Environmental Science THIRTEENTH EDITION G. TYLER MILLER, JR. SCOTT E. SPOOLMAN Australia • Brazil • Japan • Korea • Mexico • Singapore • Spain • United Kingdom • United States Environmental Science, 13e © 2010, 2008 Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning G. Tyler Miller, Jr. and Scott E. Spoolman ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this work covered by the copyright herein may be reproduced, transmitted, stored, or used in any form or by any means graphic, Publisher: Yolanda Cossio electronic, or mechanical, including but not limited to photocopying, recording, scanning, Development Editor: Christopher Delgado digitizing, taping, Web distribution, information networks, or information storage and Assistant Editor: Lauren Oliveira retrieval systems, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United Editorial Assistant: Brandusa Radoias States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the publisher. 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Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 12 11 10 09 Brief Contents Detailed Contents v SUSTAINING RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY Preface for Instructors xiii 10 Food, Soil, and Pest Management 206 Learning Skills 1 11 Water Resources and Water Pollution 238 12 Geology and Nonrenewable Minerals 273 HUMANS AND SUSTAINABILITY: 13 Energy 296 AN OVERVIEW 14 Environmental Hazards and Human Health 344 1 Environmental Problems, Their Causes, 15 Air Pollution, Climate Change, and Sustainability 5 and Ozone Depletion 368 16 Solid and Hazardous Waste 403 ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY SUSTAINING HUMAN SOCIETIES 2 Science, Matter, and Energy 23 3 Ecosystems: What Are They 17 Environmental Economics, Politics, and How Do They Work? 39 and Worldviews 424 4 Biodiversity and Evolution 59 Supplements S1 5 Biodiversity, Species Interactions, and Population Control 79 Glossary G1 6 The Human Population and Urbanization 94 Index I1 7 Climate and Biodiversity 122 SUSTAINING BIODIVERSITY 8 Sustaining Biodiversity: The Species Approach 152 9 Sustaining Biodiversity: The Ecosystem Approach 178 iii About the Cover Photo my Ala Dirscherl/ Reinhard © The green sea turtle is one of seven species of sea turtles, all of which are endangered or threatened. It is the largest of the sea turtles. The adults typically weigh 135–160 kilograms (300–350 pounds) and grow to 0.9 meters (3 feet) in diameter. They get their names from their green body fat, which results from a diet of sea grasses and algae. Green sea turtles live near coral reefs and rocky shorelines of continental coasts and islands in tropical and subtropical waters around the world. And they take an average of 25 years (but as many as 50) to reach sexual maturity. While these turtles spend most of their lives in the ocean, adult females must lay their eggs on land, and biologists believe they return to beaches where they were born to make their nests. The female lands at night and drags herself ashore using her front flippers. She buries about 100–150 eggs and returns to the sea. The eggs incubate in the sand for about 2 months. Then the cookie-sized baby turtles hatch and dig out from under the sand. Having evolved an ability to sense the heat of sunlight, they wait until dark to emerge and scramble toward the sea. However, artificial lights from a human settlement, can lead them off course, and many then starve or are caught and eaten by predators. Thus small and shrinking numbers of these hatchlings make it to the sea after hatching. The green sea turtle evolved before dinosaurs arrived on the earth. Now, having survived the entire age of dinosaurs, it is endangered globally because of several human activities. They were hunted nearly to extinction, primarily as a food source. And although they are now protected by laws, poachers still take them for their meat, eggs, and shells. Also, thousands of sea turtles die each year when they are trapped and drowned in commercial fishing nets. Many turtles become entangled in plastic debris (Figure 8-18, p. 171) or ingest plastic litter, which can interfere with their digestion, causing them to starve. Ocean water pollution is another major threat, as is coastal development, which often destroys or degrades their nesting areas. Detailed Contents Learning Skills 1 HUMANS AND SUSTAINABILITY: AN OVERVIEW 1 Environmental Problems, 3 Ecosystems: What Are They Their Causes, and Sustainability 5 and How Do They Work? 39 CORE CASE STUDY It’s All About Sustainability 5 CORE CASE STUDY Tropical Rain Forests KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 6 Are Disappearing 39 1-1 What Is an Environmentally Sustainable KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 40 Society? 