Preface p. v
Introduction: Learning to Learn p. 1
Objectives p. 1
Why Study Environmental Science? p. 1
How Can I Get an A in This Class? p. 3
Thinking about Thinking p. 6
Concept Maps p. 9
What Do You Think? Don't Believe Everything You See on the Internet p. 10
How Do I Create a Concept Map? p. 11
Environmental Science and Ecological Principles p. 14
Understanding Our Environment p. 15
Objectives p. 15
Essential Study Partner p. 15
Deformed Frogs p. 16
What Is Environmental Science? p. 17
A Brief History of Conservation and Environmentalism p. 17
Current Conditions p. 20
What Do You Think? Cultural Whaling in the Pacific Northwest p. 23
North/South: A Divided World p. 24
Human Development p. 28
In Depth: Getting to Know Our Neighbors p. 32
Environmental Perspectives p. 33
Environmental Ethics and Philosophy p. 36
Objectives p. 36
Essential Study Partner p. 36
People or Wildlife in South Africa? p. 37
Environmental Ethics and Philosophy p. 37
Worldviews and Ethical Perspectives p. 41
What Do You Think? Worldviews and Values p. 42
Environmental Justice p. 44
Science as a Way of Knowing p. 47
Case Study: Squirrels or Science?
Profile: Environmental Activist p. 53
Matter, Energy, and Life p. 54
Objectives p. 54
Essential Study Partner p. 54
The Mystery of Lake Lebarge p. 55
From Atoms to Cells p. 55
Energy and Matter p. 58
Energy for Life p. 59
From Species to Ecosystems p. 61
What Do You Think? Chaos or Stability in Ecosystems? p. 63
Material Cycles and Life Processes p. 67
In Depth: Water Planet p. 70
Biological Communities and Species Interaction p. 77
Objectives p. 77
Essential Study Partner p. 77
Orcas, Otters, Urchins, and Kelp: Disrupting a Marine Food Web p. 78
Who Lives Where, and Why? p. 79
Species Interactions and Community Dynamics p. 83
Case Study: Where Have All the Songbirds Gone? p. 86
What Do You Think? Understanding Competition p. 88
Community Properties p. 90
What Can You Do? Developing a Sense for Where You Live p. 94
Communities in Transition p. 96
Profile: Environmental Advocate p. 101
Biomes, Landscapes, Restoration, and Management p. 102
Objectives p. 102
Essential Study Partner p. 102
Integrity, Stability, and Beauty of the Land p. 103
Terrestrial Biomes p. 103
Aquatic Ecosystems p. 109
Human Disturbance p. 113
Landscape Ecology p. 115
Restoration Ecology p. 116
Case Study: Restoration of the Bermuda Cahow p. 120
Ecosystem Management p. 121
Population, Economics, Policy, and Health p. 126
Population Dynamics p. 127
Objectives p. 127
Essential Study Partner p. 127
Columbia River Salmon p. 128
Dynamics of Population Growth p. 129
What Do You Think? What Is Earth's Carrying Capacity for Humans? p. 133
Factors that Increase or Decrease Populations p. 134
Factors that Regulate Population Growth p. 136
Profile: Environmental Engineer p. 140
Human Populations p. 141
Objectives p. 141
Essential Study Partner p. 141
The Saga of Easter Island p. 142
Population Growth p. 142
Limits to Growth: Some Opposing Views p. 144
What Do You Think? Looking for Bias in Graphs p. 146
Human Demography p. 147
Case Study: Family Planning in Thailand p. 153
Population Growth: Opposing Factors p. 153
Demographic Transition p. 156
Family Planning and Fertility Control p. 158
What Can You Do? Personal Fertility p. 160
The Future of Human Populations p. 160
Ecological Economics p. 165
Objectives p. 165
Essential Study Partner p. 127
Creating Another Earth p. 166
Origins of Our Economic Worldviews p. 166
Classical Economics p. 166
Resources, Capital, and Reserves p. 169
Population, Technology, and Scarcity p. 172
Natural Resource Accounting p. 175
Trade, Development, and Jobs p. 179
Green Business p. 180
Case Study: Eco-Efficient Carpeting from Interface, Inc. p. 182
What Can You Do? Personally Responsible Consumerism p. 184
Profile: Environmental Consultant p. 187
Environmental Health and Toxicology p. 188
