Changing environments

In a nutshell

The environment changes over time, this can occur naturally, or unnaturally due to human impact. There are some activities that us humans can do, such as recycling, to reduce environmental damage.

Natural change

The environment changes naturally over time, especially as seasons change. Changes in climate over long periods of time also causes environmental change.

Example

A river will have different plants in and around it at different times of year. These plants will attract different insects and wildlife to the river.

Human impact

Human activity can cause environmental change. As the human population has increased, the environmental damage caused by humans has also increased.

Example

Building houses, roads and factories.

These activities destroy habitats, leaving animals and plants without food or shelter. Pollution is another major cause of environmental change. It occurs when something that should not be there, enters the environment. Pollution is a major issue as it can poison animals and negatively affect air and water quality . Litter can cause harm to plant and animal life and plastic waste can remain in the environment for hundreds of years.

How we can protect the environment

There are many ways us humans can protect the environment.

Examples

*Recycling*	Recycling, this creates new products from waste materials.
*Reusing*	Reusing plastics as this reduces the amount of plastic entering the environment.
Reducing	Reducing the amount of plastic we use.
Protecting	Protecting existing habitats of animals and plants and supporting nature reserves that do this.
*Renewable energy*	Using renewable energy sources such as solar power which uses energy from the sun, or wind power.
Planting	Planting trees to offset the effects of pollution.