Human Impact on Ecosystems

The human population continues to grow.

 2,000 years ago...

 ...at the dawn of the first millennium A.D. the world's
population was around 300 million people.
The human population continues to grow.

 1,000 years later...

 ...the population had risen by as little as 10 million. And well into the
second millennium, it grew less than 0.1 percent each year. The numbers in
Europe even fell in the 1300s—struck down by the Black Plague. But
beginning in the late 18th century, the Industrial Revolution would raise
living standards and spur growth.
The human population continues to grow.

 800 years later...

 ...the population had climbed to the landmark level of one billion
people. Almost 65 percent of all people lived in Asia, 21 percent in
a prospering Europe, and less than 1 percent in North America.
The human population continues to grow.

 127 years later...

 ...the two-billionth baby was born. From 1920 to 1950, the population
growth rate hovered around 1 percent a year. But beginning in the middle
of the century, the advent of antibiotics and other public health advances
profoundly altered life expectancy, increasing the number of children who
would live to bear their own children.
The human population continues to grow.

 33 years later...
 ...advances in medicine, agriculture, and sanitation had spread to many
places in the developing world. By 1960, the global population
reached three billion, and in the late 1960s the growth rate hit an all-
time peak of 2.04 percent a year.
The human population continues to grow.

 14 years later...
 ...new reproductive technologies had helped curb the growth rate. But
with so many people already on the planet, a population "explosion"
was under way, and the epicenters of the explosion lay in the
developing world. The four-billionth baby was born in 1974.
The human population continues to grow.

13 years later...

...the five-billionth baby was born.
The human population continues to grow.

 12 years later...
 ...around October 12, 1999, the six-billionth baby arrived. Today, Europe and Africa each
hold about 12 percent of the world's population. Nine percent live in Latin America, 5
percent in North America. And, just as in 1800, Asia is home to the majority of Earth's
inhabitants—roughly 61 percent, or more than 3.5 billion people.
 By 2012, we reached 7 billion people.
The human population continues to grow.

 Roughly 50 years from now

 Over the next half century, our numbers will increase again, likely to a
staggering nine billion people. Nearly all of this growth will take place in
developing countries, where the demand for food and water already
outstrips supplies.
The human population continues to grow

 World Population Growth, 1800-2050

 At the turn of the 21st century, almost 75 million people were being
added to the earth every year—about a quarter of the entire U.S.
population. In the future, almost all population growth will be in the
developing world.
 Earth’s Carrying Capacity
 Humans will soon
reach their carrying
capacity.
 Currently, 1 billion
people live in abject
poverty.
Hundreds of millions
are chronically hungry
or malnourished.
 For these people,
carrying capacity has
already been reached
or exceeded.
 If the human
population continues to
grow at an exponential
rate, what will happen?
Earth’s Resources
The Amazon Rainforest, one of the
most ecologically diverse places on
the planet, is routinely clear cut to
provide space for farms and range for
cattle.

The mean annual deforestation rate from

2000 to 2005 (22,392 km2 per year) was
18% higher than in the previous five
years (19,018 km2 per year). At the
current rate, in two decades the Amazon
Rainforest will be reduced by 40%.

