Ecosystem Review (25 points)
1. Which law regulates air pollution? Which law regulates water pollution? Which law protects endangered species?
Water pollution:
Air pollution?
Endangered species?
2. Define the following terms related to species interactions.
CompetitionMutualism
Parasitism
Predation
Commensalism
3. Why are trees important to an ecosystem, even after they have fallen?
4. How does the second law of thermodynamics relate to energy moving up trophic levels?
5. Using the food web above, what directly results from removing a primary consumer, such as a deer or moose from the ecosystem?
6. Fill in the trophic levels for a temperate deciduous forest. Use the following organisms: Spider, grasshopper, Deer, Bear, Snake, Hawk, Mouse, Tree, Flower, Grass, Mountain Lion, small birds, coyote
Tertiary ConsumersSecondary Consumers
Primary Consumers
Primary Producers
7. Which of the following biome has the highest net primary productivity?
8. In photosynthesis, during light reactions, what do plants take in? What do they give off? What do organisms (or plants during dark reactions) give off?
Plants take in ______and give off ______during light reactions of photosynthesis.
When organisms like humans and bacteria respirate they take in ______and give off ______.
9. Which biome has the lowest net primary productivity, and therefore would be most impacted by degradation of primary producers?
10. The net annual primary productivity of a particular savanna ecosystem is found to be 5,000 kcal/m2 per year. If respiration by the producers is 4,500 kcal/m2 per year, what is the gross annual primary productivity for this ecosystem, in kcal/m2 per year?
Net primary productivity = gross primary productivity - respiration
11. Tropical Rainforests tend to be the most deforested biome in the world. What are 2 things that will happen to the soil in a rainforest if you remove all the trees?
1)
2)
12. Traveling from the northpole to the equator, what happens to the mean temperature? What happens to the mean precipitation? Why?
Temperature
Precipitation
13. Give 3 examples of abiotic components and 3 examples of biotic components that are affected by abiotic components in an ecosystem?
Abiotic / Biotic1)
2)
3) / 1)
2)
3)
14. What is gross primary productivity (GPP)? What is net primary productivity (NPP)? How are they related?
NPP=GPP=
Relation:
15. What is an Ecosystem service? Name 3 examples of ecosystem services?
1)2)
3)
16. What is the primary cause of deforestation in the tropical rainforests of the Amazon basin?
17. How do trees control the flow of water during rainstorms?
18. A farmer uses nitrogen fertilizer to increase crop yields. Run off from irrigating crops brings nitrogen to streams and rivers. Eutrophication begins. What is likely to happen next?
The following questions refer to qualities of water samples. Write the letter for the correct answer in the blanks for numbers 19 through 23. An answer may be used once, more than once, or not at all.
A. Acidity
B. Turbidity
C. Hardness
D. Dissolved oxygen
E. Salinity
19. Measured on the pH scale ______
20. Caused by suspended particulates ______
21. Measured by the amount of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ______
22. What are 2 characteristics of a population that would accelerate its extinction?
23. Logging occurs, polluting the local stream. What is the most likely result of an increase in pollution (increase in decomposition) in the stream?
24. Which of the above park layouts has the least forest fragmentation? How will this affect the biotic organisms that live in the forest?
25. Rank the following forestry practices in order from most sustainable to least sustainable: Selective cutting, clear cutting, strip cutting.
Selective CuttingClear Cutting
Strip Cutting
26. Match the following terms with their definitions.
i. National parks
ii. National wildlife refuges
iii. National forests
iv. National wilderness preservation areas
v. National resource lands
A. Wilderness, scenic view and unusual landforms that have distinct boundaries, and are preserved for the enjoyment of the US public _____
B. Areas that are set aside for the primary purpose of protecting wildlife, such as the endangered Marbled Murrelet. ______
C. Publically owned lands usually formed within national forests or rangelands, which limit human use to preserve the ecosystem, by prohibiting logging, mining or construction of roads. ______
D. Along with National Rangelands (for grazing) these areas are managed by the National Forest Service, these are section of land dominated by woody plants within Publically owned lands. ______
E. These areas of land are managed by the bureau of land, which are set aside for resources accessed by the public. Publically owned oil rigs are an example of this type of land. ______
27. What are 3 major goal of the program begun in 1995 to reintroduce the gray wolf into Yellowstone National Park? (related to the endangered species list, the bison population and ecosystem balance/predator prey relationships)
1)2)
3)
28. List 4 ADVANTAGES of maintaining the biodiversity of an ecosystem:
1)2)
3)
4)
29. What is an example of wetland mitigation? Why is wetland mitigation complicated?
30. What is reclamation? What is an example of reclamation of a heavily mined area?
31. Explain how Dissolved Oxygen, Nitrate, phosphate could be used to identify whether a water system is contaminated.
32. Fill in the chart for what types of water tests, and what they tell you about the water quality/why is it important?
Test / What it tells your about the water qualityDissolved Oxygen
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)
Fecal Coliform bacteria
Nitrate (NO3)
Phosphate (PO4)
Temperature
pH
Turbidity
Water Hardness
33. Explain how water quality changes at different parts of a stream? Why?
UpstreamMidstream
Downstream
Climate and Air Pollution Study Guide
34. Which of the global convention or treaty best exemplifies global collaboration for a sustainable environment, which reduced the production of CFC’s depleting the ozone layer in the stratosphere?
