Lecture 1: Environmental Problems,

Their Causes and Sustainability

PROF. DR WILLIAM A. SHIVOGA (PROFESSOR OF AQUATIC ECOLOGY)

MASINDE MULIRO UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
E-MAIL: [email protected] OR [email protected]
TEL. 0721 264334
 Outline of the Lecture
 What is an environmentally sustainable
society?
 How can environmentally sustainable
societies grow economically?
 How are our ecological footprints affecting
the Earth?
 Define
pollution, and describe what we can
do about it.
 Explain
why we have environmental
problems.
 Outlinefour scientific principles of
sustainability
 What is the
o Environment?
Environmental Science is a Study of Connections in
Nature
o Environment is everything around us.
o It includes all of the living and the nonliving things with
which we interact.
o And it includes a complex web of relationships that
connect us with one another and with the world we live in.
o Environmental science: interdisciplinary science
connecting information and ideas from natural sciences:
ecology, biology, geology, chemistry…Social sciences:
geography, politics, economics, Humanities: ethics,
philosophy
 Dependence on Nature

o Despite our many scientific and technological

advances, we are utterly dependent on the
environment for air, water, food, shelter,
energy, and everything else we need to stay
alive and healthy.
o As a result we are part of the rest of nature.
Environmental Problems, Their Causes

o The relationship between humanity and the

environment is a very delicate balance.
o Since the industrial revolution, the world's
population has increased exponentially, and with
the population growth, the environment has been
profoundly affected.
o Deforestation, pollution and global climate
changes are amongst the adverse effects the
population and technological expansion has
introduced.
 We have to be Sustainable
o “The ability of the earth’s various natural systems and
human cultural systems and economies to survive and
adapt to changing environmental conditions
indefinitely."
o United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment:
o Human actions have put long-term sustainability in doubt
o Life on earth for 3.5 billion years
o Survived many catastrophes
o Humans have caused major changes in the last 500
years
o Humans are smart, but are they wise?
A Vision of a More Sustainable World in 2060

o A transition in human attitudes toward the

environment, and a shift in behavior, can lead to a
much better future for the planet in 2060.
o Sustainability: the capacity of the earth’s natural
systems and human cultural systems to survive,
flourish, and adapt into the very long-term future.
o Sustainable development is development that
meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs.
 What are the Three Principles of
Sustainability?
o
Nature has sustained itself for billions of years by
using (1) solar energy (2) biodiversity and (3)
nutrient /chemical cycling
o Our lives and economies depend on energy from
the sun and on natural resources and natural
services (natural capital) provided by the earth
 1. Solar Energy
o Warms earth
o Provides energy for plants to make
food for other organisms through the
process of photosynthesis.
o Powers winds
o Powers the hydrologic cycle – which
includes flowing water
o Provides energy: wind and moving
water can be turned into electricity
 2. Biodiversity
(Biological Diversity)
o Large variety of species
o Many ecosystems
o Deserts
o Forests
o Lakes
o Oceans
o Grasslands
o Species and systems renew soil and purify air and
water.
3. Chemical Cycling
o Natural processes recycle nutrients
o Recycling is necessary because there is a
fixed supply of these nutrients on earth
o Nutrients cycle from living organisms to
the nonliving environment and back
o Chemical cycles are necessary to sustain
life
 Solar Energy

Chemical Cycling Biodiversity

 What Is an Environmentally Sustainable
Society?
o Our lives and economies depend on energy
from the sun and natural resources and
natural services (natural capital) provided
by the earth.
o Living sustainably means living off earth’s
natural income without depleting or
degrading the natural capital that supplies
it.
 Living More Sustainably
o Sustainability – central theme
o Natural capital
o Natural resources
o Natural services
o Photosynthesis
o Powered by solar energy
o Human activities degrade natural capital
 Natural Services

o Functions of nature
o Purification
of air, water
o Nutrient cycling
o From the environment to organisms and
back to the environment
Organic
matter in
animals

Dead
organic
matter
Organic
matter in
plants
Decomposition

Inorganic
matter in soil

Fig. 1-3, p. 8
 Environmental Sustainability
o Trade-offs (compromises)
o Sound science
o Individuals matter
o Ideas
o Technology
o Political pressure
o Economic pressure
 Sustainable Living from
Natural Capital
o Environmentally sustainable
society
o Financial capital and financial
income.
o Natural capital and natural
income.
o Living sustainably: living on
natural income only.
 How Are Our Ecological Footprints
Affecting the Earth?
o Ecological footprint: the impact of a person
or community on the environment,
expressed as the amount of land required
to sustain their use of natural resources.
o As our ecological footprints grow, we
deplete and degrade more of the earth’s
natural capital.
 Natural Resources (1)
o Perpetual – renewed continuously
o Solar energy
o Renewable – days to centuries
o Water
o Air
o Grasslands
o Forest
o Soils
o Fish populations
 Natural Resources (2)

o Sustainable yield
o Highest use while maintaining supply
o Environmental degradation
o Use exceeds natural replacement rate
 Shrinking
Climate forests
change
Decreased
wildlife
Air pollution habitats

