Q&A

How do free trade agreements pose a threat to environmental protection?

How do free trade agreements pose a threat to environmental protection?

Free trade agreements such as NAFTA and the FTAA provide transnational corporations with privileges to pursue profits, expand markets, use natural resources, and exploit cheap labor in developing countries while weakening the ability of governments to protect natural resources or to implement environmental legislation.

What are environmental refugees?

Environmental refugees are individuals who have migrated because they can no longer secure a livelihood as a result of deforestation, desertification, soil erosion, and other environmental problems

What is greenwashing?

Greenwashing refers to the ways in which environmentally and socially damaging companies portray their corporate image and products as being “environmentally friendly” or socially responsible.

Where does most of the world’s energy come from?

Most of the world’s energy comes from fossil fuels, which include oil, coal, and natural gas. This is significant because many of the serious environmental problems in the world today, including global warming and climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution, stem from the use of fossil fuels.

What are the major causes, and effects, of deforestation?

The major causes of deforestation are the expansion of agricultural land, human settlements, wood harvesting, and road building. Deforestation displaces people and wild species from their habitats, contributes to global warming, and contributes to desertification, which results in the expansion of desert land that is unusable for agriculture. Soil erosion caused by deforestation can cause severe flooding.

What are the effects of air pollution on human health?

Air pollution, which is linked to heart disease, lung cancer, and respiratory ailments, such as emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and asthma kills about 3 million people a year.

What are some examples of common household, personal, and commercial products that contribute to indoor pollution?

Some common indoor air pollutants include carpeting, mattresses, drain cleaners, oven cleaners, spot removers, shoe polish, dry-cleaned clothes, paints, varnishes, furniture polish, potpourri, mothballs, fabric softener, caulking compounds, air fresheners, deodorizers, disinfectants, glue, correction fluid, printing ink, carbonless paper, and felt-tip markers.

What is the primary cause of global warming?

The prevailing view on what causes global warming is that greenhouse gases—primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide—accumulate in the atmosphere and act like the glass in a greenhouse, holding heat from the sun close to the earth. The primary greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide, which is released into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels.

How does global warming contribute to further global warming?

As global warming melts ice and snow, it exposes more land and ocean area, which absorbs more heat than ice and snow, further warming the planet. The melting of Siberia’s frozen peat bog—a result of global warming— could release billions of tons of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere and cause further global warming. This process, whereby the effects of global warming cause further global warming, is known as a positive feedback loop.

What is the relationship between level of economic development and environmental pollution?

There is a curvilinear relationship between level of economic development and environmental pollution. In regions with low levels of economic development, industrial emissions are minimal, but emissions rise in countries that are in the middle economic development range as they move through the early stages of industrialization. However, at more advanced stages of industrialization, industrial emissions ease because heavy-polluting manufacturing industries decline, “cleaner” service industries increase, and because rising incomes are associated with a greater demand for environmental quality and cleaner technologies.

What are some of the concerns about nuclear energy?

Nuclear waste contains radioactive plutonium, a substance linked to cancer and genetic defects. Nuclear waste in the environment remains potentially harmful to human and other life for thousands of years, and disposing of nuclear waste is problematic. Accidents at nuclear power plants, such as the 1986 accident at Chernobyl, and the potential for nuclear reactors to be targeted by terrorists add to the actual and potential dangers of nuclear power plants.

How much garbage did each person in the United States generate in 1960? 1980? 2007?

In 1960, each U.S. citizen generated 2.7 pounds of garbage on average every day. This figure increased to 3.7 pounds in 1980, and to 4.6 pounds in 2007.

Why are women who may become pregnant, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and young children advised against eating certain types of fish?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advises women who may become pregnant, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and young children to avoid eating certain fish altogether (swordfish, shark, king mackerel, and tilefish) because of the high levels of mercury.

Why are children more vulnerable than adults to the harmful effects of most pollutants?

Children are more vulnerable than adults to the harmful effects of most pollutants for a number of reasons. For instance, children drink more fluids, eat more food, and inhale more air per unit of body weight than do adults; in addition, crawling and a tendency to put their hands and other things in their mouths provide more opportunities to ingest chemical or heavy metal residues.

What does the term “environmental injustice” refer to?

Environmental injustice, also referred to as environmental racism, refers to the tendency for socially and politically marginalized groups to bear the brunt of environmental ills. For example, in the United States, polluting industries, industrial and waste facilities, and transportation arteries (which generate vehicle emissions pollution) are often located in minority communities.

How often does a species of life on earth become extinct?

One species of life on earth goes extinct every three hours.

What social and cultural factors contribute to environmental problems?

Social and cultural factors that contribute to environmental problems include population growth, industrialization and economic development, and cultural values and attitudes such as individualism, consumerism, and militarism.

What are some of the strategies for alleviating environmental problems?

Strategies for alleviating environmental problems include efforts to lower fertility rates and slow population growth, environmental activism, environmental education, the use of “green” energy, modifications in consumer products and behavior, and government regulations and legislation. Sustainable economic development and international cooperation and assistance also play important roles in alleviating environmental problems.

According to 2004 Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai, why is environmental protection important for national and international security?

In her acceptance speech for the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize, Wangari Maathai explained that “a degraded environment leads to a scramble for scarce resources and may culminate in poverty and even conflict.”