GE Elective 1

People and the

Earth’s
Ecosystem

Author:
Prof. Regina Noemi R. Abarabar, DMD, LPT, RGC

MODULE 3
Human Activity and the Lithosphere

Introduction:

The lithosphere is the solid outer layer of the Earth's crust, including rocks, sand,
and soil. The Earth's lithosphere is a dynamic area, with processes such as erosion,
earthquakes, and plate tectonics constantly altering and forming/destroying the surface.
It is also the part of the earth that gives us geography, oceans, weather and the
substrate for organic life. It is the source of all accessible mineral resources for human
use.

Course Objectives: At the end of the module, students should be able to:
1. Understand how human influences impact the lithosphere.
2. Explain the consequences of human activities on the lithosphere (such as mining,
deforestation, agriculture, overgrazing, urbanization, and land use) past and
present.
3. Compare the various methods humans use to acquire traditional energy sources
(such as peat, coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear fission, and wood).
4. Critique conventional and sustainable agriculture practices in terms of their
environmental impacts.
5. Evaluate the concept of “reduce, reuse, recycle” in terms of impact on natural
 resources.

Lithosphere is the rigid, rocky outer layer of the Earth, consisting of the crust and
the solid outermost layer of the upper mantle. It extends to a depth of about 60 miles
(100 km). It is broken into about a dozen separate, rigid blocks, or plates (plate
tectonics). Slow convection currents deep within the mantle, generated by radioactive
heating of the interior, are believed to cause the lateral movements of the plates (and
the continents that rest on top of them) at a rate of several inches per year. It has three
density zone: the crust, the mantle and the core.
1. Crust. The structure of the rocks and the continental crust is very complex
because they have repeatedly been eroded, carried about, and transformed
by mountain building and igneous intrusion. It includes the continental crust
and oceanic crust.
2. Mantle and Core. Magnesium and iron silicate may correspond to the
composition of the mantle, while the core may consist of iron in liquid,
considering temperature and pressure. In the inner core, lesser amounts of
nickel are present in solution.

Human Activity and the Lithosphere:

1. URBANIZATION is the increasing number of people that migrate from rural to urban
areas. The physical growth of cities, or taking the characteristics of cities. ∙ Why do
people build cities?

⮚ Proximity – so people will be closer to the things they desire

✔ Job opportunities

✔ Transportation and housing

✔ Entertainment and attractions

✔ Diversity

✔ Marketplace competition

∙ How do cities
affect Earth?

Deforestation –
cutting down all
 trees in an area; the
clearing of Earth's
forest on a massive
scale that often
results in damage of
the land.

∙ What can removing trees

cause?

⮚ Increased flooding - impervious (water can’t move through it) surfaces

cause water to run off into streams instead of being absorbed.
⮚ Increased pollution from transportation and factory production.

⮚ Heat islands – pavement absorbs heat all day and releases it at night
making the surrounding area warmer.

∙ Causes and Effects of Urbanization

Causes Effects

Job opportunities Increased pollution

Entertainment Increased flooding

Transportation and housing Deforestation

Diversity Heat Islands

Marketplace competition Overpopulation

High level of erosion and

sedimentation

∙ What can we do?

⮚ Urbanization
“Green” cities
✔ Add walls
that can hold
plant life
✔ Walkable
urban areas
mixed
use so
 most things
are in walking distance of
residents
✔ Entice people to move
back to suburbs/rural
areas
✔ Better public
transportation
✔ Urban farming

✔ Build structures that use sustainable energies (solar, wind,

hydroelectric, etc…)

2. AGRICULTURE is the science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil

for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool and other
products.

∙ Why is land used for agriculture?

⮚ A stable food source

✔ Vegetables

✔ Meats

✔ Animal feed

⮚ Economic gain

⮚ Non – edible resources – cotton, ethanol

∙ How does agriculture affect the lithosphere?

⮚ Deforestation
means a loss of
habitats, which
means a loss in
biodiversity
✔ Increased
erosion
degrades
soil
✔ Increased
evaporation leading
to drought
 ✔ Higher CO2 in the air - less
photosynthesis
✔ Climate change

Overgrazing is the removal of excessive amount of plant growth by

animals in one area.
✔ Plants are exposed to
grazing with insufficient
recovery period.
Roots grow smaller and
eventually plants begin
to die off
✔ Occurs from having
more animals on a piece
of land than it can
support.