The growing human population exerts pressure on

Earth’s natural resources.
Non-Renewable Resources
 Coal and oil currently On April 20th,
support the majority of our 2010, an oil drilling
rig on the Gulf of
country’s energy use. Mexico exploded.
Coal and oil are the result
of natural processes.
 Over millions of years,
natural processes
transformed dead organisms
into the concentrated carbon
we use today as oil and
coal.
 These are non-renewable
resources because they are
The destroyed rig was
used faster than they form. pumping 200,000 gallons
In 2011, the human
of oil into the Gulf each
population was using oil at day. Wind is pushing the
the rate of about 88 oil toward the ecologically
million barrels per day. important wetlands on the
 This is not an unlimited Louisiana coast. This was
resource. We WILL run one of the worst oil spills
OUT. in history.
Renewable Resources
 Resources that cannot be used up or can
replenish themselves over time are called
renewable resources.
 Wind and solar energy are renewable
resources because they cannot be used
up by humans.
 Other resources, such as those that come
from plants and animals, can be used up,
but because they could last indefinitely
through re-growth and reproduction,
they are renewable.
 As long as these resources are
replenished faster than they are used,
they are considered renewable.
 Drinking water is a renewable
resource---now.
 Pollution and overuse threaten the
supply of fresh water.
 This could quickly become a non-renewable
resource.
 Ecological Footprint
 Humans need natural resources to
survive, but the way resources are
used threatens the welfare of the
human population.
 Earth’s carrying capacity depends
on how much land is needed to
support each person on Earth.
 The amount of land necessary to
produce and maintain enough food
and water, shelter, energy, and
waste is called an ecological
footprint.
Sweatpants. A golf ball. Surgical gloves. Small towels.
Bits of plastic. And more than 20 plastic bags.
A gray whale's last meal in Puget Sound included
plenty of trash, and it was fresh enough to indicate the
animal took the "eat local" mantra enthusiastically to
heart before coming ashore at Arroyo Beach, and
later dying about a mile south of the Fauntleroy ferry
dock.
In 20 years of examining more than 200 whale
carcasses, research scientist John Calambokidis says
Tuesday he has never seen so much trash in a
whale's stomach. Founding member of the Cascadia
Research Collective in Olympia, Calambokidis says
he does not yet know what caused the whale's death,
and tests are continuing.
 Ecological Footprint
 Individuals and populations vary in their use of resources and production of
waste, and therefore in the size of their ecological footprint.
 The average US citizens ecological footprint covers an area larger than 24
football fields and is one of the largest in the world.
 We make about 2.4 pounds of trash a day! (almost 1 ton a year)
 The ecological footprint of individuals in developing nations is growing, and nations such as
China and India have populations that are three times the size of the US population.
AIR QUALITY
 Pollutants in the Air
Pollution describes any
undesirable factor, or pollutant,
that is added to the air, water, or
soil.
Pollution can take the form of
microscopic air particles, or waste
products from factories and
sewers, or household chemicals
that are poured down the kitchen
sink.
The harmful effects of pollutants
may be immediate or delayed, but
these effects may add up over
time and can disrupt the function
of ecosystems.
Smog
The most common air pollution
comes from the waste products
produces by burning fossil fuels such
as gas and oil.
Smog is a type of air pollution caused
by the interaction of sunlight with
pollutants produced by fossil fuel
emissions.
 Particulates are microscopic bits of dust,
metal, and unburned fuel, that are produced
by many different industrial processes.
 Once in the air, some particulates may stay
in the atmosphere for weeks before they
settle to the ground.
 Fine particulates can be inhaled and can
cause many different types of health
problems.
 Acid Rain
 Nitrogen oxides and sulfur
oxides from fossil fuel emissions
can lead to the formation of acid
rain.
 Acid rain is a type of
precipitation produced when
pollutants in the water cycle Acid rain robs the soil of essential nutrients
cause rain pH to drop below and releases aluminum in the soil, which
makes it hard for trees to take up water.
normal levels.
 Acid rain has major effects on
ecosystems.
 By decreasing pH levels in lakes
and streams, acid rain threatens
water supplies and species habitat.
 Acid rain causes a decline in
growth rates, cause leaves and
bark to break down more quickly,
and make trees more vulnerable to Acid rain eats away at limestone statues.
disease and weather.
A Warming And Cooling Earth
World Temperature and Carbon
Collections of data from Dioxide Levels over Time

arctic ice cores allow

scientists to look deep into
Earth’s atmospheric history.
They have discovered that
cycles of rising and falling
carbon dioxide levels
follow known patterns of
periodic warming and
cooling.
 We know that high levels of
carbon dioxide are typical of
Earth’s warmer periods, while
low levels are associated with
cold climates, eventually These findings were measured at the Mauna
leading to ice ages. Loa Observatory in Hawaii.
Greenhouse Effect
 Earth’s atmosphere contains gases called greenhouse gases that act
as insulators and slow the loss of heat through the atmosphere.
 Water vapor, carbon dioxide, and methane are three of the most common
greenhouse gases.
 The greenhouse occurs when carbon dioxide, water, and methane
molecules absorb energy reradiated by Earth’s surface and slow the
release of this energy from Earth’s atmosphere.
 Without the greenhouse effect, the Earth would be extremely cold and be
unable to sustain life.
carbon dioxide (CO2)

