Transcript APES Chapters 2 and 3

Using Science to Address Environmental Issues
Environmental History, Legislation, and Economics
© 2004 Brooks/Cole – Thomson Learning
Ask a question
Do experiments
and collect data
Interpret data
Formulate hypothesis
to explain data
Well-tested and
accepted patterns
In data become
scientific laws
Do more experiments
to test hypothesis
Revise hypothesis
if necessary
Well-tested and
accepted
hypotheses
become
Outline the steps of the scientific method.
Distinguish between deductive and inductive reasoning.
Reasoning is purposeful mental
activity that involves drawing
inferences and conclusions from
observations, facts, or
assumptions (premises).
Formal reasoning problems
can often be solved by
applying an algorithm, a set
of procedures that are
guaranteed to produce a
solution, or by using logical
processes, such as deductive
and inductive reasoning.
Inductive and deductive reasoning are two methods of
logic used to arrive at a conclusion based on information
assumed to be true. Both are used in research to establish
hypotheses.
Deductive reasoning arrives at a specific
conclusion based on generalizations.
Inductive reasoning takes events and makes
generalizations
All men are mortal. Joe is a man. Therefore Joe is mortal. If
the first two statements are true, then the conclusion must
be true.2
Bachelor's are unmarried men. Bill is unmarried. Therefore,
Bill is a bachelor.3
To get a Bachelor's degree at Utah Sate University, a student
must have 120 credits. Sally has more than 130 credits.
Therefore, Sally has a bachelor's degree.
Inductive Reasoning
This cat is black. That cat is black. A third
cat is black. Therefore all cats are black.2
This marble from the bag is black. That
marble from the bag is black. A third
marble from the bag is black. Therefore all
the marbles in the bag black.2
Most universities and colleges in Utah ban
alcohol from campus. That most
universities and colleges in the U.S. ban
alcohol from campus.
Define risk assessment and explain how it
helps determine adverse health effects.
Risk assessment is a step in a risk management process.
Risk assessment is the determination of quantitative or
qualitative value of risk related to a concrete situation and a
recognized threat (also called hazard). Quantitative risk
assessment requires calculations of two components of risk:
R, the magnitude of the potential loss L, and the probability
p, that the loss will occur.
Environmental risk assessment is
a means of evaluating possible
harm to human health or
ecological surroundings as a result
of exposure to certain chemicals. It
has been incorporated as a
decision making tool into nearly
all major federal and state
regulatory programs. Risk based
methods are used in programs
ranging from establishing
wastewater discharge limits and
drinking water goals to
underground storage tank
(closures to Comprehensive
Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA or Superfund) projects.
Describe how a dose-response curve is used in determining
the health effects of environmental pollutants.
.
The dose-response relationship, or exposure-response
relationship, describes the change in effect on an
organism caused by differing levels of exposure (or doses)
to a stressor (usually a chemical) after a certain exposure
time. This may apply to individuals (e.g.: a small amount
has no observable
effect, a large amount
is fatal), or to
populations
(e.g.: how many
people or organisms
are affected at
different levels of
exposure).
A dose-response curve defines the relationship between dose and
response based on the following assumptions: 1) response increases
as dose increases 2) there is a threshold dose- a dose below which
there is no effect. This simple model is useful to develop basic doseresponse relationships however, more complex dose-response
relationships would be predicted for many endocrine toxicants
depending on the target organ and the species exposed.
Discuss the precautionary principle as it relates to
the introduction of new technologies or products.
The precautionary principle is a moral and political principle which states that
if an action or policy might cause severe or irreversible harm to the public or to
the environment, in the absence of a scientific consensus that harm would not
ensue, the burden of proof falls on those who would advocate taking the action.[
Explain how policy makers use cost-benefit analyses to help
formulate and evaluate environmental legislation.
