1. Answer True or False; if you answer false, JUSTIFY why.
Bell Ringer
Answer True or False; if you answer false, JUSTIFY why.
1. The United States produces more garbage than any other nation in the world.
2. Noise can be a form of pollution.
3. All natural resources can be reused.
4. The destruction of animal habitats has a negative effect on animals but does not affect humans.

2. Answers
True- The United States produces more garbage than any other nation in the world.
True- Noise can be a form of pollution.
False

3. Student Learning Objectives:
SPI (Biodiversity) Identify several reasons for the importance of maintaining the earth’s biodiversity.
TOC:
Environmental Problems, Solutions, and Biodiversity

4. Environmental Problems and Solutions
You’ve probably heard it before. The air is unhealthy to breathe. The water is harmful to drink. The soil is filled with poisons. The message is…

5. Earth is SICK and in great DANGER!

6. Group Work:
Come up with a list of challenges to the environment with your group.
From the list, choose four that your group feels to be the most important and explain why they are most important.
Share your choices with the class.

7. Environmental Statistics: Water Related
40% of the world lacks basic sanitation facilitation
1 billion people are without safe drinking water; Americans consume 26 billion liters of BOTTLED water annually
Clean water and sanitation for all- $9 billion; Americans spend that much the day after Thanksgiving shopping for Christmas presents.
Some 1.1 billion people in developing countries have inadequate access to water, and 2.6 billion lack basic sanitation.
Some 1.8 million child deaths each year as a result of diarrhea
The loss of 443 million school days each year from water-related illness.
Close to half of all people in developing countries suffering at any given time from a health problem caused by water and sanitation deficits.
400 million children with no access to safe water (1 in 5)

8. Environmental Statistics: Other
Americans spend more annually on trash bags than nearly half the world does on ALL goods.
Wood consumption a day: world average- 4 lbs. U.S.- 14 lbs.
Leading oil consumers in millions of barrels a day: U.S.A.- 20, China- 5.6, Japan- 5.5
U.S. accounts for 25% of the global oil consumption

9. Pollution
Pollution is the presence of harmful substances in the environment.
Pollutant is any harmful substance.
Examples:
solid materials
chemicals
noise
heat
Often, pollutants damage or kill the plants and animals living in the affected habitat.
Pollutants may also harm humans.

10. Garbage Facts:
America produces more household waste than any other nation.
If stacked up, the beverage cans Americans use in one year could reach the moon 17 times!
The average American throws away 12 kg of trash a week.
Billions of kilograms of this waste are classified as hazardous, which means it’s harmful to humans and the environment.
Examples of hazardous wastes from homes:
Old cars, paints, batteries, medical wastes, and detergents all pollute the environment.

11. Where Does Garbage All Go?
Household waste- landfills
Hazardous waste- specially designed landfills
Some are burned in incinerators.
Some are improperly disposed of by dumping them into rivers and lakes.

12. Chemicals
Chemical pesticides used to kill crop-destroying insects also pollute the soil and water.
Rachel Carson wrote about the dangers of pesticides more than three decades ago.

13. High Powered Waste
Nuclear Power Plants produce radioactive waste that can cause cancer, leukemia and birth defects.

14. Question…
Is the greenhouse effect a positive or negative element in our environment?
How will the greenhouse effect and global warming affect our future?
Discuss with your elbow partner.

15. Greenhouse Effect
Heat caused by pollutants cause the greenhouse effect.
These warmer temperatures could melt the icecaps and cause flooding.

16. Global Warming
Too much of the greenhouse effect could cause global warming, or the gradual increase in Earth’s temperature.
As the temperatures rise, the polar icecaps begin to melt a little each year. This threatens the life of the polar bear.

17. It’s Way Too Noisy! Some pollutants affect the senses.
These include bad odors and loud noise.
Example: Construction worker’s tools or Music through head phones.
If a person does not protect their ears, they can slowly lose their hearing.

18. Question…
What is the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources?
Which is better for our environment? Why?
Discuss with elbow partner.

19. Another problem for our environment is that we are using up, or depleting, natural resources.

20. Resource Depletion Renewable Resources can be used again and again.
Example: Fresh Water, solar energy

21. Nonrenewable Resources
Nonrenewable Resources can only be used once.
Example: fossil fuels, such as oil and coal
Coal

22. Some nonrenewable resources, such as petroleum, are probably not in danger of running out in your lifetime, but they cannot last forever.
Plus, the removal of some materials from the Earth carries a high price tag in the form of oil spills and loss of habitat.

