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Environmental Science Ecosystems Capital: Use and Restoration Services of Natural Ecosystems • • • • • • • • Modification of climate Maintenance of hydrological cycle Erosion control and soil building Maintenance of oxygen, phosphorus and nitrogen cycles Waste treatment Pest management Primary production & maintenance of carbon cycle Cultural benefits: spiritual, recreational, aesthetic See Fig 1-13, chapter 3 2 approaches to ecosystem management Conservation Preservation Manage or regulate use within capacity of renewal Ensure continuity regardless of potential utility Can be sustainable in long-term Can preclude human use in some cases, ex old growth forests Preservation: John Muir http://teachpol.tcnj.edu/amer_pol_hist/thum bnail268.html John Muir 1838 – 1914 Studied Yosemite area and Sierras Discovered sign illegally claiming private ownership in Kings Canyon, and cutting of ancient giant sequoia south of present day Sequoia National Park Greatest threat to the Yosemite area and the Sierras was livestock, sheep Introduced bill to Congress to make Yosemite area into a national park, modeled after Yellowstone Helped form organization called the Sierra Club in 1892 Befriended Gifford Pinchot, but that friendship was ended when Pinchot stated that forests should be managed for the betterment of mankind, President Theodore Roosevelt accompanied Muir on a visit to the Yosemite Conservation: Gifford Pinchot 1865 1946 1898, head of the Division of Forestry, later renamed the U.S. Forest Service, Advocated scientific conservation, planned use and renewal of the nation's forest reserves; exploited commercial potential by private use in exchange for modest fees "the art of producing from the forest whatever it can yield for the service of man." Friendship of President Theodore Roosevelt Preservationists opposed commercialization of the land In 1907, Congress forbade the President to create more forest reserves in Western states Taft elected in 1908, fired Pinchot for speaking out against policies of Secretary of the Interior Richard A. Ballinger Helped lead to split of the Republican Party Current “Wise Use Movement” Loose affiliation of free-market environmentalists, begun in 1988 Multiple Use Strategy that produced a 25-point Wise Use Agenda, examples: • "Immediate wise development of the petroleum resources of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge." • "Passage of the Global Warming Prevention Act to convert in a systematic manner all decaying and oxygen using forest growth on the National Forests into young stands of oxygen producing, carbon dioxide -absorbing trees to help ameliorate the rate of global warming." (Founder, Ron Arnold quoted saying "There isn't any such thing" as the Greenhouse effect). Goals are to increase responsible commercial use of public lands for uses such as timber, mining, and oil, to open recreational wilderness areas for easier access by the general public, and to implement free-market solutions to environmental problems. Several environmental advisors to president George W. Bush have been associated with the wise use movement, including Interior Secretary Gale Norton. http://www.earthfirstjournal.org/efj/primer/different.html At the other end: Earth First! Not enough to preserve some remaining wilderness. We need to preserve it all, and it is time to recreate vast areas of wilderness in all the planet's ecosystems: identify key areas, close roads, remove developments, and reintroduce extirpated wildlife. Many environmental groups are members of the American political establishment and adopt the anthropocentric (human-centered) world view of industrial civilization Developing a new biocentric paradigm based on the intrinsic value of all natural things: Deep Ecology. Earth First! believes in wilderness for its own sake Use confrontation, guerrilla theater, direct action and civil disobedience to fight for wild places and life processes, but do not condone or condemn monkeywrenching or ecotage. "We are sick to death of environmentalism and so we will destroy it. We will not allow our right to own property and use nature's resources for the benefit of mankind to be stripped from us by a bunch of eco-facists.“ – Ron Arnold (a founder of wise use movement), Boston Globe, January 13, 1992. "New, militant antienvironmentalists fight to return nature to a back seat." Would Pinchot support Wise Use? Would Muir support Earth First!? What should be the balance between private use and preservation? Who should decide? Impacts of natural resource harvest on ecosystems Tragedy of the Commons • Begins with unregulated access to a resource owned by no one. – Grasslands (mining, grazing) – Open H20 (mining, fishing, bottling) • Harvest based on largest amount over the shortest period of time. • Can deplete resource. Preventing a Tragedy of the Commons • Private ownership • Regulated access: mutual coercion mutually agreed upon (G. Hardin) – Sustained benefits – Fairness in access rights – Common consent of the regulated Ecosystem restoration Ex. Florida Everglades http://fssr.home.comcast.net/news.htm The book The movie: Adaptation Biomes Under Pressure • • • • Forests and woodlands Tropical forests Oceans Coral reefs and mangroves World Wood Consumption United Nations, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) 2001 report on forest resources http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/003/y0 900e/y0900e05.htm United Nations, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) 2001 report on forest resources major findings 1) More forest area than in 1995, partly because industrialized nations switched definition of forest from 20% canopy coverage to 10% coverage 2) Deforestation still occurring, mostly in developing countries, often for conversion to pasture land 3) Drought years, ex. 1998 caused large burning of forests 4) ~10 of forests are protected world wide 5) Role of forests in climate change acknowledged: 1) Release CO2 when burned 2) Indicators of climate change 3) Renewable energy 4) Healthy forests store CO2 Types of forest harvest Clear cutting: removing all trees, not a good idea Selective cutting: harvest only mature trees Shelter-wood cutting: cut mature trees only over long time period, some big trees always present to provide shade and seeds Require more skill Do not require replanting More functional ecosystem Sustainable Forest Management -Sustainable wood yield or -Maintain other ecosystem functions: Meet present needs without compromising needs of future generations Tropical forests -Wood harvest -Clearing for agricultural land (plantations (tree farms) or other crops) -Usually involves cutting and burning (1997 Indonesian fires) Factors effecting loss of Tropical Rainforests • Huge national debts • Fast food chains and cheap hamburger Alternatives to clearing and plantations: Shade Grown Coffee Coffee is a shade-loving shrub; full-sun hybrids ~25 years ago to increase yield Maintains biodiversity, especially bird habitat Differs from organic and fair trade- but sometimes all together More expensive (lower yield, small market) Sometimes carried by Starbucks Other conservation strategies • Ecotourism • Management by indigenous people • Plantations; may be better than “crop” agriculture • Sustainable logging Eco-valentines Plantations Arriba gourmet chocolate. Grown in the shade of the Ecuadorian rainforest, and in harmony with the ocelots, parrots and howler monkeys that call the rainforest home, this first-ever Rainforest Alliance Certified chocolate does as much good for the environment and cocoa-producing communities as it does for the people who savor its rich flavor. http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/valentine/index.html How can non-tropical residents influence the loss of tropical forests? Is it any of our business? Are you willing to “vote with your wallet”? Federal Lands (40%) In The U.S. Wilderness Act of 1964 • Provides for permanent protection of undeveloped and unexploited areas so that natural ecological processes can operate freely. • 5% of land area in U.S. • Preservation not conservation National Parks and Wildlife Refuges Protection & public access Can be in conflict: off road vehicles car traffic National Forests: multiple use: grazing, logging mining, and recreation • Only 5% of the original U.S. Forests are left • Most U.S. Forests are second growth Arctic National Wildlife Refuge controversy Pros -Need domestic oil -National security Cons -Amount not significant compared to consumption (~180 day supply) -No oil for 10 years -Sensitive coastal habitat & spp.