Environmental Issues: Local, Regional, Global

Unit III Environmental Issues: Local, Regional and Global Dr. Deepshikha Mehra ▪ This unit contains Environmental issues and scales, Pollution, Land use and Land cover change, Global change,  Environmental issues Is There Really a Global Environmental and Clima...

Unit III Environmental Issues: Local, Regional and Global Dr. Deepshikha Mehra ▪ This unit contains Environmental issues and scales, Pollution, Land use and Land cover change, Global change,  Environmental issues Is There Really a Global Environmental and Climate crisis? Indications of current state of the climate and the planet – indications of environment crisis 1. Global warming and climate change clear signs of global warming and the resultant climate change Average global temperatures - rising during the twentieth century first decade of the twenty-first century was the warmest on record. Worldwide, extreme weather including droughts, floods, and storms - become more common. Glaciers all over the world are melting. In India, eight out of ten warmest years occurred during the decade 2001–2010. In 2013, the very severe cyclone Phailin made landfall on the Odisha coast, affecting 12 million people. Weather patterns have changed drastically in many parts of the country. Sept 2024 – Hurricane Helena has devastated Florida Classified as a severe cyclonic storm by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), Cyclone Phailin originated over east central Bay of Bengal and has since intensified moving north-westwards, 800 km southeast of Paradip (Odisha) and 870 km east-southeast of Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh).  Storm clouds from Helene Satellite image from early over Havana, Cuba, on Thursday morning shows September 24 Hurricane Helene approaching the Florida coast.  2. Population world population - reached 7 billion in 2011 and is expected to reach 10 billion by 2100. just 12 years - from 6 to 7 billion. The largest share - countries that are currently low-income ones. India’s - 1.3 billion in early 2015 – now above 1.4 billion – most populous country. By 2050 - 1.65 billion 3. Water and sanitation Two billion people live in countries that are already water-stressed By 2025, two-thirds of the world population may suffer water stress. 80 countries suffer from serious water shortages now. Half the world population lacks sanitation facilities. During 1911–2014, India lost 50% of its lakes and wetlands to other uses. More than 60,000 villages are without a single source of drinking water. Over 110 million rural households are without toilets but this scenario is changing in India.  4. Loss of Biological diversity known species, 30% of amphibians, 25% of mammals, 12% of birds, 25% of reptiles, and 21% of fish species are threatened with extinction. current extinction rate - 100 to 1000 times the rate at which species naturally disappear More than 10% of India’s recorded wild flora and fauna are threatened and many on verge of extinction 5. Forests Loss 2000–2010 - world lost around 13 million ha of forest every year. Tropical forests - cleared at the rate of 70,000 to 170,000 sq km annually (equal to 20–50 soccer fields per minute). India has lost about 94 million ha of natural forests since 2000.  6. Land Degradation Each year - 6 million ha. of agricultural land are lost due to desertification and soil degradation. about 250 million people in the world affected 40% of India’s land has been degraded. We lose 5.3 billion tons of topsoil every year. During 2007–2014, 57,000 ha of land were diverted for industrial and non-agricultural uses. 7. Air Pollution At least 1 billion people in the world breathe unhealthy air and 3 million die annually due to air pollution. Air pollution levels are still above the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines in most developing countries. WHO said in 2014 that Indian cities were among those with the highest levels of air pollution. India has the highest rate of deaths caused by chronic respiratory diseases in the world, primarily caused by such pollution.  8. Exploitation of Ocean and coastal areas Overfishing and ocean acidification is placing all of marine life at risk. Large areas of the ocean have become dead zones without any life. Worldwide, 50% of coastal mangroves and corals that perform vital ecological functions have been destroyed. Industrial effluents, domestic waste, agricultural runoff, shipping activity, and offshore exploration cause heavy pollution of the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. Over the past 40 years, India too has lost more than 50% of its mangrove forests. 9. Energy Crisis More than 2 billion people in the world go without adequate energy supplies. Even by 2030, nearly 3 billion people, mostly in rural areas in Africa and Asia, will continue to rely on fuelwood for cooking and heating, while about 1 billion people will have no access to electricity. India imports more than 80% of its oil needs, primarily to feed the transportation sector.  10. Urbanization More than half the world’s population now lives in urban areas, compared to little more than one-third in 1972. one-quarter urban population - below the poverty line. 23% of the population in India’s - million-plus cities live in slums. 33% of urban households have access to piped sewage system.  