a. State five : (i) challenges that make conservation of resources difficult; [5 marks] (ii) ways by which the Government of a country ensures conservation of natural resources. [5 marks] b. What is an endangered species? [3 marks] c. A child with blood group O was born to a mother of blood group A. (i) What is the blood group genotype of the child? [1 marks] (ii) What are the possible blood group genotypes of the father? [3 marks] d. State three reasons why genetic variation is important to plants. [3 marks]
Explanation
a. (i) Challenges that make the conservation of resources difficult: - Limited land area for development leads to the rapid destruction of the natural forest; - Over grazing/over fishing; - Poaching/ killing of endangered species; - Bush burning/poor farming methods; - Over cultivation of land; - High demand for timber that has resulted in the felling of trees/indiscriminate cutting of trees for firewood; - Damming of rivers for hydro-electricity and irrigation has resulted in the alteration of the ecosystem; - Lack of awareness of the populace and policy makers of the need for conservation/lack of education; - Improper enforcement of existing laws/poor leadership; - Forest fire; - Inadequate funding in conservation; - Lack of international/local cooperation on conservation; - Illegal/unlawful exploitation of minerals.
(ii) Ways by which Government ensures the conservation of resources: - Creation of parks/gardens/wildlife/zoo/reserves; - Putting in place a chemical and toxic waste dump programmes to avoid water pollution; - Enactment of conservation laws; - Enforcement of conservation laws; - Creating awareness/education through the media; - Establishment of conservation fund; - Training of conservation personnel/employing experts to manage natural resources; - Establishing local and international cooperation; - Aforestation/planting of trees. b. Endangered species - Species whose population has become so small; that it can completely be wiped out/become extinct; if not properly managed. c. (i) Genotype of child: OO (ii) Genotype of Father: OO; AO; BO;
d. Importance of genetic variation to plants - It enables plants to spread to colonies/new areas; - It may enable plants to survive harsh/adverse conditions/environments; - It may enable plants to be resistant to diseases; - It gives rise to varieties of desirable plant species; - It makes plants produce better fruits/yield; - It makes plants produce early yield;