Table Of ContentBrief Contents
Preface xiii part four harneSSing
energy For human
part onE Framework For SocietieS 334
a SuStainable Future 1
14 Energy from Fossil Fuels 335
1 Science and the Environment 2 15 Nuclear Power 362
2 Economics, Politics,
16 Renewable Energy 385
and Public Policy 23
part fivE Pollution
part two ecology: the
and Prevention 408
Science oF organiSmS
and their environment 47 17 Environmental Hazards
and Human Health 409
3 Basic Needs of Living Things 48
18 Global Climate Change 435
4 Populations and Communities 73
19 Atmospheric Pollution 465
5 Ecosystems: Energy,
20 Water Pollution and Its
Patterns, and Disturbance 99
Prevention 498
6 Wild Species and Biodiversity 126
21 Municipal Solid Waste:
7 The Value, Use, and Restoration
Disposal and Recovery 524
of Ecosystems 155
22 Hazardous Chemicals:
part thrEE the human Pollution and Prevention 545
PoPulation and eSSential
part six StewardShiP For
reSourceS 183
a SuStainable Future 567
8 The Human Population 184
23 Sustainable Communities
9 Population and Development 211
and Lifestyles 568
10 Water: Hydrologic Cycle
and Human Use 233 Appendix A
11 Soil: The Foundation for Land answers to concept checks
and understanding the data a-1
Ecosystems 260
Appendix B
12 The Production and Distribution
environmental organizations b-1
of Food 282
Appendix C
13 Pests and Pest Control 310 units of measure c-1
Appendix D
Some basic chemical concepts d-1
glossary g-1
index i-1
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EnvironmEntal
Science
Toward a SuSTainable FuTure 13E
Richard T. Wright | Dorothy F. Boorse
Gordon College
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about our SuStainability initiativES
Pearson recognizes the environmental challenges facing this planet, as well as acknowl-
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request from Publisher.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12—V303—18 17 16 15
www.pearsonhighered.com ISBN-10: 0-134-01127-9; ISBN-13: 978-0-134-01127-1
about the authors
Richard T. Wright is Professor Emeritus of Biology at Gordon College in Massachusetts,
where he taught environmental science for 28 years. He earned a B.A. from Rutgers University
and an M.A. and a Ph.D. in biology from Harvard University. For many years, Wright received
grant support from the National Science Foundation for his work in marine microbiology, and
in 1981, he was a founding faculty member of Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies
in Michigan, where he also served as Academic Chairman for 11 years. He is a Fellow of the
American A ssociation for the Advancement of Science, Au Sable Institute, and the American
Scientific Affiliation. In 1996, Wright was appointed a Fulbright Scholar to Daystar University in
Kenya, where he taught for two months. He is a member of many environmental organizations,
including the Nature Conservancy, Habitat for Humanity, the Union of Concerned Scientists,
and the Audubon Society, and is a supporting member of the Trustees of Reservations. He
volunteers his services at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge in Newbury, Massachusetts,
and is an elder in First Presbyterian Church of the North Shore. Wright and his wife, Ann, live in
Byfield, Massachusetts, and they drive a Toyota Camry hybrid vehicle as a means of reducing
their environmental impact. Wright spends his spare time birding, fishing, hiking, and enjoying
his three children and seven grandchildren.
Dorothy F. Boorse is a professor of biology at Gordon College in Wenham,
Massachusetts. Her research interest is in drying wetlands, such as vernal pools and prairie
potholes, and in salt marshes. Her research with undergraduates has included wetland
and invasive species projects. She earned a B.S. in biology from Gordon College, an M.S.
in entomology from Cornell University, and a Ph.D. in oceanography and limnology from
the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Boorse teaches, writes, and speaks about biology,
the environment, ecological justice, and care of creation. She was recently an author on a
report on poverty and climate change. In 2005, Boorse provided expert testimony on wildlife
corridors and environmental ethics for a Congressional House subcommittee hearing. Boorse
is a member of a number of ecological and environmental societies, including the Ecological
Society of America, the Society of Wetland Scientists, the Nature Conservancy, the Audubon
Society, the New England Wildflower Society, and the Trustees of Reservations (the oldest
land conservancy group in the United States). She and her family live in Beverly, Massachusetts.
They belong to Appleton Farms, a CSA (community-supported agriculture) farm. At home,
Boorse has a native plant garden and has planted two disease-resistant elm trees.
iii
iv About the Authors
Dedication
This edition is dedicated to Sylvia Earle (1935–), marine scientist and tireless advocate for the
environment. An oceanographer, explorer, author, company founder, and lecturer, Earle has lived
out a fantastic dream to study the oceans, and fearlessly pursued that goal when opportunities for
women were limited. After receiving her Ph.D. in 1966, Earle was a research fellow at Harvard and
then moved to Florida, where she took underwater research dives, setting records for women’s depth
diving, and leading an all-female team of aquanauts in an underwater research project. While she
has many other accomplishments as well, Earle is particularly noted for being Chief Scientist at the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from 1990 to 1992, and a National Geographic
Explorer-in-Residence since 1998. Earle has founded three companies, which produce robotics and
other ocean exploration equipment.
