The natural environment or natural world encompasses all life and abiotic things occurring nature, meaning in this case not artificiality. The term is most often applied to Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses the interaction of all living species, climate, weather and natural resources that affect human survival and economic activity.
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Complete that function as natural systems without massive civilized human intervention, including all vegetation, , soil, rocks, plateaus, mountains, the atmosphere and natural phenomena that occur within their boundaries and their nature.
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Universal and phenomenon that lack clear-cut boundaries, such as air, water and climate, as well as energy, radiation, electric charge and magnetism, not originating from civilized human actions.
In contrast to the natural environment is the built environment. Built environments are where humans have fundamentally transformed landscapes such as urban settings and agricultural land development, the natural environment is greatly changed into a simplified human environment. Even acts which seem less extreme, such as building a mud hut or a photovoltaic system in the desert, the modified environment becomes an artificial one. Though many animals build things to provide a better environment for themselves, they are not human, hence and the works of mound-building termites are thought of as natural.
People cannot find absolutely natural environments on Earth, naturalness usually varies in a continuum, from 100% natural in one extreme to 0% natural in the other. The massive environmental changes of humanity in the Anthropocene have fundamentally effected all natural environments including: climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution from plastic and Pollution in the Air pollution and Water pollution. More precisely, we can consider the different aspects or components of an environment, and see that their degree of naturalness is not uniform.
If, for instance, in an agricultural field, the
mineralogy and the
soil structure of its soil are similar to those of an undisturbed forest soil, but the structure is quite different.
Composition
Earth science generally recognizes four spheres, the
lithosphere, the
hydrosphere, the
atmosphere and the
biosphere[
Earth's Spheres . Wheeling Jesuit University/NASA Classroom of the Future. Retrieved November 11, 2007.] as correspondent to rocks,
water,
air and
life respectively. Some scientists include as part of the spheres of the Earth, the
cryosphere (corresponding to
ice) as a distinct portion of the hydrosphere, as well as the
pedosphere (to
soil) as an active and intermixed sphere.
Earth science (also known as geoscience, the geographical sciences or the Earth Sciences), is an all-embracing term for the
related to the planet Earth.
There are four major
in earth sciences, namely
geography,
geology,
geophysics and
geodesy. These major disciplines use
physics,
chemistry,
biology,
chronology and
mathematics to build a qualitative and quantitative understanding of the principal areas or
spheres of Earth.
Geological activity
The Earth's crust or
lithosphere, is the outermost solid surface of the planet and is chemically, physically and mechanically different from underlying mantle. It has been generated greatly by
igneous processes in which
magma cools and solidifies to form solid rock. Beneath the lithosphere lies the mantle which is heated by the decay of radioactive elements. The mantle though solid is in a state of
rheid convection. This convection process causes the lithospheric plates to move, albeit slowly. The resulting process is known as
plate tectonics.
Volcanoes result primarily from the melting of
Subduction crust material or of rising mantle at
and
.
Water on Earth
Most water is found in various kinds of natural body of water.
Oceans
An ocean is a major body of
Seawater and a component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the surface of the Earth (an area of some 362 million square kilometers) is covered by ocean, a
World Ocean that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller
. More than half of this area is over 3,000 meters (9,800 ft) deep. Average oceanic
salinity is around 35 parts per thousand (ppt) (3.5%), and nearly all seawater has a salinity in the range of 30 to 38 ppt. Though generally recognized as several separate oceans, these waters comprise one global, interconnected body of salt water often referred to as the
World Ocean or global ocean.
["". The Columbia Encyclopedia. 2002. New York: Columbia University Press][" Distribution of land and water on the planet ". UN Atlas of the Oceans ] The deep
are more than half the Earth's surface, and are among the least-modified natural environments. The major oceanic divisions are defined in part by the
, various
and other criteria, these divisions are : (in descending order of size) the
Pacific Ocean, the
Atlantic Ocean, the
Indian Ocean, the
Southern Ocean and the
Arctic Ocean.
