Introduction
The class is in english and is organised into 3 blogs :
on environmental aspects,
on social aspects,
on the representation of Human - System - Nature interactions
Why are we studying HSN interactions ?
History and Epistemology of Anthropocene Sciences
To understand the process of accumulating human knowledge about the Earth system .
To highlight the importance of the key concepts of the Earth system being proposed and discovered in the process of accumulating knowledge .
To realize the importance of looking at the Earth system as a whole, from a multidisciplinary perspective, in order to achieve sustainable development for people
and nature today.
How does Earth System Sciences (ESS) Evolve ?
Earth system sciences
Earth System Science (ESS) is a rapidly emerging transdisciplinary endeavour aimed at understanding the structure and functioning of the Earth as a complex, adaptive system.(Will Steffen et. al. 2020)
Transdisciplinary endeavour
The development of ESS is the evolution of humans understanding of global change.
History of Earth system sciences
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The wisdom accumulated in this process has introduced new concepts and theories that have altered our understanding of the Earth System, particularly the disproportionate role of humanity as a driver of change. One of the most influential concept is that of the Anthropocene. |
One result from NASA ESSC is The Bretherton diagram, which epitomized the rapidly growing field of ESS through its visualization of the interacting physical, chemical and biological processes that connect components of the Earth System and through the recognition that human activities were a significant driving force for change in the system.
What is Anthropocene ?
Définition : Anthropocene
The Anthropocene is a concept that designates a state of the planet in which key natural systems are coupled with social systems at a global level, thus influencing Earth system as a whole, thereby turning the human species into a global geophysical force that put the future habitability of the Earth into question ( Steffen et al., 2007).
When does the Anthropocene Start ?
 | The Anthropocene is a proposed new geological epoch dating from the commencement of significant human impact on the Earth system. - Crutzen, Nature, 2002 |
Gemenne et al., 2019.12 Atlas de l’Anthropocène
What is the History of the Anthropocene ?
Wayne Hayes, 2014
The present situation of the Anthropocene
How do they measure the Anthropocene ?
Human activities
 | Socio-economic trends - 12 indicators Figure 1. Trends from 1750 to 2010 in globally aggregated indicators for socio-economic development. (Will Steffen et. al 2015) The Earth System indicators, in general, continued their long-term, post-industrial rise, although a few, such as atmospheric methane concentration and stratospheric ozone loss, showed a slowing or apparent stabilisation over the past decade. The post-1950 acceleration in the Earth System indicators remains clear. From the perspective temporality, only beyond the mid-20th century is there clear evidence for fundamental shifts in the state and functioning of the Earth System that are beyond the range of variability of the Holocene and driven by human activities. |
Earth statement
 | Earth system trends - 12 indicators Generally, the dominant feature of the socioeconomic trends is that the economic activity of the human enterprise continues to grow at a rapid rate, especially after 1950s. Figure 3. Trends from 1750 to 2010 in indicators for the structure and functioning of the Earth System. |
How do the scholars approach to the Anthropocene ?
The social Anthropocene is a socioenvironmental approach in which the evolution of human–nature relations are investigated within the context of past, present and future social structures. The perspective produces knowledge on how the changes in biosphere are connected to both world-systemic as well as national and regional social hierarchies, power and economic structures or political interests.
Culture ：the set of values, ideas, beliefs and practices that are functioning on all areas of human life.
T Toivanen, et al., 2017
What are the measures of the Anthropocene ?
Social Anthropocene =>
Can identify, problematize and popularize the economic, political and ideological barriers that stand in front of sustainable pathways.
Can contribute to innovate, establish and rearrange the institutional arrangements that structure the economy, social life and environmental relations.
Social Anthropocene et cultural Anthropocene =>
Create more discerning models for understanding human involvement in the Earth’s processes (and the Earth’s involvement in human processes);
Point to the diverse social and cultural phenomena resistant to modelling and develop alternative methods to research such phenomena. (repressed or denied beliefs and ideological commitments, narratives of individual or collective identity or destiny, ideas about rights and responsibilities, and other forms of individual and collective thought that underlie human action)
Interpretations of the Anthropocene
Bonneuil and Fressoz, 2016 The Shock of the Anthropocene : The Earth, History and Us.
(Anthony H Cooper et. al 2018 )
By 2015, the most significant by mass of world production are coal 39%, oil 21%, and natural gas 16% ;
Over time, the production amounts of coal, crude oil, and nature gas has been increasing.
Where was the energy transition?
Thermocene
Bonneuil and Fressoz contest that the truth of the seeming energy transition in the history of energy is successive additions of new sources of primary. It is the confusion between relative (the use of coal decreased in relation to oil) and absolute (the consumption of coal remains continually grew), between local and global that creates this illusion.
Energy transitions “follow neither an internal logic of technical progress, nor a logic of scarcity and substitution, nor even a logic that was simply economic, and history of energy is above all one of political, military and ideological choices that involve with strategic interests and objectives of certain social groups”.
Plantationocene
Estimates suggest that 75 million acres of land worldwide have been sold or leased in the past decade to foreign investors for large-scale oil palm, rubber, and other agricultural concessions.
The plantation, as Sidney observed, was a “synthesis of field and factory,” an agro-industrial system of enterprise integral to the historic rise and growth of capitalism.
 | Rubber seedlings await planting on a concession granted to Firestone Tire & Rubber Company by the Liberian government in 1926. Firestone’s 99 year lease for up to one million acres of land in Liberia paved the way for the current wave of land concessions to foreign investors in Liberia. Photo by Gregg Mitman. |
Rüdiger Glaser, 2021
Polemocene
It re-evaluates criticisms of anthropocenic action since the dawn of industrialisation.
It is a history of socioecological struggles and challenges to the damages of industrialism, where people defend the forest, its rights of usage and the planet, people question machines and mass production, people are opposite to innovations. Bonneuil and Fressoz use this 'cene to emphasize a long history of political struggle motivated by social justice and "environmentalism of the poor". Despite of this resistance, they failed to prevent industrialism’s expansion from the Industrial Revolution through the Cold War to today.
Thanatocene
It is the natural history of destruction. a teleological view that, extinguishment is the destiny of the human and the planet that is now in the stage of intense destruction, which owes to the global mobilizations of the Second World War.
As the twentieth century progressed, wars became both deadlier and more frequent. Troops were supported, and to a certain degree replaced, by extraordinarily powerful machines, technological and logistic systems. War machines that required growing quantities of raw materials and energy had an unprecedentedly heavy impact on the environment.
The contemporary aircraft industry is likewise a product of the Second World War, both technologically (aluminium, radar, jet engines) and institutionally. The Second World War thus prepared the technological and legal framework for mass-consumption society.
Phagocene
This interpretation revolves around consumerism. Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages people to acquire goods and services in ever-increasing quantities. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, the supply of goods outstrips consumer demand, as a result of mass production led to overproduction, so manufacturers turned to planned advertising to manipulate consumer spending.
Captialocene
From the perspective of captialocene. The last three centuries have been characterized by an extraordinary accumulation of capital: despite destructive wars, this grew by a factor of 134 between 1700 and 2008. The dynamic of capital accumulation gave rise to a ‘second nature’ made up of roads, plantations, railways, mines, pipelines, wells, power stations, futures markets and container ships, financial positions and banks that structure flows of matter, energy, goods and capital on a world scale. It is this profit-oriented technostructure that swung the Earth system into the Anthropocene. The change in geological regime is the act of the ‘age of capital’, rather than simply the ‘age of man’ as the dominant narratives claim.
Anthropoobscene
One view from Anthropo-obscene is that it is impotant to make depoliticized accounts of the Anthropocene. This concept could be listed on top 10 most difficult terminology in Anthropocene. It is a reflection of the reflection on the Anthropocene. The debate on the Anthropoobscene tries to figure out whether the interpretation of Anthropocene is associated with politics. For example, scholar Erik Swyngedouw attempts to defense that the matter of ecology is fundamentally de-politicised. And he clams that the “political” cannot and should not be grounded on the eventual truth of the Anthropocene.
• Gemenne et al., 2019.12 Atlas de l’Anthropocène
• Sophie Sapp Moore 2019, 1 Plantation Legacies
Abiotic ressources
Introduction
Définition : « Abiotic ressources » [1]
Firstly, biotic resources refers to ressources coming from living things, or more precisely, organic matter. Ex: animals, plants.
Consequently, abiotic resources refers to all ressources but biotic ones. So, it encompasses minerals, but also air, water, sunlight, etc.
Fossil fuels can be classified either as biotic or abiotic resources, depending on the timescale considered. Indeed they’re coming from living things, resulting of bio-geo- chemical cycles, but were definitvely formed milllion years ago. In EV14, we’ll consider them as abiotic.
But what even are « resources »? [1]
Surprisingly, it is not often explicitly defined, even in major texts. Ex: ISO 14040 norm (giving framework for all Life-cycle analysis), or the classical 1983 report of the United Nations.
Analysis of varied definitions highlights some converging points: a resource is considered as such if :
It has an value or utility (from material properties for an industrial process to cultural valorization of precious stones)
For a certain subject (generally considered: the humans)
[1] BEYLOT, A. et al, 2020. DOI 10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.104748
General caracterizations
The renewable/non-renewable polarity [2]
Renewable when the stock reconstitutes itself at a « sufficiently quick rate ». Usual threshold: timespan of a human life.
Non-renewable when they constitute themselves on a long period of time, way longer than a human life. Their use is always a depletion in available stocks.
[2] Resource, 2020. Wikipedia[online].
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B., 2010. Quel futur pour les métaux.
The availability/non-availabilitypolarity
Available when concentration and position let them be technically AND economically usable by humans.
More or less available according to the variation of these dimensions. Ex: Oil shale in the XXth, depending on stocks’ concentrations and competition with conventional crude oil. [4]and [5]
[4] History of the oil shale industry, 2020. Wikipedia [online].
[5] Allix et al., 2010. Coaxing Oil from Shale. Oilfield Review [online]. 2011.
[6] BP, 2020. BP Statistical Review of World Energy. [online]. 2020
Consomption of abiotic resources
Main threads of the course : Metals and Oil
Metals
Brief global history
Contemporary trends
Oil :
Brief global history
Contemporary trends
Sociotechnical perspective (Tutorial work)
Main threads of the course
The mineral resource example: Metals
Why metals? On the 118 known atoms, most of them are metals :[3]
85 metals
6 metalloids
17 non metals
10 non determined
General properties :
electrical & thermal conductors
mechanical ductility
Geological forms: oxides (common) > sulfides (less common) > natives (uncommon)
The energetical resource example: Oil
Currently, most used source in main primary energy consomption :
Oil (33,1%)
Coal (27%)
Natural gas (24,2%) [6]
Regroup varied forms of derived fuels (petrol, shale oil) and secondary resources
General properties: gives a lot of secondary resources when refined, good energy density, easy and convenient to transport and to use as energy vector in varied contexts
Metals
Metals global history
A very brief summary [3]
Contrary to first intuition: native metals were the first to be used. Although uncommon (often mixed) they were ealily recognizable:
Copper (at least 8000 BC, and melted since 4000 BC), Gold and Silver (4000 BC)
Alloys starting in 2500 BC with Bronze (Tin & Copper)
Furnaces since at least 1000 BC let reduce oxides (notably, Iron oxide) and developp experiments on alloys (Steel = Iron + Carbon)
Lead, Antimony, Mercury used pure or in allows during Antiquity
This tiny number of metals has constituted the main uses until the XIXth century and structured economical and geopolitical relationships between populations
Besides native platinum in Peru, other metals like Nickel, Zinc, Cobalt have been identified by chemistry and metallurgy (beginning of XVIIIth). And then: Manganese, Molybdenum, Tungsten, Titanium (end of the XVIIIth).
Electrolysis in XIXth allows to separate most elements in pure form, but weak rate of use until the XXth century.
