Environmental System Research Paper 2022
Added on 2022-10-04
14 Pages3458 Words52 Views
Design and CreativityEnvironmental ScienceEconomics
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Running head: ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEM
ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEM
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note
ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEM
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note
ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEM1
Introduction
Globalization is the process of improvement that helps governments, communities and
countries by providing them with opportunities, so that they could achieve expansion, growth
and development in their processes1. Globalization has always been associated with the land use
related changes and human has always transformed the natural landscapes to agricultural fields,
construction sites and other aspects due to which majority of the natural forest habitats has been
destroyed2. As per recent global reports by European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme
for research (2019), over the past 50 years, more than 17% of the forest coverage has been lost
only in the Amazon and majority of these has been transformed for cattle ranching and
agricultural fields. Further, as per Nelson et al. (2016), more than 40% of the ice covered land
around the world has been transformed into crop fields over the past decades.
These development and transformations has improved the present situation and has
helped to satisfy hunger, shelter and clothing needs of humankind around the globe. However,
the principles of sustainability are at stake due to extensive use of natural resources that threatens
to compromise the needs of future generation3.
Therefore, the primary aim of this paper is to understand the principles of sustainability
and the way these transformations of forest lands into agricultural fields has affected the three
primary principles of sustainable development. Further, this paper will emphasis on the aspects
1 European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research. 2019. "How Agriculture And Forestry
Change Climate, And How We Deal With It". Luc4c.Eu. http://luc4c.eu/public_files/uploads/2015-05/LUC4C
%20booklet_web_How%20agriculture%20and%20forestry%20change%20climate.pdf.
2 Ali, Akhter, and Olaf Erenstein. "Assessing farmer use of climate change adaptation practices and impacts
on food security and poverty in Pakistan." Climate Risk Management16 (2017): 183-194.
3 Food and Agricultural Organisation of United Nations. 2019. "STATE OF THE WORLD’S
FORESTS". Fao.Org. http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5588e.pdf.
Introduction
Globalization is the process of improvement that helps governments, communities and
countries by providing them with opportunities, so that they could achieve expansion, growth
and development in their processes1. Globalization has always been associated with the land use
related changes and human has always transformed the natural landscapes to agricultural fields,
construction sites and other aspects due to which majority of the natural forest habitats has been
destroyed2. As per recent global reports by European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme
for research (2019), over the past 50 years, more than 17% of the forest coverage has been lost
only in the Amazon and majority of these has been transformed for cattle ranching and
agricultural fields. Further, as per Nelson et al. (2016), more than 40% of the ice covered land
around the world has been transformed into crop fields over the past decades.
These development and transformations has improved the present situation and has
helped to satisfy hunger, shelter and clothing needs of humankind around the globe. However,
the principles of sustainability are at stake due to extensive use of natural resources that threatens
to compromise the needs of future generation3.
Therefore, the primary aim of this paper is to understand the principles of sustainability
and the way these transformations of forest lands into agricultural fields has affected the three
primary principles of sustainable development. Further, this paper will emphasis on the aspects
1 European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research. 2019. "How Agriculture And Forestry
Change Climate, And How We Deal With It". Luc4c.Eu. http://luc4c.eu/public_files/uploads/2015-05/LUC4C
%20booklet_web_How%20agriculture%20and%20forestry%20change%20climate.pdf.
2 Ali, Akhter, and Olaf Erenstein. "Assessing farmer use of climate change adaptation practices and impacts
on food security and poverty in Pakistan." Climate Risk Management16 (2017): 183-194.
3 Food and Agricultural Organisation of United Nations. 2019. "STATE OF THE WORLD’S
FORESTS". Fao.Org. http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5588e.pdf.
ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEM2
of sustainability n land usages and will mention the challenges that may be faced by
communities while attaining the balance. Finally, it will provide an alternative by providing
recommendations for sustainable land use and in this prospect, would mention about the Elinor
Ostrom‘s alternative.
The transformation of forest land to agricultural field
As mentioned by Sirami et al. (2017), forests are in constant state of change as the human
race is constantly replacing extended forest lands into fields, agricultural lands and cattle
ranching places. As mentioned in a global report by European Union’s Seventh Framework
Programme for research (2019), currently forests cover 31% of the lands on earth and this
percentage has decreased by 17% over the past five decades. As mentioned in the United Nations
Food and Agricultural Organisation report (2019), the maximum deforestation took place in
1990s as during this phase every year earth lost 19 hectares of forest lands, upon which
agricultural fields, constrictions and other development took place. Further, reports of (2019)
mentions that the total agricultural filed coverage in the world stands around 11% currently and
the percentage of agricultural fields has increased at a sustainable pace. This is an important
aspects as Levy, Barry and Jonathan (2015) mentioned about the increasing hunger and needs of
the world population and to meet them, it is important to obtain crops, focus on infrastructure
and provide the population with their fundamental rights.
Land use changes and the effect on climate
While discussing about the changes or transformation of forest lands into agricultural
fields, the discussion about the effect these transformation brings in the ecosystem and
of sustainability n land usages and will mention the challenges that may be faced by
communities while attaining the balance. Finally, it will provide an alternative by providing
recommendations for sustainable land use and in this prospect, would mention about the Elinor
Ostrom‘s alternative.
