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 3e

Fundamentals of
Ecology and
Environment

…covers the basic concepts,

ideas, major findings and current

challenges. We have tried to present

the subject from a conceptual perspective.

A substantial theoretical basis has been

covered to understand key ecological

concepts. The fundamentals are written

in a sharply focused manner without

overwhelming or excessive details.

Pranav Kumar Usha Mina

Fundamentals of
Ecology and Environment
Third edition

Pranav Kumar
Former faculty,
Department of Biotechnology,
Jamia Millia Islamia,
New Delhi, India

Usha Mina
Associate Professor,
School of Environmental Sciences,
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU),
New Delhi, India

Pathfinder Publication
New Delhi, India
 Pranav Kumar
Former faculty,
Department of Biotechnology,
Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI),
New Delhi, India

Usha Mina
Associate Professor,
School of Environmental Sciences,
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU),
New Delhi, India

Fundamentals of Ecology and Environment

ISBN: 978-81-934655-0-9 (paperback)

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Copyright © 2021 by Pathfinder Publication, all rights reserved.

This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. While the publisher and author
have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the
accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchant-
ability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty can be created or extended by sales representatives or written
sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult
with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor authors shall be liable for any loss or loss of profit or
any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.

All rights reserved (including those of translation into other languages). No part of this book may be reproduced in
any form – by photoprinting, microfilm, or any other means – nor transmitted or translated into a machine language
without written permission from the publishers.

Publisher : Pathfinder Publication

Production editor : Ajay Kumar
Copy editor : Jomesh Joseph
Illustration and layout : Pradeep Verma
Cover design : Monu
Marketing director : Arun Kumar
Production coordinator : Murari Kumar Singh

Pathfinder Publication
A unit of Pathfinder Academy Private Limited, New Delhi, India.

pathfinderpublication.in

09350208235
 Preface

Fundamentals of Ecology and Environment covers the basic concepts, ideas, major findings and
current challenges. As knowledge and best practice in the ecology are constantly changing, the fun-
damentals are written in a sharply focused manner without overwhelming or excessive details. This
book provides a balanced introduction to all major areas of the subject. It is designed to promote
understanding of the basic principles and concepts of a subject rather than memorization of details.

We feel that understanding ecology and environment as a whole is far more important than merely
identifying separate components of a natural community. With this in mind, the readers will come
to understand some basic and underlying concepts, and we trust that, through an understanding
and appreciation of these concepts, the overall environmental picture of the Earth will be more fully
realized and admired for what it is.

Although the chapters of this book can be read independently of one another, they are arranged in
a logical sequence. Our intention is to highlight only the essentials that are most relevant to under-
standing ecology and environment. The most significant feature of this book is its clear, up-to-date,
accurate explanations of mechanisms, rather than the mere description of facts and events. This
book has been conceived, designed and written in a manner to meet the aspirations of graduate
and postgraduate students. We have tried to maintain a balance between describing the classic
works and recent advances in ecology.

Each page is carefully laid out to place related text, figures and tables near one another, minimizing
the need for page turning while reading a topic. Sincere efforts have been made to support textual
clarifications and explanations with the help of figures and tables to make learning easy and convincing.

This book is intended to go beyond the traditional helping books. This book is divided into four
parts – basic ecology (the environment, ecosystem ecology, population ecology and community
ecology), biodiversity, pollution and climate change. It is organized to provide an even, logical flow
of concepts and to provide clear illustrations of the major ecological and environmental issues. It
is our hope that this book will be utilized intensively by students and ecologists to gain a basic
understanding of ecology.

This book is the result of the combined efforts of several persons. Several diligent and hardwork-
ing minds have come together to bring out this book in this complete form. During the prolonged
period of writing this book, several of our students, took the time to read most of the chapters
and make careful comments on them. For that I thank them. This book is a team effort, and
producing it would be impossible without the outstanding people of Pathfinder Publication. We
acknowledge all the individuals whose special efforts went into this book. We wish to thanks especially
to our students for their numerous comments and suggestions.

Pranav Kumar
Usha Mina
 Contents

Chapter 1
The Environment
1.1 Physical environment 3

Soil 3

Weathering and soil formation 3

Soil composition 4

Soil profile 5

Soil erosion 6

Air and Atmosphere 6

Light 8

Temperature 10

Temperature and vegetation 13

1.2 Adaptation to the physical environment 14

Plant’s adaptation to water stress 15

Animal’s adaptation to thermal stress 15

Relationship between body size and environmental temperature 16

1.3 Metabolic rate and size of animals 18

1.4 Shelford’s law of tolerance 19

1.5 Species concept 20

Ecotype and Ecads 21

Chapter 2
Ecosystem Ecology
2.1 Ecosystem components 25

2.2 Productivity 26

Patterns in primary productivity 28

Relationship between productivity and biomass 30

Measuring primary productivity 30

Oxygen emission method 30

Radioactive tracer method 31

Harvest analysis method 31

v
 2.3 Energy flow 32

Universal energy flow model 34

Concept of the trophic level 35

2.3.1 Food chains 36

2.3.2 Ecological efficiencies 38

2.3.3 Ecological pyramid 40

2.4 Nutrient cycling 42

General model of nutrient cycling 43

Carbon cycle 44

Nitrogen cycle 45

Phosphorus cycle 47

Sulfur cycle 48

Decomposition 49

2.5 Ecosystem services 50

2.6 Control of trophic structure: top-down versus bottom-up control 50

2.7 Types of Ecosystems 52

2.7.1 Aquatic ecosystem 52

Variation in light and temperature in aquatic ecosystem 53

Primary productivity in aquatic ecosystems 53

Marine ecosystems 54

Estuary 57

Freshwater ecosystem 58

Wetlands 61

2.7.2 Terrestrial ecosystem 62

Forest ecosystem 62

Deforestation 64

Afforestation 64

Social forestry 64

Grassland ecosystem 65

Desert ecosystem 65

Types of deserts 65

Desertification 66

2.8 Biomes 66

Biome distribution 67

Biome types 67

Tundra biome 67

Desert biome 68

Tropical grassland (or Savanna biome) 68

Temperate grasslands 69

Tropical rainforests 69

vi
 Complexity and stability 109

4.5 Plant communities 111

4.6 Community gradient and boundaries 113

4.7 Equilibrium theory of island biogeography 114

4.8 Ecological interdependence and interactions 116

4.9 Lotka-Volterra model 124

Dynamics of the predator-prey system 129

4.10 Ecological niche 132

Ecological compression 136

4.11 Effect of competition 136

Competitive exclusion principle 136

Competitive exclusion and coexistence 138

Resource partitioning 138

Character displacement 140

4.12 Ecological succession 142

Pattern of succession 143

Species diversity and succession 145

Types of ecological succession 145

Primary and secondary succession 145

Autogenic and allogenic succession 146

Autotrophic and heterotrophic succession 146

Progressive and retrogressive succession 146

Mechanism of succession 147

Concept of climax community 147

Models of succession 149

Chapter 5
Biodiversity
5.1 Levels of biodiversity 153

5.2 Gradients and Magnitude of biodiversity 154

Gradients of biodiversity 154

Magnitude of biodiversity 155

Biodiversity of India 155

5.3 Uses of biodiversity 156

Consequences of biodiversity loss 157

5.4 Threats to biodiversity 157

5.5 Extinction of species 159

Susceptibility to extinction 160

viii
 Advantages of bioremediation 221

Phytoremediation 221

6.6 Bioindicator 222

6.7 Environmental Impact Assessment 224

Chapter 7
Climate Change
7.1 Climate change 231

Climate change and Global warming 232

Climate change: Evidence 232

7.2 Greenhouse effect 233

Greenhouse gases 234

Increase in greenhouse gas concentrations 235

Global-warming potential of greenhouse gases 238

7.3 Global warming 239

7.4 Climate change: Impacts 241

7.5 Responding to climate change 242

7.6 Earth Summit 243

Rio Conventions 243

7.7 UNFCCC 244

Kyoto protocol 245

Doha Amendment 245

Kyoto mechanisms 246

Copenhagen Accord 246

Paris Agreement 246

Emission trading/Carbon trading 247

7.8 Ozone depletion 247

Stratospheric ozone formation 247

Stratospheric ozone depletion 248

Ozone depletion potential 249

Antarctic ozone hole 251

Montreal Protocol 253

7.9 Environmental Laws in India 254

Forest and Biodiversity 254

Environment and Pollution 255

7.10 Environmental footprints 257

Index 263

xi
Ecology as a science
Ecology is the scientific study of the relationships between organisms and their environment.
These relationships are complex, varied and hierarchical. The word ‘ecology’ was first used by
German biologist Ernst Haeckel in 1869. It is derived from the Greek words, oikos (meaning
‘house’ or ‘dwelling place’) and logos (meaning the ‘study of’). Haeckel defined ecology as
‘the study of the natural environment including the relations of organisms to one another and
to their surroundings.’

Ecology describes the relationships between living organisms and their environments, the
interaction of organisms with each other and the pattern and cause of the abundance and
distribution of organisms in nature. It is the science that attempts to answer questions about
how nature works. According to one of the most widely accepted definition, ‘ecology is the
scientific study of the distribution and abundance of organisms and the interactions that de-
termine distribution and abundance.’