Short notes on four environmental issues Global warming/climate change Biodiversity loss Ozone depletion Hazardous wastes Self- study  Some more issues with impact on environment serious issues such as: Wars, local conflicts, and terrorism Exploding population Agricultural crisis Widespread hunger, poverty, and extreme inequalities Massive displacement of people due to environmental changes and development projects Emergence of new diseases Corruption in politics and government Economic downturn and financial crises  Impact on environment Conflicts - planting of landmines, destruction of irrigation systems and water resources, interference in planting, harvesting crops, etc. Scarcity of resources like oil and water, etc. Rapid increase in population - pressure on natural resources such as water, land, and biological diversity. Environmental degradation - droughts, crop failures, and rural poverty. Migration of people to cities - creates unsustainable urban demand for water, power, sanitation, and so on. Toxic waste from cities and industries give rise to new diseases. Corruption - violation of environmental laws and regulations, leading to greater degradation. Biggest problem – slow changes in environment has come to exponential speed in degradation of environment  Environment issues and crisis Types Transboundary issues - Source could be one country – impact may be in another - hazardous material Issues by many countries – impact is global – global warming, ozone depletion Country the source – issue within boundary – but may have global impact – biodiversity loss  ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT the impact of a person or community on the environment, expressed as the amount of land required to sustain their use of natural resources.  What is ecological footprint “The ecological footprint (EF) estimates the biologically productive land and sea area needed to provide the renewable resources that a population consumes and to absorb the wastes it generates—using prevailing technology and resource-management practices” Measures - requirements for productive areas - croplands, grazing lands for animal products, forested areas to produce wood products, marine areas for fisheries, built-up land for housing and infrastructure, and forested land needed to absorb carbon dioxide emissions from energy consumption Other words, EF accounting measures the demand (usage and waste absorption) on and supply (bio capacity) of nature. EF measured in “global hectares” (gha.), - one hectare equals 2.47 acres. The resulting figures can also be compared with how much productive area—or biocapacity—is available.  Croplands: These areas are vital for producing food and fiber, and their extent reflects the demand for agricultural products. Grazing Lands: Grazing lands are essential for livestock production, contributing to the food supply and animal products. Forested Areas (for wood products): Forests are crucial for timber, paper, and other wood-based products, and their area reflects the demand for these resources. Marine Areas (for fisheries): Fishing grounds are vital for seafood production, and their area reflects the demand for marine resources.  Built-up Land: This includes areas used for housing, infrastructure (roads, etc.), and other urban development, reflecting the spatial footprint of human settlements. Forested Land (for carbon sequestration): Forests play a crucial role in absorbing carbon dioxide emissions, and their area reflects the capacity of the land to mitigate climate change. Ecological Footprint: The Ecological Footprint is a measure of how much biologically productive land and water area a population requires to produce the resources it consumes and to absorb the waste it generates.  Reason Change in man-environment relationship Larger Ecological footprint based on the belief that – humans are superior, science and technology can bring never ending progress  Current status of ecological footprint In 2023 the per capita global footprint was 2.6 gha. (global hectares). Global biocapacity that year was 1.5 gha per person, EF of humanity overshot Earth’s biocapacity by 1.1 gha. In other words, 1.7 “Earths” would be needed to sustain current resource demands or it takes Earth more than one year and eight months to regenerate what is used in one year. EF (2022) - Qatar (13.1 gha./person), Rwanda (0.55), United States (7.8), Germany (4.5), China (3.6), India (1.1). if all of humanity consumed like the average American, about five Earths would be needed How many earths will be needed if the world population lived like this  Carrying capacity (Self study) capacity of the planet to support human life and the impact humans have on the environment Biocapacity ecosystem's ability to produce biological materials and absorb other materials. calculated using data from the United Nations on land use and population. expressed in global hectares per person, which is an adjusted unit that represents the average biological productivity of Earth's productive hectares in a given year Carrying capacity measure of the maximum population size that an environment can support. based on the availability of food, water, habitat, and other resources. Carrying capacity is used in ecology, agriculture, and fisheries. Biocapacity and ecological footprint are tools created by the Global Footprint Network that are used to study sustainability biocapacity can be applied to determine the carrying capacity of the Earth Pollution Water Air Noise Noise Pollution Marine/water pollution Marine/water pollution Air Pollution Noise Pollution The End