Nutrition- Chapter 15: The Environment
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- Able to continue indefinitely. In this context, the use of resources in ways that maintain both natural resources and human life; the use of natural resources at a pace that allows the earth to replace them.
- Sustainable
- What are some examples of sustainable?
-
-Cutting trees no faster than new ones grow
-Producing pollutants at a rate with which the environment and human cleanup efforts can keep pace
-Resources do not become depleted
-Pollution does not accumulate - Agriculture and foresting practices today are ______________.
- not sustainable.
- Plowed soil runs off _______ and interferes with the growth of _____________.
- soil erosion; aquatic plants and soil
- Irrigation by farmers, a common practice, impacts the environment and soil by doing what two things?
-
1. Leaves salt deposits, which lower crop yields as soil salinity increases.
2. Uses large amounts of water, which can dry up rivers, lakes, etc - Top soil is the dark nutrient rich soil that holds moisture and feeds us by feeding our plants. Two hundred years ago, American croplands had at least ______ of top soil. We are down to ____ inches. It takes nature ______ years to build one inch of top s
- 21 inches; 6 inches; 500 years
- Over the last 40 years, we have ruined more than ____ of the earth's fertile lands due to soil erosion.
- 10%
- What are the causes of unsustainable practices?
-
1. Conventional farming techniques- planting samething yr after yr, plowing same direction, ect
2. Overgrazing the live stock. Grass holds topsoil in place. Overgrazing contributes to erosion of top soil thus decreased productivity of land.
3. Deforestation and foresting practices.
4. Forests are cleared to farm, build homes/buildings, and for live stock grazing - What are examples of UNSUSTAINABLE?
-
-Clear cutting
-Cutting down old growth trees
-Cutting down trees faster than they grow - What are examples of SUSTAINABLE?
-
-Cutting trees no faster than new ones grow
-Not clear cutting
-Leaving some old growth trees - What are the effects of top soil erosion?
-
-Decreased crop yields (less food)
-Less biomass (plants), which convert carbon dioxide to oxygen; increased carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is contributing to global warming - A rise of only a degree or so in average global termpature may reduce soil moisture, impair pollination of major food crops...slow (plant) growth, weaken disease resistance, and disrupt many other factors affecting crop yield.
- True
- What are the problems of using massive amounts of energy/fossil fuels to produce our food?
-
-Ozone depletion
-Water pollution
-Ocean pollution
-Increased likelihood of global warming - Each year ____ gallons of oil per person is used to produce, process, distribute, and prepare our food.
- 350
- It takes 8# of grain to produce _______.
- one pound of food
- ____ of a calorie of energy is burned to produce one calorie of grain.
- 1/3
- To produce one calorie of livestock = _______
- 10-90 kcal
- Thus it takes ________ times the fossil fuel energy to make the same amount of kcal from livestock.
- 30-270
- We are eating more grain fed animals. In the past livestock was mostly fed via grazing.
- True
- In 1965 livestock only consumed ___ of Mexico's grain. 1990 livestock consume over ____.
- 6%; 50%
- To produce a single pound of meat takes ________ of water.
- 2500 gallons
- To produce a single day's food for a typical American Omnivore takes _________ of water.
- 4000 gallons
- To produce a single days food for a vegan (eats no animal products) takes ________ of water.
- 300 gallons
- California's biggest water consumers are the __________.
- livestock producers
- Half of the nations grain fed beef is produced in Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico.
- True
- Most fo the water needed for this comes from the _________.
- Ogallala Aquifer; it covers a large part of the center of the country and contains 100s of trillions of gallons of water.
- What are some possible problems with global warming from the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation?
-
-Cause sea levels to rise flooding low lying land areas
-Heat waves and droughts
-Conflict over water resources
-Death fro disease and flooding
-Environmental damage - _______ is probably the most serious threat to the environment and our survival.
- Overpopulation
- There is a clear connection between a countries wealth, its population's education level, and what?
- its birthrate
- The more money and education the country, ____________________.
- the lower the birthrate
- In America, we have ____ of the worlds population, use ____ of the world's resources, and create _____ of the world's pollution.
- 5%; 25%; 30%
- We're using more resources than any other country to support our lifestyle. Western Europe - ______; Africa - ______.
- 2x as much; 12x
- Foods meeting strict USDA production regulations, including prohibition of most synthetic pesticides, herbicides; fertilizers, drugs, and preservatives, as well as genetic engineering and irradiation.
- Certified organic foods
- Animals raised organically must be (3 things):
-
1. Grown without medication such as antibiotics and hormones
2. Provide living conditions similar to their natural habitats
3. Fed 100% organic foods - What are the benefits of organic foods vs. conventional farming techniques (organic foods provide all of the following):
-
1. Improves soil condition through crop rotation and the addition of complex fertilizers such as manure; controls erosion; highly protective of waterways and wildlife. USES SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE TECHNIQUES.
2. Reduced exposure to pesticides, chemicals, and hormones.
3. Ethical comfort of knowing that food-producing animals are well treated.
4. Taste is subjective. - Consumers should wash organic produce carefully to remove possible dangerous microbial contamination and possible pesticides that have "drifted" from other sources onto it.
- True
- What are the solutions (9) that can help decrease our ecological footprint?
-
1. Buy more organically produced products.
2. Eat lower on the food chain (more plant products). This uses less or minimizes the following: fossil fuels, pesticides, herbicides, soil erosion, and water.
3. Recycle.
4. Shop using reusuable bags.
5. Eat locally grow foods.
6. Buy range fed, not grain fed beef.
7. Ride a bike to shop, when going to work or class.
8. Take public transportation more frequently.
9. Tell your elected official about your views on limiting population growth, developing energy conservation programs, etc.