Rivers
A river is a natural
watercourse,
[ River {definition} from Merriam-Webster. Accessed February 2010.] usually
freshwater, flowing toward an
ocean, a
lake, a
sea or another river. A few rivers simply flow into the ground and dry up completely without reaching another body of water.
The water in a river is usually in a channel, made up of a stream bed between stream bank. In larger rivers there is often also a wider floodplain shaped by waters over-topping the channel. Flood plains may be very wide in relation to the size of the river channel. Rivers are a part of the hydrological cycle. Water within a river is generally collected from precipitation through surface runoff, groundwater recharge, springs and the release of water stored in and snowpacks.
Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including stream, creek and brook. Their current is confined within a stream bed and . Streams play an important corridor role in connecting fragmented habitats and thus in conserving biodiversity. The study of streams and waterways in general is known as surface hydrology.
Lakes
A lake (from Latin
lacus) is a
terrain feature, a body of water that is localized to the bottom of basin. A body of water is considered a lake when it is inland, is not part of an
ocean and is larger and deeper than a
pond.
Natural lakes on Earth are generally found in areas, and areas with ongoing or recent glacier. Other lakes are found in or along the courses of mature rivers. In some parts of the world, there are many lakes because of chaotic drainage patterns left over from the last ice age. All lakes are temporary over geologic time scales, as they will slowly fill in with sediments or spill out of the basin containing them.
Ponds
A pond is a body of
Water stagnation, either natural or human-made, that is usually smaller than a
lake. A wide variety of human-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including
designed for aesthetic ornamentation,
designed for commercial fish breeding and
designed to store thermal energy. Ponds and lakes are distinguished from streams by their
Flow velocity. While currents in streams are easily observed, ponds and lakes possess thermally driven micro-currents and moderate wind-driven currents. These features distinguish a pond from many other aquatic terrain features, such as
and
.
Human impact on water
Humans impact the water in different ways such as modifying rivers (through
and stream channelization),
urbanization and
deforestation. These impact lake levels, groundwater conditions, water pollution, thermal pollution, and
marine pollution. Humans modify rivers by using direct channel manipulation.
We build dams and reservoirs and manipulate the direction of the rivers and water path. Dams can usefully create reservoirs and hydroelectric power. However, reservoirs and dams may negatively impact the environment and wildlife. Dams stop fish migration and the movement of organisms downstream. Urbanization affects the environment because of deforestation and changing lake levels, groundwater conditions, etc. Deforestation and urbanization go hand in hand. Deforestation may cause flooding, declining stream flow and changes in riverside vegetation. The changing vegetation occurs because when trees cannot get adequate water they start to deteriorate, leading to a decreased food supply for the wildlife in an area.
[
]
Atmosphere, climate and weather
The atmosphere of the Earth serves as a key factor in sustaining the planetary ecosystem. The thin layer of that envelops the Earth is held in place by the planet's gravity. Dry air consists of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon, inert gases and carbon dioxide. The remaining gases are often referred to as trace gases.
The ozone layer of the Earth's atmosphere plays an important role in reducing the amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation that reaches the surface. As DNA is readily damaged by UV light, this serves to protect life at the surface. The atmosphere also retains heat during the night, thereby reducing the daily temperature extremes.
Layers of the atmosphere
Principal layers
Earth's atmosphere can be divided into five main layers. These layers are mainly determined by whether temperature increases or decreases with altitude. From highest to lowest, these layers are:
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Exosphere: The outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere extends from the exobase upward, mainly composed of hydrogen and helium.
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Thermosphere: The top of the thermosphere is the bottom of the exosphere, called the exobase. Its height varies with solar activity and ranges from about . The International Space Station orbits in this layer, between . In another way, the thermosphere is Earth's second highest atmospheric layer, extending from approximately 260,000 feet at the mesopause to the thermopause at altitudes ranging from 1,600,000 to 3,300,000 feet.
