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BIOSPHERE
 The biosphere is the living part of the planet, consisting of oceans and land surfaces where
moisture and temperature conditions are suitable for life.
 It is the study of living and non-living organisms in a given environment.
 The biosphere is composed of many ecosystems.

ECOSYSTEM

 It is the relationship between the living/biotic and the non-living/abiotic organisms in a given
environment.

Living organisms (Biotic organisms)

 Examples include plants, animals, humans, bacteria, fungi

Non-living (Abiotic organisms)

 Examples include rocks, soils, climate (rainfall, temperature), wind/air, humidity, sunlight

BIODIVERSITY- bio means life (plants and animals) and diversity means variety

 It is the variety of plant and animal species found in an given ecosystem

 It refers to the number and variety of organisms within a given ecosystem eg, tropical rainforest
have thousands of plant and animal species

FOOD CHAIN

 It is a chart which shows the flow of energy from one trophic level to another beginning from
producers to tertiary consumers
 it is best shown using a diagram

Grass locust small bird eagle

ORGANISATION OF AN ECOSYSTEM

1. POPULATION is the total number of individuals of the same species in an ecosystem

2. COMMUNITY is the population of species added together in an ecosystem

-The community comprises all living organisms (plants and animals) living in a habitat

3. HABITAT is the natural home or shelter of an organism

-Animals obtain food, shelter in their habitat. They even reproduce in their habitats
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4. NICHE is the role or function of an organism in an ecosystem. Every organism has a role to play in the
functioning of an ecosystem. Eg, producer, tertiary consumer etc

ADAPTATIONS TO PHYSICAL CONDITIONS

Members of the plant and animal community must adapt both to climatic conditions and to living within
a competitive community for successful survival. At the local level, competition means that the physical
factors of light, temperature, humidity, water supply, wind speed, and soil are not the same for all
members of the community. Such a community is clearly demonstrated in the Tropical Rainforests

TROPICAL RAINFOREST

-The prevailing climatic conditions have resulted in the following physical features of vegetation:

 Tall trees-optimum conditions of sunlight and rainfall all year round

 Vegetation is in three layers - Emergents, canopy and under-storey due to competition for
sunlight
 Trees have broad/large leaves to maximize absorption of sunlight for photosynthesis as well as
maximizing transpiration
 Climbers and lianas for support
 Leaves have drip tips to shed water quickly and to avoid developing moulds on them
 Evergreen vegetation because it rains all year round
 Little undergrowth due lack of sunlight on the forest floor
 Dense forest due to optimum conditions for plant growth
 Thin stems due to lack of space
 Buttress roots for support in muddy and wet soil. Roots are also shallow because the water and
nutrients are near the surface.

-Because of the nature of the forest, animals have adapted and found their different niches

CANOPY LAYER—Animals like monkeys, butterflies, macaws and several insect species live here

UNDERSTOREY—Jaguars, anteaters, tapirs, deer, ants, termites, snakes, bush bucks

CANOPY BRANCHES—Orangton/chimpanzees

PLANT ADAPTATION IN HOT DESERTS

 Long tape roots to reach the underground water table

 Trees are spaced due to competition for water
 Leaves have waxy cuticles to reduce water loss by evapotranspiration
 needle shaped leaves/thin leaves to reduce transpiration
 leaves have sunken stomata to reduce transpiration
 some have succulent/fleshy stems to store water for use during the long dry season
 thorns instead of leaves to reduce transpiration and for protection against herbivores
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 hard bark for protection against animals

 shallow roots and spreading over a large area in order to absorb rainfall as soon as it falls.

