Publishing House
About the author
Concept map
eBook Introduction
Tabla de contenidos
Chapter 1. Introduction to Ecology
1.1 What is Ecology?
1.2. Ecology and the Other Sciences
1.3. Why Study Ecology?
Chapter 1. Conclusion
Chapter 1. Integrating Exercise
Chapter 1. Resources
Chapter 2. Components of the Environment
2.1 Biotic Components
2.1.1 Biomes
2.1.1.1 Terrestrial Biomes
2.1.1.2 Aquatic Ecosystems
2.1.2 Energy Flow through Ecosystems
2.1.2.1 Trophic Levels
2.1.2.2 Biogeochemical Cycles
2.1.2.3 Ecological Interactions among Species
2.2 Abiotic Components
2.2.1 Natural Resources
2.2.1.1 Biodiversity as Natural Resource
2.2.1.2 Water: An Essential Resource
2.2.1.3 Soil and Soil Ecosystem
2.2.1.4 Energy from Fossil Fuels
2.2.2 Physical Factors that Affect the Environment
2.2.2.1 Humidity
2.2.2.2 Temperature
2.2.2.3 Amount of Light from the Sun
2.2.2.4 Soil
2.2.2.5 Salinity
2.2.2.6 pH
Chapter 2. Conclusion
Chapter 2. Integrating Exercise
Chapter 2. Resources
Chapter 3. Population
3.1 Characteristics of Populations
3.2 Mechanisms of Population Equilibrium
3.2.1 Factors that Influence Population Size
3.3 Human Population
3.3.1 Dynamics of Population Growth
Chapter 3. Conclusion
Chapter 3. Integrating Exercise
Chapter 3. Resources
Chapter 4. Development
4.1 Environmental Hazards and Human Health
4.1.1 Environmental Hazards
4.1.1.1 Cultural Hazards
4.1.1.2 Biological Hazards
4.1.1.3 Chemical Hazards
4.1.1.4 Physical Hazards
4.1.2 Pathways of Risk
4.1.2.1 Risk of Being Poor
4.1.2.2 Lifestyles
4.1.2.3 Geographical Locations
4.1.3 Risk Assessment and Management
4.2 Global Environmental Issues
4.2.1 Crossroads in Biodiversity
4.2.1.1 Protection and Conservation of Endangered Species
4.2.2 Deforestation
4.2.3 Global Warming
4.2.4 Ozone Layer Depletion
Chapter 4. Conclusion
Chapter 4. Integrating Exercise
Chapter 4. Resources
Chapter 5. Sustainable development
5.1 What is sustainable development?
5.1.1 Agenda 21
5.2 Resources and the wealth of nations
5.3 Citizen Involvement
5.4 Lifestyles for Sustainable Future
Chapter 5. Conclusion
Chapter 5. Integrating Exercise
Chapter 5. Resources
Glossary
References
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ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
MARIVIC PABRUA
D.R. © Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey,
México 2013.
Tecnológico de Monterrey presents its first collection of eTextbooks for
high school, undergraduate and graduate programs. In each work, our
authors combine knowledge and skills, using diverse technologies that
support learning. This collection’s main objective I to disseminate the
knowledge and didactic experience of Tecnológico de Monterrey’s faculty
through the innovative use of technology. Moreover, it aims to contribute to
the development of a publishing model that creatively incorporates the
multiple possibilities that digital technologies offer into the eBook format.
Tecnológico de Monterrey’s new Digital Publishing House strengthens the
institution’s entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to technological and
educational innovation, thus enhancing students learning.
www.ebookstec.com
[email protected]
About the author
MARIVIC PABRUA
Professor at Tecnológico de Monterrey, campus Sonora Norte. She
studied Bachelor of Science in Chemistry in Saint Louis University in the
Philippines in 1986. As soon as she passed the Philippine Board
Examination for Chemists, she was accepted to work in the Bureau of Food
and Drugs in the Philippines as a Research Chemist. After 3 years of
working for the bureau, she was granted a scholarship for a course about
Food Additives in National Institute of Health Sciences in Tokyo, Japan in
1991.
