Deforestation in my country

1) You are going to research deforestation in your country. Give me some information on it. (5 marks)

Indonesia is filled with biodiversity! It is a home to about ten percent of all known species of plants, mammals and birds. Millions of Indonesians depend on the forest for food and shelter. Large areas of forest in Indonesia have been cleared by large multinational pulp companies and been replaced by plantations. Forests are often burned by farmers and plantation owners. Another major source of deforestation is the logging industry, driven by demand from China and Japan, logging and the burning of forests to clear land for cultivation has made Indonesia the world's third largest emitter of greenhouse gases! The rate of deforestation continues to increase. The 2009 State Environment Report launched by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono  revealed that the number of fire hot-spots rose to 32,416 in 2009 from only 19,192 in 2008. The Environment Ministry blamed the increase on weak law enforcement and a lack of supervision from local authorities, with land clearance as the primary cause of the fires!

2) You will explain the Social, Environmental, and Economic Impacts that deforestation has had on your country. (6 marks) 

Social Impact :

Many citizens have jobs in the industries which cut trees. If there was a law to be placed that banned deforestation by cutting trees many of these workers would lose their jobs. Losing their job results a bunch of people to be in poverty because they wouldn't be able to support their families with the basic necessities. Another social impact is tourism. The reason we go traveling is to see pretty scenery and to get a taste another culture. If all the trees were clear cut whats left to see? Environmentally the effect is huge. The most dramatic impact is a loss habitat for the species that lived in the trees. With the loss of the trees it can cause climate change and increase greenhouse gases in the atmosphere! Trees help control the level of water in the atmosphere by helping the regulate the water cycle. When there a few trees left more water starts going into the soil which cause the soil to be dryer. Illegal logging causes a loss of billion dollars to the national economies annually. Deforestation can rob the country from its renewable resources and revenues. Forests play a major role in the economy of Indonesia as it has value to locals and non market consumers. They use the timber for housing and to collect fruits for food.  

3) Look at the information in the Environment and Resources folder that talks about Deforestation in Canada. Based on the information provided do you think that deforestation is a greater threat in your country or Canada? Explain your reasoning using specific examples. (10 marks) 

I believe the deforestation in Indonesia is on a greater scale than Canada's. Back in the 1990's the country was covered by 84 percent  in trees and plants. It is a home to some of the most biodiversity forests in the world! by the tin it was 1950 plantations and smallholder plantings of tree crops  covered a small area of Indonesia. At that time it was estimated about 145 million ha of primary forest. In the 1970's Indonesians started to use this resource for their economic benefit. By the time in the early 2000's the use for trees was so grand for pulp and paper it make the ninth largest pulp producer in the world. As of now the rate of the loss of trees is rather increasing than decreasing. There is a weak law enforced to stop deforestation but is not very effective. Recently in 2010  52 percent of the area was forested. 

  

Aquaculture

Today you are going to look at aquaculture.

1) Define Aquaculture (1 mark)

Aquaculture is defined as the rearing of aquatic animals or the cultivation of aquatic plants for food.

2) Look at the Social (on people), environmental, and economic pros and cons of aquaculture. For each of the three you should list 3 pros and 3 cons. (18 marks)

Social pros:

-can help feed people

-can increase scientific knowledge and technology

-can encourage local investment

Economic pros: 

-can create jobs in the community

-increase revenue on city

-can reduce seafood trade deficit

Environmental pros:

-can place more emphasis on protecting coastal waters from pollution

-may reduce fishing pressure on certain  wild stock

-Fish Farms can be created on Coastal Areas and Inland Lakes and Rivers

Social cons:

-can conflict with other users of water bodies such as lobster men, fishermen or migrating fish

-can threaten livelihood of fishermen

-there is a risk of eating the supplied fish from fish farms

Economics cons:

-can be an unpredictable enterprise for small local communities

-although farmed salmon production has risen dramatically the number of jobs in it has not. Wild fisheries employ five times as many people than farmed fishing.

