Forests enrich the atmosphere with oxygen that is so necessary for life, absorb carbon dioxide released by animals and humans in the process of breathing, as well as industrial enterprises in the process of work. They play a major role in the water cycle. Trees take water from the soil, filter it, cleaning it from impurities, and release it into the atmosphere, increasing the humidity of the climate. Forests affect the water cycle. Trees raise underground waters, enriching soils and keeping them from desertification and erosion - it is not for nothing that rivers become shallow during deforestation.
According to reports from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, deforestation is continuing at a rapid rate around the world. 13 million hectares of forest are lost annually, while only 6 hectares are growing.
It means that every second, a forest the size of a football field disappears from the face of the planet.
Another problem is that the organization receives these data directly from the governments of the countries, and the governments prefer not to indicate in their reports the losses associated, for example, with illegal logging.
Depletion of the ozone layer
About twenty kilometers above the planet lies the ozone layer - the Earth's ultraviolet shield.
Fluorinated and chlorinated hydrocarbons and halogen compounds emitted into the atmosphere destroy the layer structure. It is depleted and this leads to the formation of ozone holes. Destructive ultraviolet rays penetrating through them are dangerous for all life on Earth. They have a particularly negative effect on human health, immune and genetic systems, causing skin cancer and cataracts. Ultraviolet rays are dangerous for plankton - the basis of the food chain, higher vegetation, animals.
Today, under the influence of the Montreal Protocol, almost all technologies that use substances that deplete the ozone layer have found alternatives, and the production of these substances, their trade and their use is rapidly decreasing.
As you know, everything in nature is interconnected. The destruction of the ozone layer and, as a consequence, the deviation of any seemingly insignificant parameter of the environment can lead to unpredictable and irreversible consequences for all living things.
Decrease in biodiversity
According to experts, 10-15 thousand species of organisms disappear annually. This means that over the next 50 years, the planet will lose, according to various estimates, from a quarter to half of its biological diversity... Depletion of the species composition of flora and fauna significantly reduces the stability of ecosystems and the biosphere as a whole, which also poses a serious threat to humanity. The process of declining biodiversity is characterized by an avalanche acceleration. The less biodiversity of the planet, the worse the conditions for survival in it.
As of 2000, 415 animal species are included in the Red Book of Russia. This list of animals has increased by one and a half times in recent years and does not stop growing.
Humanity as a species with a huge number and habitat does not leave a suitable habitat for other species. An intensive expansion of the area of specially protected natural areas for the preservation of endangered species, as well as strict regulation of the extermination of commercially valuable species.
Water pollution
Pollution of the aquatic environment has occurred throughout the entire history of mankind: from time immemorial people have used any river as a sewer. The greatest danger to the hydrosphere arose in the 20th century with the emergence of large multi-million dollar cities and the development of industry. Over the past decades, most of the world's rivers and lakes have been turned into sewers and sewage lagoons. Despite hundreds of billions of dollars in investment sewage treatment plant, which are able to prevent the transformation of a river or lake into a fetid slurry, but are not able to return the water to its former natural purity: the growing volumes of industrial wastewater and solid waste dissolving in water are stronger than the most powerful treatment units.
The danger of water pollution is that a person largely consists of water and, in order to remain human, he must consume precisely water, which in most cities on the planet can hardly be called drinkable. About half of the population developing countries does not have access to sources pure water, forced to drink contaminated with pathogenic microbes and therefore doomed to premature death from epidemic diseases.
Overpopulation
Humanity today perceives its huge number as the norm, believing that people, with all their number and all their life activity, do not harm the ecosystem of the planet, and also that people can continue to increase their numbers, and that this allegedly does not in any way affect the ecology, animals and flora as well as the life of humanity itself. But in fact, today, already now, humanity has crossed all the boundaries and lines that the planet could tolerate. The earth cannot support such a huge number of people. According to scientists, 500 thousand is the maximum permissible number of people for our Planet. Today, this limit has been exceeded 12 times, and according to scientists' forecasts, by 2100 it may almost double. At the same time, the modern human population of the Earth for the most part does not even think about what global harm is caused by a further increase in the number of people.
But an increase in the number of people is also an increase in the use of natural resources, an increase in areas for agricultural and industrial needs, an increase in the amount of harmful emissions, an increase in the number household waste and areas for their storage, an increase in the intensity of human expansion into nature and an increase in the intensity of destruction of natural biodiversity.
Humanity today is simply obliged to restrain its growth rates, rethink its role in the ecological system of the Planet, and take up building human civilization on the basis of a harmless and meaningful existence, and not on the basis of animal instincts for reproduction and absorption.
