S1 UNIT
Sustainable Development
PUPIL NAME: ______________________________
CLASS: _____
Sustainable development There is enough in the world for everyone’s need, but not for everyone’s greed. (Mahatma Gandhi)
Resources A resource is anything that we find useful. For example: A stone is a resource when it is used to build a house Grass is a resource when cows eat it and produce milk for us to drink Resources are either natural or human. A natural resource has been provided by nature eg air, soil, water A human resource is anything not natural; instead it relates to people eg a workforce, anything which has been made by people, even money. Natural resources can also be divided into renewable and nonrenewable. Non-renewable resources can only be used once. They run out. Renewable resources can be used many times. We all use the earth’s resources – we breathe its air, use its water, and depend on its soil, trees and minerals.
But, how we share and use the earth’s resources affects the health of the planet and of everyone with whom we share it – now and in the future. Managing our resources There are more and more people in the world and we are using natural resources more than ever before - trees, minerals (eg coal, oil) – to make all the goods we need, the energy we need and the food we need. This is causing two problems: 1.
Some of our non-renewable resources are running out.
2. The environment is being damaged– our farmland, seas and atmosphere - which causes it to deteriorate (become worse). Sustainable development When we refer to the development of an area or country, we are referring to the improvement in people’s standard of living and quality of life there. Every country wants to develop so that its people can all enjoy a higher standard of living. So we all want to produce more food, goods and energy but this means some of our natural resources will run out and our environment will be permanently damaged. This will make it much harder or impossible for our children and grandchildren to enjoy a high standard of living and quality of life. This is unsustainable development. These are some examples: Our most important resources
what we are doing that is
unsustainable
Soil
making the soil poorer > fewer crops grow Using chemicals on soil
Minerals
using up finite resources >sources of energy (coal, oil, gas) begin to run out, as well as useful minerals
Trees
cutting trees down > climate change;
Air
polluting the air; burning fossil fuels > climate change;
Fresh water
polluting water with chemicals; using up underground water > water shortages
Seas
polluting seas with litter, sewage and chemicals > fewer fish and seas unfit to use
Sustainable development is the improvement in people’s standard of living without wasting resources or harming the environment. We must try and make sure that everything we do (as an individual or country) is sustainable. Our most important resources examples of sustainability How to protect our soils
keep the soil fertile; stop soil being eroded; farm organically;
How to preserve our minerals
use more renewable resources; recycle (glass,plastic, paper, clothing etc); don’t replace goods as frequently
How to preserve our trees How to ensure clean air
protect forests; replace trees that have been cut down reduce air pollution, burning of fossil fuels
How to conserve fresh water
don’t waste water; water harvesting; reduce water pollution
How to protect our seas
reduce water pollution
We are going to look in more detail at how to use two of our main resources sustainably – the valuable minerals in our rocks and the clean, fresh air above us. Looking after our natural resources – rocks and minerals The problem Our rocks contain hundreds of useful minerals (called mineral resources), such as gold, copper, oil; sometimes the rocks themselves are useful, such as coal, limestone. But rocks, and the minerals within them, take millions of years to At the present rate of use: form. Once we have used them, we cannot replace Coal will last 126 years them. They are finite or non-renewable. Gas 64 years We are using up these rocks and minerals faster than ever before. At the present rate some of them will be exhausted (run out) in your lifetime. How long some them will last is shown in the table opposite.
Oil Gold Silver Aluminium Copper
43 years 45 years 29 years 1812 years 61 years
Solutions 1. Use renewable energy resources instead of non-renewable fossil fuels
of
Our main sources of energy for heating, lighting and transport are coal, oil and natural gas which we often use to make electricity. These are fossil fuels; they are formed from the remains of plants and animals. Over 80% of the world’s energy comes from fossil fuels. Not only will they run out but, when they are burned, they create a lot of air pollution. Renewable energy resources are natural, for example water, wind and the sun. These will not run out but they are more expensive and more difficult to use. The most commonly used is water for hydro-electric power. 2.
Recycle
Instead of throwing away goods we can (a) re-use many of them, (b) recycle others, and (c) reduce what we buy. If we do these things, we do not need to make as many new products, which means we do not use up scarce resources in making new ones. And we do not have use up scarce energy resources to power the factories that make them or the lorries that transport them. We can recycle: Paper
Plastic
Batteries
Textiles
Glass
Mobile phones
Carrier bags
Scrap paper
Old clothes
Jars
Tyres
Packaging
We can re-use:
We can reduce waste by: Buying products with little packaging
Not replacing goods as often
Buying products which can be recycled
Selling or give away unwanted goods
Buying only what you need
Not replacing goods as often
Looking after our natural resources – our precious air
We need clean air. Polluted air damages our health (lung diseases and heart diseases) and our environment. We pollute air when we release pollutants into it. These are usually gases but they might be liquids or tiny solid particles. Our main pollutants come chiefly from burning fossil fuels in: 1. Factories, which release mostly nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide 2. Vehicles, which release mostly carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides. The effects of air pollution (a) On our health Polluted air can cause many lung diseases and heart diseases. In the long term, it is a killer. In London in 1952 fog mixed with air pollutants (called smog) killed 4000 people in a few days. It can also cause acid rain, which kills trees and lakes. (b) On our climate Burning fossil fuels increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. CO² is also increasing because we are cutting down more trees. Carbon dioxide is one of the three main greenhouse gases – the others are methane and CFCs. Methane in the atmosphere is also increasing because there are more cattle, rice-fields and rubbish dumps in the world. CFCs are released from aerosols and refridgerators. These greenhouse gases cause the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect makes the earth warmer. More greenhouse gases causes global warming. This is how the greenhouse effect works: Heat from the Sun passes through these greenhouse in the atmosphere and reaches the earth’s
gases
surface. But heat from the land cannot pass through these gases. They absorb the heat and radiate it back to land, keeping us warm. An increase in greenhouse gases causes global warming. And the earth is definitely getting warmer.
