Transcript Policy and politics - AP Environmental Science

Intro to Environmental
Science
TYPES AND STRUCTURE OF
MATTER
• Elements and Compounds
– Matter exists in chemical forms as elements
and compounds.
• Elements (represented on the periodic table) are
the distinctive building blocks of matter.
• Compounds: two or more different elements held
together in fixed proportions by chemical bonds.
• The pH (potential of Hydrogen) is the
concentration of hydrogen ions in one liter of
solution.
Figure 2-5
pH Scale
• Logarithmic
– Each “step” on the scale is 10xs stronger
• Acidic = 0 – 7 (0 is strongest)
• Alkaline (basic) = 7 – 14 (14 is strongest)
Organic Compounds: Carbon
Rules
• Organic compounds contain carbon atoms
combined with one another and with
various other atoms such as H+, N+, or Cl-.
• Contain at least two carbon atoms
combined with each other and with atoms.
– Methane (CH4) is the only exception.
– All other compounds are inorganic.
Organic Compounds: Carbon
Rules
• Hydrocarbons: compounds of carbon and
hydrogen atoms (e.g. methane (CH4)).
• Chlorinated hydrocarbons: compounds
of carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine atoms
(e.g. DDT (C14H9Cll5)).
• Simple carbohydrates: certain types of
compounds of carbon, hydrogen, and
oxygen (e.g. glucose (C6H12O6)).
ENERGY LAWS: TWO RULES WE
CANNOT BREAK
• The first law of thermodynamics: we cannot create
or destroy energy.
– We can change energy from one form to another.
• The second law of thermodynamics: energy quality
always decreases.
– When energy changes from one form to another,
it is always degraded to a more dispersed form.
Never over 100% efficiency.
– Energy efficiency is a measure of how much
useful work is accomplished before it changes to
its next form.
Chemical
energy
(photosynthesis)
Solar
energy
Waste
Heat
Mechanical
energy
(moving,
thinking,
living)
Chemical
energy
(food)
Waste
Heat
Waste
Heat
Waste
Heat
Fig. 2-14, p. 45
How to determine if it’s a good
source…
• Who wrote it? (Authority)
• Who is responsible for the content of the
source? Can you determine the name of the
individual, the organization, or entity which
produced it? Is there an address or e-mail given
to provide communication or feedback? If NOT,
then find a better source. You can’t trust a
source when the authorship is hidden.
How to determine if it’s a good
source…
• Why was it written? (Objectivity)
• Purpose of a source is very important to
understand its bias. Every creator has a
purpose or viewpoint behind what he/she
makes. Look at the title, the address for clues,
and read the material carefully for language
which gives opinion, viewpoint, or perspective.
How to determine if it’s a good
source…
• When was it written? (Currency)
• Timeliness is often an important factor in the
usefulness of information. Look for copyright
dates, updates, and sources used. You need to
look for CURRENT (within the last 3 or 4 years)
information. For some topics you will need
information even more current than that.
How to determine if it’s a good
source…
• Where has the information been
published previously? (Accuracy)
• The more reliable a source the more likely it is
that the information contained in it was checked
and verified. If the information was published
without such checks, you cannot tell if the
information is true or not. (That’s how rumors get
started!)
How to determine if it’s a good
source…
• Internet tips:
– .edu and .gov are likely good sources
– .org is often non-profit and can be either good
or poor… be selective as they may have
significant bias.
– .com means commercial and means there is
likely a substantial bias
Experimental Design
• Hypothesis
– Has to be testable (no opinions)
– Should be a statement
• If / then statements
• Ex) If pesticide x is used on a field, crop yields will
increase.
Variables
• Independent
– Variable controlled by
the experimenter
– On a graph, the
independent variable
goes on the x-axis
• Dependent
– Variable that changes
due to what the
experimenter does
– On a graph, the
dependent variable
goes on the y-axis
Constants
• Keeping extra factors equal.
• The constants are not allowed to change
during the experiment.
