Copy of Topic 1 Review Packet

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IB ESS Unit 1 Study Guide: Foundations of Environmental Systems and Societies

Objective: You must know or be able to do the following things to demonstrate mastery of this unit.	Prove it!
Summarize how each environmental value system views natural capital and list a main strategy it would use to achieve sustainability.	Ecocentric
Anthropocentric	environmental resources are meant to be managed and used by humans
Technocentric	technology will maximize environmental resources
Identify the 3 major environmental problems we face and give an example of each	ProblemPollutionResource depletionLoss of biodiversity
Differentiate between open, closed, and isolated systems	Open systems - energy and matter are exchanged with environmentclosed - energy is exchanged with environment but not matterisolated - not energy nor matter are exchanged with environment (theoretical, but the universe may be considered an isolated system)
Give examples of transfers and transformations	Transfer - both matter and energy move through ecosystems through movement of living animals (eating other animals), non living process (water), energy (ocean, transferring heat)Transformation - matter to matter (soluble glucose converted to insoluble starch), energy to energy (light converted to heat by radiating surfaces), matter to energy (burning fossil fuels), energy to matter (photosynthesis)
Summarize the Gaia Hypothesis	The Earth is a large closed system which contains negative feedback loops to sustain its organisms. It behaves as one entity.
Define steady-state equilibrium	a characteristic of open systems where there are continuous inputs and outputs of energy and matter but the system as a whole remains in a more-or-less constant state
Give 2 examples of inputs and outputs that maintain equilibrium in a system	light energy from the sun enters the Earth’s system → heat radiates off the Earth’s surfacehumans breathe in oxygen → breathe out carbon dioxide
Draw a labeled diagram that illustrates the difference between a stable and unstable equilibrium
Define a + feedback loop, draw a diagram that helps you understand it, & give an example	Mechanisms destabilize a system and establish a new normal.Temperatures rise → ice melts → exposes more of the surface water → it absorbs more heat → temperatures rise againoxytocin is released during childbirth→ it triggers more contractions → which releases more oxytocin
Define a - feedback loop, draw a diagram that helps you understand it, & give an example	Mechanisms that are meant to stabilize the system and return it to normal, controls standard deviationan enzyme (A) goes through a system → a new enzyme (B) is the output of the system → when there is too much of B, A changes → A is no longer an input → no more B is made until it is neededbirth rates increase → death rates decrease –. population grows –. it reaches carrying capacity → death rates increase → population decreases
Disturbance- explain what it is (in terms of ecosystems) and give an example (1 natural, 1 anthropogenic)	Definition: some factor that impacts an ecosystem negativelyNatural disturbance- fire, stormsReAnthropogenic disturbance- deforestation, overfishing
Compare how systems with high and low resilience differ.	An ecosystem has high resilience if it returns back to stable equilibrium after a disturbance (and a higher tipping point) but it has low resilience if it enters a new state of equilibrium (lower tipping point).
List 5 factors that add resilience to a system.	Resilience in a system is dependent on biodiversity, size of ecosystem, reproductive rates, geographical range, climate, and genetic diversity.One example of a resilient ecological system is a tropical rainforest because they have much biodiversity and genetic diversity, growth rates for plants are higher because of access to sunlight, and it is relatively large (?). Another example is the eucalypt forests in Australia. This area is prone to fires and the oil and tree litter only induce the flames, but the trees have evolved to grow buds in their trunks so they can grow back quickly.
Define tipping point. Give an example of a tipping point	Tipping point is an ecological point of no return that would take hundreds of years to stabilize. One example of a tipping point is lake eutrophication. This occurs when nutrients are added to a lake ecosystem to the point where the lake changes its state and the excess of plants and plant decomposition causes oxygen levels to fall and animals to die. Another example of a tipping point is coral reef death. This would occur when the ocean becomes too acidic so the coral reef dies and is unable to grow back.Could also use the gulf stream example - if the glaciers in Greenland melt and disrupt the gulf stream, Europe will be colder because less warm water is traveling there
Define sustainability	Sustainability is the use and management of resources that allows full natural replacement of the resources exploited and full recovery of the ecosystems affected by their extraction and use.
