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INTRODUCTION

Great challenges in today’s world have lead to various development


projects. The projects or human activities, if unplanned and mismanaged,
can upset the balance of the natural environment and damaged the
ecosystem.

A new report shows that some 60 per cent of the benefits that the
global ecosystem provides to support life on Earth (such as fresh water,
clean air, and a relatively stable climate) are being degraded or used
unsustainably. In the report, scientist working on the Millennium Ecosystem
Assessment (MA) warns that harmful consequences of this degradation to
human health are already being felt and could grow significantly worse over
the next 50 years.

So, we as human being have an important responsibility to manage the


environment. The Earth can only be a better place if development activities
are planned with a great care.

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Objective
Learning outcomes

• Identify human activities that threaten the ecosystem.

• Explain the impact of human activities on the ecosystem.

• Evaluate critically the effect of unplanned development and


mismanagement of the ecosystem.

• Describe types of pollution.

• Explain the effect of pollution on living thing and the environment

• Compare and contras pollutants in the air from different environment.

• State the source of air pollution.

• Interpret data on the level of air pollution in some cities.

• Make an inference on the source of the air pollution in some cities.

• Interpret data on the level of water pollution in some rivers.

• Predict the level of air and water pollution in a particular location


within the next ten years.

• Suggest strategies to solve problem related to in air and water


pollution.

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Impact of human activities
Human activities which threaten the ecosystem are:

• Development

• Increase in the number of motor vehicles

• Increase in the usage of pesticides and chemical fertilizers in the


agriculture sector

• Uncontrolled deforestation

The effects of unplanned development and mismanagement of the


ecosystem are:

• Soil erosion

• Flash flood

• Landslide

• Eutrophication

• Water, air, thermal, and noise pollution

• Global warming (phenomenon of increase in temperature of the Earth,


also known as the greenhouse effect)

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• Depletion of the ozone layer

• Climatic change

• Extinction of living things

Pollution
Air pollution

- Caused by the presence of pollutants in the air which are harmful to


life and the environment.

Source of pollution are:

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Effects of air pollution

• Acidic gaseous pollutant cause respiratory diseases such as bronchitis,


breathlessness, lung cancer and asthma

• These pollutants irritate eye, cause skin diseases and conjunctivitis

• Increases the acidity in the soil and cause the soil to be infertile.

• Acid rain reduces the pH level of the lakes and the rivers and threatens
the aquatic life

• Acid rain corrodes metal structure and erodes limestone used for
making building

Water pollution

- Caused by domestic wastes, industrial wastes, and agriculture wastes


that are discharged directly into the rivers

Source of water pollution Harmful effect


Discharge of untreated sewage and • Encourage growth of bacteria,
domestic waste into rivers causing diseases such as cholera
• Number of bacteria increases
due to increased concentration of
nitrates and phosphates in
untreated sewage
• Cause bad odour and unsightly
view
Discharge of industrial wastes • Contaminate the water
physically
• Decomposition of organic
wastes reduces the concentration
of oxygen in the water

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Discharge of agriculture wastes • Cause Eutrophication
• Agrochemicals are poisonous to
aquatic animals and cause cancer
Oil spillage • Cause death to all life forms in
the sea
• Pollute the beaches

Eutrophication

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Eutrophication occurs when large quantities of nutrients such as
nitrates and phosphates enter an aquatic environment. Sources of these
nutrients include animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and sewage. The
ecosystem quickly experiences and increase in photosynthetic and blue-
green algae, as these organisms thrive in the presence of the added
nutrients. An algae bloom occurs as the algae accumulates into dense,
visible patches near the surface of the water, prohibiting light from
penetrating deeper areas of the lake or stream. Some fish are unable to
survive without this light, but for them an even more serious problem arises
when the algae begin to die. At this point, oxygen-demanding bacteria take
over the ecosystem, decomposing the algae and using up dissolved oxygen
in the process. These bacteria increase the biological oxygen demand (BOD)
of the ecosystem. BOD is the amount of oxygen required for the

decomposition of organic compounds by microorganisms in a given amount


of water. It is usually measured in milligrams of oxygen consumed per litre of
water. Biological oxygen demand is important because it affects the amount
of dissolved oxygen available to all species in an aquatic ecosystem. A

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higher BOD indicates a lower level of dissolved oxygen. This lower
concentration of oxygen causes many fish suffocate, and as the die, the
number of oxygen-demanding decomposers increases even more.

Thermal pollution

- The release of excessive heat into the environment.

Effects of thermal pollution:

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Noise pollution

- The occurrence of excessive noise in the environment that disturbs the


tranquillity of life such as :

• The loudness of sound is measured using the decibel (dB) unit

• Human ears can only receive sound less than 80 dB

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The sources of noise pollution are

Effects of noise pollution include:

• Hearing problems (deafness)

• Ear injury

• Headaches

• Emotional and mental disturbances

• High blood pressure

Greenhouse effect

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The greenhouse effect is the heating of the surface of a planet or moon
due to the presence of an atmosphere containing gases that absorb and emit
infrared radiation. Greenhouse gases, which include water vapour, carbon
dioxide, methane, CFC and nitrogen dioxide, are almost transparent to solar
radiation but strongly absorb and emit infrared radiation. Thus, greenhouse
gases trap heat within the surface-troposphere system. This mechanism is
fundamentally different from that of an actual greenhouse, which works by
isolating warm air inside the structure so that heat is not lost by convection.
The greenhouse effect was discovered by Joseph Fourier in 1824, first
reliably experimented on by John Tyndall in 1858, and first reported
quantitatively by Svante Arrhenius in 1896. Greenhouse effect makes the
earth’s temperature rises causing global warming.