Capitalist Market Economic System
Flow of money
Money flows from
households to businesses
to pay for products
Products flow from
businesses to households
Flow of products
Households
Businesses
Flow of factors of production
Labor and other factors of
production flow from
households to businesses
Money flows from businesses
to households to pay for
labor and other production
Flow of money
Supply
curve
Demand curve
Quantity
demanded
Quantity
supplied
Price (low to high)
Surplus
If the price is too
high, more oil is
available than buyers
are willing to buy
At this market equilibrium
price, the quantity of oil that
suppliers are willing to sell is
the same as the quantity
buyers are willing to buy
If the price is too low
buyers want to buy more
than suppliers are
willing to sell
Quantity
supplied
Shortage
Quantity
demanded
Quantity
Type of
Economic
System
Cause of
Environmental Pollution
and Degradation
Solution
Command
Economic activity
(flow of matter and
energy resources)
Regulate
economic
Too little economic
incentive to care for
the environment
Put a price on harmful
environmental activities
so marketplace can
respond
Market
activity
Capitalist Market Economic System
Flow of money
Money flows from
households to businesses
to pay for products
Products flow from
businesses to households
Flow of products
Households
Businesses
Flow of factors of production
Labor and other factors of
production flow from
households to businesses
Money flows from businesses
to households to pay for
labor and other production
Flow of money
Cost per unit pollutant removed ($)
It is very expensive
to try to get to
zero pollution
As more pollutants are
removed, the cost of removing
each additional unit increases
0
25%
50%
75%
Percentage of pollutants removed
100%
High
This curve is the
sum of the two
bottom curves
Costs
Minimal
effort
Low
100%
Cost to
society
Zero discharge
(toxic waste)
Most
cost-effective
effort
Better
effort
Cleanup
costs
Extra
cost
75%
50%
Pollution remaining
25%
0%
Act Locally Think Globally!!!!
Briefly describe the history of the Lake Washington
pollution problem of the 1950s and how it was resolved.
Lake Washington, a deep, 27-mile-long freshwater lake. During the 1940s
and early 1950s, cities on the east side of Lake Washington completed 11 sewer
systems that emptied into Lake Washington.
The sewage was releasing
large amounts of
phosphates from human
wastes and from
detergents into the lake.
Phosphate acts as
“fertilizer” for bacteria
and algae.
Eutropfication
Relate Garrett Hardin's description of the
tragedy of the commons in medieval
Europe to the global commons today.
…………describes a dilemma in which multiple individuals
acting independently and solely and rationally consulting
their own self-interest will ultimately destroy a shared
limited resource even when it is clear that it is not in
anyone's long term interest for this to happen.
……………hypothetical and simplified situation from medieval
land tenure in Europe, of herders sharing a common parcel of
land (the commons), on which they are each entitled to let their
cows graze. In Hardin's example, it is in each herder's interest
to put the next (and succeeding) cows he acquires onto the
land, even if the carrying capacity of the commons is exceeded
and it is damaged for all
as a result. The herder
receives all of the benefits
from an additional cow,
while the damage to the
commons is shared by the
entire group. If all herders
make this individually
rational economic decision,
the commons will be
destroyed to the detriment
of all.
Define conservation and distinguish between
conservation and preservation.
Conservation is the
sustainable use and
management of
natural resources
including wildlife,
water, air, and earth
deposits. Natural
resources may be
renewable or nonrenewable.
Preservation, in contrast to conservation,attempts
to maintain in their present condition areas of the
Earth that are so far untouched by humans. This is
due to the concern that mankind is encroaching
onto the environment at such a rate that many
untamed landscapes are being given over to
farming, industry, housing, tourism and other
human developments,
and that we our losing
too much of what is
“natural'.
Describe the
environmental
contributions of the
following people: John
James Audubon, Henry
David Thoreau, George
Perkins Marsh, Theodore
Roosevelt, Gifford
Pinchot, John Muir,
Franklin Roosevelt, Aldo
Leopold, Wallace Stegner,
Rachel Carson, and Paul
Ehrlich.
