Chapter 1 Part 1 Tragedy of the Commons Environment study of everything around us Environmental Science Interdisciplinary Study Our Goals Learn how nature works Learn how the environment affects us ID: 604067
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Slide1
Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability
Chapter 1 – Part 1
Tragedy of the CommonsSlide2
Environment: study of everything around usSlide3
Environmental Science: Interdisciplinary Study
Slide4
Our Goals
Learn how nature works
Learn how the environment affects us
Learn how we affect the environment
Learn how to deal with environmental problems and live more
sustainablySlide5
Consumption and Conservation
Resource
– anything obtained from the environment to meet our needs and wants
Renewable
Air, water, trees, etc.
Nonrenewable
Coal, oil, etc.Slide6
Money doesn’t grow on trees
Natural capital:
keeps us and other forms of life alive and supports our economies
Natural resources
–
materials
; air, water, soil, etc.
Natural services
–
functions
; nutrient cyclingSlide7
Major Natural Service: Nutrient CyclingSlide8
Fig. 1-3, p. 8
Air
Air purification
Climate control
Water
Water purification
Waste treatment
Nonrenewable
minerals
iron, sand)
Natural gas
Oil
Soil
Soil renewal
Nonrenewable
energy
(fossil fuels)
Solar
capital
Land
Food production
Nutrient
recycling
Coal seam
Life
(biodiversity)
Population
control
Pest
control
Renewable
energy
(sun, wind,
water flows)
UV protection
(ozone layer)
Natural resources
Natural services
NATURAL CAPITAL
Natural Capital = Natural Resources + Natural Services
Fig. 1-3, p. 8
Solar Capital…can we survive without it???Slide9
Human Degradation: To Sushi or Not?
Human activities
degrade
natural capital
Using normally renewable resources faster than nature can renew them
Forestry
FishingSlide10
Pollution Comes from a Number of Sources
Sources of pollution
Point
E.g., smokestack
Nonpoint
E.g., pesticides blown into the air
Main type of pollutants
Biodegradable
Nondegradable
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-x0AJQ5zHQ&feature=relatedSlide11
Environmentally Sustainable Societies
Protect Natural Capital and Live off Its Income
You just won $1,000,000! How long can you make it last if you earn 10% interest each year?
Spending $200,000/year = 7 years
Spending $110,000/year = 18 years
Spending $100,000/year = lifetimeSlide12
Environmentally Sustainable Societies
Protect Natural Capital and Live off Its Income
Living sustainably means living off natural income
Preserve the Earth’s
natural capitalSlide13
Overexploiting Shared Renewable Resources: Tragedy of the Commons
Three types of property or resource rights
Private property
Common property
Open access renewable resourcesSlide14
Different Views about Environmental Problems and Their Solutions
Environmental Worldview including environmental ethics
Planetary management worldview
Stewardship worldview
Environmental wisdom worldview Slide15
Your Turn!
Lorax Values and BeliefsSlide16
Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability
Chapter 1 – Part 2
Human Population GrowthSlide17
Video – Tragedy of the Commons
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZFkUeleHPY
Activity: Goldfish Tragedy of the CommonsSlide18
Interview: Garrett Hardin on Tragedy of the Commons and Resources
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8gAMFTAt2M
HW Review: #2,5,6,8,9,11Slide19
Experts Have Identified Five Basic Causes of Environmental Problems
Population growth
Wasteful and unsustainable resource use
Poverty
Failure to include the harmful environmental costs of goods and services in their market prices
Insufficient knowledge of how nature worksSlide20
Only a few grains of wheat…
1
2
4
8
16
32
64
128
Problem?Slide21
Exponential Growth: a quantity increases at a fixed rate per unit of time
Each doubling is more than the total of all earlier growth!Slide22
Cultural Changes Have Increased Our Ecological Footprints
12,000 years ago: hunters and gatherers
Three major cultural events
Agricultural revolution
Industrial-medical revolution
Information-globalization revolutionSlide23
Exponential Growth: a quantity increases at a fixed rate per unit of time
Human numbers through time:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/earth/global-population-growth.htmlSlide24
What’s the problem?
Add 225,000 people per day!
That’s the equivalent of adding the United State’s population to the world every 4 yearsSlide25
What’s the problem?
Add 225,000 people per day!
By 2100 ½ of word’s plants and animals may vanishSlide26
Are There Too Many of Us?
Will growing populations cause increased environmental stresses?
Infectious diseases
Biodiversity losses
Water shortages
Traffic congestion
Pollution of the seas
Climate changeSlide27
There Is a Wide Economic Gap between Rich and Poor Countries
Gross domestic product (GDP) –
annual market value of all goods and services produced within a country
Per capita GDP
–
changes in economic growth per person
Per capita GDP PPP
- Purchasing power parity (PPP) plus GDP are combined for more accurate comparison of different countries
Used to identify developed with developing countriesSlide28
There Is a Wide Economic Gap between Rich and Poor CountriesSlide29
Extreme Poverty in a Developing Country
More than ½ people in world live on less than $2 a day!Slide30
Consumption of Natural Resources: MaliSlide31
Consumption of Natural Resources: ChinaSlide32
Consumption of Natural Resources: USASlide33
Comparison of Developed and Developing Countries, 2008
Why is the growth rate so high in developing countries?Slide34
Some Harmful Results of PovertySlide35
UN World Population Projections by 2050Slide36
Natural Capital Use and DegradationSlide37
Affluence Has Harmful and Beneficial Environmental Effects
Harmful environmental impact due to
Mass advertising – buying things brings happiness
High levels of consumption
Unnecessary waste of resourcesSlide38
Affluence Has Harmful and Beneficial Environmental Effects
Affluence can provide funding for
Developing technologies to reduce
Pollution
Environmental degradation
Resource wasteSlide39
Video: China Revs Up (NOVA)
21:00 – 26:00Slide40
Extreme Poverty in a Developing Country
HW: The $2 Challenge!Slide41
Calculating population growth… Rule of 70
Doubling time = 70/annual growth rate (in %)
Example: If a population is growing at a rate of 4%, how long will it take for the population to double?
Doubling time = 70/4 = 17.5 yearsSlide42
Calculating population growth…Growth Rate
Population Growth in given period of time = Initial Population Size * Growth Rate
Example: If a population of 2000 is growing at a rate of .1 during any 10 year period, what will the population be after 10 years? After 20 years?
Population Growth = 2000 * .1 = 200 people
Population size
after 10 years
= 2200 people
Population Growth = 2020 * .1 =
202
people
Population size
after 20 years
=
2402
people