Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability 1

21 andClimate ChangeOzone LossClimateControlCASE STUDYA.D. 2060: Green Timeson Planet EarthMary Wilkins sat in the living room of the solarpoweredand earth-sheltered house (Figure 21-1) sheshared with her daughter Jane and her family. It wasJuly 4, 2060: Independence Day. She heard the hum ofsolar-powered pumps trickling water to rows of organicallygrown vegetables and glanced at the fish inthe aquaculture and waste treatment tank in thegreenhouse that provided much of her home’s heat.Mary began putting the finishing touches on hergrandchildren’s costumes for this afternoon’s pageantin Rachel Carson Park. It would honor earth heroeswho began the Age of Ecology in the 20th century andthose who continued this tradition in the 21st century.She was delighted that her 12-year-old grandsonJeffrey had been chosen to play Aldo Leopold (Figure2-9, p. 30), who in the late 1940s began urging peopleto work with the earth. Her pride swelled whenher 10-year-old granddaughter Lynn was chosen toplay Rachel Carson (Figure 2-A, p. 27), who in the1960s warned people about threats from their increasingexposure to pesticides and other potentially harmfulchemicals. Her neighbor’s son Manuel had beenchosen to play biologist Edward O. Wilson, who in thelast third of the 20th century explained the need topreserve the earth’s biodiversity.The transition to more sustainable societies andeconomies began around 2010 when people and governmentsbegan to mimic the way the earth has sustaineditself for billions of years (Figure 9-15,p. 174). By 2060 the loss of global biodiversityhad been cut in half. Most air pollution begangradually disappearing when energy fromthe sun, wind, and hydrogen began replacingthat from oil and coal. Most food was nowproduced by more sustainable agriculture.Preventing pollution and reducing resourcewaste had become important moneysavingpriorities for businesses and households basedon the four Rsofresource consumption: reduce, reuse,recycle, and refuse. Walking and bicycling had increasedin a growing number of cities and towns designed forpeople instead of cars.World population had stabilized at 8 billion in2028 and then had begun a slow decline. Significantatmospheric warming had occurred by 2050. But therate of additional warming began decreasing by 2050as hydrogen produced by using electricity producedby wind farms, solar cells, and geothermal energywas being phased in to replace carbon-containingfossil fuels. International treaties enacted in the 1990sbanned the chemicals that had begun depleting ozonein the stratosphere during the last quarter of the 20thcentury. By 2050, ozone levels in the stratosphere hadreturned to 1980 levels.Two hours later Mary, her daughter Jane, and herson-in-law Gene watched with pride as 40 childrenhonored the leaders of the Age of Ecology. At the end,Lynn stepped forward and said, “Today we have honoredmany earth heroes, but the real heroes are thepeople in this audience and around the world whohave worked to help sustain the earth’s life-supportsystems for us and other species. We thank you forgiving us such a wonderful gift and promise to leavethe earth even better for our children and grandchildrenand all living creatures.”This hopeful scenario describes the more sustainabletype of world we could have by 2060 if enough ofus work to help implement such a vision. This is anexciting challenge. Jump in.Figure 21-1 An earth-sheltered house in the UnitedStates. Solar cells on the roof provide most of thehouse’s electricity. About 13,000 families across theUnited States have built such houses. Mary Wilkins’sfictional house in 2060 could be similar to this one.