UNIT 1.

FOUNDATIONS OF
ENVIRONMENTAL
SYSTEMS AND
SOCIETIES
1.1 ENVIRONMENTAL VALUE SYSTEMS

1.2 SYSTEMS AND MODELS

1.3 ENERGY AND EQUILIBRIA

1.4 SUSTAINABILITY

1.5 HUMANS AND POLLUTION

 1.1
ENVIRONMENTAL
VALUE
SYSTEMS
 An Environmental Value System (EVS)
is a worldview or paradigm that shapes the way
an individual (or a group of people) 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 (inputs) and generates consistent decisions
and evaluations (outputs)
 EVSs are divided into three
general categories, which form a
continuous spectrum:

ECOCENTRIC (nature centred)

ANTHROPOCENTRIC (people centred)

TECHNOCENTRIC (based on technology)

 Ecocentric worldview
• An ecocentric viewpoint puts ecology and
nature as central to humanity and
emphasizes a less materialistic approach
to life.

• An ecocentric viewpoint prioritizes

biorights, emphasizes the importance of
education and encourages self-restraint in
human behaviour.

• Extreme ecocentrists are called deep

ecologists.
 Anthropocentric worldview
• An anthropocentric viewpoint argues that humans must sustainably manage
the global system. This might be through the use of taxes, environmental
regulation and legislation.

• It is human centered: humans are not dependent on nature but nature is there
to benefit humankind.
 Technocentric worldview
• Technocentric viewpoint believes that technological developments
can provide solutions to environmental problems.

• Scientific research is encouraged in

order to understand how systems can
be controlled, manipulated or
changed to solve resource depletion.

• Economic growth is first on the

agenda.
• Extreme technocentrists are called
cornucopians
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful
and increase in number; fill the earth and
control it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the
birds in the sky and over every living creature
that moves on the ground.”
Genesis 1:28
(The Bible)
The transition from the anthropocentric to the technocentric approach

population

Malthus 1798 1965

Verhulst, 1838
GMO?

Fertilizers, pesticides and machinery

crop rotation

irrigation
 Spectrum of environmental value systems
The environment or any
organism holds an intrinsic value
regardless its value to humans
Influenced by
• society Influenced by
How we measure it is a key to • Culture
• Philosophy
understanding the value we place • Economy
on the environment • Socio-political
context
What is your environmental world
This explains why view?
societies make EVS environmental attitudes
different choices questionnaire (pg 10) compared to GF
Historical influences
on the
environmental
movement
 Significant historical influences on the
development of the environmental
movement have come from literature,
the media, major environmental
disasters, international agreements and
technological developments.
“Silent Spring”
1962
The Chipko movement
1973
”Save the whales”
campaign
1978
Bhopal disaster
1984
Chernobyl accident
1986
Fridays for future
2018
 Spectrum of EVS
Put ecology and nature as central
to humanity. They see humans deep ecologists
ecocentrists dependence on the environment.
Holistic view of the Earth.
self reliant / soft
ecologists
humans must sustainably manage
EVS the global system (Means: taxes,
anthropocentrists environmental laws... nature is
here to benefit human kind
environmental Sustainable
managers economy
(Stewardship world Compensation for
technological development can env. degradation
Technocentrists provide solutions to environmental view)
problems.
There are infinite
Cornucopians resources to benefit
humanity
Capitalism with
minimal
government
intervention
1.2
SYSTEMS AND MODELS
What is a system?
A system is a set of inter-related
parts working together to make a
complex whole
Systems are divided into three types:

• Open systems

• Closed systems

• Isolated systems
 OPEN SYSTEM CLOSED SYSTEM ISOLATED
SYSTEM

EXCHANGE OF
ENERGY with its
YES YES NO
surroundings

EXCHANGE OF
MATTER with its
YES NO NO
surroundings

EXAMPLE Living organism Water cycle Universe?

 Example: the universe(?)
Example: a fish Example: a
sealed
mesocosm
 Transfers and transformations

Transfers occur when energy or matter flows and changes location but
does not change its state. Examples: water flowing from the river to the
sea; wind moving clouds from one place to another.

Transformations occur when energy or matter flows and changes its

state. Examples: evaporation of water from a river (liquid to gas);
decomposition of a flower; burning coal to produce heat and light; light
energy converted by photosynthesis to produce glucose.
 MODELS OF SYSTEMS

A model is a simplified version of reality and can be

used to understand how a system works and to
predict how it will respond to change.

A model inevitably involves some approximation

and therefore loss of accuracy.
1.3 ENERGY AND EQUILIBRIA
 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”

üThat means that the total energy in any isolated system is constant.

