Studied by 3 people
what is direct use value
directly used by humans by visiting or residing in the ecosystem
what is consumptive use value
to consume
examples of consumptive use value
harvesting food to eat, timber for fuel / housing, animals for clothing
what is non-consumptive use value
recreational and cultural activities
what is indirect use value
derived from ecosystem services that provide benefits outside the ecosystem
example of indirect use value
natural water filtration
what is optional value
potential future use of ecosystem goods & services currently not being used
what is bequest value
your future offspring use it
what is non-use value
aesthetic and intrinsic values, no market price
what is existence value
may not provide identifiable goods or services thus remain unpriced or undervalued from an economic view
resources, or natural capital
everything that is useful to mankind
examples of natural capital
air, water, soil, people, education, ecosystems
natural income
people can use as ‘interest’ sustainably
examples of natural income
marketable goods, timber, food, protection by forest
the four ecosystem services
supporting, regulating, provisioning, cultural
supporting services
essentials for life
examples of supporting services
primary productivity, soil formation, cycling of nutrients
what is regulating services
providing service by regulating and controlling
examples of regulating services
pollination, regulation of pests and diseases, water quality regulation
provisioning services
services people obtain from ecosystems
examples of provisioning services
food, fibre, fuel, water from lakes
cultural services definition
peoples interactions with ecosystems
cultural services examples
outdoor recreation, learning, spiritual wellbeing
shale gas
natural gas that is trapped within shale formations
why is shale gas significant
have recently become important because of the natural gas they contain, therefore many countries try to develop it
shale gas in the USA
took off because they have a lot of shale rock, their available pipeline technology and the country’s determination to achieve energy security helped.
shale gas in china
has large deposits of shale rocks, but less likely to develop because there are earthquake risks
shale gas in the UK
deposits in the south are less likely because the middle-class are more politicized
Trend of solid domestic waste
increases as a result of growing human populations and consumption
types of solid domestic waste
organic waste, paper/packaging/cardboard, glass, plastics
types of non-biodegradable waste
plastic, batteries, e-waste
example case of non-biodegradable waste
china receives about 70% of the world’s waste. guiyu is the e-waste capital of the world
effects of non-biodegradable waste on human life
lead poisoning, cancer, risk of miscarriage
effects of non-biodegradable waste on nature
soil, water, air are all polluted
biodegradable
capable of being broken down by natural biological processes
pros of recycling
reduces amount of energy used, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, creates new jobs
cons of recycling
involves transport thus requires a lot of energy, labour intensive, produces toxic waste
pros of reusing
little energy is used, cheap resources for people of limited means
cons of reusing
requires energy to clean products being reused, eventually wear out, eventually has to be disposed
composting
converting organic materials into nutrient-rich soil through natural decomposition
pros of composting
produces fertilizer, reduces the use of chemical fertilizers
cons of composting
produces unpleasant smells, takes time
incineration
waste treatment by combustion
pros of incineration
reduces volume of waste, way of producing energy from waste
cons of incineration
produces greenhouse gas, still expensive
landfill
dumping ground
pros of landfills
cheap and easy way, little time and labour required
cons of landfills
produces methane (ghg), potential to contaminate land in the future
three steps of pollution management
altering human activity, controlling release, cleaning and restoring
examples of altering human activity
reduced consumption, increased recycling, use of materials, composting of food
examples of controlling release
set standards, introduce targets for recycling, taxes on plastic bags
examples of cleaning and restoring
energy for waste (efw) schemes, reclaiming landfill sites, removing pollutants from the environment
factors affecting the choice of waste disposal at a national scale
government policy, population density, amount of land available for landfill, involvement in international agreements, involvement of environmental pressure groups, geographic or climactic characteristics
how to measure carrying capacity
ecological footprint
carrying capacity
number of people deemed sustainable
ecological footprint
area of land and water needed to meet the population’s needs
how is carrying capacity problematic
humans use a wider range of resources than any other species, when one resource becomes limited humans are good at substituting it with another, resource requirements are different based on lifestyles, technologic development causes changes in the resources required
example of how resource requirements are different based on lifestyles
Massai Herdsman uses less resources than urban populations
EXAMPLE of how technologic development changes resources
increase in nuclear power since the 1950s
example of how certain areas carry more people than others
areas with warm and wet climate, fertile soils support larger populations
how does globalization affect carrying capacity
trade is always an option so people can import needs, thus support more people
increasing carrying capacity
determined by rate of resource consumption, level of pollution, extent of recycling, reuse and reduction in the use of resources
two perspectives on carrying capacity
neo-malthusian view, optimist view
neo-malthusian view of carrying capacity
human population will outdo the ability of the earth to provide sufficient resources for all populations
optimist view of carrying capacity
ways of food production can be increased by irrigation, fertilizers, and growing crops in greenhouses
energy progresses
use of new resources (shale gas), development of alternatives (solar/wind energy), increased energy conservation
categories contributing to ecological footprint
energy land, consumed land, currently used land
pros of the idea of EF
useful snapshot of the sustainability of a population, provides means for people and governments to measure their impact, identify potential changes in lifestyle, popular symbol for raising awareness
cons of the idea of EF
does not include all information about human activity impact on environment, only a model thus a simplification, negative in approach thus might be demotivating
what does EF overlook
aquatic and atmospheric resources, wastes other than carbon dioxide, replacing loss of productive land through urbanization
factors that can explain EF differences between LEDC / MEDC
EF increase with DTM increase, energy use is more in later stages of DTM, greater wealth means higher consumption, more goods mean more pollutions, higher DTM means eat more
exceptions to DTM patterns
China and India has more population but US and UK have higher EF per person, resulting in higher DTM
population patterns based on resources
growing population means more resources used, decrease in resource stocks, limits population growth
population patterns based on resources
growing population means more resources used, decrease in resource stocks, limits population growth
examples of newly industrializing countries
china and india
globalized consumer culture
demand for consumer goods have increased dramatically int he past 30 years, thus puts in the world’s resources under pressure
what can technology do to carrying capacity
argued that carrying capacity can be expanded through technological innovation
why are nations unsustainable
sustainable development is very expensive, cheaper to extract fossil fuels than to develop alternative technologies
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