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HUMAN SETTLEMENTS, INDUSTRIES

& SHORE PROTECTION WORKS

presented by: jaffer yousuf

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HUMAN SETTLEMENTS

There is a considerable overlap between historic cultural

centers & centers of biodiversity

Some factors promoting high biodiversity, such as perennialwater availability, environmental heterogeneity & fertile soils

have always favored human settlement

(Balmford and others 2001)

Most important centers of vertebrate & plant diversity are

inhabited by more than 100 million people & are areas of

intensive land use

(Balmford and others 2001)

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In 1995 more than 1.1 billion people, nearly 20% of

world population, were living within the hotspots

Population growth rate in the hotspots (1995-2000) was1.8%/yr, substantially higher than the population growth

rate of the world as a whole (1.3%/yr) & above that of the

developing countries (1.6%/yr)

Human-induced environmental changes are likely to

continue in the hotspots & that demographic change

remains an important factor in global biodiversity

conservation

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Living organisms are critical in creating the environmental

conditions on earth that make it habitable to humans and

many other spp.

Major increases in the human population & rising wealth

create pressures on land & on freshwater & marine

ecosystems

Fossil-fuel combustion & deforestation due to human

settlements have increased the conc. of atmospheric CO2

by 30% in the past three centuries

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Run off of nutrients from agricultural & urban systems haveincreased several-fold in the developed river basins of the

earth

Humans have transformed 4050% of the ice-free landsurface changing prairies, forests & wetlands into

agricultural & urban systems

We use 54% of the available fresh water, with useprojected to increase to 70% by 2050

Mobility of people has transported organisms across

geographical barriers

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Habitat is lost when land cover (or its aquatic equivalent) ischanged, usually as a result of changing use by humans

Common examples are:

conversion of near-natural vegetation to temporary or

permanent croplands

replacement of forest by pastures &

alteration of river habitats by dams, pollution & removal

of water for human use

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Forests and woodland cover is declining at a rate

more or less equivalent to the increase in cropland

(Scholes and Biggs 2005)

The terrestrial ecosystem type where the greatest

degree of habitat loss has occurred is grasslands,

which have been converted to cereal agriculture

(Scholes and Biggs 2005)

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Habitat fragmentation the division ofcontinuous patches into smaller pieces

First, the edge effect disrupts biodiversity for aconsiderable distance into the remnant patches

Second, the no. of species that can be supported

in the long term depends on habitat size

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Conversion of lands to agriculture in the prairies (Canada)

loss of 87% of native short grass prairie habitat

81% of native mixed-grass prairie habitat and

84% of the native aspen parkland habitat

Increased demands for food production are further

accelerating the rate of conversion of lands with moderate

agricultural value to farmland

In settled parts of Canada, 90% of wetlands have been

drained

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HUMAN SETTLEMENT &

CORAL REEFS

In the year2000, over75% of the worlds roughly507,000 km2 of coral reefs were near (i.e., within

50 km of) human settlements

This is a marked increase from calculated 50%that were near human settlements in 1950

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OIL & GAS INDUSTRY

Oil exploration by seismic companies involves surveying,clearing of seismic lines & massive dynamiting for

geological excavation (Seismic testing)

Explosion of dynamite in aquatic environment producesnarcotic effect & mortality of fish & other faunal organisms

Destabilization of sedimentary materials associated with

dynamite shooting causes

increment in turbidity

blockage of filter feeding apparatuses in benthic fauna

reduction of photosynthetic activity due to reduced light

penetration etc

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Burying of oil & gas pipelines fragments rich biodiversityecosystems like rainforest & mangroves

Causes reduction in habitat area

Clearing of pipeline track delineates natural population

Sources of oil in the environment are variable including Pipeline leakage & rupturing

Accidental discharges (tank accident)

Discharges from refineries, urban centers etc

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Between 1976 & 1997 ~ 5334 reported cases of crude oil

spillages releasing about 2.8 million barrels of oil into the

land, swamp, estuaries & coastal waters of Nigeria

Most of these oil spill occur in the mangrove swamp forest

Oil interferes with the functioning of various organs

systems of plants and animals

It creates environmental conditions unfavourable for life

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Gas flaring associated with oil production is very

unfriendly to natural ecosystems & biodiversity ~ contain

over 250 toxins

There was about 100% loss in yield in all crops cultivated

about 200 m away, 45% loss about 600 m away & about

10% loss 1 km away from Izombe station in Nigeria

(Okezie and Okeke, 1987)

