Environmental geology

Environmental geology is geology applied to living. The environment is the sum of all the features and conditions surrounding an organism that may influence it. An individual's physical environment encompasses rocks and soil, air and water, such factors as light and temperature, and other organisms. One's social environment might include a network of family and friends, a particular political system, and a set of social customs that affect one's behavior. Geology is the study of the earth. Because the earth provides the basic physical environment in which we live, all of geology might in one sense be regarded as environmental geology. However, the term environmental geology is usually restricted to refer particularly to geology as it relates directly to human activities, and that is the focus of this book. Environmental geology is geology applied to living. We will examine how geologic processes and hazards influence human activities (and sometimes the reverse), the geologic aspects of pollution and waste-disposal problems, and several other topics --

Intro -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Preface -- Successful Semesters Include Connect -- Contents -- SECTION I FOUNDATIONS -- CHAPTER 1 -- Planet and Population: An Overview -- 1.1 Earth in Space and Time -- The Early Solar System -- The Planets -- Earth, Then and Now -- Life on Earth -- 1.2 Geology, Past and Present -- The Geologic Perspective -- Geology and the Scientific Method -- The Motivation to Find Answers -- Wheels Within Wheels: Earth Cycles and Systems -- 1.3 Nature and Rate of Population Growth -- Growth Rates: Causes and Consequences