UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MINDANAO
KIDAPAWAN CITY CAMPUS
Sudapin, Kidapawan City
Biogeochemical Cycles
Group 3
College of Engineering
Date 02-07-2025
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TOPIC 1
WHAT IS BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE?
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE
• Biogeochemical cycles refer to the biological, geological, and
chemical processes that cycle atoms between living and
nonliving ecosystems.
• It is a pathway by which a chemical substance is turned over or
moves through the biotic and abiotic compartments of Earth1.
It is one of several natural cycles in which essential elements of
living matter are circulated
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE
• The processes of respiration and
decay ultimately break down
the complex organic molecules
of organisms and convert them
to simpler, inorganic
constituents that are returned
to the abiotic environment.
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TOPIC 2
BRANCH OF BIOGEOCHEMICAL
CYCLE;
CARBON CYCLE
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE; CARBON CYCLE
CARBON CYCLE
• All living things are composed of organic molecules that
contain atoms of the element carbon. The carbon cycle
includes the processes and pathways involved in capturing
inorganic carbon-containing molecules, converting them into
organic molecules that are used by organisms, and the
ultimate release of inorganic carbon molecules back to the
abiotic environment.
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE; CARBON CYCLE
• In Carbon Cycle Carbon atoms are cycled through ecosystems. Plants can
incorporate carbon atoms from carbon dioxide into organic molecules
when they carry on photosynthesis. The carbon-containing organic
molecules are passed to animals when they eat plants or other animals.
Organic wastes or dead organisms are consumed by decay organisms. All
organisms, plants, animals, and decomposers return carbon atoms to the
atmosphere when they carry on respiration. Oxygen atoms are being
cycled at the same time that carbon atoms are being cycled
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ROLES IN CARBON CYCLE
1. The Role of Producers
• Carbon and oxygen combine to form the molecule carbon dioxide (CO2),
which is present in small quantities as a gas in the atmosphere and
dissolved in water. During photosynthesis, carbon dioxide from the
atmosphere is taken into the leaves of plants where it is combined with
hydrogen from water molecules (H2O), which are absorbed from the
soil by the roots and transported to the leaves. In this process, light
energy is converted to chemical-bond energy in organic molecules, such
as sugar. Plants and other producer organisms use these sugars for
growth and to provide energy for other necessary processes.
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ROLES IN CARBON CYCLE
2. The Role of Consumers
• Herbivores can use these complex organic molecules as food.
When an herbivore eats plants or algae, it breaks down the
complex organic molecules into simpler organic molecular
building blocks, which can be reassembled into the specific
organic molecules that are part of the herbivore’s chemical
structure. The carbon atom, which was once part of an organic
molecule in a producer, is now part of an organic molecule in
an herbivore.
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ROLES IN CARBON CYCLE
3. The Role of Decomposers
• The organic molecules contained in animal waste products and
dead organisms are acted upon by decomposers that use these
organic materials as a source of food. The decay process of
decomposers involves respiration and releases carbon dioxide
and water so that naturally occurring organic molecules are
typically recycled.
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ROLES IN CARBON CYCLE
4. The Role of Fossil Fuels
• Fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) are part of the carbon
cycle as well. At one time, these materials were organic
molecules in the bodies of living organisms. The organisms
were buried and the organic compounds in their bodies were
modified by geologic forces. Thus, the carbon atoms present in
fossil fuels were removed temporarily from the active, short-
term carbon cycle. When we burn fossil fuels, the carbon
reenters the active carbon cycle.
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TOPIC 3
BRANCH OF BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE;
NITROGEN CYCLE
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Why is Environmental Engineering Essential?
NITROGEN CYCLE
• The nitrogen cycle involves the cycling of nitrogen atoms between the
abiotic and biotic components and among the organisms in an
ecosystem. Seventy-eight percent of the gas in the air we breathe is
made up of molecules of nitrogen gas (N2). However, the two nitrogen
atoms are bound very tightly to each other, and very few organisms are
able to use nitrogen in this form. Since plants and other producers are
at the base of nearly all food chains, they must make new nitrogen-
containing molecules, such as proteins and DNA. Plants and other
producers are unable to use the nitrogen in the atmosphere and must
get it in the form of nitrate (NO3 ) or ammonia (NH3).
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE; NITROGEN CYCLE
Nitrogen atoms are cycled in ecosystems. Atmospheric nitrogen
is converted by nitrogen-fixing bacteria to a form that plants can
use to make protein and other compounds. Proteins are passed
to other organisms when one organism is eaten by another. Dead
organisms and waste products are acted on by decay organisms
to form ammonia, which may be reused by plants or converted
to other nitrogen compounds by other kinds of bacteria.
Denitrifying bacteria are able to convert inorganic nitrogen
compounds into atmospheric nitrogen.