methane (CH )
4 water (H O)
2
Global Warming
 Over the past 100 years, the average global temperature has risen by 1.2 oF,
with the most dramatic change occurring over the past 40 years.
 Global fluctuations are a normal part of the Earth’s climate cycle, but
major changes in temperature generally occur over tens of thousands of
years, not over 100 years.

North Pole
 Global Warming Some islands, like the Republic of
Maldives, are in danger of
 The trend of increasing temperatures is disappearing

known as global warming.

 We know that the earth is warming
because:
 Sea level rise—Global sea level rose about
17 centimeters (6.7 inches) in the last
century. The rate in the last decade,
however, is nearly double that of the last
century.
 Global temperature rise—All three major
global surface temperature reconstructions
show that Earth has warmed since 1880.
Most of this warming has occurred since the
1970s, with the 20 warmest years having
occurred since 1981 and with all 10 of the
warmest years occurring in the past 12 years.
 Global Warming
 Warming oceans—The oceans
have absorbed much of this
increased heat, with the top 700
meters (about 2,300 feet) of ocean
showing warming of 0.302 degrees
Fahrenheit since 1969.
 Shrinking ice sheets—The
Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets
have decreased in mass. Data from
NASA's Gravity Recovery and
Climate Experiment show Flowing
Greenland lost 150 to 250 cubic melt-water
kilometers (36 to 60 cubic miles) of from the
Greenland
ice per year between 2002 and 2006, ice sheet
while Antarctica lost about 152
cubic kilometers (36 cubic miles) of
ice between 2002 and 2005.
 Global Warming Visualization of
the 2007 Arctic
sea ice.
 Declining arctic sea ice—Both the
extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice
has declined rapidly over the last
several decades.
 Glacial retreat—Glaciers are retreating
The
almost everywhere around the world — disappearing
including in the Alps, Himalayas, snow cap of Mt.
Andes, Rockies, Alaska and Africa. Kilimanjaro,
from space.
 Extreme events—The number of
record high temperature events in the
United States has been increasing, while
the number of record low temperature
events has been decreasing, since 1950.
The U.S. has also witnessed increasing
numbers of intense rainfall events.
 Global Warming
 Ocean acidification—The carbon dioxide content of the Earth’s oceans has
been increasing since 1750, and is currently increasing about 2 billion tons
per year. This has increased ocean acidity by about 30 percent.

When carbon dioxide is dissolved in ocean waters, some of it becomes carbonic acid. This reduces the pH of
the water in an acidic direction. Scientists have documented through direct observation the changes in ocean
species, both large and microscopic, that have resulted from this increased acidity. What the scientists are
finding is troubling. First, the entire food chain of the ocean could be short-circuited. Second, ocean
acidification in combination with other human impacts on the ocean could result in mass extinctions.
WATER QUALITY
 Water Pollution
Pollution can have a
major impact on
water ecosystems.
Chemical
contaminants, raw
sewage, trash, and
other waste
products are only a
few pollutants that
make their way into
rivers, lakes, and
aquifers all over the
world.
 Indicator Species
 One way in which scientists can
determine the health of an
ecosystem is through the study
of natural indicator species.
 An indicator species, also known
Forster’s terns are top predators on the San
as a bioindicator, is a species that Francisco Bay. Scientists studying their chicks
provides a sign, or indication, of have found chemical contaminants such as
the quality of the ecosystem’s mercury and PCB’s in their tissues. This can
cause problems in their nervous systems.
environmental conditions.
 Frogs are a good indicator species
for water quality.
 The skin of tadpoles and adults
is water-permeable, when they
come into direct contact with
pollutants it can cause
deformities such as extra arms Runoff from farms fuels parasitic infections
and legs, as well as body that cause major deformities in frog legs.
tumors.
 Biomagnification
 Some pollutants are fat-soluble.
In other words, they stay in the
body fat of organisms.
 In a process called
biomagnification, a pollutant
moves up the food chain as
predators eat prey, accumulating
higher concentrations in the
bodies of predators.
 Biomagnification has the most
serious effects on species near
the top of the food chain.
 Scientists measure pollutants in
parts per million (ppm).
BIODIVERSITY