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The following human activities can increase the concentration of carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere to cause a greenhouse effect are:

• Burning of fuels in factories

• Forest fires

• Deforestation

• Open burning of rubbish

• Coal-fuelled power-stations

• Use of CFC

The consequences of the greenhouse effect are:

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Thinning of the ozone layer

Ozone is the made up of 3 oxygen atoms. It is located at stratosphere


which is 20-50 km above the earth’s surface. The ozone layer absorbs the
harmful ultraviolet rays and prevents them from reaching the earth’s
surface. It was found that the depletion of the ozone layer occurred over
both the Arctic an Antarctic, creating the ozone holes. The ozone hole in the
Antarctic is found to be is big as the USA. The depletion of the ozone is
caused by the increasing use of CFC which can break down and convert
ozone molecules into other molecules. Other pollutants such as halons,
chlorine gas, and nitrogen oxides can also destroy the ozone.

Effects of the thinning of the ozone layer which allow excessive


ultraviolet radiation to reach the Earth:

On the • Increases the temperature of the environment


environment • Changes in the climate and weather patterns
• Changes in wind direction
On plants • The rate of photosynthesis decrease due to
destruction of stomata and chlorophyll in the leaves
• Disturbs the ecological balance by destroying
aquatic organisms such as planktons.
On human health • Causes skin cancer (melanoma)
• Damage eyesight and causes cataract
• Weakens the human immune system

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Impact of the Thinning of the Ozone Layer and Global Warming on the
Ecosystem

1. The thinning of the ozone layer allows ultraviolet radiation to reach the
Earth surface and destroy the planktons in the food chains. This
problem threatens other marine life.

2. Reduce the number of stomata and amount of chlorophyll in the


leaves. The plant cannot carry out photosynthesis. The plant will die
and the biotic component in the ecosystem threatens.

3. Global warming causes the atmosphere to be very hot, resulting in


drought and changes in the climate. This affects the biotic component
in the ecosystem which consequently affects the distribution and
population of the biotic component.

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Steps to maintain a stable environment

• Implementation of laws

i. The Environmental Quality Act 1874, 1985 (amendment) :

- Control and prevent pollution of the environment (covering air,


water, thermal and noise pollution)

- Coordinate all activities related to waste disposal and fix the


maximum light of waste to be disposed

- Control the extent of waste production (amount, type, content,


and effect) so as not to threaten the quality of that environment

ii. Factory and Machine Act 1967/1983 to protect the workers from
being exposed to noise levels of more than 95 dB for 4 hours
continuously.

iii. Pesticides Act 1974 to control the usage of pesticides.

iv. National Forestry Act 1984 to protect and preserve forest as well
as all wild-life in the forests

• Use of technology

i. Install factory chimney that have specific devices to filter fine


particles and toxic gases before they are released into the air

ii. Use of oil-disintegration bacteria to clean up oil spillage the sea

iii. Recycle wastes made of manufactured materials such as glass,


metal, paper and aluminium cans to protect the environment and
conserve natural resources

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• Education on the management of resources

i. The public must be educated on the concept of 4R

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• Preservation and conservation of the ecosystem

i. Preservation involves efforts to protect an ecosystem

ii. Conservation involves efforts to return an affected ecosystem to


its natural equilibrium and keep them good.

iii. Preservation is better than conservation

iv. The efforts of conservation includes

- Preservations of soil

- Preservations of water

- Preservations of flora and fauna

- Preservations of mangrove swamps

• The practice of biological control

i. Biological control is the use of natural predators to control the


population of pest species such as:

- The use of khaki chambel (a species of ducks) to control the


population of gold snails (siput gondang emas) which feeds on
paddy stalks

- The use of owls to control the populations of rats in oil palm


plantations

- The use of hoverfly larvae to control aphids which feed on crop


plants

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• The use of renewable energy

i. Renewable energy is energy flow that occurs naturally in the


environment and can be harnessed for the benefit of the humans

ii. Renewable energy is inexhaustible and does not pollute the air

iii. Examples of renewable energy

- Solar energy (generates electricity)

- Wind energy (to operate windmills)

- Flowing water (generate hydroelectric power)

- Wave energy (generates electricity)

- Geothermal energy (generates electricity)

- Biomass energy (produces biogas as fuel)

- Gasohol (converted to ethanol as fuel)

- Palm oil (converted to methyl ester as fuel)

• The efficient use of energy

i. Reduce the burning of coal, petroleum and other fossil fuels

ii. Substitute natural gas for coal at power plants

iii. Improve fuel efficiency in vehicle-use cars that run on energy-


efficient engines

iv. Use a cleaner fuel by reducing the content of sulphur in diesel


and switching to gas

v. Improve energy efficiency in factories

vi. Use more hybrid car which combines electric and gasoline
engines

Conclusion
Management of the ecosystem is the task of maintaining the balance
of nature by means of preservations and conservation of natural resources

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as well as protecting the ecosystem. Improper management of development
activities can threaten the ecosystem.

Some activities can upset the balance in ecosystem such as disposal of


rubbish freely in all places which includes drains and rivers; open burning of
rubbish and disposal of effluent water from factories.

To ensure these activities do not destroy the ecosystem, the following


measure can be taken. Some examples are stricter law and closer
supervision of responsible particles; educating the public to cultivate an
awareness to keep the environment clean and to care for the ecosystem and
carrying out programmes to recycle discarded wastes such as paper, glass
and aluminium cans.

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