BIODIVERSITY
Biodiversity - is the variety of living species on earth.
- Natural ecosystems can have a large number of species, when humans interfere with one species in the natural ecosystem they can accidentally affect other species or even the entire ecosystem.
- It is important to make sure that in the future we will have water, materials, and resources to protect human health and our environment which means we have to use our resources wisely and with sustainability.
Sustainability - means maintaining the world we live in for future generations of people and species.
Human activities can threaten biodiversity by:
- deforesting
- polluting air
- disrupting food chains
- burning of fossil fuels
- extracting raw materials
- modern methods of food production
Conservation - is the wise management of our natural resources.
Biodiversity threatened in food production
1. Land Clearing
Most of the land cleared on earth is now for human use and agriculture, this is done to keep up with the global food demands. This threatens biodiversity because the fields and residential areas that replace the cleared forests do not have the same diversity of life, it cannot support the plants which mean animals that once ate these plants or used them as shelter can not live there anymore.
However to fix this issue governments pass quotas to protect biodiversity;
- in Ireland, people are not allowed to remove or destroy hedgerows during nesting and breeding seasons.
- Coillte, the state-sponsored company that manages Irelands forests replant native woodlands that contain many species of trees.
- Governments have created national parks to protect areas of significant biodiversity.
2. Monoculture
Monoculture is an agricultural practice where only one species is produced e.g a field where only potatoes are grown. this is very popular as it allows us to produce large amounts of food at a lower price and cost. this threatens biodiversity because:
- other plants are prevented from growing, therefore, reducing biodiversity in plants.
- the animals that relied on other plants for food and shelter cannot live there anymore which also reduces the biodiversity in plants.
3. Hunting
Hunting has changed over the centuries from using bows and arrows to modern methods such as traps and guns. these modern methods make hunting animals quicker and easier but also is able to kill in larger amounts. when large numbers of animals are removed from the ecosystems it can disrupt biodiversity by causing:
- a decrease in the numbers of species that are hunted leading to even extinction.
- a disruption in food chains.
4. Fishing
Fishing is threatened by overfishing. Overfishing is when too many fish are taken from the sea. modern fishing vessels are capable of catching several tonnes of fish in one net. This is threatening to biodiversity because:
- Removing large amounts of one species of fish means that the population is not given the chance to recover itself. This can lead to extinctions.
- Nets with a small mesh size catch young fish. these young fish are not used for fish for food for humans and are often dumped. Catching young fish affects the sustainability of populations.