interdisciplinary ecology chemistry economics politics geology systems environmental science

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INTERDISCIPLINARYECOLOGYCHEMISTRYECONOMICSPOLITICSGEOLOGYSYSTEMS

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

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1-1 LIVING SUSTAINABLY

Questions to ask

• How the Earth works?• How are we affecting the Earth’s life supports

system?• How to deal with environmental problems?

– What laws? When do we phase it in?

What do you think is our most serious environmental problem?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

0%

7% 7%

0%

36%

0%

7%

14%

7%

21%

a) Corruption in governments and businesses, and bad economic policies

b) Destruction of biodiversity

c) Environmental impacts from human poverty and hunger

d) Genetic engineering of organisms

e) Greenhouse Effect (global warming) and resulting climatic changes

f) Human diseases (cancer, malaria, AIDS, etc.)

g) Human overpopulation

h) Nuclear, chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction

i) Poor farming techniques (soil erosion, overuse of pesticides, livestock wastes, etc.)

j) Wasting of valuable and nonrenewable resources

Six important environmental issues

• Population growth

• Increasing resource use

• Global climate change

• Premature extinction of plants and animals

• Pollution

• Poverty

LIVING SUSTAINABLY

• SOLAR CAPITAL - PROVIDES 99%OF OUR ENERGY WE USE ON EARTH.

• EARTH CAPITAL - LIFE-SUPPORT AND ECONOMIC SERVICES.

• SUSTAINABILITY - IS THE ABILITY OF A SPECIFIED SYSTEM TO SURVIVE AND FUNCTION OVER A SPECIFIED TIME.

SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE HARVEST

• SUPPLY OF RESOURCES THAT CAN BE HARVESTED EACH YEAR.

SUSTAINABLE EARTH

• EARTH CAPITAL ARE USED AND MAINTAINED OVER TIME.

What is sustainability?

1 2 3 4

90%

0%0%

10%

1. Satisfying basic needs without depleting or degrading resources

2. Maximizing resource use

3. Reducing resource use even if it means some big sacrifices by human beings

4. Halting further resource use and limiting human progress

SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY

• MANAGES ITS ECONOMY AND POPULATION SIZE WITHOUT EXCEEDING ALL OR PART OF THE PLANET’S ABILITY TO ABSORB ENVIRONMENTAL INSULTS, REPLENISH ITS RESOURCES, AND SUSTAIN HUMAN AND OTHER FORMS OF LIFE OVER A SPECIFIED PERIOD. HUNDREDS OF YEARS.

CARRYING CAPACITY

• DEFINED AS THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ORGANISMS A LOCAL,REGIONAL,OR GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT CAN SUPPORT OVER A SPECIFIED PERIOD.

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CARRYING CAPACITY

• VARIES BY LOCATION

• GLOBAL CHANGES

• TYPES OF TECHNOLOGY USES TO EXTRACT AND PROCESS THE RESOURCES

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ARE WE LIVING OFF THE INTEREST OR THE PRINCIPAL?

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1-2GROWTH AND THE WEALTH GAP

LINEAR POPULATION GROWTH

• IS A QUANTITY THAT INCREASES AT A CONSTANT AMOUNT PER UNIT OF TIME.

• IF PLOTTED ON A GRAPH IT WOULD BE A STRAIGHT LINE.

EXPONENTIAL GROWTH

• IS WHERE THE QUANTITY INCREASES BY A FIXED PERCENTAGE OF THE WHOLE IN A GIVEN TIME AS EACH INCREASE IS APPLIED TO THE BASE FOR FURTHER GROWTH.

• IS J SHAPED.

• DOUBLING TIME - THE RULE OF 70.

• 70/% OF GROWTH RATE = DOUBLING TIME IN YEARS.

• k = (1/t)ln(N/N0)

• t = (1/k)ln(N/N0)

World Population Reached

1 billion in 1804

2 billion in 1927 (123 years later)





World Population May Reach



9 billion in 2050 (22 years later) Figure 1-2Page 4

http://www.ibiblio.org/lunarbin/worldpop





The earth’s population is currently 6.6 billion people. The rate of population growth is 1.2 percent. How large will the earth’s population be after 58 years?

1. 10.2 billion people



1 2 3

33% 33%33%

Which of the following would not be an example of sound science?

