Unit 8 Blog

UNIT 8 BLOG

Suggested Vocabulary:

groundwater recharge - a hydrologic process where water moves downward from surface water to groundwater.

floodplain - an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding.

Levee - an embankment built to prevent the overflow of a river.

Dike - a long wall or embankment built to prevent flooding from the sea.

Desalinization - is the removal of salt and other impurities from seawater to produce fresh drinking water.

Distillation - the action of purifying a liquid by a process of heating and cooling.

Reverse Osmosis - a process by which a solvent passes through a porous membrane in the direction opposite to that for natural osmosis when subjected to a hydrostatic pressure greater than the osmotic pressure.

Point Source of Pollution - a distinct location from which pollution is directly produced

Non-point Source of Pollution - a diffused area that produces pollution

MCL - medial collateral ligament (MCL) is a wide, thick band of tissue that runs down the inner part of the knee from the thighbone (femur) to a point on the shinbone (tibia) about four to six inches from the knee.

Clean Water Act - (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution.

Safe Water Drinking Act - (SDWA) is the main federal law that ensures the quality of Americans' drinking water.

Types of water pollution- You should know the source and the potential human/ecological health effects of each:

Lead - Paint, dust, soil, drinking water, air, cosmetics, consumer products, imported candies. Effects include: slow deterioration of the nervous system (including the brain) and kidneys. 

Mercury - volcanoes, forest fires, cannabar (ore) and fossil fuels such as coal and petroleum. Effects include: impaired neurological development.

Arsenic - ground water, mineral ore, and geothermal processes. Effects include: cancer in the skin, lungs, bladder, and kidney.

Acid deposition/Mine drainage - industrial plants, burning of fossil fuels, and mines. Effects include: water can become toxic and dangerous to consume or drink.

Pesticides - agricultural land but released in forms like sprays, liquids, sticks, powders, crystals, balls, and foggers. Effects include: kill plants and other organisms living in the ecosystem.

Pharmaceuticals - in drinking water supplies through sources such as industries, hospitals, medical facilities, households, veterinary drug use, and agricultural areas. Effects include: feminization of male fish, delayed sexual development, embryo mortality, structural and neurological damage, abnormal hormone levels.

Hormones - thyroid stimulating hormone also endocrine disrupting chemicals. Effects include: decrease in reproduction, mood swings. 

PCBs - polychlorinated biphenyls. Effects include: cancer at a very lethal level.

PBDEs - polybrominated diphenyl. Effects include: severe damage to the brain or nervous system.

Oil - Oil wells, and drilling rigs. Effects include: Contamination and fast removal of many species.

Solid Waste - Main source is humans. Effects include: the filling up of landfills and air pollution/land pollution

Thermal - geothermal power plants. Effects include: natural colder waters and changes in temperature.

Freshwater Resource Discussion

Underground aquifers, lakes, rivers and wetlands provide many ecological and economic benefits to their surrounding ecosystems.  Discuss both the ecological and economic benefits of each freshwater-ish source (I get that wetlands are not always freshwater... but they are super important!) giving at least two example for each.  Also give at least one example of how human activity can be harmful to each of these resources.

Aquifers: Aquifers are a body of permeable rock that can contain or transmit groundwater. They have proven to be extremely beneficial to agricultural and public use by means of protecting pollutants. Local governments allows farmers to take advantage and use the resource for irrigation. The aquifers also provide clean, healthy, and pure water for many people. This not only helps sustain the human population but also the plant life evolving in many ecosystems. They also act as substitutes to helping farmers where land is too dry. A negative effect includes an increase in salinity and decreasing natural sources of water.

Lakes: Lakes are a large body of water surrounded by land. They are a primary home to many plants and animals. Lakes are used for many economic reasons because it provides waters communally and also for entertainment and recreation use. It also increases biodiversity and also provides food and fiber to neighboring ecosystems. Although lakes can be positive and distribute nutrients to other places, it also leads to negative effects such as pollution, eutrophication and an increased amount of algae blooms resulting in decreased amounts of clean and sustainable oxygen levels. 

