Principles of Environmental Science by W. Cunningham
Chapter 1: Understanding our Environment:
Guiding Questions: Important env. problems, progress in env. quality, sustainability and its aims
Case Study: Saving the Reefs of Apo Island
- Dynamite and Cyanide fishing in the Philippines Destruction of fish ecosystem
- Heavy fishing trawls damaged the sea substrate (less food for fish)
- Reefs were gradually destroyed
o By establishing a no-fish zone in a still high quality coral reef, fish populations recovered (also in
not protected parts)
o Fishing is only allowed with low impact methods
- Protecting just a small amount of critical reproductive area can ensure stability of populations and
fisheries
- Through improved marine levels overall wealth has been spread (tourism, scuba diving, building schools
from earned money), Education expands economic opportunities.
- Crisis and opportunity go hand in hand
Problems:
- Food shortage in certain regions
- Clean and safe drinking water not available to more than 1,2 bn people
- Fossil fuels (energy) greatly impact the environment by pollution and provide 80% of energy in
industrialized countries
- Air Quality has worsened dramatically: Asian brown cloud over India and China
o Pollutants such as ash, acids, dust, photochemical smog can travel from their place of origin across
the globe
- Loss of Biodiversity
- Marine resources are endangered
Signs of progress:
- Population is stabilizing in industrialized countries
- Life-threatening diseases have been reduced sharply
- Renewable Energy has made great progress
- Information and Education help raise awareness of environmental problems
- Conservation of forests and nature preserves
- Protection of Marine Resources has been improving by being monitored
Example of different strategies:
Tragedy of the Commons,” published in 1968 in the journal Science by ecologist Garret Hardin. In this classic framing
of the problem, Hardin argues that population growth leads inevitably to overuse and then destruction of common
resources—such as shared pastures, unregulated fisheries, fresh water, land, and clean air. This classic essay has
challenged many to explore alternative ideas about resource management. In Apo Island’s degraded fishery, the
answer was agreed-upon regulation and monitoring. Another strategy is to assign prices to ecological services, to
force businesses and economies to account for damages to life-supporting systems.
Sustainability is a search for ecological stability and human progress that can last over the long term.
Affluence is a goal and a liability
Economic growth offers a better life, more conveniences, and more material goods to the billions of people currently
living in dire poverty. But social scientists have frequently pointed out that a
major reason for both poverty and environmental degradation is that the wealthy consume a disproportionate share
of food, water, energy, and other resources, and we produce a majority of the world’s waste and pollutants. The
United States, for instance, with less than 5 percent of the world’s total population, consumes about one-quarter of
Chapter 1: Understanding our Environment:
Guiding Questions: Important env. problems, progress in env. quality, sustainability and its aims
Case Study: Saving the Reefs of Apo Island
- Dynamite and Cyanide fishing in the Philippines Destruction of fish ecosystem
- Heavy fishing trawls damaged the sea substrate (less food for fish)
- Reefs were gradually destroyed
o By establishing a no-fish zone in a still high quality coral reef, fish populations recovered (also in
not protected parts)
o Fishing is only allowed with low impact methods
- Protecting just a small amount of critical reproductive area can ensure stability of populations and
fisheries
- Through improved marine levels overall wealth has been spread (tourism, scuba diving, building schools
from earned money), Education expands economic opportunities.
- Crisis and opportunity go hand in hand
Problems:
- Food shortage in certain regions
- Clean and safe drinking water not available to more than 1,2 bn people
- Fossil fuels (energy) greatly impact the environment by pollution and provide 80% of energy in
industrialized countries
- Air Quality has worsened dramatically: Asian brown cloud over India and China
o Pollutants such as ash, acids, dust, photochemical smog can travel from their place of origin across
the globe
- Loss of Biodiversity
- Marine resources are endangered
Signs of progress:
- Population is stabilizing in industrialized countries
- Life-threatening diseases have been reduced sharply
- Renewable Energy has made great progress
- Information and Education help raise awareness of environmental problems
- Conservation of forests and nature preserves
- Protection of Marine Resources has been improving by being monitored
Example of different strategies:
Tragedy of the Commons,” published in 1968 in the journal Science by ecologist Garret Hardin. In this classic framing
of the problem, Hardin argues that population growth leads inevitably to overuse and then destruction of common
resources—such as shared pastures, unregulated fisheries, fresh water, land, and clean air. This classic essay has
challenged many to explore alternative ideas about resource management. In Apo Island’s degraded fishery, the
answer was agreed-upon regulation and monitoring. Another strategy is to assign prices to ecological services, to
force businesses and economies to account for damages to life-supporting systems.
Sustainability is a search for ecological stability and human progress that can last over the long term.
Affluence is a goal and a liability
Economic growth offers a better life, more conveniences, and more material goods to the billions of people currently
living in dire poverty. But social scientists have frequently pointed out that a
major reason for both poverty and environmental degradation is that the wealthy consume a disproportionate share
of food, water, energy, and other resources, and we produce a majority of the world’s waste and pollutants. The
United States, for instance, with less than 5 percent of the world’s total population, consumes about one-quarter of