Ecology is an interdisciplinary science

Ecology, as a unifying science, is integrating the knowledge of life on our planet. It has changed
from a basic science to applied science. It has become an essential science in learning how life
survives and grows. Several questions such as why do animals live in groups, what determines
the distribution of a species, how does organism interact with biotic and abiotic components,
behavioural aspects of animals often drive us to look into this subject. Ecology is not just
biology but an interdisciplinary science that deals with the totality of living organisms and
their relationship with the environment. Different kinds of physical, chemical and biological
processes occurring within ecological systems involve complex interactions among different
components of the system. To study these interactions, ecologists must involve other sciences
like physiology, biochemistry, genetics, geology, hydrology and meteorology. Ecology has
turned into more experimental rather than philosophical subject. With increasing scientific
information, this science also involves complex mathematical modeling and algorithms – a
true interdisciplinary sciences.

1
Chapter 1
The Environment

Organisms and their environments are dynamic and interdependent. The term ‘environment’
etymologically means surroundings. It includes everything (biotic as well as abiotic) that
surrounds an organism. Any factor, abiotic or biotic, that influences living organisms is called
environmental factor (or ecological factor or ecofactor). Abiotic factors include ambient tem-
perature, amount of sunlight, pH of the water, soil in which an organism lives and many other
factors. Biotic factors include the availability of prey, competitors, predators and parasites.

1.1 Physical environment

Soil
Soil is the uppermost weathered layer of the earth’s crust. It is a mixture of weathered mineral
rock particles, organic matter (i.e. both living and dead), water and air. Soil is a biologically
active matrix and home of diverse organisms. The study of soil is called pedology.

Weathering and soil formation

The process of soil formation includes the formation of unconsolidated materials by the weathering
process and the soil profile development. Weathering refers to the physical disintegration and
chemical decomposition of the rocks and minerals contained in them. Physical disintegration
breaks down rock into smaller fragments and eventually into sand and silt particles that are
commonly made up of individual minerals. Simultaneously, the minerals decompose chemically,
releasing soluble materials and synthesizing new minerals. New minerals form either by minor
chemical alterations or by a complete chemical breakdown of the original mineral and resynthesis
of new minerals. Based on the location of soil mineral particles formation and deposition, the
soils are classified as residual soil and transported soil. If the soil mineral particles have been
formed in place from the bedrock below, it is called residual soil. If the soil mineral particles
have been carried from some other location by wind, water, gravity or ice then it is termed as
transported soil. The transported soil can be classified into colluvium (transported by gravity),
alluvium (transported by the movement of water), glacial soil (transported by the movement
of glaciers) and eolian soil (transported by wind).

3
The Environment
Most commonly used Table 1.1 Composition of clean, dry air
units to express concen-
tration of atmospheric Constituent Percent by volume In ppm
gases are ppm or ppb.
Nitrogen 78.084% 780840
An ozone concentration
of 10 ppm means that Oxygen 20.9% 209440
there are 10 ozone mol-
Argon 0.93% 9340
ecules per one million air
molecules. Carbon dioxide 0.040% 419 (Year 2021)

Neon 0.0018% 18
ppm to percent
1% = 1/100 Helium 0.00052% 5.2
1 ppm = 1/1000000 Methane 0.00018% 1.8
So, 1 ppm = 0.0001%
Krypton 0.00011% 1.1

Hydrogen 0.00005% 0.5

Nitrous oxide 0.00003% 0.3

Light
Light is electromagnetic radiation and represents a part of the electromagnetic spectrum
(~400 to 700 nm). The word usually refers to visible light because it is visible to the human
eye. The wavelengths of visible light typically range from 400 to 700 nm, between the infrared
(with longer wavelengths) and the ultraviolet (with shorter wavelengths). Visible light is also
called photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) because photosynthetic organisms perform
photosynthesis in this region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The electromagnetic radiation
with a wavelength from 100 nm to 400 nm is ultraviolet (UV) radiation. It is shorter than
that of visible light but longer than X-rays. Depending upon the wavelength, three ranges in
UV radiation are UV-C (100 to 280 nm), UV-B (280 to 320 nm) and UV-A (320 to 400 nm).

Increasing wavelength

–11 –10 –9 –8 –7 –6 –5 –4 –3 –2 –1 1 2 3
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 1 10 10 10 Wavelength (m)

Gamma Ultra-
X-rays Infrared Microwaves Radio wave
rays violet

Visible

400 500 600 700 (wavelength in nm)

The main source of light on the earth is the sun. The intensity and duration of solar radiation
intercepted at any point on the earth’s surface vary markedly with latitude. This latitudinal
variation is mainly due to two factors. First, except at the equator, daylight hours are longest
during the summer and shortest in the winter. Second, radiation hits the earth’s surface at a
smaller angle at higher latitudes, spreading sunlight over a larger area. In addition, radiation
that penetrates the atmosphere at a lower angle must travel through a deeper layer of air.
In this process, it encounters more particles in the atmosphere, which reflect more of it back
into space i.e. making that sunlight much less intense.

8
 The Environment
Solar insolation is The intensity of light is also affected by altitude. As elevation increases, light intensity also
the amount of light or increases because the thinner atmosphere absorbs and disperses less light.
solar radiation an area
receives over a given
period of time.
Long
distance
North pole

a Sunlight
Large
area

Small
b Sunlight Earth
area

Short
distance

er e
ph
os
m
South pole At

Figure 1.3 The angle of incoming solar radiation differs at different latitudes, hence, the intensity of
incoming solar radiation varies with latitude. In polar areas (i.e. higher latitudes), the sunlight strikes
the earth at a lower angle and spread over a larger surface area, hence, deliver less energy. In tropical
locations (i.e. lower latitudes), the sunlight strikes the earth at a higher angle and concentrated over a
smaller area, hence, deliver more energy.

Effect of light on plants

Light from the sun is the primary source of energy for ecosystems. It is captured by plants
through photosynthesis and its energy stored in the chemical bonds of organic compounds.
Sunlight serves not only as an energy source for photosynthesis but also as a signal that regu-
lates various growth and developmental processes, from seed germination to fruit development.
The quality (wavelength or color), the quantity (intensity) and the duration (photoperiod) of
light influence photosynthesis and many growths and development features of plants.

Light quality: The quality of light plays an important role in photosynthesis and photomor-
phogenesis (such as flower induction, seed germination and plant movements). In plants,
photosynthesis occurs in the blue and red light. In terrestrial ecosystems, the quality of light
does not change much. In aquatic ecosystems, the quality of light can be a limiting factor.
Both blue and red light is absorbed and as a result, do not penetrate deeply into the water.

Light quantity: The intensity of the light that reaches the earth varies according to the latitude,
season of the year and time of the day. Variation in intensity of light affects the processes
of photosynthesis, growth and reproduction in plants. Plants, in general, can be divided into
two groups: shade-tolerant species and shade-intolerant species. In ecology, shade tolerance
refers to a plant’s ability to tolerate low light intensity.

Light duration: The duration of light regulates the phenological process, such as flowering
and fruiting, in plants. Plants use photoreceptors, such as phytochrome or cryptochrome, to
sense photoperiod, which they take as signals for many growth and developmental processes.

9
 The Environment
shows compensatory changes to the new environment. These changes are known as acclimation.
In other words, acclimation is adjustment to laboratory conditions. Whereas acclimatization is
compensatory adjustment of the organism to change in the natural environment.

Plant’s adaptation to water stress

Terrestrial plants have evolved a range of adaptations in response to variations in precipitation
and soil moisture. The plants which grow in dry or xeric conditions are known as xerophytes,
plants of dry habitat. Xerophytic habitat can be of different types such as: Physical dryness
(in these habitats, soil has very little water due to inability of soil to hold water or low rainfall)
and physiological dryness (in such habitat, water is sufficiently present but plants are unable
to absorb it e.g. salty soil, acidic soil).
Xerophytes have evolved many adaptive morphological and physiological features to survive
and reproduce in dry environment. Xerophytes are variously adapted to conserve water. Plants
with such morphological and physiological adaptations are xeromorphic. The xeromorphic
adaptations in different xerophytic species include – surface area reduction, sunken stomata
and hairs, waxy leaf surface, opening of stomata at night, CAM photosynthesis, succulence
(storage of water), extensive root system and other.
Based on adaptive features, xerophytes are classified into three categories: ephemerals,
succulents and non-succulent plants.

Ephemerals are also termed as drought escapers (or drought evaders). These plants (e.g.
Argemone mexicana) complete their life cycle in a very short period before the approach of
actual dry conditions. Ephemerals persist as seeds during periods of drought, but are ready
to sprout, flower and produce seeds whenever moisture is favorable. The seeds of many such
species contain a germination inhibitor that must be washed out by a certain minimum amount
of water. The young plants grow rapidly following the rain. They start flowering and setting
seed almost immediately. They remain small, with no elaborate stem or root systems, with
all energy put into flowering and seed production.

Succulents (or drought-enduring) such as Opuntia, Aloe are xerophytes which store water
in their roots or stem or leaves for the dry period. Thus, they suffer dryness externally but
escape internally due to the presence of fleshy water storage tissues. In addition to succu-
lence i.e. storage of water, succulent plants have other water-saving features such as CAM
photosynthesis, reduction in the number of stomata, waxy and hairy, or spiny outer surface.

Non-succulent (or drought-resistant) such as Calotropis procera, Casuarina equisetifolia are

the true xerophytes. These perennials plants successfully endure long and continuous dryness.
These are hence called ‘true xerophytes’. They face both external and internal dryness. They
have many adaptations to resist dry condition.