RELATIONSHIPS OF LIVING ORGANISMS

 Living organisms depend on each other for survival

 insects depend on pollen, nectar, flowers as their food but flowers in turn depend on bees for
fertilization (cross-pollination)

(a) POLLINATION is the transfer of pollen grains from the anther to the stigma. This can be by insects,
wind or self. Birds, bees, wind can transfer/carry pollen grains and fertilise the flower. Bees feed on
nectar but will pollinate the flowers

(b) Dispersal of Fruits and Seeds

 Birds and animals carry these away from parent plants so that competition for light and water
between members of the same species is reduced
 there is also dispersal of seeds by wind
 scattering by explosion/ self
 water dispersal
 eaten by animals then excreted somewhere by animals
 seed hooked on animal furs then dropped somewhere to germinate

(c) Food Supply

 There are numerous food chains that exist

 small birds depend on flowers eg, humming birds
 small birds also eat seeds, fruits and nuts….. these small birds are however eaten by large birds
 the same as the grass is eaten by a zebra and the zebra is the eaten by a pride of lions

(d) Vegetation Succession

 It is the sequential growth of plants on a newly exposed surface up to the climax stage/ dense
forest

LINE TRANSECT AND QUADRAT SAMPLING

 Human activities like deforestation, mining, farming, foot path use etc impact on the vegetation
density, frequency, percentage cover, type, size change.
 There are two main methods that environmentalists use in the field to investigate how
vegetation species change in response to a human activity. These are

1. Line transect
2. Quadrat sampling
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Qstn: Environmentalists want to investigate the impact of a footpath that passes through a rainforest on
vegetation density and type. The map below shows the walking track and a transect line drawn for you.

Describe a method to fully investigate vegetation density change from the track. [5]

Answer: The following method was used with a combination of line transect and
quadrat sampling

 one walking track was used as the starting point for the survey
 a compass was used to lay down a line transect at 90⁰ to the track
 a transect line was laid out using a 30m tape due north from the site 1
position
 systematic sampling method was used and a 1×1m quadrat was placed
at 5m intervals along the transect line with zero metres (0m) as the starting
point
 the number of each plant species was counted in each quadrat and
recorded on a tally sheet
 The method was repeated at site 2 up to the end (30m site).

PHOTOSYNTHESIS, ENERGY FLOW AND CARBON CYCLE

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 All living organisms need food to build new cells and tissues for growth and as a source of
energy. The energy to drive the systems comes from sunlight (shortwave solar radiation)
 Green plants use carbon dioxide, water, and sunlight to make glucose. The process by which
they achieve this is photosynthesis.

PHOTOSYNTHESIS

 Chlorophyll traps/captures light energy from the sun to convert the carbon dioxide and water
into carbohydrates (sugar/glucose) which now store the energy in chemical form. Oxygen is
released as a waste from this process but is essential to animal and human life.
 The formula for photosynthesis is
Light energy
6CO₂ + 6H₂O chlorophyll C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂

Carbon Dioxide + Water sugar/glucose oxygen

(carbohydrates)

NUTRIENT CYCLING

 Carbon is an element present in all living organisms. It is obtained by plants from carbon dioxide
in the atmosphere as a result of photosynthesis. When the plants are eaten by animals, the
organic plant material is digested, absorbed and built into compounds making the animal tissues
and carbon atoms from the plant become part of the animal.
 Nature supplies a constant supply of energy but provides no outputs.
 Carbon dioxide can therefore be recycled. This is called the carbon cycle.

THE CARBON CYCLE

The Carbon Cycle is therefore about the intake and release of carbon dioxide

 Carbon dioxide is added into the atmosphere in 3 different ways.

1. RESPIRATION-- Plants and animals obtain energy by oxidizing carbohydrates in their cells to carbon
dioxide and water which are excreted. The carbon dioxide returns again to the atmosphere.

2. DECAY—Organic matter from dead plants and animals is used by decomposers as a source of energy.
The micro-organisms turn the carbon compounds back into carbon dioxide, which goes back into the
atmosphere.