35. The polar regions radiate away more heat energy (infrared radiation) than they receive from the sun in the course of a year. However, they are prevented from becoming progressively colder each year primarily by
36. What process that happens in the oceans indirectly removes carbon from Earth’s atmosphere, forming carbon sinks?
37. Most data indicate that, during the past 100 years, mean global annual temperature has
38. Which of the following actions would be the most effective in decreasing acid rain and acid deposition problems?
39. What are 4 gases have been implicated in contributing to the increase in global temperatures via the greenhouse effect ?
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
40. Which element is released by CFCs and catalyzes a chain reaction that breaks down ozone in the upper atmosphere?
41. Ozone near Earth’s surface (ground level ozone) is on the increase. This ozone near the surface is undesirable because it
42. In models of global warming, the most important factor contributing to an increase in sea level is
43. Which of the following best describes the mechanism of the greenhouse effect in Earth’s atmosphere?
44. Which of the following not only results from greenhouse warming but also contributes to additional warming of Earth in the artic (i.e., is a positive feedback process)? (hint: think solids and liquids)
45. An increase in what compound in the atmosphere is most likely a significant cause of the general trend indicated by the graph above?
46. Which of the following most directly explains the periodic fluctuations of the curve on the graph above?
47. Scientific studies and models indicate we need to prevent CO2 levels from reaching an irreversible tipping point of _____ ppm, which could set into motion large-scale, long-term changes.
48. Which of the following shows approximate concentration of CO2, N2, and O` in dry air?
CO2=
N2=
O2=
49. What are 3 possible effects of a warmer atmosphere include which of the following?
1)
2)
3)
50. Which of the following is a greenhouse gas that is produced by domestic livestock, such as cows?
Questions 18-20 refer to the following air pollutants
A. Sulfur dioxide
B. Lead
C. Ozone
D. Hydrocarbons
E. Particulates
51. Most often cited as the causative factor for acid deposition ______
52. Considered harmful in the troposphere but beneficial in the stratosphere ______
53. Is the major pollutant that electrostatic precipitators are designed to remove from power-plant smokestack emissions ______
Questions 21-22 refer to the information and chart below.
In 1997, the World Resources Institute estimated the world’s proven oil reserves to be 1,000 billion barrels and the ultimately recoverable reserves to be 2,000 billion barrels. The table below shows the world consumption of oil from 1986 to 1997.
Year / Consumption (million barrels per day)1986 / 62
1987 / 63
1988 / 65
1989 / 66
1990 / 66
1991 / 67
1992 / 67
1993 / 67
1994 / 68
1995 / 70
1996 / 72
1997 / 74
54. At the 1997 rate of consumption, about how long will the estimated 2,000 billion barrels of oil last (in years)?Show your work please.
55. What was the approximate percent increase in consumption from 1986 to 1997? Show your work please.
56. The three main anthropogenic sources (human made) of gaseous air pollutants in the United States are
1)
2)
3)
57. If Earth had no atmosphere, the mean surface temperature would be approximately -15°C. With our present atmosphere, Earth’s mean surface temperature is approximately +15°C. Which of the following is the best explanation for this difference?
58. Ground-level ozone in most major United States cities results primarily from
59. If increase in mean temperature continues to increase exponentially, global warming is most likely to directly cause what two effects as icebergs in the artic melt?
60. What compound is an important contributor to both global warming and ozone depletion in the stratosphere (good ozone)?
61. What actions would reduce global greenhouse emissions of Sulfur dioxides specifically?
62. If a scientist were taking water samples from a local pond, what would be the strongest evidence in support of a scientist’s contention that a local area was experiencing acid deposition (such as the formation sulfuric acid from acid mine drainage of coal mines)?
63. Which of the following factors is fundamentally responsible for seasons on Earth?
31. The graph above shows the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita versus the annual electric energy consumption per capita in 2004. Iceland is not on this graph for 2004, but by 2009, Iceland had increased its GDP to $40,000, and energy consumption up above 30,000 kwH per capita mainly by relying on geothermal energy. What is geothermal energy? How is electricity generated from a geothermal source? How is this different than coal powered energy?
32. Despite its low GDP per capita and low annual electrical energy consumption per capita, China has become the world’s largest emitter of CO2. Explain this apparent contradiction.
33. In addition to contributing to increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations, China is facing other air pollution issues related the generation of electricity. Identify one such issue and describe the impact it has on human health.
34. Two countries shown on the graph have developed domestic energy sources: sugarcane in Brazil and tar sands in western Canada.
a. Describe the process of fuel production from sugar cane.
b. Describe the process of fuel production from tar sands.
c. Describe TWO disadvantages of using the energy source that you chose in part (34a).
d. Which of the two energy sources is more sustainable? Justify your answer with an explanation.
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