üThis first law is also called the principle of conservation of energy.

 Second law of thermodynamics

“The entropy of a system increases over time”

üEntropy is a measure of the amount of disorder (chaos) in a system.

üAn increase in entropy reduces the energy available to do work

üThis law explains the inefficiency and decrease in available energy along
a food chain and energy generation systems.
The Earth as a closed system receives the
sun’s energy
In a food chain or in
an ecosystem, energy
100%
spreads out and is
30% reflected back to space
converted.
E= work+ heat
50% converted into heat

18-19% Kinetic energy (the water cycle)

2-1% Photosynthesis
 In a food chain or in
an ecosystem, energy
Energy flow in a food chain spreads out and is
converted.
1-2%
10% 10% E= work+ heat
10%
Energy in a trophic
level is less than the
producer Primary Secondary Tertiary total energy at the
consumer (C1) consumer (C2) consumer (C3) level below.

C3 (Owl) Total efficiency: Organisms survive against the 2nd law of

thermodynamics.
0.02 x 0.1 x 0.1 x 0.1=0.00002! They manage to maintain order and defy
ENTROPY by a continuous input of E (an
increasing the entropy of the
Light (low entropy)à Chemical E. àmechanical E. + Heat (high entropy) surroundings)
Complexity and Stability

The more The more stable

complex a The less fluctuation in
system is population
 WHAT
IS
EQUILIBRIUM?
Equilibrium is the tendency of a system to return
to an original state following disturbance.

üAt equilibrium, a state of balance exists among the

components of that system.
 INPUT

Types of equilibria
The system as a
whole achieves
CLIMAX remains
Dynamic equilibrium constant)
(steady state) OUTPUT
equilibria

Static equilibrium

Stable equilibrium Usually achieved by

negative loops

Unstable
equilibrium Usually achieved by
positive loops
 POSITIVE
AND NEGATIVE
FEEDBACKS
 Natural systems are able to regulate
themselves through feedback systems, since
they are continually affected by information
from outside and inside the system.
NEGATIVE FEEDBACKS

üThey stabilize the system

üThey eliminate any deviation from the original state (preferred conditions)

POSITIVE FEEDBACKS

üThey change a system to a new state away from equilibrium

üThey are destabilizing as they increase change
Examples of negative feedback (stabilizing the system)

A thermostat in a central heating system is a device that can sense

the temperature. It switches a heating system on when the
temperature decreases to a predetermined level, and off when it rises
to another warmer temperature. So a room or a building can be
maintained within narrow limits of temperature
 Examples of positive feedbacks (change to a new state)

You are lost on a high snowy mountain. When your body senses that
is cooling below 37o C, various mechanisms such as shivering help to
raise your body core temperature again. But if these are insufficient
to restore normal body temperature, your metabolic processes start
to slow down, because the enzymes that control them do not work so
well at lower temperatures. As a result you become lethargic and
sleepy and move around less and less, allowing your body to cool
even further. Unless you are rescued at this point, your body will
reach a new equilibrium: you will die of hypothermia.
Positive or negative feedback?
Global temperature rises, so ice caps melt. More water in the
atmosphere means more clouds, more solar radiation is reflected by
the clouds so global temperatures fall.

When prey populations (mice, for example) increase, there is more

food for the predator (owl, for example) so they eat more and breed
more, resulting in more predators which eat more pray so prey
numbers decrease.
 Positive or negative feedback?
T IV E
NEGA
Global temperature rises, so ice caps melt. More water in the
atmosphere means more clouds, more solar radiation is reflected by
the clouds so global temperatures fall.

G AT IV E
N When prey populations (mice, for example) increase, there is more
E
food for the predator (owl, for example) so they eat more and breed
more, resulting in more predators which eat more pray so prey
numbers decrease.
Positive or negative feedback?

üGlobal temperature rises, so caps melt. Dark soil is exposed so more

solar radiation is absorbed, which reduces the albedo of the Earth, so
global temperature rises.

üMethane gas released from melting permafrost increases global

warming/greenhouse effect; higher temperatures melt permafrost,
releasing more methane so temperature increases further.
 Positive or negative feedback?

