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The 7 themes: 1- Science
a way of understanding the world, Systematic observation of natural and biophysical systems
The 7 themes: 2- Governence
Considers the ways that we govern human activities, Laws and regulations, organizations and institutions
The 7 themes: 3- Values & Ideas
The way we make sense of the world affects, Ideas are worth spreading, asking questions
The 7 themes: 4- Politics, Interest, Power
Influencing the decisions we make, Politics is about advancing stakeholder interests
The 7 themes: 5- Scale & Jurisdiction
Environmental issues can be both global and local at the same time
The 7 themes: 6-Uncertainty, risk and complexity
We make decisions about environmental issues without a complete understanding of them
The 7 themes: 7- Technology
Products and approaches that create problems or have the potential to solve them, e.g: electric cars, wind turbines
Structure of intergovernmental panel on climate change IPCC
3 working groups:
WG1- scientific aspects
WG2- Consequences, positive and negative, of climate change, Adaptation to climate change
WG3- how to limit GHG emissions, Mitigation of climate change
IPCC’s role
Assesses peer-reviewed literature, References published technical reports from government agencies, do not conduct research
how did we estimate temperature before 1700s?
tree rings, ice cores: 2H (deuterium) and 18O isotopes in H2O, lake levels, glacier advance and retreat, pollen in lake sediments
Affects of Candian wildfires
public health risks, greenhouse gas emissions
climate change impacts
seal level rising, extreme hot weather, precipitation increase
how much does canada have to reduce its emissions by 2030?
40% lower than 2005 levels
net-zero
What we emit is balanced by what we capture, throughout all sectors of the country, assumes that impact of emissions = impact of removals (getting to almost zero emissions)
what determines C02 emissions?
Income(goods & services per person) X technology(c02 emmisions per $)
Solutions in reducing C02 emmisons
Reduce our energy consumption, Transition to lowcarbon energy source, Find other GHG reductions:
The Paris agreement
Set 2 ◦C target (net zero by 2080-2100), with aspiration for 1.5 ∘C (net zero by second half of century).
US Inflation Reduction Act
it injects at least USD $369 billion to clean energy technologies and essential to decarbonising the economy
what is plastic?
Mostly synthetic polymers (many + units)
how many tons of plastic are wasted annually in Canda?
3 million tons
How do we get closer to the goal of zero plastic waste? (stratagies)
plastic products to be designed for greater durability, reuse and recycling, Increase the demand for recycled plastics
bioplastics
a plastic derived from biological substances rather than from petroleum, many types of which are biodegradable.
what isze is a microplastic?
1um-5mm
what are priimary microplastics?
those which enter the environment through their micro size
what are secondary microplastics?
resulting from the breakdown of larger plastics in the environment
how are microplastics measured?
sink and float technique sorts them and measured through wet deposition and dry deposition
What are atmospheric plastics?
Microplastics that occur in the atmosphere from urban to remote areas
how are atmospheri plastic measured?
bunk collector, active air sample, wet only deposition collector
wet deposition
rain, sleet, snow, or fog that has become more acidic than normal.
Dry deposition
is when gases and dust particles become acidic
name some sorting techniques for plastics
sink float (reduces contamination)
Gary Anderson
Invented plastic
what does plastic degrade to?
C02 and D0C, microplastics, non-polymer compunds
what happens to plastics once they enter the environment?
water insoluable, cound in food chain, found everywhere
how are nanoplastics formed?
when microplastics breakdown by physical process to form nanoplastics
what is the one advantage to bioplastics?
they are compostable
how long does it take for plastic to breakdown in the environment?
20-500 years
what is the most comon microplastic in the environment?
polyester
what is an example of biomonitering?
moss bags
what is a moss bag? and purpose
1 g of moss was placed inside a bag: collects atmospheric plastics
why are microplastics bad?
water insoluble, unreactive, large surface area, found in food chain, found everywhere
who handles the cost of recycling and plastic pollution?
consumers rather than plastic producers
4 principles of sustainablility
Most ecosystems use renewable solar energy
Ecosystems replenish nutrients and recycle waste
Biodiversity maintains healthy and adaptable ecosystems
Nature limits population growth
3 pilars of sustainable development
environmental protection
social equality
ecenomic growth
what is sustainable development?
development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs
what is considered unsustainable?
if the extraction/use of resources creates injustice (economic, social), has health consequences, exacerbates climate change impacts, or affects biodiversity,
Definition for sustainability with respect to resources
Use natural resources: • at rates that do no exceed our capacity to discover replacements/substitutes • recycle and reuse our resources • dispose of wastes at rates that do not exceed the environment’s capacity to neutralize these
It has been argued that there is no resource crisis, how is this argument flawed?
Eventually you will run out of resources, but we havent been on this earth long enough to see this happen
Division, some of us can adjust quicker than others
This arguemnt doesn’t look beyond the resource
What are some suggestions of things we should do or not do to achieve a more sustainable world?
Reduce consumption
Increase lifespan of our products
Giving back to the earth
Some examples of how we "green" consumption
Gas cars--> electric
Natural gas/ oil--> solar/wind
Plastic bott;es--> recylce them
what is ecological restoration?
The process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed (initiates or accelerates the recovery of an ecosystem with respect to its health, integrity and sustainability)
abiotic barriers
Physical (rather than biological) barriers impeding ecosystem recovery
examples:
• Lack of soil
• Contaminated soil
• Contaminated water
biotic barriers
Biological barriers impeding ecosystem recovery
examples:
• No host population for seed
• Presence of invasive species
What Is a Recovered Ecosystem?
It looks like it did before
It functions
It has native species
It provides cultural value It provides biodiversity value
Self-sustaining
dispersal
the movement of individuals from their birth site to their breeding site, as well as the movement from one breeding site to another.
Niche Theory:
predictions assume that a successful invasive species will gain access to unused resources
Theory of Limiting Similarity
co-existence between species is more limited by competitive exclusion when species share niche properties
positive feedback loop
a change in a given direction causes additional change in the same direction
negative feedback loop
the effects of a reaction slow or stop that reaction.
Propagules
Rhizomes break apart easily • Rhizomes responsible for 70% of new plants found downstream after flooding
water pollution:
The degradation of one or more water quality parameters (pH, salinity, levels of trace materials, oxygen levels, temperature) and its effect on aquatic habitat and aquatic life
Sources of pollution to water: (3)
Industrial: organic chemicals
Agricultural: nutrients (P and N)
Municipal: domestic organic wastes (human wastes)
Lake erie in the 1960's : polluted by toxic chemicals
Raw sewage in the lake
Wastewater treatment plants werent a thing
Industrial and solid waste was dumped into the water
Phosphorus was coming from detergants
what is lake erie polluted by
high levels of phospurous
From detergants and other contaminants
Algal blooms
persistent organic pollutants
toxic chemicals that adversely affect human health and the environment around the world (not water soluable)
3 types of water usage
Consumptive (take out and not returned): Irrigation, mining, bottling, diversion, manufacturing
Non-consumptive (taken = returned): Thermal-electric power generation
In-stream uses (no water taken): eg- Commercial fishing (loss of biodiversity)
how to measure water quality
BOD (biological oxygen demand)
how are microplastics formed?
bigger pieces of plastics breakdown from physical, chemical, UV rays into tiny plastic particles
3 problems with recycling
landfilling, emits microplastics, improper disposal of waste, inadequate waste management
why is the north end of canada warming faster then the south
the oceans dark surface absorbs sunlight: therefore sea ice is melting, feedback loops
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