Human Sustainabil

ityIntegrated Science Unit 2

Warm UP• Cut out the types of “litter”• Arrange them and glue them into the

appropriate categories• Biodegradable – will break apart and disappear over time

• Non-biodegradable – will not break apart

What is Human Sustainability?

• A form of development which satisfies the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

• What do you think this definition means?

What are the three types of sustainability?

• Economic• Social• Environmental

Human Sustainability• Good reproductive

health• Safe childbearing• Where do you

think this is at risk?

Economic• Having a set amount of

capital for a certain period

• Being able to conserve the capital so that others may enjoy it

• Must regenerate resources at a rate that is equal to or faster than consumption

Social• Through communities and civil societies that

humankind can easily ad inexpensively work together• Without proper levels of social capital, it can easily

deplete and violence as well as mistrust can take over.• Through proper maintenance and adherence to laws,

rules, and values that societies have developed for the common good, social sustainability can be achieved.

• Detroit?

Environmental• Involves natural resources that human beings need for

economic or manufactured capital• If natural resources are depleted faster than it can

regenerate, human beings will be left without raw materials• Also involves ensuring waste emissions are at volumes that

nature can handle• If not, all living things can be harmed to the point of

extinction

How are humans involved in all 3 types of sustainability?

Recycling

Recycling• What do you think

recycling means?

• The practice of reusing items that would otherwise be discarded as waste

What are landfills?• A place to dispose of refuse and other

waste material by burying it and covering it over with soil, especially as a method of filling in or extending usable land.

Biodegradable• Material that is able to degrade or

break down• What are some examples?

• Apple cores, bones, paper, flowers, serving utensils, plates made of corn products

Non-biodegradable• Materials that are not

broken down by organisms?

• What are some examples?

• Plastic, glass, polyester clothing items, and aluminum cans

Exit Slip• Complete the definitions labeled “1”

on your definition sheet.

Warm Up• Arrange the following items in length

of biodegrade time from shortest amount of time to longest amount of time• Apple core, soy sauce bottle, picture

frame, chicken bone, water bottle, soda can, tree branch, lamp shade, cracker tin, Doritos bag, diaper, sewing machine, rotten fruit

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Great Pacific Garbage Patch

• An area of the ocean where marine debris has conjugated due to the oceans currents.

• Contains a high density of plastics• Estimated to be TWICE the size of

TEXAS!

Videos• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

WtewmJ78hzw

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnUjTHB1lvM

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

• Reading w/ vocabulary• Questions

Exit Slip• Complete the definitions labeled “2”

on your definition sheet.

Warm Up• What are 5 ways that Dunbar could

improve its recycling efforts in the cafeteria?• Are there things being thrown away

that should be recycled?• How could you make your peers more

aware of what should be recycled because it is not biodegradable?

Deforestation

Deforestation• The permanent destruction of forests

in order to make the land available for other uses.

Facts on Deforestation

• Estimated 18 million acres are lost each year• ~Half of the world’s tropical forests have been

cleared• Forests currently cover about 30% of the

world’s land mass• Forest loss contributes 6-12% of annual CO2

emissions• ~36 football fields worth of trees are lost every

minute

Locations of Deforestation

• Occurs all around the world• Tropical rainforests are

particularly targeted• Most significant: Brazil,

Indonesia, Thailand, Africa, Eastern Europe

• Indonesia – country with most deforestation

• 90% of USA’s forest has been removed since 1600

Causes of Deforestation

• Trees used for fuel• Make more land available for housing

and urbanization• Harvest timber for commercial use• Create high demand consumer items

(oil from palm trees)• Create room for cattle ranching

Methods of Deforestation

• Burning trees• Slash and burn – cutting

down patch of trees and burning them to grow crops on the land• Fertility of soil only lasts

a few years, must repeat cycle with new land

• Clear cutting• Large areas of land are

cut down all at once

Deforestation and Climate Change

• Deforestation releases nearly a billion of tons of carbon into the atmosphere per year

• Second largest human-caused source of CO2 to the atmosphere (6-17%)

• Also decreases water vapor flows from land by 4%• Changes natural weather patterns and

current climate models

Other Effects of Deforestation

• Loss of species• 70% of world’s plants and animals losing habitat• Species extinction• Negative consequences for medicinal research

• Water Cycle• Absorbs rain, releases it as water vapor, absorbs

pollution in water

• Soil Erosion• Tree roots anchor soil, without this soil washes away

• Life Quality• Pollution to water supply

Counteracting Deforestation

• Reforestation• Carbon storage, water

cycling, wildlife habitat• Reduce buildup of CO2 in

atmosphere• Rebuild wildlife habitats

• Shifting human population to plant-based diet• Reduce need for livestock

• Awareness

Exit Slip• Complete the definitions labeled “3”

on your definition sheet.

Warm Up• What is deforestation?

• What is one method of deforestation?• How are humans contributing

(negatively) to deforestation?• What is something that can be done to

help deforestation?

Population Growth

Population Growth Rate

• Measures how populations change in size over time.

• Units: individuals/time

• Can only be changed by births and deaths

Limiting Factors to Population Growth

• Resources or other factors that can lower the population growth rate• Low food supply• Lack of space

• Can lower birth rates, increase death rates, or lead to emigration

Human Growth Rate • Declining since peaking

in 1962 and 1963 at 2.20% per year• Why was there a boom

during this time?

• Annual birthrate 1.89%• Annual mortality

rate .79%• Annual growth rate

1.096%

Increasing Human Population and the Environment

• Food• Every day 25,000 people die of

malnutrition and hunger related diseases

• Water Shortages• ~1 billion people lack access to

clean water

• Air Quality• Asthma rates increased

dramatically over past 20 years

• Fuel• Depleting resources• Burning wood, cutting down trees

• Ozone Layer• Being destroyed at a rate

of about 4%/year

• Forests• Cut for land use fuel, and

more

• Oceans• Contaminating water,

overfishing

• Topsoil• Heavy crop growing is

depleting topsoil

Increasing Human Population and Social Problems

• Overcrowding• Cost of housing• Length of commute• Recreation• Parking

• Personal Freedom• Limits on…

• Water consumption• Driving• Travel• Burning fires• What people can do on their land

Increasing Human Population and Other Species

• Species extinction

• Habitat destruction

• Habitat fragmentation

Exit Slip• Complete the definitions labeled “4”

on your definition sheet.

Warm Up• What is human population growth

rate?• How is the human population growth

rate affecting the environment?• Social issues?• Other species?

Sea Level Change

Sea Level Rise• Sea levels have been rising due to ongoing

global climate change• Thermal expansion• Melting of glaciers and polar ice caps• Ice loss from Greenland and West Antarctica

Thermal Expansion• Earth’s surface

temperature has been rising due to global warming

• The ocean absorbs 80% of this additional heat

• As water heats up, it expands

Melting of Glaciers and Polar Ice Caps

• Persistently higher temperatures caused by global warming have led to greater than average summer melting as well as diminished snowfall

• This imbalance results in a significant net gain in runoff

Ice Loss from Greenland and West Antarctica

• Increased heat is causing massive ice sheets that cover Greenland and Antarctica to melt at an accelerated pace

• Higher sea temperatures are also causing the massive ice shelves that extend out from Antarctica to melt from below, weaken, and break off

Why Care about Sea Level Rise?

• Destructive erosion• Flooding of wetlands• Contamination of aquifers and agricultural

soils• Loss of habitat for fish, birds, and plants• Islands submerged• Coastal homes abandoned

Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL)

• Risen by 4-8 inches over the past century

• Annual rate of rise over the past 20 years has been 3.2 millimeters a year• Twice the speed of

the past 80 years

How High Will It Go?• A recent study says we can expect the

oceans to rise between 2.5 and 6.5 feet by 2100• Enough to swamp many cities along the

Eastern Coast

• Another estimate (including a complete meltdown of the Greenland ice sheet, push sea level rise to 23 feet• Enough to submerge London

Exit Slip• Complete the definitions labeled “5”

on your definition sheet.

Warm Up• Explain Sea Level Rise

• What is thermal expansion?

• Why should we care about sea level rise, because we live in Kentucky and we are not near the sea?

Overexploitation

Overexploitation• Harvesting species from

the wild at rates faster than natural populations can recover

• Examples• Overfishing• Overhunting

• 1/3 of the world’s endangered vertebrates are threatened by overexploitation

Fish and Other Aquatic Species

• Fishing gear and boats have improved• Fishing industry has become very

efficient at harvesting fish and shell fish

• Prized fish have unde3rgone dramatic declines• Swordfish, cod, tuna

• Great Lakes• Whitefish, walleye, and sturgeon

populations declined

• Also trapped for aquarium trade and fished for sport

Birds• Collected or hunted

• Sport• Food• Cage-bird pet trade (parrots and

songbirds

• 30% globally threatened birds are overexploited• Parrots, pigeons, and pheasants

• Carolina parakeet once was only species of parrot in USA• Hunted to extinction

Mammals• Hunted for:

• Fur, food, sport, and horns or antlers

• Trapped for pet trade, zoos, and biomedical research

• Large mammals especially threatened• Tigers, rhinoceros, bears,

primates• Body parts are used for

traditional medicine

Amphibians• Collected and shipped all

over the world for• Pet trade, medicine,

education, scientific research, food

• California red-legged frog• Federally protected and

endangered species• Hunted for food and

numbers depleted ruing God Rush

Reptiles• Harvested and traded

around the world• Shells, skins, eggs, meat,

pet trade

• Box turtles collected at unsustainable levels for overseas pet trade

• Reptile skins are highly prized as exotic leathers• Crocodile, python, and

monitor lizard

Invertebrates• Make up at least 75% of all

known animal species• Insects, oysters, octopus,

crayfish, sea stars, scorpions, crabs, and sponges

• Particularly marine invertebrates are at risk for overharvesting• Horseshoe crabs (eggs provide

food for migratory birds, fish, and other organisms• Being harvested as bait for eel

and whelk fishing

Plants• Harvested for food, medicine,

building materials, and as raw materials for making other products

• Orchids – prized by collectors and now endangered

• American ginseng – enthusiastically collected for medicinal properties, hard to find in wild

• Trees such as Mahogany- under threat due to overharvesting

Exit Slip• Complete the definitions labeled “6”

on your definition sheet.