Notes EPS 202 - Google Docs PDF

Preview

Summary

Notes...

Description

Week 1

Week 2 -

Yosemite National Park: Yoka Mountain: Going to have radioactive waste in there. What is environmental attitude? - The role of human beings as individuals and as a whole within a planetary ecology. - There is perspective with this as progressive destruction to the world can be seen as growth of the human race or destruction of nature. - This can be changed with class, perspective - Even cultural views can change perspective on environmental change

-

-

A Worldview is the collective perspective from which one sees and interprets the world. Technocentrism is a term that denotes a value system that is centered on technology and its ability to control and protect the environment. Technocentrics have absolute faith in technology and industry and firmly believe that humans have control over nature. That no matter the damage done the gain of development is only seen Ecocentrism is the belief that some natural systems should be left untouched, that there is a morality to the nature of these spaces.

Week 3 Origins of Environmentalism -

-

Rapid period of urbanilization in the coming 1800s Railroad construction promoted the boom of trade and product development Extensive migration In the discussion discuss what the agricultural loss in oklahoma in the 1920s was called (Dust Bowl) This occurred because of the mechanization of tilling and it dryed the soil out Transcendentalism

Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring, which talked about the overuse of pesticides or herbicides especially DDT Rivers got contaminated in the 1960’s with the Cuyahoga RIver Fire, the Santa Barabara Oil Spill Due to this environmentalism began with green organizations and the new generation of post-materialism which are the folks born after WWII that have different values than their ancestors.

Week 4 (Wilderness) -

Movements in wilderness to preserve wildlife: - National Parks Movement - Public Health and Urban Sanitation - Urban Parks/Recreation Management - Central Park (designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, man made park, he also did our Branchbrook Park in Newark), in cities and such - Science of Ecology - Termed by Ernst Haeckel - Viewed as the science of the relation of organisms to each other and their habitat

-

-

-

Before in religion and culture the wilderness was used to banish, a place of punishment Wilderness Act of 1964 - done in order to assure that with human growth, we leave enough land for preservation and protection in their natural condition to secure for the American people, present and future generations the benefits of the resources of the wilderness. Preservation means to leave nature untouched for its beauty and conservation means to make best use of it as we integrate in nature itself, greatest good for the greatest number of people. Monkey Wrenching consists of nonviolent protest actions such as placing metal spikes in trees to discourage cutting by log companies, disabling heavy machinery, pulling up survey stakes and tree-sits.

Week 5 (Environmental Problems and Pollutions) Two Branches of Environmental Problems -

Natural Resource Degradation/Depletion - when the stock of resource goes down Pollution

-

Smog is smoke plus fog from coal burning, etc. Acid Rain causes a small change in the Ph of rain even a change of half a Ph unit can make a drastic change. Indoor household radon is formed from rock formations

-

-

Radiation Surface water pollution - This depletes oxygen in the water and can kill sea life and contaminate water Contaminated Sludge Deterioration of Wetlands Pollution of Groundwater and Soil Exhaustion of Landfills Mining waste (#1 source of hazardous contaminants) Accidental Release of Toxic Chemicals Oil Spills

-

Pesticide Exposure New Toxic Chemicals GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms) Fixed Point Pollutants, from pipes these come from readily identifiable places and activites, Non-point pollutants like from cars, runoff, etc. Cornucopian Perspective - the ideal that more we use, the more we will replace, tech will solve it Malthusian Perspective - that humans will outstrip the resources they use

Week 6 (Water Pollution and Environmental Health) -

3% of total water is fresh and less than that is usable by us, called potable water.

Coliform is the unit used to measure ecoli

-

Ocean Dumping was banned in 1970

-

We have two types of water standards: - Ambient Water Quality Standards - standards applied to water system itself - Effluent Discharge Standards - standards applied to the end of the pipe

Municipal Wastes are wastes by individual humans

Wastes that take up 02 levels from water

Week 7 (Chemical & Manufacturing Industries) -

Mining is the #1 role of waste in today Midnight Dumping - illegally disposing of material in a hazardous tank by a “midnight dumper”

Week 9 - Energy & The Environment -

#1 energy source is petroleum/oil US is #1 energy drawer, 5% of total population but 20% of energy use - Industrial use is #1 draw Canada is #1 import for oil for US OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) - Consists of 11 oil producing countries We are the Saudi of coal in the US Nuclear power is about 50% of our energy use in NJ US is #1 in nuclear power production Photovoltaic Systems: photovoltaic cells use organic chemicals make the photoelectric effect that produce electricity at a molecular level.

Week 10 - Climate Change -

Burning fossil fuels is the highest contributors to climate change. Developing countries will surpass industrialized countries in greenhouse gas emissions.

-

C02 has the highest impact on climate change out of all greenhouse gases. Global Warming Potential or GWP is the measure of effect on the climate Warmer weather leads to more hurricanes More rays are trapped in the atmosphere due to greenhouse gases. This changes our climate CO2 half goes into atmosphere, 25% into land, 25% into the water

-

IPCC studies effects of climate change and global warming

Week 11 - Population -

Sanitization was the biggest problem inhibiting growth before Rate of growth of population is going down - As urbanization increases, the need for larger families decrease due to unneeded workload on the farm, etc for example

-

Population increase, increases poverty rate which in turn degrades the environment.

Week 12 - Sustainability

Week 12 - Food -...