Chapter 1: The Environment & Sustainability - Lesson 2

Checkpoint #3: What is the difference between point source and nonpoint source pollution?

Point source: single identifiable source from which pollutants are discharged. Nonpoint sources: pollutants come from diffuse sources.

Checkpoint #4: Give some examples of how ecological footprints are increasing.

increased population size, affluence, the beneficial and harmful environmental effects of technologies (polluting factories, gas-fired motor vehicles, coal-burning power plants)

Vocabulary: Ecological Footprint

Amount of land and water needed to supply a population with renewable resources and to absorb and recycle the waste and pollution such resource use produces.

Vocabulary: Pollution

Contamination of the environment by any chemical or agent, such as noise or thermal energy, at levels considered harmful to the health, survival, or activities of organisms.

Checkpoint #1: Give at least three reasons why many people around the world have an improved quality of life.

Creative thinking, economic growth, scientific research, grassroots political pressure by citizens, and regulatory laws have improved the quality of life for many of Earth's people.

Vocabulary: Environmental Degradation

Depletion, deterioration, or waste of Earth's natural capital.

Checkpoint #2: What is the tragedy of the commons?

Environmental problems people cause through their waste, depletion, and degradation of Earth's natural capital.

Vocabulary: Nonpoint Source

Single identifiable source that discharges pollutants into the environment. Examples include the smokestack of a power plant, drainpipe of a meatpacking plant, chimney of a house, or exhaust pipe of an automobile. Compare nonpoint source.

Vocabulary: Point Source

Single identifiable source that discharges pollutants into the environment. Examples include the smokestack of a power plant, drainpipe of a meatpacking plant, chimney of a house, or exhaust pipe of an automobile. Compare nonpoint source.