Objectives p. 188
Essential Study Partner p. 188
Outbreak: Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever p. 189
Types of Environmental Health Hazards p. 190
Case Study: Fighting the Fiery Serpent p. 193
What Can You Do? Tips for Staying Healthy p. 196
Movement, Distribution, and Fate of Toxins p. 199
What Do You Think? Soft Vinyl Toys and Medical Supplies p. 200
Mechanisms for Minimizing Toxic Effects p. 202
Measuring Toxicity p. 203
Risk Assessment and Acceptance p. 205
Establishing Public Policy p. 207
Food, Land and Biological Resources p. 210
Environmental Policy, Law, and Planning p. 211
Objectives p. 211
Essential Study Partner p. 211
A Civil Action p. 212
Environmental Policy p. 213
Environmental Law p. 215
International Treaties and Conventions p. 224
Dispute Resolution and Planning p. 225
What Do You Think? The Quincy Library Group p. 230
Profile: Environmental Affairs Coordinator p. 234
Food and Agriculture p. 235
Objectives p. 235
Essential Study Partner p. 235
Are Shrimp Safe to Eat? p. 236
Nutrition and Food Supplies p. 237
Major Food Sources p. 241
Soil: A Renewable Resource p. 242
Ways We Use and Abuse Soil p. 245
Other Agricultural Resources p. 249
New Crops and Genetic Engineering p. 250
Sustainable Agriculture p. 253
What Do You Think? Terminator Genes p. 254
Case Study: Organic Farming in Cuba p. 256
Pest Control p. 261
Objectives p. 261
Essential Study Partner p. 261
DDT and Fragile Eggshells p. 262
What Are Pests and Pesticides? p. 262
A Brief History of Pest Control p. 263
Pesticide Uses and Types p. 264
Pesticide Benefits p. 265
Pesticide Problems p. 266
What Do You Think? Environmental Estrogens p. 268
Alternatives to Current Pesticide Uses p. 271
Case Study: Regenerative Agriculture in Iowa p. 273
Reducing Pesticide Exposure p. 275
What Can You Do? Food Safety Tips p. 277
Profile: Conservation Fund Raiser p. 278
Biodiversity p. 281
Objectives p. 281
Essential Study Partner p. 281
Too Many Geese p. 282
Biodiversity and the Species Concept p. 283
How Do We Benefit from Biodiversity? p. 284
What Threatens Biodiversity? p. 287
What Can You Do? Don't Eat Endangered Seafood p. 291
Endangered Species Management and Biodiversity Protection p. 295
What Do You Think? Economic Impacts of the Endangered Species Act p. 300
Zoos, Botanical Gardens, and Captive Breeding Programs p. 301
Land Use: Forests and Rangelands p. 304
Objectives p. 304
Essential Study Partner p. 304
Disappearing Butterfly Forests p. 305
World Land Uses p. 306
World Forests p. 306
Case Study: Forestry for the Seventh Generation p. 310
Tropical Forests p. 311
Temperate Forests p. 315
What Do You Think? Regulations and Property Rights p. 317
Rangelands p. 319
What Can You Do? Lowering Our Forest Impacts p. 320
Landownership and Land Reform p. 324
Profile: Wetland Delineator p. 329
Preserving Nature p. 330
Objectives p. 330
Essential Study Partner p. 330
Ecotourism on the Roof of the World p. 331
Parks and Nature Preserves p. 332
What Do You Think? Yellowstone Wolves p. 336
Wilderness Areas p. 342
Wildlife Refuges p. 343
Case Study: Zimbabwe's "Campfire" Program p. 342
Wetlands, Floodplains, and Coastal Regions p. 346
Physical Resources p. 352
Environmental Geology p. 353
Objectives p. 353
Essential Study Partner p. 353
Earthquake in Turkey p. 354
A Dynamic Planet p. 355
Rocks and Minerals p. 356
Economic Geology and Mineralogy p. 358
Environmental Effects of Resource Extraction p. 360
What Do You Think? Should We Revise Mining Laws? p. 361
Case Study: Mining a Tropical Paradise p. 363
Conserving Geologic Resources p. 364
Geologic Hazards p. 366
Profile: Fisheries Biologist p. 372
Air, Climate, and Weather p. 373
Objectives p. 373
Essential Study Partner p. 373
A Swarm of Deadly Tornadoes Sweeps across the Great Plains p. 374
Composition and Structure of the Atmosphere p. 375
