< COMBO (Combining Materials and Boosting Output)> Notes - Part 1 UPSC PRE 2019

GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) -MoEFCC and US Government signed an
agreement in 2000 to implement the Globe programme in India. Indian Environmental Society, Delhi is an
implementing agency for Globe in India. NASA has the primary responsibility for administering the
government-to-government agreements, and for the management of the GLOBE Implementation Office (GIO)

Secondary productivity - rate of formation of new organic matter by consumers

Primary productivity - amount of biomass or organic matter produced per unit area over a time period by
plants during photosynthesis. Prim. productivity of land is more

Pyramid of biomass in sea is generally inverted because the biomass of fishes far exceeds that of
phytoplankton. Generally the pyramid id upright

Edge Effect : The number of species and the population density of some of the species is greater in the zone of
transition.

Sikkim: 1. It is the first organic state in India. It was awarded Future Policy Gold Award 2018 for its
achievement in becoming the world’s first totally organic agriculture state. 3. The award is given by UN Food
and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

Organic World Congress (OWC) : Once in 3 years | In India in 2017 | The International Federation of Organic
Agriculture Movements (IFOAM – Organics International) organizes it.

Ecotype : Also called as eco species , It is a genetically distinct variety within a species, which is adapted to
specific environmental conditions

Bru Tribe:: Mizoram | Reang Tribe:: Tripura | Apatani Tribe: Arunachal Pradesh

The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) recently added four species- the Northern River Terrapin, Clouded
Leopard, Arabian Sea Humpback Whale, Red Panda- to a Recovery Programme for Critically Endangered
Species on the recommendation of a Standing Committee. Total (17+4) = 21 added

India’s first biofortified sorghum (jowar), was formally launched recently. 1. It is developed by International
Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) 2. It can be grown in rainy, post-rainy and summer
seasons.

Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) : Formerly Bangkok Agreement- India is a founding member | APTA is an
initiative under the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) <

Foreign Direct Investment Confidence (FDI) Index : AT Kearney Publishes. India was ranked 11th in the2018
index
 Scientific Research Infrastructure Management and Networks (SRIMAN) ( श्रीमान स्कीम) : transform scientific
instruments in government labs into lucrative assets generating a steady rental income

International Comparison Program (ICP) : 50th Anniversary | worldwide statistical initiative led by the World
Bank under the auspices of the United Nations Statistical Commission, with the main objective of providing
comparable price and volume measures of gross domestic product (GDP) and its expenditure aggregates
among countries within and across regions. MOSPI represents India

The White Helmets officially known as Syria Civil Defence is a volunteer organisation that operates in parts of
rebel-controlled Syria and in Turkey.

Sundarban wetland of India is the largest among all the Ramsar sites in the World.

Reef type Predominantly found at

1. Barrier reefs ---Andaman and Nicobar Islands

2. Platform reefs --- Gulf of Kutch
3. Oceanic atolls ---Lakshadweep group of islands
4. Fringing Reefs -- Gulf of Mannar, Gulf of Kutch, Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Mangroves store more carbon per equivalent area than tropical forests. Mangrove species have roots which are
very shallow

Tropical rain forests: high rainfall leaches soil minerals below the reach of the plant roots. There is a great
uniformity of temperature throughout the year, The diurnal as well as annual range temperature is very small.

Temperate Forest: hardwood trees. Example:- Maple, Oak etc. The average temperature in temperate forest is
around 15 degree Celsius in the daytime and can get below freezing in the night time. Hence diurnal range is
not small. The soil in temperate forest is generally rocky, sandy and is known to be mostly of poor quality. The
trees in temperate forests shed their leaves in the autumn against that of trees of Tropical deciduous forests
which shed their leaves in summer season.

Boreal forests or Taiga represents the largest terrestrial biome. Boreal forests are dominated by conifers,
especially spruces and firs.

The 3D-printed reef installed in Maldives is the world’s largest. The Vaan Island project was funded by the
National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change. Vaan
Island is one of 21 islands in the Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka.

Ramsar convention : releases the Global Wetland Outlook, it is an Intergovernmental treaty.

Marine snow is the falling debris of dead organisms in the ocean, such as plankton and algae.

India has 4 bio-diversity hotspots.

