Ecosystems at Risk: An Overview

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6G

lobal

Int

erac

tion

s 2:

Sec

ond E

dit

ion

7Eco

syst

ems

at R

isk:

An

Ove

rvie

w

exam

-sty

le q

uest

ion

s

At

the

beg

innin

g of

the

twen

tiet

h c

entu

ry t

her

e w

ere

1.6

bill

ion

peo

ple

on e

arth

and w

hile

pol

luti

on a

nd e

nvir

onm

enta

l deg

radat

ion w

ere

com

mon

, th

e pro

ble

ms

wer

e ge

ner

ally

loc

al.

The

wor

ld s

till

seem

ed v

ast,

and lar

ge a

reas

rem

ained

vir

tual

ly

unto

uch

ed b

y hum

an a

ctiv

ity.

Just

ove

r 100 y

ears

lat

er t

he

wor

ld’s

pop

ula

tion

has

gro

wn t

o m

ore

than

6 b

illio

n a

nd t

he

envi

ronm

enta

l pro

ble

ms

that

hav

e re

sult

ed f

rom

this

rap

id

gro

wth

now

aff

ect

the

whol

e pla

net

. W

hol

e ec

osys

tem

s ar

e at

ris

k;

agri

cult

ura

l an

d u

rban

dev

elop

men

ts h

ave

deg

raded

the

pla

net

an

d a

lter

ed its

atm

ospher

e. A

s hab

itat

s ar

e des

troy

ed, th

e sp

ecie

s of

pla

nts

and a

nim

als

that

dep

end o

n t

hem

bec

ome

exti

nct

. Th

ese

pro

ble

ms

can o

nly

wor

sen a

s th

e w

orld

’s p

opula

tion

gro

ws

to a

n e

stim

ated

10 b

illio

n b

y 2050, an

d t

he

size

of

the

glob

al e

conom

y gro

ws

to a

t le

ast

five

tim

es its

pre

sent

size

. C

an

this

rat

e of

pop

ula

tion

and e

conom

ic g

row

th b

e su

stai

ned

? W

hat

ab

out

the

countr

ies

of t

he

dev

elop

ing

wor

ld w

her

e m

illio

ns

of

peo

ple

sti

ll don

’t h

ave

an a

ccep

table

sta

ndar

d o

f liv

ing?

Do

they

hav

e a

righ

t to

the

sam

e st

andar

d o

f liv

ing

as w

e in

the

dev

elop

ed

wor

ld h

ave?

Can

this

be

achie

ved w

ithou

t fu

rther

env

iron

men

tal

deg

radat

ion?

Thes

e ar

e th

e ques

tion

s th

at m

ust

be

answ

ered

if

we

are

to s

ust

ainab

ly m

anag

e an

d p

rote

ct t

he

glob

al e

nvir

onm

ent,

it

s hab

itat

s an

d b

iolo

gica

l div

ersi

ty.

It s

hou

ld n

ot b

e as

sum

ed t

hat

hum

an im

pac

t on

the

bio

phys

ical

env

iron

men

t is

a r

elat

ivel

y re

cent

even

t. F

or m

any

thou

sands

of y

ears

man

y in

dig

enou

s peo

ple

s beh

aved

in w

ays

that

tra

nsf

orm

ed e

cosy

stem

s an

d led

to

the

exti

nct

ion o

f m

any

spec

ies.

Such

im

pac

ts w

ere,

how

ever

, usu

ally

fol

low

ed b

y lo

ng

per

iods

of e

nvir

onm

enta

l st

abili

ty d

uri

ng

whic

h t

he

bio

phys

ical

en

viro

nm

ent

adju

sted

to

the

hum

an im

pac

t. S

ome

exper

ts

argu

e th

at t

he

eart

h’s

eco

syst

ems

are

in fac

t ‘h

um

an a

rtef

acts

’:

ecos

yste

ms

mod

ifie

d b

y th

ousa

nds

of y

ears

of

hum

an u

se.

Ecos

yste

ms

at

Risk

: An

Ove

rvie

w

unit 1.1

exte

nd

ed

re

spo

nse

s

Anal

yse

the

bio

phys

ical

inte

ract

ions

that

lea

d t

o div

erse

ec

osys

tem

s an

d t

hei

r fu

nct

ionin

g.

Exp

lain

the

fact

ors

that

pla

ce e

cosy

stem

s at

ris

k.

Acc

ount

for

the

vuln

erab

ility

and r

esili

ence

of

ecos

yste

ms.

Com

par

e an

d c

ontr

ast

the

vuln

erab

ility

and r

esili

ence

of

two

ecos

yste

ms

at r

isk.

O

utl

ine

the

nat

ura

l an

d h

um

an-induce

d m

odific

atio

ns

that

ca

use

str

ess

in e

cosy

stem

s.

Exp

lain

why

it is

impor

tant

to m

anag

e an

d p

rote

ct

ecos

yste

ms.

Eva

luat

e th

e tr

adit

ional

and c

onte

mpor

ary

man

agem

ent

stra

tegi

es u

sed t

o pro

tect

eco

syst

ems.

‘Lo

st W

orl

d’:

tre

asur

e tr

ove

of n

ew

spe

cie

s fo

und

in

Ind

on

esi

an N

ew G

uin

ea

Scie

ntis

ts d

on’t

have

to v

entu

re

into

spa

ce to

dis

cove

r ne

w w

orld

s.

In la

te 2

005,

a te

am o

f Ind

ones

ian,

A

ustr

alia

n an

d U

S sc

ient

ists

spe

nt

near

ly a

mon

th in

the

Foja

Mou

ntai

ns

on th

e w

este

rn s

ide

of N

ew G

uine

a (t

he p

art o

f the

isla

nd b

elon

ging

to

Ind

ones

ia) s

urve

ying

the

area

’s

wild

life

and

pla

nts.

Wit

hin

min

utes

of

arr

ivin

g in

the

area

, the

sci

enti

sts

enco

unte

red

a b

izar

re, o

rang

e-fa

ced

ho

neye

ater

bir

d. I

t pro

ved

to b

e a

new

bir

d s

peci

es; t

he fi

rst d

isco

vere

d

in N

ew G

uine

a si

nce

1939

. O

n th

e se

cond

day

the

scie

ntis

ts

mad

e an

othe

r am

azin

g d

isco

very

w

hen

a m

ale

and

fem

ale

Ber

leps

ch’s

si

x-w

ired

bir

d o

f par

adis

e ca

me

into

thei

r ca

mp

to p

erfo

rm a

mat

ing

dan

ce. U

ntil

then

the

hom

elan

d o

f th

is ‘l

ost’

bird

had

bee

n un

know

n. It

w

as th

e fi

rst t

ime

Wes

tern

sci

enti

sts

had

eve

n se

en a

n ad

ult m

ale

of th

is

spec

ies.

Ano

ther

sur

pris

e fo

r th

e sc

ient

ists

w

as th

eir

dis

cove

ry o

f the

gol

den

-m

antl

ed tr

ee k

anga

roo.

