California Floristic Province Essay

In Northern California alone there are roughly 35,000 square miles of rugged, remote, unpopulated wilderness. This land is full of steep sided mountains, canyons and thick forests. Liebig's Law of the Minimum shows

One of the biggest problems surrounding the protection of California’s plants and crops, is the threat of pests and invasive species. Pests are a constant danger as they can ruin plants by infecting them, or destroying them by eating away at the inside. There is also the danger of invasive species. The National

The conquering and development of natural land has in the past, been seen as a mark of human civilization. In the United States, our progress is often measured by growth and development, but should this be re-examined? There are many opinions on the subject of urban sprawl and its effects on wildlife, but one thing is for certain, we are expanding. From 1955 to 2005, urban and suburban areas grew by 300%, however, the population only increased by 75% over the same period (Ewing, Kostyack and Chen). According to NatureServe, a non-profit conservation organization, urban sprawl threatens one of every three endangered species in the United States. NatureServe’s analysis states, “rare and endangered species data shows that three-fifths (60

The Central Valley of California, United States, is a notable structural depression which covers around 32,187km2 (Figure 1), and is bounded by the Cascade Range in the north, the Sierra Nevada in the east, the Tehachapi Mountains to the South, and the Coast Ranges and San Francisco Bay to the west (Planert 1995).

Decisions regarding environmental problems require both knowledge and values. Placing value on specific issues can be sorted into four categories of justification: utilitarian, ecological, aesthetic and moral. California Blue focuses on the interplay of environmental issues and ethics emphasizing the conflict between industry and species preservation. Timber cutting in the Northwest United States is a mainstay of the economy. Although clear cutting is not as environmentally sensitive as selective harvesting and redwood cutting, some is essential to America's continued growth and prosperity. To ban timber operations and to throw people out of work, all to preserve an endangered blue butterfly, is to test the limits and logic of ecological priorities. The national policy of preserving endangered species serves the purpose of promoting biological diversity, which if not followed might threaten the ecosystem. This national policy of species preservation is a matter of social policy balanced with the competing interests of the local economy and human needs. Under the utilitarian approach one must balance the benefits of species preservation with the detriment of stopping human activity which threatens that species or the environment in which the

The future of California is pretty good, for the state is projected to see growth in almost every sector of the economy as well as the population, but there are many concerns that must be addressed first in order to see California’s growth come to fruition. International trade and business is one of California’s largest industries and it’s expected to continue increasing, for many emerging economies are also located off of the Pacific Ocean. Growth in the economy is good, but requires resources that California has a limited supply of. The main resource California always needs is water, since most of the state’s population resides in the southern regions, which are arid and receive minimal precipitation annually. The state is planning on improving efficiency and the aqueduct system to increase the water supply while decrease the environmental effects California’s aqueduct’s have on regions like the San Joaquin River Delta. For many years California has been considered a very liberal and left state, which is due to the fact that the state has the toughest environmental legislation in the country. With such strong legislation ensuring the protection of the environment California has become a model state in the fight against climate change, and must remain vigilant for there are numerous species endemic to the state that are found nowhere else on the planet. Though there are numerous other factors’ affecting California’s future these are some of the most interesting areas to

United States has a lot of astounding natural attractions. But some of them are losing their rare beauty. Those attractions that are losing their beauty are in great need of help. Some natural attractions in the United States that are in the greatest need of conserving are the Everglades, Chesapeake Bay, Chihuahuan Desert, and the Northern Great Plains. The main reason why these places are in danger are because of humans.

