6.4 Meeting Ecological Challenges
How does the average ecological footprint in America compare to the world's average?- How can ecology guide us toward a sustainable future?
ecological footprint
ozone layer
aquaculture
global warming
Compare/Contrast Table As you read, create a table comparing the challenges associated with the ozone layer, fisheries, and global climate. Note the problem observed, the causes identified, and the solutions implemented.
THINK ABOUT IT Every year, the EPA awards up to ten President's Environmental Youth Awards. Past winners have included an Eagle Scout from Massachusetts who encouraged people who fish to stop using lead weights that contaminate water and poison organisms, students from Washington State who reduced waste at their school and saved more than half a million dollars in the process, and a student from Florida who developed an outreach program to protect local sea turtles. What do these award winners have in common? They came up with ideas that protect the environment while satisfying both present and future needs. This kind of leadership is what will help us chart a new course for the future.
Ecological Footprints
How does the average ecological footprint in America compare to the world's average?
What is our impact on the biosphere today? To answer that question, think about the kind and amount of resources each of us uses. Ecologists refer to the human impact on the biosphere using a concept called the ecological footprint. The ecological footprint describes the total area of functioning land and water ecosystems needed both to provide the resources an individual or population uses and to absorb and make harmless the wastes that individual or population generates. Ecological footprints take into account the need to provide resources such as energy, food, water, and shelter, and to absorb such wastes as sewage and greenhouse gases. Ecologists use footprint calculations to estimate the biosphere's carrying capacity for humans. An artist's rendition of an ecological footprint is shown in Figure 6–22.
Footprint Limitations Ecologists talk about the ecological footprints of individuals, of countries, and of the world's population. Calculating actual numbers for ecological footprints, however, is complicated. The concept is so new that there is no universally accepted way to calculate footprint size. What's more, footprints give only a “snapshot” of the situation at a particular point in time.
VISUAL ANALOGY
ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINTS
FIGURE 6–22 The food you eat, the miles you travel, and the electricity you use all contribute to your—and the population's—ecological footprint.
d
Table of Contents
- Formulas and Equations
- Applying Formulas and Equations
- Mean, Median, and Mode
- Estimation
- Using Measurements in Calculations
- Effects of Measurement Errors
- Accuracy
- Precision
- Comparing Accuracy and Precision
- Significant Figures
- Calculating With Significant Figures
- Scientific Notation
- Calculating With Scientific Notation
- Dimensional Analysis
- Applying Dimensional Analysis