Animal’s adaptation to thermal stress

In animals, temperature plays a significant role in controlling the rate of metabolic processes
and maintaining homeostasis. Homeostasis (literally means same standing) is the property
of an animal to regulate its internal environment to maintain a stable, constant condition
under varying external environments. Among animals, some species can regulate their body
temperature and some do not have this ability. Based on this property, all animals are broad-
ly classified into two groups: homeothermic animals (or warm-blooded) and poikilothermic
animals (often called cold-blooded because they can be cool to the touch).

15
The Environment
Homeothermic (Greek homo – the same, and therme – heat) animals like birds and mammals
can maintain their body temperature at a constant level irrespective of the environmental
temperature. Maintaining homeothermy (a constant body temperature) is a very energy-con-
suming process, and it consumes about 90% of the animal’s energy intake but allows activity
largely independent of environmental temperatures. They have high metabolic rates and low
thermal conductance.
Poikilothermic (Greek poikilos – various, and therme – heat) animals like reptiles, fishes and
amphibians are not able to maintain their body temperature at a constant level. In these
organisms, the body temperature fluctuates with changes in the environmental temperature.
Poikilotherms have low metabolic rates and high thermal conductance. Environmental
temperatures control their metabolic rates. Poikilotherms have an upper and lower thermal
limit that they can tolerate. The range of body temperatures at which poikilotherms carry out
their daily activities is the operative temperature range. Upper and lower limits of tolerance
to temperature vary among the poikilothermic species. To maintain a tolerable and fairly con-
stant body temperature during active periods, terrestrial and amphibious poikilotherms rely
on behavioral thermoregulation such as changing position or location. To escape the long,
cold winters, many terrestrial poikilotherms go into a long, seasonal torpor (dormancy) called
hibernation. ‘Torpor’ is a state of decreased physiological activity in an animal. Hibernation
is characterized by physiological changes such as slow breathing and heart rate and low
metabolic rate. Similar to hibernation, the long-term torpor to escape hot and dry summer
is termed estivation.
We also distinguish between endothermic (in Greek endo means ‘within’ and therme means
‘heat’) animals that produce sufficient metabolic heat to maintain a high body temperature
and ectothermic (in Greek ecto means ‘outside’ and therme means ‘heat’) animals, which ob-
tain much of their heat from the environment. Endotherms regulate their temperature by the
production of heat within their own bodies, and ectotherms rely on external sources of heat.
During the coldest seasons, many endothermic animals suspend their endothermic abilities
and decrease the costs of endothermy by hibernating; at these times, they behave almost
like ectotherms. Species that sometimes regulate their body temperature and sometimes do
not are called temporal heterotherms.
Although it is true that many homeotherms are endotherms and many poikilotherms are
ectotherms, we should not use the terms endothermy and homeothermy (or ectothermy and
poikilothermy) synonymously. Ectotherm and endotherm emphasize the mechanisms that
determine body temperature. The other two terms, homeotherm and poikilotherm, represent
the nature of body temperature (either constant or variable).

Relationship between body size and environmental temperature

The influence of temperature is size-dependent in animals. All animals exchange heat with their
external environment. A body exchanges heat with the external environment in proportion
to the surface area exposed and the temperature difference. Hence, an animal with a large
surface area as compared to volume exchanges more heat with the external environment.
The surface area-to-volume ratio is dependent on the size, as shown in the following figure.
Based on this principle, small-sized animals have a large surface area relative to volume. It
decreases with an increase in size. Cold-blooded animals (ectotherms) take heat from the
external environment through their body surface but must take enough heat to increase the

16
 The Environment
temperature of entire body mass (volume). Therefore, the surface area-to-volume ratio is a
key factor in controlling the heat uptake and the maintenance of body temperature. As an
animal’s body size increases, this ratio decreases.

r r

Sphere 1 Sphere 2

Radius (r) 1 µm 2 µm
2 2 2
Surface area (4pr ) 12.6 µm 50.3 µm
3 3
Volume ( 4 pr )
3
4.2 µm 33.5 µm
3
Surface-to-volume ratio 3 1.5

Because the organism has to absorb sufficient heat across its surface to warm the entire body
mass, the amount of heat and the time required to raise body temperature likewise increase.
For this reason, ectothermy imposes a constraint on body size for poikilotherms and restricts
the distribution of the larger poikilotherms to the subtropics and tropics. The effect of size on
homeotherms is opposite that for poikilotherms. For homeotherms, the body mass (or volume)
produces heat through respiration, while heat is lost to the external environment across the
body surface. The smaller the organism, the larger the ratio of surface area-to-volume and
the greater the relative heat loss to the surrounding environment. Therefore, when challenged
with cold, a small homeotherm loses heat more rapidly than a larger animal. If such an animal
attempted to generate heat to offset the heat loss and maintain constant body temperature,
it would require a relatively higher energy generation rate per unit mass. On the other hand,
large animals have a relatively small surface-to-volume ratio and lose heat slowly if placed
in a cold environment.
Several biological rules generalize the adaptive response of homeothermic animals to tem-
perature due to differences in surface-to-volume ratios. Among the best known is Bergmann’s
rule, which relates body size to average environmental temperature. Bergmann’s rule states
that individuals of species in cooler climates tend to be larger body sizes than those in warmer
climates (or species of larger body size are found in colder environments, and species of smaller
body size are found in warmer areas). This relationship derives primarily because large size
bodies have a small surface area-to-volume ratio. Because heat loss relates to the surface
area, larger bodies can retain heat more efficiently in colder climates. In contrast, small-sized
bodies (large surface area-to-volume ratio) lose heat more rapidly.

An extension of Bergmann’s rule is Allen’s rule which states that endothermic animals from
colder climates tend to have shorter extremities or appendages (e.g. ears and tail) than
closely related species from warmer climates. Small-sized extremities have a lesser surface
area, hence, dissipate less heat in a colder climate. Another extension of Bergmann’s rule is
Hesse’s rule (also known as the heart–weight rule) which states that species inhabiting colder
climates have a larger heart in relation to body weight than closely related species inhabiting
warmer climates.

17
The Environment
Figure 1.6 Animals
from colder climates
tend to have shorter Pinna
Pinna
appendages. The sizes
of pinna of the jackrabbit
and the snowshoe hare
reflect adaptations to
different temperature
regimes.
Jackrabbit Snowshoe hare
in warm environment in colder environment

1.3 Metabolic rate and size of animals

The rate at which energy is acquired, transformed, and used is known as the metabolic rate.
Alternatively, we can say the animal’s metabolic rate is the amount of energy it needs per unit
time. It is often estimated by measuring the rate at which oxygen is consumed. Many factors
(such as temperature, developmental stage, diet, environmental conditions and activity) affect
the metabolic rate of animals.

Mouse Elephant

Mass 0.5 Kg 4500 Kg

Surface-to-volume ratio High Low

3 3
Metabolic rate 890 mm O2 /g body mass/hr 75 mm O2 /g body mass/hr

The most important factor affecting the metabolic rate of an individual is its size (mass). Let us
understand this by analyzing a simple question. Does an elephant produce more heat per day
than a mouse? The answer will be ‘yes.’ In general, the larger homeotherms produce more heat
per day than the smaller homeotherms. In other words, the metabolic rate of homeotherms
is positively correlated to body size. Now we will find the answer to the second question.
Does an elephant produce more heat per kilogram of body weight per day than a mouse? The
answer will be ‘no.’ Although small animals have relatively less metabolically active tissues
due to their small body size but the metabolic rate per unit of body mass is immensely higher
than the metabolic rate per unit body mass of large animals. Body size or mass of animals
and metabolic rate are actually related. The relationship between resting metabolic rates and
body mass can be expressed by the allometric relationship:
b
Metabolic rate = a (M)

In this equation, M is the body mass, a is a constant that is characteristic of the kind of organ-
ism, b referred to as the scaling exponent (called allometric constant) that relates metabolic
rate to body mass. If logarithms of both sides of this equation are taken, it can be rewritten as:
The study of the relation-
ship of body size to an
log [metabolic rate] = log a + b log M
organism’s physical and
physiological properties The relationship between body mass and the metabolic rate does not scale isometrically (i.e.
is called allometry. It
b  1). Rather, b < 1 since small animals have a higher metabolic rate per unit of body mass
can be defined broadly
than larger animals. What is the value of scaling coefficient (b)? There is controversy on
as ‘the study of size and
its consequences.’ the value of the scaling coefficient. Max Kleiber (1932) first proposed the typical value of the

18
The Environment

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Brady NC and Weil RR (2002), The Nature and Properties of Soils, 13th ed. Pearson Education, Inc.

Campbell NA et al. (2005), Biology, 7th ed. San Francisco CA: Pearson.

Chapman JL and Reiss MJ (2010), Ecology, Principles and Applications, 2nd ed. Cambridge University
Press.

Clarke A (2004), Is there a universal temperature dependence of metabolism? Functional Ecology,

18, 252–256.

Gliessman SR (2008), Agroecology: The Ecology of Sustainable Food Systems, 3rd ed. CRC Press.

Killham K (1994), Soil ecology. Cambridge University Press, New York.

Kormondy EJ (1996), Concepts of Ecology, 4th ed. W.H. Prentice-Hall.

Lutgens FK and Tarbuck EJ (2013), The atmosphere an introduction to meteorology, 12th ed.
Pearson.

