Ways to reduce anthropogenic impact on the environment. Anthropogenic impacts on biotic communities
In the course of the historical process of interaction between nature and society, there is a continuous increase in the influence of anthropogenic factors on the environment.
In terms of the scale and degree of impact on forest ecosystems, one of the most important places among anthropogenic factors is occupied by final fellings. (The felling of the forest within the allowable cutting area and in compliance with environmental and forestry requirements is one of the necessary conditions development of forest biogeocenoses.)
The nature of the impact of final felling on forest ecosystems largely depends on the applied logging equipment and technology.
In recent years, new heavy multi-operational logging equipment has come to the forest. Its implementation requires strict adherence to the technology of logging operations, otherwise undesirable environmental consequences are possible: the death of undergrowth of economically valuable species, a sharp deterioration in the water-physical properties of soils, an increase in surface runoff, the development of erosion processes, etc. This is confirmed by the data of a field survey conducted by Soyuzgiproleskhoz specialists in some areas of our country. At the same time, there are many facts when the reasonable use of new technology in compliance with technological schemes logging operations, taking into account forestry and environmental requirements, ensured the necessary preservation of undergrowth and created favorable conditions for the restoration of forests with valuable species. In this regard, noteworthy is the experience of working with the new equipment of loggers of the Arkhangelsk region, who, using the developed technology, achieve the preservation of 60% of viable undergrowth.
Mechanized logging significantly changes the microrelief, soil structure, its physiological and other properties. When using fellers (VM-4) or fellers and skidders (VTM-4) in the summer, up to 80-90% of the cutting area is mineralized; in conditions of hilly and mountainous terrain, such impacts on the soil increase surface runoff by a factor of 100, increase soil erosion, and, consequently, reduce its fertility.
Clearcutting can cause especially great harm to forest biogeocenoses and the environment in general in areas with an easily vulnerable ecological balance (mountainous regions, tundra forests, permafrost regions, etc.).
Industrial emissions have a negative impact on vegetation and especially on forest ecosystems. They affect plants directly (through the assimilation apparatus) and indirectly (change the composition and forest-growing properties of the soil). Harmful gases affect the above-ground organs of the tree and impair the vital activity of the microflora of the roots, as a result of which growth is sharply reduced. The predominant gaseous toxicant is sulfur dioxide - a kind of indicator of air pollution. Significant harm is caused by ammonia, carbon monoxide, fluorine, hydrogen fluoride, chlorine, hydrogen sulfide, nitrogen oxides, sulfuric acid vapors, etc.
The degree of damage to plants by pollutants depends on a number of factors, and above all on the type and concentration of toxicants, the duration and time of their exposure, as well as on the state and nature of forest plantations (their composition, age, density, etc.), meteorological and other conditions.
More resistant to the action of toxic compounds are middle-aged, and less resistant - mature and overmature plantations, forest crops. Hardwoods are more resistant to toxicants than conifers. High-density with abundant undergrowth and undisturbed tree structure is more stable than sparse artificial plantations.
The action of high concentrations of toxicants on the stand in a short period leads to irreversible damage and death; long-term exposure to low concentrations causes pathological changes in forest stands, and low concentrations cause a decrease in their vital activity. Forest damage is observed in almost any source of industrial emissions.
More than 200 thousand hectares of forests have been damaged in Australia, where up to 580 thousand tons of SO 2 falls annually with precipitation. In the FRG, 560,000 hectares were affected by harmful industrial emissions, in the GDR - 220, Poland - 379, and Czechoslovakia - 300,000 hectares. The action of gases extends over fairly considerable distances. Thus, in the United States, latent damage to plants was noted at a distance of up to 100 km from the emission source.
The harmful effect of emissions from a large metallurgical plant on the growth and development of forest stands extends to a distance of up to 80 km. Observations of the forest in the area of the chemical plant from 1961 to 1975 showed that, first of all, pine plantations began to dry out. Over the same period, the average radial growth fell by 46% at a distance of 500 m from the source of emissions and by 20% at 1000 m from the source of emissions. In birch and aspen, the foliage was damaged by 30-40%. In the 500-meter zone, the forest completely dried up 5-6 years after the onset of damage, in the 1000-meter zone - after 7 years.
In the affected area from 1970 to 1975, there were 39% of dried trees, 38% of severely weakened trees, and 23% of weakened trees; at a distance of 3 km from the plant, there was no noticeable damage to the forest.
The greatest damage to forests from industrial emissions into the atmosphere is observed in areas of large industrial and fuel and energy complexes. There are also smaller-scale lesions, which also cause considerable harm, reducing the environmental and recreational resources of the region. This applies primarily to sparsely forested areas. To prevent or sharply reduce the damage to forests, it is necessary to implement a set of measures.
The allocation of forest lands for the needs of a particular sector of the national economy or their redistribution according to their purpose, as well as the acceptance of lands into the state forest fund, are one of the forms of influencing the state of forest resources. Relatively large areas are allocated for agricultural land, for industrial and road construction, significant areas are used by mining, energy, construction and other industries. Pipelines for pumping oil, gas, etc. stretch for tens of thousands of kilometers through forests and other lands.
The impact of forest fires on environmental change is great. The manifestation and suppression of the vital activity of a number of components of nature is often associated with the action of fire. In many countries of the world, the formation of natural forests is to some extent associated with the influence of fires, which have a negative impact on many forest life processes. Forest fires cause serious injuries to trees, weaken them, cause the formation of windblows and windbreaks, reduce the water protection and other useful functions of the forest, and promote the reproduction of harmful insects. Influencing all components of the forest, they make serious changes in forest biogeocenoses and ecosystems as a whole. True, in some cases, under the influence of fires, favorable conditions are created for the regeneration of the forest - the germination of seeds, the appearance and formation of self-seeding, especially pine and larch, and sometimes spruce and some other tree species.
On the globe, forest fires annually cover an area of up to 10-15 million hectares or more, and in some years this figure more than doubles. All this puts the problem of combating forest fires in the category of priorities and requires great attention to it from forestry and other bodies. The severity of the problem is increasing due to the rapid development of the national economic development of poorly inhabited forest areas, the creation of territorial production complexes, population growth and migration. This applies primarily to the forests of the West Siberian, Angara-Yenisei, Sayan and Ust-Ilim industrial complexes, as well as to the forests of some other regions.
Serious tasks for the protection of the natural environment arise in connection with the increase in the scale of the use of mineral fertilizers and pesticides.
Despite their role in increasing the productivity of agricultural and other crops, high economic efficiency, it should be noted that if evidence-based recommendations for their use are not followed, negative consequences may also occur. With careless storage of fertilizers or poor incorporation into the soil, cases of poisoning of wild animals and birds are possible. Of course, the chemical compounds used in forestry and especially in agriculture in the fight against pests and diseases, unwanted vegetation, in the care of young plantations, etc., cannot be classified as completely harmless to biogeocenoses. Some of them have a toxic effect on animals, some, as a result of complex transformations, form toxic substances that can accumulate in the body of animals and plants. This obliges to strictly monitor the implementation of the approved rules for the use of pesticides.
The use of chemicals in the care of young forest plantations increases the risk of fire, often reduces the resistance of plantations to forest pests and diseases, and can have a negative impact on plant pollinators. All this should be taken into account when managing the forest with the use of chemicals; special attention should be paid in this case to water protection, recreational and other categories of forests for protective purposes.
Recently, the scale of hydrotechnical measures has been expanding, water consumption is increasing, and settling tanks are being installed in forest areas. Intensive water intake affects the hydrological regime of the territory, and this, in turn, leads to the violation of forest plantations (often they lose their water protection and water regulation functions). Flooding can cause significant negative consequences for forest ecosystems, especially during the construction of a hydroelectric power plant with a system of reservoirs.
The creation of large reservoirs leads to the flooding of vast territories and the formation of shallow waters, especially in flat conditions. The formation of shallow waters and swamps worsens the sanitary and hygienic situation and adversely affects the natural environment.
Livestock grazing causes particular damage to the forest. Systematic and unregulated grazing leads to soil compaction, destruction of herbaceous and shrubby vegetation, damage to undergrowth, thinning and weakening of the forest stand, decrease in current growth, damage to forest plantations by pests and diseases. When undergrowth is destroyed, insectivorous birds leave the forest, since their life and nesting are most often associated with the lower tiers of forest plantations. Grazing causes the greatest danger in mountainous regions, since these territories are most susceptible to erosion processes. All this requires special attention and caution when using forest areas for pastures, as well as for haymaking. An important role in the implementation of measures for a more efficient and rational use of forest areas for these purposes is called upon to play the new rules for haymaking and grazing in the forests of the USSR, approved by the Decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR of April 27, 1983 No.
