SOC 2805 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Kilowatt Hour, Bauxite
Chapter 12
Sustainability
Sustainability
• Why should we care?
• What can be done?
What Is Sustainability?
• Sustainability is more than just being “green” and preserving the environment. It’s about
responsible development in the present so that future generations will have the resources
they need to meet their needs.
How Do You Rate in Sustainability?
• What type of home do you live in?
• How many miles do you travel in a year?
• What types of foods do you eat?
• What do you do with clothes that you don’t wear anymore?
• How do you dispose of waste?
What Is a Carbon Footprint?
• A carbon footprint is the measure of the environmental impact of an individual or
organization's lifestyle or operation, measured in units of carbon dioxide.
• Carbon footprint calculator offers a ballpark figure of a person's, businesses or
household's "carbon footprint" — that is, all the greenhouse gases emitted either directly
or on one's behalf. A good carbon calculator will offer tips for minimizing your carbon
footprint and many will allow you to calculate how to offset it.
History of Sustainability
• Is it just a 21st century idea?
Environmental Issues Timeline1800s -1980s
• Late 1800s- Industrial Revolution created pollution very quickly
o Cars quickly filled the roads
o Pollution from factories
• 1930’s- people reused EVERYTHING due to depressed economics
• 1950’s- not recognized as an issue – suburban areas grew substantially
• 1960’s- first pollution awareness and control
• 1970’s- EPA and laws were established concerning pollution control
• 1980’s- pollution prevention
Environmental Issues Timeline 1990s
• Support of recyclable, ozone-friendly, biodegradable products
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
What is sustainability: sustainability is more than just being green and preserving the environment. It"s about responsible development in the present so that future generations will have the resources they need to meet their needs. A good carbon calculator will offer tips for minimizing your carbon footprint and many will allow you to calculate how to offset it. Environmental issues timeline 1990s: support of recyclable, ozone-friendly, biodegradable products, boycotting of large companies seen as polluters and support for smaller, home-grown, children from the 1990"s have grown up thinking about the earth, unlike children of the companies. What happens with our garbage: on average, americans generate 4. 6 pounds of trash per day, this is almost twice as much as most other developed countries, most of it ends up in landfills. Of clothing: over 20 billion pounds of clothing ends up in our landfills every year, an estimated 1 in 10 clothing items gets bought, never worn, and simply thrown away.