Today, the sad truth is no longer a secret to anyone - our planet is in danger, and plants and animals have to survive in conditions of anthropogenic pollution. Even photographs that appear in the press from time to time are not able to convey the seriousness and scale of the pollution problem. This review contains little-known and shocking facts that make it possible to understand the seriousness of the problem.
1. 3 million plastic bottles
Earth
Every year, more than 6 billion kilograms of garbage are dumped into the world's oceans. Most of this trash is plastic, which is toxic to marine life. In America alone, 3 million plastic bottles are thrown away every hour. But each such bottle decomposes within 500 years.
2. “Garbage Continent”
Pacific Ocean
Few people know this, but in the Pacific Ocean there is an entire “continent” of plastic waste known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. According to some estimates, the size of this plastic “garbage continent” could be twice the size of the United States.
3. 500 million cars
Earth
There are more than 500 million cars in the world today, and by 2030 this number is expected to rise to more than a billion. This means that pollution caused by cars could potentially double in 14 years.
4. 30% of the world's waste
USA
Americans make up only 5% of the world's population. At the same time, they produce 30% of the world's waste and use about a quarter of the world's natural resources.
5. Oil spills
World Ocean
Everyone knows that massive, deadly oil spills occur after accidents with tankers or drilling rigs. At the same time, it is practically unknown that for every million tons of oil shipped there is always one ton of spilled oil (and this without any accidents).
6. Clean Antarctica
Antarctica
The only relatively clean place on Earth is Antarctica. The continent is protected by the Antarctic Treaty, which prohibits military activity, mining, nuclear explosions and nuclear waste disposal.
7. Beijing air
China
China is one of the countries with the highest levels of air pollution in the world. Simply breathing the air in Beijing increases your risk of lung cancer by exactly the same amount as smoking 21 cigarettes a day. In addition, nearly 700 million Chinese (about half the country's population) are forced to drink contaminated water.
8. Ganges River
India
Water pollution is even worse in India, where nearly 80% of all urban waste is dumped into the Ganges River, Hindus' most sacred river. Poor Indians also bury their dead family members in this river.
9. Lake Karachay
Russia
Lake Karachay, a radioactive waste dump from the former Soviet Union, located in the Chelyabinsk region, is the most contaminated place on Earth. If a person spends just an hour in this lake, he is guaranteed to die.
10. Electronic waste
Earth
As computers, televisions, mobile phones and other electronic devices become more and more accessible around the world, e-waste has been a growing problem in recent years. For example, in 2012 alone, people threw away almost 50 million tons of electronic waste.
11. A third of British fish change sex
England
Around a third of fish in British rivers change sex due to water pollution. Scientists believe that the main reason for this is hormones from waste in sewage, including birth control pills.
12. 80 thousand synthetic chemicals
Earth
In modern days, up to 500 chemicals have been discovered in the human body that were not present in it before 1920. Today, there are a total of almost 80 thousand synthetic chemicals on the market.
13. San Francisco gets air from China
Environmental problem: light pollution.
Earth
Light pollution generally does not have a significant effect on humans, but it causes serious problems for many animals. Birds often confuse day and night, and scientists have found that light pollution can even change the migration patterns of some animal species.
Today people are looking for various ways to make their lives safer and production more environmentally friendly. So, .
SUBJECT . Human influence on the nature of Africa. Reserves and national parks of Africa.
The purpose of the lesson : establish the main reasons that influenced the change in the nature of Africa and the consequences to which they led; find ways to solve environmental problems; continue the formation of students’ cognitive activity, the ability to independently work with different sources of information individually and in a group, obtain knowledge, work with a map, analyze, draw conclusions;
Equipment: physical and political map of Africa, presentation, atlases, video “Serengeti - a reserve of Africa”, student reports on environmental problems and ways to solve them.
Preparatory stage.
The class is divided into groups in advance and studies material on a specific problem.
In each group, the guys must solve the following problems:
1) Find and study information on this problem.
2) Establish causes and consequences.