Serious changes in the biogeocenosis are caused by the recreational use of forests, especially unregulated ones. In places of mass recreation, a strong compaction of the soil is often observed, which leads to a sharp deterioration in its water, air and thermal regimes, and a decrease in biological activity. As a result of excessive trampling of the soil, entire plantations or individual groups of trees can die (they are weakened to such an extent that they become victims of harmful insects and fungal diseases). Most often, the forests of green areas located 10-15 km from the city, in the vicinity of recreation centers and places of mass events, suffer from the recreational press. Some damage is caused to forests by mechanical damage, various kinds of waste, garbage, etc. Coniferous plantations (spruce, pine) are the least resistant to anthropogenic impact, deciduous plantations (birch, linden, oak, etc.) suffer to a lesser extent.
The degree and course of digression are determined by the resistance of the ecosystem to the recreational load. The resistance of the forest to recreation determines the so-called capacity of the natural complex (the maximum number of vacationers that can withstand the biogeocenosis without damage). An important measure aimed at preserving forest ecosystems, increasing their recreational properties is the comprehensive improvement of the territory with exemplary management of the economy here.
Negative factors act, as a rule, not in isolation, but in the form of certain interrelated components. At the same time, the action of anthropogenic factors often enhances the negative impact of natural ones. For example, the impact of toxic emissions from industry and transport is most often combined with an increased recreational load on forest biogeocenoses. In turn, recreation and tourism create conditions for the occurrence of forest fires. The action of all these factors sharply reduces the biological resistance of forest ecosystems to pests and diseases.
When studying the influence of anthropogenic and natural factors on the forest biogeocenosis, it must be taken into account that the individual components of the biogeocenosis are closely related both to each other and to other ecosystems. A quantitative change in one of them inevitably causes a change in all the others, and a significant change in the entire forest biogeocenosis inevitably affects each of its components. So, in the areas of constant action of toxic emissions from industry, the species composition of vegetation and wildlife is gradually changing. Of tree species, conifers are the first to be damaged and die. Due to the premature death of needles and a decrease in the length of shoots, the microclimate in the plantation changes, which affects the change in the species composition of herbaceous vegetation. Grasses begin to develop, contributing to the reproduction of field mice, systematically damaging forest crops.
Certain quantitative and qualitative characteristics of toxic emissions lead to disruption or even complete cessation of fruiting in most tree species, which adversely affects the species composition of birds. There are species of forest pests resistant to the action of toxic emissions. As a result, degraded and biologically unstable forest ecosystems are formed.
The problem of reducing the negative impact of anthropogenic factors on forest ecosystems through a whole system of protective and protective measures is inextricably linked with measures for the protection and rational use of all other components based on the development of an intersectoral model that takes into account the interests of the rational use of all environmental resources in their relationship.
The given brief description of the ecological relationship and interaction of all components of nature shows that the forest, like no other of them, has powerful properties to positively influence the natural environment and regulate its condition. Being an environment-forming factor and actively influencing all the processes of evolution of the biosphere, the forest is also affected by the relationship between all other components of nature unbalanced by anthropogenic impact. This gives grounds to consider the plant world and the natural processes occurring with its participation as a key factor that determines the general direction of the search for integral means of rational nature management.
Environmental schemes and programs should become an important means of identifying, preventing and solving problems in the relationship between man and nature. Such developments will help to solve these problems both in the country as a whole and in its individual territorial units.
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Standards for permissible anthropogenic load on the environment
In order to prevent the negative impact on the environment of economic and other activities for legal and individuals natural resources users, the following standards of permissible environmental impact are established:
Standards for permissible emissions and discharges of substances and microorganisms;
Standards for the generation of production and consumption waste and limits on their disposal;
Standards for permissible physical impacts (amount of heat, levels of noise, vibration, ionizing radiation, electromagnetic field strength and other physical impacts);
Standards for permissible removal of components of the natural environment;
And a number of other regulations.
For exceeding these standards, the subjects are responsible depending on the damage caused to the environment. It is necessary to apply and develop measures to reduce the negative impact of human activities on the state of the environment.
Measures to reduce the negative impact of anthropogenic factors and ensure a favorable state of the environment
To eliminate the negative impact of plant protection chemicals on the environment, an important place is given to the rational use of pesticides in integrated or complex plant protection systems, the basis of which is the full use of environmental factors that cause the death of harmful organisms or limit their vital activity.
The main task of such systems is to keep the number of harmful insects at a level where they do not cause significant harm, using not one method, but a set of measures.
Considering that the chemical method is the leading one, exceptionally great attention is paid to its improvement.
The leading principle of rational chemical control is the full consideration of the ecological situation on agricultural land, accurate knowledge of the criteria for the abundance of harmful species, as well as the abundance beneficial organisms that inhibit the development of pests.
There are four main areas for improving security chemical method plant protection:
Improving the range of pesticides in the direction of reducing their toxicity to humans and beneficial animals, reducing persistence, increasing the selectivity of action.
Use of optimal methods of pesticide application, such as pre-sowing seed treatment, belt and strip treatments, the use of granular preparations.
Optimizing the use of pesticides, taking into account the economic feasibility and the need to use pesticides to suppress populations.
The strictest regulation of the use of pesticides in agriculture and other industries based on a comprehensive study of their sanitary and hygienic characteristics and safety conditions at work. At present, highly toxic and persistent in nature compounds are being replaced by low-toxic and low-resistant ones.
In order to preserve beneficial insects for chemical treatment, it is necessary to use highly selective preparations that are poisonous only for certain harmful objects and are of little danger to natural enemies of pests. An important way to increase the selectivity of the action of broad-spectrum pesticides is to rationalize the methods of their use, taking into account the economic threshold of harmfulness for each pest species in the zonal context. This makes it possible to reduce areas or multiplicities chemical treatments without prejudice to the protected culture. In order to prevent soil contamination with pesticide residues, the application of persistent pesticides to the soil should be limited as much as possible, and where necessary, rapidly degrading preparations should be applied locally, which reduces the pesticide application rate.
A qualitatively new stage in the development of plant protection, which characterizes its transfer to an ecological basis, predetermines a reasonable, technically competent management of the phytosanitary state of agrocenoses. The plant protection strategy at present and in the future is based on high agricultural technology, the maximum use of the natural forces of agrocenoses, increasing the resistance of cultivated crops to harmful organisms, the expanded use of the biological method, and the rational use of chemicals.
Excessive and contrary to the recommendations of the use of pesticides can cause great damage to the environment. The streamlining of their use, the exclusion from the range of the most dangerous compounds leads to a decrease in the pollution of nature, and therefore, a decrease in the intake of people into the body.
The application of any pesticide in each case should be carried out on the basis of approved instructions, recommendations, guidelines and provisions on technology, regulations for use. One of the important requirements is the neutralization and proper disposal of pesticide containers.
In general, it can be said that the introduction of eco-friendly integrated plant protection in practice shows that this method has an advantage over individual methods of plant protection. And when using zero technologies, you simply cannot do without it.
The largest amount of industrial waste is formed by the coal industry of ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy enterprises thermal power plants building materials industry. In Russia, about 10% of the total mass of solid waste is classified as hazardous waste. A huge number of small burials of radioactive waste, sometimes forgotten, are scattered around the world. It is obvious that the problem of radioactive waste over time will be even more acute and relevant.
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Lecture #10
ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACTS ON BIOTIC COMMUNITIES. SPECIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
- Anthropogenic impacts on biotic communities
- Anthropogenic impacts on forests and other plant communities
- Anthropogenic impacts on animal world
- Protection of biotic communities
2. Special types of impact on the biosphere
- ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACTS ON BIOTIC COMMUNITIES
The normal state and functioning of the biosphere, and hence the stability of the natural environment, is impossible without providing a favorable environment for all biotic communities in all their diversity. The loss of biodiversity threatens not only human well-being, but also its very existence.Anthropogenic impacts on the main components of biotic communities will be considered in the following order: flora (forests and other communities), fauna.
1.1. Anthropogenic impacts on forests and other plant communities
The value of the forest in nature and human life
Forests are important component the natural environment. As an ecological system, the forest performs various functions and at the same time is indispensable natural resource(Fig. 1). Russia is rich in forests: more than 1.2 billion hectares, or 75% of the land area, is occupied by forests.
Numerous studies both in our country and abroad have confirmed the exceptional importance of forests in maintaining the ecological balance in the natural environment. According to experts, the importance of the environmental protection function of the forest, i.e. the preservation of the gene pool of flora and fauna, is an order of magnitude higher than their economic importance as a source of raw materials and products.
The impact of forests on the natural environment is extremely diverse. It manifests itself, in particular, in the fact that forests: -
- are the main supplier of oxygen on the planet;
- directly affect the water regime both in the territories occupied by them and in the adjacent territories and regulate the water balance;
- reduce the negative impact of droughts and dry winds, restrain the movement of moving sands;
- softening the climate, contribute to the increase in crop yields;
- absorb and transform part of atmospheric chemical pollution;
— protect soils from water and wind erosion, mudflows, landslides, coastal destruction and other unfavorable geological processes;
- create normal sanitary and hygienic conditions, have a beneficial effect on the human psyche, and are of great recreational importance.
At the same time, forests are a source of timber and many other types of valuable raw materials. More than 30 thousand articles and products are produced from wood, and its consumption is not decreasing, but, on the contrary, increasing. According to specialists' calculations, only in the countries of Western Europe the shortage of wood by 2005 will amount to 220 million m 3 .
