Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability 1

Good NewsMore foodSupported alarger populationLonger lifeexpectancyHigher standardof living for manypeopleFormation ofvillages, towns,and citiesTowns and citiesserved as centersfor trade,government,and religionT rade-OffsAgricultural RevolutionBad NewsDestruction ofwildlife habitatsfrom clearingforests andgrasslandsKilling of wildanimals feedingon grass or cropsFertile land turnedinto desert bylivestockovergrazingSoil eroded intostreams and lakesTowns and citiesconcentratedwastes andpollution andincreased spreadof diseasesIncrease in armedconflict andslavery overownership of landand waterresourcesFigure 2-3 Trade-offs: good and bad news about the shiftfrom hunting and gathering to agriculture. Pick the singlepieces of good news and bad news that you think are the mostimportant.dwindling in some areas because of unsustainablecutting) and flowing water to dependence on machinesrunning on nonrenewable fossil fuels (first coaland later oil and natural gas). This led to a switchfrom small-scale, localized production of handmadegoods to large-scale production of machine-madegoods in centralized factories in rapidly growing industrialcities.Factory towns grew into cities as rural peoplecame to the factories for work. There they worked longhours under noisy, dirty, and hazardous conditions.Other workers toiled in dangerous coal mines.In early industrial cities, coal smoke belchingfrom chimneys was so heavy that many people diedof lung ailments. Ash and soot covered everything,and some days the smoke was thick enough to blotout the sun.Fossil fuel–powered farm machinery, commercialfertilizers, and new plant-breeding techniques increasedcrop yields per acre. This helped protect biodiversityby reducing the need to expand the area ofcropland. Because fewer farmers were needed, morepeople migrated to cities. With a larger and more reliablefood supply and longer life spans, the humanpopulation began the sharp increase that continuestoday.Figure 2-4 lists some of the beneficial (good news)and harmful (bad news) effects of the advanced industrial–medicalrevolution.How Might the Information and GlobalizationRevolution Affect the Environment?Information Blessing or InformationOverload?Global access to information can help us understandand respond to environmental problemsbut can lead to confusion from informationoverload.Good NewsMass productionof useful andaffordableproductsHigher standardof living for manyGreatly increasedagriculturalproductionLower infantmortalityLonger lifeexpectancyIncreasedurbanizationLower rate ofpopulation growthT rade-OffsIndustrial–Medical RevolutionBad NewsIncreased airpollutionIncreased waterpollutionIncreased wasteproductionSoil depletion anddegradationGroundwaterdepletionHabitatdestruction anddegradationBiodiversitydepletionFigure 2-4 Trade-offs: good and bad news about the effectsof the advanced industrial revolution. Pick the single pieces ofgood news and bad news that you think are the most important.http://biology.brookscole.com/miller1423