Impact of Human Activities on Ecosystems

1. Human activities have changed the abiotic and biotic features of the
environment, alter the factors which determine the abundance and distribution of
species, change the cycle of materials and interrupt the flow of matter and energy in
ecosystems.
2. It is through the arrival of Aboriginal Australians that the abundance and
distribution of native plants, with the more fire resistant varieties surviving and becoming
more prolific. This is because, they used controlled burning as a hunting and land
management technique.
3a) Europeans first arrived in Australia in the late eighteenth century.
b) Clearing land and introduction of foreign species were two activities executed by
European settlers that had an impact on ecosystems.
4. Clearing land for buildings and infrastructure removed the habitats of many species, took
away nesting sites, food sources, protective cover from predators and organisms living
spaces.
5. The introduction of rabbits into Australian ecosystems was the driving force behind the
removal of seeds, roots and young shoots of a variety of plants.
6a) The prickly pear reached Australia before 1839 as a hedge plant and pot plant.
b) Arsenic pentoxide was the poison used to kill off the prickly pear species.
c) The effects of the application of arsenic pentoxide were the death of birds, mainly emus.
d) The prickly pear problem was not solved due to the fact that scientists were incorrect in
their hypothesis that birds were spreading the seeds of prickly pears.
7a) Water stopped flowing in the Snowy River as a result of the flicking of a switch to stop
water flowing from the mowamba River to Jindabyne Dam.
b) The reduced water flow evident in the Snowy River would reduce the rate of
photosynthesis of plants, hence reducing the amount of energy available for
consumption by herbivores, omnivores and carnivores living in the
aquatic environment. In conjunction with this, aquatic animals who seek refuge in these
environments would lose their home and hence protection from predators.
c) A notable benefit from the new quantities of water is that aquatic animals would be able
to respire much more rapidly and producers would be able to photosynthesis at greater
rates.
8a) Biodiversity refers to the variety of all life forms on earth - the different plants, animals
and microorganisms and the ecosystems of which they are a part.
b) Human activities such as deforestation, land clearing, air/ ground/water pollution and
conversion of land for agriculture, can lead to loss of biodiversity.
9a) Monoculture refers to the cultivation of a single crop species in a given area.
b) Monoculture restricts biodiversity due to the fact that it restricts the number of species
that can live in the area, given that areas used for monoculture provide sufficient
resources for a few native species.
Strategies to Balance Human Activities

1. The World Wide Fund for Nature is an organisation that aims to fund projects to
save and protect endangered species.
2. A range of laws set in place by Commonwealth and State Acts of Parliament help
conserve the environment by regulating the use of rivers, lakes, the air and the coastline.
For example, the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act was
passed by Commonwealth Government.
3. The benefit of establishing national parks and conservation reserves is that it
allows for the protection and conservation of native flora and fauna as well as
endangered and rare species. In conjunction with this, conservation reserves allow for
the restoration of degraded areas.
4. Some projects which assist in conserving the environment are Streamwatch,
Frogwatch, Endangered Species Program and Clean Up Australia Campaign.
5. The prickly pear problem has its roots in human activity with the arrival of
European settlers bringing prickly pears in an attempt to start a cochineal dye industry.
However, human activity was able to solve the problem that prickly pears posed to native
ecosystems through the Prickly Pear Destruction Commission.
6. Three ways in which an individual can assist in conserving and protecting the the
quality of the environment is recycling and reusing of materials, reducing energy
consumption and reducing pollution.
7. Human activities, namely water pollution, will have led to the need to plant trees
near the Murray River. Causes of water pollution include the discharge of industrial
wastes, the release of sewage and wastewater, mining activities and marine dumping.