2023-24 ENV100 Term Test Concept Review

Chapter 1: An Introduction to Environmental Science

• Everything is connected!
• Understanding these connections and their context is key to understanding how it
functions
• Everyone has a role to play – everyone contributes to a community
• “The environment” is a complex concept
• The way we relate to the environment shapes (and IS shaped) by our world view
• Environmental science seeks to understand natural patterns and human influences on
them
• The world faces a number of “wicked problems”
• We differ in how we perceive and prioritize environmental problems
• The interdisciplinary nature of environmental science makes it well suited to address
complex problems
• Environmental science helps us understand our relationship with the environment and
informs our attempts to solve and prevent problems.
• The global community faces many challenging environmental problems –science can help
us find balanced, sustainable solutions.

Chapter 2: Matter, Energy, and the Physical Environment

• Science is a process and a body of knowledge

• The scientific method is a series of steps to evaluate hypotheses
• Descriptive studies have their place, but hypothesis testing is the foundation of science
• Experiments are good at determining causality, but not always possible
• Correlational studies can be problematic if we have confounding variables
• Scientific hypotheses are provisional explanations for observations
• A null hypothesis is a statement of no effect; it’s necessary for statistical comparisons
• Scientific hypotheses must be testable and falsifiable
• Avoiding cognitive biases in science is a challenge, but overall... SCIENCE WORKS
• The environment is made up of matter
• Matter is organized into fundamental building blocks that combine into larger components
• We make synthetic compounds that can be problematic
• Earth and the other objects in our solar system formed around 4.6 Ga ago, according to the
Nebular Hypothesis.
• The planets of our solar system –including Earth –retain characteristics of their early
origins.
• Earth’s characteristics provide the foundation for everything living on this planet.
• Earth lost its primary atmosphere and formed a new one that was not very hospitable to
life.
• Oceans accumulated once the surface had cooled sufficiently.
• The water molecule has chemical and physical characteristics that are crucial for support
of life.
• Atmosphere –hydrosphere –geosphere interacted in a state of dynamic equilibrium.
• There are many possible ways that life could have originated on this planet.
• The fossil record is the history of life on Earth.

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• The atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere have evolved chemically, in dynamic

equilibrium.
• Life has played a central role in the chemical evolution of Earth’s environmental systems,
primarily through buildup of oxygen in the atmosphere and removal of carbon dioxide
from the atmosphere
• Over geologic time, these complex systems have interacted to give us the environment of
today.
• Earth has several characteristics that make it unique among known planets, and uniquely
capable of supporting life.
• Earth’s major geological cycles –the rock cycle and the tectonic cycle –are interconnected
and connected with the hydrological cycle.
• Geological cycles are powered by both internal and external sources of energy.
• The tectonic cycle is powered mainly by internal energy.
• The rock cycle is powered by internal and external energy.
• The geological cycles provide the physical foundation for environmental processes and
support all life on this planet.
• The rock cycle describes mostly near-surface geological processes, driven by both internal
and external energy sources.
• The rock cycle produces the three major rock families: igneous rock, sedimentary rock, and
metamorphic rock
• Energy from Earth’s interior drives processes that shape and influence the surface,
including plate motion, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mountain-building.
• Scientists use many tools and approaches, both direct and indirect, to learn about Earth’s
interior.
• Earthquakes release energy as seismic waves that travel through the planet. These provide
an important tool for understanding Earth’s interior.
• Earth’s layers from the inside out are the core, the mantle, and the crust. The lithosphere is
the crust + outermost part of the mantle.
• The mantle is hot and mobile (but mostly solid), and convecting.
• The lithosphere is thin, relatively cold, and brittle. It has broken into about 15 major
fragments, called plates.
• Plates carry either mainly oceanic or mainly continental crust.
• Convection in the mantle is responsible for causing the plates to shift their positions.
• Most (though not all) geological activity, such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions,
happens along plate boundaries.
• Plate boundaries are divergent (plates moving apart; continental or oceanic) or convergent
(plates moving together: continental collision (continent-continent), subduction zone
(ocean-continent or ocean-ocean) or transform fault (plates moving sideways, horizontally
past each other)

Chapter 3: Earth Systems and Ecosystems

• Environmental problems are complex and require a systems approach

• Systems can be closed or open
• Feedback loops are common features of systems
• Negative feedback loops are homeostatic