In 1998, Earle was named the first “Hero for the Planet” by Time magazine. In 2009, she
won a TED prize, which come with money to carry out a vision for global change. She used
that opportunity to launch a nonprofit, Mission Blue, which aims to establish what Earle calls
“hope spots,” or marine protected areas around the globe. It is an honor to dedicate this
book to someone who is such a good scientist and has done so much to help the environment.
Earle represents the themes of sound science, stewardship, and sustainability in a way few
people do. She is a real hero for our time. In her own words, she calls upon us to act to protect
the ocean:
“People ask: Why should I care about the ocean? Because the ocean is the cornerstone of
Earth’s life support system, it shapes climate and weather. It holds most of life on Earth.
Ninety-seven percent of Earth’s water is there. It’s the blue heart of the planet—we should
take care of our heart. It’s what makes life possible for us. We still have a really good chance
to make things better than they are. They won’t get better unless we take the action and
inspire others to do the same thing. No one is without power. Everybody has the capacity to
do something.”
– Sylvia Earle in the film Bag It: Is Your Life Too Plastic?
(Paramount Classics 2010)
contents
Preface xiv 2.3 Economy, Environment, and Ethics 32
Human Rights and Resources 32
Intergenerational Equity 32
Part onE FRAMEWORK FOR Waste 33
2.4 Environmental Public Policy 33
A SUSTAINABlE FUTURE 1
Policy in the United States 34
Policy Options: Market or Regulatory? 35
1
Science and the Environment 2 The Public Policy Life Cycle 36
Economic Effects of Environmental Public
1.1 A Paradox: What Is the Real State
Policy 37
of the Planet? 3
Population Growth and Human Well-Being 3 ❚ SuStainability California’s Green
Ecosystem Goods and Services 4 Economy 39
Global Climate Change 7 2.5 Cost-Benefit Analysis of Environmental
Loss of Biodiversity 8 Public Policy 39
Environmental Science and the Environmental External Costs 39
Movement 8 Environmental Regulations Impose
1.2 Sustainability 10 Real Costs 40
Sustainable Yields 10 The Benefits of Environmental Regulation 41
Sustainable Societies 11 Cost-Effectiveness Analysis 42
Sustainable Development 11 Progress 42
An Essential Transition 12 2.6 Getting Society to Agree on Policy 43
1.3 Sound Science 12 Citizen Involvement 43
The Scientific Method 12 Change the Economy to Green 44
❚ SounD SciEncE Oysters Sound the Alarm 13 International Regulation 44
The Scientific Community 16 Revisiting the Themes 45
1.4 Stewardship 17 Review Questions 45
❚ StEwarDShiP Protecting Forests 17 Thinking Environmentally 46
Who Are the Stewards? 18 Making a Difference 46
Justice and Equity 19
1.5 Moving Toward a Sustainable Future 19
Social Changes 19
Environmental Changes 19
A New Commitment 20
Revisiting the Themes 21
Review Questions 21
Thinking Environmentally 22
Making a Difference 22
2
Economics, Politics,
and Public Policy 23
2.1 Economics and the Environment 24
Relationships Between Economic
Development and the Environment 24
Economic Systems 24
International Economies and Trade 26
The Need for a Sustainable Economy 27
2.2 Resources in a Sustainable Economy 27
Measuring the Wealth of Nations 28
Measuring True Economic Progress 29
v
vi Contents
Part two ECOlOGy: THE 4.2 Limits on Populations 78
Density Dependence and Independence 79
SCIENCE OF ORGANISMS
Critical Number 79
AND THEIR ENvIRONMENT 47 4.3 Community Interactions 80
Predation 80
3 Competition 83
Basic Needs of Living Things 48
Mutualism 86
3.1 Organisms in Their Environment 49 Commensalism 86
The Hierarchy of Ecology 49 ❚ SounD SciEncE Studying Finches:
3.2 Environmental Factors 53 The Life of a Scientist 87
Optimums, Zones of Stress, and Limits
4.4 Evolution as a Force for Change 88
of Tolerance 53
Selective Pressure 88
3.3 Matter in Living and Nonliving Systems 54 Adaptations to the Environment 88
Basic Units of Matter 55 Drifting Continents 92
Four Spheres 55
4.5 Implications for Management by Humans 94
Organic Compounds 57
Introduced Species 94
3.4 Matter and Energy 59 Ecological Lessons 96
Energy Basics 59 ❚ SounD SciEncE The Biological
Energy Changes in Organisms 62
Detective: The Case of Spotted Knapweed 96
One-Way Flow of Energy 64
Revisiting the Themes 97