Rivers: Rivers are a large natural stream of water flowing in a channel to the sea, a lake, or another such stream. They are usually used for means of transportation, easy access to available goods and a push towards fertile soil. Many species of animals and plants also grow in this environment and there are many monumental importances of rivers because they are the origin or start of what early civilizations considered "body of water." Negative impacts include the disturbance of a fine and developing ecosystem through the factors of pollution, dam building, home building, improper riddance of trash and contamination with other toxic chemicals. 

Wetlands: Wetlands are land consisting of marshes or swamps; saturated land. They work as a natural water filter and are not exactly a 100% freshwater source but are essential to the environment. They store nutrients and soil by trapping and holding the water. Due to decreased amounts of deposited sediments, the water is much cleaner and does not hold or contain high levels of toxic waste and materials. Wetlands result in increased amounts of erosion, and water drainage.

Water Diversion Discussion

Water is not always where we need it to be.  For thousands of years, humans have diverted water for their own needs via dams, dikes, and aqueducts.  Discuss 3 water diversion projects by first explaining the location of the source and then where the water ended up.  Next, for each example, discuss the ecological benefits and costs as well as the economic benefits and costs for each project (feel free to reference the work you did on your dam project if you would like or find some new examples that we haven't discussed!).

Colorado River 

The Colarado river is situated in the United States of America and many states such as Nevada, Arizona, and California border around it. Two lakes are interconnected with the river including the Mead Lake and Powell Lake. Biodiversity also exists here in that many aquatic and land species either in or out of the sea. The economical costs are increasing because the River continues to constantly keep drying up resulting in government and other volunteers to contribute to continue sustaining the river. The region is becoming a desert because of its dry and slow breakdown of the land. However the rapid building of dams around the area is kind of proving to being beneficial and helpful in keeping the river from deteriorating and completely disappearing. 

Aral Sea

The Aral Sea is bordered by 2 former Soviet nations: Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan with supporters that move water in and out such as the Amu Darya and Syr Darya. This sea has many uses ranging from fishing to transportation and even agriculture. It was once an recurring sea of growth but has become tamed and limited due to surrounding areas with an increased amount of salinity. It's biodiversity has declined and is also continuing to deplete. The government, however, is doing. The government, through economic and financial terms, is literally doing whatever it can to save the live of the Aral Sea. The restoration and refurbishing plans are still intact and continuing today.

Salton Sea
The Salton Sea is situated in Southern California where it is supported by the Whitewater River and New River. These rivers increase the seas biodiversity and allow for more species to develop and and a sustainable growth of healthy plant life. The Sea is primarily used to house many species but the people living around the sea demand a high level of good quality water which could be derived from the sea or body of water. Increased salinity amounts have killed off many species and has resulted in huge financial debt for surrounding corporations, industries, and government near the sea. 

Water Quality Discussion

When we were at Parr park, we did several water quality tests to access the health of the ecosystem.  Discuss each test and what the test indicates about the quality of the water we tested including potential sources of the pollutant associated with the test.  In addition to tests humans can run on the water itself, there are many species that can be studied that give an indication of the health of an ecosystem.  These species are known as indicator species.  Give an example of a biological indicator species and explain how changes in its morphology or population numbers gave scientists an indication that something just wasn't right in the area.  Make sure to discuss what scientists believe to be the cause of this species change.   

Being at Parr Park involved conducting many tests to test water quality, pressure, and overall health of the surrounding environment. We conducted many tests such pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, nitrate, and phosphate tests to observe and record the water quality in our selected region of the creek. At first the pH measured 8, which resulted in the water being more basic which might have been caused by sediments and/or other elements around the water. However based on previous knowledge, the water pH should have been 7 because water is always neutral. The thermometer measured temperature of the water and due to the outside weather condition being cold the water also resulted in being cold that day. Dissolved Oxygen test basically measures the amount of gaseous oxygen that has been dissolved in the water by pressure. This came out to be measured in completely different units and conversion will occur in class. The next two tests include phosphate test and nitrate test. Phosphate tests measure how much phosphate is present in a sample of water. Increased amounts lead to depleting oxygen resulting in the destruction of the living species in the environment. The Nitrate test is extremely similar to the phosphate test in that if there are gig levels of nitrate then there will be a depletion in the oxygen levels as well. Fecal Coliform was included as one of tests as well measuring the amount of coliform bacteria that is present in the environment. High quantities result in contaminated animal waste. 