She became a professor in Tecnológico de Monterrey in 2008 and she
teaches Life Science, Health Science, Matter and Change, Carbon and its
compounds and Environment and Sustainability. Presently, she is looking
forward to finish my Masters Degree in Education with accentuation in
Teaching Sciences in the Virtual University of Tecnolόgico de Monterrey.
During her service at Tecnológico de Monterrey, she has received
multiple certificates. She received a plaque of recognition in 2011 in
Academic Excellence.
In
the
meantime,
she
in http://pabruamarivic.wordpress.com/
manages
a
blog
Concept map
eBook Introduction
This eBook is divided into five units: Introduction to Ecology, Components of the
Environment, Population, Development, and Sustainable Development. The
following provides a general overview of the organization of Environment and
Sustainability.
Chapter 1: Introduction to Ecology
The three topics discussed in Chapter 1 provide basic background knowledge. It
begins with the introduction to Ecology and its relationships to other sciences, as
well as the importance of its study.
Chapter 2: Components of the Environment
This chapter explores the components of the environment, which are the
biological components (biotic) and the physical components (abiotic). It describes
the different types of biomes and the interactions of the organisms with their
environment, as well as with other organisms. Chapter 2 also discusses how energy
flows through ecosystems and matter moves in numerous cycles from one part of
an ecosystem to another, from one organism to another, and from living organisms
to the nonliving components of the environment and back again.
It addresses the science of natural resources such as soil, water, wildlife and
fossil fuels; their uses and availability and the consequences that arise when they
are overexploited. Issues concerning the value of the natural services
these resources render to mankind that are overlooked with their economic values
are also addressed.
Chapter 3: Population
Chapter 3 presents the mechanisms of population to maintain its equilibrium and
the pressures of population growth on the natural systems with a focus on
demographic transition. It has a brief introduction on how birth rates and death rates
influence population size.
Chapter 4: Development
Chapter 4 presents how human population growth and development cause global
environmental issues. It touches some environmental and social impacts brought
about by growing populations.
Chapter 5: Sustainable Development
The last chapter addresses the relationships that exist between economics,
public policy and the environment. It begins with a short introduction of Agenda 21,
and then discusses the contributions of civil groups and movements focusing
especially on present environmental concerns. It closes with healthy lifestyles,
proper skills and practices to enjoy a sustainable future.
Chapter 1. Introduction to Ecology
Introduction to Ecology
The three topics discussed in Chapter 1 provide basic background
knowledge. It begins with the introduction to Ecology and its relationships to other
sciences, as well as the importance of its study.
The Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the fifth largest. It is composed of
three major regions or layers: the crust, the mantle and the core. The outer crust is
divided into regions known as the tectonic plates. The Earth is the only planet in the
Solar System with tectonic plates. According to Cain (2008), scientists believed that
the molten core, which is composed mainly of iron, creates a magnetic field. This
magnetic field extends thousands of kilometers from the surface of the Earth to the
atmosphere. The magnetic field covers the Earth and protects it from the direct hit
of the particles from the Sun’s solar wind. Solar wind is a flow of charged particles
ejected from the sun. These charged particles can be trapped in the
Earth’s atmosphere and collide with air particles producing glow known as auroras.
The Earth’s atmosphere is composed of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and 1% other
substances which envelops the planet. This atmosphere shields us mostly from the
sun’s harmful radiation.
The Earth is the only planet where life has actually been discovered. It is the only
planet found that could support life. The earth provides all the things we need to
survive. It is also this reason why most of our natural resources are diminishing
because of our negligence and perhaps our ignorance. It is our responsibility to take
care of the Earth. It is our home.
The buzzword in the world today is Ecology. Governments show their concern
and interest for environmental cleaning, caring for populations of animals and plants
threatened with extinction, the decontamination of certain areas in order to take
necessary measures to maintain a healthy balance between communities and
their environment.
1.1 What is Ecology?
The word ecology comes from the Greek words oikos, “house”, and logos,
“study”. The “house” being the “environment” of the organisms, that is, ecology is
the study of living organisms in the environment they inhabit and in which they
perform all their vital functions.
