Contemporary Environmental Issues Exam 1 U Iowa

Define each of the variables in the equation I=P x A x T

environmental impact (I) = number of people (P) x affluence per person (A) x environmental effect of technologies (T)

The maximum number of individuals an environment can support indefinitely, without environmental impact

carrying capacity

Define each of the variables in the equation I=P x A x T

environmental impact (I) = number of people (P) x affluence per person (A) x environmental effect of technologies (T)

The maximum number of individuals an environment can support indefinitely, without environmental impact

carrying capacity

What stage in the fertility transition is represented by this population pyramid?

no growth/possibly declining

This is the successor to the millennium development goals, and includes goals like poverty reduction, environmental protection, and gender equality.

sustainable development goals

What are the names of the four stages of the demographic transition?

stage 1 = preindustrial, stage 2 = transitional, stage 3 = industrial, stage 4 = postindustrial

Benefits people obtain from natural ecosystems

ecosystem services

Biological environments home to many endemic (only in one geographical region) species

biodiversity hotspots

What are the four main causes of biodiversity decline that we discussed in class?

HIPO --> habitat loss, invasive species, pollution, overexploitation

Name two of the three components of variability among organisms that comprise a biological community (biodiversity)

genetic diversity, species richness, ecosystem diversity

There are two competing philosophies on how to maintain biodiversity and protect ecosystems. What are they?

conservation and preservation

Conservation: controlled use of natural resources

Preservation: protect natural resources from use

Physical land type

Biomes: distinct regions of climate, soil, and vegetation

Major types: forest, grassland, desert, tundra, water

Global land cover

How people use the landscape

Traits

Small urban footprint

Large agricultural footprint

Increasing global impacts

Rapid transition to urban use

Forests most vulnerable to transition

Global land use

land degradation cycle

Poverty (top)

Which of the following societal changes is likely to have the biggest influence on reducing rates of tropical deforestation?

becoming vegetarian -> this is because most tropical deforestation happens to make room for cattle grazing

Loss of soil moisture

desertification

Global deforestation rates are...

decreasing (varies significantly by country, but the global trend is slowing)

Severe temporary food shortage

famine

The following health effects are associated with what?•Stunting•Cognitive impairment•Anemia•Weakened immune system•Mortality

Malnutrition

What are the three pillars of food security?

availability, access, use

Famine and hunger ______ from lack of food

are not.. the issue is with access, not availability, democracy is the key to eradicating the world of famines

________ is raising crops and livestock to meet your own needs using few inputs, while ______ is a more commercialized production that requires large capital inputs

subsistence agriculture, industrial agriculture

Maintaining biodiversity in nature

in situ conservation

China's Great Green Wall is an example of what?

afforestation

The single most important factor affecting fertility rates

gender inequality

Name all four historical 'revolutions' that influenced population

agricultural revolution, industrial revolution, medical revolution, green revolution

What are the four categories of ecosystem services?

provisioning, regulating, supporting, cultural

HAB

harmful algal bloom (HAB)

Sustainability

The ability to keep in existence or maintain. A sustainable ecosystem is one that can be maintained

Ecological Footprint (EF)

A measure of resource use per person, expressed as the number of hectares of productive land that is needed to support a person

Describe some of the system impacts of the 2018 Florida algal bloom

-Pungent smell, toxic to wildlife

-Supercharged by human land use

-Growing impacts and frequency

-Releases toxins upon death

-Lasts for months

-Moves by wind and ocean currents

What are the defining characteristics of MDCs, LDCs?

LDC: Agrarian, weak infrastructure

-High infant mortality rate, low life expectancy

-Low literacy and per capita income

MDC: Industrialized

-Low population growth, birth rates, infant mortality

-Low fertility rate, at/below replacement level fertility

-Replacement level =2.1

How does the ecological footprint approach differ from IPAT in measuring human environmental impacts?

The ecological footprint is the measure of human demand of earth's natural resources. IPAT calculates the environmental impact considering the factors of population, affluence, and technology.

Industrial Revolution

-Development of fossil fuel burning machines

-More work could be done

-Population grew

-Major economic expansion

Green Revolution

-Fast growing and disease resistant crop varieties

-Dramatically increased food production

Medical Revolution

-Disease and modes of transmission identified

-Better sanitation

-Better medical care

Agricultural Revolution

-Developed crop agriculture and animal domestication

-Permanent settlements

-Social classes, technology

-More food production

Urbanization: What are the temporal and geographic trends? What are the effects?

