GEO 702 Technology and Contemporary Environments Lecture notes 2010

May 4, 2010 Introduction - both resources and environment are functions of technology - technology has allowed us to put values on resources aka diamonds - use of technology is very dynamic/complex - constant threats to natural environment - what drives the current use to technology? - instiable demand for resources - we are always looking for something new - population growth is a key factor - trend of globalization - new inventions are shrinking space and shrinking time - shrinking the world by technology interventions - we live in a global village Constructive - Technology denied or forestalled the original Malthusian vision of population growth out running food production - With technology, the problem of typhoid in many regions of the world have been solved - population is growing exponentially, but in Malthusian vision it is growing at an arithymic rate (1,2,3,4) - too many people, too much demand for resources, results in conflict - disease increase with too many people - against the use of contraceptive, use abstinence - cut down the rate of population growth - genetically modified food, preservatives, refrigerators, devices to extract fish - to help produce enough food for our increased population - new technology decreases disease (new water cleaning system) - increase QOL, decrease degree of exposure to disease Destruction - Economic, technological and scientific developments are accomplished by ever-larger risks for the environment - Pollution: degradation of the environment as a result of some type of contamination a) acute - oil spill- 1989 - seals were affected, birds, ruined wildlife - costs US government $3 billion to clean up b) chronic - gradual, slow release, small scale (not very harmful) but cumulatively (very harmful) - ex. u se of fertilizers, runoff goes into lake or streams - cultural ulification- depletion of oxygen in water resources c) persistent - some chemicals are not biodegradable - ex. DDT, took us close to 30 years to find out it was bad, now it is band - CFC- result of air condition systems - nuclear disasters, release nuclear radiation into the atmosphere - PCB- poly chlorinated…?? Carrying Capacity - the number of people or biological units the Earth can support Question: Is there a limit to which human population and other organisms can be sustained by biophysical resources? - overshoot and collapse - we can’t grow faster - is technology helping us to live longer good or bad? Dr. Death - contrast between longevity and QOL - there is bound to be a limit to growth Solutions - Dematerilization is the decline over time in weight of materials. - Dematerialization calls for; - waste reduction, - recycling, and - reuse of materials - Significant technological advances have been made in sewage treatment. - Increase efficiency of resources use (conservation) Can we really reduce the amount of waste? - Yes! With less packaging - Recycling is not being done at household levels, need to sort the different kinds of recycling Four Types of Conflict In Resource Management - Cognitive Conflict - different understandings of situations - Conflict of Value - different judgment about the ends to be achieved - preservation of marine life or preservation of jobs? - different methods result in different understanding of the environment - different result in the data that is collected - Interests-based Conflict - Disagreement regarding the distribution of benefits and costs - Who pays and how much? - Behavioural Conflict - It emerges due to personalities, conditions, and circumstances - negotiate around these competing interests and come to a consensus - involves bargaining, everyone has different mindsets when coming to the decision making process - negotiating around competing interest is not easy Uncertainty - Risks - Behaviour of a system is basically known and various outmodes can be defined and quantified - Uncertainty - It occurs if the behaviour of the system is unknown and it is not possible to estimate probability of given outcome - Ex. The impact of Katrina. Often we don’t know the full scale or how long it will last - Indeterminancy - Lack of understanding of cause-and-effect relationships - Ignorance - A situation that escapes recognition - In the 1960s there was no knowledge of acid rain Knowing some of the pitfalls of technology, how best can we marry the two? - has the potential to prove human life but also has the potential to produce havoc - take a proactive approach, think of preventative measures - people are ignorant and do not know most of the negative effects, we need to create awareness by education - give people opportunity to express their views (public forum) Tragedy of the Commons Garrett Hardin - Picture a pasture land open to all - As a rational being, each herdman seeks to maximize his gain - What is the benefit of adding one more animal: 1. The positive component - better quality of life as a result of productivity, extraction of resources, job creation, etc. 2. The negative component - extra overgrazing, if too much is taken from a resource it can be depleated, but short term rate it can grow back (like forestry) Which of the following explains the Common Garrett Hardin theory 1) the addition revenue generated by the addition of cattle 2) the overgrazing 3) the total number of resources that is produced - it is applicable to open access resources - each herdsman increases his herd without limit - freedom in a commons brings ruin to all - it reappears in problems of pollution - the tragedy of the commons can be prevent by coercive laws - the destruction is born by all (ex. Pollution is everyone’s problem) Carrying Capacity - according to the Hardin “Carrying Capacity is the fundamental basis for demographic accounting” 1. Maximum population 2. Maximum ‘load’ - waste assimilation capacity - amount of chemicals that can be used without harm - if you excess the carrying capacity the system will crash Carrying Capacity: Technology & Trade - Does technology and trade expand ecological carrying capacity? - forests