6 3-1 What Keeps Us and Other Organisms Alive? 40 1-2 How Are Our Ecological Footprints 3-2 What Are the Major Components Affecting the Earth? 9 of an Ecosystem? 42 CASE STUDY China’s New Affluent Consumers 14 SCIENCE FOCUS Many of the World’s 1-3 What Is Pollution and What Can Most Important Organisms Are Invisible to Us 44 We Do about It? 14 1-4 Why Do We Have Environmental Problems? 15 1-5 How Can We Live More Sustainably? Three Big Ideas 19 REVISITING Sustainability 20 ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY 2 Science, Matter, and Energy 23 CORE CASE STUDY How Do Scientists Learn About Nature? A Story about a Forest 23 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 24 2-1 What Do Scientists Do? 24 SCIENCE FOCUS Controversy over Climate 2-2 CWhhanagt eI s M27atter and How Do Physical Arnold, Inc and Chemical Changes Affect It? 28 Peter 2-3 Wanhda Ct hIse mEnicearlg yC haanndg Heso wAf fDeoct PIht?y sic3a4l Kushal/ REVISITING The Hubbard Brook Experimental Deb Forest and Sustainability 36 Photo 1 Air pollution from an industrial plant in India. v 4-4 How Do Speciation, Extinction, and Human Activities Affect Biodiversity? 68 SCIENCE FOCUS We Have Developed Two Ways to Change the Genetic Traits of Populations 69 4-5 What Is Species Diversity and Why Is It Important? 70 4-6 What Roles Do Species Play in an Ecosystem? 71 CASE STUDY Cockroaches: Nature’s Ultimate Survivors 72 SCIENCE FOCUS Why Should We Care about the American Alligator? 75 CASE STUDY Why Should We Protect Sharks? 75 REVISITING Amphibians and Sustainability 76 5 Biodiversity, Species Interactions, and Population Control 79 CORE CASE STUDY The Southern Sea Otter: A Species in Recovery 79 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 80 Stock Super age footstock/ Photo 2 Point source of polluted water in Gargas, France. 3-3 What Happens to Energy in an Ecosystem? 45 3-4 What Happens to Matter in an Ecosystem? 48 SCIENCE FOCUS Water’s Unique Properties 50 3-5 How Do Scientists Study Ecosystems? 55 REVISITING Tropical Rain Forests and Sustainability 56 4 Biodiversity and Evolution 59 CORE CASE STUDY Why Are Amphibians Vanishing? Unraveling a Mystery 59 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 60 4-1 What Is Biodiversity and Why Is It Important? 60 SCIENCE FOCUS Have You Thanked the Insects Today? 62 4-2 How Does the Earth’s Life Change over Time? 63 SCIENCE FOCUS How Did Humans Become Such 4-3 aH oPoww Derofu Gl Sepoelocigeisc?a l 6P5rocesses and Climate Stock Change Affect Evolution? 66 Super SCIENCE FOCUS Earth Is Just Right for Life Photo 3 The endangered brown pelican was protected in the first to Thrive 67 U.S. wildlife refuge in Florida. vi Arnold, Inc. Peter P/ NE U Voltchev- Photo 4 Severe desertification threatens an oasis in the Sahel region of West Africa from a combination of severe drought, farming, and overgrazing. 5-1 How Do Species Interact? 80 6-5 What Are the Major Urban Resource and Environmental Problems? 107 SCIENCE FOCUS Threats to Kelp Forests from Predators and Climate Change 82 CASE STUDY Urbanization in the 5-2 What Limits the Growth of Populations? 86 United States 108 SCIENCE FOCUS Why Do California’s Sea Otters Face CASE STUDY Mexico City 113 an Uncertain Future? 87 5-3 How Do Communities and Ecosystems Respond to Changing Environmental Conditions? 89 REVISITING Southern Sea Otters and Sustainability 91 6 The Human Population and Urbanization 94 CORE CASE STUDY Are There Too Many of Us? 94 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 95 6-1 How Many People Can the Earth Support? 95 6-2 What Factors Influence the Size of the Human Population? 97 Image not available due to copyright restrictions CASE STUDY The U.S. Population Is Growing Rapidly 98 CASE STUDY The United States: A Nation of Immigrants 100 6-3 How Does a Population’s Age Structure Affect Its Growth or Decline? 101 6-4 How Can We Slow Human Population Growth? 