Miller GT and Spoolman SE (2009), Essentials of Ecology, 5th ed. Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning.

Miller GT, Jr. (1988), Environmental Science, 2nd ed. Wadsworth, Belmont.

Odum EP and Barrett GW (2004), Fundamentals of Ecology, 5th ed. Cengage Learning.

Raven PH, Johnson GB, Mason KA, Losos JB, and Singer SR (2011), Biology, 9th ed. McGraw-Hill.

Smith TM and Smith RL (2009), Elements of Ecology, 7th ed. San Francisco CA: Pearson Benjamin
Cummings.

Strahler A (2013), Introducing Physical Geography, 6th ed. Wiley.

Weathers KC, Strayer DL and Likens GE (2013), Fundamentals of Ecosystem Science, Academic
Press.

22
 Chapter 2
Ecosystem Ecology

An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a functional unit comprising all the organisms in a
particular place interacting with one another and with their physical environment and inter-
connected by an ongoing flow of energy and a cycling of materials.
The concept of an ecosystem was first formally proposed by the English botanist Arthur Tansley
in 1935. The term biogeocoenosis (proposed in the 1940s by the Soviet ecologist V. N. Sukachev)
frequently used in Russian literature is roughly equivalent to the ecosystem. Its literal meaning
is ‘life and earth functioning together.’
A key advance in the adoption of the ecosystem concept occurred after the appearance of a
popular textbook by Eugene Odum. Odum’s textbook was organized around the ecosystem
concept. After Odum’s textbook, a famous article in Science by Francis Evans (1956) mentioned
the ecosystem as ‘the basic unit in ecology.’ In the broadest sense, an ecosystem is the inter-
Ecosystems ecology
deals with the flow of acting system made up of all the living and non-living objects in a physically defined space.
energy and cycling of
nutrients among organ-
isms within a community
and between organisms
and the environment.

A thermodynamic system
(or simply ‘system’) is Figure 2.1 An aquatic ecosystem. A physically defined space comprising all the organisms which are
a definite macroscopic interacting with one another and with their physical environment.
region or space in the
universe, in which one According to this simple definition, the size, location and timescale at which ecosystems are
or more thermodynamic
defined can therefore precisely match the question that the scientist is trying to answer. An
processes take place.
Everything external to a ecosystem could be of any size depending on the communities to be studied and its boundaries
thermodynamic system can be either real or arbitrary. An ecosystem may be as small as a single tree or as large as
is called surroundings. the entire earth and can be studied for time periods as long as millions of years.
System and surround-
An ecosystem can be visualized as a functional unit of nature. It has all components: biological
ings are separated by
a definite border called and physical, necessary for survival. Accordingly, it is the basic unit around which theories and
boundary. experiments of ecology are organized.

23
Ecosystem Ecology
All ecosystems are open systems in the sense that energy and matter are exchanged with
their surroundings. It might be theoretically possible to define particular examples of ecosystems
that are closed systems, not exchanging matters with their surroundings, but nearly all eco-
systems do exchanges of energy and matters with their surroundings.
Ecosystems change through time. These changes may be gradual and subtle (losses of minerals
from a weathering soil) or fast and dramatic (a fire sweeping through a forest). Both external
forces (changes in climate or nutrient inputs) and internal dynamics (accumulation or depletion
of materials in a soil or a lake) are important in driving temporal changes in ecosystems. In
some cases, changes are directional and predictable (e.g. soil weathering, the filling of a lake
basin), while in other cases, changes may be specific and difficult to predict (e.g. the arrival
of an invasive species).

Box 2.1 Levels of organization

To study how organisms interact with each other and with their physical environment, several
hierarchical levels of the organization have been recognized. Ecological patterns and processes
vary as a function of the level of organization at which they operate.
Ecologists have identified four fundamental levels of the organization to study the interactions
between organisms and their environment. These levels of organization include individual organism,
population, community and ecosystem. Therefore, ecology ranges in scale from the study of an
individual organism through the study of populations to the study of communities and ecosystems.
The most basic level of the ecological organization starts with the individual (a single plant, insect
or bird). At the level of the organism, ecology deals with how individual organisms are affected
by (and how they affect) their environment. Organismal ecology gives focus on the individual
organisms’ behaviour, physiology, morphology, etc. in response to the environment.
The next level of organization is the population. The term population has many uses and meanings
in other fields of study. In ecology, a population is a group of individuals of the same species
that occupy a given area. The population ecology deals with population growth and how and
why a population changes over time.
Populations of different species in an area do not function independently of each other. They interact
with each other. Hence, the next, more complex level of organization of the interacting population
of different species form is the community. Ecological communities are made up of interacting
populations of different species within some defined geographical area. Community ecology deals
Autecology is the
study of the interaction with the composition and organization of ecological communities and community development.
between organisms and Communities occur on a wide variety of scales from small pond communities to huge tropical
their environments at the rainforests. At the largest scales, these communities are known as ‘biomes’. A biome is a distinct
level of an individual, a ecological community of plants and animals living together in a particular climate (for example,
population or an entire tropical rainforests, coniferous forests, savannas). It is characterized by distinctive vegetation
species.
distributed over a wide geographical area and defined largely by regional climatic conditions.
Synecology An ecosystem (or ecological system) is the interacting system made up of all the living and
is the study of an non-living components in a physically defined space. Because an ecosystem is a system, it has
ecological community. boundaries. All systems that encompass interacting biotic and abiotic components may be con-
It is also called commu-
sidered as an ecosystem. Ecosystems are complex, open, hierarchically organized, self-organizing
nity ecology. It is the
and self-regulated systems. Ecosystems ecology deals with the flow of energy and cycling of
synecology which de-
scribes the ecological nutrients among organisms within a community and between organisms and the environment.
community as a whole, The highest level of organization for the ecological study is the biosphere (ecosystem on a plan-
especially the links etary scale). It is an ultimate ecosystem. It includes all ecosystems present on the earth. In a
between organisms.

24
Ecosystem Ecology
consumers (i.e. secondary carnivores) feed on secondary consumers, and they belong to the
fourth trophic level. Producers belong to the first trophic level.
Decomposers (like bacteria and fungi) are heterotrophs that feed on dead organic matters,
and, in doing so, carry out the natural process of decomposition. Both decomposers and detri-
tivores derive nutrition from dead organic matters. The difference is that detritivores actually
eat the organic matter and decomposers secrete enzymes to digest the organic matter and
then absorb the resulting molecules.

Other commonly used terms:

Saprotrophs are heterotrophic organisms that obtain its nutrients from non-living organic mat-
ters, usually dead and decaying plant or animal matters, by absorbing soluble organic compounds.

Phagotrophs: heterotrophic organisms (mainly animals) that obtain nutrients through the
ingestion of solid or particulate organic matters.

Osmotroph: a heterotrophic organism that obtains its nutrients by absorbing organic matter
present in solution.

Parasite: a heterotrophic organism that obtains its nutrients from living biomass.

2.2 Productivity
Productivity refers to the rate of formation of biomass per unit area in an ecosystem. It is
usually expressed in units of mass per unit area (or volume) per unit time. The term produc-
tivity and production may be used interchangeably. Even when the production designates the
amount of accumulated biomass, a time element is always assumed i.e. refer explicitly to rate.
Productivity differs from biomass. Productivity is the rate at which organic matter is created
by producers. Biomass is the amount of organic matter present at any given time. The bio-
mass is generally expressed as wet or dry biomass. Dry biomass refers to the mass of living
matters after it has been dried to a constant mass. Wet biomass refers to the mass of living
matters including its water content.

The primary productivity is the rate at which biomass is produced per unit area by the pri-
mary producers (both photoautotrophs and chemoautotrophs). The term ‘primary’ indicates
that we are concerned with the first trophic level in the ecosystem. It can be expressed as
−2
grams of carbon assimilated (e.g. g C m year−1) or dry weight of organic matter (e.g. g m–2
–1 –2 –1
year ) or their energy equivalents (e.g. J m day ). It is a fundamental ecosystem process
and represents the first step associated with the capture, storage, and transfer of energy in
the ecosystems. Not all primary productivity results from photoautotrophs. Some primary
productivity also occurs through chemoautotrophs. In most ecosystems that receive significant
light energy, chemosynthesis is only a small proportion of primary productivity. However, in
unlighted ecosystems, chemoautotrophs can be the main primary producers.

The total amount of CO2 fixed to organic carbon by the photoautotrophs per unit time (i.e. total
rate of photosynthesis) is referred to as gross primary productivity (GPP). A proportion of this
fixed organic carbon is respired away by the photoautotrophs. The total amount of organic car-
bon that is oxidized to CO2 by photoautotrophs per unit time is the autotrophic respiration (RA).
The difference between GPP and RA is known as net primary productivity (NPP). It is the amount
of organic carbon produced by photoautotrophs that is not consumed by their own respiration.