Species
extinction
Soil erosion

Water
pollution

Aquifer Declining ocean

depletion fisheries
 Tragedy of the Commons
o Environmental degradation of openly shared
renewable resources
o Users focus on their own selfish, short-term
gain
o Works when we only have a small number of
users – with the current human population this
is impossible.
o Major reason why humans now live
unsustainably
 Ecological Footprint (1)
o Ecological footprint
o The amount of biologically productive land and water
needed to indefinitely supply the people in a given area
with renewable resources
o Also includes the land and water necessary to absorb
and recycle wastes and pollution
o Per capita ecological footprint
o Average ecological footprint of an individual in a
given area
 Ecological Footprint (2)
o Ecological deficit
o Total ecological footprint greater than
biological capacity for resource renewal and
absorption of wastes and pollution
o 2008 study: at least 30% global excess
o 88% for high-income countries
o Humans currently need 1.3 earths
 Nonrenewable Resources
o Nonrenewable – fixed quantities
o Energy (fossil fuels)
o Metallic minerals
o Nonmetallic minerals
o Recycling
o Reuse
 Developed Countries Have Higher Impacts

o Developed countries
o United States, Japan, New Zealand,
most of Europe, some others
o 19% world population
o Use 88% of world’s resources
o Create 75% of world’s pollution
IPAT Environmental Impact Model

Determines impact of a country or regions

oI = P x A x T
oI = Environmental impact
oP = Population size
oA = Affluence of population
oT = Technology influence
Developing Countries

Consumption Technological impact Environmental

Population (P) per person per unit of impact of population
(affluence, A) consumption (T) (I)

Developed Countries
 Developing Countries
o 81% world population
o Middle income: Brazil, China, India
o Least developed: Haiti, Nigeria, Nicaragua
o Use far fewer resources per capita than
developed countries
o Smaller per capita ecological footprint
 What Is Pollution and What Can
We Do about It?

o Preventing pollution is more effective and

less costly than cleaning up pollution.
 Pollution

o What is pollution?
o Point sources
o Nonpoint sources
o Unwanted effects of pollution
 Solutions to Pollution
o Pollution prevention
o Prevent pollutants from entering the environment
o Pollution cleanup
o After pollutants released into environment
o Temporary fix only
o Often results in different pollution: burning garbage
o Dispersed pollutants usually too costly to clean up
effectively
Why Do We Have Environmental
Problems?
o Major causes of environmental problems are
population growth, wasteful and
unsustainable resource use, and exclusion of
harmful environmental costs from the
market prices of goods and services.
 Causes of Environmental
Problems
o Exponential population growth
o Wasteful and unsustainable resource use
o Poverty
o Failure to include environmental costs of
goods and services in market prices
 Causes of Environmental Problems

Population Unsustainable Poverty Excluding

growth resource use environmental
costs from
market prices
 Causes of Environmental Problems

Population Unsustainable Poverty Excluding

growth resource use environmental
costs from
market prices
 13
12
11
10
9
?
8
7
6
5
4
3
Industrial revolution
2
Black Death—the Plague
1
0
2-5 million 8000 6000 4000 2000 2000 2100
years B.C. A.D.
Hunting Agricultural revolution Industrial
and gathering revolution
 Lack of Number of people
access to (% of world's population)

Adequate 2.5 billion (37%)

sanitation facilities

Enough fuel for

2 billion (29%)
heating and cooking

Electricity 2 billion (29%)

Clean drinking
1.1 billion (16%)
water

Adequate
health care 1 billion (15%)

Adequate
1 billion (15%)
housing

Enough food
0.93 billion (14%)
for good health
 Environmental Effects of
Affluence
Harmful effects
o High per-capita consumption and waste of resources – large
ecological footprints
o Advertising – more makes you happy
o Affluenza - is a social condition that arises from the desire to
be more wealthy or successful.
Beneficial effects
o Concern for environmental quality
o Provide money for environmental causes
o Reduced population growth
 Evaluating Full Cost of
Resources Use
o Prices do not include the value of natural capital
and harmful environmental costs
o Examples
o Clear-cutting + habitat loss
o Commercial fishing + depletion of fish stocks
o Tax breaks
o Subsidies
Different Environmental Views

o Environmental worldview
o Environmental ethics
o Planetary management worldview
o Stewardship worldview
o Environmental wisdom worldview
 How Can we Live More
Sustainably?
Three Big Ideas:
oWe can live more sustainably by:
o(1) Relying more on solar energy;
o(2) Preserving biodiversity; and
o(3) Not disrupting the earth’s natural
chemical recycling processes.
 Nature’s Survival Strategies
Follow Three Principles of
Sustainability
o Reliance on solar energy : The sun provides
warmth and fuels photosynthesis
o Biodiversity: Astonishing variety and adaptability
of natural systems and species.
o Chemical cycling: Circulation of chemicals from
the environment to organisms and then back to the
environment. Also called nutrient cycling
Thank you