104 CASE STUDY Slowing Population Growth in China: The One-Child Policy 106 CASE STUDY Slowing Population Growth in India 106 vii 66--67 HHEannoodvww iLr DCoivnaoanmeb sleC eTni?rtt iaaenls1 s I1Bpm7oeprctaoacmttisoe?n M A1of1rfee4 cSt uUsrtabianna ble ment Enterprises CASE STUDY The Ecocity Concept in Curitiba, Develop BRanrEadVz IiSSlu ITst1IaN1i8Gna Pboilpituy lat1io19n Growth, Urbanization, International 7 Climate and Biodiversity 122 CORE CASE STUDY Different Climates Support Different Life Forms 122 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 123 7-1 What Factors Influence Climate? 123 7-2 How Does Climate Affect the Nature and Location of Biomes? 127 SCIENCE FOCUS Staying Alive in the Desert 131 7-3 How Have We Affected the World’s Photo 7 Treadle pump used to supply irrigation water in parts of Terrestrial Ecosystems? 139 Bangladesh and India. 7-4 What Are the Major Types of Aquatic Systems? 140 7-5 Why Are the World’s Oceans Important and How Have We Affected Them? 141 CASE STUDY Coral Reefs 143 SUSTAINING BIODIVERSITY 7-6 What Are the Major Types of Freshwater Systems and How Have 8 Sustaining Biodiversity: We Affected Them? 146 The Species Approach 152 REVISITING Climate, Biodiversity, and Sustainability 149 CORE CASE STUDY Polar Bears and Projected Climate Change 152 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 153 8-1 What Role Do Humans Play in the Premature Extinction of Species? 153 SCIENCE FOCUS Estimating Extinction Rates 154 CASE STUDY The Passenger Pigeon: Gone Forever 155 8-2 Why Should We Care About Preventing Species Extinction? 157 8-3 How Do Humans Accelerate Species Extinction? 159 CASE STUDY A Disturbing Message from the Birds 160 CASE STUDY The Kudzu Vine 162 CASE STUDY Where Have All the Honeybees Gone? 167 INDIVIDUALS MATTER A Scientist Who Confronted Poachers 168 8-4 How Can We Protect Wild Species from Premature Extinction? 169 Arnold, Inc. SSpCeIEcNieCs EA cFtO C1U7S1 Accomplishments of the Endangered Peter CASE STUDY Protecting Whales: A Success Bond/ Story . . . So Far 172 Martin CCaAlSifEo rSnTiUa DCYon Tdroyrin g1 t7o4 Save the Photo 6 Roof garden and solar cells in Wales, Machynlleth (UK). REVISITING Polar Bears and Sustainability 175 viii 9 Sustaining Biodiversity: The Ecosystem Approach 178 CORE CASE STUDY Wangari Maathai and the Green Belt Movement 178 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 179 9-1 What Are the Major Threats to Forest Ecosystems? 179 SCIENCE FOCUS Putting a Price Tag on Nature’s Ecological Services 181 CASE STUDY Many Cleared Forests in the United States Have Grown Back 185 9-2 How Should We Manage and Sustain Forests? 188 TSiCmIEbNeCr E 1F8O8CUS Certifying Sustainably Grown Arnold 9-3 How Should We Manage and Sustain Peter Grasslands? 190 NEP/ U 9-4 Hanodw N Sahtuoureld R Wesee rMveasn?a ge1 9a2nd Sustain Parks Rodriques- CASE STUDY Stresses on U.S. Public Parks 192 D. SCIENCE FOCUS Reintroducing the Gray Wolf Photo 9 Bird covered with oil in Brazilian waters. to Yellowstone National Park 193 CASE STUDY Costa Rica—A Global Conservation Leader 194 SUSTAINING RESOURCES AND CASE STUDY Controversy over Wilderness Protection in the United States 195 ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 9-5 How Can We Help to Sustain Terrestrial Biodiversity? 195 10 Food, Soil, and Pest SCIENCE FOCUS Ecological Restoration of a Tropical Management 206 Dry Forest in Costa Rica 197 CORE CASE STUDY Is Organic Agriculture 9-6 How Can We Help to Sustain Aquatic the Answer? 206 Biodiversity? 198 KEY QUESTIONS AND CONCEPTS 207 CASE STUDY Industrial Fish Harvesting Methods 200 10-1 What Is Food Security and Why Is It Difficult REVISITING Wangari Maathai and Sustainability 203 to Attain? 207 10-2 How Is Food Produced? 209 SCIENCE FOCUS Soil Is the Base of Life on Land 211 CASE STUDY Industrialized Food Production in the United States 212 CASE STUDY Brazil: The World’s Emerging Food Superpower 213 10-3 What Environmental Problems Arise from Food Production? 215 10-4 How Can We Protect Crops from Pests More Sustainably? 221 INDIVIDUALS MATTER Rachel Carson 223 SCIENCE FOCUS Ecological Surprises: The Law of Unintended Consequences 225 10-5 How Can We Improve Food Security? 227 10-6 How Can We Produce Food More Sustainably? 228 CASE STUDY Soil Erosion in the United States 229 SCIENCE FOCUS The Land Institute and Perennial Nanosys Polyculture 233 REVISITING Organic Agriculture and Photo 8 Flexible solar cells using nanotechnology. Sustainability 235 ix