are being restocked with seeds of trees that can grow very fast - carrying capacity can be increased with technology - Appropriated carrying capacity - The biophysical resource flows and wastes assimilation capacity appropriated per unit time from global totals - Ecological footprint - “The total areas of land/water required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced” Does trade help to limit the pressure on carrying capacity? - we can postpone carrying capacity to a distant land, by using it in small amounts, eventually there will be, we benefit at the local level - there is no gain of carrying capacity for anybody - land needs to be destroyed for needs of humans Criticisms of Hardin’s Tragedy of the Commons - Critics argue that Hardin’s tragedy of commons is applicable only to open access to resources - Hardin’s tragedy of the commons often results from institutional failure to control access to resources Is the tragedy of the problem relevant to contemporary society? How does it operate in our society? Why? How? What are the outcomes? Schools of Thought on the Common Property - when resources are open for use there is bound to be abuse - the oceans are free for all - if you own something you take good care of it - Property rights school - internalize the negative externalities of resources - give ownership - can result in efficiency and effectiveness - Allocation of Full Authority - giving someone authority to supervise - set codes or standards to follow, compel industries to comply - establish a hefty fine for those that do not follow - Assurance Problem Approach - gives authority to companies - morals and ethics - not forceful, but it plays out on moral conscious - combination of all of them - some companies have very good lawyers which can get them around the rules of the law - laws are not always function, but you always want people to realize that there are moral principles Property Regimes 1. Open Access Regimes Res Nullius - In open access, there are no property rights - There are no defined group of user’s or owners - everyone has the privileges to use those resources, but there are no rights - ex. If you cut down a tree it won’t be available for anyone else to use it - the constant demand of the resource can result in rivalry of the resource 2. Common Property Regimes - common property resources are held by an identifiable community of interdependent users - common property is a social unit with definite membership and boundaries - the use of resources by one person can affect the resources of others - total exclusion of non members - ex. Gold course - the group has the opportunity to invest time and money in the preservation of that resource Type Characteristics Implications for economic incentives Private property Exclusive rights assigned to individuals Strong incentives for conservation of resources and for investment as well State ownership Rights held in collectivity with control exercised by authority or designated agency Creating opportunities for attenuation of rights. Managers have incentives for personal gain Communal ownership Exclusive rights assigned to all members of a community; approaching private property Creating free-riders problem and low incentives for conservation Open access Rights unassigned; lack of exclusivity Lack of incentives to conserve often resulting in resource degradation Do you think governments or private ownership should control our resources and why? What is Ecosystem? A functional unit consisting of all the living organism (plants, animals, an microbes) in a given area, and all the non-living physical and chemical factors of their environment, linked together through nutrient cycling and energy flow - symbiotic relationship - dynamic (constantly changing) - self-sustaining (cryosphere) -supply of nutrients or materials, state of balance, changes if we extract too much resources, or too much waste production - holistic - as a whole, each parts function collectively - excessive release of pollutants into the environment Dominant Themes of Ecosystem Management Hierarchical context: Managers must seek the connections between all levels of a problem Ecological boundaries: Management requires working across administrative/political boundaries Ecological integrity: There is the need to protect total native diversity (species, populations and ecosystems) Data collection: Ecosystems management requires more research and data collection Monitoring: Managers must track the results of their actions Grumbine (1994) Adaptive Management: Scientific knowledge is provisional and management is a learning process - learning by doing Interagency Co-operation: Ecological boundaries require cooperative between states, federal, and local management agencies Organizational Change: Changes in the structure of land management agencies and the way they operate Humans Embedded in Nature: People cannot be separated from nature Values: Human values play dominant role in ecosystem management goals (Grumbine 1994) Can you pick one of these ecosystem managements? Tell us how these themes can be used in effect management of that particular resource. PROPOSAL - select - general overview of the topic - main theme/goal/objective of your essay - information of the issues - the key components of that particular paper - are there social issues? What kind of technologies are used? Small scale large scale? Environmental impact? - underlying factors - important to describe all the technology involved - extraction? Manufacturing? Processing? Transporting/distribution? Consumption? - discuss relationship between technology and the environment - how well are you able to discuss factors - standard protocols, social (health problems) - solution or responses - laws are still in place…problems are still there - at the end of the proposal we need 3 citations (annotative bibliographic) - short summary of the content of that article, tell how relevant to your research ESSAY - key issues - Why? The reasons behind the issues - How? How they happen. - Outcomes. What are the implications/effects/results?