The

ani

mal

is

the

rare

st a

rbor

eal (

tree

-dw

ellin

g),

jung

le-d

wel

ling

kang

aroo

in th

e w

orld

. Thi

s w

as th

e fi r

st ti

me

this

m

amm

al w

as fo

und

in In

don

esia

, m

akin

g it

onl

y th

e se

cond

sit

e in

the

wor

ld w

here

the

spec

ies

is k

now

n to

exi

st.

unit

1.1

W

e d

o n

ot i

nh

eri

t th

e e

arth

fro

m o

ur

ance

sto

rs, w

e b

orr

ow it

fro

m o

ur c

hil

dre

n.

Na

tive

Am

eric

an

pro

verb

“ E

arth

pro

vid

es

en

oug

h to

sat

isfy

eve

ry

man

’s n

ee

d, b

ut n

ot e

very

man

’s g

ree

d.

Ma

ha

tma

Ga

nd

hi,

In

dia

n i

nd

epen

den

ce l

ead

er“

““

FIGURE 2.6

New

ly d

iscove

red a

rbore

al, jungle

-dw

elli

ng k

angaro

o.

7Eco

syst

ems

at R

isk:

An

Ove

rvie

w6

Glo

bal

Int

erac

tion

s 2:

Sec

ond E

dit

ion

Sample

page

s

glossary 8G

lobal

Int

erac

tion

s 2:

Sec

ond E

dit

ion

9

Eco

syst

em

s an

d th

eir

fun

ctio

nin

gW

hat

is a

n ec

osys

tem

?E

colo

gy is

the

scie

nce

that

exa

min

es th

e in

tera

ctio

ns b

etw

een

orga

nism

s an

d t

heir

livi

ng (

bio

tic)

and

non

-liv

ing

(ab

ioti

c) e

nvir

onm

ent.

The

key

w

ord

in

this

defi

nit

ion

is i

nter

acti

ons.

Gro

ups

of o

rgan

ism

s an

d t

heir

bi

ophy

sica

l en

viro

nmen

t in

tera

ct a

nd e

xcha

nge

mat

ter

and

ene

rgy.

C

olle

ctiv

ely,

they

form

an

ecol

ogic

al sy

stem

or e

cosy

stem

. Con

sequ

entl

y,

we

refe

r to

eco

syst

ems

as b

eing

dyn

amic

; th

is m

eans

tha

t th

ey a

re

cons

tant

ly c

hang

ing

and

ad

apti

ng.

By

iden

tify

ing

char

acte

rist

ic p

atte

rns

of i

nter

acti

on i

t is

pos

sibl

e to

d

isti

ngui

sh d

iffe

rent

typ

es o

f ec

osys

tem

. A

n ec

osys

tem

is,

the

refo

re,

defi

ned

as

an

id

enti

fi abl

e sy

stem

of

in

terd

epen

den

t re

lati

onsh

ips

betw

een

livin

g or

gani

sms

and

thei

r bi

ophy

sica

l env

iron

men

t.E

cosy

stem

s ar

e sy

stem

s th

roug

h w

hich

in

com

ing

sola

r en

ergy

is

cap

ture

d a

nd c

hann

elle

d t

hrou

gh a

hie

rarc

hy o

f lif

e fo

rms.

Eac

h ec

osys

tem

has

its

ow

n ch

arac

teri

stic

pla

nt a

nd a

nim

al c

omm

un

ity.

Plan

ts,

both

on

land

and

in

the

sea,

con

vert

sun

light

(vi

a a

proc

ess

know

n as

pho

tosy

nthe

sis)

into

sto

rabl

e—an

d e

dib

le—

chem

ical

ene

rgy.

A

nim

als

feed

on

thes

e pl

ants

and

on

othe

r an

imal

s. T

he q

uest

for

foo

d

is th

e ce

ntra

l org

anis

ing

prin

cipl

e w

ithi

n ec

osys

tem

s.A

n im

port

ant

feat

ure

of e

cosy

stem

s is

the

set

of

proc

esse

s by

whi

ch

nu

trie

nts

are

ret

aine

d a

nd r

ecyc

led

. L

ivin

g th

ings

do

not

crea

te n

ew

mat

ter.

Inst

ead

, the

y re

cycl

e nu

trie

nts

obta

ined

from

air

, soi

l, w

ater

and

ot

her

orga

nism

s, u

sing

sol

ar e

nerg

y to

bui

ld a

nd m

aint

ain

them

selv

es.

Vari

atio

ns in

eco

syst

ems

It is

impo

rtan

t to

not

e th

at t

he c

ompo

nent

s of

any

eco

syst

em c

an v

ary

natu

rally

or

as a

res

ult

of h

uman

int

erve

ntio

n. E

ach

vari

atio

n w

ill, i

n

abio

tic

the

non

-liv

ing

com

pon

ents

of

ecos

yste

ms,

su

ch a

s lig

ht,

soi

l, w

ater

and a

ir.aq

uati

c ec

osys

tem

a w

ater

-bas

ed e

cosy

stem

, su

ch

as a

pon

d, la

ke o

r oc

ean.

auto

trop

hic

orga

nism

an o

rgan

ism

that

m

anufa

cture

s it

s ow

n foo

d f

rom

sunlig

ht,

wat

er

and m

iner

als;

als

o kn

own a

s a

pro

duce

r or

ganis

m.

ben

chm

ark

a st

andar

d r

efer

ence

poi

nt

use

d in a

st

udy

for

com

par

ison

.bio

accu

mul

atio

n a

pro

cess

wher

eby

toxi

c ch

emic

als

are

conce

ntr

ated

at

succ

essi

vely

hig

her

tro

phic

le

vels

wit

hin

the

food

chai

n.

bio

div

ersi

ty t

he

vari

ety

of s

pec

ies

and t

he

genet

ic

vari

abili

ty a

mon

g in

div

idual

s w

ithin

eac

h s

pec

ies.

bio

me

the

bio

logi

cal co

mpon

ents

of

an e

cosy

stem

.bio

tic

the

orga

nis

ms

that

mak

e up t

he

livin

g par

ts

of e

cosy

stem

s.ca

rniv

ore

a m

eat-

eati

ng

anim

al.

com

mun

ity

a gro

up o

f in

terd

epen

den

t or

ganis

ms

livin

g to

geth

er in a

com

mon

env

iron

men

t an

d

inte

ract

ing

wit

h o

ne

anot

her

.dec

ompos

er a

n o

rgan

ism

that

fee

ds

by

bre

akin

g dow

n t

he

dea

d o

rgan

ic m

atte

r in

an e

cosy

stem

. Exa

mple

s in

clude

bac

teri

a, m

ush

room

s an

d

fungi

. M

ost

chem

ical

s ar

e re

turn

ed t

o th

e so

il an

d

gro

undw

ater

for

reu

se b

y au

totr

ophic

org

anis

ms.

des

erti

fica

tion

the

pro

cess

of

turn

ing

non

-des

ert

lands

into

des

ert

by

poo

r m

anag

emen

t of

the

ecos

yste

m. It

is

usu

ally

cau

sed b

y a

com

bin

atio

n

of o

verg

razi

ng,

soi

l er

osio

n, pro

longe

d d

rough

t an

d

per

hap

s cl

imat

ic c

han

ge.

dyna

mic

equi

libri

um a

sit

uat

ion in w

hic

h s

tabili

ty is

achie

ved in a

n e

cosy

stem

.ec

olog

y th

e st

udy

of o

rgan

ism

s an

d t

hei

r re

lati

onsh

ip t

o on

e an

other

and t

hei

r su

rrou

ndin

gs.

