As the human population grows, the demand for

Earths resources increases.

Earths human population continues to grow.

Earths human carrying capacity is unknown.

The current world population- 7.125 billion
Projected 2100- 11 billion

HOW???
Technology has helped to increase Earths carrying capacity.

gas-powered farm equipment

medical advancements

The growing human population exerts pressure on Earths natural

resources.

Nonrenewable resources are used faster than they form.

coal
oil
natural gas

 Renewable resources cannot be used up or can replenish themselves over

time.

wind
water
sunlight
Growing use of
nonrenewable
resources may
lead to a crisis.
Resources must
be properly
managed.

Effective management of Earths resources will help meet the needs of

the future.
Earths resources must be used responsibly.
Careless use of resources makes them unavailable to future
generations.
Easter Island is
an example of
irresponsible
resource use.

http://video.pbs.org/video/2300874003/

 An ecological footprint is the amount of land needed

to support a person.
The land must produce and maintain enough
food and water
shelter
energy
waste

 Several factors affect the size of the ecological footprint.

amount and efficiency of resource use
amount and toxicity of waste produced

Salt water is an abundant resource but unusable for irrigation and drinking. As demands on
freshwater sources increase, the use of desalination processes to remove salt from ocean
water is increasing. A concern of desalinating water is the large amounts of recovered salts
that are returned to the ocean. Which of the following describes the most likely impact of
desalination on the surrounding ocean environment?
A. Methane gas would pollute the ocean environment as shoreline organisms begin to die and
decay.
B. Alteration in ocean salt levels would cause loss of species and unbalanced populations in
marine food webs.
C. Nonrenewable resources in the ocean environment would become depleted and upset the
ecosystems balance.
D. Increased levels of salts and minerals in the ocean would result in overpopulation of
marine bivalves due to strengthened shells

Salt water is an abundant resource but unusable for irrigation and drinking. As demands on
freshwater sources increase, the use of desalination processes to remove salt from ocean
water is increasing. A concern of desalinating water is the large amounts of recovered salts
that are returned to the ocean. Which of the following describes the most likely impact of
desalination on the surrounding ocean environment?
A. Methane gas would pollute the ocean environment as shoreline organisms begin to die and
decay.
B. Alteration in ocean salt levels would cause loss of species and unbalanced populations
in marine food webs.
C. Nonrenewable resources in the ocean environment would become depleted and upset the
ecosystems balance.
D. Increased levels of salts and minerals in the ocean would result in overpopulation of
marine bivalves due to strengthened shells

Fossil fuel emissions affect the biosphere.

Pollutants accumulate in the air.

Pollution is any undesirable factor

added to the air, water, or soil.
Smog is one type of air pollution.
sunlight interacts with pollutants in
the air
pollutants produced by fossil fuel
emissions
made of particulates and ground-level
ozone

 Smog can be harmful to human health.

Acid rain is caused by fossil fuel emissions.

produced when pollutants in the water cycle cause rain pH to drop
can lower the pH of a lake or stream
can harm trees

Air pollution is changing Earths biosphere.

The levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide rise and fall over time.
High levels of carbon dioxide are typical of Earths warmer
periods.

 The greenhouse effect slows the release of energy from Earths atmosphere.

sunlight penetrates Earths atmosphere

energy is absorbed and reradiated as heat
greenhouse gases absorb longer wavelengths
Greenhouse
gas molecules
rerelease
infrared
radiation

carbon dioxide
(CO2)

methane (CH4)

water (H2O)

 Global warming refers to the trend of increasing global temperatures.

North Pole

Pollution of Earths freshwater supply

threatens habitat and health.

Water pollution affects ecosystems.

Pollution can put entire freshwater ecosystems at risk.

 Indicator species provide a sign of an ecosystems health.

amphibians
top predators
stoneflies

Biomagnification causes accumulation of toxins in the food chain.

Pollutants can move up the food

chain.

predators eat contaminated prey

pollution accumulates at each stage of
the food chain
Top consumers, including humans,
are most affected.

The impact of a growing human population

threatens biodiversity.

Preserving biodiversity is important to the future of the

biosphere.
The loss of biodiversity has long-term effects.
loss of medical and technological advances
extinction of species
loss of ecosystem stability

Loss of habitat eliminates species.

Habitat fragmentation prevents an organism from accessing its

entire home range.
occurs when a barrier forms within the habitat
often caused by human development

 Habitat corridors are a solution to the problem.

corridors can be road overpasses or underpasses
allow species to move between different areas of habitat

Introduced species can disrupt stable relationships in an ecosystem.

An introduced species is one that is brought to an ecosystem by
humans.
accidental
purposeful

Invasive species
can have an
environmental
and economic
impact.

 Invasive species often push out native species.

Burmese python (Florida Everglades)

 Invasive species often push out native species.

Snakehead fish

 Invasive species often push out native species.

kudzu (southeastern United States)

Sea Lamprey
What impact does the Sea Lamprey have on the Great Lakes ecos
ystem?
What are conservationists doing to save the ecosystem?