ESS

• sustainability


  the use of a resource at a rate which allows natural regeneration and minimizes damage to the environment
• open system


  a system in which exchanges of matter or energy occur across system boundaries

  eg. an ecosystem
• closed system


  a system in which only energy is exchanged

  eg. the Earth
• isolated system


  A system that can exchange neither energy nor matter with its surroundings.

  eg. the Universe
• tipping point


  minimum amount of change within a system that will destabilize it
• EVS


  - Environmental Value System

  - a paradigm or worldview that shapes the way people perceive environmental issues
• ecocentric


  puts ecology and nature as central to humanity
• anthropocentric


  argues that humans must sustainably manage the environment through the uses of taxes and regulations
• Technocentric


  the idea that technological advancements can provide solutions to environmental problems
• sustainable development


  meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
• natural capita


  natural resources that can produce a sustainable natural income for goods or services
• natural income


  yield obtained from natural resource and services

  eg.

  agricultural harvest

  new tree growth
• system


  an assemblage of parts and their relationship forming a functioning entirety or whole
• transfers


  when a flow of energy or matter does not involve a change of state
• transformations


  when a flow of energy or matter involves a change of state
• Entropy


  A measure of disorder or randomness.

  The lower the entropy the more ordered
• static equilibrium


  - no change over time

  - if disrupted then system adjusts to new equilibrium

  - doesn't happen in living systems
• steady state/dynamic equilibrium


  - open system with continuous inputs and outputs

  - dynamic changing systems that adjust to their surroundings and fluctuate around an average
• stable equilibrium


  returns to stable point by negative feedback
• unstable equilibrium


  new equilibrium established due to positive feedback
• positive feedback


  - destabilizes system and drives it towards tipping point
• negative feedback


  - stabilizes system and counteracts change
• resilience


  tendency to avoid tipping point and maintain stability
• provisioning services


  goods:

  food

  fuel and fibre

  fresh water

  biochemicals and genetics
• regulating services


  climate regulation

  disease regulation

  water regulation & purifications

  pollination
• cultural services


  spiritual and religious

  cultural heritage

  recreation and ecotourism

  aesthetic

  educational
• supporting services


  soil formation

  nutrient cycling

  primary production
• renewable resources


  self-producing and self-maintaining
• non-renewable


  exists in finite amounts
• ecological footprint


  a hypothetical area of land needed by a group or individual to fulfill their resource needs and assimilation of waste
• environmental indicators of sustainability

  biodiversity

  pollution

  population

  climate
• Sustainability


  use of a resource at a rate that allows for natural regeneration and minimizes damage to the environment
• Millennium Ecosystem Assessment


  A United Nations project designed to assess the consequences of ecosystem changes for human well-being
• environmental impact assessment


  Asses the social, environmental and economic impacts of a certain project
• strengths of environmental impact assessment

  - baseline study evaluating ecosystems

  - assesses human health

  - recommends ways to protect environment

  - evaluation of impact after the project
• weaknesses of environmental impact assessment

  - no standardization of the process

  - looks at direct impacts only

  - some damages are irreversible
• pollution


  the addition of a substance or an agent to the environment through human activity at a rate greater than it can be processed or broken down therefore causing harmful effects
• types of pollution


  - organic

  -inorganic

  - light

  - sound

  - air

  - heat
• primary pollutants


  pollutants that are put directly into the air by human or natural activity.
• secondary pollutants


  a combination of primary pollutants

  eg. sulfur dioxide and water make sulfuric acid