Module 2

• Land


  The basis for agriculture and other rural and urban land uses, encompassing soils, climate, vegetation, topography, and other natural resources
• Land degradation


  The degradation or destruction of the Earth's surface and soil, directly or indirectly because of human activities
• Causes of land degradation


  • Deforestation
  • Desertification
  • Mining
  • Soil salinization
  • Urban sprawl
• Deforestation


  The massive removal of a forest or the clearing of vast forest areas either for lumber source, conversion to agricultural lands, or for urbanization
• Since 1960, over half of tropical rainforests have been destroyed (IUCN)
• Causes of Deforestation


  • Increase in human population
  • Agriculture
  • Urbanization
  • Timber extraction
  • Anthropogenic climate change
  • Social and political factors
• Agriculture as a cause of deforestation

  Conversion of forest into lands into agricultural lands for crops and livestock farming to meet the growing food demands of an exponentially increasing global population
• Urbanization as a cause of deforestation

  Clearing of forests to give way to settlements and infrastructure projects such as the building of roads, bridges, railways, airports, and power generation and transmission
• Timber extraction as a cause of deforestation

  The global demand for timber has supported illegal and unsustainable logging in various forests of the world, used for building settlements, furniture and paper industries, as well as firewood and charcoal businesses
• Anthropogenic climate change as a cause of deforestation


  Climate change has brought severe and frequent droughts, hurricanes and tropical storms, heatwaves, and fires that destroyed forests worldwide, although these are natural phenomena, the change in the normal cycle of the climate is due to human activities
• Social and political factors as causes of deforestation

  Lack of discipline and responsible demand on trades on the part of communities, Failure of the government to implement environmental laws due to incompetence or corruption
• Effects of Deforestation


  • Anthropogenic climate change
  • Soil erosion and flooding
  • Reduced air humidity
  • Loss of habitat and biodiversity
• Anthropogenic climate change as an effect of deforestation


  Loss of the carbon dioxide absorbing capacity of forests leads to the accumulation of this greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, Increase in greenhouse gases leads to global warming that leads to climate change
• Soil erosion and flooding as effects of deforestation


  Roots of plants, especially trees, bind soil particles, preventing them from being washed out during a storm or heavy rains, Deforestation accelerates the process, causing the nutrient rich topsoil to be washed out, leaving behind an unfertile land, Trees act as barriers that slows down the rushing of water as it runs off the land, Without these trees, water will simply rush and flood to low lying areas
• Reduced air humidity as an effect of deforestation

  Without vegetation, the rate of evapotranspiration is greatly decreased, affecting the normal water cycle, Decrease in evapotranspiration decreases the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, decreasing condensation, and decreasing rainfall
• Loss of habitat and biodiversity as an effect of deforestation

  Destruction of the homes of thousands of species that live in the forest, Leads to a decline in both species richness and species diversity, Numerous species are now extinct, and more are in the endangered species list
• Dealing with Deforestation


  • Reforestation and afforestation
  • Forest landscape restoration
  • The power of the marketplace
  • Changing the politics
  • Standing with indigenous peoples
• Reforestation


  The process of restoring forests by planting the same tree species that are native to that specific forest
• Hydrosphere


  The total amount of water on the planet
• Components of the hydrosphere

  • Water on the surface
  • Underground water
  • Water in the air
• Water in the hydrosphere

  • Can be liquid, vapor, or ice
• Water cycle


  1. Water collects in clouds

  2. Falls to Earth as rain or snow

  3. Collects in rivers, lakes, and oceans

  4. Evaporates into the atmosphere
• Groundwater


  Water stored beneath the Earth's surface in sediment and rock formation

  
• Water table


  The level where the rocks and soil are saturated with water

  
• Aquifer


  An underground formation that contains groundwater
• Recharge zone


  The area of the Earth's surface where water percolates down into the aquifer
• Well


  A hole dug or drilled to reach groundwater
• Point-source pollution


  Pollution discharged from a single source such as a factory, wastewater treatment plant, or leaking oil tanker
• Nonpoint-source pollution


  Pollution that comes from many different sources that are often difficult to identify

  
• Eutrophication


  A natural process where organic matter builds up in a body of water and begins to decay, using up oxygen
• Artificial/cultural eutrophication


  Eutrophication caused by humans, accelerated by inorganic plant nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen entering the water
• Thermal pollution


  When the temperature of a body of water increases, often due to power plants and industries discharging warm water
• Ocean acidification


  When carbon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed into seawater, reducing the pH and carbonate ion concentration
• CO2 mixing with water

  Forms carbonic acid that breaks down into hydrogen ions and bicarbonate
• Coral bleaching


  The whitening of corals due to loss of symbiotic zooxantheallae and/or reduction in photosynthetic pigments

  
• DENR Administrative Order No. 2016-08 is a policy to pursue economic growth in a manner consistent with protecting, preserving and reviving the quality of fresh, brackish and marine waters
• Classification of freshwater bodies

  • Class AA - Public Water Supply Class I
  • Class A - Public Water Supply Class II
  • Class B - Recreational Water Class I
  • Class C - Fishery Water, Recreational Water Class II, Agriculture/Irrigation/Livestock
  • Class D - Navigable waters