Land use and misuse.
The United Kingdom has about 24 million hectors of land.
� million hectors go in to agriculture
�7 million hectors go in to housing
îÂÂuilding, quarrying and waste disposal are some of the human activities that account for the rest of the land.
îÂÂach year quarrying produces about 300 million tonnes of gravel, limestone, sand and sandstone for concrete and other building materials.
îÂÂbout 90% of household waste in the UK is dumped into a large pit in the ground this is called a landfill.
Because of these things habitats are destroyed making thousands of plants and animals on the verge of extinction. Other things increase the need for land are:
稥conomic development
稧rowing human population
稵he increasing need for food
Dumping waste form long-term mining activities has a visible impact in the environment.
îÂÂhere is about 200 million tonnes of waste living in pit heaps
îÂÂoke/coal-fire stations in the UK produce about 10 million tonnes of pulverised ash each year.
Most of Portugal's farms have a small area devoted...
English: Ballyhenry West Some intensive farming me...
Sacred Valley NGOs 013 - Casa GiraSol (Sunflower H...Intensive Farming.
When the population began to rise sharply in the nineteenth century it required the farming methods to become more intensive, this is when the most food is produced from the available land for growing crops (arable farming) and animals (livestock farming)
When the intensive methods of farming are applied:
oThe removal of hedges to make huge fields to maximise offence. This destroys the natural habitat of many wild creatures, and can cause soil erosion.
oLoss of scenery, meadowlands, flowers, fields of grass, tree topped hills and country lanes are swept away.
oCareless use of fertilizers pollutes rivers and lakes, making them green and slimy.
oPesticides disturb food chains and reduce insect, bird and mammal populations.
Most of the bread that we eat comes from cereals that have been grown by intensive methods.