Oil pollution
Oil - natural oily flammable liquid widespread in the sedimentary shell of the Earth; the most important mineral. A complex mixture of alkanes, some cycloalkanes and arenes, as well as oxygen, sulfur and nitrogen compounds. Today, oil, as an energy resource, is one of the main factors in the development of the economy. But oil production, transportation and processing are invariably accompanied by its losses, emissions and discharges of harmful substances, the consequence of which is pollution environment... In terms of the scale and degree of toxicity, oil pollution is a global hazard. Oil and petroleum products cause poisoning, death of organisms and soil degradation. Natural self-cleaning of natural objects from oil pollution is a long-term process, especially at low temperatures. The enterprises of the fuel and energy complex are the largest industrial source of environmental pollutants. They account for about 48% of emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere, 27% of the discharge of polluted wastewater, over 30% of solid waste and up to 70% of the total volume of greenhouse gases.
Land degradation
Soil is the keeper of fertility and life on Earth. It takes 100 years to form a layer of 1 cm thick. But it can be lost in just one season of thoughtless exploitation of the land by man. According to geologists, before a person began to engage in agriculture economic activities, rivers annually carried 9 billion tons of soil into the ocean. With human assistance, this figure has increased to 25 billion tons per year. The phenomenon of soil erosion is becoming more and more dangerous. fertile soils on the planet are becoming less and less and it is vitally important to preserve at least what is available at the moment, to prevent the disappearance of this single layer terrestrial lithosphere where plants can grow.
Under natural conditions, there are several reasons for soil erosion (weathering and leaching of the upper fertile layer), which are further aggravated by humans. Millions of hectares of soil are lost
More than 50 billion tons of waste from energy, industrial, agricultural production and the household sector, including from industrial enterprises- more than 150 million tons. About 100 thousand artificial chemicals are released into the environment, of which 15 thousand require special attention.
All of this waste is a source of environmental pollution instead of being a source for the production of secondary products.
Detailed solution Paragraph § 57 on geography for grade 8 students, authors I.I. Barinova 2015
Questions at the beginning of a paragraph
1) What does geography give a person? How has this science changed over the past two centuries?
Geography gives a person knowledge about the Earth. It gives you the opportunity to imagine and assess the situation on the globe of yourself, your region, your country. Geography is associated with all spheres of human life: agriculture, industry, politics. Science gives an idea of other peoples, their traditions. Geography helps to consider all issues both in detail and globally. Over the past two centuries, geography has undergone even greater differentiation. New specialized industries have emerged. New methods were mastered in geography.
Questions at the end of a paragraph
1. What scientists of antiquity noted the influence of nature on human life?
Hippocrates, Aristotle, Herodotus, Strabo. Humboldt.
2. Explain what is geographic determinism, geographic nihilism?
Geographic determinism is a concept that asserts that the process of social development is not the result of the manifestation of objective laws, but a consequence of the influence of natural forces.
Geographic nihilism - belittling the importance of natural conditions, resources for the existence and development of society.
3. What is the reason for the ecological crisis today.
global warming, greenhouse effect, shift of climatic zones; ozone holes, destruction of the ozone screen; reduction of biological diversity on the planet; global pollution of the environment; non-disposable radioactive waste; water and wind erosion and reduction in the area of fertile soils; population explosion, urbanization;
depletion of non-renewable mineral resources; energy crisis;
a sharp increase in the number of previously unknown and often incurable diseases; lack of food, a permanent state of hunger for most of the world's population; depletion and pollution of the resources of the World Ocean.
4. Describe the environmental situation in Russia.
The ecological situation in Russia is very difficult, and in a number of regions it is critical. Manufacturing, transport, utilities in most regions of Russia are not environmentally friendly. In 1989, the Institute of Geography compiled an ecological map of the USSR, in which the country's territory was divided into three zones according to the degree of ecological tension.
1. Catastrophic ecological situation - Kyshtym zone (area of the city of Kyshtym, Chelyabinsk region), where the largest accumulation of radionuclides is located.
2. Crisis ecological situation - Moscow region, Kalmykia, Northern Caspian, Middle and Lower Volga regions, European North (Kola Peninsula. New earth, Arkhangelsk region, Barents Sea), industrial zone of the Urals, oil and gas regions Western Siberia, Kuzbass, Baikal, Priangarye, a number of other areas.
3. Moderately stressful ecological situation - Central Black Earth region, European North-West and a number of other regions.
The ecological map of Russia published in 1999 identifies four stages of the ecological situation: favorable, moderately acute, acute, very acute. The latter is characterized by the fact that the environment poses a danger to human health and life. In the European macro-region, there are 20 regions with a very acute ecological situation, the largest of which are located in the Urals and the Cis-Urals, on the Volga, in the Moscow region. In the Asian macro-region there are more than 30 such regions (Tyumen region, Kuzbass, regions around Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Vladivostok, etc.).