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE; NITROGEN CYCLE
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ROLES IN NITROGEN CYCLE
1. The Role of Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria
• Because atmospheric nitrogen is not usable by plants, nitrogen-containing
compounds are often in short supply and the availability of nitrogen is
often a factor that limits the growth of plants. The primary way in which
plants obtain nitrogen compounds they can use is with the help of bacteria
that live in the soil Bacteria, called nitrogen-fixing bacteria, are able to
convert the nitrogen gas (N2) that enters the soil into ammonia that plants
can use. Certain kinds of these bacteria live freely in the soil and are called
free-living nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Others, known as symbiotic nitrogen-
fixing bacteria, have a mutualistic relationship with certain plants and live
in nodules in the roots of plants known as legumes (peas, beans, and
clover) and certain trees such as alders.
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ROLES IN NITROGEN CYCLE
2. The Role of Producers and Consumers
• Once plants and other producers have nitrogen available in a
form they can use, they can construct proteins, DNA, and other
important nitrogen containing organic molecules. When
herbivores eat plants, the plant protein molecules are broken
down to smaller building blocks called amino acids. These
amino acids are then reassembled to form proteins typical for
the herbivore. This same process is repeated throughout the
food chain.
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ROLES IN NITROGEN CYCLE
3. The Role of Decomposers and Other Bacteria
• Bacteria and other types of decay organisms are involved in the
nitrogen cycle also. Decomposers break down these nitrogen-
containing organic molecules, releasing ammonia, which can be used
directly by many kinds of plants. Still other kinds of soil bacteria called
nitrifying bacteria are able to convert ammonia to nitrite, which can be
converted to nitrate. Bacteria known as denitrifying bacteria are, under
conditions where oxygen is absent, able to convert nitrite to nitrogen
gas (N2), which is ultimately released into the atmosphere.
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ROLES IN NITROGEN CYCLE
4. Unique Features of the Nitrogen Cycle
• Difficult chemical conversions are made by bacteria and other
microorganisms. Without the activities of bacteria, little
nitrogen would be available and the world would be a very
different place.
• Nitrogen enters organisms by way of nitrogen-fixing bacteria and
returns to the atmosphere through the actions of denitrifying bacteria,
there is a secondary loop in the cycle that recycles nitrogen compounds
directly from dead organisms and wastes directly back to producers.
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ROLES IN NITROGEN CYCLE
5. Agriculture and the Nitrogen Cycle
• In naturally occurring soil, nitrogen is often a limiting factor for
plant growth. To increase yields, farmers provide extra sources
of nitrogen in several ways. Inorganic fertilizers are a primary
method of increasing the nitrogen available. These fertilizers
may contain ammonia, nitrate, or both
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TOPIC 4
BRANCH OF BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE;
PHOSPHORUS CYCLE
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE; PHOSPHORUS CYCLE
• Phosphorus is another element common in the structure of
living things. It is present in many important biological
molecules such as DNA and in the membrane structure of cells.
In addition, the bones and teeth of animals contain significant
quantities of phosphorus. Phosphorus is not present in the
atmosphere as a gas. The ultimate source of phosphorus atoms is rock.
In nature, new phosphorus compounds are released by the erosion of
rock and become dissolved in water.
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BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE; PHOSPHORUS CYCLE
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TOPIC 5
HUMAN IMPACT ON NUTRIENT CYCLES
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HUMAN IMPACT ON NUTRIENT CYCLES
BURNING OF FOSSIL
• Fuels Fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) are carbon-
containing molecules produced when organisms were
fossilized. Thus these carbon-containing materials have been in
long-term storage for millions for growth. Many people suggest
that these sources of nitrogen, along with that provided by
fertilizers, have doubled the amount of nitrogen available
today as compared to preindustrial times.
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HUMAN IMPACT ON NUTRIENT CYCLES
CONVERSION OF NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS TO AGRICULTURE
• The conversion of forest, wetland, and grassland ecosystems,
which tend to store carbon for long periods, to agricultural
ecosystems that store carbon only temporarily has disrupted
the natural carbon cycle. Less carbon is being stored in the soil
and in the bodies of large, long-lived plants such as trees. The
use of fertilizer to increase crop yields has significantly altered
several nutrient cycles.
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HUMAN IMPACT ON NUTRIENT CYCLES
AGRICULTURAL RUNOFF
• The nutrients in fertilizers are intended to become
incorporated into the bodies of the plants and animals that we
raise for food. However, if too much nitrogen or phosphorus is
applied as fertilizer or if they are applied at the wrong time,
much of this fertilizer is carried into aquatic ecosystems. The
presence of large amounts of these nutrients in either
freshwater or saltwater results in increased rates of growth of
bacteria, algae, and aquatic plants. Increases in the number of
these organisms can have many different effects.
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END OF SLIDE
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