Geography

Sustainability

Meeting the needs of current and future generations through simultaneous environmental, social, and economic adaption and improvement

5 Environmental challenges that threaten sustainability

1. Land degradation

2. Air pollution

3. Water degradation

4. Loss of biodiversity

5. Climate change

Land degradation

Occurs when there is a loss in fertility and decline in productivity due to human activities

How much of the world land area and farmland does land degradation affect?

25% world land area and 38% farmland

What does land degredation cause?

Causes loss of soil fertility, soil erosion, and salinity

Air pollution

Particles from traffic exhaust, factories and power stations pollute the cleanliness of the air

How many people die each year from air pollution?

3.5 million people

Water degradation

The deterioration of water quality due to human activity

Loss of biodiversity

The decrease in the number species in an ecosystem

How many species are lost per year?

17,000 - 100,000

What does loss in biodiversity cause?

Causes decrease in food and fibre, a decrease in pollinators, and reduced protection against natural disasters

Climate Change

Climate change is the alteration in the average weather conditions for a region or globally over a long time period. It is caused by either natural processes or human activities. It can lead to an increase or decrease in temp, rainfall, weather extremes and patterns.

How much as the earth warmed since 1800?

1.2 degrees

3 Environmental world views

1. Human centred

2. Earth centred

3. Stewardship

What are environmental world views?

A person's view of the relationship between humans and nature

Human centred

Humans are the planet's most important and dominant species, and we can and should manage the earth mostly for our benefit

Earth centred

We are a part and totally dependent on nature, and nature exists for all species

Stewardship

Humans have a responsibility to be caring stewards of the earth

Describe how the climate has changed over geological time

Earth's climate has always changed through periods of warmer and cooler global temperatures. These change the amount of ice on earth's surface as well as altering sea levels, vegetation cover, desert formation and other aspects of earth's environment

Describe current global climate changes that are occuring

Earth is currently in an ice age, as there are still large ice sheets present at the poles. The current ice age started about 2.5 million years ago. The earth is currently in an interglacial period of an ice age and ice sheets cover just 10% of earth's surface

Greenhouse effect

The natural process that warms the lower levels of the atmosphere through the trapping of re-radiated terrestrial radiation by greenhouse gases

Enhanced greenhouse effect

The extra warming of the atmosphere is caused when humans add greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, which trap more heat energy.

Anthropogenic climate change

Significant changes in the average weather that a given region experiences caused by the actions of people

2 sources of greenhouse gases

1. Natural

2. Anthropogenic

Natural Co2

Decomposition of organic material, volcanic activity, as sedimentary rocks are melted into the mantle

Natural CH4

Anaerobic decomposition of plant material in natural wetlands

Natural N2O

Soils under natural vegetation, bacteria breaking down nitrogen in the oceans

Anthropogenic CO2

Combustion of fossil fuels, transportation

Anthropogenic CH4

Digestive processes of ruminant livestock, waste disposal and treatment

Anthropogenic N2O

Production of chemicals and fertilizers

Countries with high CO2 emissions

Australia, USA, Saudi Arabia

Countries with low CO2 emissions

Ethiopia, Madagascar, Sudan

High CO2 emissions

Developed countries with high standard of living and high energy use in homes. Industrialised nations with large economies and high fossil fuel production and/or consumption. Sprawled cities, high car use. Meat and processed food rich diets.

Low CO2 emissions

Less economically developed countries with little industry and lower standards of living. Low energy needs for homes. Few people own cars. Simple diets, often vegetable based and grown locally.

Where is Kiribati?

How is temp changing in Kiribati?

An increase of about 0.7 degrees in the past 50 yrs, this leads to rising sea levels and coral bleaching

How is rainfall changing in Kiribati?

Increase in annual rainfall and a large increase in extreme weather events. It started to increase sharply from the 1980s.

3 climate changes on coastal areas in Kiribati

1. Sea level rise

2. Coastal erosion

3. Coral bleaching

Impacts of sea level rise in Kiribati

• As a low-lying atoll nation, Kiribati is very vulnerable to sea level rise. Regular king tides and storm surges now cause flooding, damaging homes, roads and infrastructure. The high tide line is moving inland, destroying everything in its path and decreasing the size of the island.

• Groundwater wells are becoming brackish and undrinkable. Families have to rely on inconsistent rainfall for drinking water

• SLR also causes freshwater crops to die, which lowers food security and threatens nutrition.

Impacts of coastal erosion in Kiribati

• With the rising tides, houses are being forced to move further inland. As the shoreline erodes rapidly, infrastructure in being destroyed

• Residents live in a constant cycle of building and repairing sea walls.

Impacts of coral bleaching in Kiribati

• Coral reefs can act as barriers protecting Kiribati from strong waves and storm surges. When the reefs die there is more chance of the island facing erosion and flooding as there is no natural barrier to protect the island

• Dead reefs cause a loss of biodiversity within the ecosystem

• Lots of fish and crab that live in these reefs are used for food. When the coral dies, fish move out of the area. This increases food scarcity as well as decreasing economic health.

Environmental pros of planting mangroves

Prevents coastal erosion as well as creates habitats for marine species

Environmental cons of planting mangroves

Barnacle infestations can destroy younger plants

Economic pros of planting mangroves

Reduced costs of damage to infrastructure and homes

Economic cons of planting mangroves

3-year program costing $150,000

Social pros of planting mangroves

Protects communities, homes and infrastructure from storm damage

Social cons of planting mangroves

Changes the natural beach environment that communities are used to using for recreation

Will planting mangroves be successful in helping Kiribati manage the impacts of climate change in the long term?

Planting mangroves is a particularly important strategy for Kiribati as a low lying pacific nation highly vulnerable to climate change impacts, especially SLR. The program represents a 'soft' engineering approach that works with natural systems rather than relying solely on built infrastructure like seawalls. It is also sustainable long-term as it requires minimal maintenance once established and provides multiple benefits beyond just coastal protection. However, it will not reduce the amount of warming or sea level rise that occurs and will not ultimately prevent the islands from being completely inundated.

Mitigation

Mitigation refers to actions which reduces the cases of climate change and therefore reduce the amount that the climate changes.

Adaption

Adaptation refers to actions which accept that climate change is occurring and tries to reduce the severity of impacts

Planting Mangroves

Mangroves are salt resistant trees that line shores throughout the tropics. Among many benefits, they act as a storm barrier, provide rich habitat for native species, reduce pollution impacts on the sea, and perform as a carbon sink, In 2011, the Kiribati government planted over 37,000 mangrove seedlings to protect the shores against coastal erosion.

Environmental pros of migration

May allow regeneration of natural environment on Kiribati islands as people leave them

Environmental cons of migration

Extensive area of land on Fiji would need to be cleared this creates loss of tree cover and habitat

Economic pros of migration

Training and education for Kiribati residents to gain employment abroad

Economic cons of migration

Fiji land cost Au $9.3 million a high purchase price

Social pros of migration

Aims to preserve cultural identity by keeping communities together

Social cons of migration

Only room for 60-70,000 people

Will migration with dignity be successful in helping Kiribati in the long term?

A proactive approach to climate change adaptation, but its success is uncertain. It provides education and job training to facilitate voluntary migration, reducing the risk of forced displacement. The challenges include limited resettlement opportunities, restrictions in host countries and the emotional and cultural costs of leaving ancestral land. It does not offer a long-term solution to climate change.