Bioloical indicators are aquatic plant and animal life that are susceptible to specific types and levels of pollutants. Many organisms require a specific range of physical and chemical parameters to flourish in a surface water. An example include Fish, algae and benthic macro invertebrates. If there are increased amounts or decreased amounts of biological indicators than scientists will believe that there has been an increase/decrease in fish, algae or benethic macro invertebrates.

Water Conservation Discussion

Only 3% of the world's water is freshwater, of that 3%, less and 1% is available for human use.  The 3 largest consumers of freshwater are agriculture, industry and household use, in that order.  Give at least two suggestions for how each consumer listed above could make changes to better conserve this valuable resource.     

Agriculture

To conserve water through farmers, farmers must change their farming/irrigating practices to be more beneficial and improving. Such as drip irrigation becomes more efficient and useful. Even using modern technology or improved tools can make better changes to conserving the resources. Zai planting pits can also be hang dug and and help benefit the soil fertility mainly in arid and dry regions. 

Industry

To conserve water through industry, manufacturing business can buy less in order to produce less in factories resulting in decreased amounts of labor and not as much demand for water. Also efficient use of machinery can also result in less water use. Industries such as the fishing industry can find more efficient ways to store fish rather than in water which becomes dirty and filled with chemicals. 

Household Use

To conserve water through household use, people can of course use conventional methods by boiling and then refrigerating the water by removing the germs, bad nutrients, and killing the unhealthy molecules in the water. Other actions include turning off tap water and decreased times in showers/ decreased use of air conditioning. Reusing, Reducing, and Recycling also helps conserve water in many ways. 

BIG Picture Discussion

This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT. Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 9 and 14), from completing your assignments, the documentaries we watched and from your labs.  There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth.

Human Impact: 

Water is extremely essential for humans and the growth of many plants and animals. Humans can gain water and its use from many resources such as aquifers, rivers, lakes, and seawater. Water makes a huge impact on humans because it is high in demand. Everyone including families, industries, and farms all need water for different uses whether it be personal or business related. One problems exists however, and that includes the fact that freshwater is becoming rare and harder to find resulting in a lower stability and sustainability for humans and their growth. 

Environmental Impact:

Water has a huge impact on the environment. Water is used to be filled in rivers, seas, and oceans. It also can be used to plant natural life. Water is this one organic thing that is needed as a resource. Water usage ranges from public drinking, to agricultural use in order to grow crops. Water, environmentally, also increases biodiversity making a positive impact but negative when increasing salinization and eutrophication. 

Economical Impact:

Water is economically a necessity and its demand is constantly on the go. High end corporations such as aquafina or nestle make bottle water for consumer use. They mass produce water bottles in order to have a more high end way to organize the build up of pure and simple water. Economically in Sea's like the Aral Sea and Salton Sea governments and surrounding areas are working extremely hard to provide for refurbishing and restoring plans to bring back life into bodies of water. However, these plans result in high amounts of economic funds being given just rehabilitate rivers and arid lands. 

Governmental Legislation: 

Water, through governmental legislation has been passed in many different acts. Examples include the Federal Water Pollution Act of 1948 to provide clean water, Sage Drinking Water Act of 1974 which acted as a way to level or record the maximum contamination leveling the surface and ground water. The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 declares certain polluters responsible for oil spills and other contamination problems. Many of these governmental legislations are usually passed in order to analyze the quality of water and also the restore the cleanliness of surface, ground, and regular water. These acts act as barriers to reduce pollution and other harmful ways that water can be effected. 

Unit 7 Blog

Suggested Vocabulary:

Maximum Sustainable Yield - (especially in forestry and fisheries) the maximum level at which a natural resource can be routinely exploited without long-term depletion.
Clear Cutting - cut down and remove every tree from (an area).
Selective Cutting -  is the cutting down of selected trees in a forest so that growth of other trees is not affected.
Ecologically Sustainable Forestry - seeks to provide the social and economic benefits to the community from the use of forests, including recreation, while considering the impact on the biological diversity and health of these forests.
Urban Sprawl - the uncontrolled expansion of urban areas.
Urban Blight - (also known as urban rot and urban decay) is the process whereby a previously functioning city, or part of a city, falls into disrepair and decrepitude.
Smart Growth - planned economic and community development that attempts to curb urban sprawl and worsening environmental conditions.
Undernutrition - is the condition that develops in an individual as a result of continuously failing to get enough of the nutrients the body needs to stay healthy and functioning. 
Overnutrition - is frequent or habitual overconsumption of nutrients by eating too much food to the point that it becomes dangerous to your health. 
Agribusiness - agriculture conducted on commercial principles, especially using advanced technology.
Energy Subsidy - are measures that keep prices for consumers below market levels or for producers above market levels, or reduce costs for consumers and producers.
Green Revolution - a large increase in crop production in developing countries achieved by the use of fertilizers, pesticides, and high-yield crop varieties.
Waterlogging - refers to the saturation of soil with water. Soil may be regarded as waterlogged when the water table of the groundwater is too high to conveniently permit an anticipated activity, like agriculture.
Salinization - is the process by which water-soluble salts accumulate in the soil. 
Monocropping - is the agricultural practice of growing a single crop year after year on the same land, in the absence of rotation through other crops or growing multiple crops on the same land (polyculture).
Bioaccumulation -  refers to how pollutants enter a food chain; biomagnification refers to the tendency of pollutants to concentrate as they move from one trophic level to the next.
Pesticide Treadmill -  is a term indicating a situation in which it becomes necessary for a farmer to continue using pesticides regularly because they have become an indispensable part of an agricultural cycle.
Shifting Agriculture (Cultivation) - a form of agriculture, used especially in tropical Africa, in which an area of ground is cleared of vegetation and cultivated for a few years and then abandoned for a new area until its fertility has been naturally restored.
Desertification - the process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture.
Nomadic Grazing - is a form of pastoralism where livestock are herded in order to find fresh pastures on which to graze.
Sustainable Agriculture - is the production of food, fiber, or other plant or animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities, and animal welfare.
Organic Agriculture - is a form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, green manure, compost, and biological pest control.
CAFOs - Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation, is an industrial-sized livestock operation.
Aquaculture - the rearing of aquatic animals or the cultivation of aquatic plants for food.

Forestry Discussion

In many ecosystems, forest fires are an important natural process.  In recent years it has become more commonplace for prescribed burns to be used as an alternative way to manage forests.  Discuss at least one benefit and one cost for managing forests in this manner.  Make sure that for each example given, you discuss the economic, ecological and human impact of your example.

Benefit: Forest fires are essential and play an important role in the the natural changes that occur in Earth's ecosystems. The diversity of plant and animal life throughout every forest in the world, prairies, and wetlands is partly dependent on the effects of fire. This occurs because some plants cannot produce without fire and fire usually starts the process of germination. Forced fires also release nutrients stored in the ground resulting in making the land more fertile and healthy. Fertile lands allows farmers and agricultural workers to produce more benefiting their income as well as lifestyle. The forest fires also allow natural breaking down of organic matter into soil nutrients which again help the land and people.

Cost: There are many ways to manage the cost of the fire such as suppression costs, direct cost, rehabilitation costs, indirect costs, and additional costs. Costs associated with forest fires extend both beyond the acres burned and the days or weeks of the fire event. Suppression costs only capture the immediate costs for the wildfire itself. Direct costs include immediate and direct impacts prominently including federal, state, and local suppression costs. These costs, also are expenditures based on aviation, engines, firefighting crews, and insurance. Rehabilitation costs are usually restoration and refurbishing where as indirect costs are extended over years and include sales and county taxes. However costs and the forest fire itself comes with negative effects. The air quality in the are would decline and lead to reparatory health problems for residents living in the are resulting in an unhealthy immune system and long + short term revenue losses.  

Global Nutrition Discussion

While meat is a regular part of most American's diets, many people in other parts of the world have a primarily plant-based diet because meat is very expensive.  Explain why meat production is more costly than grain production in terms of the amount of land required, the amount of energy and resources needed and the overall environmental impact of meat production.