ecos

phe

re t

he

ecos

yste

m o

f th

e pla

net

; th

e to

talit

y of

all

ecos

yste

ms.

ecos

yste

m t

he

dyn

amic

com

ple

x of

pla

nt,

anim

al

and m

icro

-org

anis

m c

omm

unit

ies

and t

hei

r non

-liv

ing

envi

ronm

ent

as a

funct

ional

unit

.ec

oton

e th

e tr

ansi

tion

zon

e w

her

e on

e ty

pe

of

ecos

yste

m b

lends

into

anot

her

. It

usu

ally

con

tain

s m

any

of t

he

pla

nt

and a

nim

al s

pec

ies

found in

bot

h e

cosy

stem

s an

d s

omet

imes

thos

e not

fou

nd

in e

ither

.ex

iste

nce

valu

e th

e am

ount

of m

oney

that

peo

ple

ar

e pre

par

ed t

o sp

end o

r fo

rgo

in o

rder

to

keep

an

eco

syst

em (

or s

pec

ies

wit

hin

an e

cosy

stem

) in

exi

sten

ce.

food

cha

in a

ser

ies

of o

rgan

ism

s, e

ach e

atin

g or

dec

ompos

ing

the

pre

cedin

g on

e.fo

od w

eb a

net

wor

k of

inte

rcon

nec

ted foo

d c

hai

ns.

gene

tic

engi

neer

ing

the

scie

nce

of

man

ipula

ting

the

DN

A o

f or

ganis

ms

to m

odify

orga

nis

ms.

habit

at t

he

envi

ronm

ent

of a

liv

ing

orga

nis

m.

herb

ivor

e an

org

anis

m t

hat

con

sum

es p

lants

as

its

only

sou

rce

of foo

d.

hete

rotr

ophi

c or

gani

sm a

con

sum

er o

rgan

ism

that

is

unab

le t

o m

ake

its

own foo

d.

inte

rdep

enden

ce t

he

dep

enden

ce o

f or

ganis

ms

wit

hin

a h

abit

at o

n e

ach o

ther

for

the

surv

ival

of

thei

r sp

ecie

s.le

achi

ng t

he

rem

oval

, by

wat

er, of

min

eral

s fr

om t

he

upper

lay

ers

of a

soi

l to

the

low

er lay

ers.

mon

ocul

ture

an e

nvir

onm

ent

wher

e on

e pla

nt

spec

ies

dom

inat

es t

otal

ly.

nutr

ient

s el

emen

ts o

r co

mpou

nds

nee

ded

for

the

surv

ival

, gro

wth

and r

epro

duct

ion o

f a

pla

nt

or

anim

al.

omni

vore

an o

rgan

ism

that

con

sum

es b

oth p

lants

an

d a

nim

als

as a

sou

rce

of foo

d.

opti

on v

alue

the

mon

ey t

hat

peo

ple

are

pre

par

ed

to p

ay in o

rder

to

inte

ract

wit

h a

n e

cosy

stem

or

spec

ies.

per

maf

rost

per

man

entl

y fr

ozen

soi

ls; usu

ally

fou

nd

in t

undra

eco

syst

ems.

phy

topla

nkto

n sm

all, d

rift

ing

pla

nts

, m

ostl

y al

gae,

fo

und in a

quat

ic e

cosy

stem

s.pre

dat

or a

n o

rgan

ism

that

cap

ture

s an

d fee

ds

on

anot

her

spec

ies.

pro

duc

er o

rgan

ism

see

auto

trop

hic

org

anis

m.

pro

duc

tivi

ty t

he

rate

at

whic

h b

iolo

gica

l m

atte

r (b

iom

ass)

is

pro

duce

d b

y an

eco

syst

em o

r par

t of

an

eco

syst

em.

spec

ies

all or

ganis

ms

of t

he

sam

e ki

nd t

hat

are

pot

enti

ally

cap

able

of

bre

edin

g an

d p

roduci

ng

fert

ile o

ffsp

ring.

tech

nosp

here

a s

pher

e of

tec

hnol

ogic

al influen

ce,

crea

ted b

y peo

ple

, w

hic

h o

verw

hel

ms

nat

ura

l ec

osys

tem

s.te

rres

tria

l to

do

wit

h t

he

land.

xero

phy

tic

pla

nts

that

exi

st o

n e

xtre

mel

y sm

all

amou

nts

of

wat

er.

zoop

lank

ton

smal

l, f

loat

ing

her

biv

ores

that

fee

d o

n

phyt

opla

nkt

on.

unit

1.1

Eco

syst

ems

at r

isk:

An

Ove

rvie

w

FIGURE 2.6

FIG

UR

E 1

.1.2

Fungi are

an e

xam

ple

of re

cyc

lers

that

ensure

nutr

ients

are

retu

rned t

o a

n e

cosys

tem

.

s

low Precipitation high

bel

ow fre

ezin

g Te

mper

ature

v

ery

hot

Tem

per

ate

rain

fore

st

Subtr

opic

alra

info

rest

Tropic

alra

info

rest

Monso

on

fore

stTe

mper

ate

bro

ad-lea

ved

and m

ixed

fo

rest

Tem

per

ate

scru

b o

r gra

ssla

nd

Tropic

al s

crub

fore

st o

r gra

ssla

nd

Des

ert

Pola

r

Tundra

Nort

her

n

conifer

ous

fore

sts

Cli

mat

e re

gion

s an

d m

ajor

ter

rest

rial

ec

osys

yste

ms

FIGURE 2.6

FIG

UR

E 1

.1.1

Pre

cip

itation a

nd t

em

pera

ture

inte

ract

to d

ete

rmin

e c

hara

cte

ristics o

f ecosys

tem

s.

This

gra

ph d

em

onst

rate

s how

the v

ariabili

ty o

f th

is r

ela

tionship

results in a

wid

e v

ariety

of ecosys

tem

s.

5000 m

m

ge

ojo

bs

Env

iron

men

tal co

nsul

tant

The

requir

emen

t fo

r ec

ologi

cally

sust

ainab

le

dev

elop

men

ts h

as b

ecom

e m

ore

wid

ely

acce

pte

d.

As

a re

sult

, th

ere

is g

row

ing

dem

and f

or c

onsu

ltan

ts t

o as

sist

dev

elop

ers

and g

over

nm

ents

cre

ate

dev

elop

men

ts t

hat

ar

e en

viro

nm

enta

lly f

rien

dly

. Ty

pic

al a

reas

th

ese

consu

ltan

ts w

ork

in a

re:

ad

dre

ssin

g so

il er

osio

n

reco

rdin

g, m

appin

g an

d p

rese

rvin

g nat

ive

flor

a an

d fau

na

dev

elop

ing

stra

tegi

es t

o dea

l w

ith c

limat

e ch

ange

dea

ling

wit

h d

emogra

phic

(pop

ula

tion

) ch

ange

s.

Sev

eral

univ

ersi

ties

now

off

er d

egre

es

spec

ialis

ing

in e

nvir

onm

enta

l co

nsu

ltan

cy.