Rice. 1. The value of the forest in nature and human life
According to their value, location and functions, all forests are divided into three groups:
the first group is forests that perform protective ecological functions (water protection, field protection, sanitary and hygienic, recreational). These forests are strictly protected, especially forest parks, urban forests, especially valuable forests, national natural parks. In the forests of this group, only maintenance felling and sanitary felling of trees are allowed;
the second group is forests of protective and limited operational significance. They are distributed in areas with a high population density and a developed network of transport routes. The raw material resources of forests of this group are insufficient, therefore, in order to preserve their protective and operational functions, a strict forest management regime is required;
the third group is operational forests. They are distributed in densely forested areas and are the main supplier of timber. Wood harvesting should be carried out without changing natural biotopes and disturbing the natural ecological balance.
Human impact on forests
Human impact on forests and, in general, on the entire plant world can be direct and indirect. Direct impacts include: 1) clear-cutting of forests; 2) forest fires and burning of vegetation; 3) destruction of forests and vegetation during the creation of economic infrastructure (flooding during the creation of reservoirs, destruction near quarries, industrial complexes); 4) the growing pressure of tourism.
Indirect impact is a change in living conditions as a result of anthropogenic pollution of air, water, the use of pesticides and mineral fertilizers. The penetration of alien plant species (introducers) into plant communities is also of certain importance.
In XVII in. on the Russian Plain, the forest area reached 5 million km 2 , by 1970 there were no more than 1.5 million km 2 . Today, forests in Russia are cut down on about 2 million hectares annually. At the same time, the scale of reforestation through planting and sowing forests is constantly decreasing. For the natural restoration of the forest after clear-cutting, many tens of years are required, and to reach the climax phase, hundreds of years.
A similar situation is observed in other countries. In an even more dangerous position are evergreen rain forests - ancient climax ecosystems. This invaluable repository of genetic diversity is disappearing from the face of the Earth at about a tremendous rate. I 7 million hectares per year. Scientists believe that at this rate, tropical rainforests, especially in lowland plains, will completely disappear in a few decades. They are burned to clear land for pastures, cut down intensively as a source of wood fuel, uprooted due to improper management of the farming system, flooded during the construction of hydroelectric power stations, etc.
Forest fires have a detrimental effect on forest ecosystems. They arise in the overwhelming majority of cases through the fault of people, as a result of careless handling of fire. In tropical forest zones, fires are formed as a result of the deliberate burning of forest areas for pastures.and other agricultural purposes.
The condition of forests is adversely affected by acid rain formed as a result of sulfur and nitrogen oxides coming from anthropogenic sources. In recent years, radioactive contamination has become a significant factor in forest degradation.
In addition to forests, the increased negative impact of human activity is also manifested in relation to the rest of the plant community (vascular plants, fungi, algae, lichens, bryophytes, etc.). Most often, the negative human impact on plant communities is manifested when mowing, collecting medicinal plants and berries, grazing livestock and other types of direct use. Many different types of plants die when exposed to pollutants, as well as in the process of land reclamation, construction and agricultural activities.
Ecological consequences of human impact on the plant world
A large-scale anthropogenic impact on biotic communities leads to severe environmental consequences both at the ecosystem-biospheric and at the population-species levels.
In deforested areas, deep ravines, destructive landslides and mudflows occur, photosynthetic phytomass that performs important ecological functions is destroyed, the gas composition of the atmosphere worsens, the hydrological regime of water bodies changes, many plant and animal species disappear, etc.
The reduction of large forests, especially humid tropical ones - these peculiar moisture evaporators, according to many researchers, adversely affects not only the regional, but also the biosphere level. The destruction of tree and shrub vegetation and grass cover on pastures in dry regions leads to their desertification.
Another negative environmental impact of deforestation ischange in the albedo of the earth's surface. Albedo (lat. albedo - whiteness) is a value that characterizes the ability of a surface to reflect the rays incident on it. The albedo of the earth's surface is one of the important factors determining the climate both in the whole world and in its individual regions. It has been established that serious climate changes on the planet can be caused by a change in the albedo of the Earth's surface by only a few percent. At present, with the help of satellite images, a large-scale change in the albedo (as well as in the heat balance) of the entire surface of the Earth has been detected. Scientists believe that this is caused, first of all, by the destruction of forest vegetation and the development of anthropogenic desertification in a significant part of our planet.
The forest fires mentioned above cause great harm to the state of natural forest ecosystems, for a long time, if not forever, slowing down the process of forest restoration in the burnt areas. Forest fires worsen the composition of the forest, reduce the growth of trees, break the connections between roots and soil, increase windbreaks, destroy the food base of wild animals, bird nests. In a strong flame, the soil is burned to such an extent that it completely destroys moisture exchange and the ability to hold nutrients. The area burned to the ground is often quickly populated by various insects, which is not always safe for people due to possible outbreaks of infectious diseases.
In addition to the direct human impacts on biotic communities described above, indirect ones, such as pollution by industrial emissions, are also important.
Various toxicants, and primarily sulfur dioxide, nitrogen and carbon oxides, ozone, heavy metals, have a very negative effect on coniferous and broad-leaved trees, as well as shrubs, field crops and grasses, mosses and lichens, fruit and vegetable crops and flowers. In gaseous form or in the form of acid precipitation, they adversely affect the important assimilation functions of plants, the respiratory organs of animals, sharply disrupt metabolism and lead to various diseases. For example, high doses SO2 or prolonged exposure to its low concentrations lead to a strong inhibition of photosynthesis processes and a decrease in respiration.
Automobile exhaust gases, which contain 60% of all harmful substances in urban air, and among them such toxic ones as carbon oxides, aldehydes, undecomposed fuel hydrocarbons, and lead compounds, have an extremely negative effect on the life of plants. For example, under their influence in oak, linden, elm, the size of chloroplasts decreases, the number and size of leaves decreases, their life expectancy decreases, the size and density of stomata decreases, the total chlorophyll content decreases one and a half to two times.
At the population-species level, the negative human impact on biotic communities is manifested in the loss of biological diversity, in the reduction in numbers and extinction. certain types. In total, 25-30 thousand plant species, or 10% of the world's flora, need protection throughout the world. The proportion of extinct species in all countries is more than 0.5% total number flora species of the world, and in regions such as the Hawaiian Islands, more than 11%.
Reduction in the number of species of vascular plants, to a change in the species composition of ecosystems. This leads to a break in the evolutionarily established food webs and to the destabilization of the ecological system, which manifests itself in its destruction and depletion. Recall that the reduction of areas covered with green vegetation, or its rarefaction is highly undesirable for two reasons: firstly, the global carbon cycle in the biosphere is disturbed and, secondly, the intensity of absorption of solar energy by the biosphere during photosynthesis decreases.
1.2. Anthropogenic impacts on wildlife
The value of the animal world in the biosphere
The animal world is a collection of all species and individuals of wild animals (mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, as well as insects, mollusks and other invertebrates) that inhabit a certain territory or environment and are in a state of natural freedom.
Rice. 2. The value of the animal world in nature and human life
The main ecological function of animals is participationin the biotic cycle of matter and energy. The stability of the ecosystem is provided primarily by animals, as the most mobile element.
It is necessary to realize that the animal world is not only an important component of the natural ecological system and at the same time the most valuable biological resource. It is also very important that all kinds of animals form the genetic fund of the planet, all of them are necessary and useful.
Human impact on animals and the causes of their extinction
In connection with the constant extermination of animals by man, we observe the simplification of both individual ecosystems and the biosphere as a whole.So far, there is no answer to the main question: what is the possible limit of this simplification, which must inevitably be followed by the destruction of the "life support systems" of the biosphere.
The main causes of biodiversity loss, population decline and extinction of animals are as follows:
— violation of the environment;
— excessive extraction, fishing in prohibited areas;
— introduction (acclimatization) of alien species;
— direct destruction in order to protect products;
- accidental (unintentional) destruction;
— environmental pollution.
Habitat disturbance due to deforestation, plowing of steppes and fallow lands, drainage of swamps, flow regulation, creation of reservoirs and other anthropogenic impacts radically changes the conditions for the reproduction of wild animals, their migration routes, which has a very negative impact on their numbers and survival.
For example, in the city of Norilsk, the laying of a gas pipeline without taking into account the migration of deer in the tundra led to the fact that animals began to huddle in front of the pipe into huge herds, and nothing could make them turn off the centuries-old path. As a result, many thousands of animals died.
An important factor causing the decline in the number of animals is overexploitation. For example, stocks of sturgeon in the Caspian and Azov Seas have been undermined to such an extent that, apparently, a ban on their industrial fishing will have to be introduced. The main reason for this is poaching, which everywhere has taken on a scale comparable to fishing.
The third most important reason for the decline in the number and extinction of animal species is the introduction (acclimatization) of alien species. Widely known in our country are examples of the negative impact of the American mink on the local species - the European mink, the Canadian beaver on the European, the muskrat on the muskrat, etc.
