DP Environmental Systems and Societies Questionbank

The soil system includes storages of inorganic nutrients.

Identify two inputs to these storages.

The soil system includes storages of inorganic nutrients.

Identify two outputs from these storages.

State the soil texture that has the following composition: 20 % clay; 55 % silt; 25 % sand.

Describe how the addition of sand to a silty clay loam could alter its characteristics for healthy plant growth.

Draw a flow diagram to show the flows of leaching and decomposition associated with the mineral storage in the “A” horizon in Figure 2(b).

Identify one other input to the mineral storage in the “A” horizon in Figure 2(b).

Identify one other output from the mineral storage in the “A” horizon in Figure 2(b).

Outline one climatic and one edaphic (soil) factor which affect the final climax community in an ecosystem.

Outline four ways in which the differences between sand and clay soils may affect primary productivity.

Identify two features of a loam soil that make it suitable for crop growth.

Construct a labelled flow diagram to show the processes that link soil with the following three storages:

The atmosphere
The lithosphere
Living organisms

Annotate each labelled flow with an example of the matter involved.

Outline how soil can be viewed as an ecosystem.

Outline two reasons why loam soils are the most productive for plant growth.

Outline two ways in which the soil quality in the pioneer stages of the succession model shown in Figure 1 will differ from that in the climax ecosystem.

Identify one example of an output to the atmosphere from the soil system.

Describe two characteristics of soil with high primary productivity.

Describe the relationship between harvested area and grain production as shown in the resource booklet, Figure 8.

With reference to Figure 8, outline two reasons for the relationship between the area used for grain production and the quantity of grain produced.

Identify two strategies that could be used to grow crops in areas of high water stress.

The provision of food resources and assimilation of wastes are two key factors of the environment that determine its carrying capacity for a given species.

To what extent does the human production of food and waste each influence the carrying capacity for human populations?

With reference to Figures 4(a), 4(b) and 4(c), outline two reasons why a change from tavy agriculture to agroforestry may be more sustainable.

Quantitative models are frequently constructed to show the flow of energy and cycling of matter in natural systems.

To what extent can these models be useful in assessing the sustainability of named food production systems?

Explain how organic waste may be an effective fertilizer in terrestrial systems but a source of pollution in aquatic systems.

Explain two examples of soil degradation and the appropriate soil management strategies from a named farming system.

Evaluate the proposal to convert an area of tropical rainforest into agricultural use.

Discuss the relationship between the economic development of countries and the sustainability of their food production.

Identify two reasons why a human vegetarian diet is considered to be more energy efficient than a diet containing meat.

Discuss the relationship between social systems and food production systems with the help of named examples.

Fish are an important food source for the people of Inle Lake. With reference to Figure 4(b), identify two other local sources of food.

Evaluate ways in which different agricultural techniques may affect the sustainability of soil as a resource.

Including reference to their relative efficiency, discuss whether terrestrial or aquatic food production systems show the greatest potential for feeding a growing human population. Support your conclusion with valid reasons or evidence.

A vegetarian diet is often described as “better for the environment”. Discuss this statement using your knowledge of ecosystems and environmental value systems.

Discuss with reasons or evidence, the environmental impacts of two named food production systems.

Explain how the inequitable distribution of natural resources can lead to conflict.

Discuss strategies that can be used to improve the sustainability of food production systems.

Discuss the consequences of changing global per capita meat consumption on the conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity.

Outline one advantage for local populations within the Coral Triangle in harvesting their food from terrestrial agriculture.

Climate can both influence, and be influenced by, terrestrial food production systems.

To what extent can terrestrial food production strategies contribute to a sustainable equilibrium in this relationship?

Technocentrists may support the belief that technological development has always been able to overcome limits to human population growth.

To what extent do the patterns of growth and development in human populations, as demonstrated in the Demographic Transition Model, support this claim?

To what extent is pollution impacting human food production systems?

Solid domestic waste may contain non-biodegradable material and toxins that have the potential to reduce the fertility of soils.

Explain how strategies for the management of this waste may help to preserve soil fertility.

With reference to Figures 6(c), 7(a) and 7(b) explain the problems associated with land restoration in Iceland.

To what extent might Iceland be viewed as a role model for sustainability by other countries?

Outline why leaving arable farmland fallow (unused) between growing seasons could lead to soil degradation.

Quantitative models are frequently constructed to show the flow of energy and cycling of matter in natural systems.

To what extent can these models be useful in assessing the sustainability of named food production systems?

Explain how organic waste may be an effective fertilizer in terrestrial systems but a source of pollution in aquatic systems.

Explain two examples of soil degradation and the appropriate soil management strategies from a named farming system.

Evaluate ways in which different agricultural techniques may affect the sustainability of soil as a resource.

Identify two ways in which humans can restore soils degraded by overgrazing

Discuss strategies that can be used to improve the sustainability of food production systems.

To what extent is pollution impacting human food production systems?