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Файл:Fundamentals of Geography. Study guide
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Human impact on the biosphere
81
it was preserved only on the Commander and Kuril Islands, and outside our country – on the Aleutian Islands. These examples clearly show how a man can successfully solve the difficult task of protecting endangered and rare animal species.
The number of many species of valuable animals (river beaver, sable, elk, saiga,
etc.) was not only restored, but most of them were again included in the number
of commercial species.
94 species of mammals, 80 species of birds, 9 species of fish, 37 species of reptiles were included in the Red Book of the USSR (Vronsky, 2008) such mammals as:
muskrat, red wolf, Transcaucasian brown bear, Amur forest cat, caracal, Turkestan
lynx, snow leopard (irbis), Amur tiger, etc. Among the birds were pink pelican, black
stork, flamingo, steppe eagle, white-tailed eagle, sturgeon, bustard, pink gull, etc.
Thus, human activity has reached a global impact on the biosphere, changing
the circulation of substances. the water balance of the planet, exerting a strong
influence on soils, vegetation and wildlife. As a result of anthropogenic activity
new toxic sources of pollution of the biosphere have appeared, which ultimately
may endanger the existence of humans. Many of them eventually enter the human
body through the food chains (transfer of radioactive substances, heavy metals,
pesticides, etc.). Using the example of mercury pollution, it is shown that the
duration and intensity of exposure lead to the formation of local foci of pollution,
bring concentrations of the toxicant uncharacteristic for nature into the global
circulation of substances (Ovsepyan, Fedorov, 2011). There are cases of mercury
poisoning, that is contained in cereals, in marine fish (Japan, USA, Canada). Pesticides and related compounds pose a great threat to the biosphere due to their
slow destruction and ability to concentrate in protein tissues. As a result, the
concentration of pesticides increases as they move through the food chains. Scientists have calculated that the content of DDT increases by trophic levels (the
ratio of the concentration of DDT in the body to its concentration in water). It can
be expressed as follows: 800 for phytoplankton, 3200-shrimp, 24 000–42 000 once
for predatory fish, and even up to 520,000 times for waterfowl. A characteristic
feature of DDT is that it does not enter into chemical reactions with water and therefore is widely distributed in the biosphere – from polar ice to deep-sea depressions.
Pesticides have a very negative impact on forest ecosystems. Special studies
in the Hubbard Brook Nature Reserve (USA) have shown that the use of certain
pesticides leads to an increase in water runoff from the forest ecosystem by
26–41 %; the degree of removal of minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium)
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82
also increases. Probably, as a result of anthropogenic activity, a large number of
elements that could accumulate in the soil and plant tissues are removed from natural ecosystems. Even these individual examples show how serious the problem
of environmental pollution is. For further living a man must solve this complex
problem by building sewage treatment plants, applying the latest agrotechnical
methods, breeding salt-resistant varieties of cultivated plants, creating a waste-free
technology based on the principle of natural cycles, etc.
Specially protected natural areas (protected areas). According to Federal
Law "On Environmental Protection" (2002), these are "natural objects of special
environmental, scientific, cultural, aesthetic, recreational and health-improving significance, which have been completely withdrawn from economic use and for which
special legal protection measures have been taken." According to the severity of the
protected measures, the following categories of protected areas are recognized:
nature reserves, biosphere reserves, national parks, sanctuaries, etc. (fig. 17).
Fig. 17. Types of specially protected natural territories (protected areas)
(according to Vronsky, 2008)
The most effective measure to preserve the gene pool of living organisms is
a wide networking of specially protected natural areas in various regions of the
world (Primak, 2002; Bobrov, 2007), the total number of which is more than 3,500 with
PROTECTED NATURAL AREAS
Nature reserves
National parks
Nature reserves
Natural sanctuaries
Conservation and hunting
farms
Biosphere reserves
Nature parks
Reserves
World Heritage Sites
Sanitary and resort areas
Human impact on the biosphere
83
an area of over 4 million km2 (3 % of the land area). In recent years, there has been
a positive trend of increasing the types and area of protected areas in a number of
countries: New Zealand (19 % of the country's territory), Austria (15 %), Norway
(more than 9 %), Iceland (8 %), etc. (Vronsky, 2008).