Contemporary trends
Continuous growth in use of base metals
Extracted from [7]
Heterogeneous rise of world consumption for base metals: by a factor from 1,5 (Lead) to 3 (Alumunium)
Extracted from [7]
Recycling rates not progressing as much
[7] ROGISH, D.G., and MATOS, G.R., 2008, The global flows of metals and minerals: USGS Open-File Report 2008–1355
Countries high disparities
Extracted from [7]
Extracted from [7]
Extracted from [7]
Extracted from [7]
Global Extraction/Consomption pattern
Figure 18. Consumption and extraction in the European Union group of 15 countries (EU-15). A, Base metals. B, Iron and steel.
Figure 20. Consumption and extraction in South America. A, Base metals. B, Iron and steel.
Growing variety of metals for expanding specific uses
Adapted from [3]
Oil
Oil global history
A very brief summary [8]
Oil has been used for a long time in varied forms
Used as fuel as back as 400 BC in China
Used for lighting or in the asphalt form for construction as back as 2000 BC in Babylon
Crude oil already distilled by Persian chemist in 9th century to obtain tar, used for streets’ paving
Distillation arrive in Europe in 12th century through Islamic Spain
The mid19th –early20th turning point [9]
First industrial oil well and oil refinery around 1850
Consomption stayed low (5% of world energy in 1910), as oil as not that interesting at first, compared to wind or animals for transport, solar& coal were largely dominant for thermal power, etc.
Complex and crossing technical but mostly political phenomena let oil grew in varied uses, to represent more than60% of world energy as soon as 1970
[8] Petroleum, 2020. Wikipedia[online].
[9] BONNEUIL, C., FRESSOZ, J-B, 2016. The Shock of the Anthropocene. The Earth, History and Us.
Contemporary trends
No primary energy transition
 |
Extracted from [6] |
[6] BP, 2020. BP Statistical Review of World Energy. [online].
Three main profiles
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Extracted from [6] |
Consistency of uses
Extraction of abiotic resources
Reserves
Definitions
Metals focus
Concentrations
Mineralogical wall
Oil focus
Assessing reserves
Caution in interpretation
Impacts of extractive activities
Growing interdependancies
Energy footprint of minerals
Material footprint of energy
Environmental focus
Other abiotic resources: water & air quality
Biotic resources: wildlife and land
Socio-economical focus
Contrasted local realities
Global frictions…
Rootedin historical inequalities
Reserves
Définition :
Adaptated from [3]
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
[11] USGS, 2014. Estimate of Undiscovered Copper Resources of the World[online]. Fact Sheet.
[12] USGS, 2020. Mineral Commodity Summaries[online].
Reserves/Resources data are highly dynamic
May be reduced as
ore is mined
feasibility of extraction diminishes
May increase as
additionnal deposits are discovered
currently exploited deposits are thoroughly explored
The Copper example : [11] & [12]
Reserves/Resources≃500 Mt (2014) -> 870 Mt (2020)
InferredReserves≃2.1 Bt(2014)
UltimateReserves≃3.5 Bt(2014)
Metals focus
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Concentration of minerals
Extracted from [3]
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Extracted from [24] |  |
[24] PRIOR, T et al., 2012. Resource depletion, peak minerals and the implications for sustainable resource management.
B. Mineralogical barrier
Extracted from [13] |  |
Extracted from [13] |  |
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[13] SKINNER, B.J., 1979. Chapter 10 A Second Iron Age Ahead? In: Studies in Environmental Science. [14] AYRES, Robert U, 2001. Resources, Scarcity, Growth and the Environment. . 2001. P.35.
Oil focus
Assessing reserves [15]
Extracted from [6]
[6] BP, 2020. BP Statistical Review of World Energy. [online].
[15] JANCOVICI, Jean-Marc, 2019. Les Energies fossiles. Ecole des Mines [online].
When a potential reserve of oil is suspected, sismography combined with exploratory drilling is used to estimate :
Quantities of oil
Probable recovery rate of the oil
As any oil extraction needs heavy infrastructure -> CAPEX>>OPEX.
Which means the dynamics of a specific reserve are :
Strongly dependent on quantities& recovery rates estimations accuracy
Weakly dependent of variations in oil price(infrastructure already there)
Who evaluate & declare the reserves?
A lot of oil companies are state-owned. Around 10% of oil compagnies are listed on the stock exchange -> legally binded to communicate the estimations
Large part of data comes from countries but :
Geopolitical strategies due to production international agreements
Different conventions on what to count and in which category
No independent verifications
Caution in interpretation
Adapted from [15]
Impacts of extractive activities
Growing interdependancies
Energy footprint of minerals
A lot of operations involved
Extraction, mineral processing, metal working
1st order transformation: smelting and refining
Transport between steps
This raw metal undergo varied 2nd order transformations to become raw products with diverging final energetical footprint
Copper example: tubes 20-30% higher footprint than foils
Uncertainties in data
Diversity of production sites (mineral concentration, efficiency of processes)
Varied studies perimeter (no standard approach, weigh of hypothesis)
Disparities in sources of information available
Extracted from [3]
Extraction & Refining of metals
Less & less concentrated mineral resources -> more & more energy
Extracted from [24]
[24] PRIOR, T et al., 2012. Resource depletion, peak minerals and the implications for sustainable resource management.
Material footprint of energy
 |
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Environmental focus
Other abiotic resources: water & air quality
Impacts on abiotic resources: water & air quality [16] & [17]
[16] ELAW, 2010. 1st Edition: Guide pour l’évaluationde EIE de projetsminiers [online].
[17] Hydraulic Fracturing 101. Earthworks [online].
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
 |
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 |
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Mines dewatering
Mining sometimes directly meet the groundwater table -> pursuit of mining need pumping of water -> reduction or elimination of water circulation in surrounding zones, varied degradations on soils and wildlife
Ex: Sadiola Gold mine pumped 5,6 Mm3 of water in a year (≃ consommation of 800 000 Malians) [3]
Mobile or non-mobile sources of air pollutants
Fuel combustion & exhaust gases of machines or vehicules -> CO2, CO, organic compounds -> climate change
Waste particles dispersed by wind
Precious metals are often melted onsite before sent to rafineries -> high levels of Hg, As, SO2
Uncontrolled mercury (Hg) rejections
[Hg] in ores can rach 10 mg/kg -> 1 Mt of ores produced means 10t of Hg potentially emitted
Vaporization of Hg in gold metling is a major cause of Hg mission in atmosphere
Specifics to oil :
Hydraulic fracturing & Oil spills contaminations
Details in [17]
Biotic resources: wildlife and land
[16]ELAW, 2010. 1st Edition: Guide pour l’évaluationde EIE de projetsminiers [online].
[17] Hydraulic Fracturing 101. Earthworks [online].
Loss of habitat
Excavation or accumulation of waste -> mobile species (birds and some mammals)are hunted out + sedentary species (little mammals, reptiles, invertebrates) are killed
Acid drainage or dewatering -> severes impacts on surrounding aquatic life
These 2 points -> perturbation of trophic chains (diminution of food for the higher- level predators)
Disparition of vegetation
Fracture of habitat
Large portions of land occupied
-> perturbation of migrations or local isolation of species
Specifics to oil (again):
Hydraulic fracturing & Oil spills contaminations
Details in [17]
Socio-economical focus
[16] ELAW, 2010. 1st Edition: Guide pour l’évaluationde EIE de projetsminiers [online].
[17] Hydraulic Fracturing 101. Earthworks [online].
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Contrasted local realities
[16] ELAW, 2010. 1st Edition: Guide pour l’évaluation de EIE de projets miniers [online].
[17] Hydraulic Fracturing 101. Earthworks [online].
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Human migrations
Displacement & reinstallation of communities (expropriated or not) -> resentment + power perturbations -> local conflicts
New high economic activity -> arrival of new populations -> new pressures on land, water or waste management -> tensions & potential conflicts with original inhabitants
Ex of Grasberg Mines in Indonesia: From <1000 (1973) to 110 000 (1999) ; violent conflicts during 1970-1990
New needs of infrastructures -> urbanization -> wide-ranging effects
Loss of drinkable water access
Due to uncontrolled exploitations & industrial pollutions
Pressures on means of existence
Mining activities not correctly managed -> economic cost on other sectors (agriculture & fishing in particular)
Public health consequences
Potential sanitary risks are often seglected
-> example of improvised mining towns are been shown to threaten food security and availability
Indirect effects of exposition to mining activities are higher incidences of tuberculosis, asthma, chronic bronchitis, etc.
A review of metals direct toxicity impacts can be found in a dedicated chapter of [3]
Cultural & Esthetics
Destruction of cultural resource by surface perturbation or excavation
To pographical or hydrological changes
Higher access to previously inacessible locations
-> theft or vandalism of cultural artifacts
Visual impacts due to deforestation& presence of infrastructures
Global frictions...
[25] HUISMAN, J., PAVEL, C., et al. 2020. Critical Raw Materials in Technologies and Sectors -Foresight [online].
[3]BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Emerging geopolitical stakes for metals
As for oil, the main consumer countries are also the ones with the smallest reserves
Understanding of these problematics is more recent for metals and is parallel to the recent rise of metals prices in the 2000s
The EU Commission now regurlaly pubish reports on the matter[25]
Strategical stocks of metals constituted during Cold War, dismantled after the 90s, are back since15-20 years
Capitalistic concentration of compagnies :
in 2008, 4173 compagnies in mining but 149 majors (3,6%) were controlling 83% of the market[3]
Power to initiate struggles with states over natural resources and their exploitation, in order to maximize private profits and mutualize losses or environmental externalities
Complex conflicts with explicit and implicit actors
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Armed conflicts already existing
Not as visible as oil conflicts yet
DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo) being the richer african country in metals, its history since mid-XXth is a paradigmatic example
Crossings with colonization & neocolonization
1961 Defense agreements between France, Niger, Dahomey & Ivory Coast garantee limitation of exportations to other countries than France in case of needs
2007 contract of China & RDC: heavy construction work (6 billions $) in in exchange of metal mining authorizations (10 Mt of Cu, 200 000 t of Co, 372 t of Au)
With explicit intention of asking land if the metal provisionning does not meet expectations
Direct implication in local economy
No need to developp on the well known history of oil geopolitical conflicts since mid-XXth!
Rooted in historical inequalities
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
[18] RITCHIE, Hannah and ROSER, Max, 2017. CO₂ and Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Our World in Data[online].
[19] BONNEUIL, C., FRESSOZ, J-B., 2016. L’événement anthropocène: la Terre, l’histoire et nous.
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Perspectives of abiotic resources
A matter of Stocks
The stocks’s stakes
Climate change – CO2 eq « stock »
[6] BP, 2020. BP Statistical Review of World Energy. [online].
[20] EIA, U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2016. Carbon Dioxide Emissions Coefficients. [online].
[21] IPCC. 2018. Mitigation Pathways Compatible with 1.5°C in the Context of Sustainable Development. . P. 82.
Oil emissions of current reserves
Proven reserves :
-> 1733,9 billions barrels [6]
53750,9 billion gallonsAverage on varied oil uses gives ≃ 10 kg CO2 emitted per gallon [20]
-> 537,5 Gt CO2
World CO2 eq budget, current estimations : [21]
1170 Gt CO2 eq to stay <2°C of global warming
420 Gt CO2 eq to stay <1,5°C of global warming
Consomption of all current proven oil reserves is half of our total 2°C world budget and more than our total 1,5°C budget!
Without even considering natural gas, coal, or other emissions (CH4, for example) contributing to radiative forcing...
This considered, without changes, the 2°C threshold should be crossed in about 26 years
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. ,2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
[10] Data & Statistics,. IEA[online]. Available from : https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics
And mining is very dependent of highly carbonated, non renewable energy vectors
Adapted from [3] .The values for World averages of Electricity origin were replaced by updated data rom [10]
Production peak
[6] BP, 2020. BP Statistical Review of World Energy. [online].
[15] JANCOVICI, J-M, 2019. Les Energies fossiles. Ecole des Mines [online].
