Fragile Environments IGCSE Revision

Key questions
1. What is a fragile environment and how does this link with sustainability?
2. What are the causes of soil erosion?
3. What are the causes of desertification?
4. What are the consequences of desertification? (a case study of region affected by
soil erosion, the Sahel)
5. How can soil managed?
6. What are the causes of deforestation?
7. What are the consequences of deforestation?
8. How can rainforests be managed sustainably?
9. What are the causes of climate change?
10. What are the consequences?
11. How can global warming be managed?
Key words
agro-forestry Combining agriculture and forestry, as in the planting of windbreaks in areas
suffering from wind erosion or growing trees for fuel.
deforestation The felling and clearance of forested land.
desertification The spread of desert-like conditions into semi-arid areas.
drought A long, continuous period of dry weather.
global warming A slow but significant rise in the Earths temperature. It may be caused by
the build up of excessive amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which increase the
greenhouse effect.
greenhouse effect The warming of the Earths atmosphere because pollution is preventing
heat from escaping into space.
overgrazing Putting too many animals on grazing land so that the vegetation cover is
gradually destroyed.
soil erosion The removal of soil by wind and water and by the movement of soil downslope.

What are fragile environments?

Fragile environments are those biomes that under threat form change, damage or
unsustainable use. Although natural hazards, such as earthquakes, volcanoes,
hurricanes, can cause a lot of damage, it is mainly human intervention that causes
the most even seemingly natural events like floods and droughts are often made
worse by man.
Issues include
Undeveloped land is becoming scarcer: as there is less undeveloped land
available, the pressure increases on that that remains.
Protecting biodiversity (plants and animals) is more difficult: we want to
conserve that which we have but our desire to visit and see these areas is
destroying them
Desert edges are becoming deserts through overgrazing and the removal of
trees/shrubs which give rise to soil erosion, and the decreasing rainfall all
combine to turn productive farmland into useless scrub.

At the other end of the climate scale, deforestation of rain forests flows as the
natural resources are exploited.
Define in your own words a fragile environment

What are the causes of soil erosion?

There are 3 main physical causes of erosion

Sheet erosion

Gulley erosion

Wind erosion

Plus human induced or accelerated soil erosion

Sheet Erosion
Where there is sufficient rainfall, exposed soil will be moved downhill as amass
movement sheet erosion. Raindrop impact is the major cause of soil particle
detachment which can result in the particles moving down slope. This can happen in
2 main ways: as sheet erosion during a rainfall event. Sheet erosion is the removal
of fairly uniform layer of surface material from the land surface by continuous
sheets of runoff water rather than concentrated into channels.
Heavy rain that leads to a sheet of water removing a more or less uniform layer of
fine particles from the entire surface of an area is sheet erosion. It often includes
the best soil particles along with much of the organic matter. While it causes severe
erosion, it is very difficult to see, as the amount removed is often slight from any
particular spot.
More frequently, the water gathers together and quickly erodes a channel. This is
called gulley erosion.
Soil erosion by wind may occur wherever dry, sandy or dusty surfaces, inadequately
protected by vegetation, are exposed to strong winds. Erosion involves the pickin g
up and blowing away of loose fine grained material within the soil.

Dust storms are very disagreeable and also the land is robbed of its long-term
productivity (humus (vegetable matter) is lighter and likely to be removed first).
Crop damage, especially of young crops, can be serious. Either the roots are
exposed as the wind blows away the top soil or else wind blown soil from elsewhere
cover the seeding up either way the crop will be lost.
Long term damage is even greater. Finer soil fractions (silt, clay, and organic
matter) are removed and carried away by the wind, leaving the coarser fractions
behind. This sorting action not only removes the most important material from the
standpoint of productivity and water retention, but leaves a more sandy, and thus
an even more erodible, soil than the original.
The Impacts of humans on soil erosion
The most common human impact is due to population growth. This leads to
increased pressure on the land and its resources. Overgrazing is a major problem.
This causes vegetation loss and makes the soil much more vulnerable to erosion
without the protective net of roots to withstand the pressures of water and wind.
Intensive cultivation can cause loss of nutrients and soil exhaustion. This may lead
to deforestation. Another major cause of deforestation is the cutting down of trees
for fuel wood or clearing it for agriculture.
Sheet erosion
is
Gulley erosion
is.
Wind erosion
is.