26
 Ecosystem Ecology
This is also termed net assimilation. NPP can be described by the following equation:

NPP = GPP – RA

NPP represents the actual rate of production of new biomass that is available for consumption
by heterotrophic organisms (fungi and animals). An ecosystem’s NPP should not be confused
with the standing crop. NPP is the amount of new biomass added in a given time period,
whereas standing crop is a measure of the total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs present
at a given time. Primary consumers consume this organic carbon produced by autotrophs to
support their growth and metabolism. Other components of the food web, such as detriti-
vores and secondary consumers, also depend directly or indirectly on primary production for
their energy supply. The rate of production of new biomass by consumers is called secondary
productivity. Secondary productivity should not be divided into gross and net productivity.
Secondary productivity is dependent on primary productivity for energy. A strong relationship
exists between primary productivity in a variety of terrestrial ecosystems and the biomass
of herbivores. The carbon fixed by photoautotrophs through photosynthesis can leave the
ecosystem as inorganic carbon (usually in the form of carbon dioxide) via either autotrophic
respiration (RA) or, after consumption by heterotrophs, via heterotrophic respiration (R H). The
sum of RA and RH is called total ecosystem respiration (R E). The difference between GPP and
RE is known as net community productivity (NCP), also termed as net ecosystem productivity.

NCP = GPP – RE

NCP = GPP – RA – RH

NCP = NPP – RH (since, GPP – RA = NPP)

Process Productivity term

Rate of photosynthesis Gross primary productivity (GPP)

GPP – Autotrophic respiration (RA) Net primary productivity (NPP)

NPP – Heterotrophic respiration (RH) Net community productivity (NCP)

Secondary productivity by herbivores is invariably less than that of the plants on which they
feed. Where has the missing energy gone? First, not all of the plant biomass produced is con-
sumed alive by herbivores. Second, not all the plant biomass that is eaten by herbivores (or
herbivore biomass is eaten by carnivores) is assimilated and made available for incorporation
into consumer’s biomass. Some are lost in the form of feces. Third, not all the energy that
has been assimilated is actually converted into biomass. A proportion is lost as respiratory
heat. This occurs both because no energy conversion process is ever 100% efficient and also
because animals do work which requires energy, again released as heat.

Autochthonous and Allochthonous

All biotic communities depend on a supply of organic matter (i.e. energy) for their activities. In
most ecosystems, this is contributed in situ by the photosynthesis of photoautotrophs. Organic
matters that are produced by photosynthesis within an ecosystem’s boundaries (i.e. internal
in origin) is known as autochthonous production. It is important to note that an ecosystem
can receive organic matter from sources other than its own photosynthesis via the import of
dead organic matter that has been produced elsewhere. An ecosystem that receives organic
matter from sources other than its own photosynthesis – via the import of dead organic matter
that has been produced elsewhere (i.e. external in origin) is called allochthonous production.

27
Ecosystem Ecology
and drying the samples to a constant weight. The part of the plant harvested varies with the
intent of the study. Harvest method provides information about above ground productivity
usually because below ground productivity requires the samples of root biomass. Although
the roots of some annual and crops plant may be removed from the soil but the task becomes
more difficult with grass and trees. One major limitation of the harvest method is that it fails
to account for the amount of material that may have been consumed by herbivores. It also
fails to account the energy used by the autotroph in its own metabolism, growth, and devel-
opment. What is actually measured is the standing crop, the amount of autotroph at a given
time, or at given time intervals.

2.3 Energy flow

All organisms require matter for their construction and energy for their activities. Hence, eco-
systems consume energy and transform matters. Organisms in an ecosystem capture solar
energy, transform and transfer energy and store energy. The behavior of energy in ecosystems
can be conveniently shorthanded as ‘energy flow’ because energy transformations are directional
in contrast to the cyclic behavior of matters. Energy flow is the key function in the ecosystem.
The operation of an ecosystem is consistent with the laws of thermodynamics that deal with
the relationships between energy and matter in a system. The behaviour of the energy in the
ecosystem is based on two basic laws of thermodynamics. The first law of thermodynamics
which states that energy cannot be created or destroyed but only transformed. The first law
is also called the law of conservation of energy.
The sun is the ultimate source of energy for almost all ecosystems present on the earth. Pho-
tosynthetic organisms convert solar energy to chemical energy (energy transformation), but
the total amount of energy does not change. The total amount of energy stored in organic
molecules synthesized by the process of photosynthesis plus the amounts dissipated as heat
must equal the total solar energy intercepted by the photosynthetic organisms.
In other words, energy may change form (e.g. from radiant to chemical) but not amount. Dur-
ing energy transformation (solar energy is transformed into chemical energy), some amount
of energy is converted to a form that’s unusable (unavailable to do work). In most cases, this
unusable energy takes the form of heat. So, every time an energy transformation happens,
some amount of useful energy will move from the useful to the useless category. Energy in
the form of heat that does not do work goes to increase the randomness (disorder) of the
universe. The degree of randomness or disorder in a system is called its entropy. The second
law of thermodynamics states that every energy transformation that takes place will increase
the entropy of the universe. In other words, energy transformations cannot be 100% efficient;
some energy is always lost as heat.
In ecosystems, energy flows unidirectionally. The conversion of solar energy to chemical en-
ergy by the process of photosynthesis is the starting point of energy flow within ecosystems.
The fraction of incoming solar energy that the primary producers capture is very small. Only
about 1-5 percent energy of incident solar radiation, or 2-10 percent of PAR (Photosyntheti-
cally Active Radiation) is actually captured by the photosynthetic process. The solar energy
not used for photosynthesis is immediately converted to heat.
The primary producers carry out respiration simultaneously in which they break down some of
the organic compounds in their bodies to release chemical energy. A portion of this chemical

32
 Ecosystem Ecology
energy is used to make ATP, which in turn is used to power various metabolic processes. Ulti-
mately, the chemical energy released by respiration is converted to heat. If organisms convert
some chemical energy to heat, the conversion is one-way; they cannot use heat as a source
of energy. The chemical energy from primary producer passes from one heterotroph trophic
level to the next. Only the energy present in net primary productivity of primary producers
can be used by other trophic levels. As chemical energy moves from one trophic level to the
next, a great deal of the energy is diverted all along the way. It means that the amount of
chemical energy available to secondary consumers (i.e. primary carnivores) is far less than
that available to primary consumers (i.e. herbivores) and the amount available to tertiary
consumers (i.e. secondary carnivores) is far less than that available to secondary consumers.
Why does the amount of energy decrease as energy is passed from one trophic level to the
next? Consider the use of energy by the herbivore (i.e. primary consumers) as an example.
After an herbivore ingests some plant biomass (i.e. food), it produces faeces. The chemical
energy in the faecal matters is not passed along to the primary carnivore. The chemical en-
ergy of the food that is assimilated by the herbivore is used for a number of functions. Part
of the assimilated energy is liberated by cellular respiration to be used for tissue repair, body
movements, and other such functions. The energy used in these ways turns to heat and is not
passed along to the primary carnivore. Some of the assimilated chemical energy is converted
into the biomass of the herbivore and can serve as food for a primary carnivore. However,
some herbivore individuals die rather than being eaten by carnivores. At the end, much of
the chemical energy present in herbivores do not transfer to carnivores. Ecologists figure as
a rule of thumb that the amount of energy available to a trophic level over time is about 10%
of that available to the preceding level over the same period of time. Essentially all of the
energy captured by photosynthesis in an ecosystem eventually becomes heat as the chemical
energy is used by various trophic levels.

Sun

Solar energy

Producers
D R

D Primary consumers R
Herbivores
Heat Decomposers Heat

D R
Secondary consumers
Primary carnivores

D R
Tertiary consumers
R = Respiration | D = Death Secondary carnivores

Figure 2.3 The flow of energy through an ecosystem. The energy that enters the ecosystem as solar
energy (radiant energy) and is then passed along as chemical energy to successive trophic levels. At each
step energy is diverted, meaning that the chemical energy available to each trophic level is less than that
available to the preceding trophic level. Death at each level transfers energy to decomposers. Energy lost
as heat at each level is returned to the external environment.

33
Ecosystem Ecology
number of trophic levels also varies in different ecosystems. Generally, its number is more in
aquatic ecosystems than in terrestrial ecosystems.

Tertiary consumers
Fourth trophic level
(Secondary carnivores)

Secondary consumers
Third trophic level
(Primary carnivores)

Primary consumers
Second trophic level
(Herbivores)

Producers
First trophic level
(Autotrophs)

Figure 2.6 Flow of food energy through different trophic levels. First level (the producer trophic level),
herbivores occupy the second level (the primary consumer trophic level), primary carnivores occupy the
third level (the secondary consumer trophic level), and secondary carnivores occupy the fourth level (the
tertiary consumer trophic level).

Table 2.2 Trophic levels and physiological roles in the community

Type of organisms Trophic role Trophic level Physiological classification

Green plants Producers First Autotrophs

Herbivores Consumers Second Heterotrophs

Carnivores Consumers Third and higher Heterotrophs

2.3.1 Food chains

A classic paper by Lindeman (1942) laid the foundations of ecological energetics. He attempted
to quantify the concept of food chains by considering the efficiency of energy transfer between
trophic levels. The first trophic level belongs to the primary producers, the second level to the
herbivores (primary consumers), and the higher levels of the carnivores (secondary consum-
ers). Some consumers occupy a single trophic level, but many others, such as omnivores,
4
occupy more than one trophic level. The relationship between one trophic level and adjacent
trophic levels may be described by a food chain.
3 3
‘The flow of food through a series of organisms that consume and are consumed is termed as
a food chain.’ A food chain shows the movement of energy and matter through a system by
2 2
indicating the path of food from a producer to a final consumer.
In general, food chains have 3 to 5 trophic links with 15 to 20 species. The length of food
1 1 chain (the number of feeding links from a basal species to a top predator) also may reflect
the physical characteristics of a particular ecosystem. A harsh arctic landscape has a much
Number of trophic levels shorter food chain than a temperate or tropical one.