[22] World Energy Outlook 2018. IEA –International Energy Agency.
Hypothesis: we don’t mind CO2 eq emissions
Either we consider it’s not a problem
Or we think innovation or start-ups will solve that
-> Exhaustion of Reserves through Production will still occur!
R/P ratio: most simplified model
Considering current reserves [6]
And 2019 rate of consomption [6] taken as constant for the years to come (quite unrealistic hypothesis of no flow reduction)
-> No oil remaining in ≃ 50 years
[23] CALVO, G. et al.., 2017. Assessing maximum production peak and resource availability of non-fuel mineral resources.
[15] JANCOVICI, J-M, 2019. Les Energies fossiles. Ecole des Mines [online].
[22] World Energy Outlook 2018. IEA – International Energy Agency.
 |
Extracted from [23] |
 |
Extracted from [23] |
This recent try of systematic assessment is quite interesting to read[23] and accessible!
The time scaling is quite short, even for base metals
Extracted from [23]
Expected peak in the next 50 years : 12 metals over 47 studied: As, Bi, In, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Ag, Ta, Te, Zn
30 metals over 47 have their expected peak in the next 100 years
Gold & Antimony peaked arround 2015 (agreement for Gold with [3])
Extracted from [23]
Taking into account the interdependencies of metals
Bold indicates it is the main production process of said metal
Extracted from [3]
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. 2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Nearly a half of metals today exploited are interlinked
Extracted from [3]
Criticality
[26] GRAEDEL, T. et al., 2015. Criticality of metals and metalloids. DOI 10.1073/pnas.1500415112.
Notion related to the attempt to assess the relative risks concerning the availability of resources
Relatively recent preoccupation
As availability is an already complex notion, its risk analysis is also complex
Geological abondance & concentrations
Potential for substitution
State of the art of mining technology
Amount of regulatory oversight
Geopolitical initiatives
Governmental instability
Economic policy
As reserves are part of the assessment, it is also dynamic
Several methodologies
At different scales of organizations
For different scales of time
With then varied results difficult to compare between each other
Extracted from [26]
Criticality space: a first step is to get an overall idea
A number of metals are concentrated on the middle: moderately high on at least 2 axis (rare earths, Cr, Te, etc.)
Some are regrouped toward lower left: relatively low criticality (Fe, Mg, Ni, Mn, etc.)
The right side: high supply risk (In, Ag, Tl, As, Sb)
The particular case of Au & Pt
Extracted from [23]
|  |
Extracted from [23]
[25] HUISMAN, J., PAVEL, C., et al. 2020. Critical Raw Materials in Technologies and Sectors - Foresight [online].
Preserving stocks
Necessity & Limits of Recycling
[3] BIHOUIX, P., GUILLEBON, B. 2010. Quel futur pour les métaux?
Major difference between oil (energy resources) and metals (mineral ressources) :
Oil, Coal & Natural Gas -> mostly burned -> The flow is not retrievable
Metals -> mostly materially conserved -> The flow is retrievable + there is a stock in circulation!
Each year, stocks of metals :
Increases of the producted quantity
Decreases of the lost quantity
Dispersive uses (metals used as dyes or fertilizers)
No recycling (incineration or landfill disposal)
Current recycling
Precious metals (Au) or with moderately high value (Cu): few losses
Less noble metals (Al, Zn) have more important loss rates
No data for a lot of metals used in specific applications (electronics...)
Metals are one of the most interesting category of materials for recycling
Theoretically recyclable an infinite amount of time without diminishing their properties
Have high yield for stock preservation
40% recycling rate -> 80% recycling rate <-> Reserves x 3
50% recycling rate -> 99,9% recycling rate <-> Reserves x 500
Rich countries show that recycling rate can reach high levels for base metals
France (2010): 85% for Fe ; 80% for Al & Cu ; 70% Pb ; 50% Zn [3]
But it cannot do everything
No industrial process have a 100% efficiency -> same for recycling (remelt Al generate a dispersed loss of 1-2%)
A lot of our uses are not compatible with recycling
The trend of higher complexity
> 30 metals in a computer
> 10 alloys of Steel in a car
Prevent us from retrieving the resources: not easy and sometimes techically impossible to detect or separate metals of an allow
This phenomena exist for a lot of our metarials
Glass: mix of transparent & colored glasses -> no more use in most of construction or cars, only bottles
Plastic: often reused in less demanding uses (technically or aestetically)
-> Important to rethink life-cycles of products, raw materials, and mostly uses
-> Integrate less performant or pretty materials & more recycled materials
-> Organize recovery channels to boost recycling rate
-> But also question the trend of high tech solutions instead of low tech ones
-> That is, question the needs
The trend of direct dispersive uses
Dyes (98% of Ti used as TiO2 for white dyes)
Fertilizers (P, Zn, etc.)
Additives (Cr in Glass)
Pesticides (CuSO4 in some organic farming plants)
And « indirecty » dispersive uses (very difficult to recover)
33% of Sn is used in welding
50% of Zn is used in galvanizing
Some metals like Co or Mb are nearly exclusively used in dispersive uses or alloys
The socioeconomic limits
Economical incentives to constructors are not present or sufficient
Lack of reglementation and means to enforce it
Complexity of products and recovery channels does not help
Substitution
Limit the use in rare or noble metals in favor of abondant metals
Critical lens on « innovation »
Aim to maximize a low tech approach as much as possible at the level of product and technology
-> For inorganic solar pannels, Si should be prefered to GaAs, CIGS, and others, even if the conversion efficiency is less important
For critical cases, possibilities needs to be carefully explored :
Cr nearly indispensible for anti-corrosion
-> Ti can replace Cr in certain cases but its energy footprint is 4-5 times higher
Cu nearly indispensible for electrical applications
-> Al can replace Cu in certain cases but its energy footprint is 2-3 times higher
Substituate oil by electrification? [27]
Li-ion batteries represented 37% of Li consumption in 2016 (and 40% of Co)
Batteries for electric vehicules were only 10% of Li-ion consumption in 2018
Most elements at disposal indicates that strong choices of resources’s uses will have to be made in the years to come :
[27] Responsible minerals sourcing for renewable energy, 2019. University of Technology Sydney [online].
[28] ABDALLA, A. et al., 2018. Hydrogen production, storage, transportation and key challenges with applications: A review. DOI 10.1016/j.enconman.2018.03.088
[29] SCHMIDT, O., et al., 2017. Future cost and performance of water electrolysis: An expert elicitation study. DOI 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2017.10.045.
Substituate oil by « hydrogen »?
Currently > 90% of H2 is produced by steam reforming (10 kg CO2 per kg of H2 produced) [28]
Water electrolysis / fuel cells have problems of their own [29]
Alkaline electrolysis is not adapted for electric cars
New technologies currently depends either on Pt and are not industrially mature (PEM) or rare earths and are at the state of demonstrators (SO)
In need of a big & new infrastructure for supply of cars
-> We are back to the vicious circle of energy & material footprint
Challenging needs
[30] BIHOUIX, Philippe, 2014. L’Age des low techs : vers une civilisation techniquement soutenable. Seuil.
The often most efficient stategy to preserve abiotic resources stock
House thermally isolated + put on a sweater >>> room heating technical solution
Most transport on bicycle (short distance) + train (long distance) with minimal use of a car (occasional rental) >>> electric cars replacing current diesel and petrol cars
Simple dismountable and repairable electronics >>> computer assembly with glue with digital prints technology
It is the first of the 7 principles of low-techs [30]
Challenging needs
Design and produce truly sustainable
Orienting knowledge to resources’ savings
Striking a technical balance between performance & conviviality
Relocalize without losing the right scale effects
De-machinizing services
Knowing to remain modest
Indeed this kind of transition imply numerous socioeconomical consequences
As any kind of transition, it is also a matter of flows and their evolution
A matter of Flow
The flows’s stakes
Climate change
[31] IPCC. 2014: mitigation of climate change: Working Group III contribution to the 5th Assessment Report of the IPCC.
Trajectories mitigating climate change all require a global limitation of material & energy flows
Even with the hypothesis of a high developpment of the use of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies
[32] HCC, 2020. Maîtriser l’empreinte carbone de la France. Haut Conseil pour le Climat [online].
The French carbon footprint
A large part of our carbon footprint comes from importations
The French situation
Mineral resources: metals & cement
Energy resources & chemical products: oil
Abiotic resources are a large part of it, metals in particular!
In terms of weight of abiotic resources in domestic emissions: oil is dominant through transport (direct emissions), followed by metals & cement (indirect and distributed emissions)
High mitigation potential in transport <-> Combination of varied measures [31]
Low-carbon fuels -> higher flows of metals & lower flow of oil
Lowering vehicules energy intensities -> lower flows of oil & metals
Encouraging modal shift to lower-carbon passenger & freight systems
-> lower flows of oil + short-to-medium term higher flows of metals for infrastructure investments
Avoid journeys where possible -> lower flows of oils
This kind of configuration apply generally
Specific augmentations in flows of metal are required to lower oil flows
Competition between uses requiring metals -> priorities will need to be established
Economics interdependancies
[15] JANCOVICI, Jean-Marc, 2019. Les Energies fossiles. Ecole des Mines [online].
[34] HABERL, H., et al, 2020. A systematic review of the evidence on decoupling of GDP, resource use and GHG emissions, part II : synthesizing the insights. DOI 10.1088/1748-9326/ab842a.
[33] HCC, 2020. Rapport annuel - Redresser le cap, relancer la transition. Haut Conseil pour le Climat [online]. 2020.
At world scale, there is a historical link between primary energy & material consumption, and economic production (as measured by GDP) [15] & [34]
There is no consensus on the exact nature of the relationship nowadays [33]
But we know that energy & material availability enables GDP growth
And GDP growth, by anticipation of economic growth causes energy & material use
A lot of ambitious climate target rely on the concept of « decoupling » [34]
Promotion of economic growth while reducing material & energy footprint (EMF)
When theorized as absolute -> EMF reduction & GDP growth
When theorized as relative -> EMF slow growth & GDP high growth
Recent systematic review clarifies that :
Relative decoupling is frequent for material use, GHG emissions, but not exergy
Relative decoupling of GDP and primary energy use can be caused by energy efficiency (higher ratio of exergy / primary energy use)
Absolute decoupling situations are very rare and are related to small short-term reductions of emissions
No evidence that absolute decoupling can be generalized
Degrowth/Sufficiency currently seems indispensible to meet climate target and sustainable use of abiotic resources:
Require a contraction of current economics functionning
And even fundamental changes in its functionning too
A byproduct of this scientific inquiries is that GDP is more & more considered as an irrelevant indicator for these problematics
Volatility of prices
[35] ECORYS, 2012. Mapping resource prices: the past & the future [online]. Final report to European Comission.
Base metals’ prices are historically quite constant relatively to each others but individual resource’s price is highly volatile [35]
[6] BP, 2020. BP Statistical Review of World Energy. [online].
Oil’s price is highly volatile too[6]
Resources’s prices underlying determinations
Percieved availability through control of producers
Degree of substitutability
Resources’s prices mecanisms of formations
Over-the-counter (OTC) markets: traditionnal mecanism
Annual or multi-year supply contracts: mainly, Fe and Fe allows
Pricing on forward markets
Special case of precious metals: considered as quasi-money or OTC.
Historically, numerous resources exchanges were operated by intermediates
Contemporary period: developpment of financialization
Alignment of Raw materials on securities -> far less intermediaries
Developpment of financial product derivatives + capitalistic concentrations of producers
-> overvalued prices and speculations
[36] MITTEAU, Gilles, 2018. Economie et finance du pétrole - Heu?reka. [online].
