Impacts of the Human Population on Biodiversity - Essay Example

Published: 2021-08-11
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Populations pressures have continued to fragment and above all, reduce the habitat health, availability and diversity. The humans have modified the face the world has to suit their needs. Consequently, this has ended up destroying the food sources and the homes for countless animals and plants or in other words, it has caused habitat alteration and removal (Addison, 2016). For instance, acts of humans of building cities and homes, damming and changing the river courses, irrigating drylands, building roads, draining wetlands, cutting down forests, mining of fossils, introducing both exotic and invasive species and even grazing down prairies have not been healthy endeavors as they affect in a negative way the biodiversity and other species in general.

Additionally, the industrial society forces have threatened the unnatural strains on the existing natural systems and causing a lot of pollution. For instance, the chemicals and the synthetic wastes cause a lot of pollution to air and water (Withgott & Laposata, 2014). Fertilizers that are added to the land, the runoff that is increased due to the widespread increase in the paved surfaces, noise pollution among others has impacted the biodiversity in a negative way as well. This is having in mind that the natural world was not set to handle high concentrations of such things. The consequences of that are negative and this is measured as loss of biodiversity.

Anything that makes the earth more favorable to human beings makes it less biodiverse (Harper & Snowden, 2017). It doesnt have to continue this way. However, with the kind of increased population currently and even in the future, it is hard to imagine it in a better way. The exponential population increase is a total danger to the biodiversity. It is not always good and easy to pin the deterioration of biodiversity to any cause. But one cant ignore the fact how for instance the presence of human beings in the great lakes has facilitated this. The lakes have been overfished by humans. The overharvesting and the over pollution has led to a negative impact as far as suitable fish habitats are concerned not to talk of how other aquatic organisms have been threatened.

The increased human population has led to climate change. Plants and animals have always remained sensitive to climate and temperatures fluctuations. There has been a mass extinction by humans and consequently, resulting in rapid climate change. The climates we are experiencing have a high variability. Majority of scientists have proven this where they are arguing that the activities of human beings are exacerbating the conditions of climate as well as speeding up global warming. This is as a result of the increased greenhouses gases such as carbon dioxide and methane due to the activities of human beings such as burning of fossils and the highly experienced combustion of vehicles that is not complete. Additionally, the humans release of anthropogenic chemicals called the chlorofluorocarbons has not been good at all. The stratospheric ozone layers that are around the earth have ended up degrading. The planet is experiencing fewer shields of the harmful ultraviolet radiation hence a lot of solar radiation reaching the earth.

Such climate change caused by human beings has caused negative impacts on the biodiversity (Qubec Biodiversity, 2017). For instance, the increased ultraviolet radiation has increasingly caused the damage of organisms in the wetlands and even in the coastal environments not to talk about how it has impacted plants in a negative manner. The increased temperatures are impacting vegetation zones which serve as a home for wildlife. The water temperatures are as well rising hence causing an alteration of the ecology of both the freshwater and the wetlands ecosystem. This consequently results in changes in the way the invertebrates are distributed and also leads to loss of Coldwater species.

Discuss how demographic change can negatively impact social and economic systems

Demographic changes are impacting negatively social and economic systems. For instance, the population increase is leading to a decrease in levels of incomes. This reduces the dynamic core of any economy. The high population is demanding for social amenities such as hospitals and schools among others. When a country, for instance, experiences a demographic change between the people aged 20 and 25 years, and in this case an increase in it, it means that such people are in high demand for structures such as schools (Gragnolati, Rofman, Apella, Troiano, & World Bank Group, 2015). the money that could have been used to develop the economy by for instance in building roads to connect various markets that keep the economy of a country growing, is shifted to developing schools to meet the high population rate hence a decline in the economy.

Demographic change especially when there is an increase in population which is the main aspect that is being experienced in many of the global countries, is impacting negatively the social systems. For instance, the patterned networks of relationship that exist between groups, institutions, and individuals are ending up being affected. Families, cities, corporations, communities, and industries as part of social systems are ending up affected as well. This is because the high population is not fitting in a well or cannot be accommodated fully by the available social systems (Gragnolati, Rofman, Apella, Troiano, & World Bank Group, 2015). Therefore, the social systems such as cities are being overused due to high demands of populations. I believe this is one of the reasons as to why our cities are so full as a result of migration from rural to urban areas.

Explain the benefits of biodiversity within an ecosystem

Within an ecosystem, biodiversity, and in this case, a healthy one, offers a lot of benefits to natural services especially when the issue of the ecosystem is concerned. Such benefits include the protection of water resources, soils protection as well as soil formation, storage and the recycling of nutrients, and it also leads to the breakdown of pollution as well as its absorption. Biodiversity contributes to the entire climate stability and in the maintenance of ecosystems (Shah, 2014). Healthy biodiversity leads to the recovery of the unpredictable events.

The richer the biodiversity is, the greater opportunities in an ecosystem. Biodiversity ensures a boost in the productivity of an ecosystem. In this case, therefore, each species regardless of how small it is, could stand important roles to carry out. For instance, a large number of species in terms of plants means great varieties of crops. On the other hand, species that are great leads to natural sustainability as far as all life forms are concerned. Consequently, ecosystems that are healthy can now withstand in a better manner and above all recover from a variety of disasters that they come along (Shah, 2014). It is therefore paramount that each and every person learns and purposes to preserve biodiversity because it has a lot of importance within an ecosystem especially in supporting life.

References

Addison, M. (2016, October 27). How does human population growth affect biodiversity? - Quora. Retrieved from https://www.quora.com/How-does-human-population-growth-affect-biodiversityGragnolati, M., Rofman, R., Apella, I., Troiano, S., & World Bank Group. (2015). As time goes by in Argentina: Economic opportunities and challenges of the demographic transition.

Harper, C., & Snowden, M. (2017). Environment and Society: Human Perspectives on Environmental Issues. Florence: Taylor and Francis.

Qubec Biodiversity. (2017). Impacts on Biodiversity. Retrieved from http://redpath-museum.mcgill.ca/Qbp/3.Conservation/impacts.htmShah, A. (2014, January 19). Why Is Biodiversity Important? Who Cares? Global Issues. Retrieved from http://www.globalissues.org/article/170/why-is-biodiversity-important-who-cares#WhyisBiodiversityImportantWithgott, J., & Laposata, M. (2014). Environment: The science behind the stories

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