sustainability
the central integrating theme of this book - is the ability of the earth's various natural systems and human cultural systems and economies to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinitely
why should be care about sustainability ?
because we are species in the process of rapidly degrading our own life support system.
What are three principles that nature has used to sustain itself for at least 3.5 billion years ?
1)solar energy
2)biodiversity
3)chemical cycling
solar energy
the sun warms the planet and provides energy that plants use to produce food for themselves and for us and most other animals. Without the sun , there would be no plants, animals, and food. The sun is indirect form of solar energy such a wind and flowing
biodiversity
includes variety of different organisms; the deserts, grasslands, forests, oceans, and other systems in which they exist and interact; and the free natural services, such as soil renewal , pest control, and air and water purification, that these species a
chemical cycling
natural process recycle nutrients, or chemicals that plants and animals need to stay alive and reproduce. Because the earth gets no new shipments of these chemicals, they must be continuously cycled from organisms to their nonliving environment and back.
environment
is everything around us , or as the famous physicist Albert Einstein put it , "The ____ is everything that isn't me." It includes the living and nonliving things (air,water,and energy) with which we interact in complex web of relationships thats connect u
environmental science
an interdisciplinary study of how humans interact with living and nonliving parts of their environment
What are the three goals of environmental science ?
1)to learn how nature works
2)to understand how we interact with the environment
3)to find ways to deal with environmental problems and live more sustainably
ecology
the biological science thats studies how organisms interact with one another and with their environment
organisms
living things
every organisms is a member of a certain ______
species
species
a group of organisms that have distinctive traits and, for sexually reproducing organisms, can mate and produce fertile offsprings
ecosystem
is a set of organisms within a defined area or volume interacting with one another and with and their environment of nonliving matter and energy.
environmentalism
a social movement dedicated to protecting the earth's life-support systems for all forms of life. This is practiced more in political and ethical arenas that in the realm of science.
capital
is money and other forms of wealth that can be used to support one's lifestyle
a critical componment of sustainability is ______
natural capital
natural captial
the natural resources and natural services that keep us and other forms of life alive and support our economies
natural resources
are materials and energy in nature that are essential or useful to humans.
renewable resources
air , water , soil , plants , and wind
nonrenewable resources
copper , oil , and coal
Natural resources are classified as ______
renewable and nonrenewable resources
Natural services
are processes in nature such as purification of air and water , which support life and human economies.
one vital natural service is _____
nutrient cycling
nutrient cycling
the circulation of chemicals neccessay for life , from the environment (mostly from soil and water) through organisms and back to the environment
environmentally sustainable society
one that meets the current and future basic resource needs of its people in a just andequitable manner without compromising the ability of fututre generations to meet their basic needs.
what does natural capital consist of ?
natural resources and natural services
natural income
the renewable resources such as plants , animals , and soil provided by the earth's natural capital
resource
is anything obtained from the environment to meet our needs and wants
perpetual resources
solar energy is _____ because it is renewed continuously and is expected to last at least 6 billion years as the sun completes its life cycle.
sustainable yield
the highest rate at which a renewable resource can be used indefinitely without reducing its available supply
environmental degradation
the available supply begins to shrink
tragedy of the commons
it occurs because each user of a shared common resource or open-access resource reasons , "IF I do not use this resource , someone else will. The little bit that I use or pollute is not enough to matter , and anyway,it's a renewable resources.
what are the two solutions that were presented of the tragedy of the commons an describe them.
1)use shared renewable resources at rates well below their estimated sustainable yields by reducing use of the resources , regulating access to the resource , or doing both.
2)convert open-access renewable resources to private ownership. The reasoning is
ecological footprint
the amount of biologically productive supply the people in a particular country or area with the renewable resources and to absorb and recycle the waste and pollution produced by such resource use.
per capita ecological footprint
is the average ecological footprint of an individual in a given country or area
ecological tipping point
which cause an often irreversible shift in the behavior of a natural system
nonrenewable resource
exist in a fixed quantity, or stock, in the earth's
ruse
menas using a resource over and over in the same form
Recycling
involves collecting waste materials and processing them into new material
Developed vs. Developing Countries
developed
country that is highly industrialized and has a high per capita
developing
country that ha slow to moderate industrialization and low to moderate per capita. Most are located in Africa , Asia , and Latin America
environmental impact equation
I = P x A x T
I is environmental impact of population
P is population
A is consumption per person ( affluence )
T is technological impact per unit consumption
pollution
is contamination of the environment by a chemical or other agent such as noise or heat that is harmful to health , survival , or activities of humans or other organisms
Point and Nonpoint source pollution
point sources are single , identifiable sources.
nonpoint sources are dispersed and often difficult to identify .
pollution cleanup
which involved cleaning up or diluting after they have been produced.
pollution prevention
which reduced or eliminated the production of pollutants.
four basic environmental problems that we face as a society today
1)population growth
2)unsustainable resource use
3)poverty
4) excluding environmental costs from the market prices
exponential growth
occurs when a quantity such as the human population or pollution increases at a fixed percentage per unit of time
poverty
occurs when people are unable to meet their basic needs for adequate food, water, shelter, health , and education
environmental worldview
is a set of assumptions and vaules reflecting how you think the world works and what you think you rrole in the world should be
environmental ethics
which are beliefs about what is right and wrong with how we treat the environment.
Three different Environmental Worldviews
1)Planetary management worldview hold that we are separate from and in charge of nature , that nature exists mainly to meet our needs and increasing wants , and that we can use our ingenuity and technology to manage the earth's life-support systems , most
Three basic ideas of Sustainability
1)rely more on renewable energy from the sun,including indirect forms of solar energy such as wind and flowing water , to meet most of our heating and electricity needs
2)protect biodiversity by preventing that degradation of the earth's species, ecosyste