3.5 The Cycling of Matter in Ecosystems 64
Review Questions 97
The Carbon Cycle 64
Thinking Environmentally 98
The Phosphorus Cycle 65
The Nitrogen Cycle 66 Making a Difference 98
The Sulfur Cycle 68
5
❚ SuStainability Planetary Boundaries 69 Ecosystems: Energy, Patterns,
Comparing the Cycles 69 and Disturbance 99
Revisiting the Themes 71
5.1 Characteristics of Ecosystems 100
Review Questions 71 Trophic Levels, Food Chains, and Food Webs 100
Thinking Environmentally 72 Trophic Categories 101
Making a Difference 72 Limits on Trophic Levels 105
5.2 The Flow of Energy Through
4
Populations and Communities 73 the Food Web 106
The Fate of Food 106
4.1 Dynamics of Natural Populations 74
Energy Flow and Efficiency 106
Population Growth Curves 74
Aquatic Systems 106
Biotic Potential Versus Environmental
Resistance 75 5.3 From Ecosystems to Biomes 107
The Role of Climate 107
❚ SuStainability Elephants in Kruger
Microclimate and Other Abiotic Factors 110
National Park: How many is too many? 76
Biome Productivity 112
5.4 Ecosystem Responses to Disturbance 113
Ecological Succession 113
Disturbance and Resilience 115
5.5 Human Values and Ecosystem
Sustainability 118
Appropriation of Energy Flow 118
❚ SounD SciEncE What Are the Effects
of Reintroducing a Predator? 118
Involvement in Nutrient Cycling 119
Value of Ecosystem Capital 120
Can Ecosystems Be Restored? 121
Managing Ecosystems 122
The Future 122
❚ StEwarDShiP Local Control Helps Restore
Woodlands 123
Revisiting the Themes 124
Review Questions 124
Thinking Environmentally 125
Making a Difference 125
Contents vii
6 Final Thoughts 180
Wild Species and Biodiversity 126
Revisiting the Themes 181
6.1 The Value of Wild Species and Biodiversity 127
Review Questions 181
Biological Wealth 127
Thinking Environmentally 182
Two Kinds of Value 128
Sources for Food and Raw Materials 128 Making a Difference 182
Sources for Medicine 129
Recreational, Aesthetic, and Scientific Value 130
Value for Their Own Sake 132 Part thrEE THE HUMAN
6.2 Biodiversity and Its Decline 132 POPUlATION AND
How Many Species? 132
The Decline of Biodiversity 133 ESSENTIAl RESOURCES 183
Reasons for the Decline 135
❚ StEwarDShiP Lake Erie’s Island 8 The Human Population 184
Snake Lady 141
8.1 Humans and Population Ecology 185
Consequences of Losing Biodiversity 141
r- or K-Strategists 186
Moving Forward 142
Revolutions 187
6.3 Saving Wild Species 143 Do Humans Have a Carrying Capacity? 189
The Science of Conservation 143
8.2 Population and Consumption—Different
Nonprofit Efforts 143
Worlds 190
Individuals and Corporations 144
Rich Nations, Middle-Income Nations,
Governments: Local, State, and National Policies 144
Poor Nations 190
Protecting Endangered Species 145
Moving Up: Good News 192
Seeing Success 149
Population Growth in Rich and
6.4 Protecting Biodiversity Internationally 150 Poor Nations 193
International Developments 150 Different Populations, Different Problems 195
❚ SounD SciEncE Using DNA to Catch 8.3 Consequences of Population Growth
Wildlife Criminals 151 and Affluence 197
Stewardship Concerns 152 Consequences of Rapid Growth 197
Revisiting the Themes 153 ❚ StEwarDShiP Lessening Your Ecological
Review Questions 154 Footprint 197
Thinking Environmentally 154 Consequences of Affluence 200
Sustainable Consumption 201
Making a Difference 154
8.4 Projecting Future Populations 201
7 The Value, Use, and Population Profiles 201
Predicting Populations 202
Restoration of Ecosystems 155
The Demographic Transition 207
7.1 Ecosystem Capital and Services 156 Revisiting the Themes 209
Ecosystems as Natural Resources 157 Review Questions 210
7.2 Types of Ecosystem Uses 158 Thinking Environmentally 210
Conservation Versus Preservation 159
Making a Difference 210
Patterns of Human Use of Natural Ecosystems 159
❚ SuStainability How Much for
That Irrigation Water? 162
7.3 Terrestrial Ecosystems Under Pressure 164
Forest Ecosystems 164
Grassland Ecosystems 168
7.4 Ocean Ecosystems Under Pressure 168
Ocean Goods and Ecosystem Services 169
Threats to Ocean Ecosystems 169
Aquaculture: A Mixed Bag 172
Solutions to Ocean Problems 173
7.5 Protection and Restoration 174
Public and Private Lands in the United States 174
International Ecosystem Protection 177
Ecosystem Restoration 177
❚ SounD SciEncE Restoration Science:
Learning How to Restore 178
