1. Success Criteria Describe the need for conservation of:
Students will be assessed on their ability to:
Describe the need for conservation of:
- species and their habitats
- natural resources (water)
- and non-renewable materials including fossil fuels
Explain how limited and nonrenewable resources can be recycled:
- recycling of paper
- treatment of sewage to make the water that it contains safe to return to the environment or for human use

2. GLOBAL WARMING
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

3. Since the Industrial Revolution
Concentration of Carbon Dioxide from trapped air measurements for the DE08 ice core near the summit
of Law Dome, Antarctica. (Data measured by CSIRO Division of Atmospheric Research from ice cores supplied by
Australian Antarctic Division)

4. Is it really getting warmer
1979
2003
© NASA

5. The consequences
Sea level rise Flooding coastal areas Reduced agricultural land Displacement of populations
Climate change Displacement of ecosystems Change in range of insect vectors of pathogens Reduced biodiversity
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

6. The consequences Increased rates of photosynthesis
Increased agricultural production at high latitudes
BUT faster growth means: less protein in cereals trees taller and more exposed to storm damage
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

7. Knock-on effects Increased temperature melts the permafrost
Frozen plant remains decompose
More methane released
Similarly soils will lose organic carbon (humus) more rapidly in a warmer climate
Ice caps melt more sea exposed
Snow reflects light (high albedo)
Water absorbs light, increases warming
More CO2 dissolving in water lowers pH
Currently this is buffered and remains stable
Eventually pH will drop sea life will die CO2 produced as organisms decompose
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

8. What can be done? Reduce carbon emissions
Improve mass transport systems (public transport)
Design more efficient motors
Design alternative power sources
Hydrogen powered motors
BUT problems of fuel reservoir, delivery, fabrication
Renewable energy (wind, tidal, hydro, geothermal, biomass)
BUT growing crops for biofuel reduces farmland available for food Hydroelectric dams disrupt river ecosystems
Nuclear power
BUT problems of nuclear waste treatment/storage
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

9. What can be done? Increase natural CO2 sequestering
Reduce deforestation
Increase reforestation
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

10. What can be done? Artificial CO2 sequestering
Filter CO2 sources using hydroxide scrubbers
Injection of CO2 into deep ocean layers Forms CO2 reservoirs Impact on sea life unknown
Injecting CO2 into disused oil wells
Mineral deposition as carbonates
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

11. The bottom line Two factors will ultimately govern what happens:
1. Human population growth
More people means greater demand for non-renewable resources
2. The ecological footprint of each individual human
Higher standards of living usually means higher consumption of fossil fuels
The planet will look after itself in the end
There are plenty of examples where human communities have disappeared because they outstripped the environmental resources
© 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

12. The planet will look after itself in the end
Easter Island (Rapanui) in the Pacific
Settled between AD900 and 1200
Community in severe decline AD 1700
Cause: excessive deforestation
The Moai statues, Easter Island © Martin Gray, World Mysteries
© Text 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

13. The planet will look after itself in the end
Chaco Canyon, New Mexico
Anasazi culture
AD 850 – 1250
Cause: Deforestation combined with a decline in rainfall
© New Mexico Tourism Department
© Text 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

14. The planet will look after itself in the end
Mesopotamia
Sumerian civilization
3100 – 1200 BC
Increased salt levels in soil due to irrigation systems & arid environment
Reduced food yield
© Asociación Cultural Nueva Acrópolis en Barcelona
© Text 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

15. The planet will look after itself in the end
Greenland
Viking colony
AD982 – 1350
Cause: Deforestation, soil degradation & cooling of the climate
© Emporia State University
© Text 2007 Paul Billiet ODWS

16. Who’s next?
forumpolitics.com/pics/earth-photo.jpg
© NASA

17. Management of Resources
Humans obtain resources from the Earth.
This has led to the destruction of habitats.
This has led to a decrease in species diversity.
Resources are managed for:
Agriculture
Forestry
Fish stocks
SPECIES DIVERSITY:
 variety of species present in a given area.
Conservation is important to prevent the loss of resources and wildlife.

18. Poor management of resources
Overfishing in the North Sea
Destruction of rainforests
Overuse of land, leading to desert soils.
Solutions
Have fish quotas, or increase net mesh to allow smaller fish to survive
Produce food more efficiently to limit areas being logged for agriculture.
Set aside areas as national parks.
Use different agricultural practices, such as crop rotation and natural fertilisers.

19. Overfishing in North Sea
Solutions?
Have fish quotas
Increase net mesh size to allow smaller fish to survive
Great Yarmouth
2008
1 boat
1955
>1000 boats

20. Destruction of rainforests
Solutions?
Produce food more efficiently to limit areas being logged for agriculture
Set aside areas as National Parks

21. Deforestation (inc rainforests)
Problems:
Reduces photosynthesis which removes CO2
Reduces the rate at which carbon dioxide, CO2 , is “locked up” in wood
Satellite images show logged areas are much greater than thought.

22. These statements about the effects of deforestation are all mixed up
These statements about the effects of deforestation are all mixed up. Put them in the correct order.
Trees are removed.
B. New trees grow more slowly and there are less species.
C. Soil is now less fertile and the unprotected surface becomes dry and compacted.
D. Trees do not protect soil so nutrients are washed out by the rain.
E. It is hard for rain to soak into the soil, so flooding may occur.