This is the Amazonian Matamata Turtle. One of the largest freshwater turtles.
Preserving Biodiversity
 Biodiversity is the diverse world of
living things—the wide array and
assortment of species that are found in
any ecosystem.
 A decrease in an ecosystem’s
biodiversity will have a ripple effect
through the entire ecosystem, affecting
all species.
 Biodiversity is the foundation of much of
our world.
 The loss of biodiversity has long-term
Artemisia annua was used by Chinese
effects, it can reduce an ecosystem’s herbalists to treat fevers. In 1971,
stability and make it more difficult for scientists discovered that extracts of the
ecosystems to handle future change. plant were effective in fighting Malarial
 Nearly half of prescribed medicines are infections (a parasitic infection of the
derived from plants. blood). Scientists are now looking into the
 Technology gets its cue from nature. An plants anti-cancer properties. It is in trials
adhesive from a mussel is being used as the to treat breast cancer, prostate cancer,
pattern for a new coating on medical and leukemia.
implants.
 Urban Sprawl
As cities grow larger,
people moved into suburbs
—urban sprawl.
Suburban growth consumes
farmland and natural
habitats.
People produce much waste
that must be disposed of.
Loss of Habitat
One way to protect
species is to monitor
and manage their
numbers, and to
ensure they have
adequate habitat for
survival. Orangutan habitat destruction due to logging, mining, and
forest fires, as well as fragmentation by roads, has been
The loss of habitat
increasing rapidly in the last decade. A major factor in that
can put species in time period is the conversion of vast areas of tropical rain
forest to oil palm plantations in response to international
danger of becoming demand (palm oil is used for cooking, cosmetics,
extinct. mechanics, and biodiesel). Some scientists believe that
this could lead to irreparable damage to the orangutan
Starving Orangutan habitat by 2012.

There are only 7,300 Sumatran orangutans left in the wild.

