Environment refers to our surroundings. It includes the surrounding physical and chemical conditions and also all the living organisms which exist in a physical space. The physical and chemical conditions refer to ambient temperature, moisture and sunlight availability.
We need many things to live. We get oxygen to breathe from the air. We get our food from plants and some animals. We get land to live and water to drink from our environment. So, we need environment in every second of our life.
Environment primarily comprises of two types of components, these are Abiotic and Biotic components.
The living part of the environment is made up of plants, animals and microorganisms. This is called the biological or biotic environment.
Plants produce food from sunlight and carbon dioxide. Herbivores directly eat the plants. Cattle, deer, rabbits etc, are examples of herbivores. Carnivores eat other animals. Frog, predatory birds, snake, lion, tiger etc. are examples. Omnivores get their food from both plants and animals. Man is an omnivore.
Decomposers are organisms that break down or decompose complex materials into different elements(e.g. Carbon, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Sulphur, Phosphorus etc.). These complex materials are released by producers and consumers. Microorganisms like bacteria, fungi, algae etc. are examples of decomposers.
All these things, either living or non-living components, work as a comprehensive system in different ways mainly affected by human activity.
The environment is full of surprising and thrilling facts.
Here are 35 interesting facts about the environment. Some of them are entertaining, while others are scary.
Decomposers are organisms that break down or decompose complex materials into different elements(e.g. Carbon, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Sulphur, Phosphorus etc.). These complex materials are released by producers and consumers. Microorganisms like bacteria, fungi, algae etc. are examples of decomposers.
All these things, either living or non-living components, work as a comprehensive system in different ways mainly affected by human activity.
The environment is full of surprising and thrilling facts.
Here are 35 interesting facts about the environment. Some of them are entertaining, while others are scary.
35 Amazing and Shocking Environmental Facts
Fungi are essential to the environment - According to environmental facts, fungi do the most in protecting the environment. They digest minerals out of rock formations, consume fossil fuel spills, and even de-radiate an environment.
There is a lot of water on the planet.- About 71% of the planet's surface constitutes water. The fact that the volume of water remains constant and is recycled throughout.
Paper can be recycled a maximum of six times.- Paper is made from trees. Paper may be recycled up to six times, after which, its fibres become too weak to hold together.
About ten million trees are cut down every year to produce toilet paper - The world has over 3.04 million trees. Unfortunately. 27000 of them are cut down every day to create toilet paper. That means about 9.8 million trees are cut every year to make toilet paper.
Human consumes only 1% of the available water. - About 71% of the planet's surface constitutes water. The oceans hold approximately 96.5% of all the water on Earth, and the ice caps hold about 2%. The remaining exists in rivers, ponds, glaciers, ice caps, lakes, and our taps, among other water bodies. Surprisingly, just 1% of that water can be utilised by humans.
There is a lot of water on the planet.- About 71% of the planet's surface constitutes water. The fact that the volume of water remains constant and is recycled throughout.
Paper can be recycled a maximum of six times.- Paper is made from trees. Paper may be recycled up to six times, after which, its fibres become too weak to hold together.
About ten million trees are cut down every year to produce toilet paper - The world has over 3.04 million trees. Unfortunately. 27000 of them are cut down every day to create toilet paper. That means about 9.8 million trees are cut every year to make toilet paper.
Human consumes only 1% of the available water. - About 71% of the planet's surface constitutes water. The oceans hold approximately 96.5% of all the water on Earth, and the ice caps hold about 2%. The remaining exists in rivers, ponds, glaciers, ice caps, lakes, and our taps, among other water bodies. Surprisingly, just 1% of that water can be utilised by humans.
We have drunk the same water as a dinosaur- As already mentioned, about 71% of the earth is water. The interesting is the amount of water is constant and is recycled throughout. There is a high chance that some of the water we drink today may have passed through some extinct species or even a dinosaur.
American companies use a lot of paper - Paper is widely used around the world. The amount of paper consumed by American businesses alone is enough to round the globe three times. It's actually better that we're moving towards paperless.
Sperm whale excrement reduces environmental carbon. -A whale’s poop is especially helpful to the environment because it balances carbon in the atmosphere. Each whale's dung emits around 50 tonnes of iron every year, which promotes the growth of phytoplankton, which take in carbon dioxide.