Other reasons for the decrease in the number and disappearance of animals are their direct destruction to protect agricultural products and commercial objects (the death of birds of prey, ground squirrels, pinnipeds, coyotes, etc.); accidental (unintentional) destruction (on highways, during military operations, when mowing grass, on power lines, when regulating water flow, etc.); environmental pollution (pesticides, oil and oil products, atmospheric pollutants, lead and other toxicants).
1.3. Protection of biotic communities
Protection flora
To preserve the number and population-species composition of plants, a set of environmental measures is being implemented, which include:
- fight against forest fires;
— protection of plants from pests and diseases;
— field-protective afforestation;
— improving the efficiency of using forest resources;
— protection of individual plant species and plant communities.
Fighting forest fires. For these purposes, airplanes, helicopters, powerful fire trucks, sprayers, all-terrain vehicles, bulldozers, etc. are used. Other protection measures also play an important role in the fight against forest fires, in particular, the creation of fire barriers, breaks, special lanes, etc. The main efforts should be directed to the prevention of fires: explanatory work among the population.
Protective afforestation. Artificially grown forest belts, formed from fast-growing biologically stable species to maintain biological balance, are created along the boundaries of fields and crop rotations, outside and inside gardens, pastures, etc. Forest plantations have a positive effect on the natural environment and contribute to the protection of agricultural fields, pasture grasses , fruit trees, shrubs, vineyards from freezing, the harmful effects of winds, dust storms, droughts and dry winds.
Improving the efficiency of using forest resources. The set of measures for this purpose includes the relocation of logging and timber processing enterprises to densely forested areas, the elimination of overcutting in sparsely forested areas, the reduction of wood losses in rafting and transportation, etc. with the aim of restoring forests to the climax stage, improving their composition, further developing a network of herb nurseries and developing methods for growing forests on special plantations.
Protection of individual plant species and plant communities. Usually, two aspects related to the protection of flora are distinguished: 1) protection of rare and endangered species of flora and 2) protection of the main plant communities. Rare are plant species that have a limited range and low abundance. Dozens of rare plant species have been protected by government regulations. In places where they grow, it is strictly forbidden to collect, graze, hay and other forms of destruction of plants and their communities.
A very important task is to preserve plant species diversity as a gene pool. In the case when all reserves for the conservation of plant species have been exhausted, special storages are created - genetic banks, where the gene pool of species is stored in the form of seeds.
Animal protection
The protection and exploitation of game animals, marine animals and commercial fish must provide for reasonable prey, but not their extermination. In addition to organized fishing and hunting in the hunting grounds, which occupy vast areas in Russia, biotechnical activities are carried out. Their purpose is to preserve and increase the capacity of hunting grounds, as well as to increase the number and enrichment of species of game animals.Acclimatization of animals is also widely used, i.e., their introduction into new habitats in order to enrich ecosystems with new useful species. Along with the acclimatization of wild animals, reacclimatization is practiced, that is, the resettlement of animals in their former habitats, where they previously were, but were exterminated.
One of the mechanisms for regulating the process of using animal and plant resources is the creation of a "Red Book" containing information on rare, endangered or endangered species of plants, animals and other organisms in order to introduce a regime for their special protection and reproduction. There are several versions of the Red Books: international, federal and republican (regional).
According to the degree of threat to existence, all animals and plants are divided into 5 groups: extinct, endangered, declining in numbers, rare, restored species. Every year, changes are made to the International Red Book and new species that need special care.
The next instrument of regulation is the creation of specially protected natural territories, areas of land or water surface, which, due to their environmental and other significance, are completely or partially withdrawn from economic use and for which a special protection regime has been established.
There are the following main categories of these territories:
a) state nature reserves, including biospheric ones - areas of the territory that are completely withdrawn from normal economic use in order to preserve the natural complex in a natural state
b) national parks are relatively large natural areas and water areas where the fulfillment of three main goals is ensured: environmental (maintaining the ecological balance and preserving natural ecosystems), recreational (regulated tourism and recreation for people) and scientific (development and implementation of methods for preserving the natural complex in conditions for mass admission of visitors);
c) natural parks - territories of special ecological and aesthetic value, with a relatively mild protection regime and used mainly for organized recreation of the population;
d) state natural reserves - territories created for a certain period (in some cases permanently) to preserve or restore natural complexes or their components and maintain the ecological balance. In reserves, the density of populations of one or more species of animals or plants, as well as natural landscapes, water bodies, etc., are preserved and restored.
e) natural monuments - unique, non-reproducible natural objects of scientific, ecological, cultural and aesthetic value (caves, small tracts, centuries-old trees, rocks, waterfalls, etc.).
f) dendrological parks and botanical gardens - environmental institutions whose task is to create a collection of trees and shrubs in order to preserve biodiversity and enrich the flora, as well as for scientific, educational, cultural and educational purposes. In dendrological parks and botanical gardens, work is also being carried out on the introduction and acclimatization of plants new to the region.
2. SPECIAL IMPACTS ON THE BIOSPHERE
2.1. Types of impact of special factors on the environment
Among the special types of anthropogenic impact on the biosphere include:
1) pollution of the environment with hazardous waste;
2) noise impact;
3) biological pollution;
4) exposure to electromagnetic fields and radiation and some other types of exposure.
Pollution of the environment by production and consumption waste
One of the most acute environmental problems at the present time is the pollution of the natural environment by production and consumption wastes and, first of all, by hazardous wastes. Concentrated in dumps, tailings, waste heaps, unauthorized dumps, waste is a source of pollution of atmospheric air, ground and surface water, soil and vegetation. All waste is divided into household and industrial (industrial).
Municipal solid waste (MSW) is a collection of solid substances (plastic, paper, glass, leather, etc.) and food waste generated in domestic conditions. Industrial (production) waste (OP) is the remains of raw materials, materials, semi-finished products formed during the production of products or the performance of work and which have lost their original consumer properties in whole or in part. Industrial waste, as well as household waste, due to the lack of landfills, is mainly taken to unauthorized landfills. Only 1/5 part is neutralized and utilized.
The largest amount of industrial waste is formed by the coal industry, ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy enterprises, thermal power plants, and the building materials industry.
Hazardous waste is understood as waste containing in its composition substances that have one of the hazardous properties (toxicity, explosiveness, infectiousness, fire hazard, etc.) and are present in an amount hazardous to human health and the environment.In Russia, about 10% of the total mass of solid waste is classified as hazardous waste. Among them are metal and galvanic sludge, fiberglass waste, asbestos waste and dust, residues from the processing of acid resins, tar and tar, used radio engineering products, etc.The greatest threat to humans and the entire biota is hazardous waste containing chemicals. I and II toxicity class. First of all, these are wastes containing radioactive isotopes, dioxins, pesticides, benzo(a)pyrene and some other substances.
Radioactive waste (RW) is solid, liquid or gaseous products of nuclear energy, military industries, other industries and healthcare systems containing radioactive isotopes in concentrations exceeding the approved standards.
Radioactive elements, such as strontium-90, moving along the food (trophic) chains, cause persistent violations of vital functions, up to the death of cells and the whole organism. Some of the radionuclides can remain deadly toxic for 10–100 million years.
A huge number of small burials of radioactive waste (sometimes forgotten) are scattered around the world. So, only in the USA, several tens of thousands of them have been identified, of which many are active sources of radioactive radiation.
Obviously, the problem of radioactive waste over time will be even more acute and urgent. In the next 10 years, a large number of nuclear power plants will need to be dismantled due to their obsolescence. During their dismantling, it will be necessary to neutralize a huge amount of low-level waste and ensure the disposal of more than 100 thousand tons of high-level waste. The problems associated with the decommissioning of Navy ships with nuclear power plants are also topical.
Dioxin-containing wastes are generated during the combustion of industrial and municipal waste, gasoline with lead additives and as by-products in the chemical, pulp and paper and electrical industries. It has been established that dioxins are also formed during the neutralization of water by chlorination, in places of chlorine production, especially in the production of pesticides.
Dioxins are synthetic organic substances from the class of chlorohydrocarbons. Dioxins 2, 3, 7, 8, - TCDD and dioxin-like compounds (more than 200) are the most toxic substances obtained by man. They have a mutagenic, carcinogenic, embryotoxic effect; suppress the immune system (“dioxin AIDS”) and, if a person receives sufficiently high doses through food or in the form of aerosols, they cause a “wasting syndrome” - gradual exhaustion and death without overt pathological symptoms. The biological effect of dioxins is already manifested in extremely low doses.
For the first time in the world, the dioxin problem arose in the USA in the 1930s and 1940s. In Russia, the production of these substances began near the city of Kuibyshev and in the city of Ufa in the 70s, where herbicide and other dioxin-containing wood preservatives were produced. The first large-scale dioxin pollution of the environment was registered in 1991 in the region of Ufa. The content of dioxins in the waters of the river. Ufa exceeded their maximum permissible concentrations by more than 50 thousand times (Golubchikov, 1994). The cause of water pollution is the inflow of leachate from the Ufa city dump of industrial and household waste, where, according to estimates, more than 40 kg of dioxins were conserved. As a result, the content of dioxins in the blood, adipose tissue and breast milk of many residents of Ufa and Sterlitamak increased 4-10 times compared to the permissible level.
