Environmental Dilemmas

Objectives

At the end of the session the students should be able to:

1. Differentiate the past and present anthropogenic impact to the environment.

2. Identify and explain the different environmental dilemmas.

Environmental dilemmas

n  Situations in which self-interest of humans leads to mismanagement of the environment

Anthropogenic Impact

Past

Present

-       few population (earliest humans are NOMADS)

-       lived-off and moved-off society

-       exploited areas can still recover

-       more population

-       rate of utilization exceeds potential regeneration of environmental resources

-       net effect “ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION”

Types of Environmental Dilemmas

1. Socio-cultural Factors

2. Garbage Problem

3. Pollution

4. Climate Change

5. Ecosystem Degradation

I.               SOCIO-CULTURAL FACTORS

1. Kaingin

ü  “slash and burn cultivation”

ü  conversion of forested areas to non-forestland

ü  removal of trees without sufficient reforestation

2. Overuse of Resources

ü  “tragedy of the commons”

ü  leads to overexploitation

3. Throw-away Society

ü  leads to increase pollution

4. Overpopulation

ü  World Population

o   PRESENT:            > 7 billion

o   2050:                      > 10 billion

o   RATE of INCREASE:      100 million / year

ü  Philippine Population

o   PRESENT:            > 100 million

o   2020:                      113.3 million

II.             GARBAGE PROBLEM

1.    Solid wastes

2.    Open dumps

3.    Ocean  dumping

4.    Hazardous wastes

Types

ü  Toxic materials

- Poisonous and carcinogenic

ex. Hg and Pb

ü  Reactive materials

- produce explosive reaction to water and compression

ex. lithium-sulfur batteries

ü  Ignitable materials

- flammable

ex. waste oils and used solvents

ü  Corrosive materials

- high acid content that could bore through steel

ex. battery acid

5.    Nuclear wastes

Methods that decreases Garbage Problem

1. Landfills – waste is compacted and covered with soil before a new layer of garbage is dumped

2. Incineration – process of putting garbage in an extreme heat

3.    Recycling  - 3R’s (Reuse, Reduce, Recycle)

III.            POLLUTION

ü  the introduction of substance that is deleterious to health or to the environment

  Pollutants

ü  substance whose presence, quantity, physical or chemical reactions pose a risk to health or environment

  Contamination

ü  the alteration of the state or quality of an organism or environment due to increase in the amounts of a certain substance

Types of Pollution

1. Air Pollution – ex. smog, greenhouse gases, acid rain

2. Land Pollution – ex. fertilizers, pesticides, salinization, desertification

3. Water Pollution – ex. heavy sedimentation, thermal pollution, oil spills, toxic wastes (Plastics; PCB (polychlorinated biphenyl) – marine adhesives;TBT (tributyltin) – marine paint)

IV.           CLIMATE CHANGE

1. Greenhouse Effect

ü  Increase in the amount of greenhouse gases, thus blocking the exits of the sun’s ray

ü  Common Greenhouse Gases

o   Carbon monoxide

o   Carbon dioxide

o   Methane

o   CFC - chlorofluorocarbon

2. Global Warming

ü  gradual increase in the atmospheric temperature of the planet

3. El Niño

ü  ENSO

ü  Unusual warming for months of oceanic waters in tropical Pacific

ü  Peru, December 1987 – First El Niño

4. La Niña

ü  Preceded by the high evaporation rate during El Niño

ü  Cooler than normal sea surface temperature

5. Ozone Destruction

ü  OZONE – forms a protective blanket that shields the earth from the damaging UV rays

ü  CFC – major cause of ozone depletion

V.             ECOSYSTEM DEGRADATION

1. Grassland Degradation

2. Deforestation

3. Coral Reef Degradation

ü  MURO AMI

o   Also known as KAYAKAS in Japan

4. Mangrove Degradation