Environmental Problems, Biological

Systems and Ecosystem

COMMON ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS

1. Population
 Population of world is 7 Billion (2011 estimate) and
would reach 9.3 billion by 2050. It is expected to
stabilize by this time.
 Due to increase in population, there is vast difference
in the quality of life in More Developed Countries
(MDCs) and Less Developed Countries (LDCs).
 The population in MDCs is about 2 billion and in
LDCs is 5 billion. 1.3 billion People are poor with
income less than $1 per day. People in LDCs control
only 12% of the world’s wealth.
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 The urban population is growing “4 times” faster than the

rural areas. 30.6 million people are now infected with
AIDS (90% are living in LDCs).
 The frequency of disease is expected to increase due to;
- Poverty
- Climate change
- Evolutionary development to antibiotics and
insecticides
 Life Expectancy is 75 years in richest countries and 45-50
yrz in poorest countries.
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2. Atmosphere
 The activities of humans are drastically changing the
Earth’s atmosphere. The Concentration of CO2 has
increased from 280 to 360 ppm in about 200 years.
 By the year 2050, scientists estimate that CO2 will increase
to 600 ppm. There would be an increase of 1.0 to 3.5 degree
Celsius is expected.
 In stratosphere, holes in the Ozone Layer have developed
over Antarctica and the Arctic allowing the passage of UV-
radiations to the earth’s surface.
 Smog (combustion of fossil fuels) and Acid Rain.
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3. Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Pollution

 Because of increase in population, available cropland
per person is shrunken by 21% in year 2010. From
1985 to 1992, the population grew by 12.8% while the
grain output per person decreased by 8.5%.
 About 800 million people are chronically
undernourished and 400 million people die due to
under -nutrition and malnutrition.
 70% of the major fish species are now fully or over
exploited.
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Freshwater
 It was estimated that global water consumption is increased
by 600% from 1990 to 1995. Water demand will continue to
increase because of population growth and industrial
expansions, however supplies are limited.
 Agriculture is the world’s largest consumer of water. Since
the supplies are limited so it may cause drought in LDCs.
 Over 1.5 billion people do not have access to safe drinking
water. Aquifers used as source of drinking water are
becoming contaminated with pesticides, fertilizers and
hazardous chemicals.
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Biodiversity and Landuse Changes

 Human activities influence about 40% of the Earth’s
terrestrial productivity. Today the forests cover 24% less
area as compare to 1700. In 1992, 150,000 square
kilometers of tropical moist forest was lost.
 This loss cost environment in terms of depleted timber
harvests, species habitat, biotic extinction, watershed
stability and climate stability.
 14% of the 242,000 plant species surveyed by the World
Conservation Union in 1997 are threatened with extinction,
mainly as a result of Landuse change. Overgrazing has
degraded about 680 million hectares since 1950.
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES IN PAKISTAN

 In 1975, Environment and Urban Division was established

in the Ministry of Housing, Works and Building Affairs.
 Environmental Protection Ordinance of 1983
 Ministry of environment, Promulgation of Pakistan
Environment Protection ordinance of 1983, development of
National Conservation Strategy (NCS) 1992, enactment of
EPA Act1997and preparation of the Forestry Sector Master
Plan and Biodiversity Action Plan.
 The NCS which acts as “Defacto Environmental Policy” for
Pakistan and describes the environmental situation existing
in Pakistan and recommends actions to be undertaken in 14
core areas of environment
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 National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP), approved in

Feb. 2001, which focuses on four core programs i.e. clean
air, clean water, waste management and ecosystem
management.
 NCS Mid-term Review in 2000.
 In 2005, The National Environmental Policy (2005 to
2015) has been prepared to provide a framework for
achieving the goals of sustainable development through
protection, conservation and restoration of Pakistan’s
Environment.
 KEY ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Water
 Per capita water availability in Pakistan has been
decreasing at an alarming rate (5300 m3 to 1105 m3).
 Almost all water resources are severely polluted due to
discharge of untreated industrial and municipal wastes.
Pollution of coastal waters due to waste discharges and oil
spills with reduced fresh water flows is resulting in
declining fish yields.
 About 55% of population has access to relatively safe
drinking water and about 35% of population has access to
adequate sanitation facilities.
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 Air Pollution is on rise, especially in urban areas. Recent

