Running head: IMPACTS OF HUMAN SETTLEMENT ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY IN

CANADA 1

Impacts of Human Settlement on Biological Diversity in Canada

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Impacts of Human Settlement on Biological Diversity in Canada

Introduction

The civilization of human has contributed to a negative impact on biodiversity majorly as

a result of the industrial revolution. Urbanization in Canada has led to the decline of biodiversity

because the development of human settlements leads to the destruction of natural habitats. In the

urban areas of Canada, species became endangered and finally extinct as historically natural

areas are used for human settlement. The increase in human population density in Canada

resulted to increased development of urban that caused potential scarcity of animal and plant

species extinctions in the country. The growth of Canadian cities was responsible for the

fragmentation of natural habitat that species depend on. Similarly, large continuous habitats have

been fragmented into smaller isolated habitats due to urban settlement. The expansion of human

settlements results to the fragmentation of extensive natural habit through the construction of

houses, roads, and industries (Thompson, Austin & Smith, 2003). At last, biodiversity is heavily

reduced because large areas of natural habitat are fragmented or eliminated. This is because the

smaller fragments of habitats left cannot support similar level o taxonomic diversity as in the

past while most of the indigenous species have become completely extinct.

Over the past centuries, Canada was defined by its robust expanses of wilderness, rich in

cultural and natural resources. Canada remains the second largest nation globally with a surface

area of 9.98 million Km2. Also, the country was a steward in a variety of climates, temperate

forest, boreal, and tundra in its expansive grassland as well as polar desert ecosystems.

Formerly, approximately 40 percent of Canada was covered by forests and woodlands and over

70,000 species occurring in its diverse ecosystem (Turcotte, 2008). These included amphibians,
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mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, and plants that constituted

significant ecosystem (Turcotte, 2008). Meanwhile, the Canadian human settlements a century

ago the Aboriginal people developed various settlement features until the Europeans arrived o

establish modern settlement schemes. However, the cities grew slowly and most cities only

remained as administrative centers as left by the colonies. The Canadian cities to the east,

including St. John’s and Montreal became areas of human habitation. Canada was largely rural

until 1921 when the population skyrocketed to 8.7 million fro 4.3 million. Of this population,

approximately 30 percent lived in the cities because the urban had started to grow internally. In

the recent times, 85 percent of Canadians live in urban settings because wealth production has

been concentrated in the cities. The rural economic activities were surpassed by the urban

manufacturing activities and service sector (Kalman & Edward, 2012). In 2008, government

statistics reveals that 90 percent of the economy of Canada was based on urban production.

The process of human change, according to Fouberg, Murphy and De, (2015), includes

four principal components. Firstly, human geography entails human-environment relationships

alongside the interaction of human activities with the physical world. The settlement patterns of

Canadians have promoted a wide threat to biodiversity by altering conditions of its ecosystem,

including damming rivers, deforestation, and draining wetlands. Human settlement accompanied

by various activities led to the loss of habitat hence threatening species. Also, if the organisms

are unable to migrate to a different habitat, they perish and become extinct. For example,

deforestation resulting from heavy logging of trees for domestic and industrial use leads to loss

of biodiversity. Secondly, human geography emphasizes on the process of change of activities

that is essential for interpreting their effects on modern places, as well as how past and present
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activities may define the future. In light of this, the Canadian human settlement has largely

changed from rural to urban because of industrialization. In the past, Canadians depended on

agriculture as a means of surviving. However, a change has occurred where manufacturing firms

were established hence changing the entire settlement feature of the country from rural to urban.

Besides, urbanization has been accompanied by changes in the construction of roads, railways,

and airports that altogether threatens biodiversity.

The impact of human settlement patterns that has shifted from rural to urban settlements

in a period of one hundred years relates to economical, environmental, cultural, and sociological

elements. The Canadian species were many and required extensive habitat to sustain their

populations. However, human settlement that focused on urbanization fragmented forests, lakes,

predated animals and in the end leading to their scarcity and extinction. Similarly, human

settlements have affected biodiversity and resultantly affected humans living in the country. For

example, deforestation has led to natural calamities, including flooding, landslides, and

dissertation that have caused various health consequences and death in extreme cases. Also,

biodiversity was a source of tourist attraction that was a substantial source of foreign income to

the country. However, changes in human settlements have seen a reduction of tourists visiting

the country because of the destruction of its natural habitats. As a result, the GDP has declined

due to decline in foreign income leading to further hard economic conditions.

Lastly, Fouberg et al. (2015) underscores that human geography entails changes in human

settlements on how people change and adapt to their physical environment (Diaz, Carbonell,

Virgos, Santos, Telleria, 2000). Changes in human settlement in Canada that shifted from rural

settings to urban developments led to the construction of many buildings, including industries.
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People have changed from rural to urban settlements that influence changes in cultural practices

and natural heritage. Urban environment has changed cultural beliefs of the Canadians and also

led to classism in the society.

Conclusion

The Canadian human settlement has changed tremendously over the past one century.

This has led to disastrous effects to her biodiversity and subsequent effects to people. Human

activities such as deforestation, building, industrialization, and replacement of native species are

just a few consequences of changes in human settlement from rural to urban settlement features.

Based on the four components of human geography, it is clear that human settlement is a great

threat to biodiversity that also turns around to affect the life of people in a given environment.
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References

Diaz, J.A., Carbonell R.,Virgos E., Santos T., Telleria J.L., 2000. Effects of forest fragmentation

on the distribution of the lizard Psammodromus algirus. Animal Conservation. 3, 235–40.

Fouberg, E. H., Murphy, A. B., & De, B. H. J. (2015). Human geography: People, place, and

culture. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons.

Kalman, H. and Edward M. (2012). Architectural History: Early First Nations. The Canadian

Encyclopedia.

Thompson K, Austin KC, & Smith RM. (2003) Urban domestic gardens (I): putting small-scale

plant diversity in context. Journal of Vegetation Science 14, 71–78.

Turcotte, M. (2008). "The city/suburb contrast: How can we measure it? Life in Metropolitan

Areas". Canadian Social Trends. Summer.

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