ESS Note unit 1

EVS
An environmental value system (EVS) is a worldview or diagram that shapes the way an
individual/ group perceives and evaluates environmental issues.

An EVS can be considered a system in the sense that it can be influenced by education
experience culture and media (Input) and generate consistent decision and evaluation
(Output)

⬇️
INPUT of value system: school, family, internet, media, relationship

OUTPUT: Action

EVS are divided into three category which form continuous spectrum:

Ecocentric (nature centred)

1. An ecocentric viewpoint puts ecology and nature as central to humanity and
emphasises a less materialistic approach to life.
2. Prioritise bioright emphasise the importance of education and encourage
self-resistant in human behaviour
3. Extreme ecocentrists are call deep ecologist

Anthropocentric (people centric)

1. An anthropocentric viewpoint argues that humans must sustainably manage
the global system- through the use of taxes, environmental regulation and
legislation.
2. it ‘s human centred; human are not dependent on nature but nature is there to
benefit humankind
Technocentric (based on technology)
1. Believes that technology development can provide solutions to environmental
problem
2. Economic growth is first on the agenda
3. Extreme technocentrist are called cornucopian

Genesis 1:28
Historical influence on environmental movement

Significant Historical influences on the development of the environmental movement have

Come from literature, the media,major environmental disaster, international agreement and
technological development.

1. Kyoto protocol
2. Rachel carson- the silent spring
3. The Chipko movement (1973) leading to ecofeminism
4. Greenpeace- save the whales
5. Bhopal disaster
6. Friday for future 2018
7. Chernobyl accident 1986- no nuclear energy (never)
○ Renewable energy
i. Wind
ii. Hydropower
iii. Solar
○ Non renewable energy
i. Nuclear
ii. Coal- toxic, realice toxic gas into the atmosphere
iii. Gas

Whaling in the faroe island

System and Models

A system is a set of interrelated parts working together to make a complex whole

1. Open system
a. Exchange of energy with its surrounding YES
b. Exchange of matter with its surrounding YES
i. Eg: Living organism, solar system
2. Close systems
a. Exchange of energy with its surrounding YES
b. Exchange of matter with its surrounding NO
i. Eg: Water cycle
3. Isolated system (does not exist)
a. Exchange of energy with its surrounding NO
b. Exchange of matter with its surrounding NO
i. Eg: Universe

All systems have…

1. storage or stores of matter or energy
a. Represented by a box
A Model is a simplified version of reality and can be used to understand howa system works
and predict how it will respond to changes.
A model inevitably involves some approximation and therefore loss of accuracy.
1. Allows scientist to simplify complex system and use them to predict what will happen
if there are changes to input and output or storage
2. Model allows input to be changed and output to be examined without having to wait
along time
3. Result shown to the public which are easier to understand

Limitation of Model
1. Impossible to factor everything
2. Model are oversimplified which could result in inaccurate prediction

● Biosphere II (close system) model of earth

○ Animal dying
○ Lack of oxygen
You can never recreate (model) of the earth due to its complicity
Blind spot in human understanding toward earth

● Vocabulary
○ Ocean acidification: CO2 too much contained in the water
○ Technosphere: technocentric approach
○ Natural ecosystem: the earth
○ Biomes: biogeographical unit consisting of a biological
community
○ Make informed decision
○ Hydroponic: no soil growing, saving space and soil

What is energy?
Energy is the ability to do work.
● The laws of thermodynamics govern this ability to do work and the flow of energy in a
system.
○ First law of thermodynamics
■ “Energy cannot be created or destroyed: it can only be transformed”
1. That means that the total energy in any isolated system is
constant.
2. This first law is also called the principle of conservation of
energy.
○ Second law of thermodynamics
■ “The entropy of a system increases over time”
1. Entropy is a measure of the amount of disorder (chaos) in a
system.
2. An increase in entropy reduces the energy available to do work
3. This law explains the inefficiency and decrease in available
energy along a food chain and energy generation systems.
What is equilibrium?

