Chapter 2 - Economy and the Environment Flashcards
What is an economy?
A collection of technological, legal, and social arrangements through which individuals in society seek to increase their material and spiritual well-being.
What are the two elementary economic functions pursued by society?
- Production
- Distribution
Define Production:
The activities that determine the quantities of goods and services that are produced.
Define Distribution:
The way in which goods are divided up, or distributed, among the individuals and groups that make up society.
The final utilization of goods and services is termed ____________.
consumption
What is Natural Resources Economies?
The study of this flow of nature in its role as a provider of raw materials.
What does Environmental Economics focus on?
The flow of materials and energy residuals back into the natural environment and the resultant impacts on the natural world.
Define Ambient Quality:
The quantity of pollutants in the environment.
Define Environmental Quality:
The state of the natural environment.
What are residuals?
Material that is left over after something has been produced.
What are Production Residuals?
Materials and energy left after the product has been produced.
___________: The portion of production or consumption residuals that is place in the environment.
Emissions
______________: The process of returning some or all of the production or consumption residuals to be used again in production or consumption.
Recycling
Define a Pollutant:
A substance (Energy or action) when introduced into the natural environments, results in damages for a lowering of the ambient quality level.
What is Effluent?
Effluent is used to talk about water and air pollutants.
What is Pollution?
When the ambient quality of the environment has been degraded enough to cause some damage.
Define Damages:
The negative impacts produced by environmental pollution on people in the form of health effects, visual degradation, and on elements of the ecosystem through disruption of ecological linkages.
What is an Environmental Medium?
Broad dimensions of the natural world that collectively constitute the environment (Land, water, and air).
What is a Source?
The location at which emissions occur.
What two main segments is the economy divided into?
Producers and Consumers
Draw the Environment and the Economy figure:
Lecture 1
What does the Producers category of the ‘Environment and the Economy’ figure include?
Inputs and convert them to outputs
Production and consumption create _________.
Residuals
Draw the Materials / Energy Balance equation:
What does ‘M’ stand for?
Raw Materials
What does ‘G’ stand for?
Goods and Services
What is Rp?
Production Residuals
What is ZPG?
Zero Population Growth
What are the three ways to reduce the quality of raw materials (M)?
- Reduce Goods and Services (G)
- Reduce Rp (Production Residuals)
- Increase Recycled from Producers and Consumers
What is a Sectoral Shift?
The shift from primarily a manufacturing economy toward services is a step in this direction.
How does the circular economy fit into environmental economics?
For its reduce, reuse and recycle aspect.
What do the vertical and horizontal axis’ of the PPC represent?
y: Market Goods
x: Environmental Quality
What is the curve of the PCC determined by?
Technical capacities
Where a society choose to locate itself on its PPC is a matter of ____________
social choice
What are the three environmental medias?
- Land
- Air
- Water
What are the two types of temporal pollutants?
Noncumulative and Cumulative Pollutants
Provide an example of noncumulative pollutants:
Noise
Provide an example of cumulative pollutants:
Plastics
What are the three scales of pollutants?
- Local
- Regional
- Global
What are the two axises on the PPC/PFF?
Market Goods (y)
Environmental Quality (x)
Why should you never aim to achieve inside or outside of the PPC/PPF curve?
Because we would be wasting resources.
Go over the sample question in Week 1 (Lecture 2) to better understand the PPF.
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