BIOLOGY SCRAPBOOK

ENDANGERED ECOSYSTEM
CHAPTER 9

NAME

: NURAINA ZAFIRAH BINTI ABDUL RAHIM

CLASS : 401
TEACHERS NAME : MISS FIONA JOYCE

A.

DEFORESTATION

Deforestation means the permanent removal of trees

from the forests. The forest has been transformed into
cleared land by removing the trees.

Cause and condition

1. Agricultural Activities - Due to overgrowing demand for food
products, huge amount of tress are fell down to grow crops and
for cattle gazing.
2. Logging - Wood based industries like paper, match-sticks,
furniture etc also need a substantial amount of wood supply.
Wood is also being used as fuel both directly and indirectly.
3. Urbanization - Overpopulation too directly affects forest
covers, as with the expansion of cities more land is needed to
establish housing and settlements. Therefore forest land is
reclaimed.
4. Forest Fires - This happens due to extreme warm summers
and milder winters. Fires, whether causes by man or nature
results in huge loss of forest cover.

Effect on ecosystem
1. Soil Erosion - This happens due to the absence of plant root
systems makes the soil structure unstable.
2. Landslides - The top layer of the soil disintegrates easily when it
rains heavily for a long period of time.
3. Flash flood - This caused by the depletion of water catchment
areas usduring rainy season due to the sedimentation of the
rivers.

4. Loss of biodiversity - This happens due to the loss of habitat

caused by the destruction of millions of hectares of forest has
driven countless species of plants and animals to extinction.
5. Climatic changes - Deforestation disrupts normal weather
patterns, creating hotter and drier weather.

Solutions to deforestation
1. Curb the felling of trees, by employing a series of rules and laws
to govern it.
2. Clear cutting of forests must be banned.
3. The cutting must be replaced by planting young trees to replace
the older ones that were cut.

B.

AIR POLLUTION

Air pollution also known as the contamination of the air,

irrespective of indoors or outside. Pollutants enters the air
from various sources including burning of fossil fuels
which contributes the most to air pollution.

Cause and condition

1. Burning of Fossil Fuels - The combustion of fossil fuels like
coal, petroleum and other factory combustibles release large
amounts of dangerous gases into the air.
2. Exhaust from factories and industries - Manufacturing
industries release large amount of carbon monoxide,
hydrocarbons, organic compounds, and chemicals into the air
thereby depleting the quality of air.
3. Mining operations - During the process dust and chemicals are
released in the air causing massive air pollution.
4. Agricultural activities - Use of insecticides, pesticides and
fertilizers in agricultural activities emit harmful chemicals into the
air.
5. Indoor air pollution - Household cleaning products, painting
supplies emit toxic chemicals in the air.

Effects on ecosystem
1. Acid rain - Harmful gases like nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides
are released into the atmosphere during the burning of fossil
fuels.
2. Global warming - Increased temperatures of world wide
resulting increase in sea levels and melting of ice from colder
regions and icebergs, displacement and loss of habitat.

3. Respiratory and heart problems - Air pollution create several

respiratory and heart condition, along with cancer among other
threats to the body. Children in areas exposed to air pollutants are
said to commonly suffer from pneumonia and asthma.
4. Depletion of Ozone layer - Earths ozone layer is depleting due
to the presence of chlorofluorocarbons, hydro chlorofluorocarbons
in the atmosphere. This will emit harmful rays back on earth and
can cause skin and eye related problems.
5. Effect on Wildlife - Toxic chemicals present in the air can force
wildlife species to move to new place and change their habitat.
The toxic pollutants deposit over the surface of the water and can
also affect sea animals.

Solutions for air pollution

1. Use public mode of transportation.
2. Conserve energy.
3. Understand the concept of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.
4. Emphasis on clean energy resources.
5. Use energy efficient devices.

C.

ACID RAIN

Acid rain comes from the combination of carbon

monoxide, oxides of nitrogen and sulphur dioxide with
water vapour in the atmosphere to form nitric acid and
sulphuric acid respectively.

Cause and condition

1. Natural sources such as erupting volcanoes, rotting
vegetation and sea sprays - Produce sulfur dioxide and fires,
bacterial decomposition and lightening generate nitrogen
dioxide.
2. Combustion of fossil fuels - Roughly two-thirds of all sulfur
dioxide and one-fourth of all nitrogen oxides come from
generation of electricity through burning of fossil fuels such as
coal.

Effect on ecosystem
1. Effect on Aquatic Environment - Over a period of time, acids
get accumulated in the water and lower the overall pH of the
water body. The aquatic plants and animals need a particular pH
level of about 4.8 to survive. If the pH level falls below that the
conditions become hostile for the survival of aquatic life.
2. Effect on Forests - It makes trees vulnerable to disease,
extreme weather, and insects by destroying their leaves,
damaging the bark and arresting their growth.
3. Effect on Soil - As it falls on forest or field soil, it kills useful
micro-organisms and leaches nutrients of soil. Many a times, this
leads to calcium and other nutrient deficiency, producing infertile
soils.