It was Ernst Heinrich Haeckel, a German zoologist, who first introduced the word
“ecology” in 1866 to describe the “economies” of living forms (Sarkar, 2009). Later,
Dr. Eugene Odum, who with his textbook entitled Fundamentals of Ecology,
published in 1953, has been dubbed the “Father of Modern Ecology”and is credited
with pioneering the concept of ecosystem. In his work Ecology: The link between the
Natural and Social Sciences, he referred to Ecology as the “study of the structure
and function of the environment in which humanity is a part of it” (Diaz, 2011, p.
6). According to Diaz (2011), Dr. Odum mentioned in his book that the word ecology
comes from the same root as the word economy and in the extension of his argument
introduces the idea of the environment that includes organic (biotic) –living factors–
and all inorganic (abiotic) –nonliving– factors on which living things depend for their
existence. These factors are discussed in detail in the next chapter.
If we looked at nature around us, we could observe that the environment of any
living being is incredibly complex. Organisms are open systems that continuously
interact with their environment. There are sets of physical factors that determine the
characteristics of the environment such as temperature, salinity, humidity or the
amount of sunlight. In addition, any living being is in contact with many other
organisms, either of their own species or other species, which can be their food;
others can be their parasites or predators. Ecology studies precisely these aspects
of biology, the relationships of living things with each other and their environment.
Ecology seeks to understand how these interactions determine the morphological
and physiological adaptations, as well as the abundance, distribution and diversity
of organisms in nature.
Ecology studies the sum of all the Earth’s ecosystems: the biosphere. It includes
the entire portion of the Earth inhabited by life. Because of its great scope, Ecology
can be divided into different areas of study:
1.2. Ecology and the Other Sciences
During the 1960s, Ecology was regarded in academic circles as a branch of
biology and is often included in a curriculum package for advanced biology
together with Genetics, developmental Biology and Evolution. In this context,
according to Diaz (2011, p.9), Ecology is counted as “Environmental Biology”. The
continued increase in human population and the accompanying destruction of the
environment has drawn public attention to the world of Ecology; it is then that
Ecology was considered a major science.
Even so, Ecology is intimately linked to other biological disciplines. In particular,
it is closely related to Physiology, which studies the functioning of organs and
systems of living organisms. Ecology studies the effect of the environmental
conditions in relation with the proper functioning of the body organs or systems of an
organism. For example, Physiology investigates how the respiratory system
functions in a living thing, while Ecology studies how the presence of high
concentration of pollutants in the environment affects the proper functioning of the
respiratory system of a living being.
In addition to Physiology, Ecology also has much to do with Genetics and
EvolutionaryBiology. Genetics is a branch of biology that studies traits
and heredity. Ecological interactions are, in themselves, hustles of natural selection
that drive the evolution of species. Evolution is possible because of natural selection.
So, what happens to organisms in their environment day by day is what gives rise to
their evolution in the long term. In this case, genetics is fundamental to
understanding how the characteristics of these organisms will be the turning point of
their success or failure to pass their traits from one generation to another.
Aside from Biology, Ecology also relies greatly on disciplines outside Biology. For
example, to explain how living things are distributed throughout the world, one must
understand how organisms function and how they are grouped, and also analyze the
environmental conditions on which these organisms are located. In this case,
Geography, Geology and Meteorology are essential. Other sciences such
as Chemistryand Physics help understand the important ecological processes that occur
in the environment like the nutrient cycles and the exchange of matter and energy
between organisms and their environment.
Because humans are part of the biotic factors in the environment, we are also
included in the study of Ecology. All our activities and interactions in economy and
politics have ecological importance. Social sciences such as Economy and
Sociology are also applied to use in Ecology. At the same time, human being is one
of the elements of nature that can create great change in the structure and function
of the environment due to his social involvement. This is the reason why Ecology is
said to be an interdisciplinary and integrated science due to its association to other
sciences, not only to life sciences but also to social sciences, in the search for
answers to fundamental issues.