23. Overuse of land, leading to desert soils
Solutions?
Use different agricultural practices such as crop rotation and natural fertilisers
Plant shelter beds of trees, grass cover, develop irrigation schemes

24. Managing land for agriculture
Farmers need to control:
Nutrient supply
Addition of fertilisers – natural and artificial
The habitat of the plant
Clearing land of competitors (kills weeds)
Cultivation (fertiliser, soil pH, water content)
Erects fences (keeps out herbivores) and scarecrows whilst planting (birds)
Sprays crop with pesticides (kills insects, fungi)

25. Sewage Treatment
1. Large object such as sticks screened out of raw sewage. 2. Suspended grit allowed to settle out by gravity in grit settling tank. 3. Organic matter allowed to settle out by gravity in sludge-settling tank – after digestion in a sludge digester, sludge can be used as fertiliser on farmland – methane gas can also be generated for fuel. 4. Remaining liquid sprinkled on to the top of an aeration tank containing stone – microorganisms (protoctists and aerobic bacteria) on surface of stones digest any remaining organic mater. 5. Water passing out may be chlorinated to kill any bacteria, so it is safe to drink.  

27. CONSERVATION

28. In situ Ex situ
In situ:
Conservation of species in their natural habitat
E.g. natural parks, nature reserves
Ex situ:
Conserving species in isolation of their natural habitat
E.g. zoos, botanical gardens, seed banks
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

29. In situ conservation
Setting up wild life reserves is not just a matter of building a fence around an area and letting it grow “wild”
Without grazing animals heathlands which contain a number of rare species will revert to woodland
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

30. Nature reserves and national parks
First the area that is suitable for the creation of a reserve has to be identified and delimited
This requires surveys to collect data on key species
Property may have to be expropriated
A legal framework may need to be set up to control human activities in the area and in it’s immediate surroundings (set up of quotas)
Policing the area may also be necessary
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

31. Les Ecrins National Park, France
Buffer zone
Park
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

32. Nature reserves and national parks
If part of the area has been degraded due to bad land use it may need restoring
Alien species that have penetrated the area may need excluding or eliminating
Constant management will be needed to maintain the habitat of the species being conserved
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

33. The advantages of in situ conservation
The species will have all the resources that it is adapted too
The species will continue to evolve in their environment
The species have more space
Bigger breeding populations can be kept
It is cheaper to keep an organism in its natural habitat
Wordpress.com
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

34. However there are problems
It is difficult to control illegal exploitation (e.g. poaching)
The environment may need restoring and alien species are difficult to control
Sciencemuseum.org
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

35. Ex situ conservation Captive breeding
The Hawaiian goose was practically extinct in the wild
12 birds were taken into captivity
A population of 9000 was released back into the wild
The experiment failed because the original cause rats had not been eliminated.
The rats eat the eggs and the nestlings of the geese
State Symbols USA
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

36. Pere David’s deer success or failure?
Pere David’s deer was a native species of China
In were taken into zoological collections
Meanwhile it became extinct in the wild
By 1981 there were 994 individuals scattered through zoological collections
America Zoo
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

37. Ex situ conservation
Captive breeding of endangered species is a last resort
These species have already reached the point where their populations would not recover in the wild
It works well for species that are easily bred in captivity but more specialised animals are difficult to keep (aye aye)
Isolated in captivity they do not evolve with their environment
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

38. Zoos: The land of the living dead?
They have a very small gene pool in which to mix their genes
Inbreeding is a serious problem
Zoos and parks try to solve this by exchanging specimens or by artificial insemination where it is possible
In vitro fertilisation and fostering by a closely related species has even been tried (Indian Guar – large species of cattle - cloned)
Even if it is possible to restore a population in captivity the natural habitat may have disappeared in the wild
Species that rely on this much help are often considered to be “the living dead”
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

39. Botanical gardens
Botanical gardens show the same problems as captive breeding of animals
Originally the role of botanical gardens was economic, pharmaceutical and aesthetic
There range of species collected was limited
The distribution of botanical gardens reflects the distribution of colonial powers
Most are found in Europe and North America
But plant diversity is greatest in the tropics
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

40. Seed banks
Seeds can be maintained for decades or even centuries if the conditions are controlled
<5% humidity and –20°C
Not all species are suited to this treatment
Seeds need to be regularly germinated to renew stock or the seeds will eventually loose their viability
Seed banks are at risk from power failure, natural disasters and war
Duplicate stocks can be maintained
Seeds kept in seed banks do not evolve with changes in the environment
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

41. The doomsday vault - Spitzbergen
BBC
Bergen Nat Acc of Arts

42. International agencies
CITES (The Convention in International Trade in Endangered Species)
Set up in 1988 to control and encourage the sustainable exploitation of species
The CITES conferences determine the status of a species and whether or not its exploitation requires regulation
Species are placed into different appendices depending on their status
CITES
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

43. CITES Appendices Appendix 1: Total ban on exploitation
Appendix 2: Limited exploitation subject to quotas
Appendix 3: Species requiring protection in certain states only
Species are reassessed every 2 years
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

44. WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature formerly World Wildlife Fund)
Set up in 1961 as a non-governmental organisation
Raises funds for conservation
Lobbies parliaments for conservation
Runs education programmes
Provides advice to government conservation agencies
Raises awareness on conservation issues
WWF
© 2008 Paul Billiet ODWS

45. In your groups, create a mini poster to present solutions or management strategies to one of these major issues.
Forestry
Agriculture
Fish stocks