The e

art

h w

e a

buse a

nd t

he liv

ing t

hin

gs w

e k

ill w

ill,

in t

he e

nd,

take

their r

eve

nge;

for

in e

xplo

itin

g t

heir

pre

sence w

e a

re d

imin

ishin

g o

ur

futu

re.

Mar

ya M

anne

s

Sample

page

s

12G

lobal

Int

erac

tion

s 2:

Sec

ond E

dit

ion

13Eco

syst

ems

at R

isk:

An

Ove

rvie

w

unit

1.1

Nort

hern

coni

fero

us fore

st

Tem

pera

te b

road

-leav

ed a

ndm

ixed fore

st: open

woodla

nd

Tem

pera

te g

rass

land

: so

me

areas

hav

e w

idely

spac

ed t

rees

Tropic

al s

cru

b fore

st

Mons

oon

fore

st

Tropic

al r

ainf

ore

st

Dese

rt

Pola

r (ic

e c

ap)

Tund

ra

Moun

tain

s

Arc

tic C

ircle

Tropic

of C

ancer

Equa

tor

Tropic

of C

apricorn

N

Tropic

al g

rass

land

(sa

vann

a)

Mediterr

anean

typ

e

vegeta

tion

(tem

pera

te s

cru

b)

01

00

02

00

0 k

m

N

Arc

tic C

ircle

Tropic

of C

ancer

Equa

tor

Tropic

of C

apricorn

Gro

nfjö

rden

Pal

erm

oM

osu

l

In S

alah

Colo

mbo

Sin

gap

ore

Dar

win

Har

bin

Belo

Horizo

nte

Chu

rchi

ll

01

00

02

00

0 k

m

Cold

most

mont

hs

with

a sh

ort

sum

mer

Cold

all

year

Clim

ate s

trong

ly a

ffecte

d b

y al

titu

de

Hot

and r

ainy

all

year

Hot

and r

ainy

most

of th

e y

ear

Hot

and m

ost

ly d

ry a

ll ye

ar;

unre

liable

rai

nfal

l

Hot

all y

ear

, ra

iny

most

mont

hsbut

with

a defin

ite d

ry s

eas

on

War

m t

o m

ild s

umm

er,

cool t

o c

old

win

ter,

wet

all y

ear

War

m t

o m

ild s

umm

er,

cool

to c

old

and

dry

win

ter

Hot

and d

ry a

ll ye

ar; un

relia

ble

rai

nfal

l

War

m t

o m

ild m

ont

hs, w

et

all y

ear

War

m t

o m

ild m

ont

hs, dry

in w

inte

r

Hot

dry

sum

mer,

mild

wet

win

ter

FIGURE 2.6

FIG

UR

E 1

.1.7

Worldw

ide c

limatic p

att

ern

s.

TAB

LE 1

.1.1

C

hara

cter

isti

cs o

f m

ajor

ter

rest

rial

eco

syst

ems

Eco

syst

em

Cha

ract

eris

tics

Pol

ar

Per

man

ent

ice

cap,

in p

lace

s up t

o 5 k

m d

eep

N

o pla

nt

gro

wth

; no

anim

al life

away

fro

m c

oast

Tund

raC

over

ed w

ith ice

and s

now

for

much

of

the

year

; per

man

entl

y fr

ozen

subso

il; 1

–3 m

onth

gro

win

g se

ason

Tr

eele

ss;

shru

bby

or m

at-lik

e ve

geta

tion

M

ost

exte

nsi

ve in N

orth

ern H

emis

pher

e

Nor

ther

n co

nife

rous

Lo

ng

win

ters

wit

h a

thic

k co

ver

of s

now

; su

mm

er s

hor

t but

wit

h lon

g, o

ften

war

m,

day

s;

fore

st (

taig

a)

3–4

mon

th g

row

ing

seas

on

Dom

inat

ed b

y co

nifer

tre

es;

thic

k la

yer

of n

eedle

s on

the

gro

und

O

ccurs

on lar

ge c

onti

nen

tal la

nd m

asse

s

Tem

per

ate

gras

slan

d

Err

atic

rai

nfa

ll; f

ires

occ

ur

Dom

inat

ed b

y gra

sses

and a

nnual

s (p

lants

that

com

ple

te t

hei

r lif

e cy

cle

and s

et s

eed

wit

hin

a s

ingl

e gro

win

g se

ason

)

Oft

en e

xplo

ited

for

gra

zing

shee

p a

nd c

attl

e

Tem

per

ate

bro

ad-l

eave

d

War

m,

mild

gro

win

g se

ason

that

var

ies

wit

h lat

itude;

mod

erat

e pre

cipit

atio

n e

venly

an

d m

ixed

for

est

dis

trib

ute

d t

hro

ugh

out

year

; la

rge

seas

onal

diffe

rence

s an

d c

han

ges

in d

ay len

gth;

rich

top

soil

S

ome

tree

s ev

ergre

en,

som

e dec

iduou

s; w

ell-dev

elop

ed u

nder

stor

ey

Med

iter

rane

an-t

ype

vege

tati

onLo

ng,

hot

, dry

sum

mer

s; m

ild w

inte

rs w

ith r

elia

ble

rai

nfa

ll; g

row

th o

ften

sto

ps

in

sum

mer

dro

ugh

tO

pen

for

est

wit

h s

tunte

d t

ree

gro

wth

; w

oodla

nd a

nd s

hru

bla

nd;

man

y bush

es a

nd

shru

bs;

tou

gh e

verg

reen

lea

ves

that

are

oft

en s

pin

yK

now

n a

s ch

apar

ral in

Nor

th A

mer

ica,

mat

orra

l in

Chile

and m

aquis

in t

he

Med

iter

ranea

n a

rea;

als

o fo

und in p

arts

of

south

ern W

este

rn A

ust

ralia

and p

arts

of

Sou

th A

fric

a

Des

ert

Very

lit

tle

rain

; tr

ue

des

ert

has

les

s th

an 1

00 m

m p

reci

pit

atio

n p

er y

ear

and a

rid

area

s le

ss t

han

250 m

m;

hig

h s

um

mer

day

tim

e te

mper

ature

s (o

ften

>37°C

); lar

ge

tem

per

ature

diffe

rence

bet

wee

n d

ay a

nd n

ight

Wid

ely

scat

tere

d s

hru

bs;

wat

er-c

onse

rvin

g pla

nts

and n

on-d

rough

t-ad

apte

d e

phem

eral

s (g

row

and s

et s

eed q

uic

kly

on r

are

occa

sion

s w

hen

wat

er is

avai

lable

); s

ome

very

dry

, sa

ndy

des

erts

hav

e al

mos

t no

pla

nt

gro

wth

G

ener

ally

loc

ated

bet

wee

n 2

and 3

nor

th a

nd s

outh

of

the

Equat

or

Trop

ical

gra

ssla

nd (

sava

nna)