Outline 3 major indicators of sustainability	air quality, environmental vulnerability, water poverty, life expectancy, and gender parity
Explain the concept of a Tragedy of the Commons	Wealth of Nations (1776) says that when people are left to their own devices and to pursue their own interests, their resource consumption will be for the better of the community. Tragedy of the Commons (1968), however, says that this isn’t true because people will behave in their own interests.
Provide a real-world example of a ToC	If a town is sustained on a body of water, each person will only be able to take a certain number of fish to sustain the town. When people are able to take as many fish as they want, it is speculated that they will only take what they need, but people are greedy and the source will eventually run out.
Summarize 2 major approaches to preventing ToC	Legislation andAdam Smith - At the core of Smith’s argument, the actions of a person are driven by greed and selfishness. He says that humans inherently have these ways of logic and they influence many of our decisions. The Tragedy of the Commons is an inevitable result of capitalism because if people act out of selfishness they will take more than one fish and not think about the consequences that it has to others in the community or their environment.
Define natural capital	Natural capital is the natural resources that can produce a sustainable natural income (goods and services)`
Give 3 examples of natural capital	a forest (natural capital) provides timber (natural income)an agricultural crop (natural capital) provides us food (natural income)Water managementerosion controlrecycling waste
Define the 3 types of natural resources	Renewable - a resource that will replenish itself at a faster rate than we are extractingex. OxygenNon-renewable - a resource that can not replenish quickly enough to keep up with consumptionex. AquiferPerpetual - renewable resources that can not be exhausted no matter their rate of useex. solar
Define sustainable yield and explain why it only applies to 1 type of resource	Sustainable yield is the amount of a specific resource that can be harvested before it depletes the supply where it cannot grow back. This only applies to renewable resources. The maximum sustainable yield for population is 50% of the carrying capacity because that is when the rate of increase is the highest.
Briefly describe how you would stay below sustainable yield of a resource like corn.	The maximum sustainable yield of a resource is 50% so as long as less than 50% is harvested.
Explain when *economic depletion* occurs and provide an example.	Economic depletion occurs when a resource is too expensive to harvest or its products are too expensive to produce. Some fish can become too expensive for people to buy.
Distinguish between a physically depleted and an economically depleted natural resources	economically depleted - the resource is still there but it is too expensive to producephysically depleted - there is not enough of the resource naturally occurring
For each of 3 named pollutants, describe the environmental effects of that pollutant	matter → organic or inorganicenergy → sound, light, heatliving organisms → invasive species or biological agents
List 3 options once a resource has become economically depleted
Broadly define pollution	Pollution is the addition of a substance or an agent to an environment by human activity, at a rate greater than that at which it can be rendered harmless by the environment, and which has an appreciable effect on the organisms within it
For each of 3 named pollutants, describe the environmental effects of that pollutant	carbon dioxideorganic wasteheavy metals
Identify 3 factors (and briefly explain) that determine the severity of a pollutant.	chemical nature → how active and harmful it is to living organismsconcentration → the amount per unit of volumepersistence (degradability) → how long it stays in the air, water, body, soil
Define a point source of pollution and provide an example	single and identifiable point of origin → sewage treatment plants
Define a non-point source of pollution and provide an example	dispersed and difficult to identify → urban/agricultural runoff
Summarize the 3 major approaches to solving pollution problems	Prevention → altering human activity that leads to pollutant production in the first placeControl → controlling the release of the pollutant through regulatory practicesClean-up/mitigation → cleanup/restoration of damaged systems
Explain why input control (prevention) is preferable to output control (cleanup) in terms of pollution.	It solves the problem before it starts and leads to less damage to the environment

Explain the inherent conflicts between American “individualism” and the “Common Good” with regard to the environment. Discuss the benefits and limitations of capitalism vis-a’-a-vis Adam Smith/Wealth of Nations in this conflict.
