ENV100Y5 Lecture 24: Lecture 24&25

• School: UTM
• Department: Environment
• Course: ENV100Y5
• Professor: Barbara Murck

Document Summary

Central case: mer bleue bog: a 35 km2 protected wetland, peat soils formed over 8000 years; up to 6m thick, carbon balance in peat, primary production stores carbon, decomposition releases carbon. Interdisciplinary research project studying the influence of climate on carbon balance (and vice versa) Soil is a complex material: mineral matter, organic matter, water, gases, dead/living microorganisms; decaying material, bacteria, algae, earthworms, insects, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, supports plant growth. Weathering: processes that break down rocks, three categories of weathering, physical (mechanical): no chemical changes in parent material, chemical: substances chemically interact with parent material, biological: organisms break down parent material. Pressure release: when glaciers slide away there is a release of pressure, this release has different effects on different rocks, causing some to pop up higher above the earth (slabs) Karst: dissolution of layers of bedrock: acidic rain dissolves bedrock creating caves. Biological weathering: plants themselves can contribute (tree roots break up the rock)