Key Themes of

Environmental
Science

CHAPTER 1
Major Themes of Environmental
Science
▪ World Population

▪ In A.D. 1- 100 Million people

▪ In 1960- 3 Billion people
▪ Today- 6.7 Billion people
▪ Projected: 10 Billion by 2040
▪ It took human population almost 2000
years to get to 3 billion, only 40+ years
to add 3 billion more
Problem?

 The Earth has not grown any larger and

the abundance of its resources has not
increased
 Can the Earth SUSTAIN all these
people?
 What is the maximum number of people
that Earth can support? (remember:
Easter Island)
World Population

• How many people the Earth can sustain

depends on science and values and is also a
question about people and nature.
• What quality of life are people willing to
accept?
• The poorer that quality, the greater the
number of people that can be squeezed onto
the Earth’s surface
Human Population Growth

John Eli Miller Family

 Of 7 children born to John Miller, 5 survived
him
 Of 63 grandchildren, 61 survived him
 Of the 341 great-grandchildren (born to 55
married grandchildren- an average of slightly
more than 6 children per parent- 338 survived
him)
John Eli Miller Family
Modern Population Explosion

Major factors in population:

 Supply of Food
 Supply of Clothing
 Shelter
 Decreased death rates (medical
improvement)
 As a result, the human population has
increased greatly, threatening the
environment
World Population
Consequences of Rapid Population
Growth
• FAMINE is one of the things that happen when
a human population exceeds its environmental
resources
• In 1970’s, following a drought in the Sahel
Region, 500,000 Africans starved to death and
several million more were permanently
affected by malnutrition
FAMINE
• In 1980’s - In one year
during that period, as
many as 22 African
nations suffered
catastrophic food
shortages and 150
million Africans faced
starvation
• There is a continuing
food crisis in Southern
Africa (Malawi, Zambia
and Zimbabwe)
Reasons for Famine?

 Drought
 Size of Population affected by drought-
competing for resources
 Changing climate- partly because of human
activities
 Poor farming practices- erosion of soil
 Deforestation
We are forced to confront a choice

Which is more important, the

survival of people alive today
or conservation of the
environment, on which future
food production and human life
depend?
An Urban World
With economic
development, comes
URBANIZATION
Urbanization = people
move from farms to
cities and then perhaps
to suburbs
Cities and towns
increase in size
Cities are commonly
located near rivers and
coastlines
Destroying Wetlands
Urban sprawl often overtakes good
agricultural land of river floodplains as
well as coastal wetlands, which are
important habitats for many rare and
endangered species.
As urban areas expand, wetlands are
filled in, forests are cut, and soils
covered over with pavement and
buildings
Urban Sprawl

 In developed countries, 75% of the

population live in urban areas, with 25%
in rural areas
 In developing countries, only 40% of the
people are city dwellers
 It is estimated that by 2025 almost two-
thirds of the population (5 billion people)
will live in cities
Largest Cities
• In 1999, Tokyo, Japan
was the world’s largest
city
• In 2015, Tokyo will still
be the world’s largest
city with an estimated
population of 28.9
million
• Megacities- at least 8
million people
• Increased from 2 (NY
and LA) to 23 in 1995
Megacities
 Most Megacities- 17- are in the
developing world
 It is estimated that by 2015- the world
will have 36 Megacities, 23 of them
will be in Asia
 Environmental issues have always
focused on non-urban issues (wildlife,
etc.) but needs to shift to urban
issues
Sustainability

 What is sustainability?
Refers to resources and their environment

Sustainable Resource Harvest- the same

quantity of that resource can be harvested
each year for an unlimited or specified length
of time without decreasing the ability of that
resource to continue to produce the same
harvest level
Sustainable Ecosystem

 An ecosystem that is still able to

maintain its essential functions and
properties even though we are
harvesting one of its resources
Sustainable Development

 A society can continue to develop

its economy and social interactions
and also maintain its environment
for an indefinite time
Carrying Capacity
 Related to sustainability
 The maximum number of individuals of a
species that can be sustained by an
environment to sustain that same amount in
the future
 Question: What is the maximum number of
people that the Earth can sustain?
People and Nature
 People and nature are intimately integrated-
each affects the other.
 We depend on nature for our lives
 We depend on nature for beauty and
recreation
 We affect nature
Gaia Hypothesis

 Originated by British chemist James Lovelock

and American biologist Lynn Margulis
 Proposes that the environment at a global
level has been profoundly changed by life
over the history of life on Earth and that these
changes have tended to improve the chances
for the continuation of life.
Placing a Value on the
Environment
 How do we place a value on any aspect
of our environment?
 The value of the environment is based
on eight justifications: aesthetic,
creative, recreational, inspirational,
moral, cultural, ecological, and utilitarian
Utilitarian Justification

 Sees some aspect of the environment

as valuable because it benefits
individuals economically or is directly
necessary to human survival
 Example: Mangrove Swamps provide
shrimp that are the basis of the
livelihood of the fisherman
Ecological Justification
 An ecosystem is necessary for the
survival of some species of interest to
us, or that the system itself provides
some benefit.
 Example: Mangrove Swamps provide
habitat for marine fish, and although we
do not eat Mangrove Trees, we may eat
the fish that depend on them.
Aesthetic Justification

 Our appreciation of the beauty of nature

 Example: When people grieve following

the death of a loved one, they typically
seek out places with grass, trees and
flowers and thus we decorate our
graveyards
Recreational Justification

 People use wilderness for recreation

 Example: White water rafting, fishing,

and hiking
Inspirational Justification
 Conservation of nature can be based on its
benefits to the human spirit

Example: Religious Retreats

Creative Justification
 Nature is an aid to human creativity

 Example: Artists, poets and others find a

source of their creativity in their contact with
nature
Moral Justification
 Has to do with the belief that various aspects
of the environment have a right to exist and
that it is our moral obligation to allow them to
continue or help them to persist.

 Example: Species have a moral right to exist

Do Rocks Have Rights?
 The United Nations General Assembly World
Charter for Nature, signed in 1982, states that
species have a moral right to exist.
The Big Question

DO we have a moral obligation to future

generations? to leave the environment
in good condition for our descendants,

OR

Are we at liberty to use environmental

resources to the point of depletion
within our own lifetime?
End of Chapter 1
Key Themes of Environmental Science