36
 Ecosystem Ecology
Why are food chains relatively short? There are two main hypotheses. One, the energetic
hypothesis, suggests that the length of a food chain is limited by the inefficiency of energy
transfer along the chain. As we know, only about 10% of the energy stored in the organic
matter of each trophic level is converted to organic matter at the next trophic level. At each
transfer, a proportion (often as high as 80% to 90%) of the potential energy is lost as heat.
Therefore, the shorter the food chain — or the nearer the organism to the first trophic level
— the greater the energy available to that population. The second hypothesis, the dynamic
stability hypothesis, proposes that long food chains are less stable than short chains. Popula-
tion fluctuations at lower trophic levels are magnified at higher levels, potentially causing the
local extinction of top predators. This hypothesis predicts that food chains should be shorter
in unpredictable environments. Most of the data available support the energetic hypothesis.

Types of food chains

Within any ecosystem, there are two major food chains: the grazing food chain and the de-
tritus food chain. The distinction between these two food chains is the source of energy for
primary consumers. In the grazing food chain, the source of energy is living plant biomass
(or net primary production). In the detrital food chain, the source of energy is dead organic
matter or detritus.
Grazing food chains begin with photosynthetic plants (primary producers). Primary consum-
ers (or herbivores) form the second link in the grazing food chain. They gain their energy by
consuming primary producers. Secondary consumers (or primary carnivores), the third link
in the chain, gain their energy by consuming herbivores. Tertiary consumers (or secondary
carnivores) are animals that receive their energy by consuming primary carnivores.

Producer Herbivore Primary carnivore Secondary carnivore

e.g. Grass e.g. Insect e.g. Frog e.g. Snake

More often than not, such simple food chains are oversimplified versions of the reality of
feeding relationships. Instead, there are often multiple and interconnecting pathways, as
well as numbers of different species involved at each trophic level. These complex pathways
resemble a web rather than a simple chain and are referred to as food webs. So, a food web
is a pictorial representation of the feeding relationship between organisms in an ecosystem
and consists of interlocking food chains.

Detritus food chains begin with dead organic matter (detritus) and goes from non-living organic
matter to detritus-feeding organisms (detritivores) and their predators. A large amount of
organic matter is generated by the death of plant’s parts, animals and their excretion products
in all ecosystems. Hence, detritus food chain is present in all ecosystems.
There is one notable difference in the flow of energy between trophic levels in the grazing and
detritus food chains. In the grazing food chain, the flow is unidirectional, with net primary
production providing the energy source for herbivores, herbivores providing the energy for
carnivores, and so on. In the detritus food chain, the flow of energy is not unidirectional. The
waste materials and dead organic matter in each of the consumer trophic levels are ‘recycled,’
returning as an input to the dead organic matter at the base of the detritus food chain.
The flow of energy in a single food chain; either grazing or detritus, is termed the single-channel
energy flow model. However, in nature, that is rarely the case. In all ecosystems, the grazing and

37

Lithosphere
The lithosphere is com-
posed of all the solid land
mass comprising Earth’s
crust and upper mantle.
Biosphere
All the living things in the
planet are categorized
under the biosphere. In
this view, the biosphere
includes all the biotic
components of the Earth.
Atmosphere
The atmosphere is
the body of gases that
surrounds our planet.
Most of our atmosphere
is located close to the
Earth’s surface.
Hydrosphere
The hydrosphere includes
all the gaseous, liquid
and solid forms of water
of the Earth.
Ecosystem Ecology
will affect the rate at which nutrients cycle through the ecosystem. The movement of ele-
ments through atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere is generally termed as
a biogeochemical cycle. An element’s specific route through a biogeochemical cycle depends
on the nature of element. All elements occurring in organisms are part of biogeochemical cy-
cles. In addition to being a part of living organisms, these elements also cycle through abiotic
components of ecosystems.
There are two basic types of biogeochemical cycles: gaseous and sedimentary. This classification
is based on the primary source (i.e. reservoir) of element input to the ecosystem. The place
where a chemical is held for long periods of time is called a ‘reservoir’. In gaseous cycles, the
atmosphere acts as a major reservoir of the element. Such cycles show little or no permanent
change in the distribution and abundance of the element. Carbon and nitrogen are prime rep-
resentatives of biogeochemical cycles with a prominent gaseous phase. In the sedimentary
cycle, the major reservoir is the lithosphere from which the elements are released largely by
weathering. The sedimentary cycles, exemplified by phosphorus, sulfur and most of the other
biologically important elements, have a tendency to stagnate. In such cycles, a portion of
the supply may accumulate in large quantities, as in the deep ocean sediment, and thereby
become inaccessible to organisms and to continual cycling. Some of the elements that are
characterized by sedimentary cycles do have a gaseous phase, sulfur and iodine being among
them, but these phases are insignificant in that there is no large gaseous reservoir.
An element’s specific route through a biogeochemical cycle varies with the particular element.
Based on spatial scale, there are, however, two general categories of biogeochemical cycles:
global and local cycle. In local cycles such as the phosphorus cycle, there are no mechanisms
for long distance transfer of elements; whereas global cycles such as nitrogen cycle, involve
atmosphere for long distance transfer of elements. Global cycles unite the earth into one giant
interconnected ecosystem. Gaseous forms of carbon, oxygen, sulfur and nitrogen occur in the
atmosphere, and cycles of these elements are essentially global. Other, less mobile elements,
including phosphorus, potassium and calcium, generally cycle on a more localized scale, at
least over the short term. Lithosphere is the main abiotic reservoir of elements performing
local cycle.
General model of nutrient cycling
Although the nutrient cycling of the various elements differ in detail, from the perspective of
the ecosystem all nutrient cycles have a common pattern. A general model of nutrient cycling
includes the main reservoirs of elements and the processes that transfer elements between
reservoirs. Each reservoir is defined by two characteristics: whether it contains organic or
inorganic materials and whether or not the materials are directly available for use by organ-
isms. The nutrients in living organisms and in detritus are available to other organisms when
consumers feed and when detritivores consume non-living organic matter. Some materials
are moved from the living or organic reservoir to the fossilized organic reservoir, when dead
organisms were buried by sedimentation over millions of years, becoming coal, peat. The
nutrients in these deposits cannot be assimilated directly.
43
Ecosystem Ecology
Living organisms, detritus Coal, peat, oil

Reservoir A Reservoir B
Fossilization
Organic materials Organic materials
available as nutrients unavailable as nutrients

Assimilation, Respiration,
photosynthesis decomposition, Burning of fossil fuels
excretion

Reservoir C Weathering, erosion Reservoir D

Inorganic materials Inorganic materials
available as nutrients Formation of unavailable as nutrients
sedimentary rock
Atmosphere, soil, water Minerals in rocks

Figure 2.9 A general model of nutrient cycling.

Inorganic materials (elements and compounds) that are dissolved in water or present in the
soil or air are available for use. Organisms assimilate materials from this reservoir directly and
return chemicals to it through the relatively rapid processes of cellular respiration, excretion
and decomposition. Although organisms cannot directly tap into the inorganic elements tied
up in the rocks, these nutrients may slowly become available through weathering and erosion.
Similarly, unavailable organic materials move into the available reservoir of inorganic nutrients
when fossil fuels are burned, releasing exhaust into the atmosphere.

Carbon cycle
Carbon cycle is predominantly a gaseous cycle, with carbon dioxide as the main vehicle of flux
between the biotic and abiotic components. The major reservoirs of carbon include soils, the
sediments of aquatic ecosystems, the oceans (dissolved carbon compounds), plant and animal
biomass, and the atmosphere. The largest reservoir is sedimentary rocks such as limestone;
however, this pool turns over very slowly.
Photosynthesis and respiration are the two opposing processes that drive the global carbon
cycle. Terrestrial and aquatic autotrophs acquire carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, incor-
porate it into the organic matter of their own biomass via photosynthesis and release much of
it through respiration. Terrestrial plants use atmospheric carbon dioxide as their carbon source

Two ecological processes – energy flow and nutrient (element) cycling - are the fundamental
functions of ecosystems. These two processes proceed concurrently in ecosystems, a few
generalizations can be made:
• The ultimate source of energy (for most ecosystems) is the sun.
• The ultimate fate of energy in ecosystems is to be lost as heat.
• Energy and nutrients are passed from organism to organism through the food chain as one
organism eats another.
• Decomposers remove the last energy from the remains of organisms.
• Inorganic nutrients are cycled, energy is not.

44
 Ecosystem Ecology
Bottom-up control

Bottom-up control (abiotic control) of trophic structure means that the production of biomass
at each trophic level is controlled by inputs of nutrients, light or water that set quantity and
quality of primary production. Biomass accumulated by producers then passes to higher
trophic levels as a function of trophic transfer efficiency. This model proposes a unidirectional
influence from lower to higher trophic levels, in which nutrients and other abiotic factors (such
as light, water) are the main determinants of the biomass of primary producers. The nutrient
supply controls the biomass of primary producers, which controls herbivore’s biomass, which
in turn controls predator’s biomass. If the nutrient supply is increased, the resulting increase
in production of primary producers is propagated through the food web and all of the other
trophic levels will respond to the increased biomass. An important exception to this pattern
occurs in aquatic food webs, where ‘inverted biomass pyramids’ can occur as a consequence
of the extremely short generation time of unicellular producers relative to resident herbivores
and predators.

