Compare ways to protect biodiversity and choose the best
Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Use this
Decision matrix (model data), scores 1 to 3, a higher score is better in every column. Every column counts the same. Protected area, protects living habitat 3, low cost 1, few side effects 2; Wildlife corridor, protects living habitat 2, low cost 2, few side effects 3; Seed bank, protects living habitat 1, low cost 3, few side effects 2.
Pia scores three plans for a model valley. Every column counts the same. Which plan has the highest total?
- Wildlife corridor: 2 + 2 + 3 = 7 points, the highest total of the three
- Protected area: it has the top score for protecting living habitat, 3
- Seed bank: it has the top score for low cost, 3, so it is good value
- Protected area and seed bank tie, each with 6 points, so they beat the corridor
Use this
Decision matrix (model data), scores 1 to 3, a higher score is better in every column. Every column counts the same. Invasive-species control, protects living habitat 2, low cost 3, few side effects 3; Reducing runoff, protects living habitat 3, low cost 2, few side effects 2; Protected area, protects living habitat 3, low cost 1, few side effects 2.
Ren adds the scores in a row, counting every column the same. What is the total for reducing runoff?
- 2 points
- 3 points
- 7 points: 3 + 2 + 2
- 8 points
Use this
Decision matrix (model data), scores 1 to 3, a higher score is better in every column. Every column counts the same. Seed bank, protects living habitat 1, low cost 3, few side effects 3; Reducing runoff, protects living habitat 3, low cost 2, few side effects 3; Invasive-species control, protects living habitat 2, low cost 2, few side effects 2.
Esme wants the cheapest plan, the one with a 3 for low cost. Which plan has the highest total instead?
- Invasive-species control: its middle scores make it the safest
- Seed bank and reducing runoff tie, as both score 3 on side effects
- Reducing runoff: 3 + 2 + 3 = 8 points, the highest total
- Seed bank: it is the cheapest plan, so it wins
A planning card for a model valley (model data)
line what it says budget at most 6 million dollars land at most 40 hectares time ready within 5 years benefit to species the higher the better Jun reads a planning card. Which line is a criterion, a goal to score as high as possible?
- Land: a plan may use at most 40 hectares of land
- Benefit to species: the higher the better for the valley
- Time: a plan must be ready within 5 years of the start
- Budget: a plan may cost at most 6 million dollars
Three plans and a budget limit of 5 million dollars (model data)
plan benefit score cost (million dollars) Protected area 5 8 Wildlife corridor 4 6 Invasive-species control 3 3 Milo must stay within the budget limit. Which plan stays within the budget?
- No plan stays within the budget, because plans cost something
- Wildlife corridor: its cost of 6 million is closest to the limit
- Protected area: it has the highest benefit score, 5
- Invasive-species control, which costs 3 million dollars
Scientists list five main drivers: habitat loss, invasive species, overharvesting, pollution and climate change. Tala reads that a town cuts the greenhouse gases it adds to the air. Which driver does this address?
- The five drivers at once: cutting greenhouse gases answers the whole list
- Invasive species: a plant spreads far from where it began
- Climate change: greenhouse gases trap more heat in the air
- Pollution: rain carries fertilizer into a nearby stream
Four solutions (model data)
solution what it does protected area sets land aside with protection for the living things inside seed bank stores copies of seed samples in a cold vault invasive-species control removes a species that people brought to a new place reducing runoff slows rain water so it carries less soil and fertilizer Bo wants to keep a wild forest, the living home of its plants, where it grows. Which solution does that job?
- Invasive-species control: it removes a species brought to a new place
- Reducing runoff: it slows rain water so it carries less soil
- Protected area: it sets land aside for the living things inside
- Seed bank: it stores seed copies in a cold vault, so the forest is not needed
Climate facts (sourced facts)
fact value global surface temperature, 2011-2020 above 1850-1900 (degrees Celsius) 1.1 carbon dioxide in the air, now above 1750 (percent) nearly 50 species assessed that have shifted polewards or to higher elevations about half Noah reads the climate card. By about how many degrees Celsius was 2011-2020 warmer than 1850-1900?
- 1.1 degrees Celsius
- 50 degrees Celsius
- 0.5 degrees Celsius
- 11 degrees Celsius
Extra movement with a corridor, by group (model data)
group extra movement (percent) ground beetles 60 small mammals 55 flowering plants 50 songbirds 15 Luz reads model data on how much extra movement a corridor gave four groups. Which group gained the least?
- Ground beetles, with 60%, the value at the top of the table
- Flowering plants, with 50%, the value close to the middle
- Songbirds, with 15%
- The groups tie, since a corridor helps the groups equally
Extra movement with a corridor, three groups (model data)
group extra movement (percent) ground beetles 62 flowering plants 48 songbirds 12 Ari says a corridor helps songbirds as much as plants. Which reply uses the table correctly?
- Both gained the same, since one corridor joins the same two patches for both
- Plants gained 48% and songbirds 12%, so the corridor helped plants more
- Ground beetles gained the least, because they are the smallest group
- Songbirds gained more, because birds fly and use a corridor the most