Chac mool

Jessica Castro
Period: 3
AP Human Geography Summer Assignment

a.) One of the four environmental problems confronting present day Montana is climate change because climate change affects foodproduction because of Montana’s relatively low rainfall resulting in low rates of plant growth and it’s high altitude resulting in a short growing season and limiting crops to once a year. Also itslocation is distant from the major U.S. markets. Another environmental problem confronting present day Montana is human occupation because very few people live in Montana because people in theirthirties leave Montana in search of better opportunities and the elderly come to Montana because it is “peaceful”. It’s also a problem for the economy because there are simply not enough people to plantcrops so therefore there is very little income. Tourism is the only way for income in Montana. Another environmental problem is Habitat Destruction and deforestation because people mine for medals such asgold, silver, lead, and platinum. When people extract these medals from the earth. The remainder is waste rock and tailings containing copper, arsenic cadmium and zinc, which are toxic to humans andit gets into the groundwater, rivers, and soil. Logging had its disadvantages like the water temperature no longer shaded by the trees therefore the temperature increases and sediment runoffincreases. Another problem is the introduction of nonnative species because whirling disease which as accidentally introduced into the U.S from Europe and has spread all throughout the western United Statesincluding Montana. Whirling disease had reduced the Rainbow trout population of Montana’s most famous trout stream be more than 90%. Also CWD of elk and deer is more of a concern because it might causean incurably fatal human illness.
b.) The contradictions in the attitudes of Montanans towards fixing their problems are a clash between “old-timers” and “newcomers”. Old-timers respect a...