1. Himalaya: Includes the entire Indian Himalayan region (and that falling in Pakistan, Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, China
and Myanmar)
2. Indo-Burma: Includes entire North-eastern India, except Assam and Andaman group of Islands (and Myanmar,
Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and southern China)

3. Sundalands: Includes Nicobar group of Islands (and Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Philippines)

4. Western Ghats and Sri Lanka: Includes entire Western Ghats (and Sri Lanka)

National Clean Air Programme (NCAP)

1. The NCAP will be a Five year action plan with 2019 as the first year.

2. The programme may be further extended to a longer time horizon after a mid-term review of the outcomes.

Kigali Agreement : The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol is legally binding. HFCs | CBDR & RC
came into force from 1 Jan 2019

UNESCO designated World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR) : Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve 11th got
added

WAYU (Wind Augmentation Purifying Unit) : Developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – National
Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI), has filters for Particulate Matter removal and
activated carbon (charcoal) and UV lamps for poisonous gases removal such as VOCs and Carbon Monoxide.

A keystone species is an organism that helps define an entire ecosystem. It plays a critical role in maintaining
the structure of an ecological community and whose impact on the community is greater than would be
expected based on its relative abundance or total biomass. Keystone species have low functional redundancy.
This means that if the species were to disappear from the ecosystem, no other species would be able to fill its
ecological niche. The ecosystem would be forced to radically change, allowing new and possibly invasive species
to populate the habitat.

Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has promulgated Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation,
Beautification & Maintenance) Policy-2015

Clean rain generally has a pH value of between 5.0 and 5.5, which is slightly acidic

Bio prospecting refers to Systematic exploration, extraction and screening of biological diversity with the
purpose of developing commercially valuable products

Ocean Acidification: It leads to increase in the concentration of hydrogen ions and decreases the concentration
of carbonate ions.

The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) is a statutory body under the Biological Diversity Act (2002).Any
application for Intellectual Property Right (IPR) based on biological resources should be approved by NBA.
The Cartagena Protocol seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by living modified
organisms resulting from modern biotechnology.

The Nagoya Protocol aims at sharing the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources in a fair and
equitable way

REDD+ is a framework negotiated under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

Agenda 21, established at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, or “Earth
Summit”, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is the blueprint for sustainability in the 21st century | Non- binding

Earth Overshoot Day is calculated by Global Footprint Network | Earth Hour - WWF

United Nations Environment Assembly was created in June 2012 : Rio+20 | Fourth Environment Assembly
took place in Nairobi 11-15 March 2019, focusing on the theme “Innovative solutions for environmental
challenges and sustainable consumption and production | world’s highest-level decision-making body on the
environment.

CITES Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) : Related to Elephants

Global Tiger Forum (GTF) – Intergovt. Body

The World Sustainability Forum (WSF) is an annual sustainability conference organized by the MDPI
Sustainability Foundation | 7th WSF organized in Beijing, china in 2018

HEAT WAVE : if absolute temp > 45 C- SURELY DECLARE | Min Criteria-> Heat wave need not be considered till
maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40°C for Plains and at least 30°C for Hilly regions

World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) is the annual flagship event of The Energy and Resources
Institute (TERI).

Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) : By World Bank | India Member | supports
implementation of SENDAI Framework

Sustainable Agriculture Mission is one of the eight Missions outlined under National Action Plan on Climate
Change (NAPCC)

“Green – Ag: Transforming Indian Agriculture for global environment benefits and the conservation of critical
biodiversity and forest landscapes” : GEF assisted | launched in collaboration with FAO

KUSUM : Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan | MNRE | Standalone solar powered agri pumps
 Installed capacity : Largest production in wind > solar > small hydro > bio power

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is an intergovernmental organisation that supports
countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future. The IRENA membership is open to those states that
are members of the United Nations.

SDG India Index is constructed by NITI Aayog. covers few of the SDGs

United Nations High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF): replaced the Commission on
Sustainable Development | Forum meets annually under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social
Council

Indian rhino vision 2020 aims to increase the total rhino population in Assam to 3000 by 2020

World Bank is one of the funding partners for Global Tiger Initiative (GTI) , Led by 13 tiger range countries , also
includes snow leopards in its ambit (GTI)

Red Sanders is listed under the NEAR THREATENED category of IUCN Red List.

Black Buck National Park Gujarat

Kudremukh National Park Karnataka
Tadoba National Park Maharashtra
Clouded Leopard National Park Tripura
Corbett National Park Uttarakhand
Dudhwa National Park Uttar Pradesh
Kasu Brahmananda Reddy National Park Telangana
Kanha National Park Madhya Pradesh

Great Indian Bustard is listed under Critically Endangered Category of IUCN Red List.

The pangolin is the world’s only truly scaly mammal. Indian Pangolin is listed under Endangered Category of
IUCN Red List.