John James
Audubon (17851851) was not
the first person
to attempt to
paint and
describe all the
birds of
America
Thoreau was most well-known for the autobiographical story
of his experiences in the woods on Walden Pond in
Massachusetts where he lived very simply in commune with
nature for nearly two years from 1845 to 1847
……..his most significant
contribution is the way
his writings encapsulate
environmental
stewardship. He
constantly sought
greater passion and
meaning for his life
through his relationship
with nature.
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)
George Perkins Marsh (1801-1882), an American naturalist,
organizer, lawyer, diplomat, and businessman whose
ecological insights brought awareness to humankind's
impacts on the Earth.
In an era of massive industrialization,
Marsh introduced a different fashion
for measuring progress. While
acknowledging the need for human
use of the natural environment,
Marsh used his writing to challenge
Americans to reconsider their misuse
and mismanagement of their national
bounty. In 1864, Marsh wrote:
"Nature, left undisturbed, so fashions
her territory as to give it almost
unchanging permanence of form,
outline, and proportion, except when
shattered by geologic convulsions….
In 1902 he established the first national park at Crater Lake, Oregon
and went on to create four more (Wind Cave National Park,
SD; Sully's Hill, ND; Platt National Park, OK; and Mesa Verde
National Park, CO). During his tenure as president from 1901 to 1909
he created 51 wildlife refugees, passed the Antiquities Act (which led
to the creation of 18 national monuments), and created the National
Park Service.
October 27, 1858 –
January 6, 1919; also
called "T.R.”) was the
26th President of the
United States.
Gifford Pinchot (August 11, 1865 – October 4, 1946)
was the first Chief of the United States Forest Service
(1905–1910) and the Governor of
Pennsylvania (1923–1927, 1931–1935).
He was a Republican and
Progressive. Pinchot is known for
reforming the management and
development of forests in the United
States and for advocating the
conservation of the nation's
reserves by planned use and renewal.
He called it "the art of producing
from the forest whatever it can yield for
the service of man." Pinchot coined
the term conservation ethic as applied
to natural resources.
His direct activism helped to save the Yosemite Valley, Sequoia
National Park and other wilderness areas. The Sierra Club, which he
founded, is now one of the most important conservation
organizations in the United States. His writings and philosophy
strongly influenced the formation of the modern environmental
movement.
John Muir (21 April 1838 –
24 December 1914) was a
Scottish-born American
naturalist, author, and early
advocate of preservation of
U.S. wilderness.
With a long-term interest in the science of forestry and resource
management, FDR was particularly struck by the waste of
American natural resources at a time of great need.
…….policies incorporated the emerging field of ecology with
federal policies to manage watersheds, maintain forests, teach
agriculture, and hold fast the flying soils
of the southern plains.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
(January 30, 1882 – April 12,
1945), the only U.S. President
elected to more than two
terms.
Aldo Leopold (January 11, 1887 – April 21,
1948) was an American ecologist, forester,
and environmentalist. He was influential in
the development of modern environmental
ethics and in the movement for wilderness
preservation. Leopold is
considered to be the father
of wildlife management in
the United States and was a
life-long fisherman and
hunter
Wallace Earle Stegner (February 18, 1909 – April 13,
1993) was an American historian, novelist, short story
writer, and environmentalist.
….biography of John Wesley
Powell, the first man to
explore the Colorado River
through the Grand Canyon
and his subsequent career as
a government scientist and
advocate of water
conservation in the
American West.
In the late 1950s, Carson turned her attention to conservation
and the environmental problems caused by synthetic
pesticides. The result was Silent Spring (1962), which brought
environmental concerns to an unprecedented portion of the
American public.
Rachel Louise Carson
(May 27, 1907 – April 14,
1964) was an American
marine biologist and
nature writer whose
writings are credited
with advancing the
global environmental
movement
Paul Ralph Ehrlich (born 29 May 1932 ) is an American
entomologist specializing in Lepidoptera (butterflies). He
became a household name after publication of his 1968
book “The Population Bomb”, in which he predicted that
"In the 1970's and 1980's . . . hundreds of millions of people
are going to starve to death in spite of any crash programs
embarked upon now
Relate how environmental impact statements provide
such powerful protection of the environment.