The Great Weather Engine p. 376
Weather p. 378
Climate p. 384
What Do You Think? Reasoned Judgment and Scientific Uncertainty p. 390
Profile: Interpretive Naturalist
Air Pollution p. 395
Objectives p. 395
Essential Study Partner p. 395
A Plague of Smoke p. 396
The Air Around Us p. 397
Natural Sources of Air Pollution p. 397
Human-Caused Air Pollution p. 398
In Depth: Indoor Air p. 404
Climate, Topography, and Atmospheric Processes p. 404
Effects of Air Pollution p. 408
Air Pollution Control p. 412
What Can You Do? Saving Energy and Reducing Pollution p. 415
Clean Air Legislation p. 416
Current Conditions and Future Prospects p. 417
Water Use and Management p. 421
Objectives p. 421
Essential Study Partner p. 421
Where Has the River Gone? p. 422
Water Resources p. 422
Major Water Compartments p. 426
Water Availability and Use p. 429
Freshwater Shortages p. 433
Case Study: Rural Water Programs in Malawi p. 434
Increasing Water Supplies p. 436
What Do You Think? Should We Remove Dams? p. 438
Water Management and Conservation p. 439
What Can You Do? Saving Water and Preventing Pollution p. 440
Water Pollution p. 446
Objectives p. 446
Essential Study Partner p. 446
A Flood of Pigs p. 447
What Is Water Pollution? p. 447
Types and Effects of Water Pollution p. 449
In Depth: Arsenic in Drinking Water p. 454
Water Quality Today p. 456
Case Study: Watershed Protection in the Catskills p. 463
Water Pollution Control p. 463
Water Legislation p. 469
Profile: Environmental Manager p. 473
Conventional Energy p. 474
Objectives p. 474
Essential Study Partner p. 474
Black Gold from the Caspian p. 475
What Is Energy and Where Do We Get it? p. 476
How Energy Is Used p. 477
Coal p. 478
Oil p. 481
Case Study: Oil Versus Wildlife p. 483
Natural Gas p. 484
Nuclear Power p. 485
What Do You Think? Chernobyl: Could It Happen Here? p. 488
Radioactive Waste Management p. 491
Changing Fortunes of Nuclear Power p. 493
Nuclear Fusion p. 494
Sustainable Energy p. 498
Objectives p. 498
Essential Study Partner p. 498
Buffalo Ridge p. 499
Conservation p. 499
What Do You Think? Hybrid Automobile Engines p. 501
In Depth: Personal Energy Efficiency p. 502
What Can You Do? Some Things You Can Do to Save Energy p. 504
Tapping Solar Energy p. 504
High-Temperature Solar Energy p. 506
Fuel Cells p. 509
Energy from Biomass p. 511
Energy from the Earth's Forces p. 515
Society and the Environment p. 524
Solid, Toxic, and Hazardous Waste p. 525
Objectives p. 525
Essential Study Partner p. 525
What a Long, Strange Trip It Has Been p. 526
Solid Waste p. 527
Waste Disposal Methods p. 527
Shrinking the Waste Stream p. 531
In Depth: Building a Home Compost Pile p. 534
What Can You Do? Reducing Waste p. 536
Hazardous and Toxic Wastes p. 536
What Do You Think? Environmental Justice p. 540
What Can You Do? Alternatives to Hazardous Household Chemicals p. 543
Urbanization and Sustainable Cities p. 547
Objectives p. 547
Essential Study Partner p. 547
Chattanooga, A Model Sustainable City p. 548
Urbanization p. 548
Causes of Urban Growth p. 551
Current Urban Problems p. 553
What Do You Think? People for Community Recovery p. 557
Transportation and City Growth p. 558
City Planning p. 558
Sustainable Development in the Third World p. 565
Case Study: Curitiba: An Environmental Showcase p. 566
What then Shall We Do? p. 569
Objectives p. 569
Essential Study Partner p. 569
The Battle in Seattle p. 570
Environmental Education p. 571
Individual Accountability p. 574
What Can You Do? Reducing Consumption p. 575
Collective Actions p. 577
What Do You Think? When Is Confrontation Appropriate? p. 580
What Do You Think? When Is Cooperation Helpful? p. 581
What Do You Think? Evaluating Extremist Claims p. 584
Global Issues p. 584
Green Government and Environmental Citizenship p. 588
Units of Measurement Metric/English Conversions p. 594
Glossary p. 595
Credits p. 613
Index p. 615