Houston Community College/ Southeast GEOL1305 Environmental Science Fourteen Edition Enger & Smith

Topics Ecological Systems Environmental Ethics & Risk Natural Resources & Biodiversity Energy Resources Pollution Land Use & Agriculture Water Management Environmental Regulations & Policy

Chapter 1 Environmental Interrelationships The Nature of Environmental Science Interrelatedness Ecological Systems Emerging Global Issues Human Well-Being and the Environment

What is Environmental Science? * Environment is everything that surrounds organisms and affects them during their lifetime. * Surroundings might be Biotic (living) and Abiotic (nonliving). * Earth is composed of 4 major subsystems: the air, the oceans, the land and the biosphere. 4. The effect of human activities on these subsystems is of particular interest to be studied and understood, therefore science is needed.

What is science? Science is a process of discovery… a continuing adventure of making approximations about how the world works. Science does not deal with things that cannot be tested by observation. Science also does not deal with questions that involve values, such as standards of beauty or issues of good and evil. In science we use the Scientific Method to make conclusions.

Continue * To better understand the interaction between people and the environment we need information from many disciplines, such as Therefore… * Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary subject that includes scientific & social aspects of human impact on the world.

Ecology Ecology (eco: house, logy: study): study of “one’s house”. “One’s house” consist of two parts: Living (biotic) environment, such as people, animals, plants (organisms). Nonliving (abiotic) environment, such as space, temperature, light, wind, soil, rain (physical). 3. Ecology is the study of the interactions among organisms and between them and their abiotic environment.

Interrelatedness The study of environmental science is so interesting, frustrating, and challenging because of the interrelatedness among seeming unrelated factors. “Tug on anything at all and you’ll find it connected to everything else in the universe.” John Muir Charles Darwin proposed that seed production in red clover was related to the number of cats in the area. ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG9XxgRRRTk

Continue The reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park has resulted in many changes. 31 wolves were introduced in 1995. In 1996 there were about 320 wolves. The wolves have caused reduction in elk population (from 19,000 to 11,000), which caused increase in willow and aspen trees, as well as songbirds and coyotes. The decrease of coyotes led to increase of foxes, mice, beavers, hawks, and owls. The increase of beavers resulted in building more dams, which slowed the flow of water, which affected fish habitat.

Discussion Question What aspects did the reintroduction have? Scientific Ethical Economical Political

Continue The Yellowstone wolves are connected to social, economic, and political realms of human activity. It was important to environmentalists and biologists to restore the wolf to its former habitat. Ranchers could lose money if wolves killed livestock. The farm lobby fought long and hard in congress to prevent the reintroduction. A fund was developed to pay ranchers for cattle killed by wolves.

Ecological Systems An ecosystem is a region in which the organisms and the physical environment form an interacting unit. The task of an environmental scientist is to recognize and understand the natural interactions that take place, and to integrate these with the uses humans must make of the natural world.

Continue Boundaries of ecosystems might be: Clear, such as lakes, rivers, islands. Large, such as forests, and contain smaller ecosystems (river, lake, park…) Indistinct, transition from grassland to desert.

Emerging Global Issues Environmental change threatens people’s health, physical security, material needs, and social cohesion. The World Commission on Environment and Development (Brundtland Commission) concluded 25 years ago that “humanity has the ability to make development sustainable.”

Environmental Governance Trade, economic development, good governance, transfer of technology, science and education policies, and globalization have become even more central to sustainable development. Development strategies need to maintain the ecosystem needs on which long-term development goals depend. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 demonstrated the link between destruction of coastal wetlands and vulnerability to storms.

Continue Most social and political decisions are made with respect to political jurisdictions, but environmental problems do not necessarily coincide with these artificial human made political boundaries. Air pollution generated in China affects air quality in western coastal states in the United States and in British Columbia, Canada. Air pollution generated in Juarez, Mexico, causes problems in the neighboring city of EI Paso, TX.

Human Well-Being and the Environment The end point of development is human well-being. Human well-being and the quality of the environment are strongly interrelated. Environmental changes have impacts on human wellbeing.

Continue Resources people have, such as money and other assets. The environment is seen only as a means to promote economic growth. How people feel about their lives, including the cultural importance that environment has for life satisfaction. What people are able to be and to do. This multidimensional view focuses on what the environment allows individuals to be and to do.

Defining Human Well-Being Ecosystem services include Provisioning services: food, water Regulating services: flood control, disease control Cultural services: spiritual, recreational, and cultural benefits Supporting services: nutrient cycling The world’s poorest people depend primarily on environmental goods and services for their livelihoods.

Environment and Health The World Health Organization estimates that 13 million deaths worldwide could be prevented every year by environmental improvement. Cancer Malaria Coronary Heart Disease Diarrhea

Environment and Security Security means having stable and reliable access to resources and the ability to be secure from natural and human disasters. Scarcity of water or other resources can lead to armed conflicts.

Energy and the Environment Threat of inadequate and insecure supplies of energy at affordable prices. Threat of environmental damage due to overconsumption of energy. Global increases in carbon dioxide emissions are primarily due to fossil fuel use. Fossil fuels met 82% of the world’s energy demand in 2010.

10 Things You Can Do to Protect Your Environment 1. Reduce driving 2. Save electricity 3. Recycle 4. Conserve water 5. Safely dispose of hazardous waste 6. Eat locally 7. Donate reusable items 8. Buy in bulk 9. Learn how to avoid the use of insect repellants 10. Be an informed and active citizen