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• Positive feedback loops are self-reinforcing and common in perturbed systems

• Systems are nested, hierarchical and function on multiple scales
• Systems have emergent properties
• There are many cycles & sub-cycles in the Earth’s system
• We use models to depict & understand the properties of cycles
• Box models have properties that make them effective ways to model environmental
processes
• Box models are made of reservoirs and fluxes
• Fluxes in and out of a reservoir determine if a reservoir is a source or a sink
• Residence time and turnover time describe the speed at which substances move through
the system
• Box models are useful as null models for evaluating the effects of perturbations
• Ecosystem ecology focuses on processes and functions
• Ecosystems support us by providing ecosystem services
• Ecosystems function on multiple spatial and temporal scales
• Primary productivity by autotrophs is the “engine” that supplies energy to ecosystems
• Ecosystems vary in their levels of productivity (limited by temperature, light and nutrient
availability)
• The hydrologic cycle influences all other cycles
• Biogeochemical cycles lay the foundations for life on Earth
• The carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycles all have unique properties (largest reservoir,
fluxes in and out)
• Humans have mobilized elements and changed the properties of reservoirs in the global
biogeochemical cycles
• Fossil fuel burning, deforestation, and agriculture contribute significantly to changes in
biogeochemical cycles

Chapter 4: Evolution, Biodiversity & Population Ecology

• Evolutionary change is change in the genetic composition of a population over time

• Migration, random drift, mutation, natural selection are all mechanisms of evolution
• Only natural selection can give rise to adaptations
• Adaptations are traits that help you survive and reproduce
• The environment exerts selective pressure on organisms
• Unrelated organisms may acquire similar traits (convergent evolution)
• Selection may be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive in terms of trait evolution
• Speciation can occur sympatrically or allopatrically
• Adaptive radiation is rapid diversification (usually in new environments)
• Most extinction is “background” extinction – but there have been a few huge mass
extinction events
• Some species have traits that make them more vulnerable to extinction than others
• Populations vary in size & density
• Dynamics of populations (change over time) depends not just on numbers of individuals,
but on spatial distribution of populations, age & sex distributions, and life-history patterns
• Growth rates can be calculated on a per-capita or whole-population basis

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• Exponential growth rate is unsustainable

• Carrying capacity is the maximum population size an environment can support
• Density-dependent and density independent factors control population sizes

Chapter 5: Species Interactions and Community Ecology

• An ecological niche is the role that an organism plays in an ecological community

• Realized niches are shaped by competition; thus, competition has great importance in
structuring communities
• Resource partitioning is a way that organisms can avoid competition
• Resource partitioning can result in character displacement
• Species interactions shape ecological communities
• Interactions can be understood in the context of positive/negative outcomes for each
participant
• Interactions create selective pressures that lead to coevolutionary “arms races”
• All communities are structured into trophic levels
• Ecological inefficiency means that most energy “leaks” out of a trophic pyramid
• Food webs describe the feeding relationships among species
• Keystone species are species that have a disproportionately large impact on the
structuring of ecological communities
• Trophic cascades can produce dramatic shifts in ecosystems
• Disturbance in communities is common; many are adapted to periodic disturbance
• Healthy ecosystems demonstrate resistance & resilience
• Succession is a series of communities that develop following disturbance
• Invasive species are having significant and increasing effects on communities
• The terrestrial environment is organized into several biomes

Chapter 6: Human Population

• Humans are members of a small and ancient branch of the mammalian tree
• We diverged from our closest relatives (chimps) about 5-7 MYA
• We differ from chimps mostly in terms of speech, brain size & bipedalism
• Neoteny & truncated gestation play a large role in driving the development of brain size
• Homo sapiens sapiens is the only extant branch on the human family tree
• Modern humans left Africa ~150-200KYA
• Low genetic diversity among humans is consistent with being a young species
• Humans have been modifying the environment for many millennia
• Demography is the study of human populations
• Age structure & fertility rates have profound effects on growth rates
• The demographic transition model describes patterns of birth & death rates with
increasing technological development
• We increasingly live in dense cities
• Population growth rate is decreasing, but the population is still growing
• Malthus’ warning is wrong on two counts
• Humans have been able to affect carrying capacity through technological innovations
• The IPATS model describes root factors of environmental degradation

