Vocab
Deforestation
the large-scale removal of trees from forested areas, negatively impacting biodiversity and contributing to climate change.
Identify the long and short term:
When temperatures drop in winter, water inside the cracks freezes and expands, breaking pieces of rock apart. This process creates loose rocks and soil that tumble down the hillsides. Over time this forms smooth valleys and layers of sediment at the base of the cliffs.
Short: breaking pieces of rock apart
long: sediment falls down the hall and valleys and sediment form at the bottom over time.
Identify the pros and cons:
Over the past twenty years, more people have moved there for jobs and education. To keep up with demand, new highways, neighborhoods, and factories have been built. These changes brought more jobs, better schools, and new businesses. But as the population continued to grow, so did the pollution in the air. People began to notice a brownish haze collecting over the city, especially on warm days. Scientists discovered that the haze came from vehicle exhaust, factory emissions, and energy production. These sources release gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere.
Pros: Jobs, Schools, and new business
Cons:Brownish haze, Carbon dioxide
encompasses all living organisms. This includes a vast diversity of life forms, from microscopic bacteria to towering trees, as well as animals such as birds, mammals, and insects.
Biosphere
Identify the consequences and a solution
One spring morning, scientists detected rumbling deep underground. Soon after, Mount Kanoa erupted with tremendous force. Ash, gas, and molten rock blasted into the sky, releasing massive clouds of volcanic dust and sulfur gases far into the atmosphere.
For several weeks, thick clouds of ash covered the sky above the island and nearby areas, blocking sunlight. Airplanes had to cancel flights because the ash could damage engines. The air also became hard to breathe, forcing people to wear masks and stay indoors. The sulfur gases reacted with water vapor in the atmosphere, forming tiny particles that reflected sunlight back into space. This caused temperatures across the region to drop slightly for several months.
Consequence: Volcano explodes and people cant leave their house and sunlight is blocked for weeks. No flights.
Solutions: Don't build your city near a volcano.
Sustainability
the ability to maintain ecological balance by using resources in a way that meets present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Identify the long and short term:
A logging company is deciding to cut down a forest in order to extract the lumber resources and sell it to local contractors. These contracts build more and more homes to attract potential home buyers looking to move into town. The population begins to rise which leads to more localized pollution and smog in the air around the cities industrial areas.
short: lumber resources and building houses
long term: rise in population which leads to more pollution and smog.
Identify the Pros and cons:
Local farmers have noticed that some slopes are becoming unstable because of repeated storms and erosion. On the other hand, the fertile soil created by this weathering process makes nearby farmland rich in nutrients, helping crops grow better. Scientists studying Windcrest Valley use the area as a natural example of how the atmosphere affects the geosphere by constantly shaping Earth’s surface through weather and climate.
Pros: sediments lead to rich farmland
cons: unstable soil on the slopes
Volcanoes, mountain ranges, and deserts as well as the tectonic plates are all part of the....
Geo-sphere
Identify the consequences and a solution:
The forests and grasslands that once supported hundreds of animal species were disappearing. Many animals lost their homes, and some moved away or died out. The use of chemicals on farms also polluted nearby streams, making it harmful for fish and insects to survive.
With fewer trees and plants, the soil began to erode during storms, and water quality decreased. The loss of vegetation even made the area warmer because there were fewer plants to provide shade and absorb carbon dioxide. Residents began to realize that their actions were harming the living systems that helped support their way of life.
Consequences: loss of animals and their habitats. Polluted water from chemical runoff on farms. Loss of plant life and rise in carbon dioxide levels as well as the heat of the local area.
Solutions: protect and recover the remaining habitat. Plant trees and make green areas within the city. Provide water treatment for the local streams and rivers. Regulate and manage what types of chemicals farmers can use.
Renewable Resources
natural resources that can be replenished naturally over time, such as solar energy, wind energy, and biomass.
