Unit 1: Natural Capital, Systems, Environmental Problems, and Sustainability

Natural Resources

products humans obtain from the ecosystem

Natural Capital

natural resources and natural services in an ecosystem

Natural services

functions of nature

natural services examples

water and air purification, nutrient cycling, food production

Regulating services

benefit from natural processes/functions of an ecosystem

Regulating services examples

pollination of plants by wind or insects

trees prevent soil erosion, clean the air and water

nutrient cycling by bacteria and fungi

Supporting services

relate to ecosystem functioning which allows for the survival of species and the ecosystem itself

supporting services examples

photosynthesis by plants

genetic diversity allowing for evolution

cultural services

non-material benefits people obtain from ecosystems

cultural services examples

spiritual enrichment, recreation, aesthetic value

non renewable resources

exist in limited amounts in the Earth’s crust- reformed over 200 years

non renewable resources examples

oil, coal, metallic minerals ( copper and iron) non metallic minerals (salt)

renewable resources

replenished between hours to 2 centuries

perpetual resource

renewed continuously expected to last as long as humans. (ex the sun)

sustainable yield

rate that resources can be used without reducing supply or causing long term harm to the environment

environmental degradation

rate of use surpasses rate of replacement

Private property

individual/company owns the rights to land and its resources

common property

owned by large groups of people

US citizens own 1/3 of America in national parks

open access renewable resources

owned by no one but used by anyone

open access renewable resources examples

clean air, underground aquifers, fishing in the open ocean

Tragedy of the Commons

everyone uses same resource and degrades the resource/ environment

System

set of components that function/ interact

3 parts of a system

inputs, outputs, flow

Feedback

process that increases or decreases change in a system

Feedback loop

output is fed back into a system as input

Negative feedback loop

causes system to change in opposite direction

Positive feedback loop

causes a system to change further in the same direction

Global warming

polar caps melt replaces reflected light with absorbed light by ocean, increasing the temperature and causing more ice to melt

Hubbard-Brook experiment

removed vegetation from steam valley caused soil erosion and nutrient loss- vegetation died off- more erosion

Time delay

in most complex environmental systems, it takes years/decades for effect to be felt between input into a system and its eventual response

tipping point

fundamental shift in how a system behaves once a problem is finally addressed because of time delays

tipping point examples

population growth, toxic spills, climate change

synergistic interaction/synergy

when 2 or more processes interact and the combined effect is greater than each process on their own

ecological footprint examples

destruction of habitats that clean and filter water

pollution from mining, industry, and use of materials

over harvesting of fish or trees faster than they replenish themselves

ecological footprint

amount of land and water needed to support the people of a particular area with the resources, while absorbing/recycling the waste produced

per capita ecological footprint

the average footprint of the people of a particular area

ecological deficit

When a country’s ecological footprint is bigger than its ability to replenish its renewable resources

agricultural revolution

humans learned to breed plants and animals 10k-12k years ago

industrial/medical revolution

more energy from fossil fuel required for transportation and manufacturing of goods. medical breakthroughs increased human life span

Information/ Globalization Revolution

developed technology to gather information and resources globally. Increased ability to control the environment, increase population, greater resource use- increased ecological footprint

Population Growth

Environment struggles to support current population

wasteful and unsustainable resource use

wealth breeds overconsumption and resource wasting. also provides technology to reduce pollution and increase conservation interests

Poverty

don’t worry about environment when you focus on survival. increases population size, more resources required. environmental degradation increases health risks

Environmental “cost” of goods or services

need to hold corporations responsible for environmental costs

Insufficient knowledge of natural processes

not understanding how the environment works, making ill-informed decisions about using natural resources

Planetary management Worldview

we are separate from nature and nature is here to meet our wants and needs

Stewardship worldview

manage nature for our benefit but do so responsibly without damaging the environment

environmental wisdom worldview

we are part of and dependent on nature and that nature exists for all species, not just humans

Conservation

management of natural resources with the goal of sustaining supplies and minimizing wastes

Resource

anything removed from the environment to meet human needs

sustainable

living off the Earth’s natural resources without drastically altering or damaging the surrounding environment long-term

Environmentally Sustainable Society

meets the resource needs of the current generation without compromising future generations’ ability to meet their needs

Reliance on Solar Power

perpetual energy source, the main energy source for most of life on Earth

biodiversity

the variety of living species in an area

genetic diversity

gene pool, allows for evolution

species diversity

all species in an ecosystem, can handle more after disasters

habitat diversity

multiple habitats in an ecosystem, support different species

functional diversity

different functions that things produce

functional diversity examples

plants photosynthesize, mushrooms decompose, water erodes soil, decaying leaves return nutrients to the soil

population control

increased competition for resources leads to less resources for all other species, results in intraspecific competition

Nutrient Cycling

recycling chemicals through physical, chemical, and biological processes of nature