Aluminium can be recycled forever.- Recycling one aluminium can generates enough energy to power a television for three hours.
Ants weigh more than humans - The combined weight of ants on the planet makes them heavier than all human beings. The world has over 7 billion people, while the number of ants is 100 trillion. Surprisingly, the overall weight of the 100 trillion ants is larger than that of humans.
Glass does not decompose easily - A glass bottle may take up to 1 million years to decompose in the environment and is categorized as one of the human-made long-lasting materials. This suggests that glass from 5,000 years ago may still be present in the environment.
Every minute,100 acres of rainforest are destroyed. - Rainforests are being destroyed at a rate of one hundred acres per minute. If current trends continue, the world's rainforests will be extinct by 2100.
The world's largest producer of waste is the United States. - Americans produce 30% of the world’s waste even though it has only 5% of the world’s population.
Plastic does not decompose easily - Plastic is Forever. Plastic bags and Styrofoam might take up to a thousand years to decompose. When plastic is dumped into the ocean, it contributes to the death of thousands of marine species.
Glass does not decompose easily - A glass bottle may take up to 1 million years to decompose in the environment and is categorized as one of the human-made long-lasting materials. This suggests that glass from 5,000 years ago may still be present in the environment.
Every minute,100 acres of rainforest are destroyed. - Rainforests are being destroyed at a rate of one hundred acres per minute. If current trends continue, the world's rainforests will be extinct by 2100.
The world's largest producer of waste is the United States. - Americans produce 30% of the world’s waste even though it has only 5% of the world’s population.
Plastic does not decompose easily - Plastic is Forever. Plastic bags and Styrofoam might take up to a thousand years to decompose. When plastic is dumped into the ocean, it contributes to the death of thousands of marine species.
Greenhouse gases contributing to global warming - The most common greenhouse gases are methane, water vapour, and carbon dioxide. When their levels are too high they contribute to global warming which results in the melting of the ice caps, rise in sea levels, drought, floods, desertification, forest fires and heatwaves
78% of marine mammals are at risk of choking on plastic - 78% of marine mammals are at risk of accidental deaths, such as being trapped in fishing nets.
Plastic kills over a million sea animals annually - Every year, about 1,000,000 sea creatures are killed by plastic bags and other plastic waste that ends up in the ocean.
5 million tons of oil end up in oceans - Every year, almost 5 million tonnes of all oil produced end up in the oceans, killing millions of marine species.
Today, only 4% of American forests remain.- A large number of trees in American forests have been destroyed for construction and fuel.
78% of marine mammals are at risk of choking on plastic - 78% of marine mammals are at risk of accidental deaths, such as being trapped in fishing nets.
Plastic kills over a million sea animals annually - Every year, about 1,000,000 sea creatures are killed by plastic bags and other plastic waste that ends up in the ocean.
5 million tons of oil end up in oceans - Every year, almost 5 million tonnes of all oil produced end up in the oceans, killing millions of marine species.
Today, only 4% of American forests remain.- A large number of trees in American forests have been destroyed for construction and fuel.
By 2050, there will be more plastic in our seas than fish - About eight million tonnes of plastic are dumped in the ocean every year. It is believed that there are presently 3,500,000,000,000 fish in our oceans. But The number fluctuates due to factors like predation, fishing, reproduction, and environmental conditions. So, think about how much plastic there may be in the oceans by 2050.
About 8 million tonnes of plastic are dumped in the ocean each year - As already mentioned, about eight million tonnes of plastic waste are dumped in the ocean every year.
Every year, Americans discard 25 trillion styrofoam cups. - Americans alone throw away around 25 trillion polystyrenes (plastic foam) coffee cups every year. Styrofoam is not biodegradable- most are tossed in the trash
The United States uses 10,000 gallons of gasoline each second. - In 2022, about 134.55 billion gallons (or about 3.20 billion barrels) of gasoline were consumed in the United States, an average of about 369 million gallons per day.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch contains about 100 million tons of garbage stretching from the West Coast of North America to Japan along the Pacific Ocean. This Patch is a collection of trash and waste. It is twice the size of continental America.
The global temperature has increased by around 1 degree C in the last century.- Since 1900, the average surface air temperature has increased by around 1°C (1.8°F), with more than half of the increase occurring since the mid-1970s.