3. COMBUSTION/BURNING--Wood, coal, oil and natural gas are all fuels which contain carbon. Oxygen is
needed for burning. When burnt, carbon is oxidized to carbon dioxide. These fossil fuels were formed
from dead and partly decomposed plant and animals. These were buried over millions of years.
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THE CARBON CYCLE

CARBON CYCLE
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(a) (i) Where, in the diagram, is the carbon dioxide reservoir for land plants? [1]

 air/atmosphere/at the top

(ii) Name the processes shown by 1, 2, 3 and 4. [2]

1 – decay/decomposition/respiration
2 – respiration
3 – photosynthesis
4 – death

(iii) Processes 1 and 2 show how carbon dioxide is returned into the reservoir. Process 3
shows it being removed. For thousands of years the loss and the gain have been in
balance, but this is no longer true. Explain why. [3]

Causes of more gain of carbon dioxide to atmosphere:

 more carbon dioxide from burning of fossil fuels in car use/power station use
and chemical industries
 less loss of carbon dioxide from atmosphere due to
 deforestation which removes carbon sinks giving less photosynthesis

(b) (i) Explain how this lack of balance between carbon dioxide loss and gain might lead
to climate change. [3]

carbon dioxide builds up;

carbon dioxide is greenhouse gas/causes greenhouse effect/eq.; traps heat;
makes (world) temperature rise/causes global warming/eq.; [3]

(ii) State one way people might take action to reduce this problem of climate change. [1]

*These are ways to reduce more carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere:
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 walk/ /bike to work

 encourage use of public transport
 turn off lights when not in use/wash at lower temp/turn heating down/
 use hybrid cars/electric cars/hydrogen cars
 planting trees to absorb more carbon dioxide

BIODIVERSITY

 It is the number and variety of living organisms found in a given ecosystem

 Diversity means variety/many different. It therefore means many plant and animal species in a
given ecosystem
 It is believed that 50% of the world’s 10million species live in the Tropical Rainforest

RAINFOREST BIODIVERSITY

 A biome is large or global ecosystem, for example the Tropical Rainforest

ECUADOR: South America (Amazon Rainforest)

 It is one of the smallest countries in South America

A typical 5 hectare patch of a rainforest contains the following species:

 750 species of tree 1500 species of flowering plant

 400 species of bird 1500 butterfly species
 60 species of amphibian 100 species of reptile
 40 000+ species of insects

Destruction of the ecosystem/Ecosystems under threat

 Deforestation is the cutting down of trees without replacement in the forests and woodlands.
 Ecosystems are being destroyed to pave way for settlement, road and rail construction, dam
construction, timber, medicines, fuel wood, plantations etc
 Due to rapid population growth, pressure on wood lands have increased so increasing threat on
forests.

QSTN: Why are forests worth saving?/ Why should deforestation of the Tropical rainforest be
reduced?/ Why is sustainable use of forests key? [4]

1. They prevent soil erosion since their roots bind the soil together
2. Forests are major carbon sinks/store so the absorb carbon dioxide and reduce its concentration
in the atmosphere so reducing global warming and climate change
3. Trees increase soil fertility by shedding leaves which in turn rot to provide humus to soil
4. Forests contain food resources like fruits and honey and many raw material
5. They increase rainfall by increasing evapotranspiration
6. Forests are habitats for wildlife so support biodiversity
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WETLANDS
 These are ecosystems dominated by the presence of water.
 Examples include swamps, marshes, deltas, lakes. The water can be flowing or stagnant, fresh
or salty. In total they cover up about 6% of the land surface. Eg, the Okavango in Botswana, the
Everglades in the USA, rivers, deltas and mangrove swamps in south and South-east Asia.

Importance of Wetlands in the ecosystem

Why are wetlands worth saving?/Why should wetlands be conserved? [4]

1. They are highly productive ecosystems rich in plants, fish, and waterfowl/water birds for which
they are rich breeding grounds
2. They absorb carbon so reducing global warming and climate change
3. They sift waste and suspended silt from floodwaters, maintaining water quality and
encouraging plant growth on the fertile soils/purify or filter harmful waste
4. They absorb and store water, reducing flood peaks, and act as barriers against storm surges,
protecting shorelines
5. They have many economic uses so provide employment improving livelihoods:
 Rich fisheries for food and for sale
 Raw material like reed for craftwork and building material
 Water for irrigation and domestic purposes
 Recreational purposes

NB: However, wetlands are under threat due to the intensification of agricultural activities where the
chemicals like herbicides, pesticides, fertilisers are drained in rivers leading to eutrophication.