Control
• A standard by which the dependent
variable is often compared.
• Example: placebos
Repeated Trials
• The greater the number of trials or the
greater the sample size, the more valid the
results will be.
Time Scale
• Make sure the time to perform the lab
works with subject being tested
• Ex) When testing effects on trees, a lab
should run for several years.
Predicting Values
• Extrapolate
– Predicting a point
beyond known data
based on the trend of
the known data
• Interpolate
– Predicting a value
between two known
data points based on
the trend of the known
data.
What is Environmental Science?
• Our environment is the
sum total of our
surroundings and how we
interact.
– Living and nonliving
• How our world works
• How the environment
affects us and how we
affect it, and how we can
live more sustainably
without without degrading
our life support system.
Environmentalism vs.
Environmental Science
• Environmentalism
– Social movement
– Includes lobbying,
activism, and
education
• Environmental
Science
– Includes chemistry,
biology, earth science
– Also includes
economics, literature,
and ethics
• Every action we take
affects our
environment. From
growing food to
building homes to
manufacturing
products to fueling
vehicles, we meet our
needs by altering our
surroundings.
NATURAL RESOURCES – Materials or
substances such as minerals, forests,
water, and fertile land that occur in nature
and can be used for economic gain.
NATURAL SERVICES – Humankind benefits
from a multitude of resources and
processes that are supplied by natural
ecosystems.
RESOURCES
• Perpetual: On a human time scale
are continuous.
• Renewable: On a human time
scale can be replenished rapidly
(e.g. hours to several decades).
• Nonrenewable: On a human time
scale are in fixed supply.
Themes seen throughout ES.
• Stewardship / Ethics – the ethical and moral
framework that should inform our public and
private actions.
– Ethics that guide actions taken to benefit the natural
world and other people. This is a branch of
philosophy that involves the study of good and bad,
right and wrong
– Culture and worldview influence our perception of the
environment
• People trying to stop the destruction of the environment.
Recycling, buying a hybrid car, supporting organizations,
voting for candidates that carry the same ideals.
ENVIRONMENTAL
WORLDVIEWS AND VALUES
• Your environmental worldview
encompasses:
– How you think the world works.
– What you believe your environmental role in
the world should be.
– What you believe is right and wrong
environmental behavior.
HUMAN-CENTERED AND LIFECENTERED ENVIRONMENTAL
WORLDVIEWS
• The major difference among
environmental worldviews is the emphasis
they put on the role of humans dealing
with environmental problems.
World Views - atomistic
• Anthropocentric = role of humans to be
masters of nature. Value based on
usefulness to humans (includes freemarket systems as well as stewardship)
• Biocentric = all life has value. Non-living
has utilitarian value.
World Views - Holistic
• Ecocentric = everything has value just
because it exists.
– Environmental wisdom – adapt our needs to
the environment to provide a sustainable
future
– Deep ecology – humans have no right to
interfere with environmental richness and
diversity
Gaia Hypothesis
• Conjectures that our planet functions as a
single organism that maintains conditions
(not unlike homeostasis in humans)
necessary for its survival.
Precautionary Principle
• If an action or policy has a suspected risk
of causing harm to the public or to
the environment, in the absence
of scientific consensus that the action or
policy is harmful, the burden of proof that it
is not harmful falls on those taking the
action.
Precautionary
Principle
• Rather than assuming
something is safe until
proven otherwise, the
precautionary principle
argues the opposite –
that something should be
considered potentially
harmful unless shown to
be safe.
Gandhi’s Philosophies
• Voluntary simplicity- do and enjoy
things more with less.
• Principle of “Enoughness”- the earth
provides enough, and we should use
the minimal amounts of everything.
• This is not the same as forced simplicity that
plagues those that cannot afford to have
possessions.
• Law of progressive simplification- we must
transfer energy from material to nonmaterial.
Full-cost pricing
• Method of accounting for environmental,
social, and economic costs and benefits of
goods
• Sometimes described as including direct
and indirect costs.
