IV. Humans Alter the Biosphere

In many ways that aren’t too bright…..

A. Food Production Causes Land Pollution

1. Agriculture (man-made monocultures) that must be maintained by a high energy input in fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides

2. Agro-Corporations have altered Food Production

Confined Animal Feed Operationsa) Cafos are cruel to the confined animals

b) Large amounts of antibiotics are needed to keep the animals alive in such close proximity. This leads to antibiotics in meat and drug resistant bacteria.

c) Large Agro-businesses have crushed family farms

d) Huge amounts of animal excrement pollute ground water and streams

CAFOs in Ohio are transporting animal waste and dumping it in Henry Co.

The Meatrix

1. Existing landfills are running out of space. Buster’s landfill is filling up fast

2. Most communities reject plans for new landfills

B. An Urban ecosystem’s largest product is trash. Each day Americans throw away enough trash

to fill up the Lucas Oil Stadium 3X

3. Landfills are not just holes in the ground.

a) Ground water must be monitored and protected from contamination

b) Gasses must be collected or flared

c) Toxic leachate must be collected and treated

d) Landfills are breeding grounds for disease organisms

4. Incinerators reduce trash volume but they pollute the air. Further, the ash that remains is high in toxins.

5. Toxic Waste Disposal

c) Nuclear waste is currently being stored at its production site creating the potential for environmental disasters

a) Transport, handling and disposal of toxic waste is expensive and can lead to illegal disposal

b) Abandon Salt mines have been proposed for long term storage but transport and political problems exist.

C. Water Pollution

1. Fertilizer runoff increases Eutrophication-increase in the nutrients in water

a) Eutrophication results in Algal Blooms (rapid increase of algae populations)

b) When the algae die, decomposers use up large quantities of oxygen to break them down

c) Aquatic organisms die from lack of oxygen

2. Pesticide run off accumulates in the water supply resulting in Biological Magnification- the build up of toxins as you move up the food chain

3. Our Fresh Water Supply is Limited

a) Of the 7 billion people on earth, 1.1 billion do not have access to safe, clean drinking water.(www.charitywater.org)

b) While the average American uses 150 gallons of water per day, those in developing countries cannot find five. (www.charitywater.org)

c) California has about 20 years of water left in the state. Maude Barlow, author of Blue Covenant and co-author of Blue

Gold, d) Water is a $400 billion dollar global industry; the

third largest behind electricity and oil. CBS News.

4. Our Water is Contaminateda) In a scientific study in which more than 1,000

bottles of 103 brands of water were tested, about one-third of the bottles contained synthetic organic chemicals, bacteria, and arsenic. National Resources Defense Council,

b) There are over 116,000 human-made chemicals that are finding their way into public water supply systems. William Marks, author of Water Voices from Around the World

c) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency currently does not regulate 51 known water contaminants. (www.foodandwaterwatch.org)

d) From 500,000 to 7,000,000 people get sick per year from drinking tap water. Erik Olson, Deputy Staff Director of Barbara Boxer’s Environmental and Public Works Committee (EPW)

For Love of Water

D. Air Pollution

1. Burning Fossil fuels (oil, coal and gas) pollutes the air by releasing nitrous & sulfur oxides, particulate, hydrocarbons

a) Particulates (soot) builds up and covers buildings and neighborhoods and can cause respiratory problems

b) Sulfur and nitrogen oxides combined with atmospheric moisture and cause acid rain

1) Acid rain destroys forests, lakes and streams by lowering the pH

2) Few living things can tolerate a pH below 5

C. Hydrocarbons can cause the Greenhouse Effect by preventing heat from dissipating back into space

1) As a result, global temperature could rise and melt polar ice caps cause flooding. A large portion of the world’s population could be displaced.

2) Planetary weather patterns could be disrupted affecting agriculture

3) Data indicates atmospheric CO2 has been increasing for the past 50 years

Red Indicates CO2 Emissions

2. Fossil Fuels are non-renewable and highly polluting. World oil supplies could be depleted by 2050

3. Smoke stack scrubbers can reduce polluting emissions but they are expensive and produce toxic ash

4. Energy Production is the leading cause of ecological disasters

E. Habitat Destruction

1. As man clears more area for expanding cities and agriculture, wildlife, both plants and animals, lose their habitat

Loss of Habitat

a) loss of feeding and breeding grounds can result in extinction

b) Extinction- the elimination of a species from the biosphere forever

c) If a species is endangered it is near extinction and if it is threatened it is near to being endangered

The Sinking Ark

2. Nearly all medicines were derived from a plant,fungus, bacteria or animal species

3. If we destroy many species, we may lose the genetic material we need to cure cancer or AIDS.

What dominant feature of our

society is pathologically

driving humanity’s head long charge to destruction?

F. Possible Solutions

1. Natural fertilizers (garbage, manure) and crop rotation with legumes can reduce our dependence on chemical fertilizers

If we don’t do the impossible, we will face the unthinkable.

Petra Kelly founder of the German Green Party

2. Biological controls (InCide, predator species, phermone traps and sterile male techniques) can lower or eliminate our need for pesticides

3. Recycling (metals, glass and paper) will reduce the speed we are using up landfill space. Garbage can be composted to provide fertilizer.

4. Alternate Energy Sources (nuclear, hydroelectric, solar, geothermal, wind, waves) can reduce our use of fossil fuel

5. Participate! Be a part of the solution!