Nature reserves are specially protected natural territories in which any economic activity is completely prohibited in order to preserve natural complexes,
and protect animals and plants. They have the status of environmental protection,
scientific research and environmental education institutions. Currently, the number of nature reserves in Russia has reached 100 with a total area of 33.7 million
hectares (1,6 % of the country's territory). The majority of the state nature reserves
has an area of up to 60 thousand hectares, but there are also quite large ones (more
than 1 million hectares each): the Great Arctic Natural Reserve (4.17 million
hectares), the Komandorsky Nature Reserve (3.65 million hectares). ha), Taimyr
(1.78 million ha), etc. In the reserves, special attention should be paid to animals
listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, particularly mammals (muskrat,
Amur tiger, Western Siberian beaver, goral), birds (black vulture, peregrine falcon, black stork, Japanese and Daurian crane, white-headed barn owl, etc.).
Biosphere reserves are included in the international system of biosphere reserves by UNESCO which carry out global environmental monitoring. Their basic
scheme is as follows: in the center there is a core (strictly protected territory),
a buffer zone is allocated around (protected, on which economic activity is partially limited), and then there is an external (transit) zone of ordinary, but strictly
rational economic use of the territory. These specially protected areas are of national or global importance for the conservation of biological diversity and the
sustainable development of the biosphere. Within the framework of the UNESCO
international program "Man and the Biosphere", research is carried out in more
than 320 biosphere reserves around the world. 23 Russian reserves have the international status of biosphere reserves that have received UNESCO certificates (Astrakhan, Barguzin, Caucasian, Kronotsky, Pechora-Ilych, Sikhote-Alin, Teberdinsky, Central Chernozem, etc.).
National parks are vast territories aimed at preserving natural complexes
with special ecological, historical, aesthetic value, where economic activity is
banned. Zones of reserved, custom-made regimes, recreational and limited economic use are formed on their territory. The world's first national park was
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84
established in 1872 in the upstream of the Yellowstone River (USA), and then
national parks were set in Canada, Africa, Australia, New Zealand. There are
more than 2,300 national parks in the world. Currently, there are 35 national
parks on the territory of the Russian Federation with a total area of about 7 million hectares (0,4 % of the country's territory). The most famous Russian national
parks are: Valdai, Zabaikalsky, Meschera, Baikal, Elbrus, Samarskaya Luka,
Sebezhsky, Sochi, Tunkinsky, etc.
Nature reserves are temporarily protected natural territories created to restore
and preserve populations of several species of plants and animals. Economic and
other activities are prohibited on the territory of the reserve if it contradicts the
goals of its organization. There are temporary and permanent nature reserves, and
the latter can be federal and local subordination. Various forms of custom-made
regime are provided: complex (landscape), geological, biological, botanical, zoological, etc. Currently, there are about 3,000 reserves of regional significance in
the Russian Federation (their area is 68 million hectares) and 68 reserves of federal
significance (12.6 million hectares). The largest areas are occupied by hunting reserves, in which animals are protected (beaver, sable, elk, muskrat, marten, hog
and swimming game, etc.).
Natural sanctuaries are stand-alone unique natural objects (groves, lakes,
waterfalls, picturesque rocks, ancient parks, etc.), which are of scientific, historical, cultural, educational and aesthetic significance. Currently, there are
27 monuments of federal significance in Russia (Parks and estates of E. R. Dashkova,
Gagarin, Goncharov, Susaninsky swamp, Lake "Mogilnoye", etc.), their total
area is 14.3 thousand hectares. In addition, there are 9,800 monuments of regional
significance (2.25 million hectares).
World Heritage Sites are a new form of protected areas approved by the Convention at the UNESCO General Assembly (1972). These include the most unique
objects of cultural, natural-cultural and natural heritage. The World Heritage List
includes 721 objects, including cultural (554), natural (144), natural-cultural (28).