Lo

w r

ainfa

ll but

seas

onal

hea

vy s

torm

s ca

n o

ccur;

fre

quen

t fire

s; t

hin

soi

l

Gra

sses

wit

h s

catt

ered

clu

mps

of t

rees

, gra

din

g in

to e

ither

open

pla

in o

r w

oodla

nd

Trop

ical

scr

ub f

ores

t

Rai

nfa

ll not

abundan

t; h

igh e

vapor

atio

n

Thor

ny s

hru

bs

and t

rees

G

rades

into

tro

pic

al g

rass

land a

nd s

avan

na

Mon

soon

for

est

In

the

trop

ics

but

wit

h d

isti

nct

wet

and d

ry s

easo

ns

Tree

s le

ss c

lose

ly s

pac

ed t

han

in r

ainfo

rest

; m

any

tree

s sh

ed t

hei

r le

aves

in t

he

dry

se

ason

Trop

ical

rai

nfor

est

War

m a

nd h

um

id;

freq

uen

t ra

in;

aver

age

tem

per

ature

is

25°C

all

year

; no

true

seas

ons;

lit

tle

chan

ge in d

ay len

gth;

gro

wth

thro

ugh

out

the

year

; in

fert

ile c

lay

soil

Clo

sed c

anop

y; lit

tle

under

stor

ey;

larg

e num

ber

of

pla

nt

spec

ies

(gre

at d

iver

sity

) co

mpet

ing

for

avai

lable

lig

ht;

tre

es o

ften

hav

e la

rge

trunks

and b

utt

ress

ed r

oots

; m

any

epip

hyt

es (

pla

nts

that

gro

w o

n o

ther

pla

nts

) an

d v

ines

; lit

tle

leaf

lit

ter

Mou

ntai

nIn

crea

sing

alti

tude

pro

duce

s a

dec

reas

e in

tem

per

ature

, si

mila

r to

the

effe

ct o

f in

crea

sing

lati

tude

Vege

tati

on t

ypes

var

y w

ith a

ltit

ude;

bey

ond a

cer

tain

hei

ght,

tre

es d

o not

gro

w a

nd t

he

vege

tati

on r

esem

ble

s tu

ndra

Sou

rce:

Aust

ralia

n A

cadem

y of

Sci

ence

, En

viro

nmen

tal S

cien

ce

FIGURE 2.6

FIG

UR

E 1

.1.6

The w

orld’s

majo

r te

rrest

rial ecosy

stem

s.

Sample

page

s

54G

lobal

Int

erac

tion

s 2:

Sec

ond E

dit

ion

glossary

55

accr

etio

n th

e gro

wth

of

a dune

due

to t

he

build

up

of s

and.

aeol

ian

tran

spor

t th

e m

ovem

ent

of m

ater

ial, s

uch

as

san

d, by

win

d.

bea

ch a

n a

ccum

ula

tion

of

sedim

ent

acti

ng

as t

he

bou

ndar

y bet

wee

n t

he

land a

nd s

ea.

bea

ch n

ouri

shm

ent

the

arti

fici

al r

eple

nis

hm

ent

of

bea

ch s

and.

ber

m t

he

firs

t co

mpon

ent

of t

he

dune

syst

em.

It lie

s cl

oses

t to

the

wat

er’s

edge

and is

crea

ted

by

wav

es p

iling

up s

and. It

is

som

etim

es r

efer

red

to a

s an

inci

pie

nt

dune.

blo

wou

t th

e m

ovem

ent

of s

and inla

nd, of

ten

resu

ltin

g fr

om a

dis

turb

ance

to

the

dune

vege

tati

on.

coas

tal

dun

es e

xpos

ed s

hor

elin

e sy

stem

s of

on

e or

mor

e sa

nd r

idge

s der

ived

fro

m m

ater

ial

tran

spor

ted b

y w

ind a

nd w

aves

.cu

rren

t th

e flow

or

mov

emen

t of

a lar

ge b

ody

of

wat

er in a

n o

cean

. Th

e m

ovem

ent

is c

ause

d b

y pre

vaili

ng

win

ds,

the

eart

h’s

rot

atio

n a

nd t

he

dis

trib

uti

on o

f th

e co

nti

nen

tal la

nd m

asse

s.D

une

Car

e a

com

munit

y bas

ed a

ctio

n g

roup t

hat

ai

ms

to p

rese

rve,

pro

tect

and r

ehab

ilita

te c

oast

al

dune

ecos

yste

ms.

fore

dun

e th

e co

asta

l dune

or lin

e of

dunes

that

is

found b

ehin

d t

he

ber

m. Fo

redunes

are

subje

ct

to e

rosi

on a

nd t

hei

r fo

rm a

nd c

ompos

itio

n a

re

const

antl

y ch

angi

ng.

Als

o kn

own a

s a

fron

tal dune.

long

shor

e dri

ft t

he

mov

emen

t of

sed

imen

t by

curr

ents

runnin

g par

alle

l to

the

shor

e.

mig

rati

ng d

une

a dune

that

is

crea

ted w

hen

a

blo

wou

t is

ext

ended

by

conti

nued

des

truct

ion o

f th

e dune

syst

em. Th

ey m

ove

inla

nd, co

veri

ng

the

landsc

ape

wit

h s

and.

par

abol

ic d

une

a dune

crea

ted b

y blo

wou

ts. Th

ese

are

dunes

that

tak

e on

a ‘U

’ sh

ape

as t

hey

mov

e bac

k th

rough

the

dune

syst

em.

par

alle

l dun

es t

he

lines

of

dunes

that

lie

beh

ind t

he

fore

dune.

They

for

m in lin

es t

hat

run p

aral

lel to

the

bea

ch. A

lso

know

n a

s tr

ansv

erse

dunes

.pre

vail

ing

win

d t

he

mos

t co

mm

on d

irec

tion

fro

m

whic

h t

he

win

d b

low

s in

a g

iven

are

a.sa

ltat

ion

the

tran

spor

tati

on o

f par

ticl

es in a

cu

rren

t of

win

d (

or w

ater

) by

a se

ries

of

bou

nci

ng

mov

emen

ts.

sand

gra

ins

of w

eath

ered

roc

k, s

omet

imes

mix

ed

wit

h c

rush

ed s

hel

l.se

res

each

sta

ge in p

lant

succ

essi

on a

s a

pla

nt

com

munit

y dev

elop

s at

a p

arti

cula

r si

te.

susp

ensi

on p

arti

cles

of

sand c

arri

ed a

long

by

the

win

d, of

ten w

ell ab

ove

the

gro

und.

swal

e a

trou

gh o

r dep

ress

ion t

hat

dev

elop

s bet

wee

n

two

adja

cent

dunes

.w

asho

ut w

ater

was

hin

g ov

er t

he

dune

syst

em f

rom

in

land lak

es a

nd w

ater

cou

rses

. w

ave

a m

ovem

ent

of e

ner

gy

thro

ugh

wat

er c

ause

d

by

the

fric

tion

al d

rag

of w

ind b

low

ing

acro

ss t

he

surf

ace

of a

bod

y of

wat

er. Th

e dev

elop

men

t of

the

wav

e in

volv

es t

he

tran

sfer

of

ener

gy

from

the

win

d

to t

he

wat

er’s

surf

ace.

Wh

at a

re c

oas

tal d

une

s?C

oast

al d

un

es a

re l

arge

acc

umul

atio

ns o

f sa

nd

loc

ated

im

med

iate

ly

behi

nd th

e ac

tive

bea

ch z

one.

The

y ar

e fo

rmed

whe

n sa

nd is

dep

osit

ed

onto

the

shor

e by

wav

e ac

tion

, dri

es o

ut a

nd is

blo

wn

to th

e ba

ck o

f the

b

each

. Thi

s pr

oces

s is

ref

erre

d to

as

accr

etio

n.