Financial markets’s specific effects
Efficiency of market -> Trends of prices themselves tend to diseapear
Short-term interest of traders -> Short-term volatility
Complexity of the product and implications of prices variations on the economy
-> Long-term volatility + impossibility to know for sure the causes of prices variations
-> There is no « natural price-signalling » mecanism that makes a non- renewable resource progressively more expensive overtime
-> The « natural » functionning of Financial markets seems to impply that the reduction of energy & material flows lead to higher volatility, or maybe higher « volatility of volatility »
For detailed reasonning, strong recommendation of Youtuber Heu?reka on Economy & Finance of oil
Contracting flows
Limits of efficiency
Like recycling, energy efficiency is necessary
Allow to reduce flows for a given performance
25% energy yield -> 30% energy yield -> 1/6 of oil flows spared per year
25% energy yield -> 50% energy yield -> 1/2 of oil flows spared per year
Same goes for « material efficiency » (diminshing the quantity of material needed to achieve a given functionnality)
But it is not sufficient, and could even be harmful on the global scale
Energy efficiency, when only measure applied, have mainly cost reduction effects
Cost reduction could then lead to democratize preexisting uses or create new ones
This then would lead to an overall increase in energy consumption
[37] SORRELL, Steve, 2007. The Rebound Effect: an assessment of the evidence for economy-wide energy savings from improved energy efficiency. [online]. UKERC
This would be called a « rebound effect » [37]
The « economy-wide » rebound effect is of combination of direct and indirect rebound effects that can interact with each other
Some basic examples of direct rebound effect :
If fuel-efficient vehicules make travel cheaper -> Consumers may choose to drive further / more often -> Offsets the energy savings
If a factory uses energy more efficiently -> Becomes more profitable -> May generate further investments -> More production
Some basic examples of indirect rebound effect :
Drivers of fuel-efficient cars may spend the money saved bying petrol on other energy intensive goods or services (ex: overseas flight)
[38] JEVONS, William Stanley, 1865. The Coal Question. . 1865. P. 213.
Rebound effect concept coms back to the XIXth century
Firstly known as « Jevons paradox » from W. J. Jevons [38]
Steam-engines’ efficiency had been increased by 10-fold at least in a century
Consumption of coal had greatly increased anyway (x 6 in 50 years)
The same considerations could be made about today :
Energy efficiency of cars’ engines have never been better
Our oil cosumption dedicated to it have never been higher
-> Could be explained by:
The growth of car use driven by low cost of oil
And spared cost of cars invested in high-tech supplementary functions which increase car’s weight and maintain oil consumption
The increase in heavy vehicules like SUVs
[39] STERN, David I., 2017. How accurate are energy intensity projections?. DOI 10.1007/s10584-017-2003-3.
Quantified contemporary estimations are complicated :
There is indeed a correlation between various measures of energy efficiency and continuing growth of overall energy consumption
But the causal links between these trends are not clear
Difficulty to assess other things than direct rebound effects
That being said, evidence suggest that : [37]
It has the potential to widely vary between technologies, sectors, income groups
In OECD countries, automotive transport, household heating & cooling can relatively robustly be considered subjects to a direct rebound effect of 10-30% (microscale)
Current energy or material efficiency policies are not up to the task (macroscale)
Predictions of energy footprint decline itself are generally too optimistic [39]
Physics inevitability
[40] HALL, Charles A. S., et al., 2014. EROI of different fuels and the implications for society. DOI 10.1016/j.enpol.2013.05.049.
Material & Energy flows will decline anyway due to the physics underlying the production peak
We’ve seen that the decline in ores’s grade do lead to an exponential demand in energy for base metals extraction, and that a mineralogical barrier can happen for rarer metals
But oil itself needs energy to be extracted!
Last notion of this course : EROI – Energy return on investment
Ratio of energy delivered by a specific energy vector and the energy invested in the capture & delivery of this energy
Measures the relative quality of energy vectors
Varied possible choices of boundaries in systemic assessments, so as much EROI calculations: standard ; point of use ; extended ; societal
Estimates re complicated due to oil compagnies low level of transparency
As oil is often extracted together with natural gas, calculations can be tricky
But all estimates tend to show a progressive decrease in EROI for every place where data is available : here in USA
Is there a trend for oil already?
It seems so
All estimates tend to show a progressive decrease in EROI for every place where data is available : here in USA
Is there a trend for oil already?
Pretty much so!
All estimates tend to show a progressive decrease in EROI for every place where data is available : here in Canada
Is there a trend for oil already?
Undeniably so!
All estimates tend to show a progressive decrease in EROI for every place where data is available : here in various other countries
It is logical from what we’ve seen about the concentration of resources in general. But why does it especially matter here?
The decrease of the EROI of conventionnal oil means we’ll need to set aside a growing share of the oil flows just to continue to have a flow
This share of oil « lost » will no longer be used to supply other sectors [36]
Non conventionnal oils have a base EROI quite lower than conventionnal (and will also decrease with their further exploitation) [40]
Managing consequences, tackling causes
[36] MITTEAU, Gilles, 2018. Economie et finance du pétrole -Heu?reka. [online].
[40] HALL, Charles A. S., et al., 2014. EROI of different fuels and the implications for society. DOI 10.1016/j.enpol.2013.05.049.
[33] HCC, 2020. Rapport annuel -Redresser le cap, relancer la transition. Haut Conseil pour le Climat [online]. 2020.
As there is no absolute decoupling, a contraction & instability of economy and as we know it seems unavoidable in the medium-term, regardless of climate change [36] & [40]
By « economy », here, we mean that all socioeconomical & geopolitical relationships will be impacted
Social acceptability of dynamics created by contracting flows will be a key component of the success ofmitigating policies [33]
-> Ecological transition is also a social one
This is were we, as engineers & citizens, have apart to play
We would gain a lot to take inspiration from the 7 principles of low-techs [30]
Challenging needs
Design and produce truly sustainable
Orienting knowledge to resources’ savings
Striking a technical balance between performance & conviviality
Relocalize without losing the right scale effects
De-machinizing services
Knowing to remain modest
[30] BIHOUIX, Philippe, 2014. L’Age des low techs : vers une civilisation techniquement soutenable. Seuil.
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Supplmentary bibliographical references that might interest you:
CALAS, Georges, 2014. Les ressources minérales, un enjeu majeur dans le contexte du développement durable. [online]. 2015 2014. Available from: https://www.college-de-france.fr/site/georges-calas/course-2014-2015.htm
Energy Policies of IEA Countries: United States 2019 Review. IEA Webstore [online]. Available from: https://webstore.iea.org/energy-policies-of-iea-countries-united-states-2019-review
HABIB, Komal, HAMELIN, Lorie and WENZEL, Henrik, 2016. A dynamic perspective of the geopolitical supply risk of metals. Journal of Cleaner Production. 1 October 2016. Vol. 133, p. 850–858. DOI 10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.05.118.
HABIB, Komal, SCHMIDT, Jannick H. and CHRISTENSEN, Per, 2013. A historical perspective of Global Warming Potential from Municipal Solid Waste Management. Waste Management. 1 September 2013. Vol. 33, no. 9, p. 1926–1933. DOI 10.1016/j.wasman.2013.04.016.
HABIB, Komal and WENZEL, Henrik, 2014. Exploring rare earths supply constraints for the emerging clean energy technologies and the role of recycling. Journal of Cleaner Production. 1 December 2014. Vol. 84, p. 348–359. DOI 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.04.035.
IEA, 2021. The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions [online]. IEA. Available from: https://www.iea.org/reports/the-role-of-critical-minerals-in-clean-energy-transitions
MEYER, R. La Capture et Séquestration de Carbone pour réduire nos émissions de CO2 - CARBONE#4, 2020. [online]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQlqQEhVi1M
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SCHAFFARTZIK, Anke, MAYER, Andreas, GINGRICH, Simone, EISENMENGER, Nina, LOY, Christian and KRAUSMANN, Fridolin, 2014. The global metabolic transition: Regional patterns and trends of global material flows, 1950–2010. Global Environmental Change. May 2014. Vol. 26, p. 87–97. DOI 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2014.03.013.
SCHRIJVERS, Dieuwertje, HOOL, Alessandra, BLENGINI, Gian Andrea, CHEN, Wei-Qiang, DEWULF, Jo, EGGERT, Roderick, VAN ELLEN, Layla, GAUSS, Roland, GODDIN, James, HABIB, Komal, HAGELÜKEN, Christian, HIROHATA, Atsufumi, HOFMANN-AMTENBRINK, Margarethe, KOSMOL, Jan, LE GLEUHER, Maïté, GROHOL, Milan, KU, Anthony, LEE, Min-Ha, LIU, Gang, NANSAI, Keisuke, NUSS, Philip, PECK, David, RELLER, Armin, SONNEMANN, Guido, TERCERO, Luis, THORENZ, Andrea and WÄGER, Patrick A., 2020. A review of methods and data to determine raw material criticality. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. 1 April 2020. Vol. 155, p. 104617. DOI 10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104617.
STERN, David I., 2020. How large is the economy-wide rebound effect? Energy Policy. 1 December 2020. Vol. 147, p. 111870. DOI 10.1016/j.enpol.2020.111870.
UNEP (ed.), 2013. Metal recycling: opportunities, limits, infrastructure: this is report 2b of the Global Metal Flows Working Group of the International Resource Panel of UNEP. Nairobi, Kenya: United Nations Environment Programme. ISBN 978-92-807-3267-2.
Carbon Cycle
Table of contents
Introduction to carbon
Goal of the class
What is carbon?
Carbon Reservoirs
In this part you will have an overview of the different carbon reservoirs or carbon pools.
Carbon cycle
Here you will see short carbon cycles, and long carbon cycle.
Anthropogenic activities and carbon cycle
You will see the anthropogenic causes of the carbon cycle disruption and the consequences on the biosphere and on human organizations.
Introduction to carbon
Why are we talking about carbon?
|  |
What is the link with the project?
What will you learn?
Know the different resevoirs of carbon and how the carbon cycle works.
Know the anthropogenic causes of the disruption of the carbon cycle.
The competences developed are :
systemic thinking
critical thinking
What is carbon?
Définition :
“Carbon : the building block of life. You may have heard this sentence, but have you fully considered what it really means? All living things are made of elements, the most abundant of which are, oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. Of these, carbon is the best at joining with other elements to form compounds necessary for life, such as sugars, starches, fats, and proteins. Together, all these forms of carbon account for approximately half of the total dry mass of living things.”
 | Carbon atom model, diamond and graphite (Sundqvist, 2021) |
Figure : Phase diagram of carbon taken from
Reminder : Earth’s Layers
Carbon Reservoirs
The concept of reservoir
Carbon reservoirs
 | The global carbon-cycle showing the different reservoirs for carbon and the exchanges between reservoirs in GT (109) . The arrows represent natural processes of carbon transfer between atmosphere and earth. |
Reservoir 1 : Atmosphere
Reservoir 2 : Ocean
2⁄3 of the Earth’s surface.
store and transporte heat.
making the atmosphere warm and moist.
enable life to flourish in the sea and on land.
CO2 (aqueous),
H2CO3 (carbonic acid),
HCO3− (bicarbonate ion),
CO32− (carbonate ion).
DIC = [CO2(aq)] + [H2CO3] + [HCO3−]+ [CO32−]
Reservoir 3: Solid carbonates or carbonates rock
Calcite or calcium carbonate, CaCO3
 | Photographs of typical seep carbonate rocks. |
 | Layers of sedimentary rock in Makhtesh Ramon |
Xi, Shichuan, Xin Zhang, Zengfeng Du, Lianfu Li, Bing Wang, Zhendong Luan, Chao Lian, et Jun Yan. 2018. « Laser Raman Detection of Authigenic Carbonates from Cold Seeps at the Formosa Ridge and East of the Pear River Mouth Basin in the South China Sea ». Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 168 (décembre) : 207‐24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2018.01.023
Reservoir 4: Biomass (oceanic and continental)
 |
|
Graphical representation of the global biomass distribution by taxa.
Bar-On, Yinon M., Rob Phillips, et Ron Milo. 2018. « The Biomass Distribution on Earth ». Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 115 (25): 6506‐11. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1711842115.
