OCR General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) Biology Practice Exam

What are ecosystem services?

1. Natural disasters affecting living systems

2. Ways that living systems provide for human needs

3. Components of soil composition

4. Methods of pollution control

The correct answer is: Ways that living systems provide for human needs

Ecosystem services refer to the various benefits that humans derive from natural ecosystems. They encompass a broad range of functions that ecosystems perform which are essential for sustaining human life and well-being. These services include processes such as pollination of crops, purification of water, regulation of climate, and providing raw materials such as food and timber. By recognizing the ways that living systems contribute to human needs, we can better understand the importance of conserving ecosystems and the critical roles they play in maintaining the balance of life on Earth. The other options focus on aspects that do not directly relate to the benefits that ecosystems offer to human societies. For instance, natural disasters represent destructive events rather than beneficial services, components of soil composition pertain to the physical makeup of soils rather than their service functions, and methods of pollution control are strategies imposed by humans to mitigate environmental impacts, which do not inherently reflect the natural services provided by ecosystems.