1 2 3 4

25% 25%25%25%

1. Calculating the destruction of trees in a forest based on historical cut rates

2. Calculating the pollution in a stream based on chemical analysis

3. Developing a plan on how to conserve resources based on opinion polls

4. Forecasting CO2 levels in a region based on historical emissions

Because developing nations make up 81% of the world’s population, they generate most of the pollution and waste as well as using most of the world’s resources.

1 2

50%50%

1. True

2. False

Based on the map, in which three countries would you not expect to find high levels of poverty?

1. United States, Argentina, Japan

2. United States, China, Australia

3. Greenland, Kenya, South Africa

4. Mexico, Brazil, Canada

1 2 3 4

25% 25%25%25%

How many people live on the earth?

1 2 3 4

25% 25%25%25%

1. About 5 million

2. About 2 billion

3. Over 6 billion

4. Over 10 billion

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DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

• LOW INDUSTRIALIZATION AND PER CAPITA GNPs.

• MAKES UP 80% OF THE WORLDS POPULATION.

• 15% OF THE WORLD’S WEALTH AND INCOME.

• ONLY USE 12% OF THE WORLD’S RESOURCES.

Most population growth is projected to occur in:

1 2

50%50%

1. Developed countries

2. Developing countries

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More Developed Country

Less Developed Country

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WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT THE WEALTH GAP?

• NOTHING, BECAUSE PEOPLE MAKE THEIR OWN BED SO THE MUST LIVE IN IT. IF WE HELP THEM

WE WILL BE CREATING A WELFARE STATE. THUS HURTING THEM IN THE LONG RUN.

• SOMETHING, BECAUSE THE POOR ARE DYING. THE POOR SOMETIMES HAVE A MORE ADVERSE AFFECT ON THE ENVIRONMENT THAN THE DEVELOPED COUNTRIES.

TOO MANY RICH PEOPLEWEIGHING RELATIVE BURDENS ON THE PLANET

• READ PAUL EHRLICH’S ESSAY.

• WRITE A COUNTER POINT ESSAY.

• TYPED 2 pages.

• 20 POINTS. Test points

• Due Friday the 9th

1-3RESOURCES

Nonrenewable resources:

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25% 25%25%25%

1. Are fixed in quantity

2. Include solar energy

3. Degrade quickly once they have been extracted from the earth

4. Can be exhausted completely

WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT?• IS THE CURRENT GROWTH RATE SUSTAINABLE

IN THE FUTURE?

• THIS IDEA ASSUMES THAT WE RIGHT TO USE THE EARTH’S RESOURCES AND EARTH CAPITAL TO MEET OUR NEEDS BUT THAT WE HAVE THE OBLIGATION TO PASS ON THE EARTH’S RESOURCES AND SERVICES TO FUTURE GENERATIONS IN AS GOOD OR BETTER SHAPE THAN THESE CONDITIONS WERE PASSED ON TO US.

• SHOULD WE LIVE FOR TODAY AND NOT CARE ABOUT HOW FUTURE WILL BE AFFECTED?

ECOLOGICAL VS. ECONOMIC RESOURCES

• ECOLOGICAL RESOURCE - IS ANYTHING REQUIRED BY AN ORGANISM FOR NORMAL MAINTENANCE, GROWTH, AND PRODUCTION.

• ECONOMIC RESOURCE - IS ANYTHING OBTAINED FROM THE ENVIRONMENT TO MEET HUMAN NEEDS AND WANTS.

RENEWABLE RESOURCES

• RENEWABLE RESOURCES - SOLAR.• POTENTIALLY RENEWABLE RESOURCES - CAN BE

REPLENISHED FAIRLY RAPIDLY THROUGH NATURAL PROCESSES.

• BIODIVERSITY

GENETIC DIVERSITY

SPECIES DIVERSITY

ECOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

VARIETY PROVIDES MORE RESOURCES.

Which of the following countries has the highest ecological footprint per capita?

1 2 3 4

25% 25%25%25%

1. India

2. The Netherlands

3. The United States

4. All are about the same

United States

The Netherlands

India

CountryPer Capita Ecological Footprint(Hectares of land per person)

10.9

5.9

1.0

Figure 1-8 (1)Page 10

CountryTotal Ecological Footprint

(Hectares)

United States

The Netherlands

India

3 billion hectares

94 million hectares

1 billion hectares

Figure 1-8 (2)Page 10

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Some Major ProblemsSome Major Problems

Fig. 1–13a © Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP

Fig. 1–13b

More Major ProblemsMore Major Problems

© Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP

Fig. 1–13c

Still More Major ProblemsStill More Major Problems


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THE TRAGEDY OF THE COMMONS.