Reservoir 5 : Soil
 | 950 GtC is inorganic carbon. |
 | Credit: Antonio Jordán (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu) 1500 Gt is organic carbon. |
 | Dignac, Marie-France, Delphine Derrien, Pierre Barr , S bastien Barot, Lauric C cillon, Claire Chenu, Tiphaine Chevallier, et al. 2017. Increasing Soil Carbon Storage: Mechanisms, Effects of Agricultural Practices and Proxies. A Review . Agronomy for Sustainable Development 37 (2) : 14. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-017-0421-2. Organic matter turnover (EN) = renouvellement de la matière organique (FR) shoots (EN) = pousses (FR) |
 | Figure : Soil carbon (C) cycle through the microbial loop. Carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere is fixed by plants (or autotrophic microorganisms) and added to soil through processes such as ❶ root exudation of low-molecular weight simple carbon compounds, or deposition of leaf and root litter leading to accumulation of complex plant polysaccharides. ❷ Through these processes, carbon is made bioavailable to the microbial metabolic “factory” and subsequently is either ❸ respired to the atmosphere or ❹ enters the stable carbon pool as microbial necromass. The exact balance of carbon efflux versus persistence is a function of several factors, including aboveground plant community composition and root exudate profiles, environmental variables, and collective microbial phenotypes [i.e., the metaphenome (19)]. Naylor, Dan, Natalie Sadler, Arunima Bhattacharjee, Emily B. Graham, Christopher R. Anderton, Ryan McClure, Mary Lipton, Kirsten S. Hofmockel, et Janet K. Jansson. 2020. « Soil Microbiomes Under Climate Change and Implications for Carbon Cycling ». Annual Review of Environment and Resources 45 (1): 29‐59. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-012320-082720. |
Reservoir 6 : Kerogen
 | Figure. Photomicrograph of kerogen. This is the sapropelic Kimmeridge Coal (Upper Jurassic) from Dorset, UK. Cross-sections of bivalves are ubiquitous, and carbonized plant detritus is also visible. Reproduced with permission from Selley RC (2000) Applied Sedimentology, 2nd edn. London: Academic Press. |
 | Structure of a vanadium porphyrin compound (left) extracted from petroleum by Alfred E. Treibs, father of organic geochemistry. The close structural similarity of this molecule and chlorophyll a (right) helped establish that petroleum was derived from plants |
Kvenvolden, Keith A. 2006. « Organic Geochemistry – A Retrospective of Its First 70 Years ». Organic Geochemistry 37 (1): 1‑11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.orggeochem.2005.09.001.
Reservoir 7 : Mantle
Carbon cycle
Short cycle
Carbon cycle : Short cycle part 1
SHORT CYCLE
Hydrosphere - atmosphere exchanges
Dissolution of atmospheric CO2 in the ocean and degassing of CO2 from the ocean to the atmosphere
Exchange of 300 GT of CO2 per year ;
Residence time = quantity of the element in the reservoir / sum of the flows of contribution in the reservoir.
Video to watch :
Henry's Law and Gas Solubility Explained https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JtTpPEesOk
At constant temperature and saturation, the partial pressure in the vapor phase of a volatile solute is proportional to the mole fraction of that body in the liquid solution.
So the higher the temperature, the less CO2 is soluble, and the more carbon is redistributed to the atmosphere.
For a given amount of carbon in the ocean+atmosphere, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere increases if the temperature increases.
CO2 control : CO2 balance in the hydrosphere
DIC = [CO2(aq)] + [H2CO3] + [HCO3−]+ [CO32−]
Carbon cycle : Short cycle part 2
Diversion and leakage in the hydrosphere-atmosphere physical exchanges
There is a diversion of carbon flux from the atmosphere to the ocean through the weathering of rocks.
To know more about weathering of rocks : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sk B_A2sfBcY
There is a leakage of carbon from the hydrosphere to the lithosphere : the formation of carbonates.
Calcium carbonate solubility
 | Ω > 1 Precipitation Ω = 1 Equilibrium Ω < 1 Dissolution Modern Sea Surface Ω ≈ 2-5 Sea surface is supersaturated with respect to CaCO3, but calcium carbonates are not constantly precipitating. |
To precipitate calcium carbonate :
 | Woosley, Ryan J. 2018. « Carbonate Compensation Depth ». In Encyclopedia of Geochemistry, édit par William M. White, 204‑5. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Cham: Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39312-4_85. |
Carbon cycle : Short cycle part 3
Photosynthesis and respiration
From atmosphere to biomasse continental and oceanic
 | Photosynthesis 440 Gt of CO2 per year, shared equally between the oceans and the continents. |
From biomass to atmosphere
 |
|
Aerobic respiration chemical reaction :
Carbon cycle : Short cycle part 4
Organic carbon leakage to lithosphere :kerogen formation
 | Figure : Organic carbon cycle with the flow of kerogen (black solid lines) and the flow of biospheric carbon (green solid lines) showing both the fixation of atmospheric CO2 by terrestrial and marine primary productivity. The combined flux of reworked kerogen and biospheric carbon into ocean sediments constitutes total organic carbon burial entering the endogenous kerogen pool (Galy et al., 2015; Hedges and Oades, 1997). |
Conclusion of the short cycle
Long cycle
Long carbon cycle
 |
Berner, Robert A. 2003. « The Long-Term Carbon Cycle, Fossil Fuels and Atmospheric Composition ». Nature 426 (6964): 323‐26. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02131. |
 | CO2 + CaSiO3 <->CaCO3 + SiO2 Contact Metamorphism Vs. Regional Metamorphism https://www.geologypage.com/ |
Trap rock forming a characteristic pavement, Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland (left)
Three Devil's Grade in mid-Moses Coulee , USA (right)
Anthropogenic activities and carbon cycle
Disruption of the carbon cycle-causes
Observation of disruption of the carbon cycle
 | “Recent increases in global averaged temperature over the last decade already appear to be outside the normal variability of temperature changes for the last thousand years. A number of different analyses strongly suggest that this temperature increase is resulting from the increasing atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, thus lending credence to the concerns about much larger changes in climate being predicted for the coming decades.” (Wuebbles, 2001) |
Source of the disruption
« Human-related emissions from fossil fuel use have been estimated as far back as 1751. Before 1863, emissions did not exceed 0.1 GtC/year. However, by 1995 they had reached 6.5 GtC/year, giving an average emission growth rate slightly greater than 3% per year over the last two and a half centuries. Recent growth rates have been significantly lower, at 1.8% per year between 1970 and 1995. Emissions were initially dominated by coal. Since 1985, liquids have been the main source of emissions despite their lower carbon intensity. The regional pattern of emissions has also changed. Once dominated by Europe and North America, developing nations are providing an increasing share of emissions. »
« Physical processes and feedbacks caused by land-use change, that may have an impact on the climate, include changes in albedo and surface roughness, and the exchange between land and atmosphere of water vapour and greenhouse gases [see section 4, chapter 7]. [...] Land-use change may also affect the climate system through biological processes and feedbacks involving the terrestrial vegetation, which may lead to changes in the sources and sinks of carbon in its various forms [see chapter 3)]. »
(IPCC, 2001)
Disruption of the carbon cycle-environmental issues
Consequences on the Earth System
Figure: Schematic representation of negative (a: regulating effect on the system) and positive (b: runaway effect on the system) feedback loops. An arrow with a "+" indicates a positive correlation between the two variables, and an arrow with a "-" indicates a negative correlation. |  |
Feedback loops
Feedback loop 1 |  |
Feedback loop 2 |  |
Feedback loop 6 |  |
Feedback loop 6 : focus biodiversity
Climate change = main cause of biodiversity loss
Preserving biodiversity = mitigating climate change
/!\ technological solutions to mitigate climate change can have negative impacts on biodiversity
Same causes: our socio-economic way of life
Anthropocene Atlas, Gemenne
Interesting source : https://ipbes.net/sites/default/files/2021-06/20210609_workshop_report_embargo_3pm_CEST_10_june_0.pdf
Disruption of the carbon cycle-social issues
Social impacts
|  |
El-Hinnawi (1985): |  |
Définition : Climate Refugees
1951 Refugee Convention: refugee = from political persecution (UN)
“Climate Change Displaced People” : people whose habitat is threatened or is already at risk of being extinguished due to climatic change (Hodgkinson et al., 2009)
“Climate refugees” or “forced climate migrants”
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Darfur". Encyclopedia Britannica, Invalid Date, https://www.britannica.com/place/Darfur. Accessed 15 September 2021.
The complex ethnic distinctions in Darfur are perhaps less important than the contrast between agriculturalists and pastoralists. The relationship between the two is governed by competition for land and water resources, which can be affected by short- and long-term climate change (whether random, cyclical or greenhouse-induced), both in terms of absolute availability and geographical extent of the resources. Jeffrey Mazo (2009) Chapter Three : Darfur : The First Modern Climate-ChangeConflict, The Adelphi Papers, 49:409, 73-86, DOI: 10.1080/19445571003755538 |  |
Définition : Armed Conflicts
3 elements (Sakaguchi, 2017):
There are correlation between climate change and
violence but no robust conclusion.
There are weak empirical support to the link between climate change and violence
Methodologies used in the different students have an impact on results
« Migration is generally considered to be the intermediate stage which links environmental degradation and disasters to conflict (Homer Dixon, 1991 and 1994) »
(Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Migration and Conflict, Raleigh)
Conclusion
Scheffran, 2012 based on Scheffran, 2009
Nitrogen Cycle
Summary
Introduction
Natural nitrogen cycle
Anthropogenic nitrogen cycle
Outflows and nitrogen cascade
Environmental Impacts
Introduction
Atmosphere's composition :
Dinitrogen N2 78%
Oxygen O2 20%
Argon Ar 9%
Carbon dioxyde CO2 0,40% *
Water vapor H2O 0-3%
Cox, Arthur N., éd. 2002. Allen’s Astrophysical Quantities. 4eéd. New York : Springer-Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-1186-0.
* "Vital signs: Carbon Dioxide". NASA Climate. May 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2020
Dinitrogen molecule
N2, the large amount of energy required to break the nitrogen-nitrogen triple bond makes this structure stable, which is why N2 is the most abundant in air.
Nitrogen reservoirs
Canfield, Donald E., Alexander N. Glazer, et Paul G. Falkowski. 2010. « The Evolution and Future of Earth’s Nitrogen Cycle ». Science 330 (6001): 192‐96.
Nitrogen compounds
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|
Why nitrogen is important to life ?
Hint : DNA
Medias
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Natural nitrogen cycle
Biological fixation
 | Actinomycetes |
 | Cyanophyceae |
Mineralization
 | Aerobic and anaerobic conditions. |
Assimilation by plants
Nitrification
Takes place under aerobic conditions.
The activity of the microflora is optimal for pH 6.9 to 9 and temperatures between 20 and 36 °C.
Denitrification
The role of lightning
 |
|
QCM
1) What is the name of the process that oxidizes ammonium (NH4+) to produce nitrite (NO2-) and then forms nitrate (NO3-)?
Denitrification
Biological fixation
Nitrification
2) Thanks to their roots, plants are able to absorb atmospheric nitrogen (N).
True
False
3) What are the functions of nitrogen on the planet ?
Participate in photosynthesis
Produce the nitrogenous bases of DNA
Doing cellular respiration
Transporting Oxygen (O2) molecules
Making proteins
Medias
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Anthropogenic nitrogen cycle
Nitrogen use in manufacturing & processing
 | Blanketing : Nitrogen gas can be used to flush wine bottles both before and after filling. https://www.generon.com/nitrogen-for-wine-sparging-bottling-blanketing/ |
 | Nitrogen generator in Beverage processing & packaging On the picture : Juice cartons on packaging production line |
The most important use is for fertilizer
 | Starter fertilizer can enhance growth and yield by improving access of immobile nutrients |
Nitrogen and fertilizer
 | The natural process of fixation of atmospheric nitrogen has been amplified by man through an increasing use of industrial fixation of atmospheric nitrogen. |
The Haber-Bosch process
Video to watch :
The modern nitrogen cycle
 | NH4+ production : 9,5 x 10^12 mol Fossil fuel combustion : 1.8 x 10^12mol Anthropogenic sources contribute double the natural rate of terrestrial nitrogen fixation. |
Nitrogen and the agro-food system
Why does livestock farming produce large quantities of nitrogen-rich effluents ?