What are the causes of desertification?

Desertification is what happens to once productive land that has become a desert
and is no longer useful. This is not irreversible but lands in danger are found around
the margins of many of the larger deserts
As with soil erosion, there are both physical and human causes:
Physical causes

Soil erosion exposed soil is easily removed by wind or water

Changing rainfall patterns rainfall has become less predictable and prolonged
droughts more common (although whether this is a human and physical cause is
a moot point)

Intense rainfall when it does happen hard to store and causes more soil
erosion

Main human causes

Population growth more people need more food which puts pressure on the
land
Overgrazing too many goats, sheep, cattle can destroy the vegetation

Over cultivation- grow too much without replenishing the soil and it becomes
exhausted

Deforestation tress are cut down for fuel and building. The loss of roots to
hold the soil down gives rise to erosion

War many sub-Saharan countries have suffered for years from civil war,
where crops and animals have been destroyed leading to famine

It is estimated that 20% of the worlds population, in over 60 countries, have

to cope with the threat of desertification.

What are the effects of desertification?

Declining groundwater table

Reduction in areal extent of surface water in streams, ponds, and lakes

Unnaturally high rates of soil erosion

Damage to native vegetation

Famine

Mass migration

How can soil managed?

What are the issues?
Soil erosion often goes hand in hand with desertification, so by tackling one
you can effect the other.
Soil erosion can occur due to water in the form of sheets and gulleys and also
the wind, and can be made worse by human activity.
Desertification can occur where there is soil erosion and the rainfall is
variable. If you reduce the erosion, the soil structure and quality can be

maintained and so desertification is less likely to occur.

So what are the ways of tackling these joint problems?
Soil erosion by water is more likely to happen if the rainfall is very heavy,
particularly after a drought. But if the ground has structures in place to reduce runoff, the erosion will be far less damaging
The solutions will be variations and combinations of:

Planting trees and shrubs

Adding barriers to reduce erosion
Retaining the water in times of heavy rain
Adding organic matter to the soil, so that it can retain water and provide
plant nutrients
Not leaving the soil as bare ground at any time

There are several main routes to achieve this:

Have perennial plants trees and shrubs which will help hold the soil down,
and act as a barricade to catch the soil that is being washed away. This can
be in the form of bands of trees (these are more likely to survive than
individual trees) or hedges of mixed trees and shrubs
Have a barrier to catch the water as it flows down the slope carrying the soil.
If banks that are built across a slope of mud, this is known as terracing and is
used in Ethiopia while in places like Niger and Burkina Faso, where they are
built of rocks, they are known as bunds.
Another method of trapping water is digging Zai pits, into which organic
matter and seeds are planted. As the water runs down the slopes the water
fall into the pits, where it soaks into the soil and also deposits any soil that it
has eroded from up the slope. Small areas of good quality soil and organic
matter and moisture are trapped
Keeping ground cover at all times to prevent the water washing the soil away,
often known as zero or minimum till in other words not ploughing a whole
field after the crop has been harvested
Wind erosion occurs after a prolonged drought, when there is little remaining
root structure to hold the soil in place and not much organic matter in the soil
to act as a sponge to any residual moisture
The solutions are similar to prevent erosion by water:
Have perennial plants trees and shrubs which will help hold the soil down,
and prevent the wind whipping it away.

Improving the ability of the soil to retain moisture so it less easily blown away by
measures including adding organic matter this can either be achieved by adding
organic matter to zai holes or by planting trees that shed leaves that add organic

matter

Case study of an area affected by desertification The Sahel

Sahel - A semi-arid region of north-central Africa south of the Sahara Desert.