The territory with a favorable ecological situation in the European macro-region is located north of the line Smolensk - Lake. Beloe - Glazov - the source of the Pechora (excluding areas of industrial centers and mining operations in the European North), as well as in the North Caucasus. In the Asian macroregion, a favorable ecological situation in the Far Eastern economic region (excluding the Amur river basin and a number of regions of Sakha-Yakutia and Magadan oblast), in the East Siberian (middle reaches of the Yenisei with tributaries), West Siberian (Altai Republic, some areas of the Tomsk and the east of Tyumen oblasts) economic regions.
Protected areas play an important role in nature conservation: reserves, National parks, reserves. Back in the days of Peter! it was forbidden to cut forests 30 versts along big rivers and 20 versts along the small ones. In the Decree of 1703 it was said: "For an oak, if someone cuts down at least one tree, and for many protected forests, the death penalty will be carried out."
FINAL TASKS ON THE TOPIC
1. Name all types of natural resources known to you.
Mineral resources, climatic, soil, water, biological.
2. Prove that even in conditions of scientific and technological progress, man's dependence on nature remains.
A person, even in conditions of scientific and technological progress, needs clean air, water, food. Natural resources are needed for economic activities.
3. What is geographic forecast? Give examples of geographic forecasts.
A forecast is a scientific development of an understanding of the nature of the future, its states and properties, due to both own development and human activities. There are time forecasts: long-term (weather forecast for a month, season and more), medium-term (weather forecast for a week), short-term (weather forecast for the next day). By scale - global (changes in the Earth's climate), regional (forecast of resource use Of the Far East) are local. In terms of content - industry-specific (forecast of changes in precipitation), complex (forecast of changes in the natural complex).
Extreme conditions (from the Latin extremus - extreme, extreme, severe) are conditions that are extremely unfavorable for the human body: with very low temperatures winters, with very high summer temperatures, with strong winds, with very high humidity. On the territory of our country, the following territories with extreme conditions can be distinguished: tundra, deserts, areas of a sharply continental climate in Siberia, the Far Eastern monsoon zone. Such conditions create great difficulties not only for people living in them, but also for tools of labor. Temperature -45 ° С is critical for mechanisms. For northern regions it is necessary to make them from special frost-resistant materials. The development of territories with extreme conditions requires a significant investment of funds, as well as the enthusiasm of people.
5. What natural conditions are considered comfortable for a resident of the middle lane?
Part of the territory of our country is distinguished by conditions favorable for human life and health: warm sunny summers, moderately cold winters, sufficient rainfall, an abundance of attractive picturesque landscapes.
6. What do you need to know and be able to do to deal with natural phenomena? What natural phenomena are typical for your region? What measures are being taken to combat them?
To deal with natural phenomena, one must first of all know well the reasons for their origin. Scientists come to the aid of people who study and try to predict natural natural phenomena... It is very difficult and hard work, despite the fact that it uses the latest achievements of science and technology, in particular space methods.
In our country, forecasts of volcanic eruptions in Kamchatka are being successfully carried out, local forecasts of avalanches, mudflows, and floods are being carried out. Special structures are being built to protect people from some of the natural disasters.
People have already learned to predict in advance droughts and floods, hurricanes and storms, blizzards and snow drifts. But there remains a lot of unexplored, requiring great efforts in the study of natural elements.
More detailed space methods of their study will be of great help in understanding the formidable forces of nature, because they make it possible to obtain new operational information about formidable natural phenomena. In the future, people will conduct regular observations covering the entire Earth, and predict natural processes, and in some cases, prevent them.
To protect the population of the country from natural and man-made disasters, a special Ministry for Emergency Situations has been created. Well trained and equipped professionals move quickly to the area natural disaster and provide assistance to the victims.
7. How does human activity affect nature?
As a result of his economic activity, man changes all the components of nature. Extraction of substances occurs during the extraction of minerals, deforestation. Agriculture is associated with plowing soil and reducing biodiversity, applying chemical fertilizers, drainage, and irrigation. Industry pollutes air, water. Every year the onslaught of man on nature is increasing.
Practical work No. 13. Comparative characteristics of natural conditions and resources of two regions of Russia.
Scientists have calculated that the following territory is needed to support the life of one person:
approximately 100 m2 of residential and industrial premises;
100 m2 for infrastructure (roads, power lines, etc.);
12 thousand m2 of pastures and hayfields;
4.6 thousand m2 of agricultural fields;
700 m2 of forest to absorb the emitted carbon dioxide and obtain oxygen.
