Introduction To Envi Sci

Introduction to
Environmental Science and

Engineering
Environment: the total of our surroundings
• All the things around us with which we interact.
• Everything that affects an organism during its lifetime
3 Types of Environment:
1. Natural Environment (living things such as animals and plant, non-living things such as clouds,
mountains, rocks and natural disaster)
2. Human/Built Environment (made with the help and effort of human beings such as buildings
and roads, social relationships)
3. Physical Environment (natural resources such as land, water, air and soil)
• The complex of physical, chemical, biotic factors that act upon an organism or an ecological
community and ultimately determine its form and survival
Are humans
considered part
of the
environment?
YES
Human exist within the Environment
• Fundamental insight of environmental science is that we are
part of the natural world
• Our survival depends on healthy, and functioning planet
Human and the World Around us

• Human depend completely on the environment for survival
but natural systems have been degraded
Ecology
• derived from the word “oikos” – “house” or “place to live”
• Study of organisms “at home”
• Study of relationships between organisms and their
environment
Ecosystem
• Community and the nonliving environment function together
as an ecological system or ecosystem
Ecosphere or Biosphere
• Layer around the earth where all living things exist
What is Environmental Science?
• Study of how the natural world
works
• How the environment affects humans
and vice versa
• An interdisciplinary academic field

that draws on ecology, geology,
meteorology, biology, chemistry,
engineering and physics to study
environmental problems and
human impacts on the
environment
Environmental Science
• Help us to avoid the mistakes made by past civilizations
• Human Survival depends on how we interact with our environment
• Our impacts are now global
• Many great civilizations have fallen after depleting their resources
ENVIRONMENT IMPACTS HUMANS
• Goal: To develop solutions to environmental problems

Environmental Science vs Environmentalism
Environmental Science – the pursuit of knowledge about

natural world
Environmentalism – A social movement dedicated to

protecting the natural world
5 Major Areas of Environmental Science
1. Atmospheric Sciences
2. Ecology
3. Environmental Chemistry
4. Geosciences
5. Social Sciences
ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES
• Study the Earth’s atmosphere
and how it relates to other
systems, mostly its relation
with the environment.
• Study of weather analysis and

predictability, climate and
global change, the circulation
of the atmosphere relating to
weather systems and their
impacts
ECOLOGY
• Study the relationship
between living organisms
and their surroundings
ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY
• Explores the various
chemical processes and the
changes they make to the
environment
• Deals with water pollution
and soil contamination
GEOSCIENCES
• Also known as Earth
Sciences
• Deals with and connects all
scientific disciplines that
explore our planet directly
SOCIAL SCIENCES
• Specific fields that deal with
the relationship between
humans and nature
• Three larger Fields:

Geography, Anthropology,
Sociology
Geography – study of places and the relationships between
people and their environments
Anthropology – study of humanity, concerned with human

behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in
both present and past
Sociology – study of the development, structure, and

functioning of human society
Environmental Worldviews
• How people think the world works, what they think their
role in
Two Types of Environmental Worldviews

• Planetary Management Worldview
• Environmental Wisdom Worldview
Types of Environmental Worldviews
Planetary Management Environmental Wisdom

