Using Land

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Farming

• Earth’s total land area is 149 million km2

– 16 million km2 is farmland.

• When we use a piece of land for farming we have to remove whatever plants and vegetation is there and then put whichever crops the farmer wants to grow.

• To keep the crops pest-free and weed-free, farmers use pesticides and herbicides. Pesticides and herbicides are chemicals used to kill bugs and weeds. These chemicals could pollute the soil, air, or water.

Grazing Livestock

• Livestock is any animal that is raised for human consumption.– Cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, etc.

• Livestock grazes off the land for their food.• A km2 of vegetable crops can feed many more people than a km2

used to raise livestock.

Benefits• One cow or sheep can feed a bunch of people and meat has

essential nutrients in our diet.

Disadvantages• Provides less amount of food than vegetables/fruits• Decreases the amount of top soil.

Cutting Trees

• We use some of our land as a source of wood.

• We use trees to make lumber, fuel, and paper products.

Benefits

• Provides us with lumber, fuel, and paper products

Disadvantages

• Sometimes whole forests are cut down without being replaced– Every year about 120,000 mi2 disappear worldwide.

– Animals that use that disappearing forest as a home also may become extinct.

• Forests are major sources of oxygen production for the Earth. Less trees mean less oxygen being made for Earth.

Landfills

• Land used to dispose of our products we use and garbage.– About 60% of our garbage goes into our landfills.

• Sanitary landfills are used today to reduce pollution.– Dirt, plastic, or concrete is used so that pollutants won’t leak into

the surrounding soil and groundwater.

Benefits

• Place to store our waste

Disadvantages

• Pollution of soil and water can occur.

• It takes a lot of land to make a landfill.– We are starting to run out of acceptable places to put landfills.

Human Built Structures

• When we build office buildings, neighborhoods, stadiums, and parking lots there is a lot of concrete that is replacing and covering the vegetation on the ground.

• This asphalt absorbs solar radiation and also doesn’t allow the ground to soak up the water but rather for it to runoff in directions where it shouldn’t go which is sewers and streams.

Natural Preserves

Land that is set aside to be protected from development and industry.

• Yosemite

• Redwood

• Grand Canyon