Top-down control

Top-down control (biotic control) means that predation by higher trophic levels affects the
accumulation of biomass at lower trophic levels. It suggests that biomass accumulation at
any one trophic level depends on the intensity of predation from the trophic level above i.e.
carnivores control population densities of herbivores directly and that herbivores control plant
biomass directly. The effects of top-down control may, therefore, percolate down from pred-
ators through herbivores to plants.
A top-down control is a trophic cascade where the trophic structure is influenced by the re-
moval of a top predator (a third or fourth level consumer). Top predators eat prey. By doing
so predators can impact prey abundance. When the impact of a predator on its prey trickles
down one or more feeding level to affect the density of prey’s prey, the ecologist term this
interaction a tropic or feeding cascade. Trophic cascades occur when predators limit the density
of their prey and thereby enhance survival of the next lower trophic level. Trophic cascades
by definition must occur across a minimum of three feeding levels.

Secondary consumers
(Carnivores i.e. predators)

3
3
2 and top-down control.
2
1 1
Quality and quantity
Bottom-up and top-down
control of the distribution
of biomass at different
trophic levels. The circle
size indicates trophic
level biomass.
Herbivores Predation of herbivores
control carnivore’s control herbivore’s Figure 2.14 Bottom-up
biomass biomass
Bottom-up control propos-
es that plant quantity or
Primary consumers
(Herbivores) quality limits the density
of herbivores, which in
turn sets limits on the
of plant biomass Herbivores control abundance of predators.
control biomass of plant biomass Top-down control propos-
herbivores
es that plant biomass is
limited by herbivores and
Producers
that herbivores are limited
Bottom-up control (Plants) Top-down control
by predators.

51
Ecosystem Ecology
Thus, the top-down control postulates that the control of each trophic level comes from the
trophic level above. It is mainly predation that controls the accumulation of biomass at lower
trophic levels because predators limit herbivores, which in turn limit plants, which in turn limit
nutrient levels through their uptake during growth and reproduction.
So, which theory is correct? While recognizing the differences between these two factors, it is
also important to emphasize that both bottom-up and top-down control represent extremes
along a continuum of importance for regulatory control. There is evidence from many eco-
system studies that both controls are operating to some degree, but that neither control is
complete. Because both of these controls are operating in any system at any time, hence we
must understand the relative importance of each control in order to help us to predict how
an ecosystem will behave or change under different circumstances, such as in the face of a
changing climate.

2.7 Types of Ecosystems

Ecosystems are of different types. These can be artificially categorized as follows:

A. Natural ecosystem

1. Terrestrial ecosystem, such as forest, grassland, desert.

A forest is an ecosystem with a high density of trees and other woody vegetation.
A grassland is an ecosystem where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other
herbaceous (non-woody) plants. Grasslands occur in regions that are too dry for forests but that
have sufficient soil water to support a herbaceous plant canopy that is lacking in deserts.
A desert is an ecosystem that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less
than enough to support the growth of most plants. Deserts are defined as areas with an
average annual precipitation of less than 250 millimeters per year, or as areas where more
water is lost by evapotranspiration than falls as precipitation.

2. Aquatic ecosystem, which may be further distinguished on the basis of salt content as:
Freshwater ecosystem (such as lake, pond) has very low salt content (0.5 ppt or less).
Marine ecosystem (such as ocean, estuaries) has very high salt content (35 ppt or less).

B. Artificial or domesticated ecosystem

These are maintained artificially by man by the addition of energy. For example, croplands
like maize, wheat, rice field etc., where man tries to control the biotic community as well
as the physicochemical environment.

2.7.1 Aquatic ecosystem

An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem in a body of water. Aquatic ecosystems are commonly
categorized on the basis of whether the water is moving (streams, rivers) or still (ponds, lakes)
and whether the water is fresh, saline or brackish. Aquatic ecosystems are generally divided
into two major types based on salinity – the marine ecosystem and the freshwater ecosystem.
Marine ecosystems cover over 70 percent of the earth’s surface and are the largest aquatic
ecosystems of the earth. Freshwater ecosystems include lakes, ponds, rivers, streams and
springs and cover about 2 percent of the earth’s surface. These ecosystems can be divided
into lentic ecosystems (still water such as lake, pond) and lotic ecosystems (flowing water
such as a river).

52
 Chapter 3
Population Ecology

Each species in an ecosystem exists as a population. A population is a group of individuals

of the same species that live together in a region. Members of a population rely on the same
resources, are influenced by similar environmental factors and are bred with one another.
In other words, a population (synonymous with biological population) consists of a group of
interbreeding or potentially interbreeding organisms found in the same space or area at the
same time. The study of populations (especially population abundance) and how they change
over time is called population ecology. It studies the spatial and temporal patterns of the
abundance and distribution of organisms and mechanisms that produce those patterns. The
study of population ecology includes understanding, explanation and prediction of population
growth, regulation and dynamics or demography.
Multicellular organisms are of two kinds, unitary organisms and modular organisms. Most
animal populations are made up of unitary organisms. In unitary organisms, the form is
highly determinate consisting usually of a strictly defined number of parts (such as legs or
wings) established only during embryogenesis. Their pattern of development and final form
are predictable. For example, all dogs have four legs, all squid have two eyes, etc. In modular
organisms, on the other hand, neither timing nor form is predictable. These organisms grow
by the repeated iteration of modules, usually to yield a branching pattern. Examples of modular
organisms include plants and many sessile benthic invertebrates. In modular organisms,
a single genetic individual (or genet) can consist of many modules (or ramets) capable of
existence as individuals. In plants, a genet is an individual that has arisen from a seed. A ramet
is a new plant which has arisen through vegetative propagation and is now a completely
independent plant with its own roots and shoots. For example, a population of grasses may
consist of several genets, each of which has several ramets.

3.1 Population characteristics

A population has several characteristics or attributes which are a function of the whole group
Demography is
and not of the individual. Different populations can be compared by measuring these attrib-
the study of the vital
utes. These attributes are population density, natality, mortality, distributions, etc. The study
statistics of populations
and how they change of the group characteristics of a population, their changes over time and prediction of future
over time. changes is known as demography.

74
 Population Ecology

Population density
The size of the population is represented by its fundamental property called density. It is
generally expressed as the number of individuals or the population biomass per unit area
or volume. Two types of densities are described – crude density and specific (or ecological)
density. Crude density is the density per unit of total space. Generally, populations do not
occupy all the space as whole because all area may not be habitable. Hence, density per unit
of habitable space is called specific density. It includes only that portion of total space that
can actually be colonized by the population.

Determining population size

Population size (or abundance) is a function of population density and the area that is occupied
(geographic distribution). Usually, population size is estimated by counting all the individuals
from a smaller sample area, then extrapolated over a larger area. When the individuals are
not mobile - their population size may be estimated by counting individuals within a specified
area. When individuals are very mobile and frequently move from one area to another then we
can count the number by applying a common method called a mark-recapture method. Using
this method, a small random sample of the population is captured, marked, then released
to disperse within the general population. The marked individuals mix freely with unmarked
individuals and within a short time are randomly mixed within the population. The population
is resampled and the numbers of marked and unmarked individuals are recorded. We then
assume that the ratio of marked to unmarked individuals in the second sample taken is the
same as the ratio of marked to unmarked individuals in the first sample. We can use a simple
formula for estimating total population size (N):

Total individuals marked in first sample × Size of second sample

N=
Number of marked individuals recaptured in second sample

This expression is known as the Lincoln-Peterson index to population size.

Let’s take an example to understand mark-recapture method. Suppose, we catch 50 fish (Labeo
rohita) in a lake and mark (color) them. After that, we release all marked fishes immediately
as close as possible to the collection site. A week later (after giving sufficient time to mix
randomly with the whole population) we catch 40 fish (a second sample) and 5 of them are
previously marked fish. If we assume no immigration or emigration has occurred, which is
quite likely in a closed system like a lake, and we assume there have been no births or deaths
of fish, then the total population size of fish is 400 (50×40/5).

Natality
Natality refers to the birth of individuals in a population. The ‘natality rate’ (or birth rate) is
expressed as the number of individuals produced per female per unit time. To describe ‘rate’,
we must specify time interval (such as one year or one month) and a base population. Two
bases are commonly used – Per capita or per individual (it is equivalent to the number of
births per individual per unit of time) or Per 1000 individuals.
Natality may be maximum natality or ecological natality. Maximum natality (sometimes called
absolute or physiological natality) is the theoretical maximum number of individuals produced
under ideal environmental conditions (i.e. no ecological limiting factors) and is a constant for
a given population. Ecological or realized natality refers to the number of individuals produced

75
Population Ecology

Exponential growth
A population shows exponential growth if there is no limitation on growth i.e. growth under
an ideal unlimited environment. During exponential growth, the number increases in the ge-
0 1 2 3
ometric progression 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 ,…. In geometric growth, the rate of increase is expressed as
a constant fraction or an exponent by which a particular population is multiplied (like 2, 4, 8,
16…). By contrast, a pattern of growth that increases at a constant amount per unit of time
(i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4 or 1, 3, 5, 7…) is called arithmetic growth. The exponential form of growth can
be described by an exponential growth equation:

dN
= rmax N Equation 1
dt

dN 1
´ = rmax
dt N

Where, N = Population size

rmax = Intrinsic rate of increase

During exponential population growth, per capita rate of increase is maximum and is called
the intrinsic rate of increase (rmax). It is expressed in number per unit time per individual. It is
the maximum per capita growth rate under an ideal unlimited environment, in the absence of
environmental resistance. The sum total of all environmental factors that together act to limit
the biotic potential of an organism from being realized is called environmental resistance. It
includes both biotic factors such as predation, competition, parasitism and abiotic factors such
as drought, fire, flood etc. The intrinsic rate of increase is often referred by the less specific
but widely used expression biotic potential (or reproductive potential) and it differs from one
species to another e.g. deer populations can grow faster than a population of elephants.

r and rmax
The ‘per capita rate of increase’ can be maximum or realized. The maximum per capita rate of
increase (rmax) occurs during exponential population growth under an ideal unlimited environ-
ment. The realized or actual per capita rate of increase (r) occurs under an actual prevailing
environment. The maximum per capita rate of increase is always greater than or equal to
realized per capita rate of increase. In exponential population growth, r = rmax = constant.

