Question

Explain the human activities responsible for diminishment of ecosystems.

Answer 1

The human activities responsible for diminishment of ecosystems are as follows:

• Increasing use of resources due to increased population – Humans are the consumers in an ecosystem. Ecosystems can provide basic needs in normal conditions, but due to increased population, man kept on snatching natural resources on large scale. Changing lifestyle demands ‘more’ than ‘necessary’. That has increased stress on the ecosystems and has generated vast amount of wastes.
• Urbanization - Due to continuous process of urbanization. More and more agricultural lands, marshlands, wetlands, forests and grasslands are being destroyed for buildings and other basic facilities around. As a result of this human interference, ecosystems either change or get completely destroyed.
• Industrialization and traffic - Raw materials required for industrialization are obtained by destroying forests. This result in destruction of forests. To provide the amenities for increased traffic, many times roads and railways are built through forests and wetlands.
• Tourism - People visit scenic places mainly for nature watch, entertainment and visit to sacred places. A lot of amenities are created for these tourists. This causes destruction of local ecosystems due to increased stress.
• Large Dams - Dams cover vast lands. So the forests or grassland in that area get converted into aquatic ecosystems. Dams also lessen the water current in the lower area. Therefore, the previous ecosystems in that running water get destroyed.