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Chapter 14

Chapter 14. Land. Land Use and Land Cover. Land use Ex. Farming, mining, cities, highways, recreation Land cover - different types of land cover depending on the use. Land Use and Land Cover. Urban - Land covered mainly with buildings and roads 2,500 or more people and a governing body

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Chapter 14

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  1. Chapter 14 Land

  2. Land Use and Land Cover • Land use • Ex. Farming, mining, cities, highways, recreation • Land cover - different types of land cover depending on the use.

  3. Land Use and Land Cover • Urban - Land covered mainly with buildings and roads • 2,500 or more people and a governing body • Rural - Relatively few people and large areas of open space

  4. Where We Live • Until 1850 most people lived in rural areas • The industrial revolution changed this • Machinery on farms requires fewer people • Better transportation allowed manufacturers to be far from their customers • People moved to cities to find jobs • Urban areas grew rapidly during the 20th century. • Most people now live in urban areas.

  5. How does land use change in different countries?

  6. Developed Countries: each person uses the ecosystem services provided by about 8 hectares (20 acres) of land and water. • US: each person uses 12 hectares (30 acres) • Germany: 6 hectares (15 acres) • Developing Countries: people may not have access to all the resources for a healthy life. They may use less than 1 hectare (2.5) per person.

  7. Do Now: skip #2

  8. The Urban-Rural Connection • People are dependent on resources produced in rural areas. • Ecosystem services - resources produced by natural and artificial ecosystems.

  9. Supporting Urban Areas • The area of rural land needed to support one person depends on • Climate, standard of living, how efficiently resources are used • Each person in a developed country uses 8 hectares (20 acres) of ecosystem services • Each person in the United States uses more than 12 hectares of ecosystem services. • Most people in developing countries use less than a hectare of ecosystem services. • Lack access to resources for a healthy life.

  10. Urbanization • Urbanization - movement of people from rural areas to cities. • Usually leave rural areas for better paying jobs

  11. The Urban Crisis • Urban crisis - More people live in a city than its infrastructure can support • Infrastructure- all of the things that a society builds for public use • Ex. Roads, sewers, railroads, bridges, police, fire stations, power lines….. • Rapid urban growth leads to trouble • Overwhelm the infrastructure • Ex. Traffic jams, substandard housing, polluted air and water • Living conditions deteriorate

  12. Urban Sprawl • Urban sprawl - rapid expansion of a city into the countryside around the city. • Results in the building of suburban communities (suburbs) • Most suburbs are built on land that was used for farming • Most Americans live in the suburbs • Each year suburbs spread over another million hectares (2.5 million acres)

  13. Development on Marginal Lands • Marginal land - land that is poorly suited for building • Many cities were first built in areas where there was little room for expansion. • Suburbs were often built on marginal lands • Example: The suburbs of Los Angeles and Mexico City expanded into the surrounding mountains which are prone to mudslides

  14. Other Impacts of Urbanization • Cities generate and trap more heat than the countryside. • Heat island - the increased temperature in the city. • Concrete retains more heat than vegetation. • Heat is generated by the infrastructure • Heat islands affect local weather patterns • Hot air rises and produces rain clouds.

  15. Urban Planning - Intelligent Design • Land-use planning - determining in advance how land will be used • Planners use geographic information systems • Geographic information systems(GIS) - computerized system for storing, manipulating, and viewing geographic data. • The user enters information such as location of sewer lines, roads, houses and parks and then creates a map. • Allows the user to display layers of information.

  16. Urban Planning - Transportation • Many U.S. cities were constructed after the invention of the automobile and sprawl over large areas. • Difficult to get around without a car • Heavy traffic • Many cities in Europe were built before the invention of the automobile • Narrow, compact roads

  17. Manhattan vs. Florence

  18. Urban Planning - Transportation • Mass Transit systems were constructed. • Mass Transit - buses and trains move many people around the city. • Save energy • Reduce traffic • Reduce air pollution • Limit loss of land to roads and parking lots

  19. Urban Planning - Open Space • Open space - land within urban areas that is set aside for scenic and recreational enjoyment. • Parks, public gardens, bicycle and hiking trails. • Greenbelts - open spaces left in their natural condition. • Many benefits • Absorb CO2, Produce O2, remove pollutants from the air, keep the city cooler, absorb rainwater, exercise and relaxation for urban residents.

  20. Land Management and Conservation • The resources of more rural land are needed to support the growing population • Rural land categories • Farmland • Rangeland • Forest land • National and state parks • Wilderness • Rural land is important for their ecological services

  21. Farmlands • Farmland - land that is used to grow crops and fruit. • Farmland is threatened in many parts of the U.S. by land development

  22. Rangelands • Rangeland-land that supports different vegetation types that is not used for farming. • Most commonly used for the grazing of livestock such as cattle, sheep and goat. • World population growth may require a 40% increase in rangeland food production by 2030.

  23. Problems on the Range • Much of the rangeland is degraded • Poor land management. • Overgrazing - more animals graze than the area can support. • Destroys the plant community • Less desirable plants repopulate the area • Most of the rangeland is owned by the federal government and leased to ranchers

  24. Problems on the Range • Public Rangelands Improvement Act of 1978 • Intended to improve land management practices • Sustaining the productivity of rangelands • Limiting herd size • Leave the land unused for a period of time • Killing off invasive plants • Planting native vegetation • Fencing areas

  25. Forest Lands • Ecosystem services provided by the forest • Paper, wood, food, chemicals • Removal of CO2 is the most important • Worldwide 1,800 cm3 of wood used per person each day on average. • Each person in the U.S. uses three times this amount on average. • Equivalent to cutting down a 30m tall tree every year

  26. Forest Lands - Timber Industry • Timber industry classifies forest into three categories • Virgin forest - forest which has never been cut • Native forest - forest that is planted and managed. • Tree farms - trees are planted in rows and harvested like other crops

  27. Forest Lands - Timber Industry • Methods for harvesting trees • Clear cutting - removing all of the trees from an area of land • Destroys wildlife and causes soil erosion • Selective cutting - cutting an removing only middle aged or mature trees. • More expensive but less destructive

  28. Clear-cutting

  29. Selective cutting

  30. Forest Lands - Deforestation • Deforestation - the clearing of trees from an area without replacing them. • As the population grows deforestation increases. • Increase in demand for forest products • Convert land into farmland • Space for roads, factories and building • Impacts • Reduces wildlife • Soil erosion • Depletion of natural resource

  31. Forest Lands - Reforestation • 90% of all timber comes from forests that are not monitored and managed by an agency. • Reforestation - process by which trees are planted to re-establish trees that have been cut down. • Replanting trees can reverse soil erosion • Some governments require replanting of areas after timber has been harvested

  32. Parks and Preserves • National parks protect land and wildlife • Yellowstone was the first national park created in the 1870s. • National parks are better protected than other public lands which can be leased and used for mining, ranching and logging. • Some public lands are used to protect wildlife or an endangered species.

  33. Parks and Preserves • United Nation's Man and the Biosphere Program - 1976 • Established several hundred preserves throughout the world. • Humans and wildlife are included in the plan and live side by side. • Called biosphere reserves

  34. Parks and Reserves - Wilderness • Wilderness - area in which the land and the ecosystems it supports are protected from all exploitation. • U.S. Wilderness Act - 1964 • Designated certain lands as wilderness areas • 32 million acres have been designated wilderness in the U.S. • These areas are open to hiking, fishing, boating and camping • No motorized equipment is allowed,

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