IV E
P O S IT
üGlobal temperature rises, so caps melt. Dark soil is exposed so more
solar radiation is absorbed, which reduces the albedo of the Earth, so
global temperature rises.
IV E
P O S IT
üMethane gas released from melting permafrost increases global
warming/greenhouse effect; higher temperatures melt permafrost,
releasing more methane so temperature increases further.
 PERMAFROST
Permafrost is any ground that remains completely frozen—32°F (0°C) or
colder—for at least two years straight. These permanently frozen
grounds are most common in regions with high mountains and in
Earth’s higher latitudes—near the North and South poles
 Albedo

Albedo is a measure of how much light that hits a surface is reflected

without being absorbed. Something that appears white reflects most
of the light that hits it and has a high albedo, while something that
looks dark absorbs most of the light that hits it, indicating a low albedo.
Resilience
of systems
and
tipping
points
 Resilience is the ability of a system to return to its initial state
after a disturbance

The more resilient a system is, the more disturbance it can deal
with. If the system has low resilience, it will easily enter a new
state.

Resilience is (generally) considered a good thing, as it maintains

the stability of the system.
Resilience is (generally) considered a good thing, as it maintains
the stability of the system.
+ -
d S
ge EM
na YT
Stability
pathogens
a s: S Resistance to treatment of a disease

m em CO Abiotic
in st OE Similar conditions Tendency to flooding (high freatic layer)

sy GR yield/ year
Recurrent
A disturbances Tendency to forest fires
 A tipping point is a critical threshold when even a small
change can have dramatic effects and cause a
disproportionately large response in the overall system.

When the changes tip

the equilibrium

Small changes occur

but the system returns Positive feedback loops lead to a new
to the original state STEADY STATE
Factors affecting resilience

complexity • positive correlation

Stenoic
biodiversity • positive correlation
Eurioic Species
Species
Genetic diversity • positive correlation

• the more eurioic the more resilient

eurioic sp. vs. stenoic sp. • the more stenoic the less resilient

ecosystem size • positive correlation

K
climate and temperature
species reproduction strategy • MacArthur & Wilson ( 1967) r

human action
Characteristics of tipping points:
• There is a threshold beyond which a fast shift of ecological states
occur
• The threshold point cannot be predicted precisely
• The changes are long lasting
• The changes are hard to reverse
• There is significant time lag between the pressure driving the change
and the appearance of impacts
àgreat difficulties in ecological management!
 Positive feedback loops (destabilizing) will tend to amplify
changes and drive the system towards a tipping points where
a new equilibrium is adopted.

Nowadays, most projected tipping points are linked to

climate change, representing points beyond which
irreversible change or damage occurs. For example: increases
of CO2 levels above a certain value (450ppm) would lead to
increased global mean temperature, causing melting of the
ice sheets and permafrost. This would cause long-term
damage to our society.
1.4 SUSTAINABILITY
What
is
sustainability?
 Sustainability is the use and
management of resources that allows
full natural replacement of the
resources exploited and full recovery of
the ecosystems affected by their
extraction and use.
How can The smaller the scale the
more accurate, but e also

we measure need global

measurements to assess
the whole picture

sustainability?
 ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT (EF)
The Ecological Footprint is a model (and an indicator) used to estimate
the demands that human populations place on the environment.

It is described as the area of land and water required to sustainably

provide all resources at the rate at which they are being consumed by a
given population. If the EF is greater than the area available to the
population, this is an indication of unsustainability.
1.Carbon uptake

2.Grazing land

3.Forest

4.Fishing grounds

5.Cropland

6.Built-up land
 1. Carbon uptake

The amount of forest land that could sequester C02 emissions from the
burning of fossil fuels
 2. Grazing land

The amount of grazing land used to raise livestock for meat, dairy and
wool products.
 3. Forest

The amount of forest required to supply wood products

 4. Fishing grounds

The estimated primary production required to support the fish and

seafood caught.
 5. Cropland
The amount of land used to grow crops for food an fibre for human
consumption as well as for animal feed.
 6. Built-up land

The amount of land covered by human infrastructure, including

transportation, housing and industrial structures.
The ecological footprint is measured in global hectares (gha)

Biocapacity is 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.

When biocapacity is larger than the ecological footprint, we are on a

biocapacity reserve.

When biocapacity is smaller than ecological footprint, we are on a

biocapacity deficit
• Our societies and economies cannot grow to make progress outside
of environmental limits.
• There is a finite amount of materials and we are using much of them
unsustainably
à living on the capital as well as on the interest.

Maximum level of sustainable resource exploitation

 Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when
humanity’s demand for ecological resources and
services in a given year exceeds what Earth can
regenerate in that year.