On

coas

ts w

here

the

re i

s re

lati

vely

lit

tle

wav

e ac

tion

and

a l

arge

ti

dal

ran

ge,

exte

nsiv

e ar

eas

of t

idal

fl a

ts a

re e

xpos

ed a

t lo

w t

ide.

As

the

tid

e re

trea

ts, t

he s

and

dri

es o

ut a

nd i

s ex

pose

d t

o th

e w

ind

. Ove

r ti

me,

pre

vail

ing

win

ds

shap

e th

e sa

nd i

nto

a sy

stem

of

dun

es.

The

d

une

syst

ems

foun

d a

long

the

Nor

th S

ea c

oast

s of

Den

mar

k, B

elgi

um,

Ger

man

y an

d th

e N

ethe

rlan

ds

wer

e fo

rmed

und

er s

uch

cond

itio

ns.

On

coas

ts w

here

the

tid

al r

ange

is r

elat

ivel

y sm

all,

sand

is d

eliv

ered

to

the

bea

ch b

y w

ave

acti

on. T

he d

unes

for

med

und

er s

uch

cond

itio

ns

rely

mor

e he

avily

on

a co

mbi

nati

on o

f w

ave

and

win

d a

ctio

n. D

une

syst

ems

form

ed u

nder

suc

h co

ndit

ions

are

fou

nd a

long

the

sou

th-e

ast

and

wes

t co

asts

of

Aus

tral

ia, t

he w

est

coas

t of

Afr

ica

and

par

ts o

f th

e ea

st a

nd w

est c

oast

s of

Nor

th A

mer

ica.

In s

ome

part

s of

the

wor

ld,

sand

has

bee

n ac

cum

ulat

ing

sinc

e th

e Pl

eist

ocen

e pe

riod

. T

his

is t

he g

eolo

gica

l pe

riod

dat

ing

from

abo

ut

unit

1.2

Coa

stal

Dun

es

2 m

illio

n ye

ars

ago

to th

e en

d o

f the

last

Ice

Age

, abo

ut 1

0 00

0 ye

ars

ago.

T

hese

anc

ient

san

d d

epos

its

have

, ove

r ti

me,

dev

elop

ed in

to e

norm

ous

dun

efi e

lds

that

hav

e si

gnifi

cant

ly a

lter

ed th

e to

pogr

aphy

of t

he la

nd.

Mas

sive

dun

e fi e

lds,

wit

h d

unes

str

etch

ing

back

man

y ki

lom

etre

s fr

om t

he b

each

, of

ten

dev

elop

in

area

s w

here

ari

d l

and

s ar

e fo

und

ad

jace

nt t

o th

e co

ast.

Des

ert

dun

es,

whi

ch a

re f

orm

ed b

y th

e w

ind

sh

ifti

ng d

ry s

and

s, s

omet

imes

mer

ge w

ith

the

coas

tal d

unes

form

ed b

y th

e la

ndw

ard

mov

emen

t of

bea

ch s

and

s. S

uch

dun

e fi

eld

s ar

e fo

und

al

ong

the

coas

ts b

ord

erin

g th

e Sa

hara

Des

ert i

n N

orth

Afr

ica

and

alo

ng

Wes

tern

Aus

tral

ia’s

nor

ther

n co

astl

ine.

The

se d

unes

can

gro

w t

o va

st

heig

hts

and

can

be

seve

ral k

ilom

etre

s in

leng

th. (

See

fi gu

re 1

.2.1

.)

FIGURE 2.6

FIG

UR

E 1

.2.1

Massiv

e d

une fi e

lds h

ave

deve

loped a

long t

he a

rid

coast

of nort

hern

Weste

rn A

ustr

alia

.

Spat

ial d

istr

ibut

ion

and

dim

ensi

ons

of c

oast

al d

une

ecos

yste

ms

Coa

stal

dun

es a

re fo

und

on

all t

he w

orld

’s c

onti

nent

al la

nd m

asse

s, w

ith

the

exce

ptio

n of

Ant

arct

ica.

The

y fo

rm w

here

ver

ther

e is

san

d a

vaila

ble

for

thei

r co

nstr

ucti

on.

Sand

—gr

ains

of

wea

ther

ed r

ock—

can

be c

lass

ifi ed

as

very

coa

rse

(wit

h a

dia

met

er o

f 1–

2 m

m),

coar

se (

0.6–

1 m

m),

med

ium

(0.

2–0.

6 m

m)

and

ver

y fi n

e (0

.06–

2 m

m).

Win

dbl

own

des

ert s

and

is u

sual

ly fi

ner

than

be

ach

sand

. Bea

ches

gen

eral

ly o

btai

n th

eir

sand

fro

m r

iver

s fl

owin

g to

th

e se

a an

d fr

om th

e w

eari

ng a

way

of c

liffs

.In

som

e co

asta

l ar

eas

othe

r fo

rms

of c

oast

al s

edim

ents

dom

inat

e.

In t

he s

outh

-eas

t of

Eng

land

, for

exa

mpl

e, t

he p

rim

ary

sed

imen

t ty

pe

is s

hing

le.

The

se a

re r

ound

ed,

wat

erw

orn

ston

es,

whi

ch h

ave

been

er

oded

from

the

surr

ound

ing

clif

fs. I

n su

ch c

ircu

mst

ance

s d

unes

do

not

have

the

opp

ortu

nity

to

dev

elop

. T

he s

ourc

e of

coa

stal

sed

imen

ts i

s,

ther

efor

e, v

ery

impo

rtan

t in

det

erm

inin

g w

heth

er s

and

is a

vaila

ble

for

the

cons

truc

tion

of c

oast

al s

and

dun

es.

The

oth

er s

igni

fi can

t fa

ctor

is

win

d. I

t is

the

sin

gle

mos

t im

port

ant

fact

or in

det

erm

inin

g th

e sh

ape

and

ext

ent

of c

oast

al d

unes

. Dun

es a

re

mos

t lik

ely

to d

evel

op in

coa

stal

reg

ions

that

exp

erie

nce

stro

ng o

nsho

re

prev

ailin

g w

ind

s. F

or t

his

reas

on t

he m

ost

exte

nsiv

e d

une

ecos

yste

ms

Of

all

the coast

al

ecosys

tem

s,

sand dunes

have

suff

ere

d th

e gre

ate

st degre

e of

hum

an pre

ssure

. M

any

sand

dunes

have

been

irre

vers

ibly

altere

d

thro

ugh t

he a

ctivi

ties

of

[people

], b

oth

by

accid

ent

and d

esi

gn.

R.W

.B.

Car

ter, c

oast

al g

eom

orphol

ogis

t

ge

ojo

bs

Em

erge

ncy

man

ager

Geo

gra

pher

s st

udy

nat

ura

l haz

ards

and

the

impac

t th

at t

hes

e ca

n h

ave

on t

he

envi

ronm

ent

and c

omm

unit

ies.

Em

erge

ncy

m

anag

ers

are

trai

ned

to

find w

ays

to r

educe

th

e ri

sks

of n

atura

l haz

ards

and t

o pro

tect

co

mm

unit

ies

that

are

in h

azar

d-p

rone

area

s.

