Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability

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Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and
Sustainability
G. Tyler Millers Living in the Environment 14th
Edition Chapter 1
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Key Concepts

• Growth and Sustainability

• Resources and Resource Use

• Pollution

• Causes of Environmental Problems

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Living More Sustainably

• Ecology

• Environmental Science

• Sustainable Society

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What Keeps Us Alive? Capital

• Solar
• Renewable
• Natural
• Resources
• Ecological services
• Can sustain us indefinitely if?

Fig. 1-2, p. 7
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Population Growth

• ExponentialGrowth
• amazing rate
• about 1.25 a year

• Doubling Time

Fig. 1-4, p. 8
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World Population
Fig. 1-1 p. 5
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Economic Growth

• Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

• Per Capita GNP

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Economic Development

• Developed Countries
• High avg GDP
• Name them

• Developing Countries
• name them

• Positive Aspects of development

• Negative Aspects

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Globalization

• Social

• Economic

• Environmental Effects
• What is accelerating globalization?

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Resources

• Perpetual

• Renewable

• Non-renewable

Fig. 1-6 p. 9
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Renewable Resources

• Sustainable Yield
• The highest rate a resource can be used
  indefinitely

• Environmental Degradation
• exceeding the replacement rate

• Tragedy of the Commons
• What is this?

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Ecological Footprint
Visit the websites / palm pilot footprint
calculators
Fig. 1-7 p. 10
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Non-Renewable Resources

• Energy Resources

• Metallic Resources

• Non-MetallicResources

• Reuse

• Recycle

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Pollution

• What is pollution? Threatens the survival of
  organisms

• Effects of Pollution

Sources

• Point

• Nonpoint

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Dealing With Pollution

• Prevention (Input Control)

• Cleanup (Output Control)

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Figure 1-9Page 12

• Biodiversity Depletion
• Habitat destruction
• Habitat degradation
• Extinction

• Air Pollution
• Global climate change
• Stratospheric ozone depletion
• Urban air pollution
• Acid deposition
• Outdoor pollutants
• Indoor pollutants
• Noise

• Food Supply Problems
• Overgrazing
• Farmland loss
• and degradation
• Wetlands loss
• and degradation
• Overfishing
• Coastal pollution
• Soil erosion
• Soil salinization
• Soil waterlogging
• Water shortages
• Groundwater depletion
• Loss of biodiversity
• Poor nutrition

Major Environmental Problems

• Water Pollution
• Sediment
• Nutrient overload
• Toxic chemicals
• Infectious agents
• Oxygen depletion
• Pesticides
• Oil spills
• Excess heat

• Waste Production
• Solid waste
• Hazardous waste

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Environmental and Resource Problems

• Major Problems(See Fig. 1-10 p. 13)

• Five Root Causes

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Environmental Impact
Fig. 1-13 p. 15
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Relationship between resource consumption and
Environmental problems
Wealthy consume more resources, live more
disposably affluenza
Wealthy have more income to aid in environmental
issues
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Environmental Interactions
Fig. 1-14 p. 15
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Environmental Worldviews

• Planetary Management

• Environmental Wisdom

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What is Our Greatest Environmental Problem?

• Disease
• Overpopulation
• Water Shortages
• Climate Changes
• Biodiversity Loss
• Poverty
• Malnutrition

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Solutions

• Current Emphasis (Reactive)
• Sustainability Emphasis (Proactive)

Fig. 1-16, p. 18
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Chapter questions
2,3 (p. 18) 2. List three forms of economic
growth that you think are environmentally
unsustainable and three forms you believe are
environmentally sustainable. 3. Give three
examples of how you cause environmental
degradation as a result of the tragedy of the
commons.
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Figure 1-5Page 8
Trade-Offs
Economic Development
Good News
Bad News
Life expectancy 11 years less in developing
countries than in developed countries
Global life expectancy doubled since 1950
Infant mortality rate in developing countries
over 8 times higher than in developed countries
Infant mortality cut in half since 1955
Harmful environmental effects of agriculture may
limit future food production
Food production ahead of population growth since
1978
Air and water pollution down in most developed
countries since 1970
Air and water pollution levels in most developing
countries too high
Half of worlds people trying to live on less
than 3 (U.S.) per day
Number of people living in poverty dropped 6
since 1990