3) Talk about ongoing activities in African countries and suggest your own ways out of the current environmental situation.
During the classes
Ι. Organizing time.
The teacher introduces the class to the goals and objectives of the lesson.
Teacher. Today we will talk to you about the problems associated with human intervention in the nature of Africa as a result of his economic activities. We will need to establish the causes of the current environmental problems on the African mainland and find ways to solve them. During the lesson we will listen to prepared presentations from each group on one environmental issue. For each presentation on an issue, you will be required to establish cause-and-effect relationships and display them as a diagram in your workbook.
ΙΙ. Learning new material.
Teacher: The nature of Africa is amazing and diverse, but today it is experiencing, like the nature of other continents, environmental problems of a global nature. Back in the 19th century, Africa was represented as a continent of virgin nature. Especially great damage was caused to the nature of Africa by European colonialists.
1st problem. "African rainforest decline"
Teacher: the children of the first group will speak on this problem.
Researchers : Our group, using various sources of information, studied this problem in detail and came to the conclusion that over the past decades, a lot of forest has been destroyed in Africa. In the course of our work, the main reasons for the reduction in forest area were identified. The reasons are as follows:
1) Clearing of forests for various economic needs of the population, and, above all, for slash-and-burn farming. Each African family annually clears new land for arable land on average from 0.5 hectares to 1 hectare, destroying forests in the process. For this reason, ¾ of the forest area was cleared.
Every year, 3 million hectares of forest are burned for crops. In the West African Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, shifting agriculture has reduced forest cover by a third over the past decade. The situation is not the best in neighboring countries - Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cameroon, Nigeria.
2) Use of wood by the population as fuel.
Wood is used as fuel by peasants throughout Africa, who cannot afford more expensive kerosene and gas, and are forced to cut down more and more trees, devastating the area.
around villages. In the countries of the Sahel, the region separating the Sahara from the savannas of West Africa, more than 14 million tons are burned annually for cooking and heating homes. wood and charcoal. In Ethiopia, 95% of its energy needs are met by forests. Peasant women dragging a bundle of firewood on their backs for 10-15 km for the family hearth is one of the most common sights on African roads.
3 )Increasing timber exportsto developed countries of the world due to commercial agreements between developed Western capitalist countries and developing African ones, which provide for the export of unprocessed wood to Western European countries. Over the past 100 years, since active logging, the country of Congo has almost completely cleared the forests on the Atlantic coast. Valuable tree species that are in great demand on the world market grow here: okume, acaju, sapeli. With modern
intensive exploitation of the area, in which French, Swiss, Algerian, and Libyan firms take part, will last for several decades.
Ecologists : 1) The area of African forests has almost halved in 200 years. This has led to the disappearance or reduction of rare species of animals and plants.
2) We should not forget that tropical forests are the main “factory for the production of oxygen.” About a third of the oxygen contained in the atmosphere is produced here, which means its amount will decrease throughout the planet;
3) Wet equatorial forests cleanse the atmosphere of pollutants and reduce the amount of carbon dioxide. But today, as a result of deforestation, the amount of carbon dioxide increases, which leads to the “greenhouse effect”, which means a warming of the climate throughout the planet, which in turn causes the melting of glaciers and leads to an increase in water levels in the World Ocean.
4) The destruction of vegetation leads to disruption of the seasonal rainy cycle and drying up of rivers.
5) Hylea holds and preserves poor and unstable soils. When forests are cleared, the soil will be completely destroyed, turning into a desert.
Exercise.
Reduction of tropical forest area. Scheme No. 1.
Slash-and-burn agriculture Wood - fuel Export of wood
Extinction and decline of rare species
Animals and plants of the rainforest
Reducing the amount of oxygen
And an increase in carbon dioxide.
"Greenhouse effect", warming of the Earth's climate.
Melting glaciers and rising water levels in the World Ocean.
2nd problem. "Soil deflation"
Teacher : The guys from the second group will tell us about the second problem.