The r

eal

confl ic

t of

the b

each i

s n

ot

betw

een s

ea

and s

hore

, fo

r th

ere

is o

nly

a l

ove

r’s q

uarr

el, b

ut

betw

een m

an a

nd n

atu

re.

On t

he b

each,

natu

re h

as

achie

ved a

dyn

am

ic e

quili

brium

that

is a

lien t

o m

an

and h

is s

tatic s

ense o

f equili

brium

.

G.

Sou

cie,

env

iron

men

talis

t

Sample

page

s

58G

lobal

Int

erac

tion

s 2:

Sec

ond E

dit

ion

59C

oast

al D

unes

unit

1.2

Tem

per

atur

eTe

mpe

ratu

re p

lays

an

impo

rtan

t ro

le i

n d

eter

min

ing

the

rate

at

whi

ch

beac

h sa

nd d

ries

and

the

ext

ent

and

typ

e of

veg

etat

ion

that

gro

ws

in

an a

rea.

As

men

tion

ed a

bove

, ve

geta

tion

pla

ys a

n im

port

ant

role

in

det

erm

inin

g th

e ra

te o

f ae

olia

n tr

ansp

ort.

The

tem

pera

ture

als

o af

fect

s th

e fu

ncti

onin

g of

oce

an c

urr

ents

. The

se c

urre

nts

may

hav

e th

e po

tent

ial

to m

ove

sed

imen

t lo

ng d

ista

nces

or

to c

ause

bea

ches

to

be e

rod

ed o

r bu

ilt u

p.

Pre

cipit

atio

nL

evel

s of

pre

cipi

tati

on (

rain

fall)

are

als

o im

port

ant

in d

eter

min

ing

the

natu

re a

nd e

xten

t of

the

veg

etat

ion

bind

ing

the

sand

tog

ethe

r. A

reas

w

ith

regu

lar

rain

fall

are

mor

e lik

ely

to h

ave

a ve

geta

tion

pro

fi le

. Are

as

wit

h lo

w o

r ir

regu

lar

rain

fall

are

likel

y to

rem

ain

unst

able

and

sup

port

lit

tle

vege

tati

on g

row

th.

Hyd

rolo

gica

l pro

cess

esH

ydro

logi

cal p

roce

sses

are

thos

e th

at in

volv

e w

ater

, whi

ch is

one

of t

he

mos

t im

port

ant

agen

ts o

f ch

ange

on

eart

h. A

long

coa

sts

it i

s a

crit

ical

fa

ctor

in

det

erm

inin

g th

e na

ture

of

coas

tlin

es. R

iver

sys

tem

s tr

ansp

ort

sed

imen

t to

the

coa

st,

whe

re i

t is

dis

trib

uted

by

lon

gsh

ore

dri

ft a

nd

ocea

n cu

rren

ts. W

aves

ero

de

clif

fs a

nd h

ead

land

s, p

rovi

din

g ad

dit

iona

l se

dim

ent.

(See

fi gu

re 1

.2.6

.) St

orm

wav

es c

ause

dam

age

to b

each

es, b

ut

cons

truc

tive

wav

es r

ebui

ld th

em.

Win

d-i

nduc

ed

wav

es

play

a

part

icul

arly

im

port

ant

role

in

th

e d

evel

opm

ent o

f coa

stal

dun

es. W

aves

tran

spor

t the

san

d th

at is

nee

ded

fo

r d

une

cons

truc

tion

and

the

y cr

eate

cha

nge

in d

une

syst

ems

by

atta

ckin

g th

em d

urin

g st

orm

s.D

urin

g pe

riod

s of

rel

ativ

ely

calm

wea

ther

, w

aves

bri

ng s

and

fro

m

offs

hore

dep

osit

s (s

uch

as o

ffsh

ore

bars

) an

d d

epos

it i

t on

to b

each

es.

Thi

s sa

nd i

s th

en a

vaila

ble

for

the

win

d t

o tr

ansp

ort

it i

nto

the

dun

e sy

stem

. In

peri

ods

of s

ever

e an

d u

nsta

ble

wea

ther

, sto

rms

crea

te l

arge

an

d p

ower

ful

wav

es t

hat

stri

ke t

he c

oast

wit

h su

ch f

orce

tha

t th

ey

rem

ove

sand

from

bea

ches

and

the

fore

du

ne

area

. In

very

sev

ere

stor

ms

the

wav

es m

ay a

ttac

k th

e d

une

syst

em,

crea

ting

was

hove

rs.

(The

se

even

ts a

re e

xam

ined

in m

ore

det

ail o

n pa

ge X

XX

.)In

ad

dit

ion

to th

e ac

tion

of w

aves

ther

e is

a ra

nge

of o

ther

hyd

rosp

here

-re

late

d p

roce

sses

that

impa

ct o

n co

asta

l dun

es. T

he e

ffec

t of

curr

ents

is

very

impo

rtan

t, pa

rtic

ular

ly th

e pr

oces

s of

lon

gsh

ore

dri

ft.

The

im

port

ance

of

long

shor

e d

rift

lie

s in

its

rol

e as

a t

rans

port

er o

f se

dim

ent.

Sed

imen

t, w

hich

is p

rod

uced

or

dep

osit

ed in

one

par

t of

the

co

asta

l sy

stem

, is

tran

spor

ted

to

othe

r lo

cati

ons

wit

hin

the

syst

em b

y th

e pr

oces

s of

lon

gsho

re d

rift

. Thi

s al

low

s d

unes

and

oth

er s

edim

ent-

base

d l

and

form

s to

dev

elop

in

area

s so

me

dis

tanc

e fr

om t

he s

ourc

e of

co

asta

l sed

imen

ts.

Que

ensl

and

’s F

rase

r Is

land

, a

vast

isl

and

mad

e en

tire

ly o

f sa

nd,

dem

onst

rate

s th

is p

oint

. Som

e of

the

sand

that

mak

es u

p th

e is

land

and

it

s hu

ge d

une

syst

em is

der

ived

fro

m s

and

ston

e d

epos

its

foun

d in

the

Sy

dne

y re

gion

. Lon

gsho

re d

rift

and

oce

an c

urre

nts

have

tran

spor

ted

the

sand

nor

thw

ard

s al

ong

Aus

tral

ia’s

eas

tern

coa

stlin

e.R

ainf

all

is a

noth

er i

mpo

rtan

t fa

ctor

in

the

dev

elop

men

t of

coa

stal

d

unes

. W

hile

rai

nfal

l in

fi ltr

ates

san

d d

unes

wit

h re

lati

ve e

ase,

hea

vy

dow

npou

rs

can

prod

uce

runo

ff,

whi

ch

erod

es

the

sand

y su

rfac

e,

expo

sing

it to

the

win

d. A

noth

er im

port

ant c

hang

e ca

used

by

rain

fall

is

the

dev

elop

men

t of

dun

e la

kes.

The

se la

kes

form

in lo

w-l

ying

are

as o

f th

e d

une

syst

em. F

rase

r Is

land

has

a la

rge

num

ber

of d

une

lake

s.