Conclusion
QCM
1) What is the Haber-Bosh process?
A process that transforms air into fertilizer.
A process to fix atmospheric dinitrogen in the form of ammonia.
A process that converts ammonia into nitrate.
A process that permit to have available nitrogen in sufficient quantity to allow its industrialization.
2) What are the anthropogenic sources of the nitrogen cycle?
Fossil fuel combustion
Industrial fixation
Deforestation
Crops and livestock
Building construction
Medias
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Outflows and nitrogen cascade
Introduction
What is on of the main difference between phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen ?
Nitrate goes from the biosphere to the environment by nitrate leaching, gaseous emissions.
Nitrate leaching
Nitrate leaching is highly dependent on rainfall, soil type and soil nitrogen content.
Video to watch
Ammonia volatilization
The presence of ammoniacal nitrogen in a solution in contact with air systematically leads to the volatilization of ammonia.
Volatilization depends very strongly on the physical and chemical conditions of the environment.
the nitrogen content of the substrate in contact with the air ;
the proportion of nitrogen present in the form of ammonia ;
the contact surface between the solution containing ammoniacal nitrogen and the atmosphere ;
the dispersion of the air in contact with the emission zone.
Nitrogen oxides and nitrous oxide emissions
 | The parameters which are likely to intervene to regulate the proportion of nitrous oxide formed during denitrification are :
|
In addition to nitrous oxide emissions, there are nitric oxide emissions, rather observed in dry environments, and associated with nitrification situations.
Nitrogen oxides, mainly NOx (NO2 and NO) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are emitted during nitrification and/or denitrification reactions, both in the field and in livestock buildings (bedding, effluent storage areas).
The nitrogen cascade
Simplified view of the nitrogen cascade, highlighting the major anthropogenic sources of reactive nitrogen (Nr) from atmospheric dinitrogen (N2), the main pollutant forms of Nr (orange boxes) and nine main environmental concerns (blue boxes). Estimates of anthropogenic N fixation for the world (Tg /yr for 2005, in black) are compared with estimates for Europe (Tg /yr for 2000, in blue italic). Blue arrows represent intended anthropogenic Nr flows; all the other arrows are unintended flows.
QCM
1) Nitrogen is characterized by a great ability to leave the soil-plant-animal cycle
True
False
2) Nitrate leaching losses increase when fertilizer applications are in excess of the crop need.
True
False
3) What is the physical and chemical condition of the environment on which the volatilization of ammonia depends?
the nitrogen content of the substrate in contact with the air.
the proportion of nitrogen present in the form of ammonia.
the proportion of nitrogen present in the form of nitrate.
the contact surface between the solution containing ammoniacal nitrogen and the atmosphere.
the soil aeration.
the dispersion of the air in contact with the emission zone.
Medias
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Environmental Impacts
The nitrogen cascade
Small reminder :
This cascade of unintentional flows of reactive nitrogen is accompanied by a cascade of harmful consequences for the environment, the climate and human health.
When reactive nitrogen returns in the form of inert atmospheric nitrogen dioxide, it has potentially crossed several compartments in several forms in excessive quantities, and thus contributed to different environmental impacts on all of our planet.
Air pollution
 | Regulations :
|
1. Health impacts
Ammonia
NH3 - Health effects of ammonia are indirect through contribution of NH4+ to particulate matter (PM).
Ammonia emissions significantly contribute to the formation of secondary particulate matter in the atmosphere (~ 20% by mass).
The main source of ammonia in the atmosphere is agriculture.
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
 | It is a toxic gas that has adverse health effects both in the long term (chronic) and short term (acute). Data from Europe suggested that long-term concentrations of nitrogen dioxide or nitrogen oxides (NO) were associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality. Nitrogen dioxide is strongly related to particulate matter. |
Particulate matter (PM)
 | NO2 and NH3 - Reactive nitrogen contributes to particle mass and to the adverse health effects caused by the PM. |
Ozone
 | NO2 and NH3 - Reactive nitrogen contributes to particle mass and to the adverse health effects caused by the PM. |
Ecosystems
Ammonia
 | Atmospheric ammonium is absorbed by the leaves of plants. More precisely through the stomata, where gas exchanges take place. Atmospheric ammonium is absorbed by the leaves of plants. More precisely through the stomata, where gas exchanges take place. Before reaching the leaf, the pollutant will first have to pass through the “boundary layer”. |
 | Lichens are very affected by atmospheric pollution because they not have a impermeable cuticle. Lichens and bryophytes are an important part of the ecosystem integrity. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/science/the-trouble-with-ammonia-1.3721098 |
 | Ammonia acts as a macro-nutrient and at low exposure levels plants respond by increasing their biomass production. Because plant growth is often limited by the supply of nutrient nitrogen, and so any increases in growth may lead to negative effects on community composition. The fertilisation effect can at higher exposure levels lead to secondary long-term adverse effects including increased susceptibility to abiotic (drought, frost) and biotic stresses. |
Oxides of nitrogen
Oxides of nitrogen can have a fertiliser effect, but can also be toxic to plants, depending on concentrations.
At low concentrations typical of ambient conditions, nitrogen oxides is more phytotoxic than nitrogen dioxide.
As for ammonia, the growth stimulation was also considered as potentially adverse for (semi-) natural vegetation owing to potential negative effects on community composition.
 | Today ozone is considered to be the most important gaseous pollutant causing effects on vegetation. Besides visible injuries on leafs and needles, ozone also causes premature leaf loss, reduced photosynthesis and reduced leaf, root, and total dry weights in sensitive plant species. https://extension.umd.edu/learn/air-pollution-effects-vegetables |
 | Today ozone is considered to be the most important gaseous pollutant causing effects on vegetation. Besides visible injuries on leafs and needles, ozone also causes premature leaf loss, reduced photosynthesis and reduced leaf, root, and total dry weights in sensitive plant species. This leads to significant decrease in productivity of some agricultural crops and to reduced forest production. Effects of ozone on vegetation: from plant cells to ecosystems. [Source: © J.P. Garrec] |
Effects on materials
Corrosion of materials was originally mostly associated with air pollution by sulphur dioxide; however know that nitric acid (HNO3), ozone and particulate matter also contribute significantly to the negative effect of air pollution on materials.
The lifetime of technological products is shortened because of air pollution.
Water Pollution
How does nitrogen get into drinking water?
https://www.dvgw.de/english-pages/topics/water/nitrates-and-drinking-water/
 | The regulatory level is usually met for public water supplies, which are routinely monitored. In the EU, noncompliance to the nitrate or nitrite standards in large public supplies is reported regularly but rarely exceeds % of the sample population. Bryan, Nathan S., et Hans van Grinsven. « The Role of Nitrate in Human Health ». In Advances in Agronomy, 119:153‐82. Elsevier, 2013.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780124072473000032?via%3Dihub |
Effects of nitrogen rich drinking water on human health
 | Nitrate itself is generally considered to be harmless at low concentrations. Nitrite, on the other hand, is reactive especially in the acid environment of the stomach where it can nitrosate other molecules including proteins, amines and amides. |
Eutrophication
 |
|
 | Factors controlling eutrophication can be summed up as a combination of some or all of the following interacting factors:
Fig. Functional linkages between hydrology, anthropogenic nutrient inputs, eutrophication (phytoplankton blooms), and hypoxia/anoxia in estuarine and coastal aquatic ecosystems. Paerl, Hans W. « Assessing and Managing Nutrient-Enhanced Eutrophication in Estuarine and Coastal Waters: Interactive Effects of Human and Climatic Perturbations ». Ecological Engineering 26, no 1 (janvier 2006): 40‐54. |
 |
https://www.unenvironment.org/nowpap/what-we-do/prevent-and-reduce-pollution/eutrophication |
Video to watch
Eutrophication and dead zones | Ecology | Khan Academy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxaWXWd2pw4
 |
The difference between natural and anthropogenic eutrophication is time. |
Soil pollution
Soil quality and functions
Effect of soil degradation on nitrogen
 |
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Effect of nitrogen on soil
Nitrogen as a threat to biodiversity
What is biodiversity ?
Video to watch :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GK_vRtHJZu4&t=36s
 | Ecosystems can be defined by both their sensitivity and their vulnerability to a stress such as enhanced nitrogen deposition. The major impacts of nitrate deposition on terrestrial ecosystem diversity are through :
|
 |
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 |
Jones, L., A. Provins, M. Holland, G. Mills, F. Hayes, B. Emmett, J. Hall, et al. « A Review and Application of the Evidence for Nitrogen Impacts on Ecosystem Services ». Ecosystem Services 7 (1 mars 2014): 76‐88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2013.09.001. |
 | Figure. Schematic of the main impacts of enhanced N deposition on ecosystem processes and species richness. Stress is considered to occur when external constraints limit the rate of production of vegetation; disturbance consists of mechanisms that affect plant biomass by causing its partial or total destruction. Sutton, Mark A., éd. The European Nitrogen Assessment: Sources, Effects and Policy Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2011. |
Example : Red-backed shrike
Medias
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Bibliography
Asman, Willem A. H., Mark A. Sutton, et Jan K. Schjorring. « Ammonia: Emission, Atmospheric Transport and Deposition ». New Phytologist 139, no 1 (mai 1998): 27-48. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1469-8137.1998.00180.x.
Baek, Bok Haeng, Viney P. Aneja, et Quansong Tong. « Chemical Coupling between Ammonia, Acid Gases, and Fine Particles ». Environmental Pollution 129, no 1 (mai 2004): 89-98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2003.09.022. Billen, Gilles, Arthur
Beusen, Lex Bouwman, et Josette Garnier. « Anthropogenic Nitrogen Autotrophy and Heterotrophy of the World’s Watersheds: Past, Present, and Future Trends: AUTO/HETEROTROPHY OF WORLD’S WATERSHEDS ». Global Biogeochemical Cycles 24, no 4 (décembre 2010): n/a-n/a. https://doi.org/10.1029/2009GB003702.
Bobbink, R., K. Hicks, J. Galloway, T. Spranger, R. Alkemade, M. Ashmore, M. Bustamante, et al. « Global Assessment of Nitrogen Deposition Effects on Terrestrial Plant Diversity: A Synthesis ». Ecological Applications 20, no 1 (janvier 2010): 30-59. https://doi.org/10.1890/08-1140.1.
Bolan, Nanthi S, Domy C Adriano, et Denis Curtin. « Soil Acidification and Liming Interactions with Nutrientand Heavy Metal Transformationand Bioavailability ». In Advances in Agronomy, 78:215-72. Elsevier, 2003. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2113(02)78006-1.
Bryan, Nathan S., et Hans van Grinsven. « The Role of Nitrate in Human Health ». In Advances in Agronomy, 119:153-82. Elsevier, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-407247-3.00003- 2.
Canfield, Donald E., Alexander N. Glazer, et Paul G. Falkowski. « The Evolution and Future of Earth’s Nitrogen Cycle ». Science 330, no 6001 (8 octobre 2010): 192-96. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1186120.
Cox, Arthur N., éd. Allen’s Astrophysical Quantities. 4e éd. New York: Springer-Verlag, 2002. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-1186-0.
Vries, W. de, S. Solberg, M. Dobbertin, H. Sterba, D. Laubhann, M. van Oijen, C. Evans, et al. « The Impact of Nitrogen Deposition on Carbon Sequestration by European Forests and Heathlands ». Forest Ecology and Management 258, no 8 (septembre 2009): 1814-23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2009.02.034.
Decau, M. L., J. C. Simon, et A. Jacquet. « Nitrate Leaching under Grassland as Affected by Mineral Nitrogen Fertilization and Cattle Urine ». Journal of Environmental Quality 33, no 2 (mars 2004): 637-44. https://doi.org/10.2134/jeq2004.6370.
