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- 1. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE 13e CHAPTER1: Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability
- 2. Core Case Study: It’sAll About Sustainability (1) • “The ability of the earth’s various natural systems and human cultural systems and economies to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinitely." • United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: – Human actions of put long-term sustainability in doubt • Life on earth for 3.5 billion years – Survived many catastrophes – Humans have caused major changes in the last 500 years – Humans are smart, but are they wise?
- 3. Core Case Study: It’sAll About Sustainability (2) • Sustainability depends on three key principles • 1. Solar energy – Warms earth – Provides energy for plants to make food for other organisms – Powers winds – Powers the hydrologic cycle – which includes flowing water – Provides energy: wind and moving water can be turned into electricity
- 4. Core Case Study: It’sAll About Sustainability (3) • 2. Biodiversity (biological diversity) – Large variety of species – Many ecosystems • Deserts • Forests • Oceans • Grasslands – Species and systems renew soil and purify air and water.
- 5. Core Case Study: It’sAll About Sustainability (4) • 3. Chemical Cycling –Natural processes recycle nutrients –Recycling is necessary because there is a fixed supply of these nutrients on earth –Nutrients cycle from living organisms to the nonliving environment and back –Chemical cycles are necessary to sustain life
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- 7. Fig. 1-1, p.5 Solar Energy Biodiversity Chemical Cycling
- 8. Solutions • Understand ourenvironment • Practice sustainability
- 9. 1-1 What Isan Environmentally Sustainable Society? • Concept 1-1A Our lives and economies depend on energy from the sun and natural resources and natural services (natural capital) provided by the earth. • Concept 1-1B Living sustainably means living off earth’s natural income without depleting or degrading the natural capital that supplies it.
- 10. Studying Connections inNature • Environment • Environmental Science • Ecology • Organisms • Species • Ecosystem • Environmentalism
- 11. Living More Sustainably •Sustainability – central theme • Natural capital –Natural resources –Natural services –Photosynthesis • Powered by solar energy • Human activities degrade natural capital
- 12. Natural Resources • Materials –Renewable •Air, water, soil, plants –Nonrenewable • Minerals, oil, coal
- 13. Natural Services • Functionsof nature –Purification of air, water –Nutrient cycling • From the environment to organisms and back to the environment
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- 17. Dead organic matter Organic matter in animals Organic matter in plants Inorganic matterin soil Decomposition Fig. 1-3, p. 8
- 18. Environmental Sustainability • Trade-offs(compromises) • Sound science • Individuals matter –Ideas –Technology –Political pressure –Economic pressure
- 19. Sustainable Living fromNatural Capital • Environmentally sustainable society • Financial capital and financial income • Natural capital and natural income • Living sustainably: living on natural income only
- 20. 1-2 How AreOur Ecological Footprints Affecting the Earth? • Concept 1-2 As our ecological footprints grow, we deplete and degrade more of the earth’s natural capital.
- 21. Natural Resources (1) •Perpetual – renewed continuously – Solar energy • Renewable – days to centuries – Water – Air – Grasslands – Forest – Soils – Fish populations
- 22. Natural Resources (2) •Sustainable yield –Highest use while maintaining supply • Environmental degradation –Use exceeds natural replacement rate
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- 24. Fig. 1-4, p.10 Water pollution Air pollution Shrinking forests Climate change Soil erosion Aquifer depletion Decreased wildlife habitats Species extinction Declining ocean fisheries
- 25. Tragedy of theCommons • Environmental degradation of openly shared renewable resources • Users focus on their own selfish, short- term gain • Works when only a small number of users • Big part of why humans now live unsustainably
- 26. Ecological Footprint (1) •Ecological footprint – The amount of biologically productive land and water needed to indefinitely supply the people in a given area with renewable resources – Also includes the land and water necessary to absorb and recycle wastes and pollution • Per capita ecological footprint – Average ecological footprint of an individual in a given area
- 27. Ecological Footprint (2) •Ecological deficit –Total ecological footprint greater than biological capacity for resource renewal and absorption of wastes and pollution –2008 study: at least 30% global excess –88% for high-income countries –Humans currently need 1.3 earths
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- 29. Fig. 1-5, p.11 Stepped Art
- 30. Nonrenewable Resources • Nonrenewable– fixed quantities –Energy (fossil fuels) –Metallic minerals –Nonmetallic minerals • Recycling • Reuse
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- 32. Developed Countries Have HigherImpacts • Developed countries –United States, Japan, New Zealand, most of Europe, some others –19% world population –Use 88% of world’s resources –Create 75% of world’s pollution
- 33. Supplement 3, Fig.5, p. S9
- 34. IPAT Environmental Impact Model •Determines impact of a country or regions • I = P x A x T • I = environmental impact • P = population size • A = affluence of population • T = technology influence
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- 36. Fig. 1-7, p.13 Environmental impact of population (I) Developing Countries Population (P) Developed Countries Consumption per person (affluence, A) Technological impact per unit of consumption (T)
- 37. Developing Countries • 81%world population • Middle income: Brazil, China, India • Least developed: Haiti, Nigeria, Nicaragua • Use far fewer resources per capita than developed countries • Smaller per capita ecological footprint
- 38. 1-3 What IsPollution and What Can We Do about It? • Concept 1-3 Preventing pollution is more effective and less costly than cleaning up pollution.
