ib ess chapter 4 test

how much of earth's surface is covered by water?

- 70%. - 2.6% = fresh water - 97% = ocean (salt) water

examples of human impact on water cycle?

- aral sea- intense irrigation that almost stopped river flow into sea & lowered sea lvl - ganges basin - deforestation increases flooding as precipitation isn't absorbed by vegetation

examples of unsustainable fishing practices:

- commercial fishing is has the best GPS system to locate any fish they want - fishing fleets are larger w modern refrigeration tech which allows them to fish for weeks/ a szn - fishing gear doesn't discriminate and takes all fish in the area - trawlers drag huge nets over the seabed virtually clearcutting it

impact of fish farms:

- loss of habitats - pollution (feed,antibiotics etc added 2 fish pens) spread of diseases - escaped species, including gmo, which might interbreed w wild fish - escaped species may also outcompete native species and cause population to crash

turnover time for oceans, icecaps, groundwater, rivers and the atmosphere?

- oceans = 37k yrs, - icecaps = 16k yrs, - groundwater = 300 yrs, - rivers = 12-20 days, - atmosphere = 9 days

impacts of eutrophication

- unsightly bodies of water covered by green algal scum and duckweed which give off foul smelling gases. - oxygen deficient (anaerobic) water - loss of biodiversity and shortened food chain - death of plants and aerobic organisms

how do humans impact the water cycle?

- withdrawls (irrigation in agriculture & industry) - discharges ( add pollutants 2 water -fertilizers) - changing speeds of eater (dams, channeling) - diverting rivers (diverted 2 avoid flooding/dams)

how much of the earth's water value is in the atmosphere?

0.001%

hurricane formation

Hurricanes begin as tropical storms over the warm moist waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans near the equator. As the moisture evaporates it rises until enormous amounts of heated moist air are twisted high in the atmosphere

explain deep water currents

It's caused by differences in water density from salt and temperature. Warm water can hold less salt than cold water =it's less dense and rises, cold water holds more salt = sinks. When warm water rises, cold has to come up from depth to replace it, these are upwellings. When cold water rises, it has to be replaced by warm water in downwellings. That's how it circulates.

flint michigan water crisis

To save money, the state switched Flint's water supply in 2011 from Lake Huron to the notoriously filthy Flint River. When the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality failed to treat the corrosive water, it ate into the city's iron and lead pipes and leached into the drinking water.

aquifers

a layer of porous rock which holds water sandwiched between two layers of impermeable rock which does not let water through. they're filled continuously by infiltration of precipitation where the porous rock reaches the surface (only in limited areas)

biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

a measure of the amount of dissolved oxygen required to break down the organic material in a given volume of water through aerobic biological activity by microorganisms

hydrological cycle

a system of water flows and storages that may be disrupted by human activity

deep water currents

aka thermohaline currents, make up 90% of ocean currents and cause the oceanic conveyer belt.

types of water pollution

anthropogenic, natural, point source or non point source, organic of inorganic, direct of indirect.

point source water pollution

any single identifiable source of pollution from which pollutants are discharged, such as a pipe, ditch, ship or factory smokestack. ex: factories and sewage treatment

what's the result of water flow in aquifers?

aquifers are used unsustainably.

what is earth's nickname?

blue planet

what is coastal resilience?

building the ability of a community to "bounce back" after hazardous events such as hurricanes, coastal storms, and flooding - rather than simply reacting to impacts. ... Resilience is our ability to prevent a short-term hazard event from turning into a long-term community-wide disaster.

eutrophication

can occur when lakes, estuaries and coastal waters receive inputs of nutrients (nitrates and phosphates) which result in an excess growth of plants and phytoplankton

local effects of el nino?

collapse of anchovy fish stocks, massive death of sea birds and storms and flooding in the coastal plain of Peru. droughts in australia, indonesia, the pacific northwest of the U.S. and Canada, as well as forest fires in those areas.

international seabed authority

created by UN, controls and montors seabed exploitation in international waters

anthropogenic water pollution

created by human activities

the excess nutrients nitrate and phosphate come from...

detergents, fertilizers, sewage, increased erosion of topsoil into water etc.

water pollution can be measured...

directly or by indirectly sampling

solar radiation does what?

drives the water (hydrological) cycle

the water cycle does what?

drives the world's weather systems

warm ocean currents flow from:

equator to poles (ex: gulf stream)

world fisheries were thought o be inexhaustible but now the FAO...

estimates that 75% are under threat of over-exploitation

when does ENSO occur?

every 2 to 8 years and lasts for about two years. (can be weaker/ stronger) (stronger is followed by la nina)

why is the continental shelf important?

has 15% of oceanic productivity but 15% of its area, light reaches shallow seas so producers can photsynthesize, countries also claim it as theirs to exploit and harvest

Three Gorges Dam

hydroelectric dam that cost 30 billion which is designed to provide hydroelectric power and stop the flooding of the Yangze River in China. Caused multiple complications such as flooding and earthquakes and caused 1mill to drown and many to be resettled. Also can cause more pollution.

UNCLOS (UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea)

in 1982 designated continental shelves as belonging to the country from which they extend. also designated a 200 nautical mile (370km) limit from the ow water mark of a shore as an exclusive economic zone belonging to that country. Outside that are international waters which no one country controls.

flows in the hydrological cycle

includes evapotranspiration, sublimation, evaporation, condensation, advection( wind blow movement), precipitation, melting, freezing, flooding, surface run-off, infiltration, percolation, & stream-flow or currents

storages in the hydrological cycle

includes organisms and various water bodies, including oceans, groundwater (aquifers), lakes, soil, rivers, atmosphere and glacier and ice caps.

biotic index

indirectly measure pollution by assaying the impact on species within the community according to their tolerance, diversity, and relative abundance

ENSO (el nino southern oscillation)

is a phenomenon in the pacific ocean that has global consequences. normally air pressure in the eastern pacific ocean (south america) is higher than that in the western pacific ocean (australia, indonesia), which results in the trade wineds that blow westward for most of the year. The trade winds blow the warm surface water westward. The pressure difference is reversed = souther oscilliation. the changed pressure difference alters the direction of the wind and the warm surface current.