Wastes containing pesticides, benzo(a)pyrene, and other toxicants also pose a serious environmental hazard to humans and biota. In addition, it should be borne in mind that over the past decades, man, having qualitatively changed the chemical situation on the planet, has included completely new, very toxic substances in the circulation, the environmental consequences of which have not yet been studied.
Noise impact
Noise impact is one of the forms of harmful physical impact on the environment. Noise pollution occurs as a result of unacceptable excess of the natural level of sound vibrations. From an ecological point of view, in modern conditions, noise becomes not only unpleasant for hearing, but also leads to serious physiological consequences for humans. Tens of millions of people suffer from noise in the urbanized areas of the developed countries of the world.
Depending on the auditory perception of a person, elastic vibrations in the frequency range from 16 to 20,000 Hz are called sound, less than 16 Hz - infrasound, from 20,000 to 110 9 – ultrasound and over 1 10 9 - hypersonic. A person is able to perceive sound frequencies only in the range of 16-20,000 Hz.
The unit of sound loudness, equal to 0.1 logarithm of the ratio of a given sound strength to the threshold (perceived by the human ear) of its intensity, is called a decibel (dB). The range of audible sounds for humans is from 0 to 170 dB.
Natural natural sounds on the ecological well-being of a person, as a rule, are not reflected. Sound discomfort is created by anthropogenic noise sources that increase human fatigue, reduce his mental capabilities, significantly reduce labor productivity, cause nervous overload, noise stress, etc. High noise levels (> 60 dB) cause numerous complaints, at 90 dB, hearing organs begin to degrade, 110-120 dB is considered a pain threshold, and the level of anthropogenic noise over 130 dB is a destructive limit for the organ of hearing. It is noticed that at a noise level of 180 dB, cracks appear in the metal.
The main sources of anthropogenic noise are transport (road, rail and air) and industrial enterprises. The greatest noise impact on the environment is caused by motor vehicles (80% of the total noise).
Numerous experiments and practice confirm that anthropogenic noise impact adversely affects the human body and reduces its life expectancy, because it is physically impossible to get used to noise. A person may subjectively not notice sounds, but from this, his destructive effect on the organs of hearing not only does not decrease, but is even aggravated.
Adversely affects the nutrition of tissues of internal organs and the mental sphere of a person and sound vibrations with a frequency of less than 16 Hz (infrasounds). So, for example, studies conducted by Danish scientists have shown that infrasounds cause a state similar to seasickness in people, especially at a frequency of less than 12 Hz.
Noise anthropogenic impact is not indifferent to animals. There is evidence in the literature that intense sound exposure leads to a decrease in milk yield, egg production of chickens, loss of orientation in bees and the death of their larvae, premature molting in birds, premature birth in animals, etc. In the USA, it has been established that disordered noise with a power of 100 dB leads to a delay in seed germination and other undesirable effects.
biological pollution
Biological pollution is understood as the introduction into ecosystems as a result of anthropogenic impact of uncharacteristic species of living organisms (bacteria, viruses, etc.), which worsen the conditions for the existence of natural biotic communities or negatively affect human health.
The main sources of biological impact are wastewater from food and leather industries, household and industrial landfills, cemeteries, sewerage networks, irrigation fields, etc. From these sources, various organic compounds and pathogenic microorganisms enter the soil, rocks and groundwater.
The data obtained in recent years allow us to speak about the relevance and versatility of the problem of biosafety. Thus, a new ecological danger is being created in connection with the development of biotechnology and genetic engineering. If sanitary standards are not observed, it is possible for microorganisms and biological substances to enter the environment from the laboratory or plant, which have a very harmful effect on biotic communities, human health and its gene pool.
In addition to genetic engineering aspects, among the topical issues of biosafety that are important for the conservation of biodiversity, there are also:
- transfer of genetic information from domestic forms to wild species -
— genetic exchange between wild species and subspecies, including the risk of genetic contamination of the gene pool of rare and endangered species;
— genetic and ecological consequences of intentional and unintentional introduction of animals and plants.
Exposure to electromagnetic fields and radiation
At the current stage of development of scientific and technological progress, man is making significant changes to the natural magnetic field, giving geophysical factors new directions and sharply increasing the intensity of his influence. The main sources of this impact are electromagnetic fields from power lines (power lines) and electromagnetic fields from radio-television and radar stations.
The negative impact of electromagnetic fields on a person and on certain components of ecosystems is directly proportional to the field power and exposure time. The adverse effect of the electromagnetic field generated by the power transmission line is already manifested at a field strength of 1000 V/m. In humans, the endocrine system, metabolic processes, functions of the brain and spinal cord, etc. are disturbed.
The impact of non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation from radio, television and radar stations on the human environment is associated with the formation of high-frequency energy. Japanese scientists have found that in areas located near powerful emitting television and radio antennas, eye cataract disease is noticeably increased.
In general, it can be noted that non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation of the radio range from radio and television communications, radars and other objects lead to significant violations of the physiological functions of humans and animals.
2.2 Protection of the natural environment from special types of impacts
Protection against production and consumption waste
This section uses the following key concepts:
utilization (from lat. utilis - useful) waste - extraction and economic use of various useful components;
waste disposal- placement on special permanent storage sites.
Detoxification (neutralization) of waste - their release from harmful (toxic) components at specialized installations.
At present, both in terms of the scale of accumulation and the degree of negative impact on the environment, hazardous waste is becoming the environmental problem of the century. Therefore, their collection, removal, detoxification, processing and disposal is one of the main tasks of engineering protection of the natural environment.
The most important problem is the protection of the environment from ordinary, i.e. non-toxic waste. In urbanized areas, waste disposal is already coming to the fore in terms of its importance among environmental problems. Let us consider how the environment is currently being protected from solid household and industrial waste, as well as from radioactive and dioxin-containing waste.
In domestic and world practice, the following methods of processing municipal solid waste (MSW) are most widely used:
— construction of landfills for burial and their partial processing;
— incineration of waste in waste incineration plants;
- composting (with the production of valuable nitrogen fertilizer or biofuel);
— fermentation (obtaining biogas from livestock effluents, etc.);
— preliminary sorting, utilization and recycling of valuable components;
— pyrolysis (high-molecular heating without air access) MSW at a temperature of 1700 °C.
According to a number of experts, at the current stage of development of production, which is generally characterized by the predominance of resource-consuming technologies and a huge accumulation of waste, the most acceptable method should be the construction of landfills for organized and authorized storage of waste and their partial processing (mainly by direct combustion). The term of complete disposal of waste is 50-100 years.
One of the promising methods for processing solid domestic food waste is their composting with aerobic oxidation of organic matter. The resulting compost is used in agriculture, and non-compostable household waste enters special furnaces, where it is thermally decomposed and converted into various valuable products, such as resin.
Another, less common method of processing municipal solid waste (MSW) is burning them in incinerators. Today, a small number of such plants operate in Russia (Moscow-2, Vladivostok, Sochi, Pyatigorsk, Murmansk, etc.). At these plants, the sintering of waste occurs at t = 800–850 °С. The second stage of gas purification is absent, therefore, an increased concentration of dioxins (0.9 µg/kg or more) is noted in the ashes of waste products. From each cubic meter of waste burned, 3 kg of ingredients (dust, soot, gases) are emitted into the atmosphere and 23 kg of ash remains.A number of foreign waste incineration plants implement a more environmentally friendly two-stage purification of exhaust gases; they regulate the purification of more than ten harmful components, including dibenzodioxin and dibenzofurans (four components at domestic plants). The combustion regime provides for the decomposition of waste, including dioxins formed from plastics at a temperature of 900–1000 °C.
At the plants for the pyrolysis of MSW at a temperature of 1700 ° C, all material and energy components are practically utilized, which drastically reduces environmental pollution. However technological process very laborious, in essence, the pyrolysis plant is a blast furnace.
The latest domestic developments include the technology of complex processing of MSW, proposed by the Research Institute of Resource Saving. The technology provides for preliminary mechanized sorting of MSW (extraction of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, separation of part of the ballast components - cullet, household electric batteries, separation of textile components, etc., for their subsequent use or elimination).
The heat treatment of the enriched and dried waste fraction is carried out at temperatures up to 1000 0 C, enriched slags are processed and burned into stones for construction purposes, a two-stage modern gas cleaning is provided.
A new type of waste processing plant operating on this combined technology produces only 15% of waste.
And yet it should be emphasized that both in our country and abroad, the bulk of municipal solid waste (MSW), due to the lack of landfills, is transported to suburban areas and thrown into landfills. The ecological state of landfills is clearly unsatisfactory: waste decomposes on them, often catch fire and poison the air with toxic substances, and rain and melt water, seeping through the rock mass, pollute groundwater.