Researchers : our group worked on a problem - soil deflation, i.e. blowing away the fertile soil layer. This phenomenon is often observed in the Sahel zone and in savannas, which are located in the tropical and subequatorial climate zones.
We have established the main causes of soil blowing:
1) Destruction of savannah vegetation for slash-and-burn farming;
2) Intensive grazing in countries with arid climates;
3) The proximity of the desert also speeds up the blowing process, since there are often strong samum winds, reaching speeds of up to 50 km per hour.
Ecologists : having studied this problem, we saw the consequences that resulted from the destruction of the grass cover of savannas as a result of slash-and-burn agriculture, intensive grazing in countries with arid climates - Chad, Mali, Sudan, Niger. This consequence is the ever-increasing soil deflation on the continent.
Exercise. Draw up a diagram of cause-and-effect relationships for this problem.
Soil deflation. Scheme 2.
Slash-and-burn agriculture Intensive grazing
Destruction of vegetation
Soil destruction
Soil deflation
3rd problem. "Desert Offensive"
Teacher: The third group will speak on the third problem.
Researchers : African countries are facing an acute problem of the onset of the desert. Over the course of many centuries, due to poor management, savannas began to give way to deserts. Over the last half century alone, the area of the Sahara has increased by 650 thousand km². It may happen that almost all of Africa turns into a desert. Their area is increasing more and more, and they are getting closer and closer to the equator. We have studied and established the reasons for this attack:
1) Africa is the hottest and driest continent, characterized by a continental and dry climate. There are often droughts here. 44% of the continent's territory is subject to drought, which leads to soil deflation.
2) Deforestation, intensive grazing, and destruction of the grass cover of savannas also increase soil deflation and erosion. All this leads to the formation of shifting sands and an increase in the area of deserts.
You see that all the problems that we have discussed are the causes of the onset of the desert. This suggests that in nature everything is interconnected.
Exercise. Draw up a diagram of cause-and-effect relationships for this problem.
The coming of the desert. Scheme No. 3.
Continental climate Slash-and-burn agriculture Deforestation
Formation of shifting sands
Increase in desert area
4th problem. "Destruction of African Animals"
Teacher: The guys from the fourth group will tell us about this problem.
Researchers: Africa is a land of deserts and savannas, in which both people and animals live according to the laws of nature. The animals of Africa are diverse and amazing. The mainland has a rich and diverse fauna; 1 thousand species of mammals and 1.5 thousand species of birds live here.
Savannas and woodlands occupy more than 40% of the continent, so the bulk of the fauna consists of those animals that live there: rhinoceroses, gazelles, buffalos, elephants, cheetahs, jackals. Deserts occupy vast areas of the continent, but the difference in fauna between the north and south is quite noticeable. The northern deserts are very similar to the deserts of Asia: they are home to large numbers of jerboas, gerbils, jackals and hyenas. Southern deserts, in turn, are characterized by a large number of endemics and turtles. The moist equatorial forests do not boast a variety of fauna, but, nevertheless, you can find them: gorilla, hippopotamus, okapi, monkeys, chimpanzees and crocodiles.
Ecologists: The African fauna, unique and one of the richest faunas on Earth, has been greatly damaged by human activity:
1) Long years of European colonialism;
2) The population satisfies 80% of its need for meat food by hunting animals;
3) Trade in ivory, leather or animal skins plays a large role in the budget of a number of countries.
All this cannot but lead to the impoverishment of the fauna. In the old days, huge herds of grazing animals could be seen everywhere as far as the eye could see. Now the largest herds are concentrated in national parks, mainly in the Serengeti - Tanzania, Tsavo - Kenya. For the sake of sport, elephants were killed for their tusks during hunting, so their number sharply decreased, and the number of rhinoceroses, gorillas and other animals also decreased significantly. Quagga zebras were completely destroyed - bags were made from their skins. At the same time, in a number of African countries, great attention is paid to the protection of fauna, and many species only thanks to this have avoided complete destruction. However, the vast and diverse biological heritage in all subregions of Africa is under threat. Civil wars and armed conflicts sometimes cause irreparable damage to the continent's biodiversity. Thus, in 2002, 289 species of mammals, 207 species of birds, 127 species of fish, 48 species of reptiles and 17 species of amphibians were threatened with extinction.