An environmental impact statement (EIS) under United States
environmental law, is a document required by the National
Environmental Policy Act for federal government agency actions
"significantly affecting the quality of the human environment."A
tool for decision
making, an EIS
describes the
positive and
negative environmental effects
of proposed
agency action –
and cites
alternative
actions.
Sketch a simple diagram that shows how economics is related
to natural capital. Make sure you include sources and sinks.
In economics, capital or capital goods or real capital refers to
factors of production used to create goods or services that are not
themselves significantly consumed (though they may depreciate)
in the production
process. Capital goods
may be acquired with
money or financial
capital. In finance and
accounting, capital
generally refers to
financial wealth,
especially that
used to start or
maintain a
business.
Economists do not take into account the
impact and value of the loss of natural habitats
(wetlands, forests, savannahs, etc), wildlife,
arable land or non-renewable/finite resources.
Nor do they account for the cost of air, water or
soil pollution, affecting both the environment
and human health.
Describe various approaches to pollution control, including
command and control regulation and incentive-based
regulation (that is, emissions charges and marketable wastedischarge permits).
"Command and control" regulations focus on preventing
environmental problems by
specifying how a company will
manage a pollution-generating
process. This approach
generally relies on detailed
regulations followed up by an
ongoing inspection program.
In the United States, the
Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA) is a prime
example of this kind of
regulation
…..an incentive-based regulation (that is, emissions charges and
marketable waste-discharge permits).
.
Incentive-based instruments use financial means, directly or
indirectly, to motivate polluters to reduce the health and
environmental risks posed by their facilities, processes, or products.
These instruments typically provide monetary and near-monetary
rewards for polluting less, and impose costs of various types for
polluting more.
Finally, incentive-based forms
of regulation can provide a
stimulus for technological
change and innovation in
pollution control.
Give two reasons why the national income accounts are
incomplete estimates of national economic performance.
There are three main ways of calculating these numbers;
the output approach, the income approach and the
expenditure approach. In theory, the three must yield
the same, because total expenditures on goods and
services (GNE) must equal the total income paid to the
producers (GNI), and that must also equal the total
value of the output of goods and services (GNP).
A variety of measures of
national income and output
are used in economics to
estimate total economic activity
in a country or region, including
gross domestic product (GDP),
gross national product (GNP),
and net national income (NNI).
However, in practice minor differences are obtained from the various
methods for several reasons, including changes in inventory levels and
errors in the statistics. This is because goods in inventory have been
produced (therefore included in GNP), but not yet sold (therefore not
yet included in GNE). Similar timing issues can also cause a slight
discrepancy between the value of goods produced (GNP) and the
payments to the factors that produced the goods, particularly if inputs
are purchased on credit, and also because wages are collected often
after a period of production.
National income and output (Billions of dollars)
Period Ending
Gross national product
Net U.S. income receipts from rest of the
world
2003
11,059.3
55.2
U.S. income receipts
329.1
U.S. income payments
273.9
Gross domestic product
11,004.1
Private consumption of fixed capital
1,135.9
Government consumption of fixed
capital
218.1
Statistical discrepancy
25.6
National Income
9,679.7
Distinguish among the following economic terms:
marginal cost of pollution, marginal cost of pollution
abatement, optimum amount of pollution.
Marginal Cost of Pollution Abatement
The marginal cost of abatement of pollution is the cost of operating
(including depreciation and financial charges) a fleet of electric-operated
trucks in replacement of the fleet of diesel trucks minus the cost of
operating the diesel trucks. Thus the marginal cost of abatement of
pollution is the extra cost required to be incurred to reduce
pollution.
If the marginal cost of pollution is GREATER THAN or EQUAL to the
Marginal Cost of abatement of pollution , it is desirable for society to ban
the use of diesel operated trucks the
electric (battery) operated trucks.