Since the 1960s it has been afflicted by prolonged periods of extensive drought.
Around the 1950s, people settled into the Sahel region, in areas where there
was water. This resulted in overgrazing, which is one of the greatest causes of
desertification.
Eventually, the perennial shrubs were destroyed because of grazing, and they
were replaced by annuals. Then, the annuals were grazed out which left bare
soil.
A lot of the topsoil was washed away, and all that was left were rocks. Silt turned
hard when it was hit by rain. Therefore, plants were not able to grow because
there roots could not penetrate this hard layer. Now this region has turned to
desert and it continues to expand.
Population increase in the Sahel is 3.1% per year.
This has led to deforestation, and needs must that the people travel long
distances in search of fuel. For example, the inhabitants of Zinder, a small
village, must travel over 200km to find the necessary wood.
The countries of the zone suffered a devastating drought and famine in the early
1970s, and by 1973 sections of the Sahara had advanced southward as much as
60 mi (100 km).
Desertification in the Sahel is progressing at an alarmingly rapid rate, with 2,500
hectares, an area the size of Luxemburg, being desertified each year.
Effects of Desertification in the Sahel:

Soil loses its nutrients which makes it infertile

Overgrazing destroys vegetation and without it erosion occurs
Land becomes salty which makes it difficult to grow crops
Annual crop failures since 1970s
Over 100,000 people have died of starvation
Mass migration to less dry areas
Millions of animals died
Managing soil erosion in the Sahel
Add notes from the video on stone lines
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dO16g4LgBjI

Deforestation in the tropical rainforests

Tropical rainforests lie in the "tropics," between the Tropic of Capricorn and Tropic of
Cancer. In this region, sunlight strikes Earth at roughly a 90-degree angle resulting
in intense solar energy.
Rainforests are characterized by a unique vegetative structure consisting of several
vertical layers including the overstory, canopy, understory, shrub layer, and ground
level.
The canopy refers to the dense ceiling of leaves and tree branches formed by
closely spaced forest trees. The upper canopy is 100-130 feet above the forest floor,
penetrated by scattered emergent trees, 130 feet or higher, that make up the level
known as the overstory. Below the canopy ceiling are multiple leaf and branch levels
known collectively as the understory. The lowest part of the understory, 5-20 feet
(1.5-6 meters) above the floor, is known as the shrub layer, made up of shrubby
plants and tree saplings.
The heavy vegetation of the canopy effectively screens light from the forest floor,
and in a true (primary) equatorial rainforest, there is little jungle-like ground growth
to impede movement. Ground vegetation in primary forest is minimal and usually
consists mainly of lianas (vines) and tree seedlings.

Brazil once had the highest

deforestation rate in the world
and up to 2005 still had the
largest area of forest removed
annually.
Between May 2000 and
August 2006, Brazil lost nearly
150,000 square kilometres of
forest, an area larger than that

What are the Causes of Deforestation?

To build towns, roads etc

To use the wood for building materials, furniture, and paper products

To grow crops such as soya sugar-cane and palm oil

To create grazing land for cattle

Used for Fuel: Trees are cut down in developing countries to be used as
firewood or turned into charcoal, which are used for cooking and heating
purposes.

For oil and mining exploitation

Small scale farming to give land to the landless but still by slash and burn
farming techniques in some areas.

What are the Effects of Deforestation?

Erosion of Soil: When forest areas are cleared, it results in exposing the soil to the
sun, making it very dry and eventually, infertile, due to volatile nutrients such as
nitrogen being lost. In addition, when there is rainfall, it washes away the rest of the
nutrients, which flow with the rainwater into waterways. Because of this, merely