-wild fish are worth more to Bc economy than aquaculture

Environment cons:

-Can compromise the beauty of coastline

-Can transfer disease and parasites to wild fish populations

-Can pollute water systems with excess chemicals and antibiotics

3) Write a short paragraph (7-10 sentences) explaining your point of view on aquaculture. Is it a good thing? A bad thing? Why. Use examples from your pros and cons in #2. (6 marks)

I think aquaculture is not a good thing. As I was researching I saw more cons than pros with this solution. For instance excessive use of chemicals, such as antibiotics, anti-foulants and pesticides, can have  consequences for marine organisms and human health. If a fish which was farmed escapes it can interbreed with local wild stocks of the same population. Which leads to altering the overall pool of genetic diversity. Excess food and fish waste increase the levels of nutrients in the water and have the potential to lead to oxygen deprived waters that stress aquatic life. Why find a solution that damages more of the marine organisms when its suppose to help improve its life?

Water use in my country

 1) Write a 50 word response to the documentary that we watched in class on Wednesday. Were you shocked? How did it make you feel? Do you agree with what is being done. (5 marks)

2) Look up a water issue in your country. Some of the things that you may come across include: 

Privatization of water, water scarcity (not enough), Water pollution, Water exports, salinization (salt water in drinking water). Explain what is happening and why it is an issue. If you cannot find anything you can look at Issues currently facing the state of California. (10 marks)

*Remember pictures/diagrams etc are ALWAYS useful in Geography

Indonesia's rivers are filled with domestic waste. Domestic waste is any nonperishable waste. For instance paper, cardboard, yard clipping and wood are items which fit into the category of domestic waste. According to Water Environment Partnership in Asia (WEPA), only 42 percent from 51,372,661 houses in Indonesia have domestic waste treatment. More than half of households dispose their domestic waste directly to the river body. Data from the Word Bank shows that in 2008, only 52% of Indonesian population has an adequate access to excreta disposal facilities. Such facilities are important as they can help to minimize human, animal, and insect contact with excreta, thereby increasing the hygiene level and enhancing the living conditions for the slum-dwellers. Without proper construction and maintenance of these facilities, domestic wastes are disposed ineffectively and increase the rate of water resources degradation. The dumping of domestic waste in rivers is a growing concern in Indonesia. The rivers are being clogged with toxic chemicals which are not only bad for the animals but as well the people. 

California's  interconnected water system  serves over 30 million people and irrigates over 5,680,000 acres (2,300,000 ha) of farmland. As the world’s largest, most productive, and most controversial water system, it manages over 40,000,000 acre feet of water per year.

Water and water rights  are among the state's divisive political issues. Water is limited in the most populous U.S. state California. California’s limited water supply comes from two main sources! Its eaither surface water, or water that travels or gathers on the ground, like rivers, streams, and lakes and ground water, which is water that is pumped out from the ground in Sacramento. Before the severe drought started, in 2012, residents were using 217 US gallons of water a day per-capita. Many homes in Sacramento didn't have water meters until recently. They now are gradually being installed after Schwarzenegger signed a 2004 law mandating meters statewide by 2025.

After Folsom, a city of 72,000 east of Sacramento, installed meters in 2011 and adopted tiered rates that charge more for people who consume the most water. The city of Los Angeles bought 300,000 acres of land from residents of the Owens Valley and the water rights attached with them, for a fair price. The diverting of this water from the valley, it is alleged, transformed it from an agricultural valley into a dust bowl.

Water Use in Agriculture

What is Drip Irrigation?

Drip irrigation, also known as trickle irrigation, is an irrigation method that saves water and fertilizer by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either onto the soil surface or directly onto the root zone

What is Sprinkler?

A sprinkler is a device that sprays water and used usually used for watering lawns.

What is Surface Irrigation?

The process of surface irrigation can be described using four phases. As water is applied to the top end of the field it will flow or advance over the field length. The advance phase refers to that length of time as water is applied to the top end of the field and flows or advances over the field length. After the water reaches the end of the field it will either run-off or start to pond!

Pros and cons of Drip Irrigation

Benefits:

·         Concentrating your irrigation to specific plants prevents weeds from germinating nearby

·         Retaining the moisture at the soil level also reduces water loss to wind and evaporation

·         Maintain a healthy soil environment for optimal growth

·         With less runoff into local drains, your soil remains full of critical nutrients

Drawbacks:

·         Improper drip irrigation installation often culminates into poor root development

·         Although irrigation filters stop debris from clogging tubes, your system still needs a periodic flushing to remove mineral buildup.

