ENVR 1000 Exam Study Questions & Answers, 100% Accurate. Rated A+

ENVR 1000 Exam Study Questions & Answers, 100% Accurate. Rated A+ What is eutrophication? How does it change water quality? - -When water becomes over-enriched with nutrients and minerals which cause excessive algae growth. Why are cyanobacteria deemed to be so harmful in water bodies? - -They form large mats that either wash up on shores or form a sludge over the benthic zone and cause oxygen sags. What conditions favour cyanobacteria and why? - -It likes to grow in warm, slow moving water bodies that are rich in nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen What is the link between agriculture and water quality? - -Agriculture runoff gets swept into water bodies and reduces water quality How can we promote sustainable agriculture that also considers water quality? - -Manage wetlands and water sources carefully How do we treat sewage before discharge? - -Primary treatment removes floating particles (sand, silt) creating primary sludge. Then, secondary treatment heats everything up, adds aerobic bacteria and oxygen for several hours which settles out microorganisms and particles creating secondary sludge. Describe the formation of productive soils and the horizons that result. - -There are 4 parts of soil: minerals, organic matter, water and air. We get the O-horizon (organic matter), the A-horizon (topsoil, high organic matter), the B-horizon (subsoil, clay and cations leached from A-horizons), the C-horizon (weathered parent material) and consolidated bedrock (parent material) What are the goals in soil structure and fertility? - - Describe the features of industrial and subsistent agricultural strategies, their challenges and advantages. - -Industrial agriculture: Production on large, commercial farms to maximize profit (cash crops, usually one species is being farmed). Involves a constant use of the same land with short periods of rest. Nutrients may be depleted and soil productivity might be lost if not managed carefully. Subsistence agriculture: Production is small with a goal to produce for family and local community. Resources are extracted from the land, and once production declines, individuals will move to other areas to harvest materials. This lets the landscape recover, but sometimes the environment can be stripped of resources and may never recover. Identify 5 sustainability strategies in agriculture and how they overall contribute toward soil fertility and other environmental challenges. - - What role can agriculture have in climate change mitigation/prevent? - -Agriculture can change some of it's normal practices and help mitigate climate change by storing carbon in soils and plants, replace fossil fuels by using biomass and animal waste, reduce methane and nitrous oxide emissions Why are the tropical rainforests undergoing slash and burn and is there an alternative strategy that could be useful in the future? - -Subsistence farmers do this because burning the trees in that area can give more nutrients to the soil , but that doesn't last long. They then move to another part of the forest and do the same thing. The old land is used for cattle ranching, but can't sustain crop growth. Instead of doing this, they can do "alley-cropping" where crops are planted between rows of trees so the mulch can help grow crops. Why are acidic soils a problem? - -They cause higher amounts of leaching, leading to less nutrients in the soil How does precipitation and temperature influence the status of soils? - -Precipitation effects soil because water goes into the ground and then nutrients are moved down (leaching). Warmer temperatures lead to more decomposition. Both of these make soils less nutrient rich. Compare soil features from the boreal regions of the northern hemisphere with soils in southern Manitoba - -In southern Manitoba, we have grasslands that are an ideal climate for soils to be rich. We have little precipitation and a moderate temperature and winter allows soil organic matter to build in soils. In boreal forests, the soils tend to be acidic from conifer needles and there is significant leaching. Compare soil features from deciduous forests with soils in boreal forests - -In deciduous forests, the soil is highly productive because there is a lot of plant litter to sustain high organic content in soils. This means that there will be less nutrient runoff from precipitation and the soil can absorb it instead. Boreal forests have significant leaching and are acidic. Compare soil features from the grasslands in Canada with savanna in Africa - -The grasslands have high organic matter that accumulates in the upper layers of soil and makes them productive. There is also minimal leaching and the minerals are accessible in the top layers. The savanna is a desert, where there is minimal organic matter development and minimal clay content, so there is poorly developed soils. Describe the process of groundwater recharge. - -Water from precipitation goes into the ground into aquifers where groundwater is stored. Describe the problems with Lake Winnipeg and solutions offered. - -Lake Winnipeg is being crippled by eutrophication to the point where it has high rates of cyanobacteria. This is due to uncontrolled water management from agriculture and sewage coming from all around it. Some solutions offered would be to treat sewage before dumping it, create marshland to catch agricultural runoff, and reduce water consumption and phosphorus products. What is demand management and how will this promote a smaller water footprint? - -Trying to curb the demand for something by making it more costly (like the carbon tax). This will make people think about how much water they consume vs how much they really need and hopefully help them to adopt sustainable strategies to reduce their water consumption. Describe strategies that offer sources of freshwater where insufficient sources exist. - - What is the hydrologic cycle