Cycle of Environmental Components - Essay Example

? Environmental Awareness REPORT Introduction and literature review Generally, the environment is understood as theopen surrounding. The environment therefore refers to both the physical and the biological habitat that surrounds us and can be either seen, heard, smelt or felt through our physical elements. The two major and general classifications of the environment are the physical environment which encompasses factors such as water, air and land and is also commonly referred to as the abiotic environment. The second classification refers to both flora and fauna that exists around us and is therefore also referred to as the biotic environment (Craig, 2001). Environmental components Environment cycle is another component and refers to a natural process that makes it possible for particular elements to be continuously cycled within the environmental compartments such s the soil, air and water. By the help of various environmental cycles it becomes possible for balance to be provided and enhanced to the environment as a whole. Environment cycles exist in a perfect state of unbalance and it’s only through interference by various elements that a state of instability becomes present thus leading to an endangering of both abiotic and biotic components within its existence (Elizabeth, 2012). A cycle in the environment basically refers to an act of transfer of a particular atom that follows another in a cycle and in the process waste products is eliminated thus leading to environmental stability. There are various environmental cycles that are present in the environment that include: carbon cycle –with carbon being the fourth most abundant element of the gaseous package of the environment. Carbon cycles take place through the ocean, land, atmosphere and the earth’s interior. The carbon cycle mainly includes the uptake of carbon dioxide by plants which is released by animals as a waste .Plans on the other hand make use of the carbon dioxide discharged into the air by decaying animals and plants and burning of fossil fuels through human activity. Nitrogen cycle on the other hand is the uptake of nitrogen from the atmosphere through a process of nitrogen fixation that is made possible by microbes and various industrial processes. Through decomposition of biological wastes by the involvement of microbes it also becomes possible for nitrogen to be released into the atmosphere. Human activity mainly involves the use of nitrogen as fertilizers (Gardner, 2011). Phosphorous cycle refers to the uptake of phosphorous by organisms. Rocks through the weathering process are that main producers of phosphorous in the environment and is mainly used by humans as fertilizers for their farm lands. Additionally water cycle simply refers to a process that makes it possible for water to be transferred from the atmosphere through condensation and its movement to the earth through precipitation after which it’s transferred to the normal atmosphere using basically the process of evaporation. In the first part of the report I will look at a more detailed understanding of the water cycle and focus on how human activities impact the process of water cycle in the environment (Elizabeth, 2010). Methodology The research will answer the question of how the environmental process of the water cycle is impacted by various human activities. My research will involve the use of secondary data sources which will be through a review of literature on this topic from books, peer reviewed sources and electronic sources. Discussion Understanding the water cycle The water cycle is also commonly referred to as the hydrologic cycle to describe the transitional stages and processes that relate to the movement of water in the environment. Generally the global water cycle can be understood through a deeper review of nine major processes that form a basis for its movement. As a cycle, the water cycle has no start or conclusion and is basically referred to as an infinite continuous process. Water cycle takes into perspective several processes that make it possible for stability to be enhanced and maintained that include: evaporation-is a process that is affected when the physical water state changes to a gaseous state. It is through the action of heat especially by the sun that the process is enabled thus propagating the process of water evaporation from the Earth’s Surface. Basically, the process of evaporation is effected trough solar radiation and other processes such as level of atmospheric pressure ,wind movement or vapor pressure that result to natural evaporation of water from a geographic feature such s a lake ,ocean ,vegetation ,soil ,rock and snow (Jermar, 2007). Condensation on the other hand is a process that involves the change its physical state of vapor to a liquid state. Water vapor may be condensed to form dew on vegetation or the process may take place in the atmosphere. Basically as water vapor is transferred upward in the atmosphere it losses heat through convention and cools off thus forming droplets through atmospheric condensation that then results to formation of clouds as a result of the pull of gravity and depending on the temperature of the surrounding it be in form of a liquid –rain or a solid as snow. Precipitation is another process that is involved in the water cycle and takes an account of transportation of water from the atmosphere in any of the three major forms of vapor, liquid or solid. Depending on the temperature and, force of