·         Maintain a consistent mulch covering across your tubing 

Pros and cons of Sprinkler

Benefits:

·         Sprinklers can cover large areas

·         Can work at low pressures, saving energy

·         Time saver

·         Automatic sprinklers offer programmable controllers

·         When there’s enough water on the soil from rain showers don’t need use the sprinkler

Drawbacks:

·         Manual sprinklers require people to open the valve and have to manually set it up each time

·         Water can run off into the yard

·         Certain areas in the yard can be missed for watering

·         Equipment is expensive so to ensure it operates efficiently can cost a lot

·         Need to take care in windy conditions 

Pros and cons of Surface irrigation

Benefits

·         Minimal capital investment or energy costs

·         Less affected by climatic

·         Draw backs

·         Tend to be labour intensive

·         Applying light, frequent irrigation early and late in the season is very difficult.

·         Less efficient than other systems

·         Drainage can also be a problem in some circumstances

I believe the farmer should use the sprinkler method. It may be costly but it can water his or her crops at one time. The sprinkler can cover up more areas of crops for watering. And if he or she decides to get an automatic sprinkler he can set up a time for the plants to get watered. That way the plants are never dehydrated. It saves the farmer’s time so he can worry about other things on his land instead of worrying about if his plants are going to survive or not. 

Case Study: Land subsistence in the American Southwest

Using the links provided as well as your own research, answer the following questions in full sentences. 

a) Describe the causes of land subsistence in the American Southwest and explain why it is getting worse over the past few years. (4 marks)

The common causes of land subsidence from human activity are pumping water, oil, and gas from underground reservoirs, collapse of underground mines and drainage of organic soils.

Over drafting of aquifers is the bigger cause of subsidence in the southwestern United States. As ground water pumping continues the land subsidence will also increase. In many areas ground water is pumped from open spaces that are between sand and gravel. If an aquifer has clay the more water that is pumped from that area the lower the clay will fall. The lowering of land surface elevation can be permanent. 


b) Describe the potential impacts of land subsistence. (4 marks) 

Land subsidizing can cause damages to bridges, roads and railroads. It can cause damages to buildings and forces fine grain materials to enter the aquifer systems. The damage it also costs is changing the elevation state of streams canals and drains. 

c) Outline ways to prevent further land subsistence. (This will require you to think on your own) (4 marks)

When planting trees people should be carful and select their area for planting properly. After they planted the trees they should manage the well being of them to reduce the risk of subsiding.

Trees are a common cause of subsidence because they absorb waster from the soil causing clay particles to dry and shrink.

Having proper maintance of gutters and drains prevent leaks and ensure water is safely diverted away from your house and land. 
Educating town’s people about the effects land subsidence has can be an eye opener for the public. It will make them want to learn how to help lower down and prevent land subsidence. They will be more open to trying new ideas to help save their community.

                                                

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China Landslide

How do landslides occur? 

When earthquakes occur in a certain area with steep slopes many times soil slips causing landladies. Otherwise heavy rainfall can start the result of a massive landslide. 

On August 8 a landslide left a huge impact in Zhouqu, China. According to the Xinhua news it had taken about 1030 peoples lives and over a thousand people have been reported missing. 

So what created this landslide?

The construction of hydroelectric power plants, mining, deforestation had started the landslide. In simpler terms it was a man made disaster! Leaving the heavy rainfall to the side the main reason this landslide occurred is because of the construction of the hydroelectric power pants. 

Why was it so devastating? 

This landslide has  killed over 1030 people because the mud and rock flow crushed or braided hundreds of buildings! There was so much buildup building onto the landslide that the landslide triggered from a small heavy rainfall. This huge landslide buried over 300 buildings, left 66% of the country without power and left many people dead!

Could it be prevented?

After this huge deserter media has been having debts if the landslide could have been prevented. SOme say it could have been controlled if illegal mining was stopped and deforestation was kept to a minim. With such heavy rainfall the public could have been warned about a landslide occurring. Some say it could have not been prevented because who would have known that the landslide was going to happen a free days after the rainfall. I think it could have not been prevented however it could have been predicted. Knowing that theres been mining and deforestation happening. The day it started to rain a lot the public should have been told and encouraged to move further away from the area thats been mined. The area in general was looking vulnerable from seeing all the logging and urban planning that has been happening around it.

Was there a way to warn the locals?

The country has a warning system set in place however was failed to warm the locals.  The system ,being told by an expert, was only made to warm about small local landslides not big ones. There is only basic funding for the warning system so there was not a lot of check points to help detect the landslide coming towards the city. The government could have sent out a civil defence alarm to warm the public or had news channels warning the public once they figured out what was happening.