Describe some of the properties of gold that make it a useful/valuable metal and describe some of the uses of gold in our society.
What is artisanal gold mining and what are its major environmental impacts.
Describe the major steps in producing gold at industrial mines.
How has industrial mining changed from the 1960s to present (in terms of ore grade and location of deposits).
Describe what a “performance bond” is and why mines were forces to obtain them Also, what impact has the requirement of performance bonds had on the mining industry.
Six major impacts of large-scale industrial mining were discussed in class. Pick 3 of them to describe.
Water:
What are the basic components of the hydrologic cycle and how can climate change impact each of these components?
Why is groundwater a much more vulnerable resource than surface water? and describe how groundwater loss has impacted surface water diversions.
How has population grown in the western United States and how has this growth been sustained by water management?
How could climate change impact western water availability, supply and demand?
Describe how Los Angeles and southern CA agricultural development became possible through water diversions. Be able to describe these diversions in the order in which they came on line and the source of the water and the impacts.
Describe how the search and reaching for water by southern Nevada is analogous to what went on in southern California as it was developed.
Describe the Truckee River system and the water storage and regulations regarding water use in this system.
Discuss how the dust bowl was important in forcing the development of the Central Valley of California and its development for agriculture.
Describe how the large dams developed in the late 1930s and 1940s were important for helping the allied forces win the second world war.
Explain the geographical and demographical basis of China’s water crisis and describe a solution aimed at addressing it.
What is desertification? Describe its causes, associated environmental problems, and potential solutions in a Chinese context.
Describe the reasons why the Three Gorges Dam was built and is associated environmental/social impacts.
Describe the major components of the Sungari River water pollution crisis (in April 2005) focusing on: cause of pollution, type of pollution, government response, and environmental impact.
Eco-terrorism:
Briefly describe the philosophy behind eco-terrorism/radical environmentalism. How has eco-terrorism evolved since the foundation of Earth First and how has Earth First’s relationship to eco-terrorism changed and why.
Biodiversity:
What is biodiversity? Would you consider biodiversity to be a renewable or a non-renewable resource? Explain your reasoning.
How do current rates of species loss (known extinctions) compare to long-term average rates estimated from the fossil record? What threats have been identified to affect biodiversity nowadays? Which threat do you think is the most important and what are some human activities that contribute to it?
Give examples of the instrumental and intrinsic values of biodiversity. Which ones have commercial value?
What are some ways to estimate the nonmarket value of ecosystem services?
Total economic value of services delivered is often different when habitats are relatively intact/used sustainably, and when habitats are converted/intensely used (Balmford et al. 2002 article mentioned in class; or the biodiversity conservation in Kenya discussed in class). Which one is more valuable over short periods of time (and for whom)? Which one is more valuable in the long run (for whom and why)?
What are the basic provisions of the US Endangered Species Act of 1973? Do you think ESA is successful? Why/why not?
According to Laband (2001), why does the public demand excessive amount of biodiversity and environmental protection?
What is a nonnative (exotic) species? What is an invasive species (e.g. per Dybas 2004, or class discussion)?
Describe a case of an invasive species (e.g. from videos, or class readings, or some example you found on your own): how it came to the new habitat, what effects it had on the ecosystem/economy, what the current situation is.
Based on the Youth (2003) article, in what ways do invasive species threaten birds (give some specific examples/explain)?
Environmental policy:
Do environmental issues need global policies, why?
Explain the difference between GDP and GPI as measures of our well-being? (Prugh and Assadourian 2003, Sachs 1999)
What economic tools could be used to address environmental problems?
What are some ways to estimate nonmarket value of ecological services?
Inferring from the past, what has been needed to precipitate environmental policies in the US? Give an example.
What was an important change in the approach to environmental policy in the 1980's?
What was the Mono Lake court battle about? What was the court ruling, and what may be the significance of such a decision beyond its impact on Mono Lake (Cadillac Desert: Mullholland's Dream video)?
What are environmental worldviews? How do extreme environmental worldviews differ in the value attributed to environment and the role of humans?
Which environmental worldview(s) would you assign: to Lomborg (2001)? to Gever (1991)? to people engaging in radical environmentalism? and why?
What are the basic elements of the international environmental governance system? What are some relevant IGOs?
What are some problems/difficulties with international environmental governance?
What are the three important global summits about the environment held in the past? In general, what is the significance of these summits?
What has been the role of civil society groups in shaping environmental policy?
What are MEA's? How have MEA's changed in scope since the 1970s to today?
The chapter lists a number of weaknesses of MEA's, be able to list these limitations, explain the essence, and what some remedies might be.
What are "soft laws" and what is their significance in the context of global environmental governance?
Where does funding come from for financing global environmental initiatives?
What is GEF, and what is its major purpose?
Be able to discuss problems with official development assistance (ODA), such as the quality and earmarking of donations, in addition to not meeting the ODA funding goals.
What does the principle of common but differentiated responsibility (CDR) mean? Give an example of a treaty that applies the CDR principle (be able to explain specifically how treaty invokes CDR).
What is the precautionary principle? Give an example of a treaty where the precautionary principle has been employed (explain how it works).
With economic globalization, what impacts might trade have on the environment?
How can global trading regime (WTO rules) benefit or negatively affect environmental policies? Give an example of each.
What is 'democratic deficit' in international governance? Contrast this with one of the Rio principles, and discuss why this may be important for the environmental policy (e.g. in the French 2002 article).
Describe a general path of some environmental issue (you can make one up, or use an existing example) from not being "an issue", to being addressed in an international agreement, to domestic implementation (especially if an agreement is not self-executing). What hurdles may be associated with each step?
Be able to draw the Environmental Kuznets Curve (remember to label axes, Arrow et al. 1995), and explain how MEA's might play a role in decoupling the underlying variables (would you be able to draw the EK curve with MEA coming into force early on?).
Define environmental crime.
Why has there been an increase in environmental crime in the last few decades?
What are major areas (broad categories) of international environmental crime?
Be able to explain what each major category of environmental crime entails, relate it to a specific MEA (if there are any), and discuss what makes those activities illegal (even if you are not sure what MEA may address those issues).
What would be an environmental flag-of-convenience (FOC)? What is the benefit of re-flagging (for the ship owner)? In which areas of environmental crime is FOC encountered?
What is considered to be the most common type of environmental crime? Which MEA(s) address this area, and are there any notable countries that are not a part of those agreements? Would you be able to draw the EK curve (come up with a specific y-axis label for this crime), and mark on the graph what happens when this crime is committed?