gravity and the wind the water is convert a liquid state, vapor or soild.Water that is precipated from the atmosphere may fall in to a water body or on dry land upon which it is dispersed in different ways either through interception by plants, carried over land to water bodies, fall on objects and vegetation or it may penetrate into the soil. A low degree of precipitation however results to most of the precipitated water returned back to the atmosphere through evaporation. Water that is transported to water bodies is mainly referred to as runoff and it may be either stream flow or overland flow (Morgan, 2009). Interception is also a process in the water cycle that involves an interruption of water that is moving towards streams and other water bodies and instead it is taken in by vegetation or deposited into surface channels such as channels and fullows.Infiltration on the other hand is a process that results to intake of water into the soil with the amount that passes through being a factor of the soil surface characteristics. Percolation on the other hand takes a more detailed movement of the water through its layers and depends with the gravity force and capillary force. Transpiration involves water being transferred from plants to the atmosphere inform of vapor especially during the day as a result of solar radiation. Runoff is an also a process of the water cycle that consists of water flow that is unaffected by artificial diversions and therefore the water is deposited into a stream. Storage is the final process in the water cycle and refers to the water that may be stored in the atmosphere. Water cycle diagram Impact of human activity on the water cycle Like any other cycle the water cycle is essential for the effective existence of both biotic and abiotic factors of the environment and a disruption of any of its process results to environmental instability .For millions of years human beings made a little impact on the water cycle as they made effective use of seasonal and perrrenial rivers, natural springs and fresh water lakes. However, gradually there occurred a change in these processes which were mainly attributed to noticeable population growth, industrialization and urbanization that resulted to a new need for more water than could be extracted from the natural water cycles. The impact of human activity on water cycles takes two main forms: withdrawals by taking out water from its natural systems for use in irrigation, industries or domestically. The second form involves the human discharges and particularly refers to additional of substance into the water through human activities which may be either through deliberate activities or accidents. Discharges are the main causes of water pollution and mainly take place when precipated water that is moving over the ground washes over pollutants such as herbicides and pesticides and therefore contaminates the water bodies thus leading to environmental instability and risk. The main human activities that have taken a toll on the water cycle include agriculture which uses approximately 87 percent at a global level, industrial uses for both production and manufacturing and varied domestic uses. One of the most common direct impact of human activity on the water cycle is a decrease in the amount of ground water .almost a hundred percent of world ground water is present in rock aquifers and their depletion results to water being found in deeper levels as then wear on ground rocks are completely dried up (Thorsten, 2006). Human activity especially through industrialization results to gaseous compounds emitted by industries combining with water vapor that is then precipated back to the environment inform of acid rain. Acid rain results to various negative effects such as: through acid precipitation there is a likelihood of water on the ground surface being more acidic thus posing a danger on both animal and plant life, acid rain also has a destructive effect on structures that have been put down by humans for their benefit such as buildings as a result of corrosion. Acid rain also results to an increased content of acid in the soil thus resulting to destruction and loss of important nutrients that are necessary to sustain plants that are growing (Goudie, 2009). Disruption of the water cycle through human activities also results to water pollution at a large extent. There are several pollutants that are present in water as a result of human activities thus leading to instability of the natural environmental processes that support the ecosystem. Human activities are often associated with resulting to oxygen demanding water that are diverted into water bodies through runoff thus resulting to completion between water organisms and the waste which poses a great menace. As a result of human activities sewerage and industrial runoffs are diverted into rivers and this often results to an imbalance of the water cycle. Human activities such as domestic use of water in the largely expanding urban centers both locally and globally is also responsible for disruption of ecosystems and wildlife habitats. Pumping of too much water and construction of boreholes by urban authorities to cater for the growing number of urban water users has resulted to depletion of wetlands and forests that were traditionally home for a variety of wildlife. These animals are either growing into extinction while others has shifted to occupy different parts of the planet far from their initial origin. Through human activities of irrigation dams