5th problem. "Construction of the Aswan Dam on the Nile River"
Teacher: The floor is given to the children of the fifth group.
Researchers: The longest river in the world, the Nile, flows through Africa. The Nile Valley is very fertile; here peasants engage in farming all year round. In 1964, on the Nile River, with the assistance of the USSR, the Aswan Dam, a hydroelectric power station, and a reservoir were built. The high dam saved Egypt from the devastating Nile floods, and Egypt was also saved from droughts, which are frequent here. The water from the reservoir was used not only for irrigating fields, but also for fish farming. Every year 35-40 thousand tons are caught here. fish. All villages and industrial enterprises were electrified.
Ecologists : I would like to note that the construction of the Aswan Dam
had not only a positive side, but also negative consequences:
1) The Nile annually carried a fertile layer of silt onto the fields during floods.
After the construction of the dam, silt began to settle in the reservoir, and soil fertility deteriorated.
2) The destruction of the banks in the northern part of the river delta has intensified.
3) Fish migrations of sardines have decreased due to obstacles - dams.
Exercise. Guys, draw up a diagram of cause-and-effect relationships for this problem.
Teacher: guys, today we heard from you the problems that the inhabitants of African countries have faced, but which concern every person on our planet, since they are global. During the lesson, you all made diagrams of cause-and-effect relationships that can be used to judge the consequences of human intervention in the nature of Africa. This means that you can identify ways to improve the current situation on this continent. Guys, suggest your measures to solve environmental problems.
The guys come up with their proposals for solving environmental problems on the African mainland.
Let's listen to the message.
In many African countries, great importance is attached to the protection of wild animals and interesting natural complexes (forests, savannas):
1) Afforestation was carried out (1973 - 1993). A grandiose project was created in Algeria - to grow a green wall of 7 billion trees along the path of the Sahara. The forest protection belt stretches for 1500 km and is 20 km wide. Along the path of the desert, different trees are planted: the date palm, which grows at temperatures from + 50 to - 14º C, which grows on any soil; heat-loving acacia, evergreen hard-leaved Australian eucalyptus.
2) Africans love their nature, treat it with care, and try to preserve its uniqueness and originality. For this purpose, nature reserves and national parks have been created in Africa to preserve and protect the continent’s animals and plants. In Ethiopia - Simen in the mountains, in Tanzania - Serengeti, in Kenya - Tsavo, in South Africa - Kruger, etc.
Nature reserves and national parks on the mainland occupy large areas, their total number is about 400. (Message).
3) In the Republic of Mali since 1986. The Forest Law applies: “Citizens who burn forests will be subject to imprisonment for up to 2 years or a large fine.”
3) In the Republic of Niger, an annual holiday is held - Tree Day, on this day everyone plants trees.
4) The UN adopted the document “Stop the advance of the desert.”
The problem of the onset of the desert remains open today. It is necessary for the government of all African countries to hold a joint conference to consider the reasons for the onset of desert on the continent and take more radical measures to solve it. Only together all African countries can solve this global problem of humanity.
Lesson summary.
Teacher: Guys, we have established that the nature of Africa suffers from the fact that people do not wisely use its wealth and do not always conduct agriculture correctly. But Africa, the continent of the Earth, which is also subject to the greatest number of natural disasters.
Our lesson has come to an end. I hope that today you received a lot of useful information about the current environmental situation in African countries and made the right conclusion - “Nature is our common home” and that everything in nature is interconnected. The problem of nature conservation throughout the world is considered the most important after maintaining peace on Earth. Any natural complex is a fragile ecosystem of the planet. Human intervention must be very deliberate and limited. Let's take care of nature, protect everything that it has given us.
