Apes FRQ unit 5

Describe one possible negative environmental impact, other than loss of habitat or decreasing biodiversity, of clear-cutting large areas of old-growth forest.

Adds carbon that was sequestrated in plant tissue to the atmosphere.

Another concern resulting from an increasing human population is the extraction of mineral ores, such as iron ore, from Earth. The iron reserves for several countries are shown in the graph. Iron content is refined from crude ore. *BAR GRAPH* identify the country with the highest iron content reserves.

Australia.

Propose a solution for reducing or eliminating the environmental impacts of piles of tailings left at iron mine sites.

Create impoundments/dams to store taillings or random land

Explain how your proposal would meet both the goal to improve biodiversity and the goal to harvest timber.

Meet both goals with timber harvested, however when individual trees are selected, the habitat is minimally distributed/disrupted and a variety of canopy levels/tree ages would be preserved, allowing the current biodiversity to thrive.

Many of Earths resources, including forests and mineral ores, can be depleted or damaged because of the growing human population.

Provisioning service's would be food, water, and wood.

Describe one advantage of reusing or recycling iron rather than mining new iron.

Reducing damage/destruction to habitat from new mining operation.

Describe one negative environmental impact of piles of tailings left at iron mine sites.

Release of toxic metals (such as arsenic, and mercury) into the environment.

Another official wants to harvest timber in a more sustainable way. The official wants to assess individual trees and remove only the most economically valuable trees to help maintain the forest ecosystem. Propose a logging technique that would best meet these two goals.

Select cut.

One official advocated for clear-cutting one-hectare plots in the middle of every twenty hectares of the intact old-growth forest. The official says that this pattern will maximize biodiversity in the area while still allowing for the harvesting of timber. Explain how this pattern could produce more biodiversity than the old-growth forest alone.

Species with niche/habitats in grasslands or early succession communities have increased habitat available.

Based on the data in the graph, explain why the United States would be the country that would most likely benefit the most from reusing or recycling iron rather than mining iron.

The United States has the smallest crude oil reserves of all the countries listed, so there is less potential for income/economic gain from new mining.