Full Cost Pricing
What are “Commons”?
• Where a resources is owned by many
people in common or by no one (open
access).
– Common pool resources
• Federal Grassland
• Open ocean fisheries
• Groundwater drawn from
private estates
• Forests harvested for fuel
in developing countries
• Atmosphere
Easter Island
• Also called Rapa Nui
• Early human settlers overtaxed the land
past the point of recovery
Ecological
Footprint
• A measure of how much
each person consumes
• Includes total amount of
land required to support
a person’s lifestyle
• If all people in the world lived as the
average US citizen, we would need five
Earths to support its resource use.
Economics
– By definition, an environmental problem is an
economic problem than can intensify as population
and per capita resources consumption increases.
– Most conventional economist adhere to a world view
that largely ignores the environment and this world
view continues to drive most policy decisions.
– Economic growth measures a society’s status.
• GDP – Gross domestic product – the annual market value of
all goods and services produced by all firms operating within
a country.
Poverty
• Poverty has been identified as one of the
five major causes of environmental
problems.
– 1.1 billion people struggle to survive on an
income of less than $1 a day.
– Poorest of the rural poor depend on the
environment for 80% of their basic needs.
– They live unsustainably
World Trade Organization
• Formed under Marrakech
Agreement in 1995
• Sustainable development
and protection and
preservation of the
environment are
fundamental goals of the
WTO, but there is no
specific agreement
dealing with the
environment
• Not a smooth process.
– Free trade issues
– Human Rights
– Environmental Resource
concerns
– Negotiation break downs
– Mass Protests
Eco-Labeling: Informing
Consumers So They can Vote
with Their Wallets
• Certifying and labeling environmentally
beneficial goods and resources extracted by
more sustainable methods can help consumers
decide what goods and services to buy.
“BUYING GREEN”
US eco-labeling
Green Taxes
• taxes intended to promote ecologically
sustainable activities via economic
incentives.
• attempts to make the private parties
involved feel the social burden of their
actions
Cost vs. Benefit
• Cost Benefit analysis is an economic
measure applied to environmental policy.
• A tool of risk management
– Needs vs. cost to environment
– Needs vs. cost to people
– Needs vs. cost to Biodiversity
– Short term issue vs. long term issue
Risk
Themes seen throughout ES.
• Policy and politics – the
human decisions that
determine what happens in
the natural world, and the
political process that leads
to those decisions.
–
–
–
–
Democrats vs Republicans
Endangered Species Act
Kyoto Protocol
Local social problems
Policy and politics
• Policy is what
a government does
to support its ideas.
(laws..tariffs..wars..)
• Politics decides which
ideas the government
believes.
(free trade,
isolationism)
The Birth of the Environmental Era
• 1970 marks the dawn of the modern day era
of environmental policy.
• 1st Earth day in Washington DC
• NEPA – National Environmental Policy Act
– Required an environmental impact
statement to prepare for any major
federal action that may effect env. quality.
– They do not prohibit environmentally
harmful gov. projects but it requires
them to take into account consequences
in their decisions.
The Birth of the Environmental Era
• EPA – Environmental
Protection Agency
– In charge of conducting
and evaluating research,
monitoring environmental
quality, setting and
enforcing standard for
pollution levels, assisting
states in meeting
standards and goals, and
educating the public.
What can the government do?
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Tax it
Subsidize it
Provide a tax break
Regulate it
Tradable
environmental permits
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Ban it
Phase it out
Fines
Inspections
Prohibit trade
Cap and trade
The government can NOT set prices!
Environmental group and how they
affect policy
• Env groups monitor env activities, work to
pass and strengthen laws, and work with
corporations to find solutions.
• There are more than 100,000 Nonprofit
groups often called Non-governmental
Organizations(NGOs).
– WWF, Sierra Club, National Wildlife Fund,
Audubon Society, Greenpeace, Nature
Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited
Environmental group and how they
affect policy
• Some industries and
groups are working
together to find solutions to
env. issues.
