apes land and water use

externality

cost/benefit of a good/service not included in the purchase price

relevant negative externality examples

• air pollution

• pollution from fertilizers (runoff)

• industrial waste

• noise pollution

• collapsing fish stocks

• methane emissions from landfills

Tragedy of the Commons

when a common resource is shared without limits → eventual destruction through overuse

eg. overfishing

Solutions to Tragedy of the Commons

• provide incentive so people think about long term consequences

• regulate resource — restricting access, requiring permits, harvesting benefits, or in rare cases sell to private owners

Maximum Sustainable Yield

maximum amount a renewable resource can be harvested without compromising future availability

Rangeland — what is it and what is it used for?

• a dry open grassland used for grazing

• public; any rancher can use

• environmental impacts: overgrazing

BoLM

• Bureau of Land Management

• manages grazing, mining, timber harvesting, and recreation

• resource use and recreation

USFS

• United States Forest Service

• timber harvesting, grazing, and recreation

• resource use and recreation

NPS

• National Park Service

• recreation and conservation

FWS

• Fish and Wildlife Service

• wildlife conservation, hunting, and recreation

Forests

• land areas dominated by trees and woody vegetation

• man used for commercial logging

National Parks

• public lands protected from resource extraction and development

• Yellowstone

• wild spaces for public

Wildlife Reserves

• focus on conservation + research

positive vs negative feedback loop

positive = further and further from equilibrium; negative = return to equilibrium

clear cutting

cutting down an area of trees + harvesting everything

pros and cons of clear cutting

• pros: easy and efficient, cost effective, and direct sunlight for sun-loving species

• cons: increased erosion, changes local climate to drier and warmer, slash left behind, loss of habitat

slash

undergrowth that serves as fuel for forest fires

selective cutting

removal of only some trees and leaving others

pros and cons of selective cutting

• pros: still have old growth trees and less erosion

• cons: habitat fragmentation, soil compaction (machines compact soil → less water infiltration)

Resource Conservation Ethic

dictates that the use of land should be ethical and minimally disturb the ecosystem

Taylor Grazing Act of 1934

• creation of grazing districts — goal is to protect grazing lands by preventing overgrazing

tree plantations

large plantations typically planted with a single fast-growing tree species

reforestation

the replacement of deforested trees with tree plantations

National Forest

forest dedicated to resource use and responsible logging — managed by USFS

Tropical Deforestation

• overuse of slash and burn agriculture due to poverty — short term solution; cut down trees and burn to farm b/c most nutrients are in plants so soil is poor

• microclimate and area will NEVER be a tropical rainforest

fire maintained

• ecosystems that have adapted to regular fires

• places where fire has been suppressed have more undergrowth → worse fires than places where fire has been allowed to burn

pros and cons of fire management

• pro: ecosystems adapted to burning

• pro: provides many ecological benefits: seed germination, removal of unwanted species, renewal of nutrients

• con: climate change

• con: humans live in fire prone areas → property damage (eg. California)

prescribed burn

a fire intentionally set to reduce fuel for a future fire and control spread of pests/invasive species/disease

also:

• exposes mineral soil for seed beds

• improvement of natural ecosystems

Suburb

area surrounding a metropolitan center — comparatively low population density

Exurb

area much further out from a city center but not quite rural → expanding b/c we need more space + cheaper land

urban sprawl

urbanized areas that spread into rural areas → removes clear boundaries b/w urban and rural

sources of urban sprawl

• automobiles + highway construction !!!!(MOST IMPORTANT)

• living costs - cheaper land farther out

• urban blight

• zoning policies

zoning

• tool for urban planning

• leads to non-walkability because it creates distance between residential and business arias

• separation of areas considered incompatible (businesses and residence)

urban blight

degradation of areas of the city — accompanies + accelerates migration to suburbs

consequences of urban sprawl

• light and noise pollution → disrupts natural behaviors of animals eg. puffins

• impacts to water cycle

• heat island effect

Urban Heat Island Effect

urban areas noticeably warmer than surrounding areas

caused by:

• more man-made surfaces with low albedo = heat absorption

• less trees + vegetation → less evapotranspiration + shade

• big impact @night → surfaces absorb and retain heat

all leads to heat-related death and disease

solutions to Urban Heat Island Effect

• cool roofing - lighter colored roof → higher albedo + reduces insulation costs

• green roofing - plants on roof → transfer heat energy into water vapor

pavement effects on the water cycle

• impervious surface - doesn’t absorb water → less infiltration + more runoff → reduces groundwater recharge and increases flooding