NB: Drainage of marshland is resulting in extinction of swamps and marshes threatening animal and
plant life.

Other threats to wetlands are:

 Discharge of human waste/sewage disposal

 Discharge of toxic substances from industries containing dangerous metals like lead, zinc,etc
 Extraction of resources such as groundwater, oil and gas, gravel and peat
 Extension of settlements like towns into wetlands

NB: Loss of natural ecosystems is accompanied by loss of biodiversity, genetic depletion, and species
extinction.

QSTN: Suggest why some wetlands around the world are being drained. [3]

 to get more land for farming;

 for settlements building and industries;
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 for controlling of diseases like malaria

 people want peat which is fertile soil;
 to get water for irrigation and domestic uses;
 for the extraction of raw materials like oil, gas, peat, sand etc

QSTN: Describe how wildlife is affected by the drainage of wetlands. [3]

 There is loss of habitats for fish, water birds and insects

 There is collapse or destruction of food web
 Some creatures living in water may migrate to other places, eg, water birds, crocodiles
 There is loss of biodiversity since some animals may die and go extinct

CAUSES OF DEFORESTATION

 About one third of the world’s natural forests have already been destroyed by either, felling,
burning or grazing.
 World population explosion has worsened the rate at which deforestation is taking place
throughout.
 Over 100 000 square kilometers of rainforest disappears every year. The main causes are:

1. Commercial farming
(a) Cultivation is responsible for about 80% of forest losses. Traditional subsistence farming
clears relatively small plots of land by slash and burn. Due to population pressure, larger pieces
of land are now cleared and farming is now more permanent. Large commercial plantations of
palm, banana, rubber(Brazil,Amazon), sugarcane by TNCs have also resulted in high
deforestation.
(b) Ranching-Much of the rainforest is burnt in Brazil for large cattle ranches. These are owned
by major companies who have nothing to do with farming like banks and car companies. These
forests are cleared into to allow growth of pastures

2. Logging-MNCs have the technology to clear extensive areas for valuable hardwoods. The heavy
machinery used cause widespread damage as the many small unwanted trees are destroyed in
search of the few valuable hardwoods for export. Regulations and controls are often weak and often
ignored by the large companies.

3. Minerals-Big mining companies cause massive devastation of the Amazon in Brazil (Carajas) or
Nigeria as the clear everything along their way to access valuable minerals in the remote interior of
TR. Opencast and deep mining are used to extract minerals like iron ore, bauxite, manganese,
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copper etc resulting in a lot of deforestation. This includes deforestation for road construction,
railway and pipelines to ferry to market.
 To worsen the situation, these roads open up previously untouched inaccessible areas of forest
to new settlers, farmers and loggers.
4. Large HEP stations

-The climate has high rainfall so many countries clear large areas for dam construction in order to
generate HEP

5. Deforestation for settlement development

Large scale deforestation of tropical rainforest

The rainforests are being exploited by multi-national companies to provide raw materials for their
industries. Population pressure also contributes to deforestation of the rainforests.

Causes of deforestation in Borneo – case study

Borneo is divided between 3 countries – Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia. The Indonesian part is called
Kilimantan. The causes of deforestation include logging, population pressure, plantations, hydroelectric
power, mining and road construction.

Logging: from the 1970s Indonesia and Malaysia cut down trees from Borneo because they wanted to
boost their economies by exporting timber for uses such as furniture making and pulp and paper
manufacture. Between i980 and 2000 more timber was imported from Borneo than from Africa and
Latin America combined.

Population pressure: between 1970 and 2000, Indonesia moved thousands of Indonesians from
overcrowded islands like Java to less crowded areas like Kilimantan. The migrants provided labour for
the logging companies and roads made for these migrants opened up the forest to the logging
companies.

Plantations: in the 1980s, the deforestation was speeded up as vast palm oil plantations were planted.
Palm oil is widely used in the manufacture of soaps, cosmetics and processed foods. By 2004, thes
plantations covered one million hectares of Kilimantan.

