1. Understanding Our Environment
Chapter 1
Lecture
Outline
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2. Overview
In this chapter and throughout this book, you will read about many cases in which humans have caused serious environmental problems. You will also read about promising, exciting solutions to many of these problems.
Your task as a student of environmental science is to gain an idea of what some of the larger current problems are, what some solutions might be, and how you might use knowledge from a variety of disciplines—from biology and chemistry to economics—to develop tomorrow’s strategies for more sustainable living on our planet.

3. Today we are faced with a challenge that calls for a shift in our thinking, so that humanity stops threatening its life-support system. –Wangari Maathai, winner of 2004 Nobel Peace Prize

4. 1.1 Understanding Our Environment
Environment is the circumstances and conditions that surround an organism or group of organisms.
It is also social and cultural conditions that affect an individual or community.
The life sustaining ecosystems on which we all depend are unique in the universe, as far as we know.

5. What is environmental science?
Environmental science is the systematic study of our environment and our place in it.
Because environmental problems are complex, environmental science draws on many fields of knowledge (fig 1.4).
Please read case study on Apo Island (page 2 of your text)

6. What is environmental science?
Sciences such as biology, chemistry, earth science, and geography provide important information.
Social sciences and humanities, from political science and economics to art and literature, help us understand how society responds to environmental crises and opportunities.
Environmental science is also mission oriented, we all have a responsibility to try to do something about the problems we have created.

7. Environmental Science7 7

8. 1.2 Environmental Problems and Opportunities
Polluted water contributes to the death of more than 15 million people every year, most of them children under age 5.
Food supplies: currently more than 850 million people are chronically undernourished.
at least 60 million face acute food shortages due to bad weather or politics
Energy resources: Fossil fuel supplies are diminishing. There are many problems associated with them. Cleaner, renewable energy resources—solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass power—together with conservation could give us cleaner, less destructive options

9. Environmental Problems
Climate change: Burning fossil fuels, making cement, cultivating rice paddies, clearing forests, and other human activities release carbon dioxide and other so-called greenhouse gases, which trap heat in the atmosphere.
Over the past 200 years, atmospheric CO2 concentrations have increased about 30 percent.
Climatologists warn that by 2100, if current trends continue, mean global temperatures will probably warm between 1.5 and 6C
Climate change: Burning fossil fuels, making cement, cultivating rice paddies, clearing forests, and other human activities release carbon dioxide and other so-called greenhouse gases, which trap heat in the atmosphere.
Over the past 200 years, atmospheric CO2 concentrations have increased about 30 percent.
Climatologists warn that by 2100, if current trends continue, mean global temperatures will probably warm between 1.5 and 6C (2.7 and 11F).
Biodiversity loss: Biologists report that habitat destruction, overexploitation, pollution, and introduction of exotic organisms are eliminating species at a rate comparable to the great extinction that marked the end of the age of dinosaurs

10. Environmental Problems
Air quality: Air quality has worsened dramatically in many areas.
Over southern Asia, for example, satellite images recently revealed a 3-km (2-mile)-thick toxic haze of ash, acids, aerosols, dust, and photochemical products, which regularly covers the entire Indian subcontinent for much of the year
Biodiversity loss: Biologists report that the some environmental factors are eliminating species at a rate comparable to the great extinction that marked the end of the age of dinosaurs. These are:
habitat destruction, b) overexploitation, c) pollution,
d) introduction of exotic organisms
1.8

11. Environmental Problems continued….
Marine resources: More than a billion people in developing countries depend on seafood for their main source of animal protein, but most commercial fisheries around the world are in steep decline
The ocean is an irreplaceable food resource for many people.

12. Environmental Opportunities
Marine resources: Around the world, people who depend on seafood for their livelihood and sustenance are finding that setting aside marine reserves can restore fish populations as well as promote human development.
Showing that these projects can be ecologically sound, economically sustainable, and socially acceptable on the local scale can lead to wider applications.
Marine reserves are being established to protect reproductive areas in California, Hawaii, New Zealand, Great Britain, and many other areas, in addition to the Philippines.
Marine Resources:

13. Environmental Opportunities
Population has stabilized in most industrialized countries and even in some very poor countries where social security and democracy have been established.
Over the past 25 years, the average number of children born per woman worldwide has decreased from 6.1 to 2.6
By 2050, the UN Population Division predicts, all developed countries and 75 percent of the developing world will experience a below-replacement fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman.
This suggests that the world population will stabilize at about 8.9 billion, rather than the 9.3 billion
1.11

14. Environmental Opportunities continued…
Health: The incidence of life-threatening infectious diseases has been reduced sharply in most countries during the past century,
Life expectancies have nearly doubled, on average.
Conservation of forests and nature preserves: Deforestation has slowed in Asia, from more than 8 percent during the 1980s to less than 1 percent in the 1990s.