• less vegetation = less evapotranspiration

hazardous waste

liquid, solid, gaseous, or sludge waste material that is harmful to humans/ecosystems

RCRA - Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

• makes sure companies dispose of waste correctly

• designed to reduce/eliminate hazardous waste

• “cradle-to-grave” tracking

CERCLA/Superfund Act

• puts a tax on chemical + petroleum industries

• revenue then used to clean up abandoned and non-operating hazardous waste sites where a responsible party cannot be found

• requires federal government to respond

Superfund sites

• 1340 as of 2024 (not important)

• usually involves chemical spills

• considered too hazardous for human presence

• eg. Love Canal

Brownfields

• most hazardous waste sites

• contaminated industrial/commercial sites that require cleanup before redevelopment

• may involve asbestos/lead removal

• eg. old dry cleaners, landfills, gas stations

waste

any output that is not useful/consumed

municipal solid waste (MSW)

refuse collected by municipalities from households, small businesses, and institutions such as schools, prisons, municipal buildings, and hospitals

e-waste

electronic waste; telephones, computers, cell phones — that contain toxic metals → generally shipped overseas to recycle

3 Rs

reduce: waste minimization/prevention

• most environmentally beneficial

reuse: reuse of items instead of buying disposables

• eg. buying a reusable metal water bottle

recycle:

• materials are collected and converted into raw materials → used to produce new objects

closed-loop recycling

when an item is cut down/melted into raw materials then made into something recyclable

• metal glass and paper

open-loop recycling

PLASTIC

when a recycled item is broken down and made into non-recyclable products; majority of plastic is NOT RECYCLABLE

composting

organic material that has decomposed under controlled conditions

pros and cons of composting

pros:

• free and healthy fertilizer

• waste reduction

cons:

• smell

• pests

landfills

MSW packed into cells and covered with dirt — capped w/ soil, clay, or plastic to prevent leakage

why should we not throw away food?

food undergoes anaerobic decomposition, which then produces methane and leakage of leachate

leachate

water that leaks to the bottom of solid waste that contains various chemical compounds from waste

• leachate collection zone

clay liner

prevents water from leaking/entering

requirements of a landfill zone

• remote but not too remote - why? b/c if too close, then pests bother humans and it smells bad, but if too far, then fuel costs and pollution

• away from bodies of water and drinking supplies as to not contaminate

landfills vs. dumps — what’s the difference?

landfills focus on preventing pollution while dumps are short-term solutions

landfills

MSW packed into cells and covered with dirt

what do landfills try to prevent?

• water leakage → leachate collection system

• anaerobic decomposition → transformation of methane into energy

incineration

process of burning waste materials to reduce its volume and mass → sometimes generate electricity and heat

pros and cons of incineration

pros:

• reduction in volume

• less land use

• energy transferred into heat

cons:

• air pollution - CO2 + CO

• more expensive

• toxic ash — higher concentration of toxic materials in trash than would be in landfill

incineration ash

• non-organic material that does not burn

• safe ash can be used in road construction and cement

• toxic ash goes to special ash landfills

percentages of salt v. freshwater

97% saltwater 3% freshwater

percentages of freshwater locations

• 68.7% icecaps and glaciers

• 30.1% groundwater

• .3% surface water

• .9% other (animals and plants)

groundwater

water found underground

• RELIED ON IN RURAL AREAS

aquifer

underground lake/river

confined aquifer

impermeable boundaries with limited recharge space

unconfined aquifer

permeable boundaries → larger recharge space

**more likely to become contaminated

cone of depression

• when someone overpumps ground water → shifts water to be pulled by one pump

• changes water levels and creates a depression

saltwater intrusion

when water is pumped close to the ocean → results in movement of saltwater inward → creates brackish water unsuitable for drinking and irrigation

solution → inject freshwater and force flow back

aquifer subsidence

• the sinking of land that happens when too much groundwater is pumped from an aquifer, causing the aquifer's sediment to compact and lose pressure → fissures and cracks form

• eg. mexico city

aqueduct

pipes/canals/ditches used to transport water to people who need it → useful for people without clean water/no water source nearby

desalination

removal of salts from ocean water

• distillation and reverse osmosis

• no strain on water resources but EXPENSIVE

• common in Middle East

• salt leftover (brine water) is very salty and dense → can be put back but must meet salinity requirements and can impact benthic organisms

dam

barrier that runs across a river or stream to control flow of water

reservoir

water body created by damming a river/stream

fish ladder

stair-like structure that allows fish to get through dam