Learning Objectives
After reading and studying this chapter, students should be prepared to discuss the following:
▪ Geology and environmental geology as a science
▪ Increasing human population as the number one environmental problem
▪ The concept of sustainability and important factors related to the “environmental crisis”
▪ Earth as a system and changes in systems
▪ The concepts of environmental unity and uniformitarianism and why they are important to
environmental geology
▪ Hazardous Earth processes
Chapter Summary
This chapter focuses on conceptual and philosophical foundations of environmental geology. It opens with
an example comparing Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and the ways in which the environment of the
two countries greatly affects their economies, government, and living conditions. That introduction is
followed by a discussion about the origin of the universe and the importance of sustainability and by a
discussion on the origin of water and the Earth’s atmosphere. Discussions follow on the topics of
Chapter Outline
Case History: Caribbean Island of Hispaniola: Story of History, People, Environmental Damage, and
Earthquake
A. Comparative studies
1. Objective–to observe and describe the history of an area to make inferences within a larger
framework
2. Studying geologic and anthropologic records to make comparisons
4. Studying prehistoric and historic records to infer about future changes
B. Hispaniola
2. Dominican Republic
c. 28.4% forest cover
d. Better communication with Europeans
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Philosophy and Fundamental Concepts
3. Haiti
a. Steep and mountainous topography
b. 3.8% forest cover
c. Revolution against French led to poor communication with Europeans
d. Was once more prosperous than the Dominican Republic
C. Importance of environment
1. Haiti is an example of what can happen when environmental degradation linked to high human
population, degraded water and soil resources, and inadequate infrastructure result in extreme
poverty and loss of control of the government in the country
I. Introduction to environmental geology
A. Earth and life
1. Formation of Earth and life
a. Earth began about 4.6 billion years ago
b. Life on Earth began about 3.5 billion years ago, and has evolved and become more complex over
B. Earth’s place in space
1. We have a right to be here
2. Origin of universe
3. Origin of atmosphere and water on Earth
a. Atmosphere formed from carbon dioxide and water vapor from volcanoes and other sources
4. Evolution as a process
a.While evolution is a typically slow process, geologic hazards such as asteroids can lead to mass
extinctions
b. Humans are causing rapid extinction of animal and plant species through the processes of
pollution, agriculture, urbanization, industrialization, and the land clearing of tropical forests.
2) Reduction of biodiversity is thought to be a major environmental problem because many
C. Geology
1. Definition–the study of processes related to the composition, structure, and history of Earth and its
life
2. Geology is interdisciplinary in nature
D. Environmental geology
1. Definition
a. applied geology
Chapter 1 – Instructor’s Manual
2. Applications
a. earth materials
3. Environmental geology focuses on the entire spectrum of human interactions with the physical
environment
II. Fundamental concepts of environmental geology
A. Human population growth
1. The foremost environmental problem
2. Exponential growth
a. a constant percentage of people are added to the population each year, not a constant number of
people
3. Human population through history
a. human population growth has coincided with changes in technologies and lifestyles
4. Population growth and the future
a. How many people can Earth comfortably support?
1) as population growth continues, it may be difficult to supply sufficient resources and a high-
2) carrying capacity: maximum number of people Earth can hold without causing
environmental degradation that reduces the ability of the planet to support the population
b. The Earth is our only suitable habitat
c. Good news on human population growth
1) rate of increase in population growth peaked in the late 1980s
B. Sustainability
1. Definition
a. development that ensures that future generations will have equal access to the resources that our
2. Limitation of resources
3. Are we in an environmental crisis?
a. demands on resources and production of wastes by growing human population
4. Do we need to save Earth or ourselves?
C. Earth as a system
1. Concept of systems
2. Input-output analysis
a. important method for analyzing change in open systems
b. if input and output are not balanced, changes will occur in the system
c. How can we evaluate change?
3. Predicting changes in the Earth system
a. uniformitarianism
2) processes we observe today also operated in the past, though not necessarily with the same
magnitude or frequency
4. Environmental unity
a. one action leads to a chain of subsequent actions in linked systems
5. Earth systems science
D. Hazardous Earth processes, risk assessment, and perception
2. Natural hazards that produce disasters are becoming superdisasters called catastrophes
3. predictability of natural hazards
E. Scientific knowledge and values
1. What is science? (the scientific method)
a. observation
2. Importance of geologic time
a. distinguishes geology from most other scientific disciplines
3. Culture and environmental awareness
4. Why is solving environmental problems so difficult?
Chapter 1 – Instructor’s Manual
5. Precautionary principle
a. Definition–when there exists a potentially serious environmental problem, scientific certainty is
6. Science and values
a. We are creatures of the Pleistocene
Answers to Review Questions and Critical Thinking Questions
Review Questions
2. Observations lead to hypotheses (possible explanations of observed phenomena), which are then tested
by additional investigation.
4. Exponential population growth will make it difficult to supply resources and a high-quality environment
for all.
6. Environmental unity is the principle that one action leads to a chain of subsequent actions in linked
systems.
8. Earth system science is the study of the entire planet as a system in terms of component subsystems, such
as atmosphere, biosphere, lithosphere, etc.
10. The principle of uniformitarianism can be applied to environmental geology in the sense that the
11. The Gaia hypothesis holds that the Earth is, metaphorically, a superorganism. The interaction of Earth
systems is likened to the interaction of life systems in an organism.
Critical Thinking Questions
1. An answer to this question should reflect the interaction between Earth systems and the human
2. An answer to this question should focus on the costs, in terms of environmental impacts, of producing
3. A response to this task must focus on the perceived necessity of sustainability, and on the varying levels
of economic vitality that are acceptable to the people and cultures involved in a sustainable approach.
5. An answer to this question should focus on possible genetic and cultural linkages over thousands of
6. This question refers to the nature of science. An answer should reflect knowledge of the scientific
7. A response to this question should focus on perceived influences of humans on Earth resources and
8. This question requires a discussion of the philosophy behind the precautionary principle and of the