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Mesosphere: The mesosphere extends from the stratopause to . It is the layer where most burn up upon entering the atmosphere.
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Stratosphere: The stratosphere extends from the tropopause to about . The stratopause, which is the boundary between the stratosphere and mesosphere, typically is at .
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Troposphere: The troposphere begins at the surface and extends to between at the poles and at the equator, with some variation due to weather. The troposphere is mostly heated by transfer of energy from the surface, so on average the lowest part of the troposphere is warmest and temperature decreases with altitude. The tropopause is the boundary between the troposphere and stratosphere.
- Other layers
Within the five principal layers determined by temperature there are several layers determined by other properties.
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The ozone layer is contained within the stratosphere. It is mainly located in the lower portion of the stratosphere from about , though the thickness varies seasonally and geographically. About 90% of the ozone in our atmosphere is contained in the stratosphere.
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The ionosphere: The part of the atmosphere that is ionized by solar radiation, stretches from and typically overlaps both the exosphere and the thermosphere. It forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere.
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The homosphere and heterosphere: The homosphere includes the troposphere, stratosphere and mesosphere. The upper part of the heterosphere is composed almost completely of hydrogen, the lightest element.
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The planetary boundary layer is the part of the troposphere that is nearest the Earth's surface and is directly affected by it, mainly through turbulence.
Effects of global warming
The dangers of global warming are being increasingly studied by a wide global consortium of scientists.
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The United Nations Framework Convention Treaty and convention on Climate Change, to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.
[ United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Retrieved August 2008.]
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The Kyoto Protocol, which is the protocol to the international Framework Convention on Climate Change treaty, again with the objective of reducing greenhouse gases in an effort to prevent anthropogenic climate change.
[ Kyoto Protocol from United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , Retrieved August 2008.]
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The Western Climate Initiative, to identify, evaluate, and implement collective and cooperative ways to reduce greenhouse gases in the region, focusing on a market-based cap-and-trade system.
[ Western Climate Initiative , Retrieved on Feb 12, 2009.]
A significantly profound challenge is to identify the natural environmental dynamics in contrast to environmental changes not within natural variances. A common solution is to adapt a static view neglecting natural variances to exist. Methodologically, this view could be defended when looking at processes which change slowly and short time series, while the problem arrives when fast processes turns essential in the object of the study.
Climate
Climate looks at the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other Meteorology elements in a given region over long periods of time.[
]
Climates can be classified according to the average and typical ranges of different variables, most commonly temperature and precipitation. The most commonly used classification scheme is the one originally developed by Wladimir Köppen. The Thornthwaite system,
Weather
Weather is a set of all the Phenomenon occurring in a given atmosphere area at a given time.[Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Weather. Retrieved on 2008-06-27.] Most weather phenomena occur in the troposphere,[Glossary of Meteorology. Hydrosphere. Retrieved on 2008-06-27.][Glossary of Meteorology. Troposphere. Retrieved on 2008-06-27.] just below the stratosphere. Weather refers, generally, to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity, whereas climate is the term for the average atmospheric conditions over longer periods of time.
Weather occurs due to density (temperature and moisture) differences between one place and another. These differences can occur due to the sun angle at any particular spot, which varies by latitude from the tropics. The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the jet stream. Weather systems in the mid-latitudes, such as extratropical cyclones, are caused by instabilities of the jet stream flow. Because the Earth's axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane, sunlight is incident at different angles at different times of the year. On the Earth's surface, temperatures usually range ±40 °C (100 °F to −40 °F) annually. Over thousands of years, changes in the Earth's orbit have affected the amount and distribution of solar energy received by the Earth and influenced long-term climate.