We maintain this deficit by liquidating

stocks of ecological resources and
accumulating waste, primarily carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere.
 In 2021,
Earth Overshoot day fell on
29th July
Millennium ecosystem assessment (MEA)
• 60% of the world ecosystems are being degraded
• 40-50% of surface freshwater + aquifer withdrawals have doubled in
40 years
• 25% fish stocks are overharvested
• 35% of mangroves destroyed ( since 1980)
• 20% of corals lost in 20 years and 20% degraded
• Extinction rates 100 to 1000 times the background rate
Why can’t we change this?
• Inertia
• The Tragedy of commons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxC161GvMPc
recommended reading:
https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/tragedy-of-the-
commons-impact-on-sustainability-issues

• Some people think the real capital is the same as

the global output of the world’s GDP( Gross
Domestic product)
• The US GDP=$65 trillion /year
• This means giving economic value to soil, clean air...
Natural capital
Natural resources that can produce sustainable
natural income of goods and services.

Capital (economy)= means of production

e.g. Natural capital= forest // Agroecosystem
Natural income= timber// food
 What is an
Environmental Impact
Assessment (EIA)?
An Environmental Impact Assessment or EIA
is a report prepared before any development
project, for example to convert a forest into a
golf course or to build a new wind farm.
 EIAs provide decision-makers with
information in order to consider the
environmental, social and economic
impacts of a project.
Applied to :
Road networks
Building Power stations
Building dams and water
reservoirs
Airport and port development
Quarrying
Large scale housing projects
Seven Key steps of EIA process:
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 EIAs

• 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

 Weaknesses 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.
Page 46
1.5
HUMANS AND
POLLUTION
What is pollution?
Pollution is the introduction of
substances or energy into the
environment, resulting in
harmful effects to human
health, living resources and
ecosystems.
Pollutants may be in the form of
• organic/inorganic substances (pesticides and
plastics) à matter
• Light ààenergy
energy
• Sound à energy
• heat energy à energy
• biological agents (organisms introduced to
control agricultural pests which may become
pests themselves) à organisms
• invasive species (species that are not native to
a country but which have been introduced)
à organisms
Major sources of pollutants
We distinguish between:

Primary pollutants
• Active on emission

Secondary pollutants
• Result from the chemical/
physical change of primary
pollutants

Sometime we find a
mixtureà like in
photochemical SMOG
(Ch. 6)
Primary pollutants
Primary pollutants are pollutants emitted directly from a process. This
process might be natural (volcanic eruptions, lightning, forest fires) or
anthropogenic (industry, motor vehicle exhausts and combustion of
fossil fuels). Deforestation and burning also contributes to air pollution.

Fossil fuels combustion produces carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide,

unburned hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, Sulphur dioxide and
particulate matter(PM) like black carbon.
Secondary pollutants
Secondary pollutants are pollutants that undergo a variety of reactions
with other chemicals already present in the atmosphere. When
sunlight is involved, the result is called photochemical smog.

Examples of secondary pollutants are tropospheric ozone, NOx and

particular matter.
Point source and non-point source pollution
Point-source pollution (PS) is easy to identify. As the name suggests, it
comes from a single place. Examples: Factories, power plants, municipal
wastewater treatment plants…

Nonpoint-source pollution (NPS) is harder to identify and harder to

address. It is pollution that comes from many places, all at once.
Examples: methane from cattle, gas from the exhaust systems of
vehicles, chemicals spread on fields (fertilizers). It’s hard to detect
exactly its origin.
Because it is impossible to detect where it comes from we need limits of
pollution and monitoring of activities
Point source pollution
Non-point source pollution
Persistent organic pollutants (POP) and
biodegradable pollutants

POPs are resistant to breaking down and remain active in the

environment for a long time. Because of this, they bioaccumulate in
animal and human tissues and biomagnify in food chains, causing
significant harm.

A famous example of POP is DDT, an insecticide used to kill malaria

mosquito (more to come…)
Biodegradable pollutants
• Biodegradable pollutants do not persist in the environment and break
down quickly. They may be broken down by decomposer organisms
or physical processes (light, heat). Examples: soap, domestic sewage,
plastic bags made of starch…
Types of pollutants

POPs
• High molecular weight
• Low solubility in water
• High solubility in fats, lipids and oils
• Halogenated molecules

Biodegradable pollutants
• Do not persist in the environment, they break up quickly
• They still have an impact in the environment
Acute and chronic pollution

High concentrations of a
Acute pollutant are released by
pollution accident

Often goes undetected

for a long time. Chronic
Difficult to clean up. pollution
Widely spread
Detection and monitoring of pollution
• Pollution can be measured directly or indirectly
• Direct measurements – record the amount of pollutant in air, water,
soil
• Indirect measurements record changes in abiotic/ biotic factors
• E.g. presence of rat-tailed maggot in water (polluted)
• Absence of leafy lichens on trees (polluted)
replace

regulate

restore