The environmental crisis comes in many faces and in many aspects, and not all
are related to Ecology. For example, to address the problem of environmental
pollution, the science of Chemistry and Meteorology are employed. Physics and
Engineering can provide alternative sources of energy that is becoming scarce. To
understand the phenomenon of global climate change we must rely on Geography
and Thermodynamics. Thus, the environmental crisis is not an exclusive concern of
Ecology. It is a problem that concerns all humanity.
1.3. Why Study Ecology?
Ecosystems have been functioning for billions of years without human
tending. The supply for natural resources was sufficient for the demands of a few
populations. But as populations grow, there is also an increase in the need for
resources. Natural resources diminish as population sizes increase. Development
and progress take over landscapes, and natural resources become scarce, unable
to supply growing populations. Natural habitats of animals and plants are cut down.
Ecosystems lose biodiversity. New buildings and factories arise and sources of
groundwater are polluted.

The Earth provides us with the things we need to live. It gives us
oxygen, water, food and materials for our shelter. By studying the
environment around us, we will learn to appreciate the world around
us and have a better understanding of what the Earth is providing.

Most of the human populations on Earth depend on the use of natural
resources, such as soil for agriculture, natural waters for fisheries,
forests for materials, etc. Animals, too, need lands to graze and live.
We should know the proper exploitation and management of these
natural resources that they may keep providing our needs.

There is only one Earth. If the pressures of population growth use up
the natural resources, there will be no more supply for the next
generations to come. It is our prime concern to conserve and preserve
our natural resources and devise ways to have a sustainable
environment.

Human population contributes greatly to global environment
change. Ecology helps us understand the impacts of these changes
so that we may be able to alter these changes for a better sustainable
future.
Many environmental problems now face us. The health effects of toxic wastes,
pollution and other environmental hazards of modern society have
become a greater threat than infectious diseases. The destruction of tropical forests,
wetlands, and other landscapes with biological importance is causing an alarming
loss of biodiversity that could severely limit our options for the future. These and
other serious problems explain the importance of environmental science and how
environmental education helps us understand the impact each one has in the
environment. It is our responsibility to protect and restore our environment. Being
aware of the problems we face is the principal step toward finding their solutions.
Unluckily, if we do not take actions about these problems now, we may not have
another chance to do so.
Chapter 1. Conclusion
Ecology is the science that studies the relationships between organisms and their
interactions with their environment. It is a multidisciplinary science that encompasses
many sciences, such as Physics, Chemistry, Microbiology, Geology, Entomology,
Botany, Zoology, and others. Recently, this science has received much publicity,
making its presence known in proper environmental attempts such as recycling, and
awareness of hazardous contamination and its effects.
Human population is increasing and we are putting a tremendous strain on Earth,
our home. It faces problems of overuse of natural resources, loss of biodiversity and
degradation of habitat, and a rapid climate change. It is impossible to solve these
problems without knowledge of ecology and environmental science.
It is the duty of every human being to secure the prosperity on Earth, minimize
the detrimental effects of our actions to the environment and manage our natural
resources to support future generations.
Chapter 1. Integrating Exercise

Integrating exercise
Chapter 1. Resources
 A collection of videos about planet Earth. Planet 100 Videos: Planet
Green Videos, Focus Earth: Planet Green.
PlanetGreen.com
http://planetgreen.discovery.com/videos/the-planet-100/
 An exciting way to see places on Earth via the Google Earth Blog.
Google Earth Blog
http://www.gearthblog.com/
 Animation with a few thoughts about ecology. Ecology Is…
Animation by Lukasz Szozda
http://youtu.be/Ac1UV30jt_U
 A video clip about how scientists lived in Biosphere 2.
Biosphere 2
http://youtu.be/l4DX994NonE
 Find out more about the importance of the study of ecology.
Importancy of Biodiversity
http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/importance-of-studying-ecology
 The best place to know more about what is happening on Earth through
National Geographic daily News.
National Geographic Daily News
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/
 The New York Times. The Opinion Pages.
Blogs about the Earth. Revkin, A.C. Dot Earth
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/