Duxbury, John M. « The Significance of Agricultural Sources of Greenhouse Gases ». Fertilizer Research 38, no 2 (1994): 151-63. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00748775.
Fangmeier, Andreas, Angelika Hadwiger-Fangmeier, Ludger Van der Eerden, et Hans-Jürgen Jäger. « Effects of Atmospheric Ammonia on Vegetation—A Review ». Environmental Pollution 86, no 1 (1994): 43-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/0269-7491(94)90008-6.
Fowler, David, Mhairi Coyle, Ute Skiba, Mark A. Sutton, J. Neil Cape, Stefan Reis, Lucy J. Sheppard, et al. « The global nitrogen cycle in the twenty-first century ». Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 368, no 1621 (5 juillet 2013): 20130164. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2013.0164.
Galloway, J. N., F. J. Dentener, D. G. Capone, E. W. Boyer, R. W. Howarth, S. P. Seitzinger, G. P. Asner, et al. « Nitrogen Cycles: Past, Present, and Future ». Biogeochemistry 70, no 2 (septembre 2004): 153-226. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-004-0370-0.
Galloway, James N., John D. Aber, Jan Willem Erisman, Sybil P. Seitzinger, Robert W. Howarth, Ellis B. Cowling, et B. Jack Cosby. « The Nitrogen Cascade ». BioScience 53, no 4 (2003): 341. https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2003)053[0341:TNC]2.0.CO;2.
Gruber, Nicolas, et James N. Galloway. « An Earth-System Perspective of the Global Nitrogen Cycle ». Nature 451, no 7176 (janvier 2008): 293-96. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06592.
Howarth, Robert, Francis Chan, Daniel J Conley, Josette Garnier, Scott C Doney, Roxanne Marino, et Gilles Billen. « Coupled Biogeochemical Cycles: Eutrophication and Hypoxia in Temperate Estuaries and Coastal Marine Ecosystems ». Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 9, no 1 (février 2011): 18-26. https://doi.org/10.1890/100008.
Krupa, S.V. « Effects of Atmospheric Ammonia (NH3) on Terrestrial Vegetation: A Review ». Environmental Pollution 124, no 2 (juillet 2003): 179-221. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0269- 7491(02)00434-7.
Lassaletta, Luis, Gilles Billen, Josette Garnier, Lex Bouwman, Eduardo Velazquez, Nathaniel D. Mueller, et James S. Gerber. « Nitrogen Use in the Global Food System: Past Trends and Future Trajectories of Agronomic Performance, Pollution, Trade, and Dietary Demand ». Environmental Research Letters 11, no 9 (septembre 2016): 095007. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/11/9/095007.
Le Noë, J., G. Billen, F. Esculier, et J. Garnier. « Long-Term Socioecological Trajectories of AgroFood Systems Revealed by N and P Flows in French Regions from 1852 to 2014 ». Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 265 (octobre 2018): 132-43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2018.06.006.
Nicolardot, Bernard, et J. Claude Germon. « Emissions de méthane (CH4) et d’oxydes d’azote (N2O et NOx) par les sols cultivés. Aspects généraux et effet du non travail du sol ». Etude et Gestion des Sols 15, no 3 (2008): 171-82. Paerl, Hans W. « Assessing and Managing Nutrient-Enhanced Eutrophication in Estuarine and Coastal Waters: Interactive Effects of Human and Climatic Perturbations ». Ecological Engineering 26, no 1 (janvier 2006): 40-54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2005.09.006. Peyraud, J.-R. Réduire les pertes d’azote dans l’élevage: expertise scientifique collective. Versailles: Ed. Quæ, 2014.
Powlson, David S., Tom M. Addiscott, Nigel Benjamin, Ken G. Cassman, Theo M. de Kok, Hans van Grinsven, Jean-Louis L’hirondel, Alex A. Avery, et Chris van Kessel. « When Does Nitrate Become a Risk for Humans? » Journal of Environmental Quality 37, no 2 (mars 2008): 291-95. https://doi.org/10.2134/jeq2007.0177.
Rabalais, Nancy N. « Nitrogen in Aquatic Ecosystems ». AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment 31, no 2 (mars 2002): 102-12. https://doi.org/10.1579/0044-7447-31.2.102.
Stein, Lisa Y., et Martin G. Klotz. « The Nitrogen Cycle ». Current Biology 26, no 3 (8 février 2016): R94-98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2015.12.021.
Sutton, Mark A., éd. The European Nitrogen Assessment: Sources, Effects and Policy Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2011.
Vicente Vicente, José. « Soil organic carbon sequestration in Andalusian olive groves: effect of the managements on soil organic carbon dynamics », 2017. Nitrogen Cycle - for A level, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvkjTXPXoLA.
« European Nitrogen Assessement - Summary for Policy Makers ». Consulté le 3 octobre 2020. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/254838099_European_Nitrogen_Assessement_- _Summary_for_policy_makers.
Phosphorus
SUMMARY
1. Introduction
Why do we talk about phosphorus ?
How was phosphorus discovered?
What is phosphorus ?
Where is phosphorus ?
Why and how humans use phosphorus ?
2. Phosphorus cycle
The cycle
3. Anthropogenic phosphorus input
Why phosphorus became toxic ?
Why is it important ?
Current phosphorus dependency
Prospective of phosphorus demand
A new war on phosphorus ?
How can we ensure the safety of phosphate supplies?
Sustainable management of phosphorus
Introduction
Why do we talk about phosphorus ?
1 of the 9 planetary limits 1 of the 3 planetary limits exceeded What is phosphorus ? What is its cycle ? In which human activities is it used ? How to return to a "normal" situation ? |  |
During the course, think about the different interactions between humans, nature and systems involving phosphorus.
How was phosphorus discovered ?
According to you, how did humans discovered phosphorus ?
A. By looking for the Philosopher's Stone
B. By doing caving (spéléologie)
C. By observing a carp population in a lake
A - Complete answer :
By looking for the Philosopher's Stone AND analyzing urine. Yes.
Who ? Hennig Brand
When ? 1669
Why ? By looking for the Philosopher's Stone
How ? By analyzing large quantities of urine
Properties :
it is phosphorescent
it ignites spontaneously on contact with air
1769 : Scheele discovery
(Gervy, 1970)
(Joseph Wright, 1771)
What is phosphorus ?
According to you, where can we find phosphorus ?
A. In our DNA
B. In our Smartphones
C. In our clothes
(Compound Interest, 2014)
(Sanderson, 2018)
Where is phosphorus ?
(Cordell, 2009)
(Syers, 2011)
(Baturin, 2003)
Why and how humans use phosphorus ?
According to you, why do we use phosphorus ?
A. To create bombs
B. To create fertilizers
C. To create match scrapers (grattoirs pour allumettes)
(Cordell, 2009)
And HOW ?
Use of phosphates before their discovery :
1. Use of bones
2. Use of guano
According to you, what is guano ?
A. A plant that can be smoked
B. A typical Latin American outfit
C. A pile of excrement
Seabirds and bats dropping are full of
phosphorus !
2 reasons to use guano :
Both live in large colonies
High concentration of phosphorus
Phosphorus cycle
The cycle
According to you, what is not involved in the phosphorus cycle ?
A. Atmosphere
B. Oceans
C. Lacks
Anthropogenic phosphorus input
Why phosphorus became toxic ?
An ever increasing amount of phosphorus in ocean.
(Baturin, 2003)
(Gaujous, 1995)
Eutrophication phenomenon
(Pinay, 2018)
Social consequences :
Crystalization of social tensions
Agricultural world, local elected officials and environemental protection associations
DIfferent environement conceptions of public action, social responsability and scientigic knowledge
Why is it important ?
According to you, is this phenomenon reallyimportant ?
A. I guess, otherwise this course wouldn't exist
B. It is important but there are bigger issues
C. Not important, it is nothing in front of other issues
(Steffen, 2015)
Current phosphorus dependency
Rapid food demand to rapid population growth
Rectification of phosphorus deficiency of soils
Saving people from starvation
« 90% of global demand for phosphorus is for food production, currently around 148 million tonnes of phosphate rock per year (Smil, 2000a, Smil, 2000b, Gunther, 2005) »
(Cordwell, 2009)
Phosphorus peak
(White, s.d.)
Prospective of phosphorus demand
« Following more than half a century of generous application of inorganic high-grade phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizers, agricultural soils in Europe and North America are now said to have surpassed ‘critical’ phosphorus levels »
« Consequently, demand for phosphorus in these regions has stabilized or is decreasing. »
« However in developing and emerging economies the situation is different. Global demand for phosphorus is forecast to increase by around by 3–4% annually until 2010/11 »
=> high demand and an approaching peak...
A new war on phosphorus ?
(Wikipedia, s.d.)
How can we ensure the safety of phosphate supplies?
Phosphorus security goals might therefore include:
"Increase number of people fed per tonne phosphorus input, or, reduce total phosphorus demand while maintaining food/agricultural output;
Reduce dependence on phosphorus imports (to reduce vulnerability to geopolitical dynamics and thereby increasing long-term access to phosphorus);
Ensure healthy soils (no phosphorus-deficiency, no phosphorus accumulation, balanced nutrition and presence of organic matter);
Ensure farmers needs are met (e.g., maintaining or increasing productivity; ensuring access to phosphorus fertilisers);
Reduce losses and wastage where avoidable;
Reduce eutrophication and pollution by preventing phosphorus from the food system from entering waterways."
4/5 phosphorus mined for food production never actually reaches the food on our forks
Existence of a whole toolbox of phosphorus recycling and efficiency
Low tech and high tech phosphorus recovery in the sanitation sector to changing diets
Sustainable management of phosphorus
Possible solutions for the management of phosphate nutrition of tropical crops in the context of ecological intensification :
Making better use of the diversity of the plant world and genetic resources
Greater use of species assemblages in time and space
Make more efficient use of mineral and organic inputs
Assessing the potential of microbial inoculants and bio-effectors
Maintain and promote the activity of the soil's macrofauna
earthworms = ver de terre
(Hinsinger, 2015)
Bibliography
Steffen, W., Richardson, K., Rockström, J., Cornell, S. E., Fetzer, I., Bennett, E. M., ... & Folke, C. (2015). Planetary boundaries: Guiding human development on a changing planet. Science, 347(6223).
Par Joseph Wright of Derby, Domaine public,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15154197. (2011). Pierre Philosophale. Wikipedia. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_philosophale#/media/Fichier:Joseph_Wright_of_Derby _The_Alchemist.jpg
Gervy, R. (1970). Phosphates and Agriculture. Phosphates and Agriculture.
Compound Interest. (2014, 19 février). The Chemical Elements of a Smartphone.
http://www.compoundchem.com/2014/02/19/the-chemical-elements-of-a-smartphone/
R. Thomas Sanderson. (2018, 16 janvier). Nitrogen group element. Encyclopædia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/science/nitrogen-group-element
Cordell, D., Drangert, J. O., & White, S. (2009). The story of phosphorus: global food security and food for thought. Global environmental change, 19(2), 292-305.
Syers, K., Bekunda, M., Cordell, D., Corman, J., Johnston, J., Rosemarin, A., & Salcedo, I. (2011). Phosphorus and food production. UNEP year book, 34-45.
Baturin, G. N. (2003). Phosphorus cycle in the ocean. Lithology and Mineral Resources,38(2), 101-119.
Prud'homme, F. (2013). Les chauves-souris ont-elles peur de la lumière?: 100 clés pour comprendre les chauves-souris. Éd. Quae.
Gaujous, D. (1995). La pollution des milieux aquatiques: aide-mémoire. Technique et documentation Lavoisier.
Pinay, G., Gascuel, C., Ménesguen, A., Souchon, Y., Le Moal, M., Levain, A., ... & Souchu, P. (2018). L'eutrophisation: Manifestations, causes, conséquences et prédictibilité. Editions Quae.
