ENV 101

Fundamentals of Environmental Sciences

INTRODUCTION
LECTURE 1

Dr. Kashif Chaudhary 1

 Content List
Introduction
• Basic Definitions
• Brief History
• Movements

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 Basic Definitions

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 Basic Definitions
Environment
Life has existed on earth for 3.8 billion years

Earth well suited for life

• Water over ¾ of planet
• Habitable temperature, moderate sunlight
• Atmosphere provides oxygen and carbon
dioxide
• Soil with essential minerals for plants
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 Basic Definitions
Environment
All the living and nonliving things around us

• Animals, plants, forests, farms, etc.

• Continents, oceans, clouds, ice caps

• Structures, urban centers, living spaces

• Social relationships and institutions

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 Basic Definitions
Science
A systematic process for learning about the world and testing our
understanding of it
Science is essential to sort fact from fiction and develop solutions
to the problems we face.
Scientists do not simply accept conventional wisdom
They judge ideas by the strength of their evidence
Observational (descriptive)
Hypothesis
Controlled experiment
Peer review
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 Basic Definitions
Science

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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science
The study of:
• How the natural world works
• How the environment affects humans and vice versa
• We need to understand our interactions with the
environment to creatively solve environmental problems

The fundamental insight of environmental science:

• We are part of the natural world, but we can also change it
• Our interactions with its other parts matter a great deal
• We depend completely on the environment for survival

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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science

Environmental Science is
interdisciplinary study that uses
information from both physical
sciences and social sciences to learn
how the earth works

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 Basic Definitions
Nature of Environmental Science
Environment  impacts ➔ Humans

Its applied goal: solving environmental problems

Solutions are applications of science

An interdisciplinary field
Natural sciences = disciplines that examine the natural world

Social sciences = disciplines that examine values and human behavior

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 Basic Definitions
Earth System and Environmental Science
System
A set of components that interact and
function as a whole
Global Earth Systems
Climate, atmosphere, land, coastal zones,
ocean
Ecosystem
A natural system consisting of a community
of organisms and its physical environment

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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science

Environmental Science utilizes

information form different streams of
science to deal with various
environmental problems

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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science
Includes concepts and ideas from multiple fields of study.
Decisions have impacts in all these fields of study.
• A community decides to use coal for electricity, as it is the cheapest source available.
(Economics)
• The coal must be mined from under the soil. (Geology)
• The coal must be transported to the population center by road or rail. (Engineering)
• When it is burned at a power plant, air pollution is released. Some of that pollution is
converted to acid in the atmosphere. (Chemistry)
• This falls as acid rain somewhere downwind. (Meteorology)
• The acid stresses plants by affecting their nutrient absorption. (Ecology)
• Laws are passed requiring the plant to install pollution scrubbers. (Politics)
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 Basic Definitions
Natural Resources

Substances and
energy sources
needed for survival

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 Basic Definitions
Natural Resources

Renewable resources can be replenished

within a human lifetime. e.g. Timber, water.

The supply of nonrenewable resources is

replenished extremely slowly, if at all. These
can be used up. e.g. Coal, oil, minerals.

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 Basic Definitions
Natural Resources

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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science
• Coal is a nonrenewable resource. Over time, it will become more difficult and expensive to
extract.

• This graph represents world coal reserves as of 2008. It is estimated we have about 250
years of the resource remaining at current rates of use.
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 Basic Definitions
Population Growth
There are over 7 billion humans
Agricultural revolution
• Crops, livestock
• Stable food supplies
Industrial revolution
• Urbanized society powered by
fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal)
• Sanitation and medicines
• Pesticides and fertilizers

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 Basic Definitions
Population Growth
1 in 4 people live in extreme poverty
cannot meet basic need for food,
• clothing,
• shelter,
• Health

Difficult to meet population needs

without exploiting earth’s resources

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 Basic Definitions
Resource Consumption
Consumption
• Human use of materials and energy
• People in Developed Countries are big consumers
Unsustainable Consumption
• Occurs when the level of demand on a country’s
resources damages or depletes the resource
enough to reduce the quality of life for future
generations
• Caused by overpopulation and/or
overconsumption
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 Basic Definitions
Resource Consumption
The average amount of land, water and ocean required to
provide that person with all the resources they consume

Earth’s Productive Land and Water 11.4 billion hectares

Amount Each Person is Allotted (divide Productive Land 1.8 hectares

& Water by Human Pop.)
Current Global Ecological Footprint of each person 2.7 hectares

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 Basic Definitions
Ecological Footprint
An ecological footprint is one measurement of a
person’s resource use.

Includes the amount of space needed to

support each person in a nation, including
forests, farms, cities, etc.

Developed countries have a much larger

footprint, reflecting a much larger use of
resources.