The red line on the graph shows changes in global temperatures over the last 1000 years. And the blue line shows changes in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. We are just beginning to realise the effects of global warming: 1. Temperatures will rise and some ice-caps will melt and sea-levels will rise. This will flood low-lying coastal areas. Badly affected will be the Nile Delta, Bangladesh and Netherlands. 2. Some areas will become drier, so it will be difficult to farm and there may be food shortages eg parts of Africa. 3. Some areas will become wetter, which will bring more pests and diseases. It is possible that Britain could be affected by malaria. 4. Some plants and animals may become endangered or even extinct, as the areas in which they live change in climate eg polar bears, penguins. It seems sensible to look after our air and so reduce the harmful effects of global warming and air pollution. Here are two ways. Solution 1: Sustainable Energy: burn fewer fossil fuels We have covered this in the section above on minerals. Using more renewable energy should mean we burn fewer fossil fuels. Solution 2: Sustainable Food: reduce food miles and reduce food waste
Food production Our food chiefly comes from farms, although some comes from trees and from the sea. There are many different types of farm found all over the world. Arable farming is the growing of crops eg wheat farms, banana plantations. Pastoral farming is the rearing of animals eg dairy farm Mixed farming is growing crops and rearing animals. Commercial farming is where the farmer sells his produce. Almost all farmers in the UK are commercial farmers. Subsistence farming is when the farmer uses his produce to feed himself and his family. Many farmers in remote areas of Africa are subsistence farmers. Intensive farms are small farms with high levels of inputs (workers and/or equipment and chemicals) eg growing fruit and vegetables Extensive farms are large farms with low levels of inputs eg hill-sheep farming. Changes in food production The good news: The amount of food produced world’s population. The bad news: Rich developed countries eat too much to eat Poor developing countries eat to eat.
in the world is growing faster than the
most of the food and many people have less food and some do not have enough
Where our food comes from In the UK we were once all subsistence farmers and our food came from our own land. Now we buy our food. Some comes from local farms but more of our food now comes from other countries. This has taken place because we now have quicker ways of transporting food and better ways of keeping it fresh. For example, we get: Beef from Argentina Pepper from India Tomatoes from Italy Lamb from New Zealand Wheat from Canada We even buy flowers from Kenya.
Coffee from Brazil Bananas from Honduras Sugar from Jamaica
Food miles Food miles is the name given to the distance our food travels from where it is produced to where we eat it. Our food miles are increasing each year. The effects of this are: 1. More food is transported over greater distances by plane, lorry, ship and train, which all need fuel 2. More packaging and refridgeration is needed to keep the food fresh, which uses more electricity 3. We then travel to the supermarket by car to buy the food, using even more fuel. 4. More fossil fuels are burned, increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere But the food we buy from developing countries 1. Has been grown with fewer chemicals which means less air and water pollution 2. Has been produced using less machinery, so fewer fossil fuels have been burned 3. Has not needed to be grown in greenhouses with heating, so again fewer fossil fuels have been used 4. And it gives jobs to people in the developing country 5. And it gives the developing country much needed money to improve the standard of living of its people
Food waste In the UK and in all rich countries we waste more and more of our food. We do this for many reasons. We buy too much, we prepare too much and we don’t eat it in time. Half of the food wasted is in people’s homes. Supermarkets are also responsible for a lot of wasted food. They have to throw away a lot of the food that people do not buy in time especially fruit, vegetables and bakery items. The effects of food waste are:
1. It is a waste of the fossil fuels used to transport the food from where it was produced. 2. More carbon dioxide is being released into our atmosphere for no benefit. 3. Much of the wasted food is thrown away and goes to a landfill site. Here it produces methane, which is another greenhouse gas. Altogether, one-third of all the food in the world is wasted. How to reduce your foodprint • Read the labels on food – you can safely eat food beyond its Sell By date, but not beyond its Use By date. • Freeze it before its Use By date and you can still eat it later • Store left-over food and eat later • Donate left-over food to food banks • Recycle waste food as compost • Restaurants should offer smaller portions
What can
we
do to promote sustainability?
A Global Citizen is someone who participates in and contributes to the community at a range of levels from local to global.
citizens of our own country but now, in the 21st century, our lives are so with hundreds of places worldwide that it is just as important to be the world. Sustainable development is important for the world and for children and for your grandchildren. We should be doing whatever we can sustainable development.
We are connected citizens of your to support
1. What the school does to support sustainable development The school does the following: Recycle • •
plastic
•
tins
•
cartridges
•
paper
•
batteries
•
textiles
Reduce energy • •
new cladding on walls
•
double-glazing
Reduce food waste Special disposal of food waste from kitchen/dining area for composting Re-use • • sell second-hand school uniforms
• •
collect spectacles collect clothing
2. What you and your family does ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________
3. What you could do ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ 4. What the school could do ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________