Toxic solid industrial waste is neutralized at special landfills and facilities. To prevent pollution of soils and groundwater, waste is cured with cement, liquid glass, bitumen, processed with polymer binders, etc.
In the case of especially toxic industrial waste, they are buried at special landfills (Fig. 20.19; according to S. V. Belov et al., 1991) in pits up to 12 m deep in special containers and working reinforced concrete tanks.
A very complex and still unresolved problem is the disposal and disposal of radioactive and dioxin-containing waste. It is generally recognized that ridding mankind of these wastes is one of the most acute environmental problems.
The most developed methods for the disposal of municipal radioactive waste, i.e., waste not related to the activities of nuclear power plants and the military-industrial complex, are cementing, vitrification, bituminization, burning in ceramic chambers and the subsequent transfer of processed products to special storage facilities (“burial sites”). At special plants and disposal sites, radioactive waste is burned to a minimum size in a pressing chamber. The resulting briquettes are placed in plastic barrels, filled with cement mortar and sent to storage (“burial grounds”) dug into the ground at 5-10 m. According to another technology, they are burned, turned into ashes (ash), packed in barrels, cemented and sent in storage.
Vitrification, bituminization, etc. are used to dispose of liquid radioactive waste. During vitrification at a temperature of 1250-1600 ° C, granular glasses are formed, which are also encased in cement and barrels, and then sent to storage facilities. However, according to many experts, the durability of container barrels is doubtful.
Nevertheless, practically all existing methods of disposal and disposal of radioactive waste do not fundamentally solve the problem, and, as A. Ya. Yablokov (1995) notes, there are no acceptable ways to solve them.
An active fight against other very dangerous dioxin-containing wastes is carried out in our country: technologies for water purification from dioxins by sorption on granular active carbons (GAC) have been developed and implemented (at the water supply systems of Ufa and Moscow).The problem of combating dioxins is complicated by the lack of a sufficient amount of modern analytical equipment, a small number of special laboratories, insufficiently trained personnel, the high cost of instruments from foreign companies, etc.
Noise protection
Like all other types of anthropogenic impacts, the problem of environmental pollution by noise has an international character.
Noise protection is a very complex problem and a set of measures is needed to solve it: legislative, technical and technological, urban planning, architectural planning, organizational, etc.
To protect the population from the harmful effects of noise, regulatory and legislative acts regulate its intensity, duration and other parameters.
Technical and technological measuresare reduced to noise protection, which is understood as complex technical measures to reduce noise in production (installation of soundproof casings for machine tools, sound absorption, etc.), in transport (emission silencers, replacement of shoe brakes with disc brakes, noise-absorbing asphalt, etc.).
On the urban levelNoise protection can be achieved by the following measures:
- zoning with the removal of noise sources outside the building;
- organization of a transport network that excludes the passage of noisy highways through residential areas;
— removal of noise sources and the arrangement of protective zones around and along noise sources and the organization of green spaces;
- laying of highways in tunnels, installation of noise-protective embankments and other noise-absorbing obstacles on the paths of noise propagation (screens, excavations, covaliers);
Architectural planningmeasures provide for the creation of noise-protective buildings, i.e. such buildings that provide the premises with a normal acoustic regime using structural, engineering and other measures (window sealing, double doors with a vestibule, wall cladding with sound-absorbing materials, etc.).
A certain contribution to the protection of the environment from noise exposure is made by the prohibition of sound signals of vehicles, air flights over the city, the restriction (or prohibition) of take-offs and landings of aircraft at night, and others.organizational arrangements.
Protection against electromagnetic fields and radiation
The main way to protect the population from the possible harmful effects of electromagnetic fields from power lines (TL) is the creation of security zones with a width of 15 to 30 m, depending on the voltage of the power line. This measure requires the alienation of large areas and their exclusion from use in certain types of economic activity.
The level of intensity of electromagnetic fields is also reduced using the installation of various screens, including from green spaces, the choice of geometric parameters of power lines, grounding cables and other measures. Projects are under development to replace overhead transmission lines with cable and underground laying of high-voltage lines.
To protect the public from non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation generated by radio-television communications and radars, the method of protection by distance is also used. To this end, they arrange a sanitary protection zone, the dimensions of which should provide the maximum permissible level of field strength in populated areas. shortwave radios high power(over 100 kW) are placed away from residential areas, outside the settlement.
Biological Protection
Prevention, timely detection, localization and elimination of biological pollution is achieved by complex measures related to the anti-epidemic protection of the population. The measures include sanitary protection of the territory, the introduction of quarantine, if necessary, constant surveillance of the circulation of viruses, environmental and epidemiological observations, monitoring and control of foci of dangerous viral infections.
From the standpoint of biosafety, it is also essential to preliminarily substantiate and predict possible consequences, in particular, the introduction and acclimatization of plant and animal species new to a given territory.
It is forbidden to use and breed biological objects that are not characteristic of the nature of the corresponding region, as well as those obtained artificially, without developing measures to prevent their uncontrolled reproduction. In organizational terms, urgent measures are required to organize a virological service in Russia.
Preventive measures to prevent the transfer of genetic information from domestic forms to wild species and reduce the risk of genetic contamination of the gene pool of rare and endangered species are also important for ensuring biosecurity and biodiversity conservation.
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National Mining University
abstract
by discipline
"Ecology and Environmental Protection"
ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT
Dnepropetrovsk
2010
P L A N
- Introduction. The urgency of the problem.
Types of anthropogenic impact
Anthropogenic pollution of the atmosphere
Anthropogenic water pollution
Anthropogenic soil pollution
Radiation pollution of the environment
Noise pollution
Biological pollution of the environment
Methods of combating anthropogenic impact on the environment
INTRODUCTION
The current state of civilization is characterized by rapid and adverse changes in the environment, both locally and globally. These changes are unequivocally associated with an increase in anthropogenic pressure on the biosphere. The main manifestation of this pressure is the destruction of natural ecosystems by man in the course of economic activity, the volume of which is proportional to the exponentially growing population of the Earth.
Despite the unambiguous connection between the destruction of natural systems and the degradation of the environment acceptable to humans, there are no significant changes in the strategy of interaction between man and nature. One would expect that the signal about the need for such changes would come from the scientific world community, since it is the latter that has vast factual information about the features of the functioning of living systems and their powerful stabilizing effect on the environment. Examples are the regulation of precipitation on land by forest ecosystems, the regulation of the concentration of atmospheric carbon by ocean ecosystems through a biotic pump, the maintenance of stability by the global biota of the Earth's average global temperature acceptable for life, and so on. However, scientists who are ready to warn mankind about the danger of destruction (development) of natural ecosystems and the need for immediate measures to reduce the anthropogenic impact on such systems make up a very small part of the scientific community.
By destroying natural communities and altering the genetic information of species for their own purposes, man destroys the biotic management of the environment and threatens the Earth's environment to become unstable and rapidly slide into uninhabitable, physically stable states.
At the same time, modern natural science accepts the physical stability of an environment acceptable for life as an axiom. Such a paradigm of the relationship between natural science and wildlife was formed during the golden age of mankind, when anthropogenic destruction of the biosphere was so weak that no global processes of adverse environmental change occurred. This gave the impression that a habitable environment was self-supporting. This impression, dressed in scientific terms, became the basis for the adaptive concept of evolution, according to which organisms do not regulate their environment, but adapt to an arbitrarily changing environment.
At present, the human habitat has lost stability, since most of the natural ecosystems that ensure this stability have been disturbed. The task of determining the power of the stabilizing effect of natural ecosystems has become fundamentally important in order to restore them to a level at which the stability of the global environment will be restored. However, natural science continues to be guided by the old paradigm. It is believed that living organisms throughout the entire period of the existence of life adapted to an arbitrarily changing environment. Therefore, it is assumed that most of them will be able to adapt to modern conditions of anthropogenic development of the biosphere. The accelerating extinction of many species can also be seen as a natural evolutionary process, similar to, for example, the extinction of dinosaurs. That is why there is still no science-based strategy for the conservation of biodiversity, which is currently proposed to be preserved in zoos and reserves that are insignificant in area. How many species to keep and which ones is decided arbitrarily, often on an emotional or economic basis. This lack of conceptual support from natural science greatly undermines conservation movements.
In other words, modern natural science supports and justifies modern humanity in its exploitative policy towards wildlife, despite the evidence that this policy leads to environmental degradation on a global scale. The reason for this state of affairs is the delay in the development of the theoretical principles of natural science in comparison with the rapidly changing situation in the world.
1. Types of anthropogenic impact
Anthropogenic impacts are understood as activities related to the implementation of economic, military, recreational, cultural and other human interests, making physical, chemical, biological and other changes in the natural environment. By their nature, depth and area of distribution, time of action and nature of application, they can be different: targeted and spontaneous, direct and indirect, long-term and short-term, point and area, etc.
Anthropogenic impacts on the biosphere, according to their environmental consequences, are divided into positive and negative (negative). Positive impacts include the reproduction of natural resources, the restoration of groundwater reserves, field-protective afforestation, land reclamation at the site of mineral development, etc.
