ESS Topic 1 HL

environmental value system

a world view or paradigm that shapes the way an individual or group of people perceive and evaluate environmental issues, influenced by cultural, religious, economic and socio-political contexts.

ecocentric

puts ecology and nature as central to humanity and emphasizing a less materialistic approach to life with greater self-sufficiency of societies

anthropocentric

argues that humans must sustainably manage the global system

technocentric

argues that technological developments can provide solutions to environmental problems

deep ecologist

place intrinsic importance on nature for the humanity of man and believe ecological laws should dictate human morality

cornucopian

believe that man will always find a way out of any difficulties, either political, scientific or technological and believe resource replacement will solve resource depletion

System Approach

a way of visualizing a complex set of interactions which may

be ecological or societal.

Store

Usually rectangles in a diagram and represent a temporary or permanent store of matter in a system, e.g. a glacier in the water system/cycle

Flow

a movement into or out of a system and between stores in a system (energy or matter)

Transfer

a flow with a change in location (water entering a lake)

Transformation

a flow with a change in the chemical nature or state of matter, e.g. condensation in the water cycle (water vapour to water liquid)

Open System

Exchanges both energy and matter across its boundary

Closed System

Exchanges only energy across its boundary

Isolated System

A hypothetical concept in which neither energy nor matter is exchanged across the boundary

Model

A simplified version of reality that can be used to understand how a system works and to predict how it will respond to change

First law of thermodynamics

the principle of conservation of energy, which states

that energy in an isolated system can be transformed but cannot be created or

destroyed.

Second law of thermodynamics

the entropy of a system increases over

time. Entropy is a measure of the amount of disorder in a system. An increase in

entropy arising from energy transformations reduces the energy available to do work.

Stable equilibrium

the condition of a system in which there is a tendency

for it to return to the previous equilibrium following disturbance

Steady-state equilibrium

the condition of an open system in which there

are no changes over the longer term, but in which there may be oscillations

in the very short term.

Tipping Point

the minimum amount of change within a system that will destabilize it, causing it to reach a new equilibrium or stable state

Negative feedback loop

Feedback which is stabilizing and occurs when the output of a process inhibits or

reverses the operation of the same process in such a way as to reduce change — it

counteracts deviation.

Postive Feedback loop

Destabilizing feedback which will tend to amplify changes and drive the system toward a tipping point where a new equilibrium is adopted.

Resilience (of a system)

The tendency of a system to avoid tipping points and maintain stability.

Natural Resources

Anything that the Earth supplies which can be used by humans, e.g. coal, iron ore, forests, water, air

Sustainability

the use and management of resources that allows full natural replacement of the resources exploited and full recovery of the ecosystems affected by their extraction and use

Natural Capital

natural resources that can supply a natural income of goods or services

Natural Income

is the yield obtained from natural resources (not financial)

Sustainable Development

Sustainable development is development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Environmental Indicators

Environmental indicators are anything that you can define to describe and measure a component of the environment.

Ecological Footprint

the area of land and water required to sustainably provide all resources at the rate at which they are being consumed and the assimilation of all wastes by a given human population.