Visualizing Environmental Science

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20

Erosion (cm)

Yield (kg/ha)

1300

1200

1400

1500

1600

1700

1800

Williams, J.R. and D.L. Tanaka. “EconomicEvolution of Topsoil Loss in Spring WheatProduction in Northern Great Plains, U.S.”Soil and Tillage Research

, Vol. 37 (1996).

AFP/Getty Images

What is happening in

this picture?

On March 11, 2011, a tsunami breaches the seawall and rushes
into the city of Miyako, Japan, following a strong earthquake in
the region.

Why is Japan more likely than the U.S. East Coast to experience
a tsunami?

What do tsunamis and volcanic eruptions have in common?
Go online to compile a summary of the human and environmental
damage that resulted from the Japan 2011 earthquake.

Key Terms

acid mine drainage 306
conservation tillage 314
contour plowing 314
crop rotation 314
minerals 301
nutrient cycling 312

overburden 304

plate tectonics 298

shelterbelt 316

smelting 305

soil 309

soil erosion 313

soil horizons 311

spoil bank 304

subsurface mining 304

surface mining 304

sustainable soil use 312

Critical and Creative Thinking Questions

1. Why is Mount Everest getting taller? Why is the Pacific Ocean
   shrinking?


2. Outline the process through which rocks are recycled over
   geologic time. How are they connected?


3. How many minerals have you come in contact with today?
   Which were metals; which were nonmetals?


4. What is the difference between surface and subsurface
   mining? open-pit and strip mines? shaft and slope mines?
   When is each most likely to be used?


5. Why is pollution control equipment needed for blast
   furnaces?


6. How does acid mine drainage damage nearby streams and
   groundwater?


7. Describe how Copper Basin, Tennessee, became an
   environmental disaster. Are reclamation efforts making a
   difference there?


8. What are the roles of weathering, organisms, and
   topography in soil formation?


9. What are the different soil horizons in a soil profile? Do soil
   horizons provide any information about a soil’s ability to
   support plant growth? Explain.


10. How does the developed world’s insatiable need for
    electronics and other goods contribute to violent conflicts in
    some developing regions?


11. Why should environmentally sustainable societies protect
    their soil resources? How might they do so?


12. This graph relates spring wheat production (measured in
    kg of wheat per hectare of cultivated land) to soil erosion
    (measured in cm of topsoil lost) in the northern Great Plains.
    How does soil erosion affect wheat yield?


13. Describe two soil conservation methods that assist
    in sustainable food production. As a food consumer,
    where might you shop, what questions might you ask, or
    what sort of information on labels might you look for to
    encourage soil conservation?

Sustainable Citizen Question

✓✓THE PLANNER

Critical and Creative Thinking Questions 319