Between January and March of 2022, over 940 km² of Amazon rainforest was cleared and burned in Brazil.

940 km² is roughly the size of New York City.

This was the highest rate of deforestation the country had ever seen.

The cleared land will produce crops for only a few years.

Why are rainforests like the Amazon being cleared and burnt to provide land for crops?

Explain why the cleared land will only produce crops for a few years.

Explain the short-term and long-term effects that burning of rainforests may have on the Earth’s atmosphere.

Deforestation refers to the removal of large numbers of trees from an area.

Deforestation has a large impact on biodiversity.

What is meant by the term biodiversity?

Give three reasons why deforestation might occur, and suggest some of the effects deforestation may have on the  environment.

The image below shows how the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide has varied from 1880 to 2010.

Describe the changes in temperature shown by the graph.

There has been a rapid increase in the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide since 1960.

Does the graph prove that the increase in concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide caused these changes in global temperature?

Explain your answer.

Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.

Name one other greenhouse gas.

Give two human activities which may have helped to increase the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in this period of time.

Global warming causes climate change.

State two effects of climate change.

Eutrophication is an environmental issue of concern for wetlands, streams, rivers, lakes, and reservoirs worldwide.

Which human activity can cause eutrophication of lakes?

During eutrophication, what is directly responsible for the increase in decomposers?

Describe the process of eutrophication and the effects that it can have on the environment.

The photograph below shows a cheetah.

The cheetah is an endangered species, with just over 7,000 cheetahs remaining in the wild.

Scientists are worried that the cheetah might become extinct.

Explain the meaning of the term "extinct".

Which activity will be least likely to lead to the extinction of species?

What is not a reason for having conservation programmes?

Explain why it is important to conserve the cheetah's food supply and all the species that inhabit their ecosystem.

Farmland expansion is responsible for 90% of deforestation around the world.

Deforestation leads to decreased biodiversity.

When trees are removed it can become more difficult for other plants and animals to survive.

Give one reason why.

Name one type of toxic chemical used on farmland.

Suggest three ways that ecologists may try to increase biodiversity.

In October 2015, a fee for plastic carrier bags came into effect in England.

All supermarkets and large stores are now required to charge for every single-use carrier bag they give out.

This measure aimed to reduce plastic use.

The table shows the total number of single use plastic bags sold by all major retailers in the 4 years following the introduction of the plastic carrier bag fee.

Calculate the percentage change in single use plastic bags sales from 2016 to 2019.

Label the axes and plot a bar graph of the data from the table.

Plastic carrier bags that are not recycled are put in landfill sites or burnt.

Greenhouse gases are produced at landfill sites and by burning.

Explain the consequences of an increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Paper carrier bags are an alternative to plastic ones.

The recycling of paper and paper packaging uses fewer resources than making paper from trees.

Describe how paper is recycled.