Environmental Science Chapter 1

What is Environmental Science? the study of the air, water, and land surrounding an organism or a community, which ranges from a small area to Earth’s entire biosphere. It includes the study of the impact of humans on the environment.

Goals of Environmental Science Understand and solve environmental problems. To accomplish this goal, environmental scientists study two main types of interactions between humans and their environment: 1)How our actions alter our environment. 1)The use of natural resources.

Fields of Study Involved in ES Physics –Engineering Chemistry –Geochemistry –Biochemistry Social Sciences –Geography –Anthropology –Sociology Biology –Zoology –Botany –Ecology Earth science –Climatology –Geology –Paleontology –Hydrology

Environment Through Time Hunter-gatherers –Up to 10,000 years ago Agricultural (Neolithic) Revolution –8,000 – 3,000 BC Industrial Revolution –18 th – 19 th centuries Improving the quality of life

Population Growth Medicine and sanitation has allowed the population to grow Causes resource depletion, pollution, habitat destruction

Main Environmental Problems Resource Depletion Pollution Loss of Biodiversity

“The Tragedy of the Commons” the main difficulty in solving environmental problems is the conflict between the short-term interests of the individual and the long-term welfare of society (Garrett Hardin) Animals grazing in commons areas –Eventually divided into sections Modern commons = Natural Resources

Environmental Economics Supply and Demand –Oil production Cost and Benefits –Cost of environmental solutions Risk Assessment –Possible negative outcome

Developed vs. Developing Countries Developed countries have higher incomes, slower population growth, diverse industrial economies, and stronger social support Developing countries have lower average incomes, simple agriculture- based communities, and rapid population growth

Population and Consumption Almost all environmental problems can be traced back to two root causes: The human population in some areas is growing too quickly for the local environment to support. People are using up, wasting, or polluting many natural resources faster than they can be renewed, replaced, or cleaned up.

Consumption Trends

Sustainable World Sustainability: the condition in which human needs are met in such a way that a human population can survive indefinitely Key goal of Environmental Science