Soil, species and sustainable schools

The issues associated with life on land are met throughout 11–16 chemistry education, where learners are encouraged to reduce, recycle and reuse finite resources and understand the impact human activities have on ecosystems and the atmosphere. Chemistry for 16–18 students looks at industrial activities and the role of green chemistry in improving sustainability by designing production methods with fewer steps that have a high percentage atom economy. Learners are also asked to consider the wider societal and environmental implications of energy sources such as cells and bioethanol.

This article is part of the Sustainability in chemistry series, developed to help you integrate the UN’s sustainable development goals into your teaching of chemistry. It supports Goal 15: protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

Put it in context

Goal 15 seeks to restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, halt biodiversity loss and halt and reverse land degradation. Human activity has altered almost 75% of Earth’s surface, forcing wildlife and nature into an ever-decreasing corner of the planet. And yet, nature is critical to our survival: it provides us with oxygen, regulates weather patterns, pollinates crops and produces our food, central to which is soil. Soil is a finite resource: approximately 2.6 billion people depend on agriculture, but 52% of the land used for agriculture is moderately or severely affected by soil degradation. The UN estimates that agricultural land is lost at a rate of 230,000 metres squared per minute, affecting 74% of the poor globally. See the UN Life on land poster for a summary.

Introducing topics related to Goal 15 provides an opportunity to make links with core curriculum topics such as resource management, ammonia production, fertilisers and sustainability. The reciprocal reading activity provided includes a discussion framework, roles and text about agriculture and ammonia which could be used in conjunction with this Alchemy: ammonia resource or this anecdote about Fritz Haber.

Put it into practice

Sustainability requires humans to fix existing problems with alternatives that will not prove to be harmful in the future. Mining lithium for electric car batteries is discussed in the article, Your place or mine?  and the Recharge your batteries resource, aimed at the 14–16 curriculum, is concerned with lithium batteries’ use and disposal.

Forests are home to 80% of all land animals and plants but also play a major role in the fight against climate change. Discuss the environmental and ethical issues that surround the production and use of bioethanol. Biofuel critics report that these fuels compete with feeding a growing global population but also contribute to deforestation as forested areas may be cut down or burned to make way for agricultural expansion. Life-cycle accounting of biofuels reveals that ethanol yields 25% more energy than the energy invested in its production, whereas biodiesel from soybeans yields 93% more. Biodiesel reduces more than three times the amount of greenhouse gas emissions compared to bioethanol relative to the fossil fuels they displace. However, dedicating all US corn and soybean production to biofuels would meet only 12% of gasoline demand and 6% of diesel demand.

The book Inspirational chemistry: resources for modern curricula has a strong emphasis on sustainable development and green chemistry. Resources from the book include a debating activity, which considers the benefits and drawbacks of using artificial fertilisers, and a research activity that will get students thinking about the advantages and disadvantages of using plastics. For recycling teaching ideas use the University of Bristol’s Green chemistry resource pack. It’s aimed at 16–18 students but the activities can be modified for younger learners.

Keep your school laboratory green: good practice

• Minimise the amount of materials used – focuses on developing smaller-scale experiments for use in the classroom.
• Recycle and reuse materials whenever possible – place sieves over plugholes to collect unreacted metals.
• Use glassware instead of plastic and recycle disposable plastics where possible.
• Use less energy – switch off equipment, appliances and lights when not in use.
• Order supplies from sustainable vendors.
• Keep freezers clear of frost build-up and keep refrigerator/freezer filters and coils clean and free of obstructions.
• Keep fume hoods closed and fix faults like dripping taps quickly to reduce inefficiencies – one dripping tap can waste 180 litres of water per day.
• Prevent waste rather than treating or cleaning up after it is formed – decant solutions into beakers to make pouring easier.
• Label the recycling bins clearly so rubbish goes in the appropriate bin.

Check out the rest of the Sustainability in chemistry series.