The Living WorldTopic Summary
Topic Summary: Sustaining Ecosystems
Part of Sustaining Ecosystems — GCSE Geography
This topic summary covers Topic Summary: Sustaining Ecosystems within Sustaining Ecosystems for GCSE Geography. Revise Sustaining Ecosystems in The Living World for GCSE Geography with 0 exam-style questions and 18 flashcards. This is a high-frequency topic, so it is worth revising until the explanation feels precise and repeatable. It is section 14 of 14 in this topic. Use this topic summary to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Topic position
Section 14 of 14
Practice
0 questions
Recall
18 flashcards
Topic Summary: Sustaining Ecosystems
Key Terms
- Ecosystem services — provisioning, regulating, cultural, supporting
- Biodiversity — variety of species, genes, ecosystems
- Sustainable management — meeting current needs without compromising future
- Coral bleaching — coral expels algae when sea temperature rises 1–2°C
- Rewilding — remove human management; restore natural processes
- REDD+ — rich countries pay LICs to protect forests (carbon credits)
- Zoning — areas with different permitted uses (no-take → general use)
- Dead zone — oxygen-depleted water from agricultural run-off
The Three Case Studies
- Great Barrier Reef (AUS): 2,300km; 50% coral died 2016; 33% no-take zone; AUD $6.4bn/year; can't fix climate change locally
- REDD+ (DRC): 90% rely on charcoal; Norway paid $150m; 15% protected; payments don't reach communities
- Knepp (UK): 3,500 acres rewilded from 2001; white storks nest (first 600 yrs); £2.5m/year tourism; needs wealthy landowner
Ecosystem Services (examples)
- Provisioning: 25% Western medicines from tropical plants
- Regulating: forests absorb 2.6bn tonnes CO₂/year; £690m/year pollination (UK)
- Cultural: reef tourism AUD $6.4bn/year
- Total value: $125–145 trillion/year globally
CLEARS Evaluation Framework
- C — Cost (financially viable?)
- L — Local people (communities benefit?)
- E — Effectiveness (ecological results?)
- A — Addresses root cause?
- R — Replicable at scale?
- S — Sustainable long-term?