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Chapter 7 Man and Environment
Chapter 7 Man and Environment
Chapter 7
Man and environment
• Define Environment
• Understand the Composition of Natural Environment
• Explain the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
• Explain the Drivers-Pressure-State-Impact-Response
• Determine Causes
society and society's response towards the improvement program. Actually all
these depend on the interest and desire of the society in improving the quality of
environment.
Meanings of Environment
1. Built Environment
2. Natural Environment
3. Social Environment
Built Environment
Natural Environment
The natural environment includes all living and non-living things occurring
naturally on Earth. Natural environment is often used as a synonym for habitat.
For instance, when we say that, the natural environment of giraffes is the
savanna.
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Social Environment
The social environment refers to the immediate physical and social setting
in which people live or in which something happens or develops. It includes the
culture that the individual was educated or lives in, and the people and
institutions with whom they interact. The interaction may be in person or
through communication media, even anonymous or one-way and may not imply
equality of social status. Social environment includes culture, language, social
condition, health, profession, living condition, economic capability of the people
in a certain area
The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus originated the theory that things
are constantly changing - and the saying, "The only constant is change," is
attributed to him. This is the situation in the natural world organisms inhabit.
Organisms need to find ways to adapt to conditions that are gradually or
suddenly different from pre-existing ones. If they don't, they die. The types of
adaptations are categorized by observable or measurable means, but genetic
change is at the basis of all adaptations.
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Adaptations
The three basic types of adaptations, based on how the genetic changes
are expressed, are structural, physiological and behavioral adaptations. Most
organisms have combinations of all these types
I. Structural
II. Physiological
III. Behavioral
Human-Environmental Interactions
People modify the environment for their purposes and obtain benefits
(Ecosystem Services) from it. These Ecosystem Services are essential for
human well-being and include for example the provision of resources like water,
timber, food, energy information, land for farming and many more. Obviously by
using these resources people affect the environment in a lot of ways
Furthermore people often reorganize existing ecosystems to achieve new ones
that seem to be more effective in serving their needs.
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Drivers-Pressures-State-Impact-Response
Causes:
1. Human overpopulation
2. Overconsumption
3. Technology
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Ecological collapse
Biodiversity generally refers to the variety and variability of life on Earth,
and is represented by the number of different species there are on the planet.
Since its introduction, Homo sapiens (the human species) has been killing off
entire species either directly (such as through hunting) or indirectly (such as by
destroying habitats), causing the extinction of species at an alarming rate.
Humans are the cause of the current mass extinction, called the Holocene
extinction, driving extinctions to 100 to 1000 times the normal background rate.
Habitat destruction
There are different types of habitat destruction that can occur. Three
main types are actual destruction, fragmentation, and degradation. All three
types of habitat destruction can be just as lethal. Some take longer to completely
destroy a habitat and some Destroy the habitat instantly. In this lesson, you will
learn about what causes these different types of habitat destruction.
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Picture a bulldozer pushing its way through the woods, creating flat open
land so that a wooded area can be turned into a subdivision or office building. As
the bulldozer is knocking down trees, it is also crushing grasses and packing the
ground super tight. The bulldozer is not only killing the trees and other plants
that it is running over, but it is killing the living area of multiple species This is
just one example of habitat destruction, known simply as destruction.
Destruction is instant and the species have little to no e to adapt. The animals
must move if they are to survive at all. ants must adapt to the newly compacted
land or find a way to disperse their seeds elsewhere.
Land degradation
and unchecked depletion of nutrients in soil that are essential for it to remain
stable, then a virtual «soil death» can spoke of, which traces its cause back to
human overexploitation. Desertification is a significant global ecological and
environmental problem with far reaching consequences on socio-economic and
political conditions.
Disaster mitigation
Purpose of Mitigation
Importance of Mitigation
People also play an important role in reducing the impact from disasters
by understanding their own risks and taking actions to minimize potential
damage from hazards before they occur. Taking proactive steps to reduce risk,
also known as mitigation, helps reduce damage to homes and businesses and
prevent loss of life.
Significance of Mitigation
Reference:
Introduction to Cybercrime and
Environmental Laws and Protection