The population of the North of Russia is 9.3 million people, the area of the territory is 11 million km2. Does it follow from these data that in the North of our country the most favorable conditions to support human life? Justify your answer by analyzing the maps of the atlas and the textbook.
It is impossible to draw a conclusion about the favorableness of the north for human life. This is confirmed by the extremely low population density in the north of the country. The fact is that the productivity of pastures, hayfields, agricultural fields in to a greater extent than their area. People are interested in the natural conditions of the area where their dwellings are located, and then their area. The North of Russia is distinguished by unfavorable and sometimes even extreme natural conditions for human life.
Using these data, compare the Urals and the Far East and evaluate these territories in terms of living conditions of the population.
The area of the Urals is 1,818,497 km2. More than 19 million people live on this area. The main features of the distribution of the population of the Urals are determined by the geography of industry. The highest population density is found in the mining and smelting Urals - the most industrially developed part of the Urals. The Cis-Urals, and especially the plain Trans-Urals, are much less populated. The population density also varies greatly between the northern and southern regions. Udmurtia and the Chelyabinsk region are especially densely populated, and the Orenburg and Kurgan regions are much less populated. In the mining part of the Urals, almost the entire population is concentrated along the eastern and western foothills, and the group location of cities has led to an extremely high population density in industrial centers. Here it reaches several hundred people per square kilometer. There are also significant differences in population density between forest, forest-steppe and steppe regions of the Cis-Urals and Trans-Urals. It ranges from 5 people in the south of the steppe belt to 50 people in the forest-steppe and in the south of the forest zone. Due to the predominance of the rural population, whose share in these areas reaches 60 - 70%, there are no such jumps in population density as in the mining and refining part.
Thus, in different regions of the Urals, different conditions for the life of the population develop. The most favorable conditions are in the south of the forest zone, in the forest-steppe and steppe zones. The areas of pastures and agricultural fields are sufficient here, the infrastructure is well developed.
The population density increases only along rivers and ancient highways and reaches 50-60 people per 1 km2 in places. The area of the Far East is 6.2 million km2. With such a huge area, the population of the Far East is only 7.6 million people. On the territory of the district, the population is distributed extremely unevenly. Most high density- more than 12 people in the Primorsky Territory. Such a low population density in the region is explained by the difficult natural conditions of the region. From the point of view of housing provision, the situation here looks good. In order to retain personnel in the Far East, accelerated housing construction, strengthening of the service of everyday life and expansion of the network of social and cultural institutions and enterprises are envisaged. The provision of pastures and agricultural fields is not high here, all because of the severity of the climate and the features of the relief. The infrastructure of the region is significantly inferior in development to other regions of the country.
In general, the Urals have more attractive, favorable conditions for human life.
Features of the nature of Russia Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of territory with a rich variety of natural and climatic conditions. Any constituent entity of the Russian Federation in terms of its scale can be equated to one or another state of Europe, the territory of some federal districts of the country is comparable to the area of a number major states the world. The country has a high diversity of territorial distribution of natural resources and population settlement. Most of the territory of Russia lies in a moderate climatic zone; North islands Arctic Ocean and the northern continental regions lie in the arctic and subarctic belts; The Black Sea coast of the Caucasus is located in the subtropical zone. The climate is almost everywhere continental, with cold winters with long snow cover and hot summers. Coldest place in the northern hemisphere (from minimum temperature January -68 C) - the city of Oymyakon in Eastern Siberia. In the south of the Far East, the climate is temperate monsoon with average January temperatures from 0 C to -5 C. The largest number precipitation falls in the mountains of the Caucasus and Altai (up to 2000 mm per year), the driest region is the Caspian lowland (about 150 mm of precipitation per year). Its size is one of the most important natural features of the Russian Federation. Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of area. This is its essential advantage. But at the same time, the large size of the territory also causes significant difficulties in the life and economic activity of Russians. The vast expanses of the state represent a certain defensive benefit. In the vastness of Russia, more than one invasion of its enemies, who initially won victories and seized vast territories of the country, drowned. But they usually did not have enough strength to hold back what they had won, and the conquerors left our country. When attempting to occupy Russia, it was necessary to spend a lot of energy on the protection of extended communications, on the fight against partisans in the rear of the advancing armies. Suffice it to recall the invasion of Napoleon's armies, who managed to capture Smolensk and Moscow, the interventionists who seized the north, south and Far East of Russia during Civil war... The fascist German armies reached Moscow, the Volga and the Caucasus, but their offensive ended in complete defeat. Vast spaces make it necessary to have a large army to defend the borders and the entire territory. The total length of Russia's borders is 61 thousand km. Of these, land accounted for 14.5 thousand km, river - 7 thousand km, lake - 0.5 thousand km. Previously, all the borders of the USSR were well equipped technically and were under constant supervision of border guards. After the breakup Soviet Union most of the land borders were not equipped in any way (more than 50%). The greatest length of unsettled borders is with Kazakhstan. The sea border is 39 thousand km. Russia is a sea power, it has four navy: Northern, Baltic, Pacific and Black Sea. The bases of these fleets are separated from each other by great distances, which makes it difficult for their interaction. The sheer size of the country's geographic space is in clear contradiction with Russia's relatively small population. The ongoing rapid decline in the number of Russians leads to an aggravation of the problem of using natural resources and preserving the country's territory. According to N.N. Klyuev, “Russia's vast, far from yet developed natural resources, including its territory, are unlikely to remain out of sight of other countries in the face of an acute shortage of resources in the world. The attention of the outside world to the imbalance between the underdeveloped Russian territory, rich in natural resources, and a relatively small population is a real threat to Russia's national security. " The huge size of the country and the inconvenient configuration of its space complicate transport, economic and social ties in Russia. This increases the cost of production and significantly affects the decline in the living standards of Russians. Indirectly, long distances also affect the health of Russians. For example, record long duration the life of the Japanese is associated with the nature of their diet, in particular, with the consumption of food a large number fish and seafood. The reason for the decline in the share of seafood in the diet of Russians is not only a decrease in fish catches in the country, but also a sharp rise in seafood prices. This increase is due to a number of reasons, including the enormous distances for transporting fish to the consumer: 60% of the all-Russian fishing is in the Sea of Japan, Okhotsk and Bering. Russia possesses many minerals due to geological structure... In terms of the cost of minerals, Russia is the richest country in the world. The population of Russia is only 2.1% of the world population. But Russians hold more than 50% of the world's diamonds and gas. In terms of reserves of nickel, zinc, silver, titanium, platinum group metals, coal, lead, cobalt, molybdenum, Russia occupies a leading position. Taking into account the cost of mineral resources per capita, our country is 2–3 times richer than the USA, and 5–6 times richer than the countries of Western Europe. Oil and gas resources receive the greatest attention in the modern world market. Russia ranks first in terms of gas reserves. More than 75% of Russia's explored onshore oil and gas fields are already involved in development. At the same time, the depletion of these deposits is approaching 50%. Many oil and gas fields have been discovered on the shelves of the Baltic, Barents, Okhotsk, Japanese, Caspian and Azov seas. The area of the Russian shelf exceeds 6.2 million km2, of which 4 million km2 are promising for oil and gas. The main volumes of oil and gas reserves are concentrated on the shelves of the Arctic seas. Here their prey is impeded by the harsh climatic conditions... This significantly increases the price of oil and gas production compared to other parts of the world. Large areas in Russia are occupied by wetlands - swamps, swampy and waterlogged lands (wetland in English means "wet land"). About 60% of the area of bogs in the Northern Hemisphere is concentrated in Russia; they occupy vast areas in Western Siberia. The Vasyugan bog with an area of 53 thousand km2 is considered the largest in the world. The total area of peat bogs in Western Siberia is 400 thousand km2, and together with swampy and waterlogged lands, it reaches 1 million km2. The total reserves of peat in Russia are estimated at 163 billion tons at 40% humidity. In addition to Western Siberia, vast swamps are located in the North Siberian, Yano-Indigirskaya and Kolyma lowlands. There are many swampy areas on the Russian Plain - in Arkhangelsk, Vologda, Novgorod, Tver, Leningrad regions... Swamps make it difficult to build roads, hinder construction, and raise the cost of mining. For example, most of the oil fields are located in Western Siberia among swamps. But swamps also play a positive role. They serve as reservoirs of water, sustainable sources of water for rivers. The share of water in the total volume of peat reaches 94%. Bogs reliably and for a long time (for hundreds of years) fix in themselves large masses of carbon compounds. Carbon is especially well preserved under water in the composition of peat. There are no soil fungi in the swamps, which destroy organic matter, releasing the carbon contained in them. About 75% of the world's peat bogs are concentrated in Russia (109 million hectares). Every year, 50 million tons of organic carbon is recorded in the peat mass of bogs in our country, which is thus removed from the planetary cycle. By absorbing excess atmospheric carbon, swamps reduce the rate of growth of the greenhouse effect and slow down global warming. Our country plays a leading role in positively influencing the course of global climatic processes, in preserving ecologically favorable properties atmospheric air... In addition to peat, huge masses of sapropel are formed in swamps (organic matter accumulated on the bottom of lakes and lagoons from the remains of aquatic organisms, plants, protozoa, mixed with mineral sediments). Sapropel can be used to make motor fuel, various oils, lighting gas, coke, acetic acid, methyl alcohol, wax, insulating materials... Peat and sapropel can be used in agriculture as organic fertilizers. Sapropel is used in medicine. His healing properties are similar to an expensive mumiyo. The total reserves of sapropel in Russia account for 30% of the world's resources. Peat and sapropel represent a huge energy reserve. Russia is located in 10 natural zones. The most agriculturally productive steppe and forest-steppe zones occupy only one fifth of the country. The most valuable crops are grown here, such as sunflowers, sugar beets, corn, and wheat. Fertile soils of the steppe and forest-steppe make up a little more than half of the total arable land in the country. The rest of the fields are located on marginal lands that need constant and intensive fertilization. Mountain areas are mainly located in the south and east of the country. They serve as shock absorbers of seismic stresses arising in connection with movements from the south and east of the lithospheric plates to the Eurasian plate. There are no mountain structures in the west of the country. This contributes to the penetration far into the depths of Russia of humid and warm Atlantic air masses... Mountains serve as a condenser and accumulator of moisture, including in the form of snow and ice. Most of the great rivers of Russia (except for the Volga) originate in the mountains and carry their waters into the Arctic Ocean. In our country, there are a lot of unfavorable natural factors that greatly complicate life in the mountains. These include high seismicity, frequent mudflows, avalanches, rockfalls, the dominance of steep slopes, on which it is difficult to build roads and houses, and engage in agriculture. Therefore, the main branch of agriculture in the mountains is animal husbandry. Among the most important negative properties of the nature of Russia are its weather and climatic features. Almost the entire country is located north of 50 ° N latitude. Provides inconvenience and a short growing season. In different natural areas, it lasts from four to six months. The northern position of the country, unfavorable climatic conditions affect all spheres of economic activity and daily life of people. Huge amounts of money are being spent on fighting the cold. Average duration heating season in Russia - 225 days. In short, he is in Adygea - 154 days. The longest in Chukotka - 318 days. In Moscow, the duration of the heating season is 214 days on average. Large expenses for heating, construction, clothing, food make the life of Russians more expensive. Russia is a great snow power. Many of its natural, economic and economic features are determined by the snow cover. Snow for Russia is both good and bad. Large sums of money are spent in cities to combat snow drifts. But thanks to snow, winter agriculture with its more stable yields is possible in Russia. Snow is a moisture accumulator in fields and reservoirs. 45% of all agricultural land in Russia is located in the zone of insufficient moisture, risky farming. Therefore, after the abolition of serfdom in Russia, a form of unification of agricultural labor in the form of communal agriculture took shape, which served as the basis for collective agricultural labor in the 30s of the last century. Current attempts to massively expand farming forms of agricultural production have been unsuccessful. More than 60% of the country's territory is covered with permafrost soils. To the east of the Yenisei, permafrost occurs up to the very southern borders country. The presence of permafrost has a negative effect on all sectors of the economy, leads to the complication of technology construction works... For example, in Norilsk, most of the buildings are raised above the frozen ground and placed on piles. In areas of permafrost, many cities and towns are surrounded by mountains of garbage. In permafrost soils, the processes of its decomposition do not take place. It is difficult to deal with water supply problems in these areas. However, some natural features regions of permafrost are positive. In summer, the upper active permafrost layer thaws and provides moisture to the plant roots. Therefore, in Siberia, even in areas with low rainfall, forests of Daurian larch grow. It has a horizontal root system and can feed on moisture from thawed permafrost. There are also a number of positive geoecological factors associated with permafrost. It performs important environmental regulatory functions both on a national scale and throughout the planet. The largest forest in the world is located in Russia. There are 1.2 billion hectares of forest here (about a quarter of the total forest fund of the planet). The global demand for commercial timber is constantly growing. It is possible to satisfy the demand for logging only at the expense of Russia. There are great difficulties in the use of Russian forests. Most of them are located in temperate latitudes with a cold climate. This position of the forests does not contribute to their rapid restoration. In areas easily accessible for exploitation, forests have been largely deforested. Logging in remote areas is difficult due to the lack of logging roads. The forests of Russia have not only economic and economic, but also global geoecological significance. They serve as one of the most important regulators of both regional and global geoeconomic processes. In natural forests, pine needles and leaves absorb up to 90% of solar radiation. Forests serve as natural pumps that regulate and enhance most of the continental moisture circulation in Russia, purify atmospheric air from carbon dioxide emissions, and generate a huge amount of oxygen in the process of photosynthesis. Only