Negative (negative) impacts on the biosphere include all types of impacts created by man and oppressing nature. Unprecedented in terms of power and diversity, negative anthropogenic impacts began to manifest themselves especially sharply in the second half of the 20th century. Under their influence, the natural biota of ecosystems ceased to serve as a guarantor of the stability of the biosphere, as had been observed previously over billions of years.
The negative (negative) impact is manifested in the most diverse and large-scale actions: the depletion of natural resources, deforestation over large areas, salinization and desertification of lands, reduction in the number and species of animals and plants, etc. The main global factors of environmental destabilization include:
growth in consumption of natural resources with their reduction;
the growth of the world's population with a reduction in habitable territories;
degradation of the main components of the biosphere, a decrease in the ability of nature to self-sustain;
possible climate change and depletion of the Earth's ozone layer;
biodiversity loss;
increasing environmental damage from natural disasters and man-made disasters;
insufficient level of coordination of actions of the world community in the field of solving environmental problems.
Pollution is the main and most widespread type of negative human impact on the biosphere. Most of the most acute environmental situations in the world are somehow related to environmental pollution (Chernobyl, acid rain, hazardous waste, etc.).
Pollution is the entry into the environment of any solid, liquid and gaseous substances, microorganisms or energies (in the form of sounds, noise, radiation) in quantities harmful to human health, animals, plants and ecosystems. According to the objects of pollution, pollution of surface and ground waters, atmospheric air pollution, soil pollution, etc. are distinguished. In recent years, the problems associated with the pollution of near-Earth space have also become topical. Sources of pollution can be natural (dust storms, volcanic activity, mudflows, etc.) and anthropogenic.
Sources of anthropogenic pollution, the most dangerous for populations of any organisms, including the human population itself, are industrial enterprises (chemical, metallurgical, pulp and paper, building materials, etc.), thermal power engineering, transport, agricultural production and other technologies. The following types of pollution are distinguished: chemical, physical and biological.
The types of pollution are also understood as any anthropogenic changes undesirable for ecosystems:
- ingredient (mineral and organic) pollution as a set of substances alien to natural biogeocenoses (for example, domestic wastewater, pesticides, combustion products, etc.);
- parametric pollution - changes in the qualitative parameters of the environment (thermal, noise, radiation, electromagnetic);
- biocenotic pollution causes a violation of the composition and structure of populations (overfishing, intentional introduction and acclimatization of species, etc.);
- stationary-destructive pollution (station - population habitat, destruction - destruction), associated with the violation and transformation of landscapes and ecosystems in the process of nature management (regulation of watercourses, urbanization, deforestation, etc.)
Number of contaminants, i.e. substances that degrade the quality of the environment in the world is huge, and their number is constantly growing with the development of new technological processes. According to scientists, both locally and globally, the following pollutants are “priority”:
sulfur dioxide, which forms sulfuric acid and sulfates, falling on vegetation, soil and water bodies;
some carcinogens, in particular, benzpyrene;
oil and oil products in the seas and oceans;
organochlorine pesticides (in rural areas);
carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides (in cities).
The most dangerous pollutants also include dioxins and furans, radioactive substances and heavy metals.
Dioxins and furans belong to the group of highly toxic ecotoxicants - polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and dibenzofurans. Even in very small doses (106 µg/kg), dioxins and furans have a detrimental effect on the human body, causing carcinogenic, immune, embryotoxic and other diseases.
Radionuclides (radioactive substances) in quantities exceeding the natural level of their content in the environment cause radioactive contamination that is very dangerous for humans and natural ecosystems. Among the radioactive elements, the most toxic for mankind and the entire ecosphere are strontium-90, cesium-137, iodine-131, carbon-14, etc. The main radiation hazard today is radioactive fallout, which has been formed from more than 400 nuclear explosions that have occurred in the world since 1945 to 1996, accidents and leaks in the nuclear fuel cycle, as well as stockpiles of nuclear weapons and radioactive waste.
Every year, an increasing threat to humans and natural biotic communities is posed by environmental pollution with heavy metals, i.e. metals with high atomic weight. Particularly dangerous are mercury, lead, cadmium, arsenic and some others that can accumulate in trophic chains and have a highly toxic effect on the body.
2. Anthropogenic pollution of the atmosphere
Everyone knows that a person can be without air for only about 5 minutes, while the air must have a certain purity, and any deviation from the norm is dangerous to health.
Life on Earth has always been accompanied by natural atmospheric pollution, which is associated with various evaporations, volcanism, degassing of deep melts and solutions.
Anthropogenic pollution of the atmosphere is caused by the burning of all types of natural fuels, the activities of metallurgical and chemical enterprises.
For example, at present, about 20 billion tons of carbon dioxide, 150 million tons of sulfur oxide (36 million tons from natural sources), up to 53 million tons of nitrogen oxide (30 million tons of natural intake) are emitted into the Earth's atmosphere , millions of tons of fluorine compounds, mercury, freons and other toxic and harmful substances.
The main anthropogenic pollutants of the atmosphere are carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, various hydrocarbons, sulfur oxide, nitrogen oxide, heavy metals (lead, zinc, copper, chromium, mercury, etc.), various aerosols, photochemical oxidizers, ozone, methane (from agricultural activities) and etc.
The physiological impact on the human body of the main pollutants (pollutants) is fraught with the most serious consequences. So, sulfur dioxide, combining with moisture, forms sulfuric acid, which destroys the lung tissue of humans and animals.
Dust containing silicon dioxide (Si02) causes a severe lung disease called silicosis. Nitrogen oxides irritate, and in severe cases corrode the mucous membranes of the eyes and lungs, and participate in the formation of poisonous mists. If they are contained in polluted air together with sulfur dioxide, then a synergistic effect occurs, i.e. increased toxicity of the entire gaseous mixture.
The effect of carbon monoxide (carbon monoxide) on the human body is widely known: in acute poisoning, death is possible. Compounds of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide with blood hemoglobin form carboxyhemoglobin, which decomposes 300 times slower than oxyhemoglobin (combination of oxygen with hemoglobin), as a result, blood hemoglobin loses its ability to attach oxygen, which leads to a violation of the respiratory process and a serious condition of the human body: intoxication and respiratory paralysis , i.e. to lethal outcome. Due to the low concentration of CO in the atmospheric air, it does not cause mass poisoning, although it is dangerous for those suffering from cardiovascular diseases.
3. Anthropogenic water pollution
The existence of the biosphere and man has always been based on the use of water. Mankind has constantly sought to increase water consumption, exerting enormous and diverse pressure on the hydrosphere. There are two categories of water use – water users and water consumers. Water users use water for their activities (transport, fisheries). Water users use water for industrial, technological and life support purposes. Currently, the need of the Earth's population in water is 18,700 km3, of which 38% is spent on irrigation, 9% on industry, 3% on domestic needs, 48% on dilution of wastewater and 2% on other needs.
At the current stage of development of the technosphere, when the impact of man on the hydrosphere is increasing in the world, this is expressed in chemical and bacterial pollution of waters.
All water pollutants are divided into groups:
organic substances of agriculture, domestic and industrial wastewater (their oxidation occurs under the influence of oxygen);
pathogens and viruses in poorly treated effluents from cities and livestock farms;
nitrogen and phosphorus from domestic and agricultural effluents, which increases the content of nitrates and nitrites in water bodies;
heavy metals, petroleum products, pesticides, detergents, phenols.
As a result of special burials, radioactive and chemical substances enter the sea waters. So, in the period from 1945 to 1948. almost 300,000 tons of chemical munitions were found in Germany. The Americans found 93,995 tons in their sector, the British - 122,508, the French - 9,100, in the Soviet zone - 70,500. According to the decision of the tripartite commission of the victorious countries, more than half of all poisonous substances were flooded in the waters of the Baltic Sea, which are still buried there since.
Oil pollution occurs due to discharges of oil products into the ocean waters - up to 6 million tons / year, which are accidental during the transportation and production of oil in the seas. Oil enters sea waters with river runoff. As a result, 2–4% of the surface of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans are covered with an oil slick.
Dumping is the dumping of waste into sea waters. Every year, up to 6 billion tons of various industrial wastes are taken out on ships and dumped into ocean waters: sewage sludge, construction waste, old explosives, liquid radioactive and chemical waste.
With municipal and industrial waste (drainage), bacterially contaminated waters are thrown into the waters of the seas, which leads to biological pollution of coastal waters; heavy metals, arsenic, mercury, etc. are emitted with industrial effluents.
Deacidification of coastal waters occurs as a result of "acid" rainfall, which causes acidification of coastal waters and, as a result, leads to the impossibility of reproduction of marine animals and fish. All this reduces the amount of seafood, which in these areas is the main food for the population.
An acute problem of our time is the lack of fresh water. The stock of accessible fresh waters of the world, concentrated in rivers, lakes, underground waters at a depth of up to 1 km, is approximately 3 million km3. Such reserves now and in the future would be enough for the needs of 20-25 billion people, but water is unevenly distributed on Earth and people are already experiencing water shortages. So, in the countries of the "third world", about 9 million people die every year from the consumption of dirty water. Approximately 1 billion people do not have the required amount of water, and there is no mechanism for its distribution in the world.
