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What is a system in environmental science?
A collection of parts and processes that function together as a whole
What does EVS stand for?
Environmental Value System
Give one example of a renewable resource.
Solar energy / Wind / Water (hydropower)
What is precipitation?
Water falling from the atmosphere as rain, snow, hail, or sleet.
What is meant by ‘sustainability’?
Using resources in a way that doesn’t harm future generations.
What is an open system?
A system that exchanges both energy and matter with its surroundings.
Which EVS believes in low-impact living and minimal interference with nature?
Ecocentric
Define feedback loop.
A process where the output of a system influences its own input.
What is an aquifer?
An underground layer of water-bearing rock or materials.
Name one strategy to reduce water use in agriculture.
Drip irrigation / Mulching / Crop rotation
Explain the difference between point-source and non-point-source pollution.
Point-source: from a single, identifiable source. Non-point-source: from multiple diffuse sources.
What is a tipping point in an environmental system?
A critical threshold where a small change leads to a major, often irreversible shift.
What is the purpose of a water footprint?
To measure the total water used in producing goods and services consumed.
What is eutrophication and what causes it?
Nutrient buildup in water bodies, often from fertiliser runoff, leading to algae growth and oxygen depletion.
What are storages and flows in a system? Give one example of each from the water cycle.
Storage: where matter/energy is held (e.g. lake). Flow: movement between storages (e.g. evaporation).
Explain why negative feedback promotes system stability.
Because it counteracts change, helping the system return to equilibrium.
Compare anthropocentric and technocentric worldviews.
Anthropocentric: humans manage the environment for benefit. Technocentric: humans use technology to solve problems.
Suggest how building a large dam can cause both positive and negative environmental impacts.
Positive: renewable energy, flood control. Negative: habitat loss, reduced downstream flow.
Why might a country with sufficient rainfall still suffer economic water scarcity?
Lack of infrastructure, funding, or political stability to access or manage water.
How can resilience help ecosystems adapt to water pollution?
Resilient ecosystems can recover more easily from disturbances like pollution events.
Evaluate the use of models in environmental science. Include one strength and one weakness.
Strength: simplify complex systems for understanding. Weakness: may oversimplify and lack accuracy.
Assess the role of environmental value systems in shaping global responses to water scarcity.
Different EVSs influence whether solutions are local, technological, or conservation-based.
Explain a feedback loop that could worsen climate-related water shortages.
E.g. warmer temperatures → more evaporation → less surface water → more drought → less plant cover → more warming.
Critically assess the sustainability of large-scale desalination plants as a long-term solution to water scarcity.
Pros: Provide freshwater in arid regions; not climate-dependent; reliable.
Cons: High energy use (often fossil-fuel based), costly infrastructure, brine disposal harms marine ecosystems.
Conclusion: May be viable short-term or when coupled with renewable energy, but less sustainable if used in isolation.
Evaluate the environmental implications of the plastisphere as both a pollutant and a potential ecological niche.
Pollutant Role: The plastisphere contributes to microplastic pollution, transporting invasive species and toxins across oceans. It disrupts food chains and introduces persistent synthetic materials into ecosystems.
Ecological Niche Role: It supports microbial communities that colonise plastic surfaces, possibly playing a role in biodegradation or forming new ecosystems.
Evaluation: While it offers insight into microbial adaptation, its negative impacts on biodiversity, water quality, and bioaccumulation of toxins are far more significant at present.