Human Impact on the EarthAt a level accessible to the educated lay reader, this book describes the changes human activities have produced in the global environment from 300 years ago to the present day. It offers a comprehensive and authoritative inventory of human impact in its varied forms on the oceans, atmosphere, and climate--ranging from long-standing alterations to new and surprising ones that have emerged in recent years, from environmental disasters to success stories of environmental management, and false alarms. This balanced, nonpolemical survey will interest all those concerned about the environment and the likely fate of the planet. |
Contents
The Earth as Transformed by Human Action | 1 |
Changes in Population and Society | 22 |
The Land | 51 |
Biota | 86 |
Water | 114 |
Chemical Flows | 145 |
Oceans Atmosphere Climate | 183 |
Three Centuries That Shook the Earth | 216 |
| 223 | |
| 235 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Action see Turner activities agricultural Aral Sea Asia atmosphere basin biosphere carbon dioxide chemical cities clear coal common-pool resource concentrations consequences conservationism consumption costs cropland cubic km cultivation damage decades deforestation degradation depletion developed world drainage Earth as Transformed effects emissions environment environmental change erosion Europe expansion extinction fertilizer Figure fish flooding flows forest fossil fuels fossil-fuel George Perkins Marsh global grassland groundwater growth habitat human action human impact human-induced change humankind hydrologic cycle important increase industrial irrigation land cover landscape less loss Marsh methane million modern natural nineteenth century nitrogen North America numbers occur ocean ozone ozone depletion past pasture phosphorus plant pollution population problems processes production realm regions releases reservoirs resource river scale sediment Smil social soil sources species square km sulfur supply surface tion Transformed by Human tropical urban waste wetlands