Human Impacts
This type of project often increases biodiversity again in damaged ecosystems and can restore ecosystem services like water filtration and habitat.
What is habitat restoration?
This is the name of the process where you compare the advantages of an activity to its financial and environmental drawbacks.
What is cost‑benefit analysis?
This farming method may have lower yields than conventional farming, which can mean more land is needed to grow the same amount of food.
What is organic farming?
When a community chooses a clean river over a new factory, their decision is based mainly on this.
What are ethical beliefs?
A sustainable plan balances economic growth with environmental protection so both can continue long term.
What is sustainability?
This human activity removes too many fish too quickly, leading to population collapses and reduced predator numbers.
What is overfishing?
Labor, raw materials, and fuel are examples of these direct expenditures for a product.
What are internal costs?
These lawn and landscaping practices are encouraged by cities in dry regions to reduce outdoor water use.
What is xeriscaping?
This perspective asks people to consider moral values, species protection, and ecosystem services before making environmental choices.
What is environmental ethics?
A desalination plant has this basic function for a coastal city’s water supply.
What is turning ocean water into fresh drinking water?
These two types of human actions can be positive when they set sustainable limits and protect species rather than drive them to extinction.
What are game/wildlife management and responsible ecotourism?
Air pollution that causes asthma in nearby communities, when the company does not pay for the medical bills, is an example of this.
What is an external cost / externality?
These kinds of technologies make recycling more efficient and can reduce the amount of waste going to landfills.
What are improved recycling technologies or waste‑reduction technologies?
This kind of perspective asks “How will the loss of wetland habitat affect species and ecosystem services?” instead of “How much money will drivers save?”
What is an environmental ethics perspective?
Building a desalination plant can help the economy in this way, but may harm marine life through brine discharge.
What is providing reliable water for homes and businesses / supporting growth vs harming marine ecosystems?
Driving these off‑trail through fragile desert plants is mostly a negative impact on the environment.
What are all‑terrain vehicles / ATVs?
When a homeowner illegally dumps paint in a creek, causing city fines and expensive cleanup, this is a good example of this type of impact of improper waste disposal.
What is an economic impact / increased costs from improper waste disposal?
This is the main trade‑off in mining: one major benefit and one major cost.
What are jobs/resources vs habitat destruction?
Some people support genetically modified foods because of this concern about food access and cost, while others worry about health, religion, or “unnatural” food.
What is concern about food shortages / cost / availability vs ethical or health concerns?
Limiting fishing to sustainable catch levels while enforcing strict rules on pollution from refineries is an example of this type of management strategy.
What is a strategy that supports both economic and environmental sustainability
A conservation organization buys land around a river and restores native vegetation along the banks - improving the habitat for aquatic and riparian species.
What is the most direct positive effect of human action?
A desalination plant can provide a reliable water supply for a city, but it can also use a lot of energy and discharge brine that may harm marine life.
What is a potential benefit and a potential cost of building a desalination plant?
One main drawback of installing solar panels or buying a hybrid car, even though they help the environment, is this financial issue.
What is high initial cost?
Research linking vehicle air pollution to respiratory illness has led governments to change these two things about cars and transportation.
What are stricter emission standards and encouragement of cleaner vehicle technology?
Selective logging, protected areas, and strict erosion controls can help a town keep tourism and timber jobs, showing that these two things can coexist.
What are a healthy economy and a healthy environment?