-% of people living in cities (29%, 41%, 61%)

-Population density

-Number of megacities

-Benefit: more efficient resource use

-Consequence: enormous ecological footprint

Sustainable Development Goals

17 goals adopted by the UN in 2015 to reduce disparities between developed and developing countries by 2030

-Reduce gender inequality

-Microfinance

- Educate

-Family Planning

-Political Participation

Describe the prominent solutions for slowing population growth

-Family planning, educate

-China's one child policy

fertility rate

The average number of children born to a woman during her lifetime in a population

Crude Birth Rate (CBR)

The total number of live births in a year for every 1,000 people alive in the society.

Crude Death Rate (CDR)

The total number of deaths in a year for every 1,000 people alive in the society.

replacement fertility

the total fertility rate (TFR) that maintains a stable population size

Population Pyramid

A bar graph representing the distribution of population by age and sex.

demographic transition

change in a population from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates

How do the three main levels of biodiversity differ?

1. Genetic diversity

-Within-species gene variability

-Increases adaptability to change

-Foundation of all biodiversity

2. Species richness - within ecosystem

3. Ecosystem diversity - within region

Why is biodiversity important?

Biodiversity provides direct and indirect economic benefits and maintains a healthy biosphere. Boosts productivity, all size of species play a role.

What are ecosystem services? Give an example from each category

-Forests: lumber, oil, erosion protection

-Insects: Pollination

-Mountains: Hiking, skiing, spiritual

-Bacteria and fungi: nutrient cycling

Explain the leading causes of biodiversity decline

1. Habitat loss

2. Invasive species

3. Pollution

4. Overexploitation

Describe the leading approaches and policies to protect biodiversity

Conservation and Preservation

-Protect natural resources from use

-Natural needs> human needs

-Eliminate human impact

-Nature has practical value

-"Reduce wear & tear"

How can biodiversity be measured?

-Indicators

-Species richness

-Species density

-Extinction rate

-Habitat fragmentation

-Amphibians

-Mapping

What is GIS, and how can it help us better understand biodiversity?

Geographic Information System, A software tool to capture, store, manage, analyze, and display geographic information on a map

Describe the relationship between poverty and land degradation.

The poor generally have access only to areas that have higher risk for health and income generation. And they generally lack the resources to reduce the exposure to the risk or to invest in alleviating the causes of such risk. Environmental degradation therefore can affect the health and nutrition status of the poor and lower their productivity.

Describe and give examples of ecosystem services lost in forest, rangeland, and wetland environments.

-Grassland biome

-Semi-arid areas, few/no trees

-AKA: steppe, pampas, savanna, prairie

-Swamps, marshes, bogs

What are the causes and consequences of land degradation?

-Soil impoverishment

-Erosion

-Inability to sustain vegetation

-Causes: natural & human

Reverse land degradation

Gardening. Planting vegetation and grass can stop heavy rains from damaging our land and it protects the topsoil from being washed away.

Afforestation and Reforestation.

Conservation Tillage.

Constructing Wind Breakers.

Biomes

a large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a major habitat, e.g., forest or tundra.

Afforestation

Planting seeds or trees to make a forest on land that has not been a forest recently, or which has never been a forest.

What are some solutions for food insecurity?

-Food assistance

-Sustainable agriculture

-Research

-Extension services

In what ways is subsistence farming different from industrialized?

Subsistence- Raising crops & livestock to meet own needs

Industrialized- Modern agriculture methods that require large capital input, and less land and labor

What are the main pros and cons of industrialized agriculture?

-Benefits -increased production, less labor

-Drawbacks -pesticide and nutrient pollution, fossil fuel dependence, expansion onto fragile soils, soil salinization, biodiversity loss, water scarcity

What are the main characteristics of sustainable agriculture?

-Natural predator-prey relationships: pest control

-Conservation tillage: erosion, organic content

-Crop rotation: nutrients, pests, disease

-Contour plowing, terracing: water erosion

-Organic agriculture

-Shelterbelts: wind erosion

-Conservation Reserve Program: erosion

Why are natural fish stocks declining?

-No nation lays claim to open ocean

-Open access resource

-Susceptible to overuse and degradation

-Individuals use it for personal gain before someone else does

Aquaculture benefits and drawbacks

Great potential to supply food

Genetically homogenous

May degrade natural coastal habitats

Norman Borlaug

Founder of Green Revolution: Increased wheat and maize yield worldwide, 1970 Nobel Peace Prize.

Amartya Sen

argues famine caused by lack of ability to purchase food (entitlement theory)

food desert

An area in a developed country where healthy food is difficult to obtain