Equilibrium is the tendency of a system to return to an original state following disturbance in

short, equilibrium is a state of balance among the components of a system

Steady state equilibrium

- Characteristic of an open system where continuous input and output of energy and
matter but the system as a whole remains more or less constant

Static equilibrium
- There a no chargers overtime because there's no input/output from the system

25% of environmental impact are caused by what we eat

- Greenhouse gases (warming up the planet)

Stable and unstable equilibrium

Positive and negative feedback

Natural system are able to regulate them self through feedback system since thet are
continually affected by information from outside and inside the system

- Negative feedback
The stabilise system
They eliminate and deviation of the original state
(immune system)

- Positive feedback
They change a system to a new state away from equilibrium
They are destabilising as they increase change

Sustainable development (Sustainability)

Ideology of sustainable development - Balance between capitalism and environmentalism

- “Let’s meet our need without compromising the need of the future generation”
Brundtland report

How do people know whether they are living sustainably or not?

- E.F. (Environmental footprint)
The Ecological Footprint is a model (and an indicator) used to estimate the demands that
human populations place on the environment.

- GHA (Global Hector)

A measurement unit for the ecological footprint of people or activities and the biocapacity of
the Earth. One global hectare is the world's annual amount of biological production for
human use and human waste assimilation, per hectare of biologically productive land and
fisheries. It measures production and consumption of different products.
 - Biocapacity
The ecosystems’ capacity to produce biological materials used by people and to
absorb waste material generated by humans, under current management schemes and
extraction technologies.
- Biocapacity reserve
When biocapacity is larger than the ecological footprint
- Biocapacity deficit
When biocapacity is smaller than ecological footprint

Factors that determine how sustainable someone lives:

➔ Carbon uptake
◆ The amount of forest land that could sequester C02 emissions from the burning of
fossil fuels
➔ Grazing land
◆ The amount of grazing land used to raise livestock for meat, dairy and wool
products.
➔ Forest
◆ The amount of forest required to supply wood products
➔ Fishing ground
◆ The estimated primary production required to support the fish and seafood caught.
➔ Cropland
◆ The amount of land used to grow crops for food and fibre for human consumption
as well as for animal feed.
➔ Build-up land
◆ The amount of land covered by human infrastructure, including transportation,
housing and industrial structures.

The silent spring- Moral dilemma of DDT

Silent Spring is considered the book that started the global grassroots environmental
movement. Released in 1962. It resulted in a nationwide ban on DDT for agricultural uses,
and an environmental movement that led to the creation of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency.

Key terminology
● DDT
○ Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, commonly known as DDT, is a colourless,
tasteless, and almost odourless crystalline chemical compound, an
organochlorine. Originally developed as an insecticide
● Malaria
○ A serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by a parasite that commonly
infects a certain type of mosquito which feeds on humans. People who get malaria
are typically very sick with high fevers, shaking chills, and flu-like illness
● World health organisation
○ The World Health Organization is a specialised agency of the United Nations
responsible for international public health.
● Bioaccumulation
 ○
A process of accumulation of chemicals in an organism that takes place if the rate
of intake exceeds the rate of excretion
● Biomagnification
○ The process by which a compound (such as a pollutant or pesticide) increases its
concentration in the tissues of organisms as it travels up the food chain

EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment)

The report prepared before any development project
- EIA provide decision makers with information in order to consider the environmental
social and economical impact of a project

1. Screening: is an EIA required? What level of detail is required?

2. Scoping: Baseline study? How are things now?
3. Impact analysis: environmental, social and economic impacts of the project
4. Impact management and mitigation strategies
5. The EIA report
6. Decision: Yes? No?
7. Monitoring

Weaknesses of EIA

● There is no clear definition of the system boundaries (how large is the area we are
assessing? How many variables do we take into account?)
● Different countries have different standards, so it makes it difficult to make
comparisons. Some countries are very diligent, others have lax environmental
regulations.
● Corruption can undermine the original purpose of EIAs
● EIAs are often treated as a separate process and not integrated into the project cycle
● Lack of monitoring and inconsistent application of established mitigation strategies
● Most EIAs do not include indirect impacts that are more difficult to identify.
● Overall, it may lead to a lack of confidence in the EIA process by both decision
makers and the general public.

Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of substances or energy into the environment, resulting in
harmful effects to human health, living resources and ecosystems.

Noise pollution
Exhaust of car
Plastic bottle in the forest
Light pollution
Management strategies- 3 category
Altering human activities

1. Before- preventing
2. During- regulating
3. After- clean-up (can be very expensive)

Example of management strategy (noise pollution)

Car driving through the park at night

➔ Driving not allowed (Before)

➔ Limit on the amount of cars allowed to drive through the park (During)
➔ E-cars only (Before)