“ IF I DO NOT USE THIS RESOURCE, SOMEONE ELSE WILL. THE LITTLE BIT I USE OR POLLUTE IS NOT ENOUGH TO MATTER.” WITH ONLY A FEW USES, THIS LOGIC WORKS. HOWEVER, THE CUMULATIVE EFFECT OF MANY PEOPLE TRYING TO EXHAUSTS OR RUINS IT. THEN NO ONE CAN BENEFIT FROM IT, AND THEREIN LIES THE TRAGEDY.

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POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

•USE THE COMMON-PROPERTY RESOURCE AT RATES BELOW WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE BY REDUCING POPULATION AND REGULATING ACCESS.

PROBLEMS -

• CONVERT THE COMMON-PROPERTY TO PRIVATE OWNERSHIP.

PROBLEMS -

• COMMAND-AND-CONTROL IS THE USE OF TAXES AND THE FREE-MARKET

PROBLEMS -

What is the tragedy of the commons?

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25% 25%25%25%1. The depletion of non-renewable resources

2. The degradation of renewable free-access resources

3. The seizing of natural resources by government

4. The underuse of resources that could benefit needy people

1-4 POLLUTION

POINT SOURCE - COMES FROM A SINGLE, IDENTIFIABLE SOURCE.

NONPOINT SOURCE - RUNOFF

THREE FACTORS DETERMINED HOW SEVERE THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF A POLLUTANT ARE.

1. THE CONCENTRATION LEVEL. ppm ppt

2. CHEMICAL NATURE. How active and harmful it is in nature?

3. HALF LIFE OR THE PERSISTENCE OF THE POLLUTANT. ex BIODEGRADABLE

DDT IS AN EXAMPLE OF A PERSISTENT POLLUTANT.

SOLUTIONS TO POLLUTION

• POLLUTION CONTROL-INPUT CONTROL

THREE Rs

• POLLUTION PREVENTION- OUTPUT CONTROL

1. TEMPORARY BANDAGE.

2. THE CLEANUP OF ONE TYPE OF POLLUTANT MAY CAUSE ANOTHER TYPE OF POLLUTION PROBLEM.

3. COST IS TO HIGH.

ONLY 1 % IS SPENT ON PREVENTION

1-5 ENVIRONMENTAL AND RESOURCE PROBLEMS: CAUSE

AND CONNECTIONS

• RAPID POPULATION GROWTH

• RAPID AND WASTEFUL USE OF RESOURCES WITH TOO LITTLE EMPHASIS ON POLLUTION PREVENTION AND WASTE REDUCTION

•POVERTY

• FAILURE OF POLICIES THAT ENCOURAGE SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

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Population X Affluence X Technology = Impact

IMPORTANT

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1-6Is our present course sustainable

Are things getting better or worse?

1-8 ENVIRONMENTAL WORLD VIEWS

AND SUSTAINABILITY

WHAT’S THE USE OF A HOUSE IF YOU DON’T HAVE A DECENT PLANET TO PUT IT ON? THOREAU

• ENVIRONMENTAL WORLDVIEWS

• PLANETARY MANAGEMENT WORLDVIEW.

SUSTAINABILITY

– PLANETARY MANAGEMENT WORLDVIEW

WE ARE THE BEST• THERE IS ALWAYS MORE• ALL EC. GROWTH IS GOOD• SUCCESS = CONTROL OF EARTH FOR OUR

BENEFIT

Environmental wisdom view

• Nature exist for all

• There is not always more

• Some economic growth is good while some might effect the environment

Working Toward SustainabilityWorking Toward Sustainability

Some Guidelines• Leave the earth as good or better than we found it.• Take no more than we need.• Try not to harm life, air, water, soil.• Protect biodiversity.• Help maintain Earth's capacity for self repair.• Don't use potentially renewable resources faster than

they are replenished.• Don't waste resources.• Don't release pollutants faster than Earth's natural

processes can dilute or degrade them.• Slow the rate of population growth.• Reduce poverty.


interdisciplinary ecology chemistry economics politics geology systems environmental science

Documents

specified time

earths population

doubling time

given time

unit of time

rate of population growth

human poverty

human beingshalting