Human Systems and Resource Use 8.4

Human Carrying Capacity It is difficult to determine human carrying capacity Humans have a greater range of resources at their disposal Resources can be substituted if they run out Resource use varies from each individual We can import resources Tehcnology can change the resources we use

Ways to Change Human Carrying Capacity Ecocentrists Technocentrists Try to reduce use of non-renewable resources Minimize use of renewable resources Become more self sufficient Argue carrying capacity can be expanded through technology and development Must work on being more efficient and inventive

Reuse, Recycling, Remanufacturing and Absolute Reductions Reuse: the object more than once Recycling: the object’s material is used again to make new products Remanufacturing: the object’s material is used to make a new object of the same type Absolute reductions: simply put, use fewer resources

Ecological Footprints Ecological Footprint (EF): the area of land and water required to support a defined human population at a given standard of living When the EF is greater than the area available to the population, it is considered unsustainable Carrying capacity of population is being exceeded

Ecological Footprints

Pg. 396 In Class Activity Think about the lifestyles, diet, transport, industry, agricultural practices of the people Reasons for high EF Reasons for low EF

Humanity's demand for resources is now outstripping supply by about 25%, as the growth of our ecological footprint shows. Meanwhile the health of the planet's ecosystems, measured by the living planet index, is falling, at "a rate unprecedented in human history," according to the WWF.

UK USA Graphs track the per-person resource demand (Ecological Footprint) and resource supply (Biocapacity). Biocapacity varies each year with ecosystem management, agricultural practices (such as fertilizer use and irrigation), ecosystem degradation, and weather CHINA

GERMANY NETHERLANDS NIGERIA SPAIN

NEW ZEALAND FINLAND LAOS