Environment the science behind the stories

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Cover Brief Contents Title Page Copyright Page About the Authors Contents Preface Acknowledgments Part1 Foundations of Environmental Science 1 Science and Sustainability: An Introduction to Environmental Science Our Island, Earth Environmental Science The Nature of Science THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Are the Lessons of Easter Island? Seeking a Sustainable Future 2 Earth’s Physical Systems: Matter, Energy, and Geology CENTRAL CASE STUDY: What Is the Legacy of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Tragedy? Matter, Chemistry, and the Environment THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are Yeast the Answer to Cleaning Up Nuclear Waste? Energy: An Introduction Geology: The Physical Basis for Environmental Science Geologic and Natural Hazards THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are the Earthquakes Rattling Oklahoma Caused by Human Activity? 3 Evolution and Population Ecology CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Saving Hawaii’s Native Forest Birds Evolution: The Source of Earth’s Biodiversity THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Do Species Form in Hawaii’s “Natural Laboratory” of Evolution? Ecology and the Organism Population Ecology THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Is Forest Restoration Boosting Bird Populations at Hakalau Forest? Conserving Biodiversity 4 Species Interactions and Community Ecology CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Leaping Fish, Backwards River: Asian Carp Threaten the Great Lakes Species Interactions Ecological Communities THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Do Asian Carp Affect Aquatic Communities? THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Do Communities Recover after Catastrophic Disturbance? Earth’s Biomes 5 Environmental Systems and Ecosystem Ecology CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Saving the Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem Earth’s Environmental Systems Ecosystems THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are We “Turning the Tide” for Native Oysters in Chesapeake Bay? THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are Fertilizers from Midwestern Farms Causing a “Dead Zone” in the Gulf of Mexico? Biogeochemical Cycles 6 Ethics, Economics, and Sustainable Development CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Costa Rica Values Its Ecosystem Services Environmental Ethics Economics and the Environment THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Do Payments Help Preserve Forest? THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Ethics and Economics: How Much Will Global Climate Change Cost? Sustainable Development 7 Environmental Policy: Making Decisions and Solving Problems CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Young Americans Take on Climate Change in the Courts Environmental Policy: An Overview THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Does the Science on Climate Change Tell Us? U.S. Environmental Law and Policy International Environmental Policy Approaches to Environmental Policy Part2 Environmental Issues and the Search for Solutions 8 Human Population CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Will China’s New “Two‐Child Policy” Defuse Its Population “Time Bomb”? Our World at Nearly 8 Billion THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Measuring Our“Human Footprint”: A Roadmap to Sustainability and Prosperity? Demography Population and Society THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Did Soap Operas Help Reduce Fertility in Brazil? 9 The Underpinnings of Agriculture CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Bees to the Rescue: By Helping Pollinators, Farmers Help Themselves Resources and Services for Agriculture Soil: A Foundation of Agriculture Water for Agriculture Nutrients for Plants Pollination for Farming Preserving Genetic Diversity THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: If We Help Pollinators, Will It Boost Crop Production? Conserving Soil and Land Resources 10 Making Agriculture Sustainable CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Sustainable Food and Dining at the University of Michigan The Race to Feed the World Raising Animals for Food Controlling Pests and Weeds Genetically Modified Food THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Are the Impacts of GM Crops? Organic Agriculture THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Productive Is Organic Farming? Sustainable Food Production 11 Biodiversity and Its Conservation CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Will We Slice through the Serengeti? Life’s Diversity on Earth Benefits of Biodiversity Biodiversity Loss and Extinction THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are Insects Vanishing? Conservation Biology: The Search for Solutions THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Can Forensic DNA Analysis Help Save Elephants? 