A pioneer, John Bidwell, explored the Central Valley and described it as a “clear atmosphere and the plains brilliant with flowers.” Another important man, John Charles Fremont traveled the San Joaquin Valley and he described it as “a level region covered with grass with an occasional grove of live oaks to lend variety…there were fields of blue lupine, several feet in height” These two men described California as a nice and clean environment with beautiful flowers in the 1840s. Nonetheless, in the late 1860s after the gold rush, John Muir described California’s devastation of grasslands and meadows as, “…almost every leaf that these hoofed locusts can reach within a radius of a mile or two from camp has been devoured. Even bushes are stripped bare.” Sheep and cattle outrageously took over much of the land. Since there were so many grass-eating animals, much of the grass were nowhere to be seen. Wildlife in California was always struggling even before the gold rush. With the increase in population, also came an increase in death in animals such as wolves, bears, jaguars, and other species. Also many fish quickly died from the chemicals from the mining that would seep into the rivers. Land and the wildlife of California were forever changed from the effects of the gold rush. Some of the effects are even long-term that on can see

From the end of the Second World War to the present day, California strengthened its area as a political, social, and cultural trendsetter. California is also extraordinary than most other states because of its diversity in the people and climate. California’s diverse topographical features such as, the rainfall, temperature and sunlight vary throughout the state. The seasons also vary in California changing the areas climate. Since the beginning of European settlement in California, climate has become increasingly important in shaping the state’s economy (Osborne, 6).

Because most greenhouse gases would remain in the atmosphere for a long period of time, the temperature of the earth will be continuously rising. If global heat-trapping emissions proceed at a medium to high rate, temperatures in California are expected to rise 4.7 to 10.5°F by the end of the century1. With the rise of temperature, the climate of California would also be changed. California has large area of forest and farmland, hundreds of miles of coastline, large amount of snowpack, and other natural wonders. And these special treasures of nature are especially at risk2. So it is very necessary to understand the strategies of California to combat climate change.

California is one of the most diverse states in the nation with public lands extending across rangelands, forests, high mountains, deserts, and the Pacific coast.

I have researched the effect of climate change on California’s natural water supply. California has a diverse climate throughout, being a large state with sixteen different climate zones recognized. These can be subdivided into four major climatic zones as follows: North Coast, South Coast, Central Valley, and Desert/Mountain.

Environmentalism has always been two sided. Nature versus urban. locals versus national. Frequently, large tracts of public and federal land are bought and developed by industry. Pristine wilderness turned to bustling epicenters of human activity, all in the name of progress and economic growth. This tale of preserving natural wilderness is one that begins with John Muir, an advocate against the taming of Yosemite national park and the Hetch-Hetchy reservoir, while the head of the US Forest Service, Gifford Pinchot, insisted on the reservoir to supply the city of San Francisco with water. This timeless epic of conservation or preservation brings us to the Jumbo Valley, a vast expanse of uninhabited, pristine wilderness home to diverse

Hunting and hunters are the biggest advocates for conservation. They also provide for the most finical aid of any other organization that says they sponsor the environment and wildlife. (SDGFP)(2). Such organizations are PETA and SEIRRA. These clubs think they help the animals and the environment because they do not kill them, but they actually do more damage. Their goal is to save the animals and keep the woods from being touched. They hardly give any money to the conservation groups. The reason the ecosystems have to use conservation is because we have to much human interaction with the environment, as Roger Holmes touches on in his article. Like in small communities there is a lot more wildlife human interaction because the expanding nation. The PETA and SEIRRA clubs have also done nothing for the growth of the animal populations. The hunters have given new life to many species such as; White-Tailed Deer, Canadian goose, Rocky Mountain Elk, Wild Turkey, Pronghorn Antelope, and many others.

The Arroyo Seco is located in Los Angeles County, California, it has wonderful variety of native species which including plants and animals. All these species are categorized to producer, lower level consumer, upper level consumer and decomposer, such as: Producers- Arroyo Willow, Alder, Beavertail cactus, Cottonwood and other. Lowel Level Consumers- Cochineal, Mourning Dove, Scrub Jay, wood rat and etcetera. Upper level consumer- Cliff swallow, Black Widow Spider, Cooper’s Hawk and other. Decomposer- Bracket fungus, Pill bug, Toadstool and etcetera. They are the key species and community in The Arroyo Seco’s ecosystem. Accordingly, The Arroyo Seco is in a Chaparral biome which is dominated by evergreen shrubs and majority plant species in