Giving assessments to active children
Homework. § 21, questions 4-8, repeat the nomenclature of Africa.
Thanks for the work.
Additional material.
Reports on reserves and national parks in Africa.
The creation of national parks is the main condition for the conservation of protected areas, where nature and its fauna remain untouched by humans. African national parks, the importance of which can hardly be overestimated, are now visited not only by foreign tourists, but also by Africans themselves, especially schoolchildren and students. National parks preserve nature and serve as natural research laboratories for critical observations.
1. Kruger.
The very first reserve in Africa, founded in 1898 by Transval President Paulus Kruger, located in the north-east of South Africa.Until 1926 bore the name Sabi - Game, then was converted into a national park, and it was given the name of its creator, Paulus Kruger. It has a length from north to south - 345 km, and from west to east - 54 km. Its area (20 thousand km²) The territory of the park is crossed by several relatively large rivers flowing from west to east.
The flora is represented by 1968 plant species, of which 457 are trees and shrubs, 235 are cereals, 27 are ferns, 16 are lianas, 1,213 are herbs and flowers. The national park contains more than 800 species of animals: 147 mammals, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 49 fish, 507 fish. As of 2009, there were 9,000 impala antelopes, 27,000 African buffalos in the national park,9600 – blue wildebeest,5400 – white rhinoceroses, 2500 – spotted hyenas, 300 – eland antelopes (the largest in the world) 200 – cheetahs.
In the territory of the national park, the population of such animals as black and white rhinoceros and giant elephant has recently begun to recover.
2.Serenghetti ( video film “Serengeti - African reserve)
The Serengeti National Park was founded in 1951, it is one of the largest in Africa, is world famous, and is located in East Africa, on the border of Tanzania and Kenya. About 30 species of animals live here, including the “big five”: elephants, rhinoceroses, lions, cheetahs, buffalos.The national park has played an important role in the conservation of elephants; recently their numbers have increased sharply. Some of the elephants are being transported today.
In the Serengeti Park in 2005, the world's largest pack of lions was discovered, or, as scientists call it, a pride of lions, it consists of 41 lions.
The sun-scorched savannahs of the Serengeti remember the “great white hunters”: Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernst Hemingway, who loved to have fun on safari.
Human influence on nature. Back in the 19th century. Africa was presented as a continent of virgin nature. However, even then the nature of Africa was significantly changed by man. The area of forests, which had been uprooted and burned for arable land and pastures for centuries, has decreased. Especially great damage to the nature of Africa was caused by European colonialists. Hunting, carried out for profit, and often for sport, led to the mass extermination of animals.
Many animals were completely destroyed (for example, some species of antelope, zebra), and the number of others (elephants, rhinoceroses, gorillas, etc.) was greatly reduced. Europeans exported expensive wood to their countries. Therefore, in a number of states (Nigeria, etc.) there is a danger of complete disappearance of forests. The territories in place of cleared forests were occupied by plantations of cocoa, oil palm, peanuts, etc. Thus, savannas were formed in place of equatorial and variable-humid forests (Fig. 59). The nature of primary savannas has also changed significantly. There are huge areas of plowed land and pastures here.
Due to poor agricultural practices (burning, overgrazing, and cutting down trees and shrubs), savannas have been giving way to deserts for many centuries. Over the last half century alone, the Sahara has moved significantly south and increased its area by 650 thousand km 2. The loss of agricultural land leads to the death of livestock and crops, and to starvation of people.
To save savannas from the onset of deserts, a wide forest belt in the Sahara, 1,500 km long, is being created, which will shield agricultural areas from the dry winds of the desert. There are several projects for watering the Sahara. Great changes in natural complexes have occurred in connection with the development of mineral resources and the development of industry.
Rice. 59. Boundaries of natural zones in Africa: A - in the past, B - modern. Using the maps, determine how the area of each natural zone in Africa is changing. Which areas were hit the hardest?
