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Impacts of industrialization on the environment
Impacts of industrialization on the environment
Impacts of industrialization on the environment
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When humans discovered fire, it was misused by being used as a weapon of war and hunting against both humans and animals which led to massive destruction left by occurrences such as forest fires. When humans developed a successful method of transportation it has led to environmental set backs. For example, when horses were the primary mode of transportation, manure was left everywhere in the streets of cities which understandably, led to the cultivation of numerous diseases. When gasoline cars took a rise due to their convenience, the Earth took a horrible environmental toll and the quality of life degraded to the rising levels of greenhouse gases. It seems that with every technological advancement introduced, there are always potential set …show more content…
Since the rise of the Alberta oil sands, the contribution of greenhouses gas emissions has been increasing dramatically. Alberta has only 10% of Canada’s population but emits the most greenhouse gases than any province. Also, the oil sands are the largest source of carbon dioxide emissions in Canada ("Oil Sands Truth." Para 4). Additionally, although it takes a lot of energy going into producing the bitumen from the oil sands, the energy output is relatively low. A about three times water is needed for one portion of bitumen when it is being processed after being accessed from the oil sands. Not only is water wasted, but the water supply n the area is heavily polluted. There is more than three million gallons of toxic run off from the plants every day. To contain this, majority of polluted water and tar is segregated and turned into toxic pools which are deposits of a combination of chemicals and polluted water. These pools now cover about fifty square miles in the oil sands location ("Tar Sands Oil: Pros and Cons." Para 1). To make room for the industry, the boreal forest is being cut down at a rapid pace. This not only depleted forest cover but the boreal forest counters the carbon emissions from the sands but with less forests, there will be an even greater rise in carbon emissions. The land is also being harmed due to the construction of large pipelines to access consumers far away. Not only do the oil sands harm the inorganic aspects of the environment in the location but animals are harmed due to their habitats being destroyed both on land and in the water ("Pros and Cons: Alberta Oil Sands." Para 4). The rivers and streams near the oil sands are being polluted and more fish and other aquatic animals are getting sick and dying. This in turn affects the individuals who fish for a living or acquire the fish as a main dietary source. With less fish to obtain,
To begin with, the rise of technology has allowed people an easier way of transportation, but everything comes with a cost, such as greenhouse gases. Cars, power plants, factories, oil sands, clear-cut, to name a few, has all played a factor in the increase of climate change. This can cause the extinction of species. Animals without homes, migration patterns scattered and algae blooms
The Alberta Oil Sands are large deposits of bitumen in north-eastern Alberta. Discovered in 1848, the first commercial operation was in 1967 with the Great Canadian Oil Sands plant opening, and today many companies have developments there. The Alberta Oil Sand development is very controversial, as there are severe environmental impacts and effects on the local Aboriginal peoples. This essay will discuss the need for changes that can be made for the maximum economic benefit for Canada, while reducing the impact on the environment and limiting expansion, as well as securing Alberta’s future. Changes need to be made to retain the maximum economic benefits of the Alberta Oil Sands while mitigating the environmental and geopolitical impact. This will be achieved by building pipelines that will increase the economic benefits, having stricter environmental regulation and expansion limitations, and improving the Alberta Heritage Fund or starting a new fund throu...
The Alberta tar sands have the second largest oil reserves in the entire world, only smaller than Saudi Arabia’s oil reserves. This vast supply of oil has created a large interest in the extraction and then production of different types of oil in Canada. The tar sands are believed to hold around 174.5 billion barrels of oil. The estimates are across the board but if it is true, the oil industry in Canada would become its largest export and substantially boost the economy. The tar sands were producing 53% of Canada’s oil output, but by the end of this year it will be around 83%. This number could increase to 99%, if the tar sands are fully taken advantage of. The extraction of oil has already begun and covers around 602 square kilometers of land. The problem is that ...
There are many dangers facing the Pine Barrens today. The most dangerous is the effect industrialization has on it. Many industries contribute to the mass pollution of water, land, and air. This greatly impacts the ecosystem of the Pinelands and the animals that live in it. Industrialization also leads to the building of more houses that are detrimental to the Pinelands because the Pinelands are being destroyed little by little every day. This ecosystem is too precious to waste, it needs to be preserved. Pollution has caused over forty species of birds to become endangered. Acid rain also causes the extinction of many species. Acid rain is the term used to describe the chemicals that are deposited through the rain. These chemicals travel through the soil and affect many plants and animals. Acid rain is a world-wide problem that concerns all ecosystems; acid rain needs to controlled by limiting the amount of pollution let out into the air. Another major issue affecting the Pine Barrens is forest fires. There are as many as four hundred forest fires per year.
...such as recycling and reducing waste has significantly helped our environment and will continue to if future generations practice these same habits. For deforestation, many organizations have strived to plant more trees and add more oxygen to the atmosphere as well as nutrients for the soil. Seeing that although humans create many negative impacts in our global environment, there are many positive arrangements in correcting these issues.
