Environmental Biology Notes Chapter 1 Part 1

Here is my first attempt at a real post! These are the notes for part 1 of chapter 1, part 2 coming soon! Feel free to ask questions, make comments/suggestions/corrections. :)

Environmental Biology 1110: Chapter 1 Summary Outline – Understanding Our Environment
Case Study: Renewable Energy in China
The city of Rizhao recently in 2008 became the world’s 5th C-neutral city (along w/ Melbourne, Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, Tocca, Italy, Samso Island, Denmark), i.e., it uses no more energy than it produces. 99% of all households in the city of 3M get hot water and space heating from renewable sources (1M solar panels and hundreds of wind turbines).

That said, 20 of the world’s most polluted and smoggiest cities are in China; dirty coal is still burned for 70% of their electrical needs. 1M children are born each year afflicted by environmentally-caused birth defects. However, they have now grown into the world’s leader in renewable solar/wind energy and produce more solar panels and wind turbines than any other country. Over 1M people work in the clean-energy sector.

State of the Environment:
Population – 7.48B and growing by > 80+M/year (by 2025, > 8B; by 2050, 9 to 10B)

Climate Change – atmospheric CO2 concentration increased > 35% since early 1800s to > 409 mg/L or ppm (measured by Scripps Oceanographic Institute/NOAA at Mauna Loa Observatory, Kona, HI – www.co2.earth ) for April, 2017. Mean global temps will rise 3 to 6 deg F by 2100. 2016 was hottest year in recorded history for third year in succession. First time that has happened since global climate record-keeping began in 1880. Wide-ranging impacts??

Hunger – approx. 1B people are undernourished world-wide. Reasons??

Water Quality - > 1B people lack reliable clean water; water is the “oil” of the 21st century and is already fueling internal and international conflict. 40% of the world lives in regions (many in US!!) where demand outstrips supply and that number will only increase with time. Many of the social roots of terrorism (esp. in arid Middle East and SE Asia) and rebel conflict lie in water and resultant food shortages/availability.

Energy – fossil fuels still provide > 80% of world-wide energy in industrialized countries. Must convert as much of that percentage as possible to cleaner, renewable forms.

Loss of Biodiversity – humans are driving the 6th greatest extinction event in earth’s geological history and > 10K species are currently endangered or threatened and 200 to 2K go extinct every year.

Air Pollution – in developing nations (India, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, etc) air quality is getting worse with time; air currents move pollutants long distances all over the planet. No emission standards for vehicles, power plants, industries. Clean technologies, laws and stable pop growth has made air cleaner in much of Europe, N. America.

Public Health – as more poor people are exposed to improved sanitation, water quality and medical resources, conditions are better in some areas, although many lag behind (“mixed bag”).

Public Education – education and literacy are expanding world-wide in most developing countries, which are learning from mistake of the past by developed countries.

Sustainable Resources and Conservation Efforts – renewed efforts to conserve fisheries, tropical rain forests are improving resource availability in some areas (just not enough!!). Nature preserves and national parks set aside terrestrial and aquatic areas and protect them from development, poaching and unsustainable harvesting.

Renewable Energy – the USD, EU and China are moving ahead with increased use of renewable forms of energy and prices are lower than ever. Lack of comprehensive national energy policies hampers efforts. C-markets and cap-and-trade policies for reducing CO2 emissions (by trading discharge permits) are more and more common in EU.

International Agreements – 1987 Montreal Protocol is one success story, but others are weak, unenforceable.

Our environment comprises the circumstances or conditions that surround an organism or group of organisms; everything that is living and non-living. Includes the natural world as well as the “built” or “engineered” world.

Environmental Science: interdisciplinary study
of how natural world operates
of how the environment affects humans
of how humans affect the environment

We face more and more daunting challenges relating to the environment as time passes.