| Use this factor to determine whether it is an environment problem. Excessive CO2 emissions (Greenhouse gases emission) is an environment problem as it will result in increasing in temperature will lead to increase in sea level, thus cause human and animals to loss their habitat (Negative impacts). It could be both natural and manmade cause. It could be reduce by released less greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. | |
| Manmade cause | |
| Can nature sustain the consequences? | |
| At this rate, will negative impacts get worse? | |
| Extent of impact - How many are affected? How widespread is it? How long will the consequences last? | |
Global Warming
Global warming is the observed and projected increases in the average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans.
- Industrialization, Urbanization à Increased consumption (water, energy, fuel, materials) à Excessive CO2 emissions
- Example of greenhouse gases Water vapour (H2O), Carbon dioxide (CO2) most abundant, Methane (CH4) most potent, Nitrous oxide (N2O), Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6), Chlorinated fluorocarbons (CFC's)
- Burning natural gas, coal and oil -including gasoline for automobile engines-raises the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
- Some farming practices and land-use changes increase the levels of methane and nitrous oxide.
- Many factories produce long-lasting industrial gases that do not occur naturally, yet contribute significantly to the enhanced greenhouse effect and "global warming" that is currently under way.
- Deforestation also contributes to global warming. Trees use carbon dioxide and give off oxygen in its place, which helps to create the optimal balance of gases in the atmosphere. As more forests are logged for timber or cut down to make way for farming, however, there are fewer trees to perform this critical function.
- Population growth is another factor in global warming, because as more people use fossil fuels for heat, transportation and manufacturing the level of greenhouse gases continues to increase. As more farming occurs to feed millions of new people, more greenhouse gases enter the atmosphere.
- Ultimately, more greenhouse gases means more infrared radiation trapped and held which gradually increases the temperature of the Earth's surface and the air in the lower atmosphere.
Effect of Excessive greenhouse gases emissions
- This would increase the earth surface temperature.
- Thus, the ice cap and glaciers will melt, and increase the amount of water in the sea.
- This will generally raise the sea level when more water is in the oceans.
- This will result in flooding occurring over island. Our home and natural habitat would be destroyed.
- This will cause the ecosystem to be disrupted, as many species will be endangered.
- Therefore, excessive greenhouse gases emission is an environmental problems, as this would further lead to increase in earth surface temperature, and cause a raise in sea level. This would have a negative impact on the human health and ecology. This would generally affect any species that live on the land. The extent of the impact is huge.
Case study: Deforestation in Kalimantan, Indonesia (GCE ‘O’ Level topic)
Deforestation - The removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a non-forest use. Examples of deforestation include conversion of forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use.
Cause of deforestation
- Increase in demand for agricultural land use
- Growth of settlement
- Improved transportation network
- Growth of industries (logging and mining)
- Forest fires
Problem caused by deforestation in Kalimantan
Loss in biomass
Biomass refers to the combined weight of all organisms which is measured in terms of kilocalories of stored energy. This stored energy is very important, as it represent the total amount of food available on earth and hence, the ability of the earth to support life. Therefore, deforestation has contributed to the reduction of the earth’s biomass as the rainforest.
This reduction of biomass reduces the ability of the rainforest to support various plant and animals because the food chain is adversely affect. In a food chain, green plant photosynthesizes to produce food. This supports the growth of the plant themselves, as well as food for the herbivores or animals that feed on plants. The herbivores, in turn, are source of food for carnivores or meat-eating animals. When the plants are removed, they affect the survivals of animals higher up the food chain, as they are the basic source of food in the ecosystem.
- Green plant provides food for animals such as herbivores. When the deforestation occurs, food source for herbivores are reduced.
- Herbivores feed on plant. When there is less plant for food, the herbivores population is reduce.
- Carnivores feed on herbivores. When the herbivores population is reduced, the survival of carnivores is threat.
In addition, reduction of the biomass has adversely affected the amount of nutrients in the forest ecosystem, which also reduce the ability of the rainforest to support various plant life.
- When some of the vegetation in the forest is remove, the store of nutrients in the biomass reduced.
- This in turn, reduced the amount of nutrients in the leaf little
- Consequently, the amount of nutrients stored in the soil is reduced. Hence, adversely affecting the growth of vegetation.
Loss in biodiversity
Due to deforestation, the biodiversity of plant and animals in the rainforest is reduced. For example, in Kalimantan rainforest, it contains a very high biodiversity of plant and animals. They are recognised by WWF as ‘the richest rainforest in the world and rival the diversity of Papua New Guinea and the Amazon’. The Kalimantan rainforest are home to more than 380 bird species and 10000 plant species. The world’s smallest squirrel, only 11cm long, is an example of unique wildlife found there. However, due to high rate of deforestation, some plant and animals are close to becoming extinct in Kalimantan and are therefore has become endangered in Kalimantan. One example of the endangered animals of the Kalimantan forest is the Proboscis monkey.
Change in the nutrients cycle
The roots of vegetation also hold the soil particles and nutrients together and prevent rain or wind from removing of soil. Hence, forest maintain the soil quality by prevent nutrients from being removed by soil erosion.
