A Brief History of Environmental Science

The photographs that literally changed

the way we look at our world
Consider this - prior to 1967, no one had ever
seen a photograph of the whole Earth
.because no such photograph existed!
1967 the first photographs
of the whole Earth (Apollo 4,
automated camera from an
unmanned spacecraft)
However - only showed a
crescent Earth

1972 Apollo 17 (last manned landing on the moon)
Put astronauts in a position
to photograph the entire
illuminated Earth
This image came to be known
as the Blue Marble Image
Emotional impact on society
Possibly the most widely
used picture ever.
Some would argue that this
kick-started the modern
environmental movement

This is how it was
originally published.
- caused a lot of confusion!
Quickly republished
showing the Earth right
way up.though there is
no such thing!
What thoughts and feelings do you think this
photograph generated in people the first time
they saw it? (Remember a picture like this had never
existed before.)

Beautiful
Isolated
Vulnerable
Fragile
Limited
Very Watery!
However these photographs could not show
just how complex our environment is.
They show many of the abiotic components
(water, land, clouds)
But they do not show the biotic components
(animals, plants, forests, soils, people)
NASA released this new
image Jan 2012
Composite photo
- 6 passes by the satellite
What is the Environment?
40 years ago, people equated the term
environment with wilderness or nature
The great leap in thinking over the past few
decades is that humans (as one species) are part
of the natural world. We are connected to the
natural world
We as a species however can, and have altered
the environment (our surroundings) more than
any other species.
Sometimes for our great benefit (e.g. longer life
spans, better health, more leisure time..)
Benefits, however, usually have costs associated
with them!
What is Environmental Science
Not easily defined because it includes other
disciplines: biology, chemistry, physics,
geography, geology, sociology, political science,
economics and philosophy
Environmental science: the study of the
interaction of the living and non-living
components of the environment with special
emphasis on the impact of humans on these
components.
Also includes the development of solutions to
environmental problems
Environmental issues are
difficult to solve because
often the solutions require
sacrifice
It is difficult to convince
people to trade in quality of
life and convenience and
money for the greater
environmental good

Example: North Americas
obsession with big cars,
SUVs and Trucks
Example: Solar power is
expensive to install.

Different from Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad social movement
dedicated to protecting the Earths life support
systems for us and other species.
Includes people who, for many reasons want to
protect the environment
Ethical, moral, religious, spiritual, artistic..
There is sometimes a blending of both science
and these other reasons in individuals and groups
(e.g. Greenpeace, World Wildlife Fund..)
There is currently an increasing emphasis on
aboriginal wisdom (traditional knowledge).
Environmentalism Timeline
A. Pre-Environmental Movement
B. Conservation Movement (1830s 1960)
C. Environmental Movement (1960-1980)
D. Sustainability Movement (1980 now)
A. Pre-environmental Movement
1798 - Thomas Malthus (British) wrote an influential book
Doctrine of Population Growth and Resource Scarcity

- "The power of population is indefinitely greater than the
power in the earth to produce subsistence for man

- in other words human population growth is faster than
growth of the food supply

- Result? misery, illness, increased death rate

Fun guy! Well come back to him later!
John Stuart Mill (1848 British philosopher)
- Population growth and increasing wealth
cannot continue forever
- at some point population and consumption
of resources must stabilize.our planet can
only support so many people!
Henry David Thoreau (1854 U.S.)
- author
- lived for a year alone in the woods near Boston
- simplicity of lifestyle
- enjoyment of nature
- distinction between urban / rural lifestyle
B. Conservation Movement
1832 1960
vanishing wilderness due to agricultural expansion;
this began to alarm some people
organization of clubs e.g. Audubon Society,
Sierra Club - preservation of wilderness and
wildlife was their goal
formation of first national wilderness parks
(e.g. Algonquin National Park established 1893)

Not motivated by science.but by peoples sense
that the beauty of wild places was to be
experienced and valued
C. Environmental Movement (1960s-1970s)
Several environmental disasters in the 1950s/60s
- severe smog events in London (1952)
- oil spills (California, England)
- birth defects due to chemical exposure (some
were due to prescribed medicines)

C. Environmental Movement (1960s-1970s)
1962 Rachel Carson publishes her book called
Silent Spring exposing dangers of the use of
pesticides
1960s emerging science of ecology the study of
how living organisms interact with their
environment including other species.
C. Modern Environmental Movement
(1960s-1980s)
Tragedy of the Commons idea was developed
1970 first Earth Day (April 22 every year)
Environmental laws passed in the early 70s.
1972 the Blue Marble image
New organizations were formed that brought
issues to public attention and pressured
governments to respond: Greenpeace, WWF ..

D. Sustainability Movement
1980s to present
Promotion of sustainability can we keep
doing what were doing forever?
3 Rs are introduced and now commonplace
(Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)
Incorporation of environmental design into
production of products (companies think
through the environmental impacts of what
they producealso good marketing)
Hard to believe ..but in your parents lifetime
this was NOT being done!
Most large companies incorporate at least some
environmental thinking into the way their products are made.
There is pressure on companies to go green
None of this was being done 30 years ago either!