HOW DO ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES INVOLVE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC DECISIONS What are environmental issues What is the relationship between the environment, economics and politics A case study on Greenhouse Gases

WHAT’S AN ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE Human activities cause change to the natural environment Toxins released by factories can impact both air and water quality Urbanization decreased the amount of land available for agriculture, wildlife and parkland –The challenge is balancing the needs on the environment, the needs of the economy, and the goals of society

WHAT ARE KEY ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES GLOBAL WARMING URBAN SPRAWL RENEWABLE ENERGY DEFORESTATION In your group come up with five other environmental issues that are key today What are the competing values in each of the four identified examples?

THE OTHER KEY ISSUES INCLUDE 1.Air pollution 2.Species endangerment 3.Weather extremes 4.Resource depletion 5.Water pollution 6.Noise pollution 7.Acid rain 8.Desertification 9.Waste disposal 10.Nuclear waste

WHAT IS CLIMATE CHANGE A rise in the average temperature of the earth due to build up of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere GHGs come mainly from the burning of fossil fuels such as »Natural gas »Gasoline »Coal »Oil

GREENHOUSE GASES GHGs capture the heat generated by the Sun’s rays in the atmosphere and do not allow it to return to space This causes the earth to warm, in turn impacting all living plants and animals Fossil fuels are used in manufacturing, home heating, electrical generation and transportation

GREENHOUSE GASES

SOURCES OF GREENHOUSE GASES IN CANADA

IMPACTS OF WARMER TEMPERATURES According to the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change »Decline in abundance of fresh water »Loss of wildlife species overall, some species will adapt »More extreme weather events, such as storms and droughts »Longer growing seasons »Flooding along coastlines

GREENHOUSES GASES AND CANADA’S REGIONS Material on pages show that there are different levels of GHG output for the various regions of Canada Alberta has a large GHG output due to oil and gas production and coal burning power generation Ontario is the next largest contributor due to its high level of manufacturing and mining »As the next two highest producing areas are British Columbia and Quebec, it appears a high population is one of the contributing factors to greenhouse gas creation

NORTH AMERICAN GREENHOUSE GASES International negotiations on climate change focus on reducing GHGs in developed countries like the USA and Canada Mexico as a developing country does not face the same GHG restrictions The USA produces 20% of the global greenhouse gases, Canada 2% and Mexico 1.5% »The USA choose not to participate in the Kyoto Protocol

WHAT IS THE KYOTO PROTOCOL First ever climate change plan negotiated by the international community Canada’s position has changed depending on the political party in power The Liberal government ratified Kyoto in 2002 In 2006 when the Conservatives were elected, they announced Canada would not meet its Kyoto targets

HOW KYOTO TARGETS WORK ACROSS THE GLOBE

WHAT ARE WAYS WE AS INDIVIDUALS CAN REDUCE GREENHOUSE GASES? In December 2007, a meeting in Bali, Indonesia launched new talks aimed at a new agreement to replace Kyoto in 2012

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