The removal of vegetation following deforestation results in the loss of leaf little and affects the nutrient cycle. Soils are also leached due to absence of roots, where the absorption of rainforest is reduced. As a result, the soil become infertile and cannot support vegetation growth. Therefore, very little of the original vegetation could be replaced back and the cleared land also become unsuitable for cultivation for crops over time.
Changes in quantity of water
When trees and other plant are removed, this will result in less transpiration take place. This will reduce cloud formation and result in low rainfall. Due to deforestation, there will be absence of root. The absence of roots will led to soil being eroded easily. The soil that is deposited on the river bed makes the river bed shallow and reduces the river’s ability to contain water. Hence, the likelihood of flooding is higher when flooding when forest are cleared.
Change in quality of water
In area where rainforest are cleared, the water quality in the rivers is generally poor because soil is eroded easily and washed away by rain into nearby rivers. This, in turn, increases the sediment level of river and makes the water muddy.
In addition, the increased amount of sediment in the rivers also changes the pH level of water by making the water acidic. The H+ ions with the roots are left mobile within the soil, when there is an absence of roots due to deforestation. This mobile H+ ions get washed away easily by the rain, caused the water in nearby river to be acidic due to increase in H+ ions. The increase in acidity in water adversely affects the aquatic life in river of the rainforest.
Air pollution
When tress and other plant are removed by burning, dust and smoke are released into the air, causing air pollution. The dust and smoke get suspended in the air for some time, resulting in the phenomenon of haze to be experienced in many other areas.
Therefore, deforestation is an environmental problem. This is because it causes negative impacts on human health or ecology such as causing human to experiences in bad air quality, loss in biomass in the rainforest. Furthermore, with the continuously deforestation, the nature cannot sustain the consequences, as it the rate of replenishing of the forest could not compensate for the rate of removal of forest. The act of the deforestation is degrading the earth natural capital it provides. Therefore, it is unsustainable. At this rate of deforestation, the impact will be worse, such the nutrients will be leached due to the absence of root, this will cause further environmental problem such as eutrophication in nearby water bodies, as excess amount of nutrients is being leached. Furthermore, when a forested area is being cleared, it can alter weather patterns by reducing transpiration, especially in dense tropical forest. Because so many plants in such a forest transpire water into the atmosphere, vegetation is the primary source of local rainfall. Cutting down the forest raise ground temperature (because it reduce shades) and can reduce local rainfall so much that the forest cannot grow back. When such ecological tipping point is reached, these biologically diverse forests are converted into much less diverse tropical grassland.
Sustainability
Firstly, for this, we need to understand what is environmentally sustainable. To be environmentally sustainable, means that our lives and economies depend on the energy from the sun and the natural resources and natural services (natural capital) provides by the earth. Living sustainably means living on the earth natural income without depleting or degrading the natural capital that it supplies.
One analogy is that imagine you win 1 million dollars from a lottery. Suppose you invest this money, earn 10%interest per year allow the interest to accumulated. If you just live on the interest, you will have a sustainable annual income of at least $100,000 that you can spend each year indefinitely without deleting your capital. However, if you spend $200,000 per year, while allowing interest to accumulated, your capital of 1 million would be gone early in the seventh year. Even if you spend only $110,000 per year and allow the interest to accumulate, you will be bankrupt in the eighteenth year.
The lesson here is that: Protect your capital and live on the income it provides. Deplete or waste your capital and you will move from a sustainable to an unsustainable lifestyle.
| Natural capital | |
| Natural resources | Natural service |
| Air | Air purification |
| water | climate control |
| non-renewable minerals (iron, sand) | UV protection (ozone layer) |
| non-renewable energy (fossil fuel) | water purification |
| soil | waste treatment |
| land | soil renewal |
| life (biodiversity) | food production |
| renewable energy (solar, wind, water flows) | Nutrients recycling |
| | pollution control |
| | pest control |
Natural resources - Air, water, non-renewable minerals (iron, sand), non-renewable energy (fossil fuel), soil, land, life (biodiversity), renewable energy (solar, wind, water flows)
Natural service - Air purification, climate control, UV protection (ozone layer), water purification, waste treatment, soil renewal, food production, Nutrients recycling, pollution control, pest control
More sustainably living
- Relying in solar energy, go for renewable energy (it free) à to meet demand (heat, electricity)
- Preserving biodiversity à preventing the degradation of earth species, ecosystem, and natural processes.
- Do not disrupt the earth’s natural chemical cycle (biogeochemical cycle) by overloading them with harmful chemicals or by removing natural chemicals faster than the cycles can replaces them. This requires relying more on pollution prevention and reducing the wasteful use of resources.
***we can live more sustainably by relying more on solar energy, preserving biodiversity, and not disrupting the earth’s natural chemical recycling processes.
Cause of almost all environment problem
- Population growth à exponentially
- Unsustainable using of resources
- Poverty
- Excluding environment cost from market prices à companies using the resources to provide good for consumer generally are not required to pay for the harmful environment cost of supply such goods. For example, fishing companies pay the cost of catching fish do not pay for the depletion of fish stocks. Timber companies pay the cost of clear-cutting forest but not for the resulting environment degradation and loss of wildlife habitat Primary goal of companies is to maximize profits