Hydroelectric power: in Sarawak (in Malaysian Borneo) a large area of forest has been cleared to
provide a reservoir for the Bakun HEP scheme.
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Mining: large scale coal mining, especially in the east and south of Kalimantan, has become a big threat
to the forests there.

Road building: roads built to access mines, HEP sites and logging areas open up the forest alongside
them for further deforestation for settlement and other developments.

IMPACTS/EFFECTS OF DEFORESTATION

The impacts of deforestation are many and varied.

Physical impacts

A Impact on Atmosphere

 Decreased rainfall due to reduced transpiration.

 Carbon sinks removal causes global warming. Burning of trees releases carbon dioxide into the
atmosphere causing air pollution and global warming.
 Reduced production of oxygen.

B Impact on water cycle

 Less precipitation due to reduced transpiration

 Reduced interception so increased surface runoff
 Increased flood risks in the rivers because of more surface runoff
 Infiltration is reduced

C Impact on soils

 Increased soil erosion because there are no more tree roots to bind soil and surface runoff has
increased. Also gulleys develop.
 Increased leaching causing loss of soil nutrients
 Disruption of nutrient cycle since trees have been removed
 Reduced soil fertility

D Impact on plants and animals

 Reduced biodiversity due to reduced food and habitat

 Threatened extinction of species due to loss of animal habitat and food.
 Forests are now replaces by bare ground or poor forest with few plants

HUMAN IMPACTS

E On Local People

 Local lack fuel wood

 Indigenous people displaced from their lands.
 Loss of traditional way of life eg shifting cultivation
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F On all people in the world

 Loss of climatic stability/ global warming and climate change

 Genetic pool of plants reduced and some plant and animal species may go to extinction

NB: Deforestation can generally be said to be caused by factor that are classified into 3 classes namely
Political, Economic and Social.

SUSTAINABLE HARVESTING OF WILD PLANT AND ANIMAL SPECIES

1. sustainable forestry / agroforestry

2. national parks, wildlife / ecological reserves and corridors
3. extractive reserves
4. world biosphere reserves
5. seed banks
6. role of zoos and captive breeding
7. sustainable tourism/ ecotourism

1. Agro-forestry refers to the planting of trees/forests including fast growing tree crops like rubber and
oil palm. These provide both income from forest products as well as shelter for smaller crops and
reduces soil erosion. Many small plantations like of eucalyptus have provided fuel wood and reduced
deforestation of forests.

2. Selective logging means cutting down the mature hardwood trees leaving immature and young ones
undisturbed to grow. This results in reduced chances of forest total clearance since mature hardwoods
are cut. Left to itself, companies will always take the cheap option of felling young immature trees.

3. Reforestation can also be done where large gaps have existed in the forest. Trees like eucalyptus,
acacia can be grown.

4. Extractive reserves are reserves in which local communities own and control the harvesting of all
forest products within the reserve. The local people will limit deforestation by stopping all attempts to
cut trees in the reserve as well as keeping cattle ranchers and extractive industries out of the natural
forests and beyond.

5. Wildlife reserves are the most widely used method by governments for the conservation of wildlife.
Laws are passed to designate certain areas of natural protection. Many wildlife reserves cover quite
small areas, often valuable but increasingly under threat from the surrounding settled areas. It is almost
equivalent to the core in the biosphere reserve. For success, it is supported by research into matters
related to conservation.
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6. National Parks are nature protected areas and are usually on a larger scale and can cover hundreds of
square kilometres. They cover two elements, wildlife conservation and access for visitors eg, Hwange
National Park, Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe.

7. Wildlife Corridors are also called conservation corridors. These are areas of protected natural habitat.
They are long relative to their width as the name suggests. They are created to make it easier for
individuals to move between habitats for dispersion or to follow seasonal migration routes.