replanting trees may not help in solving the problems caused by deforestation, for
by the time the trees mature, the soil will be totally devoid of essential nutrients.
Ultimately, cultivation in this land will also become impossible, resulting in the land
becoming useless. Large tracts of land will be rendered permanently impoverished
due to soil erosion.
Disruption of the Water Cycle: Trees contribute in a large way in maintaining the
water cycle. They draw up water via their roots that is then released into the
atmosphere. A large part of the water that circulates in the ecosystem of
rainforests, for instance, remains inside the plants. When these trees are cut down it
results in the climate getting drier in that area.
Loss of Biodiversity: The unique biodiversity of various geographical areas is
being lost on a scale that is quite unprecedented. Even though tropical rainforests
make up just 6 percent of the surface area of the Earth, about 80-90 percent of the
entire species of the world exist here. Due to massive deforestation, about 50 to
100 species of animals are being lost each day. The outcome of which is the
extinction of animals and plants on a massive scale.
Flooding and Drought: One of the vital functions of forests is to absorb and store
great amounts of water quickly when there are heavy rains. When forests are cut
down, this regulation of the flow of water is disrupted, which leads to alternating
periods of flood and then drought in the affected area.
Climate Change: It is well known that global warming is being caused largely due
to emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
However, what is not known quite as well appreciated is that deforestation has a
direction association with carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Trees act
as a major storage deposit for carbon, since they absorb carbon dioxide from the
atmosphere, which is then used to produce carbohydrates, fats, and proteins that
make up trees. When deforestation occurs, many of the trees are burnt or they are
allowed to rot, which results in releasing the carbon that is stored in them as carbon
dioxide. This, in turn, leads to greater concentrations of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere. So deforestation has a double whammy - releases stored CO2 and then
is unable to absorb any more.
Disease: A recent pieces of research has found that "A 4 percent change in forest
cover was associated with a 48 percent increase in malaria incidence in these 54
health districts of the Amazon," It would seem that "The deforested landscape, with
more open spaces and partially sunlit pools of water, appears to provide ideal
habitat for this mosquito," Olson says of Anopheles Darlingi, the primary carrier of
malaria in the Amazon. In deforested areas Anopheles Darlingi displaces other lessmalaria prone mosquitoes that favour forest landscapes
A global issue..
The whole world is concerned with greenhouse gas emissions, and over the recent
past deforestation has proved to have quite an impact on this. This is because:
The gases that are released due to deforestation

The greenhouses gases that are not being sequestered (locked up) by trees that are
no longer there.
As much as 25% of the man-made emissions arise from rainforest clearance.
How come it is that much?
Trees absorb CO2 and give out 02. Much of the carbon, combined with water make
the sugar, lignin and are stored up for a very long time they are a huge carbon
sink.
Once the trees are cut down they no longer do this any more. But many of the cut
trees are burned thus releasing their stored carbon it is these 2 together than
cause the problems.

How can rainforests be managed sustainably? (examples of sustainable

management)
Managing Rainforests
International for example REDD
REDD - Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in
Developing Countries
This is the idea that rich countries pay poorer countries to not cut down the forest.
National approach some countries are taking decisions to manage their
rainforests sustainably
Some countries are taking decisions to manage their rainforests sustainably.
International NGOs such as the Rainforest Alliance, Forest Stewardship Council
among others
The FSC ( Forestry Stewardship Council)
They certify providers of sustainable wood. They then certify the producers of goods
that use certified wood. So that customers in HICs can buy wood products that
come from wood from certified supplies. This encourages sustainable logging that
does not lead to deforestation.
Small and local indigenous people with the help of small enterprises attempt to
create sustainable ways to live with the rainforest.
Harvesting products from the native forest such as rubber and brazil nuts rather
than cutting them down.
It has been estimated that the products from some areas of rainforest, if regularly
harvested give an income of the value of the wood EVERY YEAR.
Agroforestry: is a form of agriculture that seeks to copy nature more carefully than
large-scale commercial monoculture (i.e. growing one crop) or cattle ranching.
Rather than clearing the rainforest completely (clear felling), only the older larger
trees are felled, and shrubs, other food plants (such as vanilla) and flowers are
grown in the clearings. It is also possible to plant legumes which add nitrogen to the
soil.
What are the benefits and advantages of agroforestry?