1. American individualism allows for selfish tendencies to reign as preservation of self is held to a higher standard than the good of the community. In regards to the environment, this American individualism essentially gives people permission to deplete resources for the sake of their own livelihoods.
Describe drinking water and wastewater treatment processes and issues and in Philadelphia
1. waste: water travels to treatment plants through pipes by gravity, the water is slowed so heavy objects settle to the bottom, bugs are introduced to eat the remaining pollutants, they get heavy and sink, chlorine is added to the water
2. drinking: water is pumped from the Schuylkill or Delaware and chlorine is added, heavy pollutants settle to the bottom of the tanks, smaller pollutants undergo coagulation where chemicals are added to the water to help join them together so they sink to the bottom, chlorine is added to kill disease-causing pathogens
Be able to discuss the water shortage issues in the desert southwest and the technocentric, anthropocentric and ecocentric viewpoints and solutions involved.
1. technocentric - figure out how to pipe water to environments with droughts
2. anthropocentric - ration the quantity of water people can take
3. ecocentric - move people out of the area
Be able to discuss international marine fish shortage issues and the technocentric, anthropocentric, and ecocentric viewpoints and solutions involved
1. technocentric: attach a device to boats that regulate the amount of fish harvested by each boat and send it to the Marine Stewards Council
2. anthropocentric: create more legislation on regulation, more farm fishing
3. ecocentric: ration the number of fish people are allowed to harvest, stop selling to as many restaurants
Describe the basic technique of fracking. Outline the benefits and risks of this technique
1. Fracking is when wells are drilled into the ground to extract oil and natural gas. They have a low impact on the topography because they are primarily underground. It also helps the economy because the process isn’t expensive, causing gas prices to drop so people can spend more money on other things. The major risks include the possible contamination of water as the well passes through aquifers, wasting water during the process, and emitting fossil fuels into the atmosphere.
Distinguish between the physical depletion and the economic depletion of a resource of a natural resource and the factors which influence these depletions. Use Natural Gas Fracking in PA or Fish harvesting as examples
1. Physical depletion is when the resource is not available to harvest, but economic depletion is when the resource has become too expensive to harvest that there is no way of getting it.
  1. factors that influence the depletion
    1. overharvesting fish in comparison to its production rates is physical depletion
    2. As certain types of fish become more rare they become incredibly more expensive because of the law of supply and demand
Outline the benefits and limitations of constructing environmental/ecological models such as the Carbon dioxide/Methane Climate model or the hydrologic rainfall/runoff models we have looked at this year
1. Models make analysis of complex environmental systems more accessible. To analyze and predict happenings in the system itself, scientists need specialized equipment that is not always accessible to average people. By using a model, the baseline data and observations about the system have already been collected, so it is clearer to analyze and draw conclusions. It also helps in predicting the future of a system. Because parts of the model are based on assumptions, they can be changed to see how it will affect the system in the future. This however poses some limitations. In making assumptions about the system, there is no set value for the parameters that are being changed. This hinders understanding of complex environmental systems because many scientists could use the same model under different assumptions and draw different conclusions about the same system. An example of this is the deep ocean overturn rate parameter in the CO2 and CH4 model from class. It is nearly impossible to measure the deep ocean overturn rate, so it is assumed that it will take 1000 years, but another scientist could assume it would take 10000 years and therefore come to a different understanding.
Outline the processes/issues/purpose involved in an Environmental Impact Statement (like the one we crudely modeled for the Henry Ave. Bridge)
1. scoping (is it required), assessment of risk (what data needs to be collected), mitigation (minimize impacts of project), decision making (final decision made by regulatory agency), monitoring (how will environmental parameters be monitored for future impacts)
Define Ecological Footprint and explain the factors which contribute to a countries footprint
1. the area of land and water required to sustainably provide all the resources at the rate at which they are being consumed by a given population
2. industrialization (use of carbon) impacts a country’s EF
Outline the history of human population growth over the last 2000 years. Provide general interpretation for the changes which have occurred.