Farm animals or any animal in general take up much more land than crops do to produce a given amount of food so in this way livestock production requires enormous amounts of energy. Cattle consumes 16 times more grain than they produce as meat and not just that, they take energy to process beyond the energy that goes into their feed. This energy or food that is consumed by the cattle also needs lands to grow which becomes a resource needed by the meat producers. In addition to food or the animal's energy source, water is also required for growth, stability, and sustenance. Livestock in general are responsible for 18 percent of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Meat belongs and originates from animals which have their place at the top of our food chain. Just as stated above they require more energy and labor for meat production and transportation. Labor including human work is required or is necessary to help speed up the meat production process. Overall environmental impact includes the use of fossil fuels that damage and destroy the environment. Through food or meat production their is a wide range and usage of machines, tractors, and equipment. The use of this machinery results in fossil fuels being burned, pollution in the air (which sometimes destroys land, animals, and plants), and increased amounts of energy being used. 

Genetic Engineering Discussion

Genetically modified crops have become increasingly popular in the industrialized world.  Describe the benefits and costs of farming GM crops versus non-GM crops in terms of their environmental and economic impacts. Make sure you discuss one at least one benefit and one cost for each impact.

Genetically modified crops are plants used in agriculture in which their DNA is modified or altered using genetic engineered techniques. The whole purpose is to introduce a new trait to the plant that does not normally occur in the species. A recent study by Brookes and Barefoot in 2011 shows that genetically modified crops have benefited farmers because globally they have increased or gained more than 44 billion in farm income. The benefits of farming genetically modified crops are found to be great for farmers in developing countries because due to more effective pest control, crop yields are often higher. The bigger yields create more efficient use of land, less uses of herbicides and other pesticides. Other benefits include creating plants and having better resistant to weeds, pest and other diseases such as corn. Foods have better texture, flavor, nutritional value, and a longer shelf life for easier import and export. Lastly, genetically modified crops create an essential and sustainable way to feed the world. The costs of genetically modified crops are definitely reduced at a larger scale. Although the seed of the genetically modified crop is expensive, the crops have a lower cost of production because there are reduced inputs of machinery, fuel, and chemical pesticides. The benefit of growing crops are that it gives one more control over the food supply rather than having to rely on wild plants. Cultivated plants also increase food supply. The cost for growing crops includes 

not only the labor required but also energy. Resources such as machinery, and people are further needed to carry out the process of harvesting crops. Between the two options of genetically modified crops and regular crops, genetically modified crops are better and prove to be a sufficient way of spending and saving money. 

Sustainable Agriculture Discussion

The dust bowl of the 1930's was caused by a combination of extended severe drought conditions in the midwest and poor farming practices.  Not sure what the dust bowl was???  Take a look at this 3 minute video to help you get a better idea of the utter devastation that took place!  Http://www.history.com/topics/dust-bowl/videos/black-blizzard

In an effort to avoid a second dust bowl, soil conservation has become a priority to many farmers.  Discuss at lease two examples of farming techniques that can be used to prevent soil erosion and improve soil quality.  For each example, discuss both the economic and environmental benefits of these techniques.  

Due to negative effects of the dust bowl farmers have started to practice and conserve soil in order to keep their land, homes, and families sage. Farmers started to use farming techniques to prevent soil erosion and improve soil quality. Positive steps to control erosion included minimum tillage. The less top layer of the soil a farmer tore up, the more resistant that soil became to water run     off. Another way to prevent soil erosion is planting grasses and small trees on steep slopes and also through stubble mulching. Stubble mulching is putting the harvest waste back onto the ground providing an additional layer of insulation against environmental effects. Improving soil quality comes from adding plant filter strips and rotating plant filter strips. The economic and environmental benefits include saving money or being able to restore the land without excessive care and also improving the soil and land around with better and more efficient farming techniques.

Pest Management Discussion

Many farms have started using integrated pest management as an alternative to traditional pesticides.  Define IPM and give at least two examples of of how it works.  For each example, explain how this method of pest control is considered to be more environmentally friendly to farms than traditional pesticide use.  Additionally discuss whether or not the method is considered to be more cost effective than traditional pesticides. 

IPM or the Integrated Pest Management is a process you can use to solve pest problems while minimizing risks to people and the environment. It is an effective and environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that relies on a combination of common sense practices. The program uses current, and comprehensive information on the life cycles of pests and their interaction with the environment. There are a variety of different techniques used to minimize pesticide inputs but the programs include set action thresholds, monitoring and identifying pests, prevention and control.

