Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
9
Contaminants and Land Environment
Sustainab ility Indicators
9.1 Introduction
We use the term land environment instead of geoenvironment because we do not include the
coastal marine environment (considered in the previous chapter) in our discussions in this
chapter. As we have seen and discussed in the previous chapters, in respect to the land
environment, other than depletion of natural resources and habitat destruction, ground
contamination by all kinds of contaminants and pollutants from anthropogenic activities
poses one of the greatest threats to the sustainability of the natural capital of the geoenvi-
ronment. The term pollutants is used to remind the reader that these are contaminants that
are deemed by Regulatory Agencies to be injurious to human health. In the treatment of
the subject of contaminants and pollutants in this chapter, the encompassing term con-
taminants will be used. When emphasis is needed, the term pollutants will be used. Within
the context of the land environment, the term natural capital refers to the land ecosystem,
which includes (a) the receiving waters in the land surface environment such as rivers, lakes,
ponds, and streams, (b) the solid land surface and the underlying soil-water system, (c) the
natural resources such as forests, mineral, and carbon resources, and (d) the various biotic
species and the biodiversity of the ecosystem. The presence of contaminants in the ground
affects not only soil and water quality, but also those living elements and biota that more or
less depend on soil and water for their wellbeing. This would include forests, agricultural
production, habitats, and the host of biotic species contributing to the biodiversity of the
land ecosystem.
Anthropogenic activities associated with production of goods and services, such as
resource exploitation, agricultural production, harvesting of forest and carbon resources,
urbanization, industrial production and manufacturing, are by far the greatest contribu-
tors to the generation of waste and contaminants that ultimately ind their way onto and
into the land environment. Sustainability of the land environment natural capital can-
not be easily or readily deined for many of the individual components that make up the
natural capital of interest because of their dynamic nature. This is particularly true for the
living components. It is easier to deine sustainability goals for the natural capital as part of
the life cycle assessment process discussed in Chapter 4. This task is facilitated if one could
establish an acceptable natural capital baseline.
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