• We are the planets most • We are part of nature
important species
• The earth’s resources are
• The earth has an unlimited limited and should not be
supply of resources wasted
• Humans' success depends on • Humans’ success depends on
how well we can control the learning how the earth works,
earths systems for our benefit and integrating that
knowledge into how we think
and act
What is Environmental Engineering?
• Application of science and engineering principles
• To improve the natural environment
• To provide healthy water, air, and land for human habitation
• To remediate polluted sites
• It involves
• Waste water management and air pollution control
• Recycling, waste disposal
• Radiation Protection, Industrial Hygiene
• Environmental Sustainability
• Public Health issues
• Environmental Engineering Law
POLLUTION
WATER
TOP 10
OCEAN
POPULATION ACIDIFICATION
Environmental
Issues
OZONE
DEPLETION
CLIMATE CHANGE
PHOSPHORUS
AND NITROGEN
CYCLES
DEFORESTATION
LOSS OF
BIODIVERSITY
OVER FISHING
What are the fundamental
problems affecting
environmental quality?
Resources
• Any matter or energy from the living or nonliving
environment available for use
Two Basic Types of Resources:
• Energy resources
• Matter Resources
Three Types of Resources:
• Perpetual –
• Renewable
• Non-renewable
Resource Scarcity: lack of resources
• Absolute Resource Scarcity – supplies of a resource are
insufficient or to expensive to meet present or future
demands
• Relative Resource Scarcity – A resource is not located in the

area which it is needed
Nutrient
• An element or compound needed by an organism to live or
grow and reproduce
Macro-nutrient: required in large amounts
Micro-nutrient: Needed in small amounts

Water Resources
• Water is vital resource which forms the basis of all life

• The key resource in all economic activity, ranging from
agriculture to industries
• Uses of Water: Generation of Electricity, Navigation, Solvent
for many Chemicals, and for Drinking
SOURCES OF WATER
Surface Sources Subsurface Sources

• Rivers • Wells
• Lakes • Tube Wells
• Ponds • Infiltration Galleries
• Streams • Infiltration Wells
• Oceans
Air Quality
• Why is air such a problem?
Poor air quality can lead to:
• Smog
• Respiratory and other illnesses
• Acid Rain
• Global Warming
• Air Pollutant – known substance in the air that can cause

harm to humans and the environment
Land Quality
• Land Pollution – destruction of Earth’s surface caused by
human activities and the misuse of natural resources
• Perpetual/Natural Resources – Land and raw materials that
exist naturally in the environment
• Renewable Resource – Natural resource that can be replaces
by a natural Process
• Non-renewable Resource – Natural resource that cannot be
produces or re-grown or reused
Ecological Footprint
• It is one measurement of a
person’s resource use.
• Includes the amount of space
needed to support each person
in a nation, including forests,
farms, cities, etc.
• Developed countries have a

much larger footprint,
reflecting a much larger use
of resources.
Pollution
• Any addition to the air,
water, soil, or food that
threatens the health,
survival, or activities of
humans or other organisms
• Biodegradable pollution will
break down naturally over
time.
• Nondegradable pollution
does not break down.
30
EFFECT OF A POPULATION ON THE ENVIRONMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL
NUMBER OF
DEGRADATION ENVIRONMENTAL
NUMBER OF UNITS OF
AND POLLUTION IMPACT OF
PEOPLE RESOURCES
PER UNIT OF POPULATION
PER PERSON
RESOURCES USED
HOW DO WE REDUCE POLLUTION?
Although it is impossible to eliminate negative
impacts, human effects can be diminished and
brought under control through…..
• Public education
• Conservation
• Regulation
• The application of good engineering practice

Introduction To Envi Sci

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Introduction To Envi Sci

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Introduction To Envi Sci

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Introduction to

Environmental Science and

• Everything that affects an organism during its lifetime

Human and the World Around us

• An interdisciplinary academic field

ENVIRONMENT IMPACTS HUMANS

• Goal: To develop solutions to environmental problems

Environmental Science – the pursuit of knowledge about

Environmentalism – A social movement dedicated to

• Study of weather analysis and

• Three larger Fields:

Anthropology – study of humanity, concerned with human

Sociology – study of the development, structure, and

Two Types of Environmental Worldviews

Planetary Management Environmental Wisdom

• Relative Resource Scarcity – A resource is not located in the

Macro-nutrient: required in large amounts

Micro-nutrient: Needed in small amounts

• Water is vital resource which forms the basis of all life

Surface Sources Subsurface Sources

• Air Pollutant – known substance in the air that can cause

• Developed countries have a

You might also like