Battle for the Biosphere

Battle for the Biosphere

1. World Biomes and Ecosystems

   • An ecosystem is a community of plants and animals that interact with each other and their physical environment.
     • Very large ecosystems are called biomes, which together make up the biosphere.
       • Tropical rainforests lie in a band either side of the equator, where the sun rays are most concentrated.
       • Deserts are found close to the tropics, where the sun rays are still highly concentrated and the air is dry.
       • Deciduous forests grow in higher latitudes, where rainfall is high and the sun rays are less strong.
       • Coniferous forests are where temperatures are so cold that trees have evolved with needle leaves.
       • Tundra is found at the Arctic circle where the sun rays have little strength and only tough short grasses can survive.
     • Local Factors Affecting Biomes
       • Altitude affects vegetation as temperatures fall and tough grasses replace trees as you increase in altitude.
       • Inland areas isolated from sea suffer from low rainfall because the winds loose moisture.
       • Geology and soils have an influence because limestone rock leaves behind thin soil, which can store little water, so few trees grow.
     • Life Support System
       • The plants absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen instead.
       • Trees and other plants slow the flow of rainwater to rivers like a natural flood control.
       • Dead leaves and plants add nutrients to the soil. Insects and animals burrow and help the soil to breathe.

2. Goods and Services

   • The biosphere produces a wide range of goods.
     • Food
       • Commercial crops, like cereal production, wheat and corn
       • Fish, meat, fruits, berries and nuts
     • Medicines
       • Pain killers, malaria treatment, cancer treatments, vitamin C
     • Raw Materials
       • Natural flood defences from mangrove trees, paper, timber, bamboo, rubber, ecotourism
       • Industrial activities

3. The Destruction of Tropical Rainforest

   • The rainforest is suffering from degradation, its character and quality are being constantly lowered, caused by human actions.
   • Mining
     • The Grande Carajas development programme brought iron mines and aluminium plants to a place where there was once virgin forest in Brazil.
     • Mining developments led to road constructions and the TransAmazon Highway led to enormous losses of primary forest.
   • Timber
     • The commercial clearance of tropical hardwood like mahogany has been occurring for centuries.
     • It is fuelled by the demand for rich furniture and flooring
   • Agricultural Land
     • Landless farmers migrate into the Amazonia along roads and cut down trees for firewood or land to grow crops
       • This leads to deforestation that follows the road network.

4. The Soya Craze

   • Removal of Brazils forest can be linked with the rise of soya bean production
     • Growth in soya cultivation is a response to increased global demand
     • Cattle ranchers are switching to soya as a safe and healthy food source for their animals.
   • Demand for meat is soaring, which means soya needs to be grown to feed the ever-growing number of cattle.

5. Changes for the UK

   • Uk's migratory birds have experienced a severe decline in numbers
   • Grass may become the natural vegetation, rather than trees
   • Global warming may not lower our total biodiversity.
     • Some growing seasons (such as olives) have lengthened by one month
     • New marine wildlife - more sightings of whales, sharks and sea turtles
     • Some scientists think that the tree line is moving into higher areas in the Scottish Highlands, which will bring higher biodiversity to upland areas.

6. Global Scale Biosphere Conservation

   • There are many notable conservation framework successes
     • CITES
       • Introduces harsh penalties for poachers who shoot endangered species
     • Rainforest Conservation
       • 'Debt-forNature' swap agreements - THe US reduced Guatemala's debt in exchange for a promise to cut down less rainforest
     • National Parks
       • National Parks cover 13% of the Earth's land surface and are overseen globally by organisations including the United Nations
     • World Heritage Sites
       • Over 950 sites have been awarded official recognition since 1972 for their biosphere credentials.
     • Wetland Management
       • The Ramsar Convention protects wetlands from unsustainable exploitation
       • Wetlands are areas where water is the primary factor for controlling the environment and plant and animal life.
         • Coastal wetlands
         • Estuaries
         • Lakes
         • Rivers and Streams
         • Marsh, swamps and bogs

7. Local Biosphere Management

   • The Caledonian Forest
     • Where damage has been done in the past, its still possible to make repairs.
     • The forest is an important environmental inheritance
     • The aim is to restore biodiversity to its natural level, by reintroducing wild boar to Glen Affric
       • The wild boar disturb the forest floors, which aids tree growth

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