If the marginal cost of abatement
is greater than the marginal cost
of pollution, there is no point in trying
for abatement.
Optimum Amount of Pollution.
…..median lethal dose, LD50
…..effective dose equivalent
Toxicology (from the Greek
words toxicos and logos) is
the study of the adverse
effects of chemicals on
living organisms. It is the
study of symptoms,
mechanisms, treatments
and detection of poisoning,
especially the poisoning of
people.
……marginal cost of pollution
Marginal cost is the change in total cost that arises when the
quantity produced changes by one unit. It is the cost of producing
one more unit of a good
In general terms, marginal cost at each level of
production includes any additional costs required to
produce the next unit. If producing additional vehicles
requires, for example,
building a new
factory, the marginal
cost of those extra
vehicles includes the
cost of the new
factory.
Marginal cost of pollution is the additional cost inflicted on the
society by producing one more unit of a good which in the process
of production generates pollution. For example the the cost (to the
people in the neighborhood) of washing clothes more frequently
because of dust and the cost of getting medical treatment for
sickness arising out of dust, carbon and other toxic gases in the air
by a new fleet of diesel operated cement trucks operating in a
neighborhood is the marginal cost of air pollution suffered by the
society. This does not include actual habitat destruction
costs?
Discuss some of the complexities of the "jobs versus
the environment" issue in the Pacific Northwest.
Weighing the Costs and
Benefits
From the environmentalists'
perspective, the benefits of
preserving the northern spotted
owl and its habitat far outweigh
any of the costs. First, saving the
spotted owl will save an entire
ecosystem on which plants, other
animals, and humans depend.
The spotted owl is considered an
indicator species -- a gauge of the
health of the ecosystem that
provides its habitat.
The steady decline of this species signals the demise of other species, such as elk
and flying squirrel, that inhabit these forests, and the disruption of the productive
forces of nature that sustain human life. The ancient forests and the life they
harbor form a complex web of interdependent relationships that play a critical role
in preventing soil erosion, floods, and landslides, providing clean water for
agriculture and cities, enhancing the productivity of salmon fisheries, enriching
the soil with vital nutrients, and ameliorating the greenhouse effect. No amount
of reforestation can replace this highly developed and diverse system which has
taken millennia to evolve.
Describe some of the environmental problems facing formerly
communist governments in Central and Eastern Europe.
…..big
exporters of pollution to neighboring and distant
countries. Because of their deteriorated environment, people in
these republics have poor health and a life expectancy 3 to 6
years below the average for Europe.
After 42 years of
Communist rule, the
country struggled with
economic change to a free
market economy. It
recognized that
environmental recovery
directly relates to
economic improvement.
Years of neglecting environmental regulations, not considered a
high priority, have brought on this predicament. Some of the
problems are common to other Central and Eastern European
countries. They are:
1) severe air pollution including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen
oxides, particulate matter, and acid rain;
2) 2) water pollution including agricultural runoff of soil,
nitrates, pesticides, and industrial contamination by
toxic organics and metals;
3) 3) untreated or poorly treated wastewater discharges of
biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), nutrients, and total
suspended solids (TSS); and
4) 4) solid and hazardous wastes at an unknown number of
sites containing metals, organics, and radioactive
contaminants.
These types of pollution can cause decreased life expectancy,
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in breast milk, excessive chronic
illness among children during atmospheric inversions, and lead in
children's blood. Metals extensively contaminate food crops, and
chlorinated hydrophobic organics pollute pork, beef, and poultry items.
Much of the pollution stems from a policy that subsidized the
price of energy, water, and agricultural chemicals. Industries
failed to invest in pollution control or prevention. They either
did not enforce environmental regulations or, in some cases,
found it was cheaper to pay the fine than to fix the problem.
If you want more of something Subsidize it!!
The root of many of the environmental problems in the
republics is the poor quality of coal available between 1948-1989.
After World War II, the mining and combustion of soft brown
lignite coal increased from 15 to more than 100 million metric
tons per -year