College of Coastal Georgia Sustainability ENVS 3100
Topic notes: Land and land resources
Divergent = material being pushed to the surface
Convergent = material being driven beneath the earth
Transform = material being ground together
Topography
differences help channel water flow across wide tracts of land
Landforms: Mountains, canyons, peninsulas, mesas
Floodplains
intersecting rivers deposit rich sediments during times of high-water level
Highly fertile
Important in agriculture
Erosion and lithification
renewal and transformation of Earth’s rocks
Erosion breaks down sediments which are beneficial to plants by providing minerals
Compaction of sediment creates rocks such as sandstone
Soil horizons
O/A – topsoil rich in organic material and subterranean organisms
B – leached mineral materials
C – mostly weathered rock
Ploughing land leaves fertile topsoil loose and vulnerable to being blown away.
Secure soils by promoting cover crops, windbreak landscaping, and no-till planting
methods.
Mineral resources
Used for building construction, machinery manufacture, human nutrition (calcium,
magnesium, phosphorous, iron, copper, zinc)
Intensive mining required to access some metals (gold, silver etc) in large amounts
Mining impacts
Mountaintop removal (rivers and valleys filled in with discarded materials)
open-pit mines (unusable craters)
beach/river shed mining (interrupts water percolation)
Water pollution (metal and acidic waste contamination)
Bioremediation
Importing healthy topsoil and reintroducing native foliage
Reusing rare Earth materials
Minimizing the need to develop on wild or untouched land
Protecting the rainforests to minimize erosion and maintain soil health
Topic notes: Land and land resources
Divergent = material being pushed to the surface
Convergent = material being driven beneath the earth
Transform = material being ground together
Topography
differences help channel water flow across wide tracts of land
Landforms: Mountains, canyons, peninsulas, mesas
Floodplains
intersecting rivers deposit rich sediments during times of high-water level
Highly fertile
Important in agriculture
Erosion and lithification
renewal and transformation of Earth’s rocks
Erosion breaks down sediments which are beneficial to plants by providing minerals
Compaction of sediment creates rocks such as sandstone
Soil horizons
O/A – topsoil rich in organic material and subterranean organisms
B – leached mineral materials
C – mostly weathered rock
Ploughing land leaves fertile topsoil loose and vulnerable to being blown away.
Secure soils by promoting cover crops, windbreak landscaping, and no-till planting
methods.
Mineral resources
Used for building construction, machinery manufacture, human nutrition (calcium,
magnesium, phosphorous, iron, copper, zinc)
Intensive mining required to access some metals (gold, silver etc) in large amounts
Mining impacts
Mountaintop removal (rivers and valleys filled in with discarded materials)
open-pit mines (unusable craters)
beach/river shed mining (interrupts water percolation)
Water pollution (metal and acidic waste contamination)
Bioremediation
Importing healthy topsoil and reintroducing native foliage
Reusing rare Earth materials
Minimizing the need to develop on wild or untouched land
Protecting the rainforests to minimize erosion and maintain soil health