Soil protection and improvement

Maintenance and retention of soil moisture

Biodiversity balance

Low impact to the environment

Pleasant environment to work

Harvest and income staggered

Reducing the use of defensive chemicals

Production of healthy foods

Environmental services

Explain why the rainforest trees are so essential to the soil in tropical forests

Case study of a threatened tropical rainforest The

Amazon
Causes of deforestation the Amazon

28% of forest cleared since 1996

Mining carajias mine
Road building, the trans Amazon highway 5300 km long
Logging for timber
Cattle ranches run by TNCs
Building settlements population increased from 2 to 30 million in 40 years

Effects of deforestation in the Amazon

Loss of biodiversity of 30 million species on earth, 28 million are found in

the rainforest
No trees means no protection for soil and no nutrients and soil washes away
leaving it infertile
River pollution from mining
Local climate change as there is less evapotranspiration and so less rainfall
Global climate change as trees absorb CO2

Managing deforestation in the Amazon

Brazil needs to exploit the Amazon's resources to develop, so leaving it untouched

is not an option.
Uncontrolled and unchecked exploitation can cause irreversible damage such as
loss of biodiversity, soil erosion, flooding and climate change. So, sustainable use
of the forest is essential. Sustainable development will meet the needs of
Brazil's population without compromising the needs of future generations.
Possible strategies include:

Agro-forestry - growing trees and crops at the same time. This lets farmers
take advantage of shelter from the canopy of trees. It prevents soil erosion
and the crops benefit from the nutrients from the dead organic matter.

Selective logging - trees are only felled when they reach a particular height.
This allows young trees a guaranteed life span and the forest will regain full
maturity after around 30-50 years.

Education - ensuring those involved in exploitation and management of the

forest understand the consequences behind their actions.

Afforestation - the opposite of deforestation. If trees are cut down, they are
replaced to maintain the canopy.

Zoning Areas of forest are used for different activities including Forest
reserves - areas protected from exploitation.

Sustainable collecting for materials such as rubber

Monitoring - use of satellite technology and photography to check that any

activities taking place are legal and follow guidelines for sustainability.

Eco tourism - This is low-density tourism with a small impact on the natural
environment, which takes place mainly in small groups. It is important to local
communities as they have control over it and see direct benefits. Within the
Amazon Basin ecotourism is in operation and today there are approximately
80 agencies offering 'eco' packages, ranging from day trips to larger
packages. The Amazon State Tourist Board supports them.
REDD in Brazil

Brazil last year announced a plan to reduce deforestation by 70 percent from

a 1996-2005 baseline, a move that would cut emissions from deforestation
the source of roughly 80 percent of the country's emissionsby 4.8 billion
tons between 2006 and 2017, an amount greater than the annual emissions
of Canada and the E.U. combined.
To pay for the program, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva created the
Amazon Fund, which he seeks to finance to the tune of $21 billion through
donations from industrialized countries, individuals, and private companies.

The government of Norway has already agreed to provide up to $1

billioncontingent on Brazil's success in reducing deforestation. But so far
no other countries have put up money for the fund.
Brazillian government has employed more police and uses satellite
monitoring to try and prevent deforestation

Summarize the management of tropical rainforest

Local scale example

National scale example

International scale
example

Climate change
Causes of Climate change
Greenhouse gases
Scientists believe that the build-up of so-called greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
acts like a blanket or greenhouse around the planet; heat is trapped inside the
Earth's atmosphere. This is the greenhouse effect, and the resulting increase in
global temperatures is called global warming.

Plants and trees need CO2 and use it up. However, if there is too much CO 2 in
the atmosphere - due to burning fossil fuels in factories, power stations
and transport, combined with a reduction in the number of trees, through
deforestation - CO2 builds up in the atmosphere.

This build-up of CO2 is believed to contribute to global warming through the

greenhouse effect. This is why CO2 is called a greenhouse gas.

The biggest producers of CO2 in the world are the United States (USA), China,
Russia, Japan, India, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada, Italy and Mexico.

Methane is also an important greenhouse gas

Draw a diagram to show how people are causing the enhanced greenhouse effect

What are the consequences of climate change?

Exactly what will be the effect of this is particular places is very hard to predict, but
there are general themes that seem to over-arch the process that we call climate
change:

The ice will melt, both on mountain tops and at the poles causing sea levels
to rise

Overall, the temperatures will rise - more over large land masses than close
to the oceans. There will be local anomalies, for example the unusually fierce
winters in Europe and the east side of North America, where it appears the
warming of the Arctic Ocean has caused a change in wind patterns. This lead to
long periods in which the wind came from the North instead of across the
Atlantic from the SW, bringing cold Arctic air carrying snow and very low
temperatures.