15. Environmental Opportunities
Renewable energy: Encouraging progress is being made in a transition to renewable energy sources.
The European Union has announced a goal of obtaining 22 percent of its electricity and 12 percent of all energy from renewable sources by 2010.
Information: The increased speed at which information and technology now flow around the world holds promise that we can continue to find solutions to our environmental dilemmas.
1.13

16. 1.3 Human Dimensions of Environmental Science

17. Affluence also has environmental costs
The affluent lifestyle that many of people in the richer countries enjoy consumes an inordinate share of the world’s natural resources and produces a shockingly high proportion of pollutants and wastes.
Less than 5% of the total population of the World living in the US consume about one-quarter of most commercially traded commodities, such as oil, and produces a quarter to half of most industrial wastes, such as greenhouse gases, pesticides, and other persistent pollutants.

18. Sustainability is a central theme
Neither ecological systems nor human institutions can continue forever
Sustainability is ecological stability and human progress that can last over the long term.
Sustainable development is “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” (World Health Organization)

19. Sustainability in the UAE
Think in the following:
Is the grazing system in the rangelands of the UAE sustainable? No. Grazing systems in UAE are damaging the native plant and animal life, resulting in loss of biodiversity
Are the use of water resources in the UAE, especially groundwater, sustainable? No. Water consumption and wastage is above the capacity available in different resources (e.g. in groundwater). Shortages are predicted in the future. 19 19

20. Indigenous peoples are guardians of much of the world’s biodiversity
In both rich and poor countries, native or indigenous people are generally the least powerful, most neglected groups in the world. Typically descendants of the original inhabitants of an area taken over by more powerful outsiders, they are distinct from their country’s dominant language, culture, religion, and racial communities.
the cheapest and most effective way to preserve species is to protect the natural ecosystems in which they now live.
Cultural diversity and biodiversity often go hand in hand. Seven of the countries with the highest cultural diversity in the world are also on the list of “megadiversity” countries with the highest number of unique biological organisms (listed in decreasing order of importance).

21. Indigenous peoples are guardians of much of the world’s biodiversity
In many places, indigenous people in traditional homelands guard undisturbed habitats and rare species.
Recognizing native land rights may safeguard ecological processes
About 500 million indigenous people remain in traditional homelands

22. Indigenous Peoples in the UAE
Traditionally the people of UAE were from three areas:
Coastal area (Hadhar)
Desert ( Bedouin)
Mountain (Bedah)
Their role in conserving biodiversity in the UAE is crucial.
They have valuable ecological wisdom and remain the guardians of little-disturbed habitats that are refuges for rare and endangered species.
In order to conserve the natural resources of the UAE deserts (rangelands, wildlife, biodiversity, etc), What can government do for Bedouins? 22 22

23. 1.4 Science Helps Us Understand Our Environment
What is science?
Science (from scire, “to know” in Latin) is a process for producing empirical knowledge by observing natural phenomena.
Science” also refers to the cumulative body of knowledge produced by many scientists.
Science is valuable because it helps us understand the world and meet practical needs, such as finding new medicines, new energy sources, or new foods. In this section, we’ll investigate how and why science follows standard methods.

24. Steps of Scientific Method
The scientific method has developed over many centuries and has now come to be described in terms of a well-recognized and well-defined series of steps

25. Steps of the Scientific Method
All scientific investigation begins with an observation of the natural world.
This also includes examining any previous information that is published in the scientific literature.
On the basis of this observation, the scientist asks a question.
The scientist then formulates a hypothesis.
The hypothesis is tentative and may be changed based on the outcome of rigorous testing 25

26. Steps of the Scientific Method
Test hypothesis : this is usually by collection of data through observation and experimentation that tries to simulate natural events under controlled conditions and predict the outcome.
Examines the results (usually statistical tests are used)
Forms a conclusion and repeats the process, if necessary.
The results of such testing either confirm or contradict the hypothesis.
Interpretation of the results and then reach to conclusions.
If the result is contradicted, the hypothesis is discarded and a new one is generated.
The last step is to publish your findings 26

27. Practice the Scientific Method
While you are going along the eastern coast of the UAE, you noticed some dead fish and other marine organisms.
As an environmentalist, you might like to study this phenomena. Apply the steps of the scientific methods to study this phenomena.
Suggested hypothesis:
Some pollutants could be responsible
Oxygen deficiency
Red tides 27

28. Deductive and inductive reasoning are both useful
Logical reasoning from general to specific is known as deductive reasoning.
Reasoning from many observations to produce a general rule is inductive reasoning.
Ideally, scientists deduce conclusions from general laws that they know to be true. For example, if we know that massive objects attract each other (because of gravity), then it follows that an apple will fall to the ground when it releases from the tree. This logical
reasoning from general to specific is known as deductive reasoning.
Often, however, we do not know general laws that guide natural systems. We observe, for example, that birds appear and disappear as a year goes by. Through many repeated observations in different places, we can infer that the birds move from place to place. We can develop a general rule that birds migrate seasonally.
Although deductive reasoning is more logically sound than inductive reasoning, it only works when our general laws are correct. We often rely on inductive reasoning to understand the world because we have few immutable laws.
Sometimes it is insight, as much as reasoning, that leads us to an answer. Many people fail to recognize the role that insight, creativity, and luck play in research. Some of our most important discoveries were made because the investigators were passionately
interested in their topics and pursued hunches that appeared unreasonable to fellow scientists. A good example is Barbara McClintock, the geneticist who discovered that genes in corn can move and recombine spontaneously. Where other corn geneticists
saw random patterns of color and kernel size, McClintock’s years of experience in corn breeding and an uncanny ability to recognize patterns, led her to guess that genes could recombine in ways that no one had previously imagined.

