Watersheds
Define a watershed
A land area defined by topographic boundaries that channel precipitation into creeks, streams, and rivers which eventually lead to outflow points in larger bodies of water (ie. bays, reservoirs, oceans)
What is "ecological overshoot"?
Ecological overshoot is the understanding that humans' demands exceed the regenerative capacity of Earth's natural ecosystem
When you burn wood for a camp fire, are you contributing to air pollution?
Yes
What is the difference between conservation and preservation?
Conservation seeks to care for resources so that they can persist for future generations.
Preservation seeks to protect nature from any human use and disturbance.
What is redlining?
Redlining is a discriminatory practice that disregards individual qualifications and systematically denies people of certain areas rightful mortgages, loans, grocery stores, and even healthcare services based on their race or ethnicity
What are four examples of ecosystem services that watersheds provide?
- flood control (water storage)
- soil formation (erosion/sedimentation)
- wildlife habitat (biodiversity)
- productive fisheries (sustenance)
- climate regulation (carbon sequestration)
- clean drinking water (filtration)
- outdoor recreation (humanity)
What are three examples of how humans aggravate climate change from burning fossil fuels?
- manufacturing (ie. industry)
- energy production
- transportation
- land-use change (ie. development)
- overconsumption
What is the leading cause of air pollution?
List two additional causes of air pollution
* Automobiles (fossil fuel transportation)
- Agriculture (fertilizer, pesticides, livestock)
- Industrial facilities (manufacturers, power plants, landfills)
- Household combustion (gas/wood appliances)
- Nature (wildfires, dust storms, volcanoes)
What are the three types of restoration?
- Reestablish: returning a habitat to its historic and natural state
- Enhance: providing higher functionality to an already established habitat
- Preserve: protecting a healthy habitat from future development and impacts
What are three examples of environmental justice issues people face in the Bay Area?
- sea level rise displacing low-income coastal communities
- wildfires displacing low-income communities
- industrial byproducts and waste in close proximity to discriminated communities
- air pollution impacting respiratory health of underserved communities
- heat waves harming the vulnerable elderly and children populations
What are 3 examples of human-made infrastructure impacting our watersheds?
- street gutters
- storm drains
- pavement (non-permeable surfaces)
- water dams
- irrigation systems (ie. aqueducts)
What are three examples of a carbon sink and what are their mechanisms?
- forests/jungles (plants respiration with CO2)
- soil/peatland (traps organic matter in ground)
- glaciers (CO2 frozen in ice)
- ocean (CO2 dissolves into seawater and marine life)
What is the Air Quality Index (AQI)?
The AQI is an index for reporting daily air quality using a simple coded scale to tell you how clean or polluted the air is, and how you can protect your health at different levels of pollution
Which powerful climate pollutant and greenhouse gas is produced when organic materials are sent to a landfill?
Methane (CH4)
What is the difference between NEPA and CEQA?
NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) is meant to ensure that all government departments give proper consideration to the protection of the environment and people before taking any federal action that significantly impacts the environment.
CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) is meant to require state and local government agencies to inform decision makers and the public about potential environmental impacts of proposed projects and to reduce those projects as much as possible.
What are the cascading effects of plastic pollution in watersheds?
Once plastics break down into tiny pieces (microplastics), they can be evaporated with water and enter the atmosphere (water cycle). Then, precipitation transfers the plastics to our watersheds and terrestrial environments, which exposes wildlife and people to harmful chemicals and particles.
What is a dichotomous key?
A dichotomous key is a important scientific tool, used to identify different organisms, based on the organism's observable traits. The layout consists of a series of statements with two choices in each step that will lead users to the correct identification of the species.
Name three main types of air pollutants
- Carbon monoxide (CO)
- Sulfur dioxide (SO2)
- Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
- Hydrocarbons ("Volatile Organic Compounds" - VOCs)
- Ground-level ozone (O3)
- Particulate matter (PM)
What is a waste audit?
A waste audit is a method for analyzing an organization's waste stream with the goal of determining what types and quantities of waste are produced within a given timeframe. Auditing measures how much waste is recycled vs. dumped, and how much is contamination is in each waste stream.
How does climate change relate to health equity?
Climate change is an environmental justice issue because people of color, low-income communities, immigrants, and others are disproportionately affected by climate risks, such as extreme heat, poor air quality, flooding, extreme weather events, and disease. While everyone feels the impact of climate change, these communities feel the impacts more deeply and for longer because they are less equipped to adapt and recover.
How are HABs and "dead zones" related?
HABs are harmful algal blooms (ex?) that occur in overly nutrient-rich, warm, and stagnant bodies of water. The algae at these sites suck up all of the oxygen dissolved in the water, out-competing all other organisms that rely on that oxygen until nothing else can survive.
What are the main California biomes and which one do we live in?
- Chaparral
- Grassland
- Desert
- Temperate Coniferous Forest
- Wetland
What is a thermal (temperature) inversion layer and how does it impact air quality?
An atmospheric phenomenon where a layer of air increases temperature at higher altitudes, trapping cold air under it since it has a higher density. This worsens air quality because it keeps pollutants close to the surface rather than allowing them to dissipate, thus making them more concentrated
What is the goal of Senate Bill (SB) 1383 Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Reduction Strategy in requiring organic materials and recyclables to be separated from trash?
- Reduce organic waste disposal 75% by 2025
- Rescue 20% of surplus edible food for those that need it by 2025
How can we practice environmental justice by learning from indigenous communities?
We can redefine our human relationship with the earth and with each other and change how we use resources by adopting practices of indigenous groups and their traditional ecological knowledge (ie. extend empathy and understanding between both humans and nature).