There are likely to be areas that have more precipitation than they are used
to, often in the form of heavy rain storms, which may lead to floods.

On the other hand, there will be other areas, by and large those that already
suffer water stress that will become drier.
Managing climate change
Local scale

Energy efficient buildings

Reduce reuse recycle programs

National scale

Energy policies to increase use of renewable fuels

Carbon capture

Adaption to global warming such as building coastal defenses to protect

against sea level rise

Adapting farming to grow crops suited to a different climate

International scale

Global agreement such as Kyoto protocol

Carbon trading

REDD

Case study of the threats posed by global warming

and climate change to one country and attempts to
tackle the problems of global warming and climate
change - Bangladesh

75% of the land area is below 10metres above sea level

It is right in the path of cyclones that sweep almost annually up from the bay of
Bengal.
Much of the spring water (i.e. water in springtime) comes from melt water in the
Himalayas, which brings with it fertile silt that flood the fields of the delta and
increase the fertility of the soils.
So what are the issues?

The ice caps in the Himalayas are melting so the spring flood carrying
sediments to re-enrich the soils are slowly reducing.

The storms seem to be becoming more intense

The sea level is rising due to snow melt and thermal expansion.

The mangrove swamps, the Sundarbans, are the largest in the world, will
disappear is the sea levels rise by a mere 45cm.

Without mangroves to protect the coastal behind them, much land will be
washed away in storms, leaving millions homeless.

More salt water infiltration is likely, which will make more of the land that is
still above sea level, useless for growing rice, so putting more pressure on more
to people to migrate.

Saltwater from the Bay of Bengal already penetrates 100 km inland during
the dry season and climate change is likely to exacerbate this.

Pressure from an increasing population (rising at 2% per year) and rising

demand for groundwater further reduces the availability of freshwater supplies
for domestic and industrial purposes

If sea levels rises up to one metre this century, Bangladesh could lose up to
15 per cent of its landmass and up to 30 million Bangladeshi could become
climate refugees

In these areas, agriculture, industry, infrastructure, livelihoods, marine

resources, forestry and biodiversity, human health, and utility services will all
suffer. Such a scenario could lead to a decline in GDP of between 27 and 57 per
cent . ( It is currently US$ 641 )

Given the high population density (954 per sq km) of the country as a whole,
this could lead to mass climate emigration where could they go?

How can climate change be managed?

Local scale

Adaption - Build homes on stilts to avoid floods

Convert to shrimp farming instead of growing rice
Migration to urban areas

International scale
Kyoto climate change agreement modified at Durban 2011

The Protocol was drawn up in Kyoto, Japan in 1997 to implement the United
Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change
Agreed to cut emissions by 5% of 1990 levels by 2012.
For the protocol to come fully into force, the pact needed to be ratified by
countries accounting for at least 55% of 1990 carbon dioxide emissions.
The protocol is officially the first global legally binding contract to reduce
greenhouse gases.
LICs did not have to agree binding targets which is one of the main reasons
that the USA refused to sign the agreement.
Durban December 2011
More than 190 countries met for two weeks for the latest round of United
Nations climate change negotiations.
The aim is to stop global warming by limiting global carbon emissions and
accepting only a 2 degree rise in temperature. The result was a "road map"
that will guide countries towards a legal deal to cut carbon in 2015, but it
will only come into effect after 2020.
This is the first time that the worlds three biggest emitters: The US, China
and India have signed up to a legal treaty to cut carbon. However the small
island states wanted a much stronger agreement. They argue that the legal
language needs to be a lot stronger to force countries to act and dates
should be brought forward to stop global warming as a 2 degree rise in
temperature will be devastating for them.
The world has agreed to a help poor countries cope with climate change
through a new Green Climate Fund that will hand out around 60bn
per annum from 2020.
The UK has already spent 3.4bn on helping poor countries fight climate
change and will invest around 1bn a year from 2020 as part of the fund.

Explain how and why climate change management requires international

cooperation. (9)