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• Ecological footprint estimates the impact of consumption and waste on ecosystems

• Biocapacity is decreasing because of human activities
• The “great acceleration” of human impacts on ecosystems has profoundly altered the
natural world

Chapter 7: Soil and Soil Resources

• Soil is a complex material with both organic and inorganic components

• Regolith is the bedrock foundation for soil
• Physical. chemical & biological weathering breaks down rock into regolith
• Soil is organized into horizons that may take millennia to develop
• There are many different soil types
• Soil texture & structure depends on particle size, pore spaces & amount of organic matter
• Base cations are biologically important molecules that affect the fertility of soil
• Cation exchange capacity is a measure of the ability of soil to retain critical nutrients
• Soils store a lot of the nutrients in an ecosystem
• Soils are lost through erosion
• Soils are being compacted, depleted of nutrients (often due to human activity)
• Human activities toxify soils by affecting pH, salinity and other contaminants
• Human- accelerated soil degradation is having critical impacts on ecosystems and food
systems
• Desertification is a complex process with many feedbacks
• The Dust Bowl was caused in part by poor agricultural practices
• Soil properties and processes are fundamental for plant growth and agriculture
• Soil loss, erosion, and degradation are global problems
• Sustainable land management practices are effective in conserving soil and soil
biodiversity

Chapter 8: Agriculture, Food and Biotechnology

• Many people are both under- and over-nourished

• Rural & urban poor; victims of catastrophes are vulnerable to hunger
• Food security depends on production & distribution
• Food security is constrained by the 5 As
• The Green Revolution dramatically increased food production and alleviated starvation
• The Green Revolution involved both intensification & extensification
• The Green Revolution brought increased productivity with negative environmental
impacts
• Livestock agriculture is both a problem of intensification & extensification
• Population increases and rising wealth leads to increasing demand for meat
• CAFOs have many environmental consequences
• GMOs are transgenic organisms
• There is little evidence that GMOs cause ill health; may have health benefits
• There are many legitimate concerns about the implications of GMOs regarding
intensification of pesticide use, genetic pollution and increasing inequities in the
developing world

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• Agriculture must be both efficient and sustainable to support the human population
• Sustainability involves pollinator protection; less use of agrochemicals; preservation of
crop diversity & careful use of biotechnology
• Aquaculture is necessary to ease the pressure on wild fisheries
• Modern intensive aquaculture is still in its early developmental stages
• Aquaculture’s large ecological footprint is NOT sustainable
• It’s important to manage existing wild fisheries that cannot be replaced

Chapter 9: Conservation of Species and Habitats

• The biodiversity crisis threatens our wellbeing

• Biodiversity provides a wealth of goods and services– it’s critical to our survival
• World-view and philosophy affect how we relate to and value biodiversity
• Abundance, richness & evenness are important dimensions of biodiversity
• Alpha, beta & gamma diversity describe spatial patterns of species diversity
• The SLOSS debate is concerned with the optimal spatial design of conservation areas
• The number of species in an area is a function of area size & proximity to a source of
immigrants
• Habitat fragmentation reduces and changes habitats (edge vs core)
• Small, isolated fragments lose biodiversity; corridors can help
• Biodiversity is highest in areas with high productivity, high seasonal predictability, and
long evolutionary histories – thus, tropics are high in biodiversity
• We are in the 6th mass extinction; caused by human activity
• Exploitation, habitat loss, climate change, invasive species, pollution & disease are the
drivers of biodiversity loss
• Countries with biodiversity hotpots need commitment from the global community to
preserve them
• There is hope, but we need political will to turn things around

Chapter 10: Forests and Forest Management

• Forests cover a large part of the globe – but are disappearing

• Forests are structurally and functionally complex ecosystems
• Forests provide a huge number of ecosystem services
• Forests play a large role in local and global water systems
• Tropical forests contain an enormous amount of terrestrial biodiversity
• Tropical forests are structurally complex
• High productivity leads to soil depletion
• Tropical forests have complex food webs and adaptations in the biota
• Temperate deciduous and boreal forests are adapted to seasonal changes; cold winters
and a period of dormancy
• Temperate deciduous and boreal forests are economically important and significant
carbon sinks
• Tropical deforestation leads to loss of biodiversity and disruption of the water cycle
• Fire is a normal part of many ecosystems, and fire suppression may lead to catastrophic
fires