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 Basic Definitions
Resource Consumption
Affluence increases consumption
Ecological Footprint = the environmental impact of a person or
population
• The area of biologically productive land + water required
to supply raw resources and dispose/recycle waste
• People in rich nations have much larger ecological
footprints
Overshoot = humans have surpassed the Earth’s capacity to
support us
• We are using renewable resources 50% faster than they
are being replenished
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 Basic Definitions
Resource Consumption

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 Basic Definitions
Resource Consumption

If everyone consumed the

amount of resources as
the U.S. does, we would need
four Earths!

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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science
Environmental science can help us avoid past
mistakes.
• How will resource consumption and
population growth impact today’s global
society?

• Civilizations have fallen after degrading the environment

• Civilizations succeed or fail according to how they interact with the environment
• Environmental science can help build a better world
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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Science
Environmental science
• Pursues knowledge about the
environment and our interactions with it
• Scientists try to remain objective and free
from bias
Environmentalism
• A social movement
• Tries to protect the natural world from
human-caused changes

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 Basic Definitions
Major Environmental Problems
Pollution
Pollution is a degradation or an undesired change
in air, water, or soil that affects the health of living
things.

Biodegradable pollution will break down naturally

over time.

Nondegradable pollution does not break down.

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 Basic Definitions
Major Environmental Problems
Loss of Biodiversity
The number of species on the Earth is unknown,
but estimated to be in the tens of millions.

Biodiversity is the number of different species

present in one specific ecosystem.

Extinction, or the complete loss of a species, is a

natural event that can be accelerated by human
actions.

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 Basic Definitions
Major Environmental Problems
Loss of Biodiversity
There are five known major extinction events in Earth’s
history.

The most recent major extinction, about 65 million

years ago, caused 75% of all species to disappear from
the Earth.

Believed to have been caused by a meteor impact.

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 Basic Definitions
Major Environmental Problems
Loss of Biodiversity
Assuming no catastrophic events occur, extinctions normally occur at a
pretty slow rate, called the background rate.
Normal background extinction rate for mammals is 1 every 200
years.

Scientists believe we may be in the midst of the next major extinction

event, due to human influences. The short-tailed hopping
mouse, now extinct in
Australia.
Australia has experienced 27 mammal extinctions since 1788, primarily
due to the influence of European settlers.
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 Basic Definitions
Environmental Ethics
Environmental ethics is the discipline that studies the moral relationship of human
beings to the environment.

What is the value of the environment?

What moral responsibility do we have in dealing with the major environmental

problems that result from our resource consumption?

What should be given the highest priority in our decision making?

Two main categories of ethics have emerged in human culture in modern history.
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 Basic Definitions
Anthropocentrism
literally means “human-centered”.
This set of ethics protects and promotes of human interests or well-being
at the expense of all other factors.
Often places an emphasis on short-term benefits while disregarding
long-term consequences.

Ecocentrists
Ecocentrists believe that nature deserves to exist for its own sake
regardless of degree of usefulness to humans.
The preservation of ecosystems or other living things takes priority over
human needs.
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 Basic Definitions
Ecosystem Services

Services that arise from the normal functioning of natural

systems.
• Purify air and water, cycle nutrients, regulate climate
• Pollinate plants, receive and recycle wastes
• We degrade ecosystem services by depleting resources,
destroying habitat, generating pollution

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 Brief History

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
Environmental issues have surfaced throughout human history.

60,000 years ago-today

• Earliest evidence of fire to clear land in Tanzania

• Deforestation continues to devastate

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
7,000 years ago

• Land, air and water pollution was common

• Rome was notorious for sewage in the streets
500 BC forward Ancient sewer system

• Soil conservation practiced except in China in ancient times

• Lead poisoning by Romans who prepared their wine with lead sweetened sugar (lead
acetate)
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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
Middle Ages and Renaissance (1200-1750)
• Plague devastates Europe but leads to the
beginnings of a public health system.

• Still deforestation, soil erosion, water pollution

• Outhouse opening directly into water supply

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
Era of Enlightenment (1750-1830)

• Thomas Malthus predicts that as populations soar,

resources will become scarce or run out entirely.

• Movement to clean up waterways.

• New technologies create new pollutions

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
Industrial Revolution (1830-1890)
• Living conditions in urban areas horrible

• Smog episodes begin killing residents of large cities like

London.

• Conservation of wilderness areas begins

• Giant Sequoia “Mother of the Forest” tree cut down

started national forest preservation

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
Progressive Era (1890-1920)
• Reform was the common concern. Reform of working
conditions, slum housing, food adulteration, sanitation,
drinking water, polluting industries and more.

