11.7

• presence of different plants and animals in our environment enriches our lives • Provides Inspiration for people such as musicians and writers • Patients recover more rapidly from stress and injury when they are supported by plants and a relatively natural environment • improves the quality of life

• soil erosion as a result of deforestation can reduce the countries ability to grow crops and feed its people which can result in economic and resource dependence on other nations • Non sustainable removal of resources can lead to the collapse of industry in an area • Large scale habitat and biodiversity losses means that species with potential economic importance may become extinct before even being discovered • Continuous monoculture results in soil depletion as nutrients are gradually used up, resulting in increased expenditure on fertilisers and decreased yield • High biodiversity provides protection against abiotic stresses • Creates a pleasing, attractive environment that people can enjoy. High bio diverse environments can promote tourism in the region, with associated economic advantages • Greater diversity in an ecosystem, the greater the potential to manufacture different products in the future • Plant varieties are needed for cross breeding which can lead to better characteristics such as disease resistance or increased yield

• all organisms are interdependent on others for survival. The removal of one species would have a significant effect on others eg plants relies on bees for pollination, a decrease in the wild bee population would reduce crop yield • Some species, called keystone species have a key role in maintaining the structure of the ecological community- they have a disproportionately large effect on their community relative to their size • When one keystone species is removed the habitat is drastically changed, therefore it is important/essential to protect keystone species to maintain biodiversity

• genetic resources refers to any material from plants, animals and microorganisms with genes we find valuable • Could be used for crops, plants used for medicines and microorganisms used in industrial processes • They provide us with a variety of everyday products such as • Food and drink • Clothing • Drugs • Fuels

We need to maintain biodiversity since it is our fault their habitats are destroyed