Links between population, health, and the environment Flashcards
Why consider linkages between population and the environment?
health depends on clean air and water, along with safe sources for food, which in turn are dependent on the natural functioning of ecosystems.
Do Environmental conditions affect the spread of communicable diseases?
Yes, Environmental conditions affect the spread of communicable disease (1/5 of worldwide deaths)
______ of diseases associated with respiratory infections are linked to air pollution
60% of diseases associated with respiratory infections are linked to air pollution
What could help avoid 90% of the global burden of disease from diarrheal disease and 50% from chronic respiratory conditions?
Simple Environmental Interventions
How do humans DIRECTLY influence the natural environment?
- -loss of plant and animal species through over explotation
- clearing forests can lead to soil erosion, siltation, run off, changes in water cycle, and rerouting of rivers
- groundwater w/drawls can become a problem if water table drops below level of well
How do humans IN-DIRECTLY influence the natural environment?
- burning fossil fuel releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere
- ships sometimes carry harmful plant and animal species into new areas
- insecticides used to protect harvests reduce insect populations, which are then unable to pollinate wild plants
UN projection about the impact of population growth on future environmental conditions (PART ONE)
-the amount of the Earth’s landmass cleared for human use (agricultural and otherwise) will increase from 1/3 to almost 1/2 by the middle of the century
What will be the result if the amount of the Earth’s landmass cleared for human use (agricultural and otherwise) will increase from 1/3 to almost 1/2 by the middle of the century
The result will be a dramatic decrease in the earth’s biodiversity– the number of different species of plants and animals on earth
UN projection about the impact of population growth on future environmental conditions (PART TWO)
- Water scarcity will afflict an increasingly large part of the world’s population, especially in Asia and Africa
- Air pollution will continue to increase around the globe with a dramatic impact on air quality and change (ALL OF THESE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS WILL HAVE A FEEDBAQ EFFECT ON HUMAN HEALTH AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT)
What may be a bigger issue than population growth?
CONSUMPTION
A demographic tool for assessing the impact of human population on the environment
Environmental Impact Equation
Population x Affluence x Technology
Population x Affluence x Technology
Impact
represents human impact on the environmental degradation of a certain kind
Population
refers to the size the population
Affluence
refers to the size of the population
Technology
refers to the techniques applied to the production of goods that determine the efficiency which resources are used
What Environmental degradation is happening in the developing world?
- slash and burn agriculture
- pasturing
- using forest products as fuel, fodder, building materials
- potentially living in ecologically fragile zones
Resource exploitation in developing countries is largely seen as deforestation in developing countries, examples?
- deforestation associated w/ expansion of cash crops by large foreign companies for export
- directly displaces forests and reduces the availability of arable land for subsistence farmers
What does deforestation in developing countries cause (results)?
Can put farmers into fragile lands or into cities
In DEVELOPED countries have a higher per capita consumption of petroleum, cement, metals, wood, and all other commodities, these commodities?
- deplete world resources
- generate waste
- emit pollutants
- cause dangerous accidents
Where are cars the worst?
Worse in Developed Countires
Increase in Motor Vehicles, 1960 to 2020
Where is trash the worst?
Worse in developed countries
- every American produced an average of 2.7 lbs per day in 1960
- by 2000, it was 4.5 lbs per day
What is the majority of the trash Americans produce?
- burned (emitting pollutants)
- deposited in landfills (using land and introducing toxic substances to groundwater and soil)
Persistent Organic Pollutants
-POPs persist in envt, contaminate air, water and soil, and accumulate in the food chain
What is DDT? (POP)
DDT is a pesticide used for disease control and in agriculture
What is PCBs? (POP)
PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) found in industrial chemicals
How are people exposed to POPs?
- crop sprayers direct exposure
- soil pollution
- “grasshopper effect” (travel through cycle of evaporation and precipitation)
How are pesticides used?
85% used for agriculture
10% public health mosquito-control
5% for specific sites like transportation areas
Where do PCBs build up in the body?
PCBs build up build up and are stored in fat
making fish consumption the greatest risk from PCBs
What’s the big deal about CO2?
-greenhouse effect (atmospheric concentrations of CO2 have increased by 30% since late 1800s
