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WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY ? Dr. Wade Worthen Biology Department

WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY ? Dr. Wade Worthen Biology Department Furman University. sustainability: "a characteristic of a process or state that can be maintained at a certain level indefinitely" - Wikipedia 2007.

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WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY ? Dr. Wade Worthen Biology Department

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  1. WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY? Dr. Wade Worthen Biology Department Furman University

  2. sustainability: "a characteristic of a process or state that can be maintained at a certain level indefinitely" - Wikipedia 2007

  3. sustainability: "a characteristic of a process or state that can be maintained at a certain level indefinitely" - Wikipedia 2007 -In an expanding system, there are always more resources – sustainability is easy

  4. - But in finite, bounded systems, resources will decline and limit the rate of the process UNLESS: - they regenerate fast enough to meet demand

  5. - But in finite, bounded systems, resources will decline and limit the rate of the process UNLESS: • they regenerate fast enough to meet demand • efficiency increases so less is needed

  6. - But in finite, bounded systems, resources will decline and limit the rate of the process UNLESS: • they regenerate fast enough to meet demand • efficiency increases so less is needed • another resource is substituted

  7. sustainability: "a characteristic of a process or state that can be maintained at a certain level indefinitely" • Wikipedia 2007 • Human sustainability: "Meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs." • Brundtland Commission - 1987

  8. WHAT'S NOT SUSTAINABLE IN A FINITE, BOUNDED SYSTEM?

  9. WHAT'S NOT SUSTAINABLE IN A FINITE, BOUNDED SYSTEM? Continuous Growth…

  10. WHY IS THIS AN ISSUE NOW?

  11. WHY IS THIS AN ISSUE NOW? • (NOWbeing the last 150 years!!!! • J. Muir • T. Roosevelt • Leopold • R. Carson • J. Cousteau)

  12. our population has been growing dramatically… requiring more and more of the planet’s resources

  13. - 1 billion: ...to about 1850 - 2 billion: 1928 (about 78 yrs) - 3 billion: 1960 (about 32 yrs) - 5 billion: 1987 (about 13 yrs) - currently 6.78 billion - adding about 220,000 people a day….today….

  14. - 1 billion: ...to about 1850 - 2 billion: 1928 (about 78 yrs) - 3 billion: 1960 (about 32 yrs) - 5 billion: 1987 (about 13 yrs) - currently 6.78 billion - adding about 220,000 people a day now ... and 1/2 are living on less than $2/day... so there is already evidence that we are not "sustaining" our population...

  15. "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." - Edward Abbey

  16. "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." - Edward Abbey

  17. "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." - Edward Abbey

  18. "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." - Edward Abbey

  19. "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." - Edward Abbey

  20. Because of our large population and powerful technologies, we are changing the characteristics of the planet – theonly planet – we depend upon for physical and psychological sustenance and inspiration Human domination of the Earth's ecosystems (Vitousek et al. 1997).

  21. Over the last 150 years, more folks are realizing that: We are stressing our life-support systems… There is nowhere else to go… We are all in this together.

  22. Environmental Sustainability... "The term, in its current usage, refers to the potential longevity of vital human ecological life-support systems, such as agriculture, industry, forestry, fisheries, urban, and human communities in general." ECONOMY SOCIETY ENVIRONMENT

  23. ECONOMY SOCIETY "When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe." - John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra, 1911 ENVIRONMENT

  24. TODAY: - our effects on the natural environment - why that is important - why biodiversity is important to sustainability - what we can do to maintain biodiversity - why we should appreciate biodiversity

  25. Land transformation: Forested Land – U. S.

  26. National Forest | National Park

  27. Land transformation:

  28. Mountaintop removal in West Virginia Humans are a geological force…

  29. Human are affecting 83% of the land surface area of the planet… converting forest to field and field to development

  30. 50% of the freshwater:

  31. 50% of the freshwater: The Colorado, like the Nile, Yellow, and Rio Grande, doesn’t reach the ocean for months each year. All the water is diverted.

