Environmental Issue 4: LeRoy Cooper SNHU

Environmental Issue 4 Environmental Issue LeRoy Cooper SNHU

Identify a local environmental issue and briefly describe its impact on the global environment, including human activities causing the problem supported by scientific facts. Describe the impact of this issue on the local community, with specific examples. Specify which ecological processes are affected and how, supported by scientific facts.

Paper For Above instruction

The pressing issue of global food insecurity presents significant environmental challenges rooted in human activities, primarily urbanization and deforestation. As populations grow exponentially, the demand for food escalates, prompting land-use changes and intensive agricultural practices that threaten ecological balance. Urbanization reduces available farmland by transforming rural landscapes into urban areas, leading to a scarcity of arable land globally. Additionally, deforestation for agricultural expansion diminishes forest cover, disrupting rainfall patterns and contributing to soil erosion. These activities contribute to climate change through increased greenhouse gas emissions, especially from the use of fossil fuels in agriculture and transportation (Carolan, 2013). The environmental impact extends to the atmosphere, land, and water systems, emphasizing the interconnected nature of ecological health and food security.

At the local level, food insecurity manifests through reduced agricultural productivity and altered ecosystems. In regions where farming has become less viable due to land degradation and water scarcity, communities face increased poverty and food shortages. For example, in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, deforestation and drought have led to declining crop yields, affecting livelihoods and increasing dependency on food aid (FAO, 2021). This impacts local ecologies by diminishing biodiversity, as native species lose habitat, and by impairing water cycles, which rely on vegetation for transpiration and rainfall regulation. Human activities such as slash-and-burn agriculture and overgrazing further exacerbate these issues, leading to soil degradation and desertification.

Regarding ecological processes, water cycle and nutrient cycling are most affected by food security issues. Deforestation and land conversion reduce vegetation cover, impairing transpiration and leading to decreased rainfall, thus disrupting the water cycle at regional and global levels. In arid and semi-arid zones, this results in drought conditions that threaten both agriculture and freshwater availability (Lenne & Wood, 2011). Nutrient cycling is similarly hampered owing to soil degradation and loss of microorganisms essential for organic matter decomposition. The decline in soil fertility diminishes crop yields, creating a feedback loop that further impacts the environment and food supply. These ecological disturbances illustrate the vital role of biodiverse ecosystems in sustaining food security and climate stability.

References

• Carolan, M. (2013). Reclaiming food security. Routledge.
• FAO. (2021). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
• Lenne, & Wood, D. (2011). Agrobiodiversity management for food security: a critical review. CABI.
• FAO. (2020). Climate Change and Land: An IPCC Special Report. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
• Foley, J. A., et al. (2011). Solutions for a cultivated planet. Nature, 478(7369), 337-342.
• Reay, D., et al. (2012). Global agriculture and nitrous oxide emissions. Nature Climate Change, 2(6), 441-446.
• Steinfeld, H., et al. (2006). Livestock's Long Shadow: Environmental Issues and Options. FAO.
• World Resources Institute. (2019). Creating a Sustainable Food Future. World Resources Institute.
• Gommes, P., & Kristensen, H. (2010). Organic farming and ecosystem services. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 139(3-4), 261-265.
• Beddington, J. R. (2010). Food security: contributions from ecological economics and ecological science. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 277(1696), 697-704.