Environment and Society (9-14) ? Environmental Geography

Like the first half of the book there is a lot of information that is well put together and very useful.? But there is a lot of information to go through, but unlike the ?Nature? it is much easier to read.

I enjoyed reading the chapter on trees.? Trees are important to human life, they provide food for humans, they are constructed to provide materials for shelter, and?a home for species.? ?When forests and trees are venerated or romanticized, on the other hand, tree-centered thinking can emerge, for better and for worse? (163).? Examples include forest destruction and government and industry ?tree-planting? problems, as well as the national holiday Arbor Day.? These ideas are fearful and romantic at the same side, a form of dualism.? There are three things that are evident for the future of trees.

1. Forest cover continues to decline globally, with significant losses in Africa and South America.
2. Declines in forest cover between 1995 and 2000 were greater than those between 2000 and 2005, suggesting that the net rate of deforestation (total deforestation offset by any regrowth or planting of trees) is declining, with possibly a censation in the near future.
3. Some regions are actually experiencing reforestation, especially in the most recent period in Asia and Europe.

Trees are a universal symbol, they stand for environmental change.? Trees are also an indicator of human economic growth and expansion.? Yet trees show that we can recover and growth.

The other chapter that I enjoyed reading was on water.? Bottled water has become one of the most common distributed items around the world.? But what is the health risk with bottled water, is it healthy or just less risky?? When comparing water to other bottled beverages water will always be the better choice, but in the United States water? is behind in sales to soft drinks.? ?A switch from cola and root beer to bottled water would probably be beneficial for many people, given rising healthcare costs? (235).??But many people always say that tap water is just the same as bottled water.? Not true, bottled water is undeniably less risky than tap water.? The NRDC conducted a study that ?not only that bottled waters were no safer than tap waters but in some cases they were less safe? (237).? This is totally the opposite.? This just shows that we need more research.? Many results though have shown traces of minerals (like arsenic) with negative health implications.? Risk assessments shows no significant advantages of bottles over tap water, raising questions about human biases in risk perception.

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