Oglala Aquifer

is a shallow water table aquifer surrounded by sand, silt, clay and gravel located beneath the Great Plains in the United States. ... The aquifer is part of the High Plains Aquifer System, and rests on the Ogallala Formation. The depletion of the aquifer represents a change in the water balance of the Great Plains region, as would the suggested impacts of global warming. (Water balance refers to all sources of moisture in the region; atmospheric, surface, and groundwater.)

water flow in aquifers:

is extremely slow ( 1-10 metres per century)

continental shelf

is the extension of continents under the seas and oceans, where the continental shelf exists it creates shallow water.

anoxic

low oxygen

ocean currents

movements of water vertically and horizontally. they move in specific directions (some have names), and are found on the surface and in deep water.

inorganic water pollution

nitrates/phosphates, heavy toxic metals, hot water, oil, light, radioactive materials etc.

indicator species

plants and animals that show something about the environment by their presence, abundance or scarcity.

cold ocean currents flow from:

poles to equator (ex: humboldt current)

non-point source water pollution

pollution from many different sources. comes from many diffuse sources. can be caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground. As the runoff moves, it picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants, finally depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters and ground waters.

examples of water usage:

pollution via pesticides, irrigation, release of pollutants into water bodies, exhausting aquifers, sedimentation due to slow water flow, climate change disrupting rainfall patterns, etc.

water can be a ...

renewable resource of non-renewable depending on how it's stored

solutions for water problems:

reservoirs, redistribution, desalination plants, rainwater harvesting system, artificially recharging aquifers, reduce domestic use of freshwater via water efficient tech, etc.

deadzone

result of eutrophication when in oceans or freshwater there isn't enough oxygen to support life

surface freshwater

rivers, streams, reservoirs and lakes

organic water pollution

sewage, animal waste, pathogens, invasive species etc.

aquaculture

the farming of aquatic organisms in both coastal and inland areas involving interventions in the rearing process to enhance production

why is ENSO called ENSO?

the phenomenon usually occurs near christmas, so it was named "the boy child" in reference.

free services of marshes, mangroves etc

they provide homes for organisms

turnover time

time it takes for a molecule of water to enter and leave that part of the system

fisheries as a tragedy of the commons

tragedy of the commons states that if something belongs to all humans tend to (over)exploit it because the goal is to put yourself first. fishing is an example because fishing companies and fishermen are aiming to catch as much as possible to benefit them without thinking of the environment or others.

surface current

upper 400m of oceans are moved by wind. the earth deflects them and increases their circular movement.

natural water pollution

volcanic eruptions, algal blooms etc.

increased freshwater use leads to what?

water scarcity and water degradation (degradation referring to the water quality deteriorating)

NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation)

weather phenomenon in the Atlantic in which the gulf stream is slowing down and... ASK A FRIEND

process of eutrophication

1. fertilizers wash into river/lake 2. high levels of phosphate cause algae to grow faster 3. algal blooms form which block out light to plants = plants die 4. more algae = more food for zooplankton and small animals. they're food to fish which multiple because of more food = fewer zooplankton to eat the algae 5. algae die and are decomposed by aerobic bacteria 6. not enough oxygen in water, so everything dies as food chains collapse 7. oxygen levels fall lower and dead organic material forms sediments on the lake/river bed 8. in the end all life is gone and sediments settles to reveal a voided lake

fresh water is in short supply. how much is in polar ice caps and glaciers? how much is ground water?

68.7% is in the polar ice caps and glaciers, 30.1% is ground water. water on the surface of the earth (lakes,rivers etc.) is only 0.3% of total.

according the FAO ( food and agriculture organization) how much of the worlds fisheries are exploited?

70% are exploited and in decline, demand is high but there isn't enough fish

how much percent of fishery activity is in the oceans and how much is freshwater?

90% = oceans, 10% = freshwater

sewage treatment process

STAGE ONE: SCREENING Screening is the first stage of the wastewater treatment process. Screening removes large objects like, diapers, nappies STAGE TWO: PRIMARY TREATMENT This involves the separation of organic solid matter (or human waste) from the wastewater. This is done by putting the wastewater into large settlement tanks for the solids to sink to the bottom of the tank. The settled solids are called 'sludge'. At the bottom of these circular tanks, large scrappers continuously scrape the floor of the tank and push the sludge towards the center where it is pumped away for further treatment. STAGE THREE: SECONDARY TREATMENT The water, at this stage, is put into large rectangular tanks. These are called aeration lanes. Air is pumped into the water to encourage bacteria to break down the tiny bits of sludge that escaped the sludge scrapping process. STAGE FOUR: FINAL TREATMENT Next, the 'almost' treated wastewater is passed through a settlement tank. Here, more sludge is formed at the bottom of the tank from the settling of the bacterial action. Again, the sludge is scraped and collected for treatment. The water at this stage is almost free from harmful substances and chemicals. The water is allowed to flow over a wall where it is filtered through a bed of sand to remove any additional particles. The filtered water is then released into the river.

clean water act

The basis of the CWA was enacted in 1948 and was called the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, but the Act was significantly reorganized and expanded in 1972. The 1972 amendments: Established the basic structure for regulating pollutant discharges into the waters of the United States. Gave EPA the authority to implement pollution control programs such as setting wastewater standards for industry.