MODULE 3,4: Environmental Issues

• Major current environmental issues

  • Climate change
  • Pollution
  • Environmental degradation
  • Resource depletion
  • Renewable resources
  • Deforestation
• Climate change


  Global warming that has been going on for the past 50 years due to human activities
• Pollution


  Presence of harmful substances in the environment
• Environmental degradation


  Deterioration of the environment through depletion of sources or resources
• Resource depletion


  Consumption of resources faster than they can be replenished
• Renewable resources


  Energy sources that cannot be depleted and are able to supply a continuous source of clean energy
• Deforestation


  Permanent removal of trees to make room for something besides forest
• Flash flood


  Rapid flooding of low lying areas caused by heavy rain associated with severe weather
• Soil erosion


  Unnaturally occurring process that affects all landforms, wearing away of a field's topsoil by water and/or farming activities
• Coral reef destruction


  Degradation and potential mass death of the ocean's corals, normally caused by illegal fishing, pollution, tourism, natural phenomena
• Environmental issues - The result of harmful human activities on the biophysical environment.
• Environmental protection - A practice of protecting the natural environment at the individual, organizational or governmental levels for the benefit of both the environment and humans.
• Effects of environmental degradation

  • Impact on human health
  • Loss of biodiversity
  • Ozone layer depletion
  • Loss for tourism industry
  • Economic impact
• Ozone layer depletion


  Caused by chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere, leading to harmful UV radiation reaching the Earth