surveys conducted by Pakistan EPA revealed presence of
very high suspended Particulate matter (PM), almost 6
times higher than the WHO’s guidelines. Smog also affects
almost entire Punjab during December and January every
year.
 Noise Pollution has become a serious concern in major
urban centers.
 About 54,850 tons of solid waste generated daily in urban
areas, less 60% is collected. No city of Pakistan has proper
waste collection and disposal system for municipal,
hazardous or healthcare wastes.
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 The deforestation rate has been estimated at 0.2 to 0.5%

per year.
 Degradation of natural forests, rangelands and freshwater
and marine ecosystems are resulting in loss of Biodiversity.
At least 4 Mammal species, tiger, swamp deer, lion and
Indian one-horned rhino, are known to have extinct from
Pakistan.
 Desertification affects over 43 million hectares of land
annually.
 Pakistan is highly energy in-efficient country. It uses same
amount of energy to generate 1$ of GNP as the USA.
 REASONS OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

 High population growth, prevailing poverty, unplanned

urban and industrial expansions, insufficient emphasis on
environmental protection in the Govt. policies, lack of
public awareness and education and lack of institutional
capacity and resources for effective environmental
management
 ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCE

 It is a commodity from the biotic and abiotic environment

for the purpose of an organism’s use and/or consumption.
 Resource refers to anything human obtain from living
(biotic) or non-living (abiotic) environment to meet their
meets needs and wants.
 Solar energy, air, water, plants, crops, petroleum, minerals
etc. are all resources.
 Some resources are directly available for use, while others
must be extracted (have impacts) to the organism (oil vs
air).
 TYPES OF RESOURCES

 Perpetual Resources
 Non-Renewable Resources
 Renewable Resources

 Sustainableyield, Assimilative Capacity and

Environmental Degradation are also related terms.
 BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS

 Atom – Molecule – Organelle – Tissues – Organisms –

Community – Ecosystem – Biome – Biosphere
Species
 Species are the different kind of organisms found on earth.
 A more technical definition of species is a group of
interbreeding organisms that do not ordinarily breed with
members of other groups.
 Biologists estimate that about 10 to 40 million (2-100
million) different species inhabit the earth. And only 1.7
million species has been classified.
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Population
 A population comprises all the individuals of a given
species in a specific area or region at a certain time.
 Population contains genetic variations within
themselves and between other populations.
 All members of a population are not equal in their
ability to survive and reproduce.
Communities
 Communities refer to all the populations in a specific area
or region at a certain time.
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Habitat and Ecological Niche

 Habitat is the place where a populations lines and it also
provide resources.
 The total requirement of specie for all resources and
physical conditions determine where it can live and how
abundant it can be at any one place within its range. These
requirements as termed abstractly the ecological Niche.
Ecosystems
 Ecosystems are dynamic entities composed of the biological
community and the abiotic environment.
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Biomes
 Where the environmental conditions (climate) are similar
in different parts of the country or world; the habitat and
the communities are often similar.
 A biome can be defined as a “major regional community of
plants and animals with similar life forms and
environmental conditions.
Biosphere
 It is the part of earth and the atmosphere in which life
exists. It includes the surface layer of land, the ocean and
sediments at the bottom of the water bodies, and the part of
the atmosphere occupied by life.
 ECOSYSTEMS

 An ecosystem is the simplest entity that can sustain life. It

is the combination of the community and physicals and
chemical components of the local environment.
 What are the basic requirements?
 Different ecosystems are often separated by geographical
barriers, like deserts, mountains or are isolated otherwise
like ocean or river.
 COMPONENTS OF ECOSYSTEM

 Abiotic Components – Soil, Atmosphere, Solar

Radiation and Water
 Biotic Components – Living Organisms (Producers,
Consumers, Decomposers)
 SYSTEMS & SERVICES

 Ecosystem functions are physical, chemical and biological

processes that contribute to the self-maintenance of an
ecosystem. Flow of energy and nutrient cycling are major
functions.
 Ecosystem services are the beneficial outcomes, for the
natural environment or people that result from ecosystem
functions. Examples include support of the food, harvesting
of animals and plants, and the provision of the clean water.
 ECOSYSTEM PROCESSES

 Flow of Energy – the transport and transformation

of substance in environment, through life, air, sea,
land and ice which is collectively known as
“biogeochemical cycling”.
 Cycling of Chemical Nutrients