Water pollution occurs as a result of dumping, pollution (by oil and river runoff), special burial sites, discharge of utility and waste water, deacidification of coastal waters by acid rains.
For human health, the adverse effects of using polluted water are manifested either directly when drinking, or as a result of biological accumulation along long food chains such as: water - plankton - fish - man or water - soil - plants - animals - man, etc. In modern conditions, the danger of such epidemic diseases as cholera, typhoid fever, dysentery, etc., caused by bacterial contamination of water, is increasing.
4. Anthropogenic soil pollution
The upper part of the lithosphere, which directly acts as the mineral basis of the biosphere, is subjected to an ever-increasing anthropogenic impact. A man, according to the brilliant foresight of V.I. Vernadsky, became "the largest geological force", under the influence of which the face of the Earth is changing.
Even today, human impact on the lithosphere is approaching the maximum possible. At the beginning of the 90s. extracted 125 billion tons of coal, 32 billion tons of oil, more than 100 billion tons of other minerals. More than 1,500 million hectares of land have been plowed, 20 million hectares have been swamped and salinized. Erosion has destroyed 2 million hectares in 100 years, the area of ravines is more than 25 million hectares.
Soil is a natural formation consisting of genetically related horizons formed as a result of the transformation of the surface layers of the lithosphere under the influence of water, air and living organisms. The soil is an education that provides the population of the whole world with food.
The surface layers of soils are easily polluted. Large concentrations in the soil of various chemical compounds - toxicants - adversely affect the vital activity of soil organisms and are fraught with serious consequences for humans, flora and fauna. For example, in heavily polluted soils, the causative agents of typhus and paratyphoid can persist for up to a year and a half, while in unpolluted soils - only for two to three days.
Nitrates are salts of nitric acid, and nitrites are salts of nitrous acid. Nitrites readily oxidize to the corresponding nitrates. The concentration of nitrites in the environment is quite low, while nitrates are high. Among the nitrates, the best known are ammonium, sodium, potassium, calcium nitrates, commonly called saltpeters. All saltpeters are widely used as fertilizers. As a result, carcinogenic nitroso compounds are formed in nature, which lead to oncological diseases and mutagenic phenomena.
The main soil pollutants:
1) pesticides (toxic chemicals);
2) mineral fertilizers;
3) waste and production waste;
4) gas and smoke emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere;
5) oil and oil products.
Population growth in the twentieth century. demanded an increase in food production, which caused shifts in agriculture: the "green revolution" took place. Everything is explained by the fact that the limit of the biological productivity of the soil has been reached and a further increase in productivity is possible by using a large amount of mineral fertilizers. Currently, about 50 million tons of mineral fertilizers and about 3 million tons of various pesticides are stored in the soils of the world, which are washed away by surface waters, carried by the wind and, as a result, create geochemical anomalies. As a result, such environmental disturbances as the accumulation of nitrates in food products, animal feed, the destruction of food chains, etc. are observed.
5. Radiation pollution of the environment
Among the special types of anthropogenic impact on the biosphere that can affect human health include:
pollution of the environment with hazardous waste;
noise impact;
biological impact;
exposure to electromagnetic fields and radiation.
And some other kinds of influences.
One of the most acute environmental problems is the pollution of the natural environment by production and consumption wastes and, first of all, by hazardous wastes. Waste is a source of pollution of atmospheric air, ground and surface waters, soils and vegetation. They are divided into household and industrial (industrial) and can be in a solid, liquid and, less often, in a gaseous state.
Hazardous waste is understood as waste containing in its composition substances that have one of the dangerous properties (toxicity, explosiveness, infectiousness, fire hazard, etc.) and are present in an amount dangerous to human health and the environment.
In Russia, about 10% of the total mass of solid waste is classified as hazardous waste.
The greatest threat to humans and the entire biota is posed by hazardous wastes containing radioactive isotopes, dioxins, pesticides, benzapyrene, and some other substances.
Radioactive waste - products of nuclear energy, military industries, other industries and healthcare systems containing radioactive isotopes in concentrations exceeding the approved standards.
Radioactive elements, such as strontium-90, cause persistent impairment of vital functions, up to the death of cells and the whole organism. Some of the radionuclides can retain deadly toxicity for 10-100 million years.
Dioxin-containing wastes are formed during the combustion of industrial and municipal waste, gasoline with lead additives, as by-products in the chemical, pulp and paper and electrical industries, during the neutralization of water by chlorination, and in the production of pesticides.
6. Noise pollution
Noise impact is one of the forms of harmful physical impact on the environment. Noise pollution occurs as a result of unacceptable excess of the natural level of sound vibrations. In modern conditions, in the urbanized areas of the developed countries of the world, noise leads to serious physiological consequences for humans.
Depending on the auditory perception of a person, elastic vibrations in the frequency range from 16 to 20,000 Hz are called sound, less than 16 Hz - infrasound, from 20,000 to 1 * 109 - ultrasound and above 1 * 109 - hypersound. A person is able to perceive sound frequencies only in the range of 16–20,000 Hz. The unit of measurement of loudness (strength) of sound, equal to 0.1 logarithm of the ratio of a given sound strength to its threshold (perceived by the human ear) intensity, is called a decibel (dB). The range of audible sounds for humans is from 0 to 170 dB.
Sound discomfort, as a rule, is created not by natural sounds, but by anthropogenic sources of noise, which increase human fatigue, reduce his mental capabilities and labor productivity, cause nervous overload, noise stress, etc. High noise levels (>60 dB) cause complaints, at 90 dB the hearing organs begin to degrade, 110–120 dB are considered a pain threshold, and noise levels above 130 dB are the destructive limit for the hearing organ. At a noise level of 180 dB, cracks were noticed in the metal.
The main sources of anthropogenic noise are transport (road, rail and air), industrial enterprises and household equipment. The greatest impact on the environment from motor transport is 80% of the total noise. In Moscow, St. Petersburg and other large cities, the noise level from traffic during the day reaches 90–100 dB and even at night in some areas does not fall below 70 dB, with the maximum permissible noise level for night time being 40 dB.
Official data show that in Russia approximately 35 million people (or 30% of the urban population) are exposed to traffic noise that exceeds the regulations. Aircraft noise affects several million people: aircraft noise with a maximum level of 75 dB is recorded at a distance of more than 10 km from the airport. Noise impact is one of the most acute environmental problems of our time: more than half of the population of Western Europe lives in areas with a noise level of 55–70 dB.
A person may subjectively not notice sounds, but from this, his destructive effect on the organs of hearing not only does not decrease, but is even aggravated. Adversely affect the internal organs and the mental sphere of a person, and sound vibrations with a frequency of less than 16 Hz. Infrasounds cause people to experience a state similar to seasickness, especially at a frequency of less than 12 Hz.
7. Biological pollution of the environment
8. Methods of combating anthropogenic impact on the environment
The difference between unfavorable and natural and anthropogenic factors from a practical point of view lies in the possibility of influencing the sources (causes) of such factors themselves. Natural factors usually act independently of the desires of people, and as a rule, it is not possible to exclude their occurrence. However, it is quite realistic to prevent the harmful effects of their local action. For example, it is impossible to prevent the very appearance of flood waters, but it is quite possible, by building a dam, to exclude the flooding of a specific area. It is impossible to change the arid climate, but it is possible, by constructing an irrigation system, to create favorable conditions for agriculture in the area, and so on. It should only be noted that such measures require thoughtfulness and a scientifically based forecast of future changes in the environmental situation. Otherwise, the constructed environmental structure may not give rise to the consequences that the authors of the project expected and bring more harm than good. Anthropogenic factors, on the contrary, can not only be "neutralized", but almost completely eliminated. For example, pollution of a reservoir with wastewater from an industrial enterprise can be prevented not only by building treatment facilities, but also by eliminating the effluents themselves, for example, by transferring an enterprise to a closed system of industrial water supply, in which there will be practically no wastewater discharge at all.
Great prospects are opened up by the organization of industry, when the waste of one enterprise becomes a raw material for another.
At the national (macroeconomic) level, the very structure of the economy has a great influence on the ecological situation. The more manufacturing industries prevail in a country or region, the deeper the processing of raw materials, the less natural resources are consumed, the less waste and, accordingly, the less harm is done to the environment. Depending on the nature of the measures taken, the fight against anthropogenic factors is divided into three parts (directions), shown in the figure.
Direct environmental protection measures include traditional methods of waste management (construction of treatment facilities, filters, organization of landfills, etc.) - They represent the least effective direction due to the fact that they are a fight not with the causes, but with the consequences of environmental pollution. Practice shows that treatment facilities do not always cope with the tasks assigned to them (especially in the context of growing industrial production). They require systematic reconstruction and repairs, for which there is often not enough money. Nevertheless, this direction has not lost its significance due to the simplicity and sophistication of the applied solutions.