Brazilian forests play a role comparable to Russian forests in the global ecosystem. Russia has an enormous hydroecological potential. More than 2.5 million rivers flow on its territory. Russia has very large resources fresh water... But these resources have a number of significant drawbacks that complicate their rational use. First, the volume of water varies greatly both by seasons and by years. Most of the country's rivers are fed by snow, so their main flow occurs in spring. This is the main reason for fluctuations in their water content. Uneven flow interferes rational use hydro resources, accompanied by large economic losses. A significant part of the water flows off unused. High water and high water flood settlements, destroy bridges, hinder the work of transport. Water supplies are needed for sustainable water supply to cities and towns, large industrial enterprises. Water supply to many cities in the country is carried out using reservoirs. Currently, reservoirs have become a significant link in the hydroecological system of Russia. The total number of reservoirs in the country is 1200 (excluding small ones with a volume of less than 100 million m3). Creation artificial reservoirs demanded huge labor and financial costs. Among the negative features of the hydraulic network of Russia are the disproportions in the distribution of the population and water resources... About 90% of the annual volume of river flow falls on the basins of the Arctic and Pacific oceans. Less than 8% - to the basins of the Caspian and Azov Seas, where 80% of the population of Russia lives and its main industrial and agricultural potential is concentrated. Under the influence economic use there is a rapid depletion of water resources in the southern region of the country. The possibilities of irretrievable water withdrawal in the basins of the Don, Ural, and the Moskva River have practically been exhausted. The long standing ice on rivers is one of the significant negative properties of the Russian hydraulic network: on average, about six months, rivers and lakes in Russia are unnavigable. The Volga basin occupies a special place in the river network of Russia. More than 40% of the country's population lives within its borders, about half of the industrial and agricultural potential is concentrated. Majority developed countries the world through large navigable rivers are connected with the oceans, which contributes to their international relations. The Volga does not open up such opportunities for the main economically developed region of Russia. It flows into the Caspian Sea-lake isolated from the World Ocean. For development transport links Central Russia with the seas of the World Ocean had to build the Volga-Don canals (access to Sea of Azov), Volgo-Baltic, Belomoro-Baltic. But these channels can only partially compensate for the lack of a direct outlet of Central Russia to the World Ocean. Russia has the largest biosphere potential on the planet. Forests, waterlogged lands and marshes, vast tracts of preserved undeveloped land are the world's natural " treatment plant"Planets. About 60% of Russia's area is not affected by vigorous economic activity (the world average is 39%), of which about half is still not used at all in the economy. This is the world's largest array of natural biocenoses not disturbed by human activity. These spaces occupy the north of the Russian Plain, most of Siberia and the Far East, and the highlands of the country. These areas are dominated by productive natural communities of forests and bogs. Together, they have a powerful effect on stabilizing the natural environment on a global scale. In terms of geoecological significance, the natural plant communities of our country are comparable only with the powerful biota of the Amazon. Amazonian forests play a leading role in the stabilization of regional and global natural processes in the Southern Hemisphere, natural plant communities of Russia - in the Northern
How did the development of the Earth by man take place? It was a very difficult and lengthy process. Even now, it cannot be said that our planet has been studied 100%. Until now, there are corners of nature that have not been visited by humans.
Studying the development of land by man in the 7th grade of a secondary school. This knowledge is very important and helps to better understand the history of the development of civilization.
How did the development of the Earth by man take place?
The first stage of settlement, during which ancient erectus people began to migrate from East Africa to Eurasia and develop new lands, began about 2 million years ago and ended 500,000 years ago. Later, ancient people died out, and with the appearance of Homo sapiens in Africa 200,000 years ago, the second stage started.
The main settlement of people was observed along the mouth of large rivers - the Tigris, Indus, Euphrates, Nile. It was in these places that the first civilizations arose, which were called river civilizations.
Our ancestors chose such sites in order to break up settlements that would later become the centers of states. Their life was subject to a clear natural regime. In the spring the rivers overflowed, and then, when they dried up, fertile moist soil remained in this place, ideal for sowing.
Settlement across the continents
The overwhelming majority of historians and archaeologists consider Africa and Southwest Eurasia to be their homeland. Over time, mankind has mastered almost all continents, with the exception of Antarctica. Where it is now located 30 thousand years ago was land, which connected Eurasia and North America. It was through this bridge that people penetrated into more and more new places. So, hunters from Eurasia, having passed through North America, ended up in its southern part. People came to Australia from Southeast Asia. Scientists were able to draw such conclusions based on the results of excavations.