and boreholes have been constructed to cater for the growing need of agriculture thus resulting to major ecosystem disruptions. Human activities that mainly involve water bodies have resulted to drying up of some of the traditional aquatic habitats while others have been largely corrupted by the presence of pollutants. In Ireland for example there has been an increase in reports of aquatic deaths as a result of oxygen depletion in the water courses especially because of untreated sewage disposal, agricultural waste and industrial affluents.The effects of different human interventions and interactions with water paths, water flows and its quality produce a combined effect on all ecological water bodies thus causing a long lasting imbalance that is sometimes irreversible. The impact of human activities has been notably experienced in many parts of the world, both at a local and global level. In China for example human activities in China has negatively affected stream flow in Northern china in relation to the Bai river Basin. In Northern China hydraulic activities by human make excessive use of runoff storage while the ground water is largely used for irrigation and this has resulted too a disruption in runoff and evaporation distribution in terms of the time and space thus leading to negative impact on natural stream flow. The acidic rain effect that mainly results from human activities has also affected water resources and ecosystems in some developed regions such as Europe and North America by resulting to a complete disruption of the aquatic food web in spite of some measures being put in place to regulate unsuitable human activities. The result of acid rain emancipating from human activities is also bearing experienced in some developing countries such as China, India, Korea, Mexico and South Africa especially because there is inadequate monitoring and emission controls in these particular regions. The global problem of water cycle disruption is worsened by the fact that pollution impacts can be carried over long distances, for example Japan water cycle is impacted by Korean and Chinese emissions while Canada receives substantive side effects from United States. Effects of excessive water withdrawal through human activities has also been felt in many parts of the world and is normally manifested through substantive reductions in major river flows such as Niger and Nile in Africa, Tigris and Euphrates in Asia, Murray in Australia and Columbia and Colorado in north America. There are also examples of Inland lakes and seas that have significantly reduced in size and volume as a result of these withdrawals such as Aral and Dead Sea in Asia, Lake Chad and Nakuru in Africa. Underground water aquifers that have also been adversely affected have been reported in Asia, China, Pakistan and Iran. Preventive measures against water cycle disruption by human activities The only away to achieve a balanced and natural water cycle is through direct action to deal with activities that result to negative impact on the environment. Efforts to save on the water cycle has resulted to introduction of water management as a way of marginalizing between water pre conditions and the changing societal needs and demands of water. Several measures can help prevent on disruption of the water cycle such as :using the right fishing and mining techniques as a way of reducing water pollutants, putting in place measure that curb improper agricultural methods and waste disposal by industries that destabilizes the water cycle. REPORT 2 Iron law of social responsibility was established in the 1960s by Keith Davis who sought to bring in a better understanding of the idea of social responsibility ion businesses. The iron law of social responsibility is founded on two basis: those who don’t make use of power in a socially responsible way in the society will eventually lose it and if businesses fail to meet the challenge of social responsibility, the government reforms and legislations will force them to meet the required obligations (Windsor, 2006). On the other hand, the social contract is a fundamental theory that forms a basis for government and the law. According to the social contract human beings are individuals in a state of nature who create a society through establishment of a contract in which they agree to live together in peace and harmony for the mutual benefit for all thus resulting to creation of a state of the society (Samuel, 2011). The social contract is a simple outlook that takes into account the defense of mutual rights of individuals living in the society and their government and decisions are made after a mutual agreement by both sides that represent the members of the society and the government. Social contract therefore shows peoples adoption of a society that takes into account order, structure and protection (Drahos, 2010). By people having a social contract it will act as a guideline on how to treat each other and therefore making it possible for social order to be achieved where social goods can be produced and cooperation attained (White, 2008). The iron law of social responsibility insists on having businesses recognize social responsibility and therefore practice the perspective of environmental, financial and social responsibility in all their core business strategies. The iron law of responsibility calls for businesses to practice social responsibility in order to remain relevant in the society and this can take different perspectives such as: cause branding –which is top-down company activity that involves all company members of staff including executives to identify social and environmental causes and programmes that they can support and putting down of plans on how they will support them. venture philanthropy on the other hand is a social responsibility approach that takes into account a down-top approach by having the organization offer donations to social problems within a particular community with the community members making the decision on how and what to spend the donations on (Reidenbach, 2007). According to Allen White, many businesses today are have take on a trend of share holder value as their main objective thus posing a major challenge to the question f corporate social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility should therefore take a more detailed approach by taking into consideration all aspects of the business such as :economic responsibility to remain profitable and therefore do what is expected by the global capitalism, social responsibility which encompasses obeying the law and therefore being in line with the requirements of the global shareholders, ethical responsibility which calls for a company to be ethically aware and therefore be in line with the expectations of the global shareholders.Philanthrophic responsibility which calls for one to be a good citizen and therefore fulfill the desires of the global shareholders (White, 2007). The iron law of social responsibility has several implications on operations of multinational companies especially because they operate on new environments away from their host countries. One of the major implications is the need for businesses to understand the differences that exist in different countries. For example in some countries social responsibility is emphasized on public welfare and social needs while in some countries is looked at with the well being of shareholders being most crucial than the society well being. Multinational companies therefore have to deal with the differences in laws and government regulations and how different governments establish relationships with multinational companies operating within their vicinities (Mikler, 2012). Multinational companies are also faced by a negative implication of understanding and reconciliation of different company social responsibility cultures that exist in the different countries of operation. This mainly has a negative implication on some multinational companies who are unable to keep up with the social responsibility demands of a particular region and are therefore ruled out of business through the iron law of social responsibility (Bruce, 2011). Multinational companies are also faced with the challenge of recognizing the extent at which they should be involved in corporate social responsibility especially in poor and undemocratic countries. This ahs the implication of a company having too much to handle and affects the long run position of its shareholders and stakeholders (Crouch, 2006). Additionally, the constitutions of many countries have been founded upon the principles of social contract and this therefore bids the position of multinational companies that may be doing business in these countries. It is the right of every state to define the conditions under which a multinational company in its region of rule operates and therefore this has an impact on the activities a particular multinational company can be engaged in which may sometime pace a restriction on its degree of operation thus leading to substantive closer and exit of some multinational companies (Matten, 2008). According to the law of social contract individually are bound to live in peace whether through signing of an actual contract with their government or as a hypothesis. Multinational corporations operating in such a country where social contract dictate behavior are likely to be guided by self interest and therefore to prevent this businesses are required to use their resources for the good of their position and to advance the position of the society in which they exist (Lantos, 2011). Social contract also places multinational corporations at an unusual position as they have to deal with the standards that have been established to govern business operations and at the same time attempt to perform beyond the governments. A multinational cooperation should ensure that it’s successful in its upholding the of the government policies within the degree of its operation. Arguments have therefore been put across relating to corporate social responsibility of a business: corporate social responsibility is a necessary part of a particular business since they are always s involved in the social issues of the community within which they operate, businesses and especially multinationals have the resources to deal with the societal issues that may rise within their scope of operation and it may in most cases place the business at a good angle with the business and thus prevent uncertain government actions (Tyler, 2008). References Bruce, V. R., 2011. International Business in the 21st Century. New York: Springer. Craig, P. J., 2001. The Natural Environment and the Biogeochemical Cycles. New York: Springer. Crouch, C., 2006. A New Social Contract?: the social contract and the problem of the firm. London: European University Institute. Drahos, P., 2010. The Global Governance of Knowledge. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Elizabeth, R. A., 2010. 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