Science and the
Environment
The Environment
 What
do you think of when your hear the word
“environment”?
What is Environmental Science?

The study of how humans interact with the environment.

This includes the fields of:
Biology- the study of life
Chemistry- the study of chemicals and their interactions
Physics-the study of matter and energy
Earth Science-the study of the non-living parts of Earth
Social Sciences-the study of humans
The Role of Science in Citizenship

Science (especially environmental science) plays a role in our
everyday lives

We notice changes in our environment and must work
together to solve the negative ones.
 Water
 Air
pollution can limit our ability to use water
pollution can cause health problems such as asthma
 Toxins
in the environment can be absorbed or eaten by animals
Our Environment Through Time

We can divide human interaction into several time periods:
 Hunter-Gatherers
 The
Agricultural Revolution
 The
Industrial Revolution
 The
20th Century
Population Growth and the Environment

Due to technological, medical, and cultural changes during the
agricultural and industrial revolutions life spans have become
longer and the population has dramatically increased!

This has placed additional stress on the environment as until
the 20th Century, few people were concerned with human
effects on the environment.
Environmental Problems

We can divide our most pressing environmental problems into
three categories:
 Resource
Depletion
 Pollution
 Loss
of Biodiversity
Resource Depletion

A natural resource is a natural material used by
humans.

Natural resources can be renewable or
nonrenewable.

Some examples of renewable resources are:

Some examples of nonrenewable resources are:

A resource said to be depleted when a large
fraction of the resource has been used up.
Pollution

Pollution is an undesired change in air, water, or soil
conditions that adversely affects the health, survival,
or activities of humans or other organisms.

Much of earth’s pollution has come from humans. This
began in earnest during the Industrial Revolution.

There are biodegradable pollutants and nondegradable
pollutants.
Loss of Biodiversity

Biodiversity means the number and variety of species in an
area of earth.

Extinction is when a species ceases to exist. This can be a
natural process or caused by humans.

Organisms are interconnected in our environment. If one
ceases to exist it can threaten a number of other species who
interact with it directly or indirectly.
Short-Term and Long-Term Interests
 When
looking at environmental problems we must
balance short-term and long-term interests.
 Short-term
interests fulfill an immediate need (i.e.: I
need water, a new phone, trees for firewood or a
house)
 Long-term
interests fulfill a need in the future (i.e: I
will still need clean water in 50 years, planning for
retirement, needing a forest in the future.
Economics and the Environment
 Economics can also influence how we
interact with the environment:
Supply
Costs
and Demand
and Benefits
Risk Assessment
Supply and Demand
 In
the field of economics if there is more demand for
something, it is worth more. Also, if there is less of
something available, it is worth more.
 When
oil is in shorter supply, gasoline prices go up.
The ways for it to come down and less demand
(fewer people driving) or more supply (new wells are
drilled).
 Think
of it like tickets to the Superbowl. They are so
expensive because there is much demand, but a
limited supply.
Costs and Benefits

In every situation where we have to make a decision on our
lives, there are costs and benefits. This also applies to how we
interact with the environment.
 Cost
A
is what must be sacrificed to receive a result.
Benefit is how much that result helps us.

A cost-benefit analysis is when the costs and benefits are
weighed against each other to see if a decision is in our best
interest.

Think of “green” cleaning products. They cost more, but
don’t hurt the environment.

Think of store-brand foods. They are cheaper but may not
taste as good.
Risk Assessment
 Risk Assessment
is when we actually weight the costs
and benefits of a decision.
 1.Let’s
 2.Let’s
look at the risk assessment of building a dam.
look at the risk assessment of limiting how
many tuna fish can be caught by a boat.
Human Population and the Environment
 How our population in different areas affects
the environment can be seen in three ways:
Local
Population Pressures
Consumption
Ecological
Trends
Footprints
Local Population Pressures
 When
populations grow, they require more
resources. If they grow rapidly, this can mean that
there may not be enough resources.
 This
can lead to deforestation, animal habitat
destruction, species extinction, lack of water or
other environmental problems.
 This
can adversely affect human or other
populations.
Consumption Trends
 More
developed countries tend to use more
resources than less developed countries.
 Developed
countries use 75% of the world’s
resources while only comprising 20% of the world’s
population. This means that more developed
countries create more waste and pollution.
Ecological Footprints

An ecological footprint represents the productive area of
earth needed to support one person in a particular country
or place.

What does productive area mean?

Let’s calculate an ecological footprint!

http://footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/calcula
tors/
Sustainability

Sustainability is the condition in which human needs are met in
such a way that a human population can survive indefinitely.

This does not mean that human progress stops. As we develop
new technologies, we find ways to work better within our
environment.

Currently at the rate we are using Earth’s resources, we do not
have sustainability.

To do so we will have to make some hard choices about how we
live.