Natural disasters. Natural disasters (earthquakes, droughts, floods, hurricanes, etc.) can bring enormous disasters to the population. One of Africa's most devastating natural disasters is recurrent droughts. This especially affects the population of savannas adjacent to the Sahara. As a result of droughts, people, livestock and other living organisms die. The cause of worsening droughts is the cutting down of bushes and trees, as well as excessive grazing.
Some countries suffer disasters from floods, plant diseases, and locust invasions, which can destroy the entire harvest of fields or plantations in a few hours.
Nature reserves and national parks. Currently, humanity increasingly understands the need to protect nature on Earth. For this purpose, nature reserves (territories where natural complexes are preserved in their natural state) and national parks are organized on all continents. Only people conducting research work are allowed in the reserves. National parks, unlike nature reserves, can be visited by tourists who are required to comply with the rules established there. In many African countries, the protection of wild animals and the most interesting natural complexes (forests, savannas, volcanic areas, etc.) is given great importance. Nature reserves and national parks on the mainland occupy large areas. There are especially many of them in Southern and Eastern Africa. A number of them are world famous, for example the Serengeti and Kruger national parks. Thanks to the measures taken, the numbers of many animals have now been restored.
- Why is it important to know the geographical location of the continent? What are the geographic features of Africa?
- Name the researchers of Africa and indicate what the role of each of them was in the study of the continent.
- Why are Africa dominated by plains?
- What are the features of the nature (terrain, climate, rivers, natural areas) of Africa?
- Why is latitudinal zonation clearly visible in Africa? How does it manifest itself?
- Based on the analysis of maps, indicate what relationship exists between climatic regions and natural zones.
- On a map of Africa, find nature reserves and national parks, indicate in which natural areas they are located and what the largest of them are called.
- What activities do you think should be done in Africa to reduce disasters caused by droughts?
- What changes have occurred in the nature of Africa due to human economic activity?
Changes in the nature of the African continent negatively affect the ecosystem of the entire planet. State rulers conduct policies in such a way that environmental issues are not given due attention. Africa's environmental problems are a global disaster.
Environmental threats
World scientific discoveries and developments in the field of environmental and environmental activities are not being implemented in African countries. There are no projects to reduce harmful emissions from industrial production into the environment. Toxic waste is not disposed of in the prescribed manner. The consequences of uncontrolled use of natural resources, overpopulation, unemployment and illiteracy are affecting the environmental situation in Africa.
Clean water shortage
One of Africa's global problems is the lack of drinking water. Because of this, third world countries account for 80% of infectious diseases. However, Africa has so much clean water that it is enough for the population of the entire continent.
The main reserves are in Libya, Algeria and Chad.
The problem is that the water is deep underground. To extract it, the state will need tens of billions of dollars.
The governments of underdeveloped countries do not have that kind of money. There is not enough finance even to import clean water.
Cleaning problem
The continent's 55 countries have virtually no wastewater treatment facilities, with the exception of Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. The flow of tourists forced the leaders of these states to establish a water supply system. In Egypt, the source of fresh water was the Nile River. But the country is not ready to share reserves with its neighbors. In the rest of Africa, 180,000 children die every year from unfiltered water and poor personal hygiene.
Deforestation
An environmental problem not only for Africa, but also for the planet is the destruction of evergreen forests. The tropics are considered the “lungs of the planet” because they produce the bulk of oxygen. Africa contains 17% of the world's forests. Every year, millions of hectares of valuable species are cut down to make furniture, and millions of trees are destroyed for palm oil extraction.
Treeless areas are used for growing fodder crops. But such land quickly loses its fertile layer, and after 2-3 years of use it turns into a desert.
Consequences of deforestation
The decline of Africa's evergreen forests reduces rainfall. Plants slow climate change because they absorb most of the carbon dioxide from the earth's surface. Therefore, their destruction threatens not only the inhabitants of the forests themselves, but also all life on the planet.
