Chapter 1 Lecture Notes

Science and the Environment

Name: Hour: Date:

Chapter 1: Section 1 TargetsDefine and compare environmental science with .

List and Define the that contribute to environmental science.

Describe the major environmental effects of , the revolution, and the

Revolution.

Distinguish between newable and newable resources.

Classify environmental into three major categories.

What is Environmental Science?

•Environmental Science: Study of how humans affect their and

surroundings

Goals of Environmental Science

• Major goal of environmental science is to and environmental problems.

• Environmental scientists study 2 main types of between humans and the environment:1. How our actions the environment.2. Our of natural resources.

Environmental Science vs. Ecology

• Environmental science involves many fields of study, including ecology.

• Ecology: study of interactions of living organisms with one another and their environment.

• Major Levels Studied by Ecologists?

5 Fields of Study Used by Environmental Scientists

Scientists as Citizens, Citizens as Scientists

• Who is usually the first person to recognize an environmental problem?

• The of are the first steps toward addressing an environmental problem.

Our Environment Through Time

Wherever have hunted, grown food, or settled, they have

the environment.

Hunter-Gatherers

• Hunter-gatherers: people who get food by plants and wild

animals or scavenging their remains.

• Hunter-gatherers their environment in many ways:1) They hunted animals, their

populations2) The tribes also to burn

prairies and prevent the grow of trees. This left the prairie as an open grassland ideal for hunting bison.

Hunter-Gatherers

• In North America, a combination of rapid and by

hunter-gatherers may have led to disappearance of large mammal species, including:

1) giant sloths

2) giant bison

3) mastodons

4) cave bears

5) saber-toothed cats

The Agricultural Revolution

• Agriculture: raising crops and livestock for food or other products useful to humans.– Practice of agriculture began over 10,000 years

ago.– Often called the Revolution.

– Allowed human populations to grow at rate. WHY?

– Many were and replaced with farmland.•Replacing forest with farmland caused soil loss,

floods, and water shortages.

The Industrial Revolution

• Industrial Revolution: from energy sources such as animals/running water to fossil fuels such as coal/oil.– use of fossil fuels greatly

increased efficiency of agriculture, industry, and transportation.•For example, motorized vehicles allowed food to

be transported cheaply across greater distances.– On farms, machinery amount of

land and human labor needed to produce food.•With fewer people producing their own food,

populations in urban areas steadily .

Improving the Quality of Life

• Industrial Revolution introduced many changes such as the light bulb.

• Agricultural productivity , and sanitation, nutrition, and medical care .

• The Industrial Revolution also introduced newenvironmental such as pollution and habitat loss.– We now have materials such as plastics, artificial

pesticides, and fertilizers.– Much of environmental science is concerned with

associated with the Industrial Revolution.

Spaceship Earth

• Earth is a system.– Some resources are and as populations

grow, they are used more rapidly.– We may also wastes faster than they

can be .

• Environmental problems on different scales: local, regional, or global.• A example would be your community

discussing where to build a new landfill.• A example would be a polluted river 1000

miles away affecting the region’s water.• A example would be the depletion of the

ozone layer.

Comprehension Check

1. Name a global environmental problem.

2. Name a local environmental problem.

3. Could the local problem be a part of the global problem? If so, how?

What are our Main Environmental Problems?

• Environmental problems can generally be grouped into three categories:

1) Depletion

2)

3) Loss of

Resource Depletion

• Natural Resources: any natural materials used by humans, such as, water, petroleum, minerals, forests, and animals.– Classified as either a

renewable or nonrenewable.•Renewable resources can

be replaced relatively quickly by natural process.

•Nonrenewable resources form at a much slower rate than they are consumed.

Recyclable vs. Renewable

Pollution

• Pollution: change in natural environment caused by of substances harmful to living organisms or by excessive wastes, heat, noise, or radiation

Pollution

• Two main types of pollutants:• degradable pollutants

• be broken down by natural processes and include materials such as newspaper

•Are a problem only when they accumulate than they can be broken down

• degradable pollutants• be broken down by natural

processes and include materials such as mercury•They can build up to levels in

the environment

Loss of Biodiversity

• Biodiversity: of organisms in a given area or the genetic variation within a population– These organisms can be considered

resources.– Can you think of 3 reasons why biodiversity

would be important to our survival?• • •

Comprehension Check

1. How do scientists define a nonrenewable resource?A. a resource that is used by humansB. a resource that can never be replacedC. a resource that can be replaced relatively quicklyD. a resource that takes more time to replace than to deplete

Comprehension Check

2.Which of the following is an important field for environmental science?A. ecologyB. economicsC. meteorologyD. political science

Comprehension Check3.Which of the following phrases describes the

term biodiversity?A. species that have become extinctB. the animals that live in an areaC. species that look different from one anotherD. the number and variety of species that live in an area

Comprehension Check

4. Energy from the sun, water, air, wood, and soil are all examples of what kind of energy?

A. ecological energyB. organic energyC. renewable energyD. solar energy

Chapter 1: Section 2 Targets

Describe “The Tragedy of the ”.

Explain the Law of and .

List three differences between develop and develop countries.

Explain what is, and describe why it is a goal of environmental science.

“The Tragedy of the Commons”

• Ecologist Garrett Hardin argued there is a conflict between the of the individual and the

of society.

• The example he used was the , or the areas of land that belonged

to the whole village.

“The Tragedy of the Commons”

• want as many animals in the commons as possible.– If too many animals graze on commons, they destroy

the grass.– Once grass was destroyed, everyone suffered

because no one could raise animals on the commons.

• Hardin’s realized someone must take for maintaining a resource or it will become depleted.

• This can be applied to our resources.

Supply and Demand

• Law of Supply and Demand: as

for a good or service increases, of the food or service also increases.– Example: oil

production.

Developed and Developing Countries

• countries have:•higher incomes•slower population growth•diverse industrial economies•stronger social support.

• countries have:•lower average incomes•simple agriculture-based communities•rapid population growth.

Population and Consumption• Almost all environmental problems are

traced back to 2 main causes:

• The human population in some areas is for the local

environment to support.

• People many natural resources than they can be renewed, replaced, or cleaned up.

Consumption Trends•To support higher , developed countries use much more of Earth’s resources.•Developed nations use of world’s resources, although they make up only of world’s population.

•This rate of consumption creates more waste and pollution per person than in developing countries.

Ecological Footprints•Ecological footprints: calculations that show

in a particular country.•estimates used for crops, grazing, forests products, and housing. It also includes area used to harvest seafood and needed to absorb air pollution caused by fossil fuels.

•one way to express the differences in

between nations.

A Sustainable World

• Sustainability: condition in which human needs are met in a way that a human population can indefinitely.

• Examples:

• is a key goal of environmental science.

Comprehension Check5.Population growth can result in what ethical

environmental problem, addressed by ecologist Garrett Hardin in “The Tragedy of the Commons?A. the conflict between water resources and industrial growthB. the conflict between forest resources and the

lumber companiesC. the conflict between political interests and

international energy useD. the conflict between individual interests and the welfare of society

Comprehension CheckUse this graph to answer questions 6

and 7 6. What was the total population increase between the years 1600 and 1900?

A. 0.6 billionB. 0.9 billionC. 1.0 billionD. 1.5 billion

7. If the rate of growth from 1900-1950 had been the same as the rate of growth from 1950-2000, what would the world population have been at the end of the century?A. more than 7 billionB. more than 10 billionC. more than 15 billionD. more than 20 billion

Comprehension Check

8. Which of the following characterizes the environmental consequences of the current population trend?A. More people mean more housing construction.B. The need for food and resources is growing rapidly.C. The standard of living has risen around the world.D. There is no connection between population growth and environment.