Through the prevention program as a first line of pest control, IPM programs work to manage the crop, lawn, or indoor space to prevent pests from becoming a threat. In an agricultural crop, this may mean using cultural methods, such as rotating between different crops, selecting pest resistant varieties, and planting pest-free rootstock. These control methods can very effective and cost efficient, presenting little to no risk to people or the environment. Another way would be through the control program. The control program monitors, identifies and with the help of action thresholds, indicates that pest control is required and preventive methods are no longer effective or available. Effective, less at risk pest controls are chosen first, and are used in trapping or weeding. If further observations indicate that the controls are not working than the next step would be to spray at a particular target the pesticide. 

The Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program is the voluntary program recognized to partner with pesticide users to reduce the health and environmental risks associated with pesticide use. They are implementing pollution prevention strategies and pesticide risk reduction means. The Integrated Pest Management is definitely more cost effective than traditional pesticides because the IPM eliminates the threat posed by that pest and at the same time reduces the use and impact of harmful synthetic chemicals.   

BIG Picture Discussion  

This is where you will make the four BIG PICTURE connections to the ENTIRE UNIT (forgot what these were over the holiday???  human impact, environmental impact, economic impact and legislation that applies to the unit). Please tie in information you learned in your reading (chapters 10 and 11), from completing your assignments, the documentary we watched and from your labs.  There is not an exact length that I am expecting other than it should definitely be at least a paragraph for each section, should be thorough and show understanding of the topic.  Remember to be specific in your examples.  Do not just say "there are laws that govern this" or "people destroy the Earth."  Give me the names of the laws, what they regulate and who enforces them.  Tell me what humans are doing to destroy the earth.      

Human Impact: 

Humans have created a huge impact in the world today through actions such as farming, grazing, forestry, agricultural uses, the use of machinery in various different environments, exposing the communal areas to fossil fuels and toxic chemicals. Not only through physical actions but the humans, through labor and the work they do to make this world and nation function deeply impacts lifestyles and health of many other people. The agricultural revolution allowed for many agricultural tools to be developed which then was used by humans to further develop farming techniques and agricultural practices. Through the scientific revolution, machinery and its faster more innovative practices have definitely increased production and reduced the amount of time it takes for tasks to be completed but it has also forced humans to fall into this "being lazy" mode in which humans are fully dependent on access to machinery and its benefits. However the human and its labor is necessary in order to sustain and sufficiently keep the world running. 

Environmental Impact:

Environmental Impacts include the destruction of many land sites and the introduction to diseases and bad health conditions. Due to overpopulation there has been a wide range of unequal distribution of food in developing countries around the world resulting in a high infant mortality rate and starvation. In developed countries the effect is inverse in that people are over nourished resulting in diabetes, heart disses, increased amounts of cholesterol and blood pressure, and obesity. Forest fires of course offer and provide lands with fertile soil after recovering from the high temperatures, but they also destroy the land based on whether the fire is forced or planned. Based on the amount humans litter and take out trash land fills have also been filling up quickly and it has resulted in pollution, unhealthy environments, and an odor that can be smelt from far distances. There are programs and agencies that take care or manage ecosystems and communities such as the Bureau of Land Management but they can only delay environmental impacts not fully prevent them from occurring. 

Economic Impact: 

The economic impact includes maintaining and paying for the land that is destroyed due to so many different factors. There are many industries including, agriculture, mining, grazing, and even forestry. And advances in each with better technology and resources costs a fortune. The government including many organizations and even people in general have to pay taxes and money to keep these programs running. Also through programs such as the IPM and genetically modified crops, people are saving more money and it is an efficient way to prevent the destruction of land or spread of pesticides. 

Governmental Legislation: 

The governmental legislation plays a role in maintaining, sustaining, and further developing the surrounding lands. The National Environmental Policy Act, passes in 1969 mandates that every project have a more thorough investigation or assessment done to come up with alternative ways of keeping the environment safe and clean such as the Clean Air Act (1963), Endangered Species Act (1973), and Clean Water Act (1948 & 1972). The Food Stamp Act created in 1964, originated for supplemental nutrition assistance to benefit those who have no food and are going through rough times. All these acts go towards somehow renovating and refurbishing the land and resources that are needed to maintain the industries, economy, and environment.