The transformation of forest land to agricultural field
As mentioned by Sirami et al. (2017), forests are in constant state of change as the human
race is constantly replacing extended forest lands into fields, agricultural lands and cattle
ranching places. As mentioned in a global report by European Union’s Seventh Framework
Programme for research (2019), currently forests cover 31% of the lands on earth and this
percentage has decreased by 17% over the past five decades. As mentioned in the United Nations
Food and Agricultural Organisation report (2019), the maximum deforestation took place in
1990s as during this phase every year earth lost 19 hectares of forest lands, upon which
agricultural fields, constrictions and other development took place. Further, reports of (2019)
mentions that the total agricultural filed coverage in the world stands around 11% currently and
the percentage of agricultural fields has increased at a sustainable pace. This is an important
aspects as Levy, Barry and Jonathan (2015) mentioned about the increasing hunger and needs of
the world population and to meet them, it is important to obtain crops, focus on infrastructure
and provide the population with their fundamental rights.
Land use changes and the effect on climate
While discussing about the changes or transformation of forest lands into agricultural
fields, the discussion about the effect these transformation brings in the ecosystem and
ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEM3
environment should be discussed4. As per Nelson et al. (2014), there are two primary aspects of
ecosystem or environmental changes that is observed due to such transformation, land-coverage
change related and land-use related. The land cover changes related transformation are
associated with the replacement of any natural forest or grassland, with agricultural field.
Whereas, the land use determines the way crop lands or forest lands are used, with application of
fertilizers, or decreasing the density of animal grazing in the field. Despite the fact that both of
these transformational changes affects the ecosystem and environment, their degree or severity
helps to differentiate between these two5. Land use related modifications are associated with the
greenhouse gas emission such as carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane
(CH4). As per Ali and Erenstein (2017), when humans transforms forest lands into agricultural
fields and implements their modern agricultural means such as usage of fertilizers, chemicals and
other aspects, then ample amount of natural greenhouse gases are emitted to the atmosphere and
as mentioned in this research more than 50% of the N2O in the atmosphere has been emitted by
the agricultural crops6. These greenhouse emission is responsible for global warming, and all the
drastic and adverse effects associated with it.
Another aspect that should be discussed in this section is harmful or adverse effects of
land use related harmful effects on climate and as mentioned by Anguelovski et al. (2017), these
changes are the biophysical changes due to which radiation and evapotranspiration related
complications are observed. Further, in majority of the cases, it was observed that the critical
4 Levy, Barry S., and Jonathan A. Patz. "Climate change, human rights, and social justice." Annals of global
health 81, no. 3 (2015): 310-322.
5 Anguelovski, Isabelle, Linda Shi, Eric Chu, Daniel Gallagher, Kian Goh, Zachary Lamb, Kara Reeve, and
Hannah Teicher. "Equity impacts of urban land use planning for climate adaptation: Critical perspectives from the
global north and south." Journal of Planning Education and Research 36, no. 3 (2016): 333-348.
6 Nelson, Gerald C., Hugo Valin, Ronald D. Sands, Petr Havlík, Helal Ahammad, Delphine Deryng, Joshua
Elliott et al. "Climate change effects on agriculture: Economic responses to biophysical shocks." Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences 111, no. 9 (2014): 3274-3279.
environment should be discussed4. As per Nelson et al. (2014), there are two primary aspects of
ecosystem or environmental changes that is observed due to such transformation, land-coverage
change related and land-use related. The land cover changes related transformation are
associated with the replacement of any natural forest or grassland, with agricultural field.
Whereas, the land use determines the way crop lands or forest lands are used, with application of
fertilizers, or decreasing the density of animal grazing in the field. Despite the fact that both of
these transformational changes affects the ecosystem and environment, their degree or severity
helps to differentiate between these two5. Land use related modifications are associated with the
greenhouse gas emission such as carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane
(CH4). As per Ali and Erenstein (2017), when humans transforms forest lands into agricultural
fields and implements their modern agricultural means such as usage of fertilizers, chemicals and
other aspects, then ample amount of natural greenhouse gases are emitted to the atmosphere and
as mentioned in this research more than 50% of the N2O in the atmosphere has been emitted by
the agricultural crops6. These greenhouse emission is responsible for global warming, and all the
drastic and adverse effects associated with it.
Another aspect that should be discussed in this section is harmful or adverse effects of
land use related harmful effects on climate and as mentioned by Anguelovski et al. (2017), these
changes are the biophysical changes due to which radiation and evapotranspiration related
complications are observed. Further, in majority of the cases, it was observed that the critical
4 Levy, Barry S., and Jonathan A. Patz. "Climate change, human rights, and social justice." Annals of global
health 81, no. 3 (2015): 310-322.
5 Anguelovski, Isabelle, Linda Shi, Eric Chu, Daniel Gallagher, Kian Goh, Zachary Lamb, Kara Reeve, and
Hannah Teicher. "Equity impacts of urban land use planning for climate adaptation: Critical perspectives from the
global north and south." Journal of Planning Education and Research 36, no. 3 (2016): 333-348.
6 Nelson, Gerald C., Hugo Valin, Ronald D. Sands, Petr Havlík, Helal Ahammad, Delphine Deryng, Joshua
Elliott et al. "Climate change effects on agriculture: Economic responses to biophysical shocks." Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences 111, no. 9 (2014): 3274-3279.
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