In a closed population,
r is defined as the per capita birth rate minus the per capita death rate.
r = Per capita birth rate (b) – Per capita death rate (d)

Under an ideal unlimited environment, when b is maximum and d is minimum, r is rmax. The
value of r also tells us about nature of population growth. When,

b>d r is positive population is increasing

b<d r is negative population is decreasing
b=d r is zero no change in the population size

Equation 1 is written as a differential equation. It tells us about the population growth rate but
not the population size. However, if equation 1 is integrated, the result can be used to predict
population size. Suppose, if we consider the initial population size (or we can say, population
size at time zero) is N0 and population size after time t is Nt, then the integral form of the
exponential growth equation will be:

80
 Population Ecology
Nt = N0e r t

Where, e is a mathematical constant, the base of the natural logarithm

rt
Nt N0 = e

By taking the natural log of both sides,

ln Nt – ln N0 = r t

When resources (food and space) in a habitat are unlimited, all members of a species have the
ability to grow exponentially. The population size that increases exponentially at a constant
rate, results in a J-shaped growth curve when population size (N) is plotted over time (t).

A. B. C.

rmax

J-shaped
N ln N .
dN 1
dt N

Time (t) Time (t) N

Figure 3.4 Exponential population growth. A. A J-shaped growth curve when population size (N) is
plotted over time (t) in linear or arithmetic scale (note that a log transformation linearizes the plot). B. A
linear growth curve when natural log of population size (ln N) is plotted over time (t). C. The relationship
between dN/dt.N (i.e. r) and population size, N.

Calculation of doubling time: Doubling time indicates how long the present population will
take to double from its present size. It is a measure of how rapidly a population grows. The
rt
doubling time for an exponential function N0e is the time td that gives a population of 2 × N0.
Thus, we can get the doubling time by solving the equation:

Nt = N0e rt
r td
2 ´ N0 = N 0 e

r td
2 = e

Taking the natural logarithm of both sides gives:

ln 2 = rtd
td = ln 2 / r

From the above equation, if we know the per capita rate of increase (r) we can easily find the
projected doubling time of a population. The larger r is, the shorter is doubling time. Howev-
er, we are assuming that the population is not affected by its age distribution, and that r is
constant during this time period.

Logistic growth
The exponential growth assumes that resources are unlimited, but it is never the case in the
real situation. As population density increases, each individual has access to fewer resources.
It means a particular environment can only support a maximum population size. The number

81
Population Ecology

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94
 Chapter 4
Community Ecology

An ecological community is a group of species that coexist in a space and time and interact
with one another directly or indirectly. The term ‘community’ means different things to differ-
ent ecologists. Most definitions of ecological communities include the idea of a collection of
species found in a particular place. For instance, Robert Whittaker (1975) defined ecological
community as,

‘…an assemblage of populations of plants, animals, bacteria and fungi that live in an environ-
ment and interact with one another, forming together a distinctive living system with its own
composition, structure, environmental relations, development and function.’

Simply, an ecological community is a group of interacting species that inhabit a particular

location at a particular time. Most communities are extraordinarily complex. However, the
main features of ecological communities include the following.
Firstly, a community represents the biotic or a living component of the ecosystem. Organisms
within a community include primary producers, consumers and decomposers. In terrestrial
communities, the community structure is largely defined by the vegetation.
Secondly, considering the functional aspect, communities are made up of organisms with
interlocking food chains and each species depends on many other species in a community
which is taxonomically unrelated.
Thirdly, a community may be of any size. It can range from small pond communities to huge
tropical rainforests.

Community ecology is a field that examines the effects of abiotic and biotic features on com-
munity or assemblage structure. Community ecologists study the number of species and
Community is a their relative abundance in a particular location and ask why the number of species and their
group of interacting
abundance changes over time. They also do study communities in different locations and
populations of
differences in the species diversity with location. In a broad sense, the goal of community
different species
present together ecology is to understand the origin, maintenance and consequences of biological diversity
in space whereas within communities.
assemblage is a
There are two contrasting concepts of the community – organismal and individualistic concepts.
taxonomically related
The organismal concept of communities (put forward by Clements, 1916) views the community
group of species
populations that occur as a unit, an association of species, in which each species is representing an interacting, inte-
together in space. grated component of the whole and development of the community through time (a process

95
Community Ecology
termed succession) is viewed as the development of the organism. This type of community
organization is commonly known as a closed community.
In contrast to Clements’s organismal concept of community, botanist H. A. Gleason (1926)
proposed individualistic concept (or continuum concept) of community. He stressed the
individualistic nature of species distribution. According to the individualistic concept, each
species in a community is distributed independently of others that co-occurs in a particular
association. This type of community organization referred to as an open community. In fact,
Gleason concluded that changes in species composition and abundance along environmental
gradients occur so gradually that it is not practical to divide the species into associations.
Unlike Clements, Gleason asserted that species distributions along environmental gradients
do not form clusters but represent the independent responses of species.

4.1 Community structure

The number of species, their relative abundances and their correlation of occurrence in space
and time define community structure. Community structure varies in time as well as in space.
It is first constrained by the environmental tolerances of the species, which are then modified
through direct and indirect interactions with other species. Variations in the physical envi-
ronment alter the nature of species distribution and abundance. Species differ in the range
of conditions they tolerate. As environmental conditions change in both time and space, the
possible distribution and abundance of species also change.

4.1.1 Species composition

Communities may be large or small. In each community, there are diverse species. All these
species are not present in equal number (or biomass). There are few species which by their
large number (or biomass) dominate the habitat and control the growth of other species of
the community. These species are called the dominant species. The dominant species are
highly successful species in a particular habitat. Generally, in most of the communities, only a
single species, being particularly conspicuous, is dominant, and in such case, the community
is called by the name of dominant species, as for example, spruce forest community. In other
community, there may be more than one dominant species.
If the activity of a species determines community structure in spite of their low abundance or
biomass, that species is called a keystone species. The term keystone species was introduced
by Robert Paine (1966) to describe the importance of the predatory starfish, Pisaster, on the
intertidal community. Pisaster preyed on a variety of intertidal organisms, preventing any one
species from becoming very common and outcompeting the others, thus promoting species
Keystone species richness. Note that a keystone species is not the same as a dominant species, one that has a
These species have an large effect in a community because of its abundance or large biomass.
influence on community
structure and functions Keystone species plays a vital role in controlling the relative abundance of other species. The
disproportionate to loss of a keystone species can lead to sharp population drops and extinction of other species
their numbers. Their that depend on it for certain services and causes serious disruption in the functioning of the
removal initiates changes community. The African elephant is an example of keystone species. By their feeding habits,
in community structure
elephants destroy shrubs and small trees and push woodland habitats towards open grass-
and often results in a
significant loss of land. As more grasses invade the woodland habitats, the frequency of fires increases, which
diversity. accelerates the conversion of woods to grassland.

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 Community Ecology

4.1.2 Species diversity

Species diversity is one of the most important and basic characteristic of a community. The
number of species and their relative abundance define species diversity of a community. It
includes the number of species in a community (i.e. richness) and the relative abundance of
each species (i.e. evenness). Species richness is simply the number of species in a community.
But, among the array of species that make up the community, not all are equally abundant.
We can find the relative abundance by counting all the individuals of each species within a
community and determining what percentage each species contributes to the total number
of individuals of all species. Communities in which the species are all more or less equal in
abundance exhibit evenness, whereas communities with one or a few abundant species (i.e.
present in large numbers) show dominance. Species evenness is highest when all species in
a sample have the same abundance. Abundance patterns in communities can be examined
by numbers of individuals per species, biomass per species, or percent cover per species.

Species diversity

Species Richness Species Evenness

The number of different The abundance of each
species present. species in a community.

Community 1 Community 2 Community 1 Community 2

Dog Dog Dog 30 Dog 20

Frog Squirrel Frog 48 Squirrel 15
Elephant Elephant Elephant 03 Elephant 20
Lion Tiger Lion 09 Tiger 25
Horse Bear Horse 20 Bear 18
Leopard
Gorilla

Number of species: Five Number of species: Seven Number of species: Five Number of species: Five
Species richness: Low Species richness: High Species evenness: Low Species evenness: High

Both numbers of species (species richness) and their relative abundance (species evenness)
define species diversity. In table 4.1, two hypothetical communities– 1 and 2 – both have 5 species
and 50 individuals. Species richness is the same in both communities. But the community–2

Table 4.