 India has 88 elephant corridors

 Tiger corridor between China and Russia
 Wolf corridor through a golf course in Jasper, Canada

TOURISM
 Tourism is defined as travel away from home environment for leisure, holiday, to visit friends
and relatives, for business or professional reasons.
 A leisure activity is something done for enjoyment in a person’s free time.
 Tourism is a service industry that involves visiting places of interest.
 A tourist is a person who visits places of interest. Examples of such places can be natural or
human attractions like Wildlife, water sports, boat cruising , rafting, bungee jumping, historical
sites like Victoria falls or Great Zimbabwe Ruins, Grande Canyons.

ECOTOURISM (Ecological Tourism)

 It is responsible travel to natural areas which conserves and protects the natural environment,
respects local cultures, benefits the local communities while causing minimal environmental
degradation.

Benefits or advantages of tourism [Economic, Social]

 Tourism brings in valuable foreign currency.
 It creates employment for the local people as tour guides, in hotels and entertainment.
 By providing employment in rural areas it can help to reduce to reduce rural to urban migration.
 Provides government with considerable tax revenues which help to pay for education, health
and other things.
 It promotes growth of local craft industries as tourists may want to buy souvenirs.
 Profits can be used to improve local housing, schools, hospitals, electricity and water supplies.
 Tourism helps to create openings for small businesses such as taxi firms, beach facility hire
companies and small cafes.
 It promotes infrastructural development eg roads, airports and hotels.
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 It creates markets for local farm produce.

 Promotes cultural enrichment by blending local culture with foreign culture.

Disadvantages of tourism [Economic, Social, Environmental ]

 Hotels, airports and roads spoil the visual appearance and create noise, air pollution and litter.
 Most hotels are foreign owned and profits go overseas.
 Most local jobs created are menial, low paid and seasonal. Overseas labour may be brought in to
fill middle and senior management positions.
 Farming economy is damaged as land is sold to developers.
 Local people cannot afford tourist facilities.
 Money borrowed to invest in the necessary infrastructure for tourism increases the national
debt.
 Local culture and traditions are destroyed.
 There is abuse of human rights by large companies and government in a quest to maximise
profits
 There is cultural erosion whereby language, dress code, music and diet is affected
 Tourism results in littering which is land pollution
 Illegal substances may be smuggled in which upset social balance like drug trafficking, human
trafficking
 Deforestation leads to destruction of habitats as new hotels, roads, will be constructed.
 Foot paths also cause soil erosion
 Rise of alcoholism and drug trafficking as drink and drugs become more available to satisfy the
demands of foreign tourists.
 Crime and prostitution, sometimes involving children-‘sex tourism’ is a big issue in certain
locations eg Bangkok
 There is visitor congestions at key points, hindering the movement of local people.
 The building of hotels means that local people lose their homes, land and traditional means of
livelihood.
 At some destinations tourists spend most of their money in their hotels with minimum benefit
to the wider community.

Explain how international tourism brings foreign currency to countries such as Zimbabwe.
 Tourists use foreign currency to pay for their accommodation in hotels and these hotels in turn
pay tax to the government.
 They also spend foreign currency on buying souvenirs which they want to take back home.
 Tourists buy food and drinks in foreign currency.
 They hire transport from local transport operators for their tours.
 Tourists pay recreation eg boat cruising and bungee jumping.

CORAL REEFS
 They are natural beauties of plant and animal species found under water/in oceans and seas.
 Coral reefs support a wide variety of plant and animal species under oceans and are known as
the rainforests of seas.
 These are natural living structures half plant and half animal species eg Great Australian Reef,
Malaysia.
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 Coral reef are a source of food for humans eg, fish and also promote tourism

Problems associated with coral reefs

 Corals are easily damaged by divers and these bump on and head on coral reefs thus killing
them
 Also dumping of waste like from industries, chemical fertilizers from farms and sewage waste
may destroy coral reefs

STRATEGIES TO CONSERVE CORAL REEFS

 Boats visiting the sites of coral reefs are licensed so that numbers can be controlled
 Having education training programmes for boat owners.
 Restricted access to certain parts of the reef
 Having floating buoys for monitoring boats in the most popular diving sites
 Putting laws and reinforcing them

CONSERVATION OF SPECIES (Plant and animal species)

 Sustainable harvesting of wild plants and animal species is possible but the challenge of
population pressure and growth in technology means that more ecosystems than ever are now
at risk. Measures/ strategies have therefore been put forward to conserve these species.