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• Adaptive management/ecosystem-based management is the most sustainable approach to

forest management
• Timber harvesting & fire management approaches are critical to sustainable management
• Canada is a leader in sustainable forest management

Chapter 11: Freshwater Systems and Water Resources

• Water exists in 3 states and is distributed around the globe

• The hydrologic cycle drives the climate system
• The hydrologic cycle is driven by solar energy and gravity
• Most water is in the oceans; most freshwater is locked up in glaciers and ice caps
• Lotic systems shape and influence the surface of the Earth
• Watersheds are systems that maintain a balance of inputs and outputs
• Humans alter the course and quality of surface waters
• Dams significantly alter the ecology of lotic systems
• Lakes are transient features that vary seasonally; undergo succession
• Wetlands are highly productive ecosystems that provide many ecosystem services
• Groundwater is a critical resource that is slowly recharged in the water cycle
• Lakes face multiple threats
• The Great Lakes are improving in some indicators, but worsening in others
• Ontario is rich in wetlands, but they are at risk due to many factors (mostly land
conversion)
• There are many point and non-point sources of surface and groundwater pollution
• Groundwater withdrawal can cause many problems
• Water scarcity is a huge problem for many
• Climate change will exacerbate many of these problems
• Canada lacks a comprehensive water policy
• Changes in the last decade significantly weakened environmental protection of water
resources; some of those decisions are being reversed
• First Nations suffer disproportionately in terms of water protections
• Action is needed to protect water as a public good

Chapter 12: Marine and Coastal Systems and Fisheries

• The ocean covers most of our planet and consists of several large, interconnected basins.
• Ocean-floor bathymetry is diverse and complex, and largely controlled by plate tectonics.
• The ocean contains more than just water –organic matter, mineral sediment, dissolved
salts, and dissolved gases are important components.
• The ocean is vertically structured.
• Layering of ocean water is defined by differences in temperature, density, and salinity.
• Ocean water flows both vertically and horizontally.
• Water is pushed by the wind, creating waves and surface currents.
• A gyre is a large, rotating surface current, where marine debris sometimes accumulates.
• Deep currents in the global thermohaline circulation are controlled by density, which in
turn is controlled by temperature and salinity.
• Some ocean zones support more life than others.

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• Zones are defined by light, depth, proximity to the shore, and bottom vs open water.
• Ocean organisms have different ways of moving –some are sessile, some are motile; some
are planktonic, some are nektonic.
• Ocean organisms are adapted to the specific conditions of the zone where they live. Deep-
ocean organisms are adapted to particularly extreme conditions.
• Coral reefs are very important for biodiversity and as environmental indicators. There are
three main types of reef.
• Coral reefs are under threat because of environmental changes, leading to bleaching.
• Intertidal zones, estuaries, and mangroves are important coastal environments with
complex habitats.
• Coastal zones in general are threatened because of pollution, development, and
aquaculture.
• Humans rely on the ocean for a wide range of crucial, life-supporting resources.
• Human activities have significant negative impacts on the ocean.
• Coastal zones are most susceptible to the impacts of human activity, but the deep ocean is
also affected.
• Many types of marine pollution from various sources threaten ocean ecosystems and
resources.
• Some causes for concern are plastics; sewage and other nutrients, leading to red tides and
algal blooms; and chemical contamination, including oil spills and runoff.
• Global marine capture fisheries are under a lot of pressure.
• Industrialized fishing practices can be very harmful.
• Some stocks are declining or collapsing, even while yields remain stable –a function of
increased fishing effort, among other factors.
• It is important that we –as consumers –choose fish that have been harvested sustainably.
• The collapse of the Atlantic cod fishery was one of the great environmental disasters.
• Cod have only made a partial recovery.
• Fishing technologies, greater fishing effort, political inaction, misconceptions about the
resource, underfunding of monitoring –all played a role.
• Modern fisheries management is very cautious.
• Tragedy of the Commons tells us why commonly-held resources are susceptible to being
mismanaged.
• Marine reserves and protected areas can provide full or partial protection for important
ocean ecosystems.
• They can be controversial and hard to police.
• Providing protection for marine species has been shown to increase their availability for
harvest, rather than decreasing it.
• Only a very small % of the world ocean is currently protected.
• Large, connected reserves are better than many small, disconnected reserves.