1. The human population surpassed 1 billion in 1804 and has been increasing exponentially since then. Because of this, the time it takes for the population to double has been decreasing. This is likely due to innovations in mechanized agriculture, advancements in medicine and education, and industrialization. The population has yet to begin to slow down as it has just reached 8 billion. It is expected to start tapering soon because the human carrying capacity is predicted to be anywhere from 10 to 15 billion. As the human population reaches this carrying capacity, the natural rate of increase will decrease and mortality rates will increase. Humans have been pushing the carrying capacity with advancements in society, however, it is uncertain where the natural rate of increase will actually start to decline.
Explain the 5 stages of the Demographic Transition Model
1. high birth and death rates, low natural rate of increase, pre-industrial with no mechanized agriculture
2. high birth rate, rapidly declining death rate, high natural rate of increase, more advancements of eds and meds
3. birth rate is declining faster than death rate, growing economy, eds and meds improve
4. low birth, low death, no longer enough young people replacing the old, population stabilized because its sustainable
5. low birth and death rates, eventual increase in death rates
Interpret Population Pyramids and other population graphs
1. rapidly expanding: high birth, high death, short life, low growth rate, DTM 1, preindustrial
2. expanding: high birth, falling death, lengthening life, high growth rate, DTM 2-3,
3. stationary: declining birth, low death, long life, high growth, DTM 4
4. contracting: low birth, low death, long life, declining growth, DTM 5
Calculate and interpret Crude Birth Rates, Death rates and Natural Rate of Growth
1. births / population x 1000 = crude birth rate
2. deaths / population x 1000 = crude death rate
3. crude death rate - crude birth rate / 10 = natural rate of increase
4. population / land area = population density
Contrast Malthusian ideas and those of Boserup
1. Malthus said that population increases geometrically and food production increases arithmetically, meaning that food production can only rise to a certain level depending on existing technology and capacity. He said that “check” will limit the population from exceeding carrying capacity. Boserup said that the population will increase with food production and demand will incentivize a change in agrarian technology. As the population increases, agriculture becomes more innovative through the introduction of new farming techniques.
Outline the role of reservoir management in areas with low rainfall, such as the American Southwest
1. The task of reservoirs is to both hold the adequate amount of water for the community it’s serving and have enough space to allow for flooding and runoff to not overflow into towns and cities. Reservoirs used to be prohibited from filling up in the winter, but the original model would preemptively release the water without a major need to and waste what could have been given to people. This method was used before scientists could predict the weather, so they only filled the reservoirs to 60% before releasing the excess. The new method of reservoirs uses satellites, radars and models that show the weather forecast to determine when storms are estimated to hit and keep them filled until the risk arises. The scientists in charge of forecasting the rainfall would be tasked with collecting specific timing and amount of water coming so they can accurately measure how much water must be released. This benefits the western states who rely on water from these reservoirs because they can use the reservoirs' capacity to its fullest ability and store more water for the drier months when they do not need to worry about excess rain or flooding. These technological advancements that allow for scientists to better predict the stormwater increase efficiency of the projects.
Outline human impacts to the Water Cycle
1. Withdrawals - for domestic use, irrigation in agriculture and industry
2. discharges - by adding pollutants to water like chemicals from agriculture, fertilizers, sewage
3. changing the speed at which water can flow and where it flows - in cities by building roads and channeling rivers underground or in concreted areas; canalizing (straightening large sections of rivers in concrete channels to facilitate more rapid flow through sensitive areas; with dams, barrages, and dykes making reservoirs
4. diverting rivers away from important areas to avoif flood damage, towards dams to improve storage
5. Examples
  1. Aral Sea - irrigation has stopped much river flow into the sea causing the sea level to drop 90% in the past 50 years
  2. Ganges basin - deforestation increases flooding as precipitation is not absorbed by vegetation
Outline the role of Ocean Currents and Energy Distribution Worldwide
1. The ocean currents are divided into surface currents and deep water currents. Surface currents are found in the upper 400 m of the ocean and are moved by the wind. This water holds less salt and is less dense than the deep water currents that cause the oceanic conveyor belt.

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