12 Forests, Forest Management, and Protected Areas CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Saving the World’s Greatest Rainforest Forest Ecosystems and Forest Resources Forest Loss Forest Management Parks and Protected Areas THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Happens When a Forest Is Fragmented? 13 The Urban Environment: Creating Sustainable Cities CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Managing Growth in Portland, Oregon Our Urbanizing World Sprawl Creating Livable Cities Urban Sustainability THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Do Baltimore and Phoenix Function as Ecosystems? 14 Environmental Health and Toxicology CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Are We Being Poisoned by Our Food Packaging? Environmental Health THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are Endocrine Disruptors Lurking in Your Fast Food? Toxic Substances and Their Effects on Organisms Toxic Substances and Their Effects on Ecosystems Studying Effects of Hazards THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Role Do Pesticides Play in the Collapse of Bee Colonies? Risk Assessment and Risk Management Philosophical and Policy Approaches 15 Freshwater Systems and Resources CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Reaching the Tipping Point: Fracking and Fresh Water in West Texas Freshwater Systems THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Are We Destined for a Future of “Megadroughts” in the United States? Human Activities Affect Waterways Solutions to Depletion of Fresh Water Freshwater Pollution and Its Control THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What’s Killing Smallmouth Bass in the Potomac River Watershed? 16 Marine and Coastal Systems and Resources CENTRAL CASE STUDY: A Sea of Plastic in the Middle of the Ocean The Oceans THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Can We Predict the Oceans’ “Garbage Patches”? Marine and Coastal Ecosystems Marine Pollution Emptying the Oceans THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Inventorying the Great Pacific Garbage Patch Marine Conservation 17 The Atmosphere, Air Quality, and Air Pollution Control CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Clearing the Air in L.A. and Mexico City The Atmosphere Outdoor Air Quality THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Does Air Pollution Affect the Brain, as Well as the Lungs and the Heart? Ozone Depletion and Recovery THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Did Scientists Discover Ozone Depletion and Its Causes? Addressing Acid Deposition Indoor Air Quality 18 Global Climate Change CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Rising Seas Threaten South Florida Our Dynamic Climate Studying Climate Change THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Can We Learn from the World’s Longest Ice Core? Impacts of Climate Change THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Why and How Does Global Warming Lead to Extreme Weather Events? Responding to Climate Change 19 Fossil Fuels and Energy Efficiency CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Alberta’s Oil Sands and the Keystone XL Pipeline: Canadian Camaraderie or Climate Catastrophe? Sources of Energy Fossil Fuels: Their Formation, Extraction, and Use THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Do We Find and Estimate Fossil Fuel Deposits? Reaching Further for Fossil Fuels Addressing Impacts of Fossil Fuel Use THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Were the Impacts of the Gulf Oil Spill? Energy Efficiency and Conservation 20 Conventional Energy Alternatives CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Will Sweden Free Itself of Fossil Fuels? Alternatives to Fossil Fuels Nuclear Power THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: What Health Impacts Have Resulted from Chernobyl and Fukushima? Bioenergy THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Which Energy Sources Have the Best EROI Values? Hydroelectric Power 21 New Renewable Energy Sources CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Harnessing Wind and Sun in Texas and Germany Shifting to Renewable Energy THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Can We Power the World with Renewable Energy? Solar Energy Wind Power THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: How Well Do Wind and Solar Complement One Another in Texas? Geothermal Energy Ocean Energy Sources Energy Storage 22 Managing Our Waste CENTRAL CASE STUDY: A Mania for Recycling on Campus Approaches to Waste Management Municipal Solid Waste THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Can Campus Research Help Reduce Waste? Industrial Solid Waste Hazardous Waste 23 Minerals and Mining CENTRAL CASE STUDY: Mining for . . . Cell Phones? Earth’s Mineral Resources Mining Methods and Their Impacts THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE STORY: Mapping Mountaintop Mining’s “Footprint” in Appalachia Toward Sustainable Mineral Use Appendix A How to Interpret Graphs Appendix B Metric System Appendix C Periodic Table of the Elements Appendix D Geologic Time Scale Glossary A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P R S T U V W X Z Selected Sources and References for Further Reading Photo Credits Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z