In the equatorial belt of Africa it rains most of the year. Trees absorb rainwater and gradually release it to rivers and lakes. As vegetation is cleared, precipitation spills over the surface of the earth, causing floods. Flooding is replaced by drought. This situation leads to famine and mass death of people. If forest destruction is not stopped, more than 1 billion people will die from hunger over the next three decades.
Waste disposal
Every year, Europe sends ships to Africa under the guise of humanitarian aid. In fact, they are filled to the brim with toxic waste. Mostly broken electronic equipment. To recycle it, specialized plants are needed, which simply do not exist in many civilized countries. And sending garbage to Africa is cheaper.
The scale of landfills
Nigeria's largest city, Lagos, has been turned into a dumping ground. Just 25 years ago, garbage was dumped far from the city. But in recent years, the volume of garbage has increased, and the city has grown, and now hospitals, kindergartens, and residential buildings are located directly in the landfill.
The impact of landfills on humans
The population of Lagos is 21 million people. The landfill became a place of work for children aged 12 and older and adults. For 10 hours a day they wander through mountains of garbage in search of non-ferrous metals. Smelting is underway, and the entire city is shrouded in thick toxic smog. The permanent residents of landfills are rats, carriers of dangerous diseases.
Due to weakened immunity from air pollution and frequent outbreaks of infection, millions of people are dying in Africa.
This environmental situation is observed in all major cities of African countries.
Disappearance of flora and fauna
The main reason for the loss of biodiversity in Africa is environmental problems. Uncontrolled mining in prohibited areas pollutes the air. People drain swamps and cut down forests, which leads to soil erosion. Due to the reduction of forest areas, animals and plants are forced to migrate, some simply die.
To protect crops, birds of prey, ground squirrels, and coyotes are deliberately destroyed. The disruption of the food chain has led to many species of plants and animals being on the verge of extinction, and some have been completely destroyed.
Poverty of the population
Environmental problems are a major factor in the poverty of the African population. Desertification of vast areas leads to famine and migration to inhabited parts of the continent. As a result, there is not enough food and clean drinking water for everyone, and clashes occur, sometimes even armed. Africa has large reserves of oil, gas and other minerals. However, 60% of the cultivated area is still cultivated with a hoe. Corruption in all government structures and reluctance to invest money in development has led to poverty and environmental disaster.
Environmental measures
The worsening environmental problems in Africa pose a threat to all humanity. Representatives of the UN and UNESCO, together with the governments of African countries, propose ways to solve them. At the conference in Stockholm, environmental issues were discussed with the participation of representatives from 34 African countries. The result was the creation of departments to combat environmental instability in 25 countries.
Flora protection
In some states, forest reserves are being assessed. They create reserves by restoring forest and grass cover. Pasture areas are sown with grasses. In deserted areas, where improvement of pastures does not produce results, they switch to nomadic cattle breeding. Cultivated areas have been taken under control. Land cultivation technologies are being introduced that do not lead to depletion of the soil composition. Rational irrigation of crops is monitored.
Fauna protection
To stop the extermination of animals, nature reserves are being created on the African continent. Since the 2000s, 4% of Africa has been protected. Industrial mining and forestry activities are not carried out on these lands. National parks preserve historical monuments, protected areas, flora and fauna.
World Heritage
Of the 601 protected areas, 26 belong to the World Heritage of Humanity. This list includes the following objects:
- Serengeti Park;
- Ngorongoro;
- Tassili-Ajer;
- Pelvis;
- Toubkal.
Monuments of the Sahara are also taken under protection. For more than 10 thousand years, the desert area had a humid climate, and the lands were covered with lush grasses. Only rock paintings of the inhabitants of that time have survived to this day.
Measures at the legislative level
Since 1986, laws have been adopted to protect the environment. Conferences are convened annually to discuss pressing environmental problems and propose measures to eliminate them. Large-scale awareness-raising events are being carried out on the importance of environmental conservation. Some countries have a forest law that provides for 2 years imprisonment or a large fine for burning forests.