The list of the natural objects includes: the Grand Canyon (USA), Yellowstone
National Park (USA), the salt mine in Wieliczka (Poland), the Great Barrier Reef
(Australia) and others. The Russian natural objects are: the Virgin forests of Komi,
Lake. Baikal, volcanoes of Kamchatka, the Altai-Golden Mountains, the Western
Caucasus and the Curonian Spit.
Human impact on the biosphere
85
Progress check test
1. What anthropogenic impurities in the atmospheric air cause the greenhouse
effect:
a. lead, mercury, cadmium,
nickel
c. phenols, hydrogen sulfide,
benz(a)pyrene
b. methane, ozone,
carbon dioxide
d. sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides
2. According to UNEP, the area of degraded soils in the world from this type
of erosion is 55.6 %:
a. wind erosion
c. water erosion
b. physical erosion
d. chemical erosion
3. In reservoirs, when moving along trophic (food) chains, in which organisms
the maximum concentration of anthropogenic toxicants (DDT, heavy metals, etc.)
is recorded:
a. predatory fish
c. zooplankton
b. phytoplankton
d. neuston
4. Since 1600, according to the IUCN, animals have disappeared on Earth:
a. amur tiger, snow leopard
(snow leopard)
c. orangutan, big panda,
marsupial wolf
b. tarpan, tur, dodo,
zebra-quagga
d. bison, river beaver, muskrat
5. Specially protected natural area included in the international system of
biosphere reserves by UNESCO that carry out global environmental monitoring:
a. nature reserve
c. nature reserve
b. national park
d. biosphere reserve
Project tasks
1. List the main factors of degradation and reduction of soil fertility.
2. Analyze the rate of disappearance of tropical forests.
3. Compare the functions performed by biosphere reserves, nature reserves and
natural monuments.
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86
Ta s k 1 . The ran g e o f th e vis i ble h ori z on
Using the data from the table, make up the graph entitled "Dependence of the
visible horizon range on the height of the observation site"
Height of the
observation site, m
0 2 10
50
100
500
1000
3000
5000
10000
Distance of the
visible horizon, km
0
5,5
12,2
27,3
38,6
86,4
122,1
211,5
273,1
386
The most convenient scales are: horizontal 1:1000000, vertical 1:4000000.
To build a graph, take a system of rectangular coordinates. On the abscissa
axis, the height of the observation site is postponed, on the ordinate axis, the range
of the visible horizon.
According to the graph, determine what range of the visible horizon will be if
the observer is at the highest point of the relief of your country. Use the map to
track which cities and attractions will fall into the field of view of the observer in
the west, north, east, south; list them.
What determines the actual range of visibility of the horizon, in addition to the
height of the observer's location?
Ta s k 2 . Cl i m ate s of the g lob e
Describe the climate of your country, make a presentation and report.
When preparing, use atlas maps (or electronic maps).
You are recommended to describe the features in the following order:
1. Geographical location of the district
2. Terrain
3. Climate zone
4. Atmospheric pressure
5. Cloud cover during the year and day
6. Precipitation (quantity and character in different seasons)
7. Air temperature (in different seasons)
8. Air humidity
9. Wind speed and direction
10. Characteristics of solar radiation intake
11. Air transparency
12. What natural areas are present
Human impact on the biosphere
87
Ta s k 3 . Na t u ral are a s o f the wor l d
Describe the natural area of the city where you live (or where you were born,
or would like to live).
To complete the task, use an atlas and thematic maps.
Perform the characteristics of the zone according to the items listed in the
table below:
The area you are describing
Natural zone
Climate
Rivers, seas, lakes (water objects)
Relief
Prevailing types of soil
Vegetation (Flora)
Animals (Fauna)
Population and its distribution
Occupation of local people
Ta s k 4 . Hy p s ome t ric pro f i le o f t h e o c e an f loo r
You are proposed to reinforce your skills of working with thematic maps by
create a hypsometric profile of the ocean floor.
Every student gets a parallel from the teacher, according to which he/she sets
up a profile.
The course of the lesson is the following: 1) creation of a hypsometric profile
of the ocean floor along a given parallel; 2) construction of a tectonic scale.
