A transport authority must build an access road across either peatland X or peatland Y.
Building the road would require part of the chosen peatland to be drained.
Scientists made the following predictions.
| Route X | Route Y | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of species before construction | 38 | 31 |
| Predicted number of species after construction | 24 | 27 |
| Carbon stored in the area to be drained in tonnes | 2400 | 3200 |
| Percentage of the stored carbon that would be released as carbon dioxide | 15% | 5% |
Calculate how many more tonnes of stored carbon would be released as carbon dioxide if route X is chosen rather than route Y.
Explain which route should be chosen to reduce the effects on both biodiversity and climate.
Use information from the table and your answer to part (a).
84 exam-style questions on AQA GCSE Biology 7.3 Biodiversity and the effect of human interaction on ecosystems, covering 7.3.1 Biodiversity, 7.3.2 Waste management, 7.3.3 Land use, 7.3.4 Deforestation, 7.3.5 Global warming, and 7.3.6 Maintaining biodiversity. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.