CSS Geography Environmental Change Syllabus

Environmental Change syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Environmental Change in CSS Geography, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Drivers of Environmental Change

   3 topics

   • Factors of climate and environmental change
   • Transformation of nature by man
   • Global warming
2. 2

   Degradation, Pollution and Conservation

   3 topics

   • Environmental degradation and conservation
   • Nature and types of pollution
   • Problems caused by pollution
3. 3

   Global Patterns and Hazard Management

   3 topics

   • Global environment patterns
   • Environmental hazards
   • Risk management

Environmental Change flashcards for CSS Geography

24 of 50 cards from the Environmental Change deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is environmental change?

   Any long-term alteration in the natural environment, including climate, ecosystems, landforms and resources, caused by natural processes (e.g., volcanism, solar variation) or human activity (e.g., deforestation, pollution).

2. Name the major natural factors that drive climate and environmental change.

   Solar radiation (Milankovitch cycles in Earth's orbit, axial tilt and precession), volcanic eruptions, plate tectonics/continental drift, ocean currents, and atmospheric composition changes.

3. What are Milankovitch cycles and what do they affect?

   Periodic variations in Earth's orbital eccentricity (~100,000 yrs), axial tilt/obliquity (~41,000 yrs) and precession (~23,000 yrs) that alter the distribution of solar radiation and trigger glacial-interglacial cycles.

4. How do volcanic eruptions affect global climate?

   They eject ash and sulphur dioxide into the stratosphere, forming sulphate aerosols that reflect sunlight and cause short-term global cooling (e.g., Mount Pinatubo 1991 cooled Earth by ~0.5C).

5. What are the main anthropogenic (human) factors of environmental change?

   Burning fossil fuels, deforestation, industrialization, urbanization, intensive agriculture, overgrazing, and pollution that alter atmospheric composition and land cover.

6. Define 'transformation of nature by man'.

   The process by which human activity modifies natural landscapes and systems, e.g., converting forests to farmland, building dams, urban sprawl, mining, and altering river courses.

7. List four major ways humans transform the natural landscape.

   Deforestation (clearing forests), agriculture (cultivation/irrigation), urbanization (cities/infrastructure), and resource extraction (mining, quarrying, damming rivers).

8. What is the greenhouse effect?

   The natural process by which greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb and re-emit infrared radiation, trapping heat and keeping Earth's surface warm enough (~15C average) to support life.

9. List the main greenhouse gases.

   Carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), water vapour, ozone (O3), and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).

10. What is global warming?

    The long-term increase in Earth's average surface temperature, primarily due to the enhanced greenhouse effect from human emissions of greenhouse gases.

11. What is the enhanced (anthropogenic) greenhouse effect?

    The intensification of the natural greenhouse effect caused by human-added greenhouse gases, leading to extra heat retention and global warming.

12. Which greenhouse gas contributes most to anthropogenic global warming, and what is its main source?

    Carbon dioxide (CO2), mainly from burning fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas) and deforestation.

13. Why is methane a powerful greenhouse gas?

    Methane has a global warming potential roughly 25-28 times that of CO2 over 100 years; sources include livestock, rice paddies, wetlands, and landfills.

14. List four major consequences of global warming.

    Melting of glaciers and ice caps, sea-level rise, more frequent extreme weather (droughts, floods, storms), and shifts in ecosystems/species ranges.

15. How does global warming cause sea-level rise?

    Through thermal expansion of warming ocean water and the melting of land-based ice (glaciers and polar ice sheets).

16. What is the Kyoto Protocol?

    A 1997 international treaty (effective 2005) under the UNFCCC committing developed countries to binding targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

17. What is the Paris Agreement (2015)?

    An international climate accord aiming to keep global warming well below 2C above pre-industrial levels, pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5C, via nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

18. Define environmental degradation.

    The deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources (air, water, soil), destruction of ecosystems, habitat loss, and extinction of species.

19. List four major forms of environmental degradation.

    Deforestation, soil erosion/desertification, water and air pollution, and loss of biodiversity.

20. What is desertification?

    The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically due to drought, deforestation, overgrazing, or unsustainable agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions.

21. What is soil erosion and what causes it?

    The removal of topsoil by wind or water, accelerated by deforestation, overgrazing, poor farming practices and removal of vegetation cover.

22. Define environmental conservation.

    The protection, preservation, management and sustainable use of natural resources and ecosystems to prevent their depletion and maintain ecological balance.

23. Distinguish conservation from preservation.

    Conservation is the sustainable use and management of resources for present and future needs; preservation is protecting nature in its untouched state, free from human use.

24. What is sustainable development?

    Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (Brundtland Commission, 1987).

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