- 39. Pollution • What ispollution? • Point sources • Nonpoint sources • Unwanted effects of pollution
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- 41. Solutions to Pollution •Pollution prevention – Prevent pollutants from entering the environment • Pollution cleanup – After pollutants released into environment – Temporary fix only – Often results in different pollution: burning garbage – Dispersed pollutants usually too costly to clean up effectively
- 42. 1-4 Why DoWe Have Environmental Problems? • Major causes of environmental problems are population growth, wasteful and unsustainable resource use, and exclusion of harmful environmental costs from the market prices of goods and services.
- 43. Causes of Environmental Problems •Exponential population growth • Wasteful and unsustainable resource use • Poverty • Failure to include environmental costs of goods and services in market prices
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- 45. Fig. 1-9, p.15 Population growth Unsustainable resource use Poverty Excluding environmental costs from market prices Causes of Environmental Problems
- 46. Stepped Art Causes ofEnvironmental Problems Excluding environmental costs from market prices Poverty Unsustainable resource use Population growth Fig. 1-9, p. 15
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- 48. Fig. 1-1, p.1 Hunting and gathering Agricultural revolution Industrial revolution Black Death—the Plague Industrial revolution Fig. 1-10, p. 16 ? 2-5 million years 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 8000 6000 4000 2000 2000 2100 B.C. A.D.
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- 51. Fig. 1-12, p.17 Number of people (% of world's population) 0.93 billion (14%) 1 billion (15%) 1 billion (15%) 1.1 billion (16%) 2 billion (29%) 2 billion (29%) 2.5 billion (37%) Enough food for good health Adequate housing Adequate health care Clean drinking water Electricity Enough fuel for heating and cooking Adequate sanitation facilities Lack of access to
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- 53. Environmental Effects of Affluence •Harmful effects – High per-capita consumption and waste of resources – large ecological footprints – Advertising – more makes you happy – Affluenza • Beneficial effects – Concern for environmental quality – Provide money for environmental causes – Reduced population growth
- 54. Evaluating Full Costof Resources Use • Prices do not include the value of natural capital and harmful environmental costs • Examples – Clear-cutting + habitat loss – Commercial fishing + depletion of fish stocks • Tax breaks • Subsidies
- 55. Different Environmental Views •Environmental worldview • Environmental ethics • Planetary management worldview • Stewardship worldview • Environmental wisdom worldview
- 56. 1-5 How Canwe Live More Sustainably? Three Big Ideas • We can live more sustainably by relying more on solar energy, preserving biodiversity, and not disrupting the earth’s natural chemical recycling processes.
- 57. Three Big Ideasfor Sustainability • Rely more on renewable energy from the sun • Protect biodiversity • Do not disrupt earth’s natural chemical cycles
- 58. Animation: Levels oforganization
- 59. Animation: Two viewsof economics
- 60. Animation: Resources depletion anddegradation interaction
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- 63. Animation: Life historypatterns
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