Materials and equipment: a 1:15,000,000 scale physical map of the world;
a sheet of millimeter paper, a compass, a ruler, a simple pencil.
Building a hypsometric profile.
Profile is an image of a vertical section of the terrain in a certain direction. It
can be compiled both from field measurements and from a map showing isolines
of heights and depths – isohypses and isobaths. Isohypses and isobates are also
called horizontals, since they mark levels parallel to the horizon. Students build
a profile along the parallel indicated by the teacher, from mainland to mainland,
using a 1:15,000,000 scale Physical map of the world.
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88
To perform the work, it is necessary to have a sheet of paper on which coordi-
nate axes are applied:
a) a horizontal line, or zero line, corresponding to the ocean level, it is also the
axis of the abscissa;
b) a vertical line, or a line of heights and depths, it is also the ordinate axis.
The vertical line is drawn from the left side of the sheet and is divided into
divisions corresponding to the gradations of the ocean depths at the selected scale
(recommended 1:100,000 (1 cm–1000 m).
The heights and depths are determined according to the numerical designations
on the horizontal lines, as well as on the depth scale located outside the map frame.
When creating a profile on the map, the distances between the points of intersection of the profile line (in our case, the parallel line) with the horizontals are
measured. These distances on a certain scale are sequentially marked along the
abscissa axis, and at the end of each segment the perpendicular is restored (if it is
land) or lowered (if it is the ocean floor). On these vertical lines, in turn, segments
are marked on a certain scale, the length of which corresponds to the height (or
depth) of the horizontal that intersects with the profile line at this point.
The resulting series of points located at different heights and depths are connected by a smooth line, which will be the desired relief line. It gives a generalized
image of the relief of the land surface and the ocean floor in a vertical section.
Noticeable points (maximum depths, SOX, etc.) should be highlighted on the
profile. They will serve as additional guidelines for further work on the profile
(drawing the remaining components of the landscape – climatic characteristics,
etc.). The main reference point is the longitude position of one or another component of the geographical envelope, therefore, geographical longitudes should be
marked in the drawing at the bottom of the sheet at least after 10 degrees (in strict
accordance with the position of the relief elements intersected by them).
When constructing a relief line, the question often arises how high to raise or how
low to lower the line when connecting two points of the same height, given that the gradations of heights on small-scale maps are usually quite large (from 200 to 2000 m).
A careful study of the map can really help: if the next largest horizontal line
passes directly near the line along which the profile is being built, then you can
raise the relief line to the limit allowed by this elevation gradation. It is also recommended to use large-scale and more detailed maps of a particular section of the
terrain intersected by the profile for reference. In all other cases, the average height
Human impact on the biosphere
89
(or depth) should be taken. So, if you want to connect two intersection points with
a mark of 2000 m, and between them lies a section of the map, the coloring of
which corresponds to heights from 2000 to 3000 m, then the relief line between
these two points in the drawing should be raised to 2500 m.
Creating the hypsometric profile, it is necessary to show tectonic structures.
To do this, a scale with a width of 1 cm should be drawn directly below the zero
line of the profile along its entire length and, using a tectonic map, divide it (taking into account the scale) into sections corresponding to areas of different folding and more fractional subdivisions of these areas on the profile. The tectonic
scale is filled in according to the legend of the tectonic map.
Ta s k 5 . Wo r k ing wit h el e c tro n i c m aps
You are offered to master your skills of using electronic editable maps in the
educational process (especially the up-to-date skill in remote operation).
The following type of work is recommended:
(using the example of the Google Maps system https://www.google.com/maps)
The student finds his/her home place and marks it on the map, putting a label
with its name and their full name.
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Then you should:
Choose an interesting natural object located near your place of living (it can
be a river, lake, bay, cape, or a natural area (desert, steppe, relict forest, etc.),
mountain or mountain range, cave, etc. – at your discretion).
Mark the object on the map with a placemark (etc.). Select a placemark and
mark your object on the map.
Then click on the label and enter the name.
In the window under the name, enter a brief description of the object.
Then click on the camera icon in the corner and upload photos of the object
with a description.
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