Leakages and fire incidents are also associated with gas

production and transportation

Such incidents can result in elimination of whole

population of endangered spp. with restricted distribution

e.g Finima hippo population are all dead

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SAND DREDGING

Another extracting industry ever increasing having greatenvironmental toll on biodiversity

Causes settled sedimentary particles to enter into

suspension, leading to high turbidity of water & reducedphotosynthetic activity

Many fauna that inhabit sandy sediments are sucked

and pumped onto land, leading to their deaths

Dredging/quarrying of sand & gravels along riverbanks

contribute to sliding, slumping & gully development

resulting in land degradation

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BIODIVERSITY OFFSET

Offsets, first formalized in the USA in the 1970s forwetland mitigation

Environmentally beneficial activities undertaken to

counterbalance an adverse environmental impact,aspiring to achieve no net environmental loss or a net

environmental benefit

A biodiversity offset is a way to demonstrate that aninfrastructure project can be implemented in a manner

that results in no net loss or a net gain of biodiversity

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Biodiversity offsets are already part of the legal framework

in some countries (USA, Brazil, Europe, Switzerland and

Canada)

Biodiversity offsets includes activities such as funding of

biodiversity research, provision of financing for protected

areas or support for capacity building in government

agencies

Resource extraction companies see them as a method of

gaining access to land, while the community may perceive

them as a way of enhancing environmental outcomes

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SHORE PROTECTION WORKS

Preventing erosion of the ground bordering a body of water

In some jurisdictions the terms sea defense and coastal

protection are used to mean, respectively, defense againstflooding and erosion

Coastal defense structures are generally concentrated on

coastal plains around cities and harbours, tourist areas,industrial complexes & infrastructure

In other words, coastal defense is concerned primarily with

the protection of economic interests rather than naturalhabitats

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METHODS OF SHORE

PROTECTION

Groynes - A coastal structure constructed

perpendicular to the coastline from the shore into

the sea to trap longshore sediment transport or

control longshore currents This type of structure is easy to construct from a

variety of materials such as wood, rock or bamboo

and is normally used on sandy coasts

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Groyne_at_Mundesley,_Norfolk.JPG

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Sea wall - A seawall is a structure constructed

parallel to the coastline that shelters the shore

from wave action

It can be used to protect a cliff from wave attack& improve slope stability & it can also dissipate

wave energy on sandy coasts

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Offshore breakwater- is a structure that parallels the

shore (in the nearshore zone) and serves as a wave

absorber

It reduces wave energy in its lee and creates a salient or

tombolo behind the structure that influences longshore

transport of sediment

These structures are appropriate for all coastlines

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Artificial headland - This structure is

constructed to promote natural beaches because

it acts as an artificial headland

It is relatively easy to construct and littlemaintenance is required

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BIOLOGICAL IMPACTS

The habitats most impacted by armoring are the beach,

above the highest high tide line, and the intertidal zone,

between the highest high tide and lowest low tide lines

Riprap placed against a cliff to slow erosion can cover up

extensive portions of the beach, which serves as habitat

for many species of Invertebrates and birds

Endangered Snowy Plover ( Charadrius alexandrines)

nests and feeds on beaches in the Sanctuary

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Armoring in the intertidal zone can also cover up vital,natural habitats for fish, algae and invertebrates

Different spp, which can capitalize on armoring surfaces,

may compete with spp that had previously occupiedthose regions

A recent study in northern Monterey Bay found that rock

type can have an impact on colonization and subsequentrecruitment of other organisms (Osborn 2002)

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The rocks used are usually foreign to the area in whichthey are emplaced, therefore physical properties of the

riprap will vary from local conditions

In Sydney, Australia, a comparison between organismsfound that seawalls supported only half the diversity of

mobile organisms compared to nearby natural rocky

substrates (Chapman 2003)

Types of algae & sessile organisms were similar on both

substrates, but rocky shores were home to more rare spp

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CONCLUSION

Undoubtedly, development & environmental degradation

are like twin brothers, but the industries must adopt

technologies and best practices that will forestall or

lessen impacts on biological diversity for our collective

well-being

Government & regulatory bodies should enact

pragmatic laws that will protect biodiversity

Enforcement becomes very crucial as sound

conceived laws on environmental protection &

conservation exist but implementation is nothing to write

about

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THANK YOU