The age of planet Earth is around one million years.- The Earth is about one million years old, with over one million species being extinct as a result of human activity.
About 8 million tonnes of plastic are dumped in the ocean each year - As already mentioned, about eight million tonnes of plastic waste are dumped in the ocean every year.
Every year, Americans discard 25 trillion styrofoam cups. - Americans alone throw away around 25 trillion polystyrenes (plastic foam) coffee cups every year. Styrofoam is not biodegradable- most are tossed in the trash
The United States uses 10,000 gallons of gasoline each second. - In 2022, about 134.55 billion gallons (or about 3.20 billion barrels) of gasoline were consumed in the United States, an average of about 369 million gallons per day.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch contains about 100 million tons of garbage stretching from the West Coast of North America to Japan along the Pacific Ocean. This Patch is a collection of trash and waste. It is twice the size of continental America.
The global temperature has increased by around 1 degree C in the last century.- Since 1900, the average surface air temperature has increased by around 1°C (1.8°F), with more than half of the increase occurring since the mid-1970s.
The age of planet Earth is around one million years.- The Earth is about one million years old, with over one million species being extinct as a result of human activity.
Beef is harmful to the environment. - Cows contribute to global warming by producing methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. Cows require 28 times more grazing pastures than compared to pigs and chickens. Cattle ranching contributes to deforestation turning one-fifth of all grassland into deserts.
Wood and paper wasted annually could heat 50000000 homes - According to the environmental facts, the amount of wood and paper waste we throw away each year could heat 50,000,000 homes for 20 years.
Every year, humans contribute about 2 million tonnes of waste to landfills. - Every year, humans contribute about 2 million tonnes of waste to landfills. There are 7.9 billion people on the planet, which means that each individual generates 3950 tonnes of waste every year.
The ozone layer Hole is expected to heal in the next 55 years.- Ozone layer hole which is 29 million square kilometres, and is expected to be fully healed in the next 55 years. This is due to the worldwide banning of chlorofluorocarbon and hydrofluorocarbon.
Our oceans have an average depth of 12400 feet.- It means that most of the living things on our planet live in total darkness.
Every second, the world utilises 160000 plastic bags.- It takes 1000 years for a plastic bag to degrade in a landfill. Plastic bags are currently prohibited from stores in most developing nations.
Approximately 83% of the earth’s land surface has been affected by human activity, threatening plant and animal species.- Human activity has influenced around 83% of the earth's land area, affecting plant and animal species - this is due to things like deforestation and unsustainable harvesting of the earth's resources
Approximately 25% of the world’s coral reefs have been irreversibly destroyed. - 25% of the world's coral reefs have been destroyed. There are some reasons behind this like Pollution, overfishing, harmful fishing practices employing dynamite or cyanide, collecting live corals for the aquarium business, mining coral for construction materials, and a changing environment.
Wood and paper wasted annually could heat 50000000 homes - According to the environmental facts, the amount of wood and paper waste we throw away each year could heat 50,000,000 homes for 20 years.
Every year, humans contribute about 2 million tonnes of waste to landfills. - Every year, humans contribute about 2 million tonnes of waste to landfills. There are 7.9 billion people on the planet, which means that each individual generates 3950 tonnes of waste every year.
The ozone layer Hole is expected to heal in the next 55 years.- Ozone layer hole which is 29 million square kilometres, and is expected to be fully healed in the next 55 years. This is due to the worldwide banning of chlorofluorocarbon and hydrofluorocarbon.
Our oceans have an average depth of 12400 feet.- It means that most of the living things on our planet live in total darkness.
Every second, the world utilises 160000 plastic bags.- It takes 1000 years for a plastic bag to degrade in a landfill. Plastic bags are currently prohibited from stores in most developing nations.
Approximately 83% of the earth’s land surface has been affected by human activity, threatening plant and animal species.- Human activity has influenced around 83% of the earth's land area, affecting plant and animal species - this is due to things like deforestation and unsustainable harvesting of the earth's resources
Approximately 25% of the world’s coral reefs have been irreversibly destroyed. - 25% of the world's coral reefs have been destroyed. There are some reasons behind this like Pollution, overfishing, harmful fishing practices employing dynamite or cyanide, collecting live corals for the aquarium business, mining coral for construction materials, and a changing environment.
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