People, Science and the Environment level 2
Pick 8 to answer. Summary in your own words and your own thoughts. (125 words each)
Dollars and environmental sense: Economics of Environmental issues
1. Why is an understanding of economics important in environmental science?
Urban Environments
2. Should we try to save New Orleans, or should we just give up and move the port at the mouth of the Mississippi River elsewhere? Explain your answer in terms of environment and economics.
3. You are the manager of Central Park in New York City and receive the following two offers. Which would you approve? Explain your reasons.
--A gift of $1 billion to plant trees from all the eastern states.
--A gift of $1 billion to set aside half the park to be forever untouched, thus producing an urban wilderness.
4. CALIFORNIA asks you to locate and plan a new town. The purpose of the town is to house people who will work at a wind farm-a large area of many windmills, all linked to produce electricity. You must first locate the site for the wind farm and then plan the town. How would you proceed? What factors would you take into account?
5. Visit your town center. What changes, if any, would make better use of the environmental location? How could the area be made more livable?
6. You are put in charge of ridding your city's parks of slugs, which eat up the vegetable gardens rented to residents. How would you approach controlling this pest?
Our Environmental Future
7. How can we balance freedom of individual action with the need to sustain our environment?
8. What disasters are likely to occur in the region you live in? How does your list compare to other regions? What steps has your community taken to be prepared for future disasters? Finally, what more could be done to be more proactive?
9. Do you think the Gulf oil spill could have been prevented? If so, how?
10. Do you think Garrett Hardin is right-that there are some technologies (such as drilling in deep water) that humans are not prepared to adequately address and that there will thus be continued accidents due to human error?