In today’s world humans are consuming massive amounts of fossil fuels. The top five oil consuming countries in the world are the usual suspects. These include the United States, China, Japan, India and Russia. Canada comes in at number 10 with a daily consumption of 2,287 thousand barrels per day. There are three major types of fossil fuels: coal, oil and natural gas. These resources were formed during the Carboniferous Period 360-286 million years ago. During this time earth was covered in swamps with large amounts of plants and waters filled with algae. When these plants and trees began to die they would form layers of peat. Hundreds and thousands of years would pass adding sand and other materials on top of the peat. This formed the sedimentary rocks we know today. As the thousands of years turned into millions of years the water of the peat layer was pushed out of the peat until the layer of diatoms turned into coal, oil or natural gas (CEC, 2013). Canada has oil industry throughout the country and currently 12 out of 13 provinces are active in the oil industry. Natural gas production is occurring in British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, and New Brunswick. Natural gas could also become large industry in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland & Labrador, Yukon and the Northwest Territories. Oil production is currently taking place in the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland & Labrador (CAPP, 2013).
The Athabasca oil sands are the second largest producer of crude oil in the world, with a surface area of approximately 100 000 square kilometres (Anderson, Giesy & Wiseman, 2010). The Alberta Energy and Utilities Board estimates that the oil sands contains approximately 1.7 trillion barrels of crude bitumen, however only 19% can be ultimately recovered (Raynolds, Severson-Baker & Woynillowicz, 2005; Humphries, 2008). The availability of recoverable bitumen makes Canada’s oil sands deposit larger even than that of Saudi Arabia (Czarnecki, Hamza, Masliyah, Xu & Zhou, 2004).The process of surface and in situ mining of the Athabasca oil sands is causing rapid and significant degradation of the regional environment surrounding Fort McMurray and the Athabasca River. Production is expected to increase to three million barrels per day by 2015 from approximately 2 million currently (Humphries, 2008). This increase will further exacerbate the existing environmental impacts of crude oil production. The Canadian oil and natural gas industry is extremely lucrative, but despite the short-term economic benefits of the mining of the Athabasca oil sands, the remediation of the negative environmental impacts of the extraction of oil on terrestrial and aquatic environments, biodiversity, and greenhouse gas emissions are a priority.
Canadian Natural Resources is an oil and gas exploration, development and production company with its corporate head office in Calgary, Alberta. CNR is Canada’s largest oil and gas company and one of the world’s largest independent oil and gas producer. CNR was founded in Calgary, Alberta in 1989 but there is no specific man or women who have found the company. The company started off with drilling shallow gas basin, which is a big contributor of their success. Slowly they shifted into bitumen and crude oil. CNR headquarters are located in Calgary, Alberta and all the other offices are located in Alberta except for one, Fort St.John which is located in British Columbia. Their factories and offices are located in Alberta because Alberta is the
...i. "Environmental Pathways Of Potential Impacts To Human Health From Oil And Gas Development In Northeast British Columbia, Canada." Environmental Reviews 20.2 (2012): 122-134. Academic Search Complete. Web. 3 Apr. 2014.
These burdens are amplified as the area is further urbanized; increasing demands for fossilized fuels, food, water, and property for additional urban construction. The impact of industrialization has transformed human life and produced extensive ecological deviations. In order to understand how the environmental impacts of ever expanding industrialized technology might linger to impact our health and that of our environment, we offer facts that should be studied. This paper suggests that extra research be conducted to enhance perception concerning advancing modern technology disadvantageous consequences on the safety of humans and their surrounding environment. Manufacturing of Energy Resources.
Attention getter: Fumes. Gases. Toxins. We cannot survive without air; even though, we must inhale any air that is available in the atmosphere. According to the Environmental Protection Agency “a new gas powered lawn mower produces…air pollution in one hour of operation as 11 new cars each being driven for one hour” (Springfels). If the society keeps producing technology, then the environment will be destroyed.
The worst imaginable environmental catastrophe that could occur in Maryland has just become a reality. The lifeblood of Southern Maryland's Watermen has been forever affected. The ecosystems of the Patuxtent River and Chesapeake Bay have been irreversibly contaminated. The Three Mile Island and Chernobyl Nuclear Accidents have affected the world ecosystems; but the Chalk Point oil spill has reached us here in Southern Maryland. The ethical considerations with generating electricity from fossil fuels, specifically oil, has a profound impact on us all. We all use electricity to make our lives easier and more productive. By using this electricity have we given our permission for the oil companies free reign in order to provide us with the service we demand?? Are we just as responsible for the oil spill as the corporate leaders who run the companies? As citizens we are in a position to develop and enforce regulations to protect ourselves. Do we also protect the environment; or is the environment just something for us to use? These and many other moral dilemmas exist for modern man.
In the 21st century, the world has changed in many ways. Some changes have improved the quality of life and health for many people. Others have affected people health and causing different kind of pollution that is harming the environment. That is technology we talking about, it is apply to every one of us in daily life, example the motor vehicles and factory it all producing dangerous and harmful gasses to the environment but we can not live without it.
During the past several hundred years, humans have begun to industrialize rapidly. Tons of new technologies with all sorts of capabilities have sprung up. In many cases, these added capabilities have been used to manipulate natural things for human benefit, often at the expense of other things. On the other hand, technological advancement has required that humans come to a better understanding of the world, bringing with it a greater potential to do good, to manipulate things for the benefit of the planet. Technological advancement has essentially given us the “can”, and so now the question becomes “should”. Should we do something because we can? Industrialization has increased the effect humans have on the environment, for good or for bad.
Efforts to improve the standard of living for humans--through the control of nature and the development of new products--have also resulted in the pollution, or contamination, of the environment. Much of the world's air, water, and land is now partially poisoned by chemical wastes. Some places have become uninhabitable. This pollution exposes people all around the globe to new risks from disease. Many species of plants and animals have become endangered or are now extinct. As a result of these developments, governments have passed laws to limit or reverse the threat of environmental pollution.