1.4 sustainability

Question 1

sustainability

Answer 1

the use of resources that allows full recovery of the resources exploited

Question 2

groundwater in saudi arabia

Answer 2

• not sustainable long-term
• depletion rate is high
• limited renewable resources because of climate
• environmental consequence: desert irrigation changes the landscape

Question 3

natural capital

Answer 3

• conceptualises natural resources that can provide a sustainable natural income
• conserve it: will generate an income for ever–> if it’s exploited faster that it can regenerate it will rapidly decline

Question 4

natural income

Answer 4

the yield obtained from natural resources

Question 5

ecosystem services

Answer 5

ecosystems that can provide services that are essential to human life and well being

Question 6

sustainable development

Answer 6

meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

Question 7

ecological footprint

Answer 7

model that is used to estimate the demands that a human population places on the environment

Question 8

biocapacity

Answer 8

total measure of the resources available within a country divided by its population

factors affecting it:
- population density
- geography and biome

Question 9

earth overshoot day

Answer 9

calculation of how long it takes a society to exceed the sustainably available resources

Question 10

environmental indicators

Answer 10

factors that can be studied to determine whether resources are being used sustainably

Question 11

millenium ecosystem assessment (MEA)

Answer 11

• published in 2005: one of the first attemps to quantifiy sustainability
• found strategies to be able to use ecosystems sustainably
• 60% of the ecosystems studied = used unsustainably

Question 12

criticisms for EIA

Answer 12

• lack of standard training for practitioners
• environmental concerns can increase cost
• ecosystems are complex –> difficult to predict what’ll happen when something’s changed