1. Use of seed banks

 These are stores that preserve as wide a range of existing plants as is possible by
preserving their seeds. These guard against continued losses in the Earth’s gene pool
(total genes in a population of plants). This helps future scientists to have access to
genes from which to develop new seeds. World’s largest seed bank is in Sussex called
The Millenium Seed Bank, south of London in nuclear bomb-proof and multi-storey
stores

2. Zoos

 These are areas where wild animals are kept and displayed as visitor attractions. Good zoos
also have breeding programmes in place to maintain and increase the number of animals in
danger of extinction.

3. Captive breeding programmes

 This is when wild animals are captured and kept in order to boost existing population numbers
or to achieve a population size large enough for the species to be reintroduced into the wild.
However, some young ones , without parental guidance, have struggled to feed themselves
and lack awareness of potential predators.

FOREST MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES SPIDER DIAGRAM (sustainable ways of managing forests )

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WORLD BIOSPHERE RESERVES

 These are areas of land and coastal ecosystems where there is conservation of the
biodiversity of the living organisms while meeting the needs of an increasing population.
 The biosphere reserves are internationally recognized and supported by UNESCO ( United
Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ) . These reserves by 2015, 651
biospheres had been set up in 120 countries.

WHO BENEFITS FROM BIOPHERE RESERVES?

A. LOCAL COMMUNITIES

1. Better opportunities to maintain lifestyle

2. Protection of natural resources
3. Benefits from training and demonstration projects
4. Less chances of outside developers encroaching on resources

B. GOVERNMENTS

1. Provide them with better information on natural resources

2. Working example of sustainable resource use
3. Help them meet international obligation for conservation

C.SCIENTISTS

1. Encourage research on ecological processes and biodiversity

2. Provide a growing database for study
3. Provide long term sites for study
4. More likely to attract international research funding
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D. THE WORLD COMMUNITY

1. Demonstrate practical ways to resolve land use conflict

2. Show that protection and development can exist together
3. Raise people’s awareness of sustainable development

BIOSPHERE RESERVE ZONATION

 It is organized into 3 interrelated zones namely
1. Core Area
2. Buffer Zone
3. Transition Zone

1. THE CORE AREA

 This area contains the landscapes, ecosystems, and species that need conservation. There may
be more than one core area in a reserve if there are different ecological systems to protect.
Normally it is not subject to human activity except for research and monitoring. ONLY THE CORE
NEEDS PROTECTION.

Activities done in the core

 Experimental research about increasing output while preserving biodiversity and soil resources.
Emphasis is on sustainable management
 Education and Training
 Tourism and Recreational facilities are included in the core

2. TRANSITION AREA

 It is an area of cooperation. The local communities, conservation agencies, cultural groups and
other interested parties must agree to work together to manage and sustainably develop this
area’s resources for the benefit of the people who live there. It’s the outer zone.

BIOSPHERE RESERVE ZONATION

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(ii) Determine the length, in km, of the path from the laboratory to the nearest education and
training facility. [1]

(iii) Suggest ways the local people would benefit from the biosphere reserve. [4]

[4]

ANSW: (ii) 4-8km

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(iii) Benefits to local people:

 jobs, as tourist guides/in tourist facilities/providing accommodation;
 jobs, maintaining/managing, the reserve;
 making tourist souvenirs;
 ecosystem is conserved/protected;
 resources are used sustainably;
 income qualified, e.g. local people earn money from, tourism / working in the tourist
facilities;
 education qualified, e.g. local people are, trained / educated on how to use the
biosphere reserve;
 gains from scientific research (e.g. into, biodiversity/species/genes);
involvement in decision making;
 improved infrastructure; e.g. roads/water supply/electricity; etc