Surface temperature differences in turn cause pressure differences. Higher altitudes are cooler than lower altitudes due to differences in compressional heating. Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. The atmosphere is a chaos theory, and small changes to one part of the system can grow to have large effects on the system as a whole. Human attempts to weather control have occurred throughout human history, and there is evidence that civilized human activity such as agriculture and industry has inadvertently modified weather patterns.
Life
Evidence suggests that life has existed for about 3.7 billion years.[" History of life through time ". University of California Museum of Paleontology.] All known life forms share fundamental molecular mechanisms, and based on these observations, theories on the origin of life attempt to find a mechanism explaining the formation of a primordial single cell organism from which all life originates. There are many different hypotheses regarding the path that might have been taken from simple via pre-cellular life to protocells and metabolism.
Although there is no universal agreement on the definition of life, scientists generally accept that the biological manifestation of life is characterized by Organism, metabolism, cell growth, adaptation, response to stimuli and reproduction.[The Concise Oxford Dictionary. English Edition 1991]
A diverse variety of living organisms (life forms) can be found in the biosphere on Earth, and properties common to these organisms—plants, , fungus, , archaea, and bacteria—are a carbon- and water-based cellular form with complex organization and heritable information. Living organisms undergo metabolism, maintain homeostasis, possess a capacity to Cell growth, respond to stimuli, reproduce and, through natural selection, adapt to their environment in successive generations. More complex living organisms can communicate through various means.
Ecosystems
An ecosystem (also called an environment) is a natural unit consisting of all plants, animals, and micro-organisms (biotic component factors) in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical (abiotic) factors of the environment.
Central to the ecosystem concept is the idea that are continually engaged in a highly interrelated set of relationships with every other element constituting the environment in which they exist. Eugene Odum, one of the founders of the science of ecology, stated: "Any unit that includes all of the organisms (i.e.: the "community") in a given area interacting with the physical environment so that a flow of energy leads to clearly defined trophic structure, biotic diversity, and material cycles (i.e.: exchange of materials between living and nonliving parts) within the system is an ecosystem."
The human ecosystem concept is then grounded in the deconstruction of the human/nature dichotomy, and the emergent premise that all species are ecologically integrated with each other, as well as with the abiotic constituents of their biotope.
A more significant number or variety of species or Biodiversity of an ecosystem may contribute to greater resilience of an ecosystem because there are more species present at a location to respond to change and thus "absorb" or reduce its effects. This reduces the effect before the ecosystem's structure changes to a different state. This is not universally the case and there is no proven relationship between the species diversity of an ecosystem and its ability to provide goods and services on a sustainable level.
The term ecosystem can also pertain to human-made environments, such as and human-influenced ecosystems. It can describe any situation where there is relationship between living organisms and their environment. Fewer areas on the surface of the earth today exist free from human contact, although some genuine wilderness areas continue to exist without any forms of human intervention.
Biogeochemical cycles
Global biogeochemical cycles are critical to life, most notably those of
water,
oxygen,
carbon,
nitrogen and
phosphorus.
[Smil, V. (2000). Cycles of Life. New York: Scientific American Library. .]
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The nitrogen cycle is the transformation of nitrogen and nitrogen-containing compounds in nature. It is a cycle which includes gaseous components.
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The water cycle, is the continuous movement of water on, above, and below the surface of the Earth. Water can change states among liquid, vapour, and ice at various places in the water cycle. Although the balance of water on Earth remains fairly constant over time, individual water molecules can come and go.
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The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth.
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The oxygen cycle is the movement of oxygen within and between its three main reservoirs: the atmosphere, the biosphere, and the lithosphere. The main driving factor of the oxygen cycle is photosynthesis, which is responsible for the modern Earth's atmospheric composition and life.
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The phosphorus cycle is the movement of phosphorus through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. The atmosphere does not play a significant role in the movements of phosphorus, because phosphorus and phosphorus compounds are usually solids at the typical ranges of temperature and pressure found on Earth.
Wilderness
Wilderness is generally defined as a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by
human activity. The
WILD Foundation goes into more detail, defining wilderness as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet – those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with roads, pipelines or other industrial infrastructure."