Main areas of settlement
When considering how human development of the land took place, it will be interesting to know how people chose their places of residence. Very often, entire settlements left their familiar corner and went into the unknown in search of better conditions. The mastered new lands made it possible to develop animal husbandry and agriculture. The number also increased very rapidly. If 15,000 years ago about 3,000,000 people lived on Earth, now this figure exceeds 6 billion. The vast majority of people live in flat areas. It is convenient to use them to break up fields, build factories and plants, equip settlements.
Four areas can be identified where the population is most densely settled. It is South and East Asia, east of North America. There are reasons for this: favorable natural factors, the prescription of the settlement and a developed economy. For example, in Asia, the population is still actively sowing and irrigating the soil. The favorable climate allows for several harvests a year to feed a large family.
Urban settlement prevails in Western Europe and North America. The infrastructure is very developed here, a lot of modern factories and factories, industry prevails over agriculture.
Economic activities
Economic activity affects the environment and changes it. Moreover, different industries affect nature in different ways.
So, Agriculture became the primary reason for the reduction of areas of the planet where natural conditions were preserved. More and more space was required for fields and pastures, forests were cut down, animals lost their homes. Due to the constant load, the soil partially loses its fertile qualities. Artificial irrigation allows you to get good harvest, but this method has its drawbacks. So, in arid regions, too abundant watering of the land can lead to salinization and a decrease in yield. Domestic animals trample vegetation and compact the soil cover. Often, in an arid climate, pastures turn into a desert.
Rapid industrial growth is especially harmful to the environment. Solid and liquid substances penetrate into soil and water, and gaseous gases are released into the air. The rapid growth of cities necessitates the development of more and more territories where vegetation is being destroyed. Environmental pollution has an extremely adverse effect on human health.
Human development of the Earth: countries of the world
People who live in the same area have mutual language and one culture, form an ethnos. It can consist of a nation, tribe, people. In the past, great ethnic groups created entire civilizations.
Currently, there are more than 200 states on the planet. They all differ from each other. There are states that occupy the whole mainland (Australia), and there are very tiny ones, consisting of one city (Vatican). Countries also differ in terms of population. There are billionaire states (India, China), and there are those in which there are no more than a few thousand (San Marino).
So, considering the question of how the development of the Earth by man took place, we can conclude that this process has not yet been completed and we still have to learn a lot of interesting things about our planet.
From many other planets - the presence of intelligent beings on it - people. Where and when did the first person appear? People have been searching for an answer to this question for a very long time.
Human settlement of the Earth
In the resettlement of people around the planet, two stages are distinguished. About 2 million years ago, ancient people began to penetrate from into other areas and to other continents. This stage of the development of the Earth ended about 500 thousand years ago. Subsequently, the ancient people died out.
Modern man ("homo sapiens") appeared in only about 200 thousand years ago. It was from here that the second stage of human settlement began. They were forced to go to new unknown lands, first of all, by concern for food. With the increase in the number of people, the territories where hunting was carried out expanded, edible plants were gathered. Strong climate change also contributed to the resettlement of people. The level 15-16 thousand years ago was lower than the modern one by 130 m, so there were "land bridges" between separate continents and islands. The transition to a sedentary lifestyle took place 11 thousand years ago. This contributed to the development of ancient civilizations. Many monuments of their culture have survived to this day.
Races
Long-term existence of people in various natural conditions led to the emergence of races - large groups people who have common, inherited, external signs. According to external features, all of humanity is divided into four large geographical races.
Negroid race formed in hot regions of the Earth. Dark, almost black, skin, coarse curly or wavy black hair, characteristic of these people, protect against sunburn and overheating of the body. Brown eyes. A wide, flat nose and thick lips help regulate body temperature.
Australoid race by the outward signs of its representatives, it is close to the Negroid.
Mongoloid adapted to life in the steppes and semi-deserts, where summer temperatures are high, frequent strong winds and dust storms. The yellow color of the skin protects from excessive exposure to sunlight. The narrow cut of the eyes saves them from wind and dust. Mongoloids have straight, coarse hair, a large flattened face, protruding cheekbones and a slightly protruding nose.
Caucasoid race divided into northern and southern branches. Southern Caucasians have dark skin, brown eyes, and dark hair. In the north, the skin is white, the hair is light and soft, the eyes are blue or gray.
Mixed races. Over time, the proportion of people on Earth is growing, in the form of which there are signs of different races. They form mixed races, the emergence of which is associated with the resettlement of people. These include mestizos - descendants of Europeans and Indians; mulattos - descendants of Europeans and peoples of the Negroid race; Sambo - descendants of Indians and peoples of the Negroid race; Malgash are descendants of the peoples of the Negroid and Mongoloid races.