[4]
 sustainable harvesting of, wild plant/animal species/agroforestry/selective logging;
 national parks/forest or wildlife reserves (managed by wardens);
 access, clearly defined boundaries/restricted areas or entry;
 education about the importance of conservation;
 ecotourism qualified, e.g. tourist codes of, conduct/access;
 bans/penalties/punishments/laws;
 to stop damaging activities such as, logging/deforestation/dams/AVP;
 international recognition and funding;
 gene/seed/sperm/egg, banks/freezing;
 zoo/breeding programmes, e.g. reference to work of named environmental organisations
such as, UNEP,IUCN, WWF, CITES;

NATIONAL PARKS
 These are protected areas where wildlife is kept
 Protective laws by the state are put into place so as to prevent damaging activities such as
hunting, logging, gathering fruits, fuelwood etc
 Tourists are attracted to such environments where services as hotels, local traditional cultures
are provided

CASE STUDY

National Parks of Wildlife in Kenya

 Kenya supports a wide range of wildlife giving it savanna which promotes grassland
 Nairobi national park was established in 1946 later followed by 58 more national parks
 Wildlife is country’s greatest tourist resource that is a foreign currency earner
 Tourism spend part of their time in holding in the coastal resorts in Mombassa
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 Tourism is Kenya’s largest foreign currency earner and it creates employment for more than
100 000 people in hotels and poor companies

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED ( Pressure, Conflicts, and Problems )

1. Poaching is a problem especially ivory poaching. Since 1970 , elephant population of 170 000
decreased to 20 000 by 1990.
2. Human population has more than double threatening habitats of wildlife as people extract
timber, wildlife.
3. Cleaning land for farming and tourist resource thus resulting in deforestation.
4. Wildlife tourism is threatening the existence of traditional local Maasai people where big cats
are killing their livestock.
5. Elephants are destroying their property, crops causing food shortages

STRATEGIES/ ATTEMPTS TO CONSERVE WILDLIFE

1. Ecotourism is the only way introduced in Kimmana reserve.

2. The local Maasai people were employed as tour guides, game rangers.

3. Profits are now shared within rural communities benefitting local people.

4. The Maasai are now protecting their natural environment realizing tourism is benefitting with reliable
income.

5. Chiefs are also paid for their natural environment as custodians of environments in those
communities.

WORLD HARVESTING OF WILD PLANT AND ANIMAL SPECIES/ WORLD CONSERVATION STRATEGIES

 The increased realisation that many varieties of wild plants and animals were being over-
exploited led to activity at the international level and among conservation groups. Several
conventions and protocols and agreements have since been put forward to curb animal and
plant extinction.

1. UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMME (UNEP)

 Its role is to conserve world habitats such as national parks, Tropical Rainforests, lakes,
oceans. Its area of focus is the land, freshwater and Oceans
2. WORLD WILDLIFE FUND (WWF)
 It uses the slogan “ action for a living planet”
 It is a global network charity organization
 It is a global network operating in 90 countries
 It was set up in fearing that habitat destruction and hunting will lead to extinction of
certain species
 It funds programs which protect and conserve animal shelters
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 It is a fund which finances environment conservation programmes, habitats of species

threatened with extinction
3. CONVENTION ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN ENDANGERED SPECIES OF WILD FAUNA AND
FLORA (CITES)
 It is an international agreement involving 90 countries
 Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants doesn’t
threat their existence
 International trade in wildlife is worth billions of dollars each year and such trade needs to
be controlled and governed to protect threatened species.
 White rhino horn and elephant ivory are 2 high profile examples of species undergoing
extinction due to poachers and traders.
4. INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE (IUCN )
 It identifies and raises awareness on species threatened by non-sustainable harvesting eg
giant panda
 It aims to ensure that international trade in such areas shouldn’t threaten the existence of
these species
 GREEN PEACE uses more direct options to raise awareness of conservation being linked to
the threatened species
 They influence the governments to take options and activities which protect ecosystems.
They publicize the list of threatened species like elephants