Wilderness areas and protected
parks are considered important for the survival of certain
species, ecological studies, conservation, solitude, and
recreation. Wilderness is deeply valued for cultural, spiritual,
moral, and
aesthetic reasons. Some nature writers believe wilderness areas are vital for the human spirit and creativity.
The word, "wilderness", derives from the notion of wildness; in other words that which is not controllable by humans. The word etymology is from the Old English wildeornes, which in turn derives from wildeor meaning wild beast (wild + deor = beast, deer).[ wilderness . CollinsDictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 11th Edition. Retrieved November 29, 2012.] From this point of view, it is the wildness of a place that makes it a wilderness. The mere presence or activity of people does not disqualify an area from being "wilderness". Many ecosystems that are, or have been, inhabited or influenced by activities of people may still be considered "wild". This way of looking at wilderness includes areas within which natural processes operate without very noticeable human interference.
Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative. Wildlife can be found in all ecosystems. Deserts, rain forests, plains, and other areas—including the most developed Urban area sites—all have distinct forms of wildlife. While the term in popular culture usually refers to animals that are untouched by civilized human factors, most scientists agree that wildlife around the world is (now) impacted by human activities.
Challenges
It is the common understanding of
natural environment that underlies
environmentalism — a broad
politics,
sociology and
philosophy movement that advocates various actions and policies in the interest of protecting what nature remains in the natural environment, or restoring or expanding the role of nature in this environment. While true wilderness is increasingly rare,
wild nature (e.g., unmanaged
forests, uncultivated
grasslands,
wildlife,
) can be found in many locations previously inhabited by humans.
Goals for the benefit of people and natural systems, commonly expressed by environmental scientists and include:
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Elimination of pollution and in air, water, soil, buildings, manufactured goods, and food.
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Preservation of biodiversity and protection of endangered species.
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Conservation and sustainable use of resources such as water,
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Halting human-induced global warming, which represents pollution, a threat to biodiversity, and a threat to human populations.
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Shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy in electricity, heating and cooling, and transportation, which addresses pollution, global warming, and sustainability. This may include public transportation and distributed generation, which have benefits for traffic congestion and electric reliability.
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Shifting from meat-intensive diets to largely plant-based diets in order to help mitigate biodiversity loss and climate change.
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Establishment of for recreational purposes and ecosystem preservation.
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Sustainable and less polluting waste management including waste reduction (or even zero waste), reuse, recycling, composting, waste-to-energy, and anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge.
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Reducing overconsumption and clamping down on illegal fishing and Illegal logging.
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Slowing and stabilisation of human population growth.
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Reducing the import of second hand electronic appliances from developed countries to developing countries.
Criticism
In some cultures the term environment is meaningless because there is no separation between people and what they view as the natural world, or their surroundings.
[Jamieson, Dale. (2007). "The Heart of Environmentalism". In R. Sandler & P. C. Pezzullo. Environmental Justice and Environmentalism. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press. pp. 85–101. ] Specifically in the United States and Arabian countries many native cultures do not recognize the "environment", or see themselves as environmentalists.
[Davis, T. (2000). Sustaining the Forest, the People, and the Spirit. State University of New York. pp. 1–24. ]
See also
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Biophilic design
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Citizen's dividend
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Conservation movement
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Environmental history of the United States
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Gaia hypothesis
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Geological engineering
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Green exercise
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Greening
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Index of environmental articles
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List of conservation topics
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List of environmental books
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List of environmental issues
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List of environmental websites
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Natural capital
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Natural history
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Natural landscape
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Nature-based solutions
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Political representation of nature
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Sustainability
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Sustainable agriculture
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Timeline of environmental history
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Urban reforestation
Further reading
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Allaby, Michael, and Chris Park, eds. A dictionary of environment and conservation (Oxford University Press, 2013), with a British emphasis.
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External links
