Preface v Introduction vii C HAPTER 1 A World In Crisis: Environment and Humanity in the Twenty-First Century 1 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 The State of Earth''s Nations 2 1.3 Prospects for the New Century 4 Population 4 Economic Development 4 Environment 6 Land Use 7 1.4 The Concept of Development 8 1.5 Earth''s Capacity to Support Humans 10 The Carrying Capacity Concept 11 1.6 Limits to Growth 11 1.7 Your Role in the Global Environmental Community 13 1.

8 Summary 15 1.9 Key Terms and Concepts 15 1.10 Questions For Review 15 C HAPTER 2 The Search For An Enduring Balance Between Humanity and Environment 17 2.1 Introduction 17 2.2 The Growing Environmental Impact of Human Activity 18 Trends in Poor and Wealthy Countries 19 2.3 Sustainable Land Use: The Key to Environmental Management 20 Humanity as Part of Nature 21 Accounting for Pollution Costs and Environmental Damage 21 Natural Resource Accounting 22 Reduction of Poverty 22 2.4 Necessary Changes in Resources Policies for Sustainability 23 Reforming Agriculture 23 Promoting Efficient Raw Material and Energy Use 23 2.5 Constraints on Achieving Sustainable Land Use 24 2.

6 Some Geographic Requisites for Sustainability 25 2.7 A Grass-Roots Effort at Sustainable Land Use 27 2.8 Measuring Sustainability 27 2.8 Summary 28 2.9 Key Terms and Concepts 28 2.10 Questions For Review 28 C HAPTER 3 The Global Context and Some Geographic Imperatives 30 3.1 Introduction 30 3.2 The Scope of Environmental Geography 30 Environmental Pollution 21 Environmental Disturbance 21 Land Use and Technology 31 3.

3 The Global Context and Setting 32 Earth''s Surface Features 32 Global Coordinate System 34 Zones of Latitude 36 Where People Live in the World 36 3.4 Our Geographically Integrated Planet 37 Distance and Scale 37 Uncertainty and Risk 38 3.5 Human Use of the Earth 39 The Rural World 39 Agriculture, Forest, and Grassland 41 The Urban World 42 3.6 The Role of Human Values and Environmental Regulations 43 Environmental Policy and Regulation 43 International Regulation 45 3.7 Summary 46 3.8 Key Terms and Concepts 47 3.9 Questions For Review 48 C HAPTER 4 Global Cycles and Systems: The Master Environmental Framework 49 4.1 Introduction 49 4.

2 The General Organization of the Earth''s Environments 50 Lithosphere, Hydrosphere, and Atmosphere 50 The Biosphere 51 The Ecological Context 53 4.3 The Source of Energy for the Earth''s Environments 54 Available Solar Energy 55 Global Distribution of Solar Energy 55 Radiation and Moisture: Implications for Life Support 56 4.4 The Major Energy Systems of Earth 57 The Heat Path and Geophysical Systems 57 The Organic Path and Life Systems 57 4.5 The Cycle of Matter in Ecosystems 58 Nutrients 58 Nutrient Cycles 59 The Carbon Cycle 59 The CO2 Balance 60 The Oxygen Cycle 60 The Oxygen Balance 60 The Nitrogen Cycle 61 The Phosphorus Cycle 61 4.6 Interrelations in Environmental Systems 62 Primary Relationships 62 Secondary Relationships 64 4.7 The Gaia Concept 64 Geophysiology 64 Some Questions 64 4.8 Summary 65 4.9 Key Terms and Concepts 65 4.

10 Questions for Review 66 C HAPTER 5 Ecosystems and the Bioclimatic Environment 67 5.1 Introduction 67 5.2 Basic Form and Function of an Ecosystem 68 Organization of Food Chains 68 Energy Flow 69 5.3 Plant Productivity: Feeding Ecosystems 70 Limiting Factors 71 Productivity and Climatic Limitations 71 Global Productivity and Human Needs and Impacts 73 5.4 Types of Ecosystems and Their Characteristics 73 Terrestrial Ecosystems 73 Compositional Traits 74 Some Interrelations within Communities 75 Biogeographical Trends 75 5.5 Ecosystem Patterns and Distributions 76 Global Terrestrial Patterns 76 Global Marine Patterns 78 Patterns within Climatic Zones 81 5.6 Models of Spatial Dynamics in Ecosystems 83 Succession Theory 83 Disturbance Theory 83 The Human Factor 84 5.7 Land Use as Ecosystems 84 5.

8 Human Impact and Disturbance of Ecosystems 85 5.9 Summary 88 5.10 Key Terms and Concepts 89 5.11 Questions for Review 90 C HAPTER 6 The Spread of Humanity and the Challenge of the Last Frontiers 92 6.1 Introduction 92 6.2 Human Dispersal and Adaptation 93 6.3 The Rise of Human Populations 94 The Spread of Agriculture 94 Emergence of Global Power Centers 94 Global Zones of Human Occupation 96 6.4 Frontier Environments and the Modern Threat 97 6.

5 The Wet Tropics 97 Tropical Forest Loss 97 Environmental Consequences 99 6.6 The Dry Lands 100 Types of Dry Environments 100 Moisture Variability 100 Desertification 101 6.7 The Cold Lands 102 Types of Cold Lands 103 Land Use and Environment 104 6.8 The Mountain Lands 105 Environmental Barriers 106 6.9 The Continental Shelves 106 Natural Resources 106 Environmental Threats 107 6.10 Summary 108 6.11 Key terms and Concepts 109 6.12 Questions for Review 110 C HAPTER 7 The Human Population: Trends, Patterns, and Problems 111 7.

1 Introduction 111 7.2 Historical Perspectives of Population Trends 112 Resources, Technology, and Population Growth 112 Future Population Trends in the Next Generation 113 7.3 Population Patterns and Trends 113 Temporal and Spatial Variations in Population 113 International Comparisons of Population Size and Density 115 Variations in Population Density Patterns 116 Changing Perceptions of Population Trends 117 Natural Population Changes 118 HIV/AIDS Epidemic Slowing Population Growth 121 The Demographic Transition 122 Demographic Transition in the Developing World 124 7.4 Fertility, Age Structure, and Population Momentum 124 7.5 Family-Planning Programs in the Developing World 126 7.6 A Worldwide Program to Stabilize World Population--Improving the Status of Women 127 7.7 Migration: Where Do People Go? 127 Some Reasons for Migration 127 North American Internal Migration 128 Some Demographic Effects of Migration 129 Migration and Environmental Impact 130 7.8 Problems Faced by Developing Countries with Rapidly Growing Populations 130 Economic and Environmental Problems of a Fast-Growing Developing Country-- A Case Study of Brazil 131 A Neo-Malthusian Specter 132 7.

9 Perceived Problems in Developed Countries with Stable or Declining Populations 133 7.10 Population Trends that Will Shape the Future 133 Continued but Declining Growth in the Developing World 133 A World Growing Old 134 International Migration: Poor People Moving to Rich Countries 134 7.11 Two Alternative Views of Future Population Trends 134 7.12 Summary 135 7.13 Key Terms and Concepts 136 7.14 Questions for Review 136 C HAPTER 8 Agriculture, Food Production, Hunger, and the Environment 137 8.1 Introduction 137 8.2 Cultural Evolution and the Development of Global Agriculture 138 8.

3 Industrialization and the Changing Nature of Agriculture 139 8.4 Food Choices: The Plants and Animals that Feed the World 140 8.5 Systems of Agricultural Production 144 Commercial Agriculture 146 8.6 A Geographical Perspective on World Hunger and Malnutrition 146 Famine 146 Malnutrition 147 Why Does Hunger Persist in the Twenty-First Century? 149 Agricultural Subsidies and Hunger 150 U.S. Food Aid 150 8.7 New Horizons in World Agriculture: The Green Revolution 151 A New Chapter in the Green Revolution 152 Outside the Green Revolution: New Strategies for Traditional Agriculture 153 Beyond the Green Revolution: Biotechnology 154 Transgenic Crops in the Developing World 154 8.8 Agriculture and the Environment 156 Soil Erosion 156 Salinization and Waterlogging 158 Groundwater Depletion and Contamination 158 Surface Water Impacts 158 Simplification, Substitution, and Environmental Change 160 Environmental Regulation and Agriculture 160 8.

9 Moving Toward Sustainable Agricultural Production 161 Conserving Soil Productivity 161 Conserving Energy Resources 163 Conserving Water Resources 163 Use of Perennials 163 Adoption of Natural Resource Accounting 163 Developing Agricultural Policies that Support Sustainable Agriculture 163 8.10 Can Sustainable Agriculture Supply Enough Food for a Growing Population? 164 Land 164 Water for Irrigation 164 Energy 164 Climate 164 Genetic Materials 165 Expansion of Knowledge 165 8.11 Summary 165 8.12 Key Terms and Concepts 166 8.13 Questions for Review 167 C HAPTER 9 Energy Generation, Use, and the Environmen.