29. Experimental Design
A natural experiment, is one that involves observation of events that have already happened.
Manipulative experiments have conditions deliberately altered, and all other variables are held constant
Please read the following section from your text:
Exploring Science: What are statistics, and why are they important?
Blind experiments are often used, in which the researcher doesn’t know which group is treated until after the data have been analyzed.
In health studies, such as tests of new drugs, double-blind experiments are used, in which neither the subject (who receives a drug) nor the researcher knows who is in the treatment group and who is in the control group.
The study of colds and sleep deprivation is an example of an observational experiment, one in which you observe natural events and interpret a causal relationship between the variables. This kind of study is also called a natural experiment, one that involves
observation of events that have already happened.
Other scientists can use manipulative experiments, in which conditions are deliberately altered, and all other variables are held constant. Most manipulative experiments are done in the laboratory, where conditions can be carefully controlled. Suppose you were interested in studying whether lawn chemicals contributed to deformities in tadpoles. You might keep two groups of tadpoles in fish tanks, and expose one to chemicals. In the lab, you could ensure that both tanks had identical temperatures, light, food, and oxygen. By comparing a treatment (exposed) group and a control (unexposed) group, you have also made this a controlled study.
Often, there is a risk of experimenter bias. Suppose the researcher sees a tadpole with a small nub that looks like it might become an extra leg. Whether she calls this nub a deformity might depend on whether she knows that the tadpole is in the treatment
group or the control group. To avoid this bias, blind experiments are often used, in which the researcher doesn’t know which group is treated until after the data have been analyzed. In health studies, such as tests of new drugs, double-blind experiments are used, in which neither the subject (who receives a drug or a placebo) nor the researcher knows who is in the treatment group and who is in the control group.
In each of these studies there is one dependent variable and one, or perhaps more, independent variables. The dependent variable, also known as a response variable, is affected by the independent variables. In a graph, the dependent variable is on the
vertical (Y) axis, by convention. Independent variables are rarely really independent (they are affected by the same environmental conditions as the dependent variable, for example). Many people prefer to call them explanatory variables, because we hope they will explain differences in the dependent variable.

30. 1.6 A Brief History of Conservation and Environmental Thought

31. History of Conservation and Environmentalism
Four Distinct Stages:
Pragmatic Resource Conservation
Moral and Aesthetic Nature Preservation
Modern Environmentalism
Global Environmental Citizenship 31 31

32. Pragmatic Resource Conservation
President Theodore Roosevelt and his chief conservation advisor, Gifford Pinchot, believed in utilitarian conservation.
They believe in: forests should be saved so they can be used to provide homes and jobs.
This means that forests should be used for “the greatest good for the greatest number, for the longest time.” 32 32

33. Moral and Aesthetic Nature Preservation
John Muir, first president of the Sierra Club, opposed Pinchot’s utilitarian policies.
He believed in “Biocentric Preservation”
He emphasizes the fundamental right of all organisms to pursue their own interests. 33 33

34. Modern Environmentalism
Modern environmentalism extends concerns to include both natural resources and environmental pollution.
The tremendous expansion of chemical industries during and after World War II added a new set of concerns to the environmental agenda.
Silent Spring, written by Rachel Carson (fig. 1.24a) and published in 1962, awakened the public to the threats of pollution and toxic chemicals to humans as well as other species. 34 34

35. Global Environmental Citizenship
Highlights that we are all part of an interconnected whole
Increased technology has helped in increasing the exchange of information globally
increased awareness of environmental concerns amongst people around the world
Increased environmental action (by governments or NGOs) to help reduce environmental problems (through the use of international treaties and conventions, e.g. UN conventions) 35 35

36. Practice Quiz
1. Describe how fishing has changed at Apo Island, and the direct and indirect effects on people’s lives. 2. What are some basic assumptions of science? 3. Distinguish between a hypothesis and a theory. 4. Describe the steps in the scientific method. 5. What is probability? Give an example. 6. What does significance mean in statistics? 7. What’s the first step in critical thinking according to table 1.4? 8. Distinguish between utilitarian conservation and biocentric preservation. Name two environmental leaders associated with each of these philosophies. 9. Why do some experts regard water as the most critical natural resource for the twenty-first century? 10. Where in figure 1.7 do the largest areas of persistence of greening occur? What is persistence of greening? 11. Describe some signs of hope in overcoming global environmental problems. 12. What is the link between poverty and environmental quality? 13. Define sustainability and sustainable development.

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