  32. 50% of the freshwater: The Aral Sea, Kazakhstan Water diverted for agriculture in 1960; by 2007, Sea had shrunk by 90%

  33. 50% of the freshwater: The Aral Sea, Kazakhstan - Salinization increased, killing the productive fisheries industry - Agricultural lands – salt increased 6X by 1994 the productivity had dropped by 20-50%.

  34. Marine Fisheries: - Global fish catch is declining by 500,000 metric tons/yr from peak in 1987 (Science, 2003). - Predatory fish (tuna, salmon) and bottom fish (flounder, sole) have decreased by 90%. - Farmed fish are fed fish, so that doesn’t relieve the pressure

  35. We are affecting the climate of the planet: 2009: 387 - Highest in last 160,000 years…. (Entire history of Homo sapiens)

  36. We are affecting the climate of the planet: All of recent increase in last 200 yrs…

  37. We are affecting the climate of the planet: Plants can’t absorb it all…

  38. We are affecting the climate of the planet: 2007 – lowest ever 1979 2003

  39. We are affecting the climate of the planet: - Icebergs calving off Ross Shelf – April 2000 (B15 is 4,280 miles2 – about the size of CONNECTICUT….) - Calving off the Larsen Ice Shelf in 2002; it’s 50 miles long and as big as Rhode Island…

  40. We are affecting the climate of the planet: And we are a coastal species…

  41. We are affecting the climate of the planet: - Changes in Plant Growth: Crops if CO2 at 550 ppm

  42. We are affecting the climate of the planet: And we will grow in just the wrong areas… • Changes in Plant Growth: Crops if CO2 at 550 ppm

  43. We are affecting the climate of the planet: And there may be some nasty non-linearities… Permafrost is defined solely by temperature. Any rock or soil remaining at or below 0°C for two or more years is permafrost. Permafrost can contain 0- 30% ice.

  44. We are affecting the climate of the planet: And there may be some nasty non-linearities… transfer of carbon to atmosphere 14% of the world’s organic carbon is stored in permafrost. As the poles warm (and they are warming faster than anywhere else), this will thaw. - and when it melts, marshes are created where anaerobic bacteria dominate, breaking the organics into Methane, not CO2… and methane is a worse greenhouse gas… This is a type of threshold response (not a gradual response), and would involve positive feedback loops…the warmer it gets, the more permafrost melts, and the warmer it gets… BURP! 0 temp 0C

  45. We are affecting the climate of the planet: Things are hotter and drier… In Western U.S., snow pack has declined dramatically, corresponding to a 30%-60% reduction in stream water.

  46. We are affecting the climate of the planet: Things are hotter and drier… In Western U.S., snow pack has declined dramatically, corresponding to a 30%-60% reduction in stream water. Snowmelt begins much earlier; making spring floods and drier summers. Service, 2004. Science 303:1124-1127.

  47. We are affecting the climate of the planet: Things are hotter and drier… In Western U.S., snow pack has declined dramatically, corresponding to a 30%-60% reduction in stream water. Snowmelt begins much earlier; making spring floods and drier summers. Service, 2004. Science 303:1124-1127. And what might you expect as the land gets hotter and drier??

  48. We are affecting the climate of the planet: More fires… Increase in fire frequency and size over the last 10 years…$3 billion to fight fires in the west, 2X amount ten years ago

  49. We are affecting the climate of the planet: And this will affect other organisms… • Change in Ocean Food Webs: • Phytoplankton have shifted northward in Atlantic with warming of surface waters. • They provide ½ global NPP • They are critical to food webs • Shift north may affect zooplankton and perhaps major fisheries. • Richardson and Schoeman, 2004, Science 305:1609-1612

  50. We are affecting the climate of the planet: And this will affect other organisms… - Adding CO2 to atmosphere creates carbonic acid in water - Acidification of sea water reduces calcium carbonate production by marine organisms (coccolithophores, corals, molluscs.) Orr, et al., 2005. Nature. 437:681-686.

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