With the emergence of life on earth, the spread of living beings, and changes in topography, one can observe the influence of man and nature on each other. It is worth noting that in ancient centuries this influence was not so significant, because the surrounding world was a kind of helper, a way of survival for ancient people. With the development of intelligence and civilization, the pressure on the environment gradually increased. And today it has reached such a point that people look at their future with caution.
From the famous Kazakh writer Olzhas Suleimenov There is a poem “Earth, bow to man!” It should be recognized that the earth, having not withstood many years of struggle, has long been at the feet of man.
However, it is unfair to say that there are only negative impacts on nature, and a considerable number of positive ones as well.
Positive influence of man on nature
- To protect and preserve natural resources, for the past century, nature reserves and sanctuaries. By prohibiting all human activity in such areas of the territory, states are able to carry through time the original views and landscapes created by nature. Thus, on the territory of the Caucasus Nature Reserve of the Russian Federation there are Mount Elbrus and Kazbek, on the slopes of which there is snow all the time. And the Valley of Geysers in the Kronotsky Nature Reserve is truly an amazing sight.
- Intensive creation and use of irrigation systems. What are these systems? Irrigation is available a set of measures that allows water to be delivered to dry areas of our planet. The simplest example of irrigation is watering beds in vegetable gardens and dachas. But if we talk about large volumes of land that need watering, today a number of technical structures have been invented that are striking in their architecture.
- Beneficial human activities include invention of powerful cleaning structures for retention of organic and mineral waste. They are widely used in industry, sewerage structures, and production stations.
- Optimal use of agricultural land are considered to be among the important tasks of environmental management today. Rational and efficient use of land includes a number of measures that can prevent soil depletion and contamination; preserve and enhance beneficial qualities and properties.
Negative influence of humanity
- Air pollution toxic substances, the main source of which is industrial enterprises and cars. Due to the release of industrial waste into the atmosphere, such as carbon and nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxides, the living shell of the Earth suffers, including humans themselves. About four million people die every year from air pollution.
- Sometimes trying to help, humanity causes considerable harm. An example of such assistance is soil fertilization. Thus, there is a possibility that due to the use of potassium and phosphorus fertilizers in the soil, the concentration of radioactive substances significantly increases. The accumulation and lack of proper processing of household waste also destroys soil cover. The surface layer of the earth suffers from industrial waste, toxic emissions into the atmosphere, and petroleum products. Such human activity leads to the fact that the soil loses its ability to self-clean itself from harmful microorganisms and becomes a source of many diseases.
- The hydrosphere, like other shells of the Earth, suffers primarily due to release of industrial and agricultural wastewater. Particular attention should be paid to the pollution of the World Ocean during oil production and refining. Satellite photographs show that a third of the water surface is covered with an oil film, which disrupts its interaction with the atmosphere and disrupts the water cycle in nature. The globe is almost 70% covered with water, but according to research, only 1% is suitable for human consumption.
- Poaching, illegal hunting, fishing. By destroying and shooting common or endangered fauna, poachers cause ecological imbalance in individual regions. The restoration of the number of animals occurs much more slowly than their destruction. Large-scale fishing with nets can only be explained by a thirst for profit. The use of fishing rods and electric fishing rods leads to the devastation of water bodies, which is fraught with consequences for the biosphere.
- Negative impacts on flora and fauna include: deforestation. When exposed to direct sunlight, shade-loving plants wither. The herbaceous and shrub layers of the flora are modified due to changes in external conditions, some even disappear altogether. In addition, mass hikes by tourists, trampling and compaction of the soil turn out to be a bad side for the vegetation cover.
Time to take stock
The future of humanity directly depends on the state of nature. Maintaining natural balance is necessary primarily for the full existence of a person. Environmental protection and efficient use of natural resources are the most relevant measures today.
Many countries support environmental policies by developing special laws and authorities to protect the environment. For example, the UN system has created the UNEP program, which unites all countries and is designed to protect nature at the system-wide level. In solving these problems, an important role is played by the education of the population, decent education and training of qualified specialists in the field of ecology.