Identify the long and short term:
The City begins to build New roads and irrigation systems to support the growing population. Farmers began using fertilizers and pesticides to produce more crops for food and sale.
At first, these changes helped the community. The growing farms brought jobs, food became more plentiful, and the local economy improved. However, after years of expansion, people started to notice major changes in the natural environment.
The forests and grasslands that once supported hundreds of animal species were disappearing. Many animals lost their homes, and some moved away or died out.
short term: Increased crop production and sales which boosts the economy and jobs as well as a population increase
long term: changes in the environment with animals moving out or dying.
Identify the pros and cons
Heavy machinery has already begun clearing trees, while construction crews prepare irrigation systems that tap into local aquifers and build access roads that are plowed and then paved over with concrete.
Although many support the project for its economic promise, others worry about how deforestation might affect the environment, local people, and future sustainability.
pros: more resources and jobs which boost the economy.
cons: environmental impact on local species and the release of more greenhouse gases with the loss of the trees.
The Latin root atmos stands for what?
Air
Identify the consequences and a solution:
People began to notice a brownish haze collecting over the city, especially on warm days. Scientists discovered that the haze came from vehicle exhaust, factory emissions, and energy production. These sources release gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere.
Over time, these gases trap heat close to the Earth’s surface, a process called the greenhouse effect. This leads to rising temperatures and changes in weather patterns. Summers have become hotter, heatwaves last longer, and rainfall comes less predictably. Children and older adults with asthma have more trouble breathing when air quality is poor.
Consequences: vehicle exhausts, factory emissions, and energy production leads to a brownish haze over the city and a rise in greenhouse gases. This leads to more heat and people with asthma not being able to go outside.
Solutions: Regulate and manage factory emissions. build and promote more public transport like trains and buses to limit the use of cars. start ride share programs and incentivize it. Promote riding bikes. Build solar panels and renewable energy sources.
Ecosystem
a community of living organisms interacting with each other and their physical environment in a specific area.
Identify the long and short term:
As Lakewood grew, new neighborhoods, factories, and farms were built along the riverbank. These projects led to an increase in job opportunities for those living in the area. However, factory owners began discharging wastewater into the river to save money, and farmers used chemical fertilizers and pesticides to increase their crop yields. During heavy rains, those chemicals washed off the fields and into the river. Gradually, people noticed changes—the once-clear waters turned greenish and cloudy, and dead fish began appearing near the shore.
Residents also started getting sick from using the water, and local wildlife that depended on the river began disappearing. Over time, parts of the river became unsafe for swimming, and the cost of cleaning the town’s water supply increased.
short term: increased crop yields, chemical runoff from fields, factories and farms being built which leads to more job opportunities.
Long Term: the once-clear waters turned greenish and cloudy, and dead fish began appearing near the shore.Residents also started getting sick from the water,local wildlife began disappearing, parts of the river became unsafe for swimming, and the cost of cleaning the town’s water supply increased.
The abiotic spheres include?
lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere
Identify the Consequences and one solution:
In northern Alaska, offshore oil drilling has long been a vital part of the region’s economy. The industry provides thousands of jobs and supplies a large portion of the state’s revenue. One winter, during a severe storm, a major oil pipeline leading to an offshore drilling platform ruptured. Crude oil began leaking into the icy waters of the Beaufort Sea.
The black slick coated the coastline, sea ice, and local fisheries. Marine animals like seals, seabirds, and fish became covered in thick oil, struggling to survive in freezing waters. Tourism declined as global news highlighted the disaster. Cleanup crews struggled against extreme weather, making recovery efforts slow and expensive. Years later, traces of oil still linger in the sand and sediments, and some species populations have not fully recovered.
Consequences: Oil pipeline ruptures leading to an oil spill into the ocean. This affects the local animal populations and tourism
Solutions: conduct more frequent checkups on the machinery to make sure it is working properly. Stop drilling in coastal waters and focus more on in land drilling.