Habitat Fragmentation
 Efforts to ensure adequate
habitat must take into account
the life history of the organism,
including mating habits and
migration patterns.
 Habitat fragmentation occurs when
a barrier forms that prevents an
organism from accessing its entire
home range.
 Often, habitat fragmentation is
caused by the building of
roadways or the harvesting of
forests.
 To try to fix this growing problem,
some states are building
underpasses and overpasses so that
wildlife can avoid busy roadways.
 Habitat Fragmentation
Introduced Species
 An introduced species
is any organism that
was brought into an
ecosystem as the
result of human Burmese pythons are an introduced species in the
activities. Florida Everglades. It feeds on small animals, such
as rats, birds, raccoons, and even dogs. The same
Introduces species organisms that alligators feed on. Competition
can pose a great between the introduced and native species is fierce.
threat to the
stability of an Mice were introduced to Australia
ecosystem if they in the 1700’s. After years of
heavy rainfall, their populations
prey on or crowd increase exponentially, and they
out native species. feed on farmers crops. In the
Cane Toad Invasio 1993-1994 season, the mouse
population cost farmers $65
n million in lost revenue.
CONSERVATION
Sustainable Development
 Sustainable development is
a practice in which natural
resources are used and
managed in a way that
meets current needs without
hurting future generations.
 Sustainable development
covers a wide range of
resource management
methods.
 Timber industry—
companies cut selected trees
rather than clear cutting
forests. This encourages
rapid re-growth of trees, and
has a minimal impact on the
ecosystem.
 Sustainable Development
 Fisheries—overfishing has seriously depleted
fish populations worldwide. The fish that are
caught are usually the reproducing
individuals from a population. A number of
techniques can be adopted by fisheries to
make the industry sustainable:
 Rotation
 Rotating catches between different species gives
the “off” species time to recover their numbers
following a harvest.
 Fishing gear review
 Banning gear that catch unintentional species or This turtle is a bycatch. An unintentional catch
that damage the sea floor with prevent caught accidently by fishing industries. Millions
ecologically important organisms from being upon millions of marine animals (including
killed. dolphins, birds, whales, and seals) are caught
“accidently”, killed, and discarded each year.
 Harvest reduction
 Slowly harvesting species that grow slowly allows Bycatch
them more time to recover their populations.
 Fishing bans
 Creating and enforcing bans helps replenish
populations.
Conservation Practices
 Conservation practices focus
on a few species but benefit
entire ecosystems.
 The Endangered Species Act is
designed to protect individual
species that are near extinction.
 When a single species within an
ecosystem is placed on a list of
endangered species, many other The manatee was place on the endangered species list
species within the ecosystem in 1967, due to loss of habitat, overhunting, and deaths
due to collisions with powerboats. Since the manatees
also benefit. rely on seagrass as their main food source, areas rich
 The listed species is often called in this food source must be protected. By protecting
an umbrella species because its waterways from pollution, restoring damaged areas,
protection means a wide range of and limiting boating, the marine ecosystem that is the
other species will also be natural habitat for manatees is also protected. As a
result, the entire ecosystems can benefit from the effort
protected.
to save a single species from extinction.
 Natural Resources
 The Environmental Protection Agency
was created as part of the National
Environmental Policy Act in 1970.
 Clean Air Act—regulates emissions
from industrial factories and
automobiles.
 Clean Water Act—in 1970 only 36% of
the lakes and waterways in the US were
considered safe for swimming.
Regulations against pollution and an Stellar Sea Lions were placed on the endangered
increased public awareness have helped species list in 1990 after its prey base was
devastated due to unsustainable fishing practices.
to double the number of waterways that
Between 1989 and 2000 their population dropped
are safe today. from 32,000 to 17,000 individuals. In 2002 and
 Endangered Species Act—in 1973 only 2004 fishing restrictions designed to protect the Sea
791 pairs of eagles were breeding. In Lions habitat saw the first increases in their
2000, there were almost 6500. population since 1970.
 Natural Resources
Setting aside public
land is another way
that governments can
protect ecosystems.
The Yosemite Grant
of 1864 was the
United States first
step to protect nature
from development.
 It would eventually
become Yosemite
National Park.
Sustainable Earth
 Humans have a much larger
impact on the environment
because of our population size,
and the fact that we are found all
over the world.
 We have the ability to control
how fast our population grows,
through controlling birth rates.
 We can develop technology to
produce more food and produce
less waste.
 We have the ability to change our
practices and take action to
protect and maintain ecosystems.
In some cases, we can reduce or
even eliminate the pressures we The Slender Loris is the world’s smallest
primate. They live in the tropical rainforests of
place on the planet’s Southern India and Sri Lanka. It is unknown
biogeochemical processes. how many are left in the wild.
The Words of Our Leaders
 All across the world, in every kind of environment and region known to man,
increasingly dangerous weather patterns and devastating storms are abruptly
putting an end to the long-running debate over whether or not climate change is
real. Not only is it real, it's here, and its effects are giving rise to a frighteningly
new global phenomenon: the man-made natural disaster.
 BARACK OBAMA, speech, Apr. 3, 2006
 We have many advantages in the fight against global warming, but time is not
one of them. Instead of idly debating the precise extent of global warming, or
the precise timeline of global warming, we need to deal with the central facts
of rising temperatures, rising waters, and all the endless troubles that global
warming will bring. We stand warned by serious and credible scientists across
the world that time is short and the dangers are great. The most relevant
question now is whether our own government is equal to the challenge.
 JOHN MCCAIN, speech, May 12, 2008