Waste Management (AQA GCSE Biology)
Revision Note
Written by: Lára Marie McIvor
Reviewed by: Lucy Kirkham
Human Population
Human population growth globally has been increasing exponentially for the last 150 years
The human population is growing exponentially
There are many reasons for this exponential growth, including:
Improved technology leading to an abundance of food = rapid increase in birth rate
Improved medicine, hygiene and health care = decrease in death rate
Rapid growth in the human population and an increase in the standard of living mean our negative effect on the environment is also increasing
As increasingly more resources are used to sustain the growing human population, more waste is produced and more pollution is created
Unless waste and chemical materials are properly handled, pollution will continue to be created
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Pollution
Water pollution
Sources of water pollution and their effects
Biomagnification and bioaccumulation of a pesticide in an aquatic ecosystem
Sequence of events causing eutrophication in lakes and rivers
Land pollution
Sources of land pollution and their effects
Air pollution
Sources of air pollution and their effects
How air pollution leads to acid rain
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Water pollution from sewage and water pollution from fertiliser runoff have the same end result (increase in decomposing bacteria leading to a decrease in dissolved oxygen and death of aquatic organisms) but they do not arrive at this point in the same way.You need to learn both and be aware of the differences between them. A common misconception is that sewage pollution also causes growth of water plants and algal blooms – this is very rarely the case, only runoff of fertiliser does this.
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