23. Exotic Species
An organism that makes a home for itself in a new place is an exotic species.
Example: Zebra Mussel (1980’s)
One reason alien species often thrive in foreign lands is that they are free from the predators in their native land.
Exotic species often become pests and drive out native species.

24. Overpopulation
Overpopulation occurs when the number of individuals becomes so large that they can’t get all the food, water and other resources they need.
billion people in the world
billion people in the world
By 2100, there may be 14 billion.

25. Population Statistics
Some people believe that the human population is already too high for the Earth to support.
Today, one out of ten people goes to bed hungry every night.
Millions of people die each year from hunger-related causes.
Every 16 seconds somewhere in the world someone dies of hunger.
Check out the graph on pg. 90.

26. Habitat Destruction
Biodiversity-variety of life; this refers to the many different species found in a particular habitat all across the planet.
Every time a bulldozer digs or a chainsaw buzzes, every time hazardous wastes are dumped, a habitat is damaged, changed, or destroyed.
When habitats are damaged biodiversity is lost.

27. Forests Deforestation-clearing of forest lands.
Tropical forests are cut for mines, dams, and roads. They are also cleared for paper, fuel, and building materials.
After tropical rain forests are cleared, little can grow on the land.

28. Wetlands
Wetlands help control flooding by soaking up the water from overflowing rivers.
They filter pollutants from flowing water and provide breeding grounds for animals.
They help prevent soil erosion and restore underground water supplies.
Wetlands are often drained and filled to build homes and shopping malls or dredged to keep passages for ships open.
Wetlands can also be destroyed by pollution.

29. Marine Habitats Oil spills harm the marine habitat.
Oil from cities and industries is sometimes dumped into the ocean.
All of the oceans are connected, so pollutants from one ocean can be carried around the world.
Example: Exxon Valdez dumped 2,300km of oil off the Alaskan Coast.

30. Plastics Plastics also contribute to killing marine animals.
Plastics are not biodegradable, so they are not broken down by the environment.
Animals try to eat them and often get tangled in them and die.
Dumping plastics is against the law.

31. Effects on Humans
Polluted waters-may make you sick or you could possibly die
Some chemicals cause cancer 20 or 30 years after the person is exposed to them.

32. Conservation
Just as people are responsible for damaging the Earth, people can also help heal the Earth. One major way…
Conservation-the wise use of and preservation of natural resources.
Example: riding a bike

33. 3 Ways to Conserve
1. Reduce
2. Reuse
3. Recycle

34. Reduce Waste and Pollution Less paper Thinner paper
1/3 of all waste is packaging.
Less paper
Thinner paper
Better biodegradable plastics

35. What could you do to reduce the amount of trash produced?
List at least three ways.

36. Reuse Do you get hand-me-down clothes from an older sibling?
Reusing paper and plastic bags.
Recharging batteries
Reusing water for watering plants

37. Recycle
Recycling is a form of reuse. It requires breaking down trash and using it again.
Challenge:
You and your family begin recycling! You can take your recyclables behind the Kroger on Sam Ridley (bins), to the Smyrna Dump (recycle bins), or any other close places with recycle bins.

38. Things to Recycle
Plastic
Paper
Aluminum cans
Wood
Glass and Cardboard

39. Resource Recovery
Some factories are burning their own waste to make electricity. This saves the environment and money.

40. Maintaining Biodiversity
Provide protection for endangered species.
The Endangered Species Act forbids activities that would damage a plant or animal on the endangered species list.
Protect complete habitats.
Sonoran pronghorn
Conservation of National Parks

41. Biodiversity Brochure
This project will be worth one 100 point grade, assessing the standard “SPI Identify several reasons for the importance of maintaining the earth’s biodiversity.”
Information to include in your brochure:
Group Members
Title
References
reasons for the importance of maintaining the earth’s biodiversity.
Make sure to follow your rubric with needed information
that will be used for grading.

42. Biodiversity Brochure Rubric
1. What is biodiversity?
Here, you should write five or more sentences answering the question, “What is biodiversity?” Make sure that all information is written in your own words.
2. Why is biodiversity important?
Here, you should have five or more bullet points listing reasons that maintaining biodiversity is important. You should also have at least two pictures, labeled
3. What I think we should do with the land, and why we should do it.
Here, you should have a persuasive paragraph describing what you would do with 100 acres of untouched land in Tennessee as a particular member of the community. Write from the perspective of your assigned title.
Pictures can be printed or hand- drawn 10 points
Answering parts of all questions 20 points each (60)
Colorful and neat points
Group Members Names points
References ( at least 3) points
Title points
Total: 100 points

43. Exit Ticket 3 things you learned today… 2 questions you still have…
1 way you can relate this to you and your daily life…