ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE: A GLOBAL

PERSPECTIVE

What Is Environmental Science?

Environmental Science is the study of how the earth works, how we interact with and affect the

environment, and how to deal with environmental problems.

What Is Meant By The “Environment”?

• It is everything around us.

• It is the natural world as well as things produced by humans.

What Are Our Main Environmental Problems?

1. RESOURCE DEPLETION– A resource is any natural substance used by living

things such as sunlight, air, water, soil…-Nonrenewable resources- resources that cannot

be replaced such as copper, uranium, and even trees if they are cut down faster than new ones can form.

-Renewable resources – resources that are continually being replaced such as sunlight, trees and fish.

2. POLLUTION The introduction of harmful levels of chemicals or waste material into the environment.

Many pollutants are byproducts of burning fossil fuels (which gets into our air) and by agriculture (which gets into our waters).Pollutants can harm plants, animals and humans.

3. EXTINCTION- Is when the last individual member of a

species and died and the species is gone forever.

- Species today are disappearing faster than ever before.

- Some organisms that are now extinct are the passenger pigeon, dodo bird, Baiji white dolphin and the bigleaf scurfpea.

Many Environmental Problems Are Global Problems

• Ex: sulfur dioxide released by coal plants in the American Midwest fall back to Earth as acid rain in Canada.

• Ex: Cars driven in America and Europe increase the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) which may cause the climate of the entire Earth to change.

• Ex: deforestation in South America contributes to the increase in carbon dioxide (CO2)

• Biosphere- bio= living• It is the thin layer of life around the

earth.• It extends about 5 miles above

earth and 5 miles below the surface.

Most Of The Nations Can Be Placed In One Of Two Groups

• Developed Countries• 1.2 billion people• Us, Canada, Japan,

Australia, New Zealand, most European countries

• Citizens have higher incomes

• More industrialized

• Developing Countries• 5.4 billion people• Most in Africa, Asia and

Latin America• China, India, Brazil,

Mexico• Citizens have lower

incomes • Less industrialized

Increasing Population Can Create Environmental Problems

• More people = more demand for resources• Is most severe in the developing nations• People struggle just to survive and may strip

forests and kill endangered animals.

Consumption Of Resources Can Create Environmental Problems

• The consumption crisis is most severe in developed nations

• Developed nations use 75% of the resources used every year and make up 20% of the world’s population.

What Does It Mean To Be Sustainable?

• A state in which humans can exist indefinitely with a high standard of living and health while preserving habitats and resources.

• This is the goal of environmental problem solving.

Let’s Not Forget The Scientific Method!

• Used to find answers to questions about the world around us.

• 1. Observe• 2. Form a question• 3. Hypothesize • 4. Test the hypothesis (experiment)• 5. Organize and interpret data with tables,

graphs, and charts• 6. Communicate results

Scientific Method Specifics• Good observations include accurate and

detailed descriptions• A hypothesis is a testable explanation for an

observation• In an experiment, 2 groups or situations are

studied. There can be only 1 difference (independent variable) between the 2 groups

• All data must be carefully and accurately recorded in order to determine if the hypothesis was supported

• All tables/graphs must be labeled and titled correctly to enable scientists to convey comparisons and trends they have discovered.

• Communicating results must be done in such as way as to include the entire experiment- the hypothesis, relevant background information, exact description of the work done, the data collected and the evaluation of the data. The experiment must be able to be repeated by others who get the same results as well.

Why Do We Have Environmental Problems?

• People with different environmental worldviews often disagree about the seriousness of environmental problems and what we should do about them.

Different Views About Environmental Problems And Their Solutions

– Planetary management worldview – nature exists for our use and benefit. We are separate from nature.

– Stewardship worldview –we use nature for our benefit, but we must make wise decisions concerning the sustainability of the planet

– Environmental wisdom worldview - we are a part of nature and no more important than any other part. We must learn to integrate into the Earth systems.

Values That Affect Environmental Decision Making

Aesthetic- what is beautiful or pleasingEconomicEnvironmentalEducationalEthical/moralHealthRecreationsScientificSocial/cultural

Footprints

• What is an ecological footprint?

• Is the world’s footprint growing or shrinking?

• What happens to the resources as the footprint changes?

What Is An Ecological Footprint?

• Amount of productive land and water needed to supply the people in an area with resources to live and the community’s ability to absorb and recycle the wastes and pollution they produce by using resources.

• Per capita ecological footprint - the average ecological footprint of an individual in a given area.

How Is The Planet’s Ecological Footprint?

• In 2003, the World Wildlife Fund and Global Footprint Network estimated that the global ecological footprint exceeded the earth’s biological capacity by about 25% but it was

88% in the world’s high-income countries.• American’s are the second largest consumers

of resources, and if everyone used resources the way we do, the Earth could only support 1.3 billion people.

Calculating Your Ecological Footprint

• If everyone on earth lived your lifestyle, how many earths would be needed to support all the people?

• Web activity- calculate your footprint

Common Resources- Think About It!• What are some common resources that must

be shared?• Are resources distributed equally around the

world?• Are resources shared equally?• Do resource-rich countries have an obligation to share with resource-poor countries?

Overexploiting Shared Renewable Resources: Tragedy of the Commons

• Three types of property or resource rights– Private property– Common property (1/3 of all land in US is owned

by the people and managed by the government)– Open access renewable resources- use is regulated

by government (open oceans /fish and clean air)

Garrett Hardin and the Tragedy of the Commons

Overuse of common property resources, which are owned by no one but available to everyone free of charge.

Examples are clean air, oceans, fish, Antarctica. This leads to exploitation and then no one can use the

resource. “ If I don’t use this resource then someone else will, the

little bit I pollute is not enough to matter”

What’s the use of a house if you don’t have a decent planet to put it on?

-HENRY DAVID THOREAU

What’s the use of a house if you don’t have a decent planet to put it on?

-HENRY DAVID THOREAU

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