Reference no: EM133637053
Assignment:
1. The atmosphere can be considered a "common."
a. Name two ways that people treat the atmosphere as a common.
b. How can treating the atmosphere like a common cause harm to both human health and ecosystems?
c. What is one thing governments can do to manage and protect the common atmosphere resource?
2. Lakes contain many resources that are useful to humans.
a. A human community living near a lake harvests fish through fishing and netting. What would be one positive and one negative effect of gathering large quantities of fish resources?
b. A human community releases untreated sewage directly into its lake resource. What are three possible negative outcomes from this action?
3. Electronics contain many different materials, including common and rare metals, glass, and plastics.
a. What are two possible ways that making plastics for electronic devices could impact the environment?
b. How could recycling electronics prevent negative effects from plastics in the devices?
c. The process of recycling electronics can cause water pollution and can damage the health of the people working in the recycling plant. What is one way recyclers could reduce these negative effects?
4. Natural resources can be renewable or nonrenewable. The use of resources can be sustainable or unsustainable.
a. Why might the use of biomass energy be more sustainable than the use of oil?
b. How could the sustainability of oil as an energy source be improved?
5. The National Park Service Organic Act was signed into law in 1916.
a. What happened to ecological resources in national parks across the United States when this act became law?
b. How did this act affect the marketing of national parks across the United States?
c. What types of visitor programs arose from this act?
6. Legislation in the United States protects air, water, and soil from pollution.
a. The graph shows the number of waterways that fail to meet EPA standards under the Clean Water Act. Name three states with more than 1000 impaired waterways.
b. What are two tools that the Environmental Protection Agency can use to reduce air pollution?
7. The Endangered Species Act became law in the United States in 1973.
a. Name three ways this act protects endangered species.
b. How does a Species Survival Plan benefit endangered species?
8. The Antarctic Treaty System is an international treaty.
a. Name three ways the Antarctic Treaty System protects ecosystems on the continent of Antarctica.
b. What are two reasons a country might sign on to the Antarctic Treaty System?
9. The Montreal Protocol and Kyoto Protocol are focused on Earth's atmosphere.
a. Describe the international action required by the Kyoto Protocol and the ultimate goal of this treaty.
b. What are two ways the Kyoto Protocol and the Montreal Protocol are similar, and what is one way they are different?
10. Many international treaties and protocols aim to protect biodiversity around the world.
a. How would an international treaty such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) help to protect endangered species?
b. The Ramsar Convention promotes international cooperation for the conservation of wetlands. Why are wetlands important to biodiversity?
c. What are two goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity?