Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability Chapter 1

Core Case Study: Exponential Growth (1)  Slow start, rapid increase  Human population 2007 ~ 6.7 billion people  Projections 225,000 people per day Add population of U.S. < 4 years 2050 ~ 9.2 billion people

Core Case Study: Exponential Growth (2)  Resource consumption, degradation, depletion  Possible results Huge amount of pollution and wastes Disrupt economies Loss of species, farm land, water supplies Climate change Political fallout

Living in an Exponential Age

Fig. 1-1, p. 1 Hunting and gathering Agricultural revolution Industrial revolution Black Death—the Plague Industrial revolution Fig. 1-1, p. 5

Solutions  Understand our environment  Practice sustainability

1-1 What Is an Environmentally Sustainable Society?  Concept 1-1A Our lives and economies depend on energy from the sun (solar capital) and natural resources and natural services (natural capital) provided by the earth.  Concept 1-1B Living sustainably means living off earth’s natural income without depleting or degrading the natural capital that supplies it.

Studying Connections in Nature  Environment  Environmental science  Ecology  Environmentalism

Environmental Science

Philosophy and religion Biology Ethics Chemistry Ecology Physics Geology Geography Anthropology Demography Economics Political science Fig. 1-2, p. 7

Living More Sustainably  Sustainability – central theme  Natural capital Natural resources Natural services

Natural Resources  Materials Renewable Nonrenewable  Energy Solar capital Photosynthesis

Natural Services  Functions of nature Purification of air, water Nutrient cycling

Key Natural Resources and Services Fig. 1-3, p. 8

Nutrient Cycling

Dead organic matter Organic matter in animals Organic matter in plants Inorganic matter in soil Decomposition Fig. 1-4, p. 9

Environmental Sustainability  Trade-offs (compromises)  Sound science  Individuals matter Ideas Technology Political pressure Economic pressure

Sustainable Living from Natural Capital  Environmentally sustainable society  Financial capital and financial income  Natural capital and natural income  Bad news: signs of natural capital depletion at exponential rates

1-2 How Can Environmentally Sustainable Societies Grow Economically?  Concept 1-2 Societies can become more environmentally sustainable through economic development dedicated to improving the quality of life for everyone without degrading the earth’s life-support systems.

Economics  Economic growth  Gross Domestic Product (GDP)  Per capita GDP – PPP  Economic development  Developed countries  Developing countries

Global Outlook

Fig. 1-5, p. 10 Percentage of World's: Population growth Wealth and income Resource use Pollution and waste 18% 77 years 0.1% 85% 15% 88% 12% 75% 25% Life expectancy 82% 1.5% 66 years

1-3 How Are Our Ecological Footprints Affecting the Earth?  Concept 1-3 As our ecological footprints grow, we are depleting and degrading more of the earth’s natural capital.

Natural Resources (1)  Perpetual – renewed continuously Solar energy  Renewable – hours to decades Water, air Forest, grasslands

Natural Resources (2)  Sustainable yield Highest use while maintaining supply  Environmental degradation Exceed natural replacement rate

Natural Resources (3)  Nonrenewable – fixed quantities Energy (fossil fuels) Metallic minerals Nonmetallic minerals  Recycling  Reuse

Natural Capital Degradation Fig. 1-6, p. 12

Reuse and Recycling Fig. 1-7, p. 12

Measuring Environmental Impact  Ecological footprint Biological capacity to replenish resources and adsorb waste and pollution  Per capita ecological footprint Renewable resource use per individual

Ecological Footprint Fig. 1-8, p. 13

Stepped Art Projected footprint Ecological footprint Earth’s ecological capacity Total Ecological Footprint (million hectares) and share of Global Ecological Capacity (%) Per Capita Ecological Footprint (hectares per person)

Case Study: China  Rapidly developing country Middle-class affluent lifestyles  World’s leading consumer in: Wheat, rice, meat, coal, fertilizers, steel, cement Televisions, cell phones, refrigerators  Future consumption 2/3 world grain harvest Twice world’s current paper production Exceed current global oil production

1-4 What Is Pollution and What Can We Do about It?  Concept 1-4 Preventing pollution is more effective and less costly than cleaning up pollution.

Pollution  What is pollution?  Point sources  Nonpoint sources  Unwanted effects of pollution

Point Source Air Pollution Fig. 1-9, p. 15

Solutions to Pollution  Pollution prevention (input control) Front-of-the-pipe  Pollution cleanup (output control) End-of-the-pipe

Disadvantages of Output Control  Temporary Growth in consumption may offset technology  Moves pollutant from one place to another Burial Incineration  Dispersed pollutants costly to clean up

1-5 Why Do We Have Environmental Problems?  Concept 1-5A Major causes of environmental problems are population growth, wasteful and unsustainable resource use, poverty, excluding the environmental costs of resource use from the market prices of goods and services, and trying to manage nature with insufficient knowledge.  Concept 1-5B People with different environmental worldviews often disagree about the seriousness of environmental problems and what we should do about them.

Causes of Environmental Problems  Population growth  Wasteful and unsustainable resource use  Poverty  Failure to include environmental costs of goods and services in market prices  Too little knowledge of how nature works

Five Basic Causes of Environmental Problems Fig. 1-10, p. 16

Trying to manage nature without knowing enough about it Population growth Unsustainable resource use PovertyExcluding environmental costs from market prices

Fig. 1-10, p. 16 Stepped Art Causes of Environmental Problems Trying to manage nature without knowing enough about it Excluding environmental costs from market prices Poverty Unsustainable resource use Population growth

Some Harmful Results of Poverty

Fig. 1-11, p. 16 Number of people (% of world's population) 0.84 billion (13%) 1 billion (15%) 1.1 billion (16%) 2 billion (30%) 2.6 billion (39%) Enough food for good health Adequate housing Adequate health care Clean drinking water Electricity Enough fuel for heating and cooking Adequate sanitation facilities Lack of access to

Global Connections Fig. 1-12, p. 16

Environmental Effects of Affluence  Harmful effects High consumption and waste of resources Advertising – more makes you happy  Beneficial effects Concern for environmental quality Provide money for environmental causes Reduced population growth

Evaluating Full Cost of Resources Use  Examples Clear-cutting + habitat loss Commercial fishing + depletion of fish stocks  Tax breaks  Subsidies

Environmental Viewpoints  Environmental worldview  Environmental ethics  Planetary management worldview  Stewardship worldview  Environmental wisdom worldview  Social capital

Case Study: Chattanooga, Tennessee (1)  1960s Dirtiest air in the United States Toxic waste in Tennessee River High unemployment, crime  1984 Vision 2000 – grassroots consensus

Case Study: Chattanooga, Tennessee (2)  1995 Zero emission industries, buses Low-income renovations, downtown renewal  Individuals matter!

1-6 What Are Four Scientific Principles of Sustainability?  Concept 1-6 Nature has sustained itself for billions of years by using solar energy, biodiversity, population regulation, and nutrient cycling – lessons from nature that we can apply to our lifestyles and economies.

Four Scientific Principles of Sustainability

Fig. 1-13, p. 20 Population Control Reliance on Solar Energy Biodiversity Nutrient Cycling

Learning to Live More Sustainably

Fig. 1-14, p. 20 Increasing resource use Sustainability EmphasisCurrent Emphasis Pollution prevention Waste prevention Protecting habitat Environmental restoration Less resource waste Population stabilization Protecting natural capital Waste disposal (bury or burn) Pollution cleanup Protecting species Environmental degradation Depleting and degrading natural capital Population growth

Animation: Levels of organization

Animation: Two views of economics

Animation: Resources depletion and degradation interaction

Animation: Exponential growth

Animation: Capture-recapture method

Animation: Life history patterns

Video: Cahuachi Excavation PLAY VIDEO

Video: Easter Island PLAY VIDEO