Collaborative Research Centre 754 (SFB 754), & IOC-UNESCO Global Oxygen Network (GO2NE). (2018). Kiel Declaration - Ocean Oxygen. Ocean Oxygen. https://www.ocean- oxygen.org/declaration
Stuart White, & Dana Cordell. (s. d.). Peak Phosphorus : the sequel to Peak Oil | Phosphorus Futures. Peak Phosphorus : the sequel to Peak Oil. Consulté 30 septembre 2020, à l’adresse http://phosphorusfutures.net/the-phosphorus-challenge/peak- phosphorus-the-sequel-to-peak-oil/
Cordell, D., & White, S. (2013). Sustainable phosphorus measures: strategies and technologies for achieving phosphorus security. Agronomy, 3(1), 86-116.
Beaudin, I. (2006). Revue de littérature La mobilité du phosphore Version finale. Pour le comité ad hoc Groupe mobilité phosphore. Centre de Référence en Agriculture et Agroalimentaire du Québec (CRAAQ).
Cordell, D.; White, S. Peak Phosphorus: Clarifying the Key Issues of a Vigorous Debate about Long-Term Phosphorus Security. Sustainability2011, 3, 2027-2049.
Ecology
Introduction
What does “nature” mean ?
This is the first question I ask you in this class !!
Whats is "Nature" ?
A- a famous scientific journal.
B- the physical, geological, tectonic, meteorological, biological, evolutionary "forces" and principles that constitute the universe.
C- the biophysical environment, the habitat and the so-called natural environments.
D- the essence, the innate character, the set of fundamental properties of a thing or a being.
E- a synonym of universe or cosmos.
What do you think is a true answer ?
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What is ecology ?
The term "ecology" was created by Heackel in 1866 to designate the science of habitat (from the Greek oikos = house, dwelling); it was a question of studying living beings no longer in breeding or laboratory but in their natural habitat. Nowadays, the definition tends to be more "systemic": it is said today that ecology is the study of the interactions between living organisms and the environment in which they live, and of living organisms among themselves, under natural or modified conditions.
Ecology is interested in the biosphere, and the biosphere is all the living beings on the planet, and all the environments they inhabit. The term ecosystem is used to characterize a sustainable interaction between organisms and an environment.
Ecology is also interested in biodiversity, which refers to the variety of life forms on Earth. This term is composed of the prefix bio (from the Greek βίος "life") and the word "diversity". It is assessed by considering the diversity of ecosystems, species and genes in space and time, as well as the interactions within and between these levels of organization.
Ecology can only be understood through evolution. It is based on observations on very varied time scales.
Ecosystem, it's structure and functions
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<!> The notion of an ecosystem is theoretical : it is multiscale, meaning that it can be applied to varying-sized portions of the biosphere, such as a pond, a meadow, or a dead tree. A smaller unit is called a microecosystem. An example of a microecosystem would be the species that have colonized a submerged rock. A mesoecosystem might be a forest, and a macroecosystem might be a region and its watershed.
Ecosystems, organized entities resulting from the action of ecological factors: the structure of ecosystems
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More about ecological niche :
In this picture you have an example of niche differention with bacteria.
Source of the image : bioninja.com
<!> Some species may not be able to occupy their entire niche due to the presence or absence of other species.
Ecologist Joseph Connell studied two species of barnacles - Balanus balanoides and Chthamalus stellatus - that have a stratified distribution on rocks on the Scottish coast.
In nature, Blanus species does not survive on the top of rocks because Balanus does not resist to desiccation (drying) incurred at low tide. Its niche is similar to its fundamental niche. However, Chthamalus species is usually concentrated on the upper rock strata. To determine the fundamental niche of the species, Connell he took back Balanus species from lower rock strata.
When Connel took back Balanus population from lower rock strata, Chthamalus population spread in this area.
The fact that Chthalamus had invaded this area, free from Blanus population indicates that the real niche of Chthamalus species is smaller compare its fundamental niche because of competitive exclusion.
Interactions between the populations of the biocenosis: the interspecific relations
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Here you have an other video talking about Ecological relatioships : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNjPI84sApQ
And here the video with parasitim examples : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFa8-Hagg9Y
A symbiosis example
Symbioses of the mutualism type can be really important at the scale of ecosystems because they allow a rapid colonization of living environments.
Here is a example: symbiosis of coral algae.
https://youtu.be/JENUAv0w8Q4?t=7
Besides this ecological role, these symbioses are also very important for human health.
This is why we are going to have an overview of the human microbiota. The human microbiota is the set of bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms that live on the surface of the human being or inside.
Video : The Invisible Universe Of The Human Microbiome
https://youtu.be/5DTrENdWvvM?t=3
I also link you to a very interesting scientific conference on the subject (in french) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-6Z0JYsCQs&feature=emb_logo
To conclude
The species interactions discussed above are only some of the known interactions that occur in nature and can be difficult to identify because they can directly or indirectly influence other intra-specific and inter-specific interactions.
The role of abiotic factors adds complexity to species interactions and how we understand them.
That is to say, species interactions are part of the framework that forms the complexity of ecological communities. Species interactions are extremely important in shaping community dynamics. It was originally thought that competition was the driving force of community structure, but it is now understood that all of the interactions saw in the lesson, along with their indirect effects and the variation of responses within and between species, define communities and ecosystems.
Bibliography
Agrawal, Anurag A., David D. Ackerly, Fred Adler, A. Elizabeth Arnold, Carla Cáceres, Daniel F. Doak, Eric Post, et al. « Filling Key Gaps in Population and Community Ecology ». Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 5, no 3 (2007): 145‑52.
Ducarme, Frédéric, et Denis Couvet. 2020. « What Does ‘Nature’ Mean? » Palgrave Communications 6 (1): 1‑8. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-0390-y.
Ducarme, Frédéric. s. d. « De Quoi Parle-t-on Quand on Parle de “Nature” ? - Une Étude Comparée ». https://www.academia.edu/25366250/De_quoi_parle_t_on_quand_on_parle_de_nature_une_%C3%A9tude_compar%C3%A9e.
Descola, Philippe. 2018. Par-delà nature et culture.
Ellison, Aaron M., Elizabeth J. Farnsworth, et Robert R. Twilley. « Facultative Mutualism Between Red Mangroves and Root-Fouling Sponges in Belizean Mangal ». Ecology 77, no 8 (décembre 1996): 2431‑44. https://doi.org/10.2307/2265744.
Holomuzki, Joseph R., Jack W. Feminella, et Mary E. Power. « Biotic interactions in freshwater benthic habitats ». Freshwater Science 29, no 1 (février 2010): 220‑44. https://doi.org/10.1899/08-044.1.
Johnson, N. C., J.-H. Graham, et F. A. Smith. « Functioning of Mycorrhizal Associations along the Mutualism–Parasitism Continuum* ». New Phytologist 135, no 4 (1997): 575‑85. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1469-8137.1997.00729.x.
Joelle Leconte. s. d. Philippe Descola : Penser la nature à l’heure de l’Anthropocène - 18/05/2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6l9Bfm6rEOc.
Meltofte, Hans. « Biodiversity in the Polar Regions in a warming world », 137‑48, 2018.
Meyer, S. « Interactions entre organismes et facteurs abiotiques », 2016.
Mucina, Ladislav. « Biome: Evolution of a Crucial Ecological and Biogeographical Concept ». New Phytologist 222, no 1 (2019): 97‑114. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15609.
Écosystèmes, 2020. https://www.dunod.com/sciences-techniques/ecosystemes-structure-fonctionnement-evolution.
« Intra‐cohort cannibalism and size bimodality: a balance between hatching synchrony and resource feedbacks - Huss - 2010 - Oikos - Wiley Online Library ». Consulté le 19 octobre 2020. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18454.x.
Digital technological case study
Documents
In those documents, you will find information to help you define what are the different interactions between this technological tool (smartphone), humans (individual and global scale), and nature (fauna, flora, biogeochemical cycles).
Please, do not read all the readings entirely. Even if you try, you won't be able to make it until the end of the semester (so don't try!). You must search for the information you need intelligently :)
LCA Cellphones: here
Impact of smartphones on society: here
Impact of smartphones on individuals: here
Emotions around smartphone use: here
Smartphone components: here
Computers in human behaviors: here
Indium cycle impacts: here
Lithium mining: here
Lanthanum and Yttrium: here
You can look for other sources of course to find information on smartphones.
What to do
You don't have any lecture for this week. You only have some practicle work to do with the previous lecture.
By project groups, try to build a little model of the interactions between humans, nature, and smartphones along all the cycle of the life of a smartphone. You need to provide a table (the famous table you now know well now!) with the different interactions.
2 mandatory rules to respect :
Make sentences while completing the table (because when you only put words, I cannot always guess what you mean). Your table has to be understandable.
Put sources on the different elements you add to the table.
Here is an example of the table you need to fill in :
Table 1: human-system-nature interaction representation at different levels and along with all the life cycle of the technical system
Of course, in a few days, it is very hard to model every interaction between a smartphone, nature, and humans. The aim of this work is to force you to model a complex technical system interaction to oblige you to understand the model and be at ease with it.
Infrastructure case study
Understand the interactions between optical fibers, humans and nature
Documents
In those documents, you will find informations to help you define the different interactions between this technical tool (optical fibers), humans (individual and global scale) and nature (fauna, flora, biogeochemical cycles). You are encouraged to focus on the main use of optical fibers, which is communications.
Please, do not read all the documents entirely. You must specifically look for the informations you need :)
Note : Some elements in the socio-historical domain are only available in French, because I did not find equivalents in English, I'm sorry. But the titles could help you investigate in the direction pointed by it - you may find what I did not!
General elements
Presentation of optical fibers principle (video): here
Presentation of optical fibers fabrication (video a bit outdated but gives an overall idea): here
Optical fibers (wikipedia article): here
Fiber-optic communication (wikipedia article): here
Specifics on technical elements
Life-cycle analysis (LCA) on optical fibers production: here
A bible on Sand mining: here
Germanium and its mineral commodity profile: here
Carbon footprint of networks: here
Ecological impact and sustainable developpment in FTTO (fibre to the office). Slides are really ugly, we're sorry: here
Specifics on socio-historical elements
Overall review of technial history of optical fibers: here
Optical fibers at end of last century (the telecom boom, bubble, bust): here
The global challenges imbricated within sand use : here
Geopolitics of the submarine network of optical fibers: here &
Economical activity linked to public investment in optical fibers: here
A bible on the sociology of the digital (at all scales!): here
Material socio-history of high frequency trading:
You can of course look for other sources of course to find information on optical fibers, but this should cover pretty much everything on the communication use of optical fibers. Good luck!
What to do
You don't have any lecture for this week. You only have some practical work to do with the previous lecture.
By project groups, try to build a little model of the interactions between human, nature and optical fibers along all the life cycle. It is a complementary point of view: last week, smartphones were a technical system with mostly complex internal structure and complex direct uses by individuals; this time, you'll work on a technical system with a quite simple internal structure and used mostly as an infrastructure for individual uses – which imply different HSN relations at different scales. You need to provide a table (the famous table you now know well!) with the different interactions.
2 mandatory rules to respect :
Make sentences while completing the table (because when you only put words, I cannot always guess what you mean). Your table has to be understandable.
Put sources for the different elements you add to the table.
Here is an reminder of the table you need to fill in :
Table 1: human-system-nature interaction representation at different levels and along all the life cycle fo the technical system
Of course, in a few hours/days, it is very hard (not possible!) to model every interactions between optical fibers, nature and humans. Therefore, the aim of this work is not to construct an exhaustive table but to exercize yourselves, get a better understanding of the modeling process and help you being at ease with it. The system here being different of what you might have encountered before (with other tutorials and your project), it might help you take a new perspective on your project. Once I reviewed your work, I'll publish examples of interesting HSN tables (from this year or the previous one) for everyone. I'll highlight interesting elements , in order to help you for the final parts of your project.