4. Effect on Architecture and Buildings - Acid rain on buildings,

especially those constructed with limestone, react with the
minerals and corrode them away. This leaves the building weak
and susceptible to decay.
5. Effect on Public Health - When in atmosphere, sulfur dioxide
and nitrogen oxide gases and their particulate matter derivatives
like sulfates and nitrates, degrades visibility and can cause
accidents, leading to injuries and deaths.

Solution to acid rain

1. Clean up smokestacks and exhaust pipes.
2. Conserve energy.
3. Invest in a car with low NOx emissions.
4. Use public transportation or carpool.
5. Consider using alternative energy sources.

D.

EUTROPHICATION

Eutrophication occurs when inorganic nutrients and

organic material enter a river or a lake.

Cause and condition

1. Natural run-off of nutrients from the soil and the weathering of

rocks.
2. Run-off of inorganic fertiliser (containing nitrates and phosphates)
3. Run-off of manure from farms (containing nitrates, phosphates
and ammonia)
4. Run-off from erosion (following mining, construction work or poor
land use)
5. Discharge of detergents (containing phosphates)
6. Discharge of partially treated or untreated sewage (containing
nitrates and phosphates)

Effect on ecosystem
1. Algal blooms When a bloom occurs, the stream, river, lake
or ocean becomes covered with algae, which is usually bright
green. This prevents the aquatic plants from photosynthesizing,
a process which provides oxygen in the water to animals that
need it, like fish and crabs.
2. Hypoxic The oxygen in the water becomes too low.

Solution to Eutrophication
1. Reducing the external load of nutrients or directly manipulating
the water body ecosystem.

2. Nutrients limitation.
3. Algae filtration.
4. Ultrasonic irradiation.

E.

THERMAL POLLUTION

Thermal pollution happens when the hot water

produced is discharged directly into nearby lakes or
rivers.

Cause and condition

1. Water as Cooling Agent in Power, Manufacturing and

Industrial plants When oxygen levels are altered in the
water, this can also degrade the quality and longevity of life in
wildlife that lives underwater.
2. Soil Erosion - Consistent soil erosion causes water bodies to
rise, making them more exposed to sunlight. The high
temperature could prove fatal for aquatic biomes as it may
give rise to anaerobic conditions.
3. Deforestation - During deforestation, water bodies are
directly exposed to sunlight, absorbing more heat and raising
its temperature.
4. Natural Causes - Natural causes like volcanoes and
geothermal activity under the oceans and seas can trigger
warm lava to raise the temperature of water bodies.

Effect on ecosystem
1. Increase in Toxins - These toxins may contain chemicals or
radiation that may have harsh impact on the local ecology and
make them susceptible to various diseases.
2. Loss of Biodiversity - Changes in the environment may cause
certain species of organisms to shift their base to some other
place while their could be significant number of species that may
shift in because of warmer waters.
3. Ecological Impact - A sudden thermal shock can result in mass
killings of fish, insects, plants or amphibians. Hotter water may
prove favorable for some species while it could be lethal for
other species.

4. Increases Metabolic Rate - Thermal pollution increases the

metabolic rate of organisms as increasing enzyme activity occurs
that causes organisms to consume more food than what is
normally required, if their environment were not changed.
5. Migration The warm water can also cause particular species of
organisms to migrate to suitable environment that would cater to
its requirements for survival. This can result in loss for those
species that depend on them for their daily food as their food
chain is interrupted.
Solution to Thermal Pollution
1. Altering environment of watercourse: Road building, logging
poundments, diverting flows for irrigation.
2. Adding or removing heat.
3. Cooling the water in cooling towers before it is released into
the environment.

F. GREENHOUSE EFFECT
The greenhouse effect is an atmospheric heating
phenomenon in which the Earth experiences rise in
temperature because certain gases (water vapor, carbon
dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane) in the atmosphere
allow incoming sunlight to pass through but trap heat
radiated from the earths surface.
Causes and condition

1. Burning of Fossil Fuels - When they are burnt, the carbon stored
inside them is released which combines with oxygen in the air to
create carbon dioxide.
2. Deforestation - Large scale development has resulted in cutting
down of trees and forests which has forced people to look for
alternate places for living. When the wood is burnt, the stored
carbon in converted back into carbon dioxide.
3. Increase in Population - New manufacturing hubs have come up
cities and towns that release some harmful gases into the
atmosphere which increases the greenhouse effect.
4. Industrial Waste and Landfills - Industries which are involved in
cement production, fertilizers, coal mining activities, oil extraction
produce harmful greenhouse gases.

Effect on ecosystem
1. Global Warming - The thermal radiation from the sun millions of miles
aware is getting trapped on Earth because of the dense layer of many
different greenhouse gases, which means that the average
temperature of the Earth is on the rise.

2. The Melting of the Polar Ice Caps -

3.