⮚ Desertification is the process of land becoming a desert, characterized by

loss of bodies of water and plant life
 ✔ Occurs when
overgrazing happens
in already dry areas
✔ Can be caused by the
weight of cattle
pressing on the land
until it becomes too
compacted for plants
to grow

⮚ Dryland salinity - Gradual loss of farmland from rising salt ✔ Salt is located
underground but pulled upwards when water tables rise
✔ Domesticated plants have shallower roots

✔ Loss of biodiversity

✔ Huge problem in Australia and other places where underground salt

reserves are present
 ⮚ Dryland salinity

⮚ Decline
in fresh
water
How is

freshwater being
depleted from agriculture?
✔ Irrigation in arid areas
to water crops is pulled
from freshwater
sources.
✔ This has been
devastating to the
ecosystems of some
rivers.
 ⮚
Pollution
How is

agriculture polluting?
✔ Pesticides and
herbicides to control
insects and weeds
runoff with rain into
rivers.
✔ These can cause
major problems with
rivers
✔ Hypoxic – dead zones where oxygen levels have decreased to
where they cannot support life.
∙ What can we do?

⮚ Keep the
proper
amount
of
animals
on
acreage
⮚ Crop
rotation to
keep
soil
fertile
⮚ Reduces need for
deforestation
⮚ Purchase seasonally
and locally
⮚ Drip line irrigation
 ⮚ Reduce the amount of
chemicals and synthetic
fertilizers

3. MINING is the extraction of valuable minerals or other resources from the earth

∙ People mine to
earn money, and
use the materials
for many
different uses
such as minerals
and as energy
sources.
∙ How does mining
affect the
environment?
✔ Acid mine
drainage from
sub
surface mining
✔ Deforestation

✔ Erosion

✔ Formation of sinkholes

✔ Contamination of soil and

groundwater
✔ Some diseases (black
lung, blue baby
syndrome, asthma)
 ∙

What can we do?

⮚ Alternative energy sources

⮚ Recycle and reuse goods to reduce need to mine

⮚ Reduce consumption of unnecessary items

4. HARVESTING -
Gathering of resources
from the surface of the
Earth

∙ Wood

⮚ Renewable
energy supply
9% of the
world’s
energy
supply
⮚ Used particularly in
developing countries
⮚ Used for heating and
cooking

∙ Peat is an
accumulation of
partially
decayed plant
matter
 ⮚ Soils containing mostly peat
are histols
⮚ Found in bogs or mires

⮚ Fossil fuel due to slow

regrowth
5. DRILLING - A cutting process that uses a drill bit to cut or enlarge a hole in the Earth
for extraction purposes.

∙ Drilling oil and natural

gas are non
renewable sources that
will
eventually run out.
People drill for
them for many uses.
∙ Cause: To earn money
and to get
needed resources such as gas, to
use in cars for fuel.

⮚ Oil is formed from the remains of tiny plants

Non – renewable resource

Obtained by drilling
 ⮚ Natural
gas

Contains mostly methane

Created in bogs deep
underground
Non-renewable energy
source
Mostly obtained by drilling
∙ Effect: Drilling can cause the lithosphere to be disturbed. It can cause earthquakes.
Soil and groundwater can be contaminated.
∙ What can we do?

⮚ Alternative energy sources

✔ Solar

✔ Wind

✔ Hydroelectric

✔ Wave power

✔ Nuclear

✔ Biofuel

✔ Geothermal

SAQ1 : Briefly answer the following questions:

1. Make a tabular analysis of the different human activities and their effects in the
environment.
2. Make a reflection paper on what a student like you can do to lessen the impact of
these human activities to our ecosystem.
 ASAQ2

References:

http://bigdogsinlittlehouses.blogspot.com/2010/10/blog-
post_2810.html http://www2.illinoisbiz.biz/coal/virtualtour/index.html
http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Nuclear-Fuel-Cycle/Mining-of-Uranium/In-Situ-Leach
Mining-of-Uranium/#.UhK9zxaRPzI
http://www.cameco.com/mining/highland_smith/
extraction_process/ http://www.hydratelife.org/?p=189
http://thechelseascrolls.com/tag/black-lung/
http://urbantick.blogspot.com/2010/03/book-manifesto-for-sustainable-
cities.html http://impressivemagazine.com/2013/07/01/green-walls/
http://organizeanything.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/
wood_pile.png
http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1096/558178251_2ff622799f_z.jpg
http://www.wfpa.org/workspace/section-header-images/
slideshow_harvesting.jpg http://www.michellehenry.fr/backyard.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfzH_WTLulM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbOcwRUwLIk
http://www.barvasandbrue.com/images/peat5.jpg
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2012/10/121022-wood-for-
heating/ http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/00051/images/coal.jpg