– Rainforest Alliance and
Chiquita Banana
– Environmental Defense
Fund and McDonalds
Themes seen throughout ES.
• Sustainability – a system that can be continued
indefinitely, without depleting any of the material
or energy resources required to keep it running.
– Ex. Trees, fish, and other biological species
reproduce at rates faster than required to keep their
populations stable. Thus it is possible to harvest a
certain percentage every year without reducing the
population below a certain baseline.
– It becomes unsustainable when we harvest at a rate
that exceeds the capacity for their present population
to reproduce and grow.
Living More Lightly on the Earth:
The Sustainable Dozen
• Agriculture
1) Reduce you meat consumption.
2) Buy locally grown and
produced food.
3) Buy more organic food and
grow your own.
4) Don’t use pesticides.
Living More Lightly on the Earth:
The Sustainable Dozen
• Transportation
5) Drive an energy-efficient
vehicle.
6) Walk, bike, carpool, or take
mass transit.
7) Work at home or live near work.
8) Reduce your car use by 10%
Living More Lightly on the Earth:
The Sustainable Dozen
• Home Energy Use
9) Caulk leaks, add insulation,
use energy efficient
appliances.
10)Try to use solar, wind,
flowing water, biomass for
home energy.
Living More Lightly on the Earth:
The Sustainable Dozen
• Water
11)Use water-saving showers and
toilets, use drip irrigation, landscape
yard with natural plants that do not
require excess water.
• Resource Consumption
12)Reduce your consumption and waste
of stuff by at least 10%: Refuse and
Reuse.
Example City
• Curitiba is known internationally for its
eco-friendly planning concerning
transportation, social services and
environmental practices.
Sustainable World:
Curitiba, Brazil - public transportation
• Watch the video below:
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvkSiTF
XG4g
Bus System
• Buses used instead of rails which lowers
infrastructure costs since both cars and
mass transit can use roadways
• Can have unlimited destinations in the city
• Reduces traffic congestion
Usage
• 70% of commuters use BRT (Bus Rapid
Transit) to commute to/from work
– Producing congestion-free streets
– Reduced air pollution
Transportation and City Planning
• Growth of the city was planned so that growth was
not just outward from the center but along
designated corridors allowing access for all those
living in the city.
• Mass transit would replace
the car as the primary means
of transport within the city,
and the development along
the corridors would produce
a high volume of transit
ridership.
Bus Hierarchy
• Minibuses – routed through
residential areas
• Conventional buses –
circumferential routes
around the central city
• Bus Rapid Transit –
operating on the five main
arteries leading into the
center of the city like
spokes on a wheel hub.
Bus Stops
• Cylindrical, clear-walled tube stations with
turnstiles, steps, and wheelchair lifts.
• Passengers pay their fares as they enter
the stations, and wait for buses on raised
platforms which eliminate the need for
steps on buses.
• Passengers pay a single fare equivalent to about 40
cents (U.S.) for travel throughout the system with
unlimited transfers between buses
• Ten private bus companies are paid by distance traveled
rather than passenger volume to allow a balanced
distribution of bus routes and eliminate clogging of main
roads.
• The bus companies earn an operating profit from the
city. After ten years, the city takes control of the buses
and uses them for transportation to parks or as mobile
schools.
Discouraging Car Use
• Much of the city center is partially closed
to vehicular traffic.
• Pedestrian streets were created.
• Limited public parking in downtown areas
• Transportation subsidies for public
transportation provided by employers
Statistics
• Maintains 2,100 buses
• Transport 2.04 million passengers each
workday along 385 different lines that
cover the city and surrounding regions.
• There are 5,000 bus stops, 351 tubestations and 29 integrating terminals.
Local Sustainable Options
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Recycling
Live Green in Plano courses
Bicycling / using mass transit
Community gardening / composting
From Farm to Fork – Slow Foods – Dallas