• Social activism, women’s clubs, Sierra Club begin

• Young Teddy Roosevelt leads the way in conserving large

tracts of land for “wise use”

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
Roaring 20’s and depression (1920-1940)

• Leaded gasoline becomes standard for

vehicles despite fight against

• Civilian Conservation Corps founded by FDR

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
World War II and the 50’s

• Only the government can secure the long-term public

interest. Private industry can not
•
• Increasing 𝐶𝑂2 buildup

• Deadly smog episodes in London

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
The Sixties 1960-1970
• Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring
• The tragedy of the commons (as unrestricted grazing could turn a
common pasture into a wasteland, unregulated industry could do the
same to the planet. )
The Seventies 1970-1980
A decade of awakening and cleanup begins with the birth of the Environmental Protection
Agency
Air pollution is cut back dramatically through use of catalytic converters on new cars
Water pollution is greatly decreased through a massive sewage treatment expansion
program …
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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
1970-1980’s
• Toxic chemicals become more troubling

• Nuclear power safety is increasingly suspect after the

Three Mile Island accident.

• Energy crisis in oil supply leads to reversals of some

restrictions on refinery and oil pollution

• Greenpeace protecting whales

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
The Eighties 1980-1990
• Disasters -the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster in Ukraine;
and the Challenger shuttle and Exxon Valdez oil spills in the
U.S.
• Ozone depletion from fluorocarbons
The Nineties 1990-2000
Persian Gulf War creates environmental disaster with thousands
of burning oil wells.
Political standoff - A Gallup poll finds 76 percent of Americans
call themselves "environmentalists.“
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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
2000 till Now
• Global climate change becomes a pressing priority

• Coal mine disasters continue to haunt the US and China.

• Toxic Waste dumping in developing nations continues to be

an urgent problem.

• Tsunami and earthquake almost destroys nuclear power plant

in Japan

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 Brief History
History of Environmental Science
The Future

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 Movements/Environmentalism

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 Movements/Environmentalism
Modern Environmentalism

In 1952, the Cuyahoga river in Ohio caught fire due to all

the pollution that had accumulated in it.
Rachel Carson published a book in 1962 entitled Silent
Spring about the effects of pesticides on large predatory
birds, particularly the bald eagle

This began a public awakening to threats of pollution and

toxic chemicals to humans as well as other species.

This movement is called Modern Environmentalism.

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 Movements/Environmentalism
Global Environmentalism

Increased travel and communication enables

people to know about daily events in places
unknown in previous generations.

Global environmentalism explores issues and

problems over the entire world, not just within the
local community. Live streaming footage of the Deepwater
Horizon oil spill in 2010 was watched
worldwide.

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 Movements/Environmentalism
The Tragedy of the Commons
A great deal of progress has been made since the birth of modern environmentalism,
but many debates still rage on.

An ecologist named Garrett Hardin wrote an essay called “The Tragedy of the
Commons”, describing the source of environmental problems as a conflict:

Short-term interests of individuals

versus…
Long-term interests of civilization and the Earth itself

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 Movements/Environmentalism
The Tragedy of the Commons
A small village consists mostly of farmers that raise and
sell sheep at a nearby city.
The only place for the sheep to graze is a commons in
the center of the village.
A commons is an area that belongs to no individual;
it is shared by the entire society.
Likely outcome: Villagers obtain as many sheep as
possible, allow to graze in the commons.
Maximize short-term financial gain.

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 Movements/Environmentalism
The Tragedy of the Commons

What if the commons was instead divided into sections

that was owned by each villager?

Because the land is owned, individuals are much

more likely to plan and use it for the long-term.

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 Movements/Environmentalism
The Tragedy of the Commons
The Tragedy of the Commons describes the likeliness of a commons area being exploited
for short-term economic gain.
Modern examples include the atmosphere and oceans.

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 The Goal: A Sustainable World
Sustainability is when human needs are met so that
the population can survive indefinitely.

“Meeting the needs of the present without

compromising the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs.”
Brundtland Commission, 1987

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 The Spaceship Earth Worldview
The Earth is a closed system, meaning nothing enters or leaves the
Earth in large quantities except heat.

Resources are limited, but the population continues to increase.

Wastes do not go away.

“We travel together, passengers on a little ship,

dependent on its vulnerable reserves of air and
soil.”
Adlai Stevenson
“Earthrise” taken by Apollo 8 crew, 1968.

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 Summary
Introduction
• Basic Definitions
• Brief History
• Movements

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 Questions
➢ Environmental Science and its Nature?
➢ Basic Terminologies
➢ Resources (Renewable & Non-renewable)
➢ Resource Consumption
➢ Population Growth
➢ Ecosystem
➢ Ecological Footprint
➢ Environmental Ethics
➢ Ecosystem Services
➢ Anthropocentrism
➢ Ecocentrists
➢ Historic Timeline
➢ Environmentalism

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 Thanks

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