In t

imes

of

heav

y ra

infa

ll, s

urfa

ce r

unof

f ac

cum

ulat

es i

n a

swal

e,w

hich

is

a tr

ough

or

shal

low

dep

ress

ion

betw

een

the

cres

ts o

f co

asta

l d

unes

. Eve

ntua

lly th

e sa

nd b

ecom

es s

atur

ated

and

the

wat

er ta

ble

rise

s.

Wit

h th

e re

turn

of

war

mer

wea

ther

, the

sw

ale

dri

es o

ut a

nd t

he w

ater

ta

ble

retr

eats

. By

this

tim

e, h

owev

er, m

uch

of t

he p

rote

ctiv

e ve

geta

tion

ha

s d

row

ned

and

the

sand

is n

ow le

ft e

xpos

ed. T

his

caus

es a

mig

rati

ng

du

ne

to fo

rm a

nd b

egin

mov

ing

away

from

the

now

dry

lake

.In

som

e lo

cati

ons,

not

ably

on

Fras

er I

slan

d, d

unes

may

for

m a

cros

s th

e m

outh

of a

val

ley.

If a

str

eam

run

s th

roug

h th

e va

lley,

pon

din

g m

ay

occu

r: t

he d

unes

, act

ing

like

a d

am, h

old

bac

k th

e st

ream

’s w

ater

and

so

a l

ake

is f

orm

ed. S

uch

lake

s te

nd t

o be

sem

iper

man

ent

(or

in s

ome

plac

es p

erm

anen

t) a

nd c

ause

a m

ajor

cha

nge

in t

he lo

cal e

nvir

onm

ent,

enco

urag

ing

dif

fere

nt fl

ora

and

faun

a to

col

onis

e th

e af

fect

ed a

rea.

wo

rkin

g g

eo

gra

ph

ical

ly

+

1D

efin

e an

d e

xpla

in t

he

term

aeo

lian t

ransp

ort.

2O

utli

ne t

he

fact

ors

that

aff

ect

the

rate

of

aeol

ian t

ransp

ort.

1In

terp

reti

ng d

iagr

ams

Exa

min

e figu

re 1

.2.3

. D

escr

ibe

the

rela

tion

ship

bet

wee

n w

ind

velo

city

and t

he

rate

of

aeol

ian t

ransp

ort.

Exp

lain

what

this

indic

ates

abou

t th

e ro

le o

f w

ind in d

une

const

ruct

ion.

2W

riti

ng t

ask

Wri

te a

rep

ort

outl

inin

g th

e ro

le

of w

eath

er in t

he

dev

elop

men

t of

coa

stal

dune

syst

ems.

3W

riti

ng t

ask

Stu

dy

the

Geo

focu

s box

‘Aeo

lian

tran

spor

t’.

aS

tudy

figu

re 1

.2.4

. W

rite

a b

rief

rep

ort

on

the

way

s w

ind t

ransp

orts

san

d.

bW

rite

a p

arag

raph e

xpla

inin

g th

e te

rms

salt

atio

n a

nd c

riti

cal ve

loci

ty.

cD

isti

ngu

ish b

etw

een t

he

pro

cess

es o

f su

rfac

e cr

eep a

nd s

usp

ensi

on.

und

ers

tan

din

g th

e te

xt

FIG

UR

E 2

.6FI

GU

RE

1.2

.6

Much o

f th

e s

edim

ent

used for

dune b

uild

ing c

om

es

from

the e

rosi

on o

f headla

nds

and o

ther

coast

al

featu

res.

ge

ofo

cus

Imp

act o

f Hur

rica

ne

Kat

rin

a o

n th

e

Ch

and

ele

ur Is

lan

ds

i

The

Chan

del

eur

Isla

nds

are

a co

llect

ion o

f lo

w-lyi

ng

isla

nds

off

the

coas

t of

New

Orl

eans,

in t

he

south

ern U

nit

ed S

tate

s.

An e

xten

sive

dune

syst

em is

found o

n t

he

isla

nds

and a

uniq

ue

ecos

yste

m h

ad d

evel

oped

ove

r a

long

per

iod o

f ti

me.

This

par

t of

the

US

coa

stlin

e is

ver

y su

scep

tible

to

hurr

ican

e ac

tivi

ty,

wit

h s

ever

al lar

ge h

urr

ican

es s

trik

ing

the

isla

nds

since

2000:

Hurr

ican

e Li

li (2

002),

Hurr

ican

e Iv

an (

2004)

and H

urr

ican

e D

ennis

(2005).

How

ever

, it

was

H

urr

ican

e K

atri

na

in A

ugu

st 2

005 t

hat

cau

sed t

he

mos

t dam

age

to t

he

dune

syst

em.

Figu

re 1

.2.7

A s

how

the

Chan

del

eur

Isla

nds

in 2

001.

As

can b

e se

en,

a la

rge

dune

syst

em is

loca

ted a

round

the

edge

s of

the

isla

nds.

Fig

ure

1.2

.7B

is

take

n in t

he

day

s fo

llow

ing

Hurr

ican

e K

atri

na.

As

is c

lear

, th

e w

hol

e dune

syst

em h

as b

een d

estr

oyed

by

a m

assi

ve s

torm

sur

ge t

hat

has

engu

lfed

much

of

the

isla

nds.

FIGURE 2.6

FIG

UR

E 1

.2.7

A C

handele

ur

Isla

nds

in 2

001. The e

xtensiv

e d

une s

yste

m is v

isib

le. B

Chandele

ur

Isla

nds

follo

win

g H

urr

icane K

atr

ina in 2

005.

AB

In N

ovem

ber

1970 a

mas

sive

sto

rm s

urg

e an

d

cycl

one

hit

the

coas

t of

India

and B

angl

ades

h

and w

as r

espon

sible

for

as

man

y as

300 0

00

dea

ths.

>

stor

m s

urge

a v

ery

hig

h t

ide

crea

ted b

y a

com

bin

atio

n o

f a

king

tide

(the

hig

hes

t ti

de

in

a ti

dal

cyc

le)

and a

lar

ge s

torm

.

did

yo

u k

now

?!

1

Out

line

the

role

of

hyd

rolo

gica

l pro

cess

es

in t

he

form

atio

n o

f co

asta

l sa

nd d

unes

.2

Exp

lain

the

contr

ibuti

on o

f lo

ngs

hor

e dri

ft

to t

he

dev

elop

men

t of

coa

stal

dunes

.3

Exp

lain

the

pro

cess

es inv

olve

d in t

he

dev

elop

men

t of

dune

lake

s an

d s

wal

es.

4D

efin

e th

e te

rm p

ondin

g. W

hy

is it

so

sign

ific

ant

to t

he

dune

envi

ronm

ent?

und

ers

tan

din

g th

e te

xt

Com

posi

tion

of

sand

sSa

nd i

s no

t un

ifor

m.

Its

chem

ical

and

min

eral

com

posi

tion

var

ies

grea

tly

from

pla

ce t

o pl

ace.

Thi

s is

bec

ause

san

ds

have

bee

n d

eriv

ed

from

dif

fere

nt t

ypes

of

rock

. T

he c

hem

ical

and

min

eral

com

posi

tion

of

san

ds

is v

ery

impo

rtan

t in

det

erm

inin

g th

e na

ture

of

coas

tal

dun

e ec

osys

tem

s.Sam

ple pa

ges

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