4. Thoroughly describe the effects of melting land ice and snow - such as glacie

Question

4. Thoroughly describe the effects of melting land ice and snow - such as glaciers in Greenland and the Himalayas - on the environment and on people. Describe the positive feedback mechanisms involved. (1.5 points) 

5. Describe why melting sea ice does not contribute significantly to sea level rise. (A knowledge of basic physics or chemistry will help.) (0.5 point) 

6. So, what ARE the major harmful effects caused by melting sea ice? (1 point) 

7. Describe the role of melting permafrost in climate disruption, and the positive feedback mechanisms involved. (1 point) 

Risk 
8. What are the three major risks you face from each of the following a) your lifestyle, b) where you live, and c) what you do for a living? Which of these is voluntary and which are involuntary? What steps can you take to reduce these risks? (3 points) 

Green taxes, tax shifting 
9. Summarize how we can discourage pollution and resource waste by taxing it. Why is the United States Congress slow to enact green taxes? (3 points) 

Individuals (in Business) Matter 
10. Briefly describe Mike Biddle’s contribution to plastics recycling (1 point) 

11. Briefly describe three principles of sustainability specifically adopted by Ray Anderson’s carpet company, Interface. (1 point) 

Environmental Law 
12. Summarize the political controversy over managing the four major types of US public lands. (3 points) For a little extra credit, you may also cite recent news about legislation to open more public land to drilling, mining, logging, etc. 

Comprehensive Final Essay: Perverse Subsidies 
The negative effects of perverse government subsidies and how they directly compound other problems have been mentioned throughout the textbook and in Myers’ guest essay “Perverse Subsidies”. In order to answer the questions below, you’ll be gathering your information from various chapters. If you remember sufficient detail without having to look things up, you must say so (“from memory”). Otherwise, please cite all pages consulted.

NOTE: I am NOT asking for a recap of all the environmental and social problems associated with agriculture, fisheries, mining, etc. (That would be a very long discussion!) Each chapter section describes information specific to subsidies for each industry. Please summarize in your own words. (Total 5 points) Once again, I’ve assigned the number of points required to minimally answer each topic, but extra credit may be earned. This is your chance to pull ahead with your insight into subsidies!

14. Continue to describe the perverse subsidies for each of the following industries, and some of the harmful consequences due to current subsidies: (3 points)

*Fisheries 

*Mining 

*Oil, natural gas, coal, and nuclear power (nonrenewable energy resources)

Explanation / Answer

4.Effects of melting of land ice and snow are as follows:

Rise in sea level

Addition of fresh water to the oceans and seas.

Changes in oceanic circulation, pressure and temperature conditions.

Regulation of global temperatures.

5. The ice in the seas is contained mainly in the icebergs which are made up of fresh water. Fresh Water is lighter than ocean water. Thus, density of sea water is less than the density of the ocean and sea waters which are salty. The icebergs displaces an amount of water from the seas which is equal to the weight of the icebergs. When the icebergs melt, the frsh water of the melted icebergs will take only a slight greater volume than the salt water that the iceberg had displaced. This slight increase is neglible and so, ignored. Thus, a melting sea ice does not significantly contribute to the sea level rise.

6. Harmful effects of the melting of ice:

Rapid and abnormal rise in the temperatures and level of sea and ocean water. This has an adverse effcet on the land temperatures also.

7. Melting Permafrost implies that more permafrost is melting each summer. Consequently, high latitudes warm much more faster than the lower latitudes. Stored greenhouse gas is released.

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