMurray in Alberta
Ecosystem changes in Mount St. Helens
United States

• Ecosystem recovers
after a major Volcanic
eruption

• 1973:The Mountain
Peak 10 years before
eruption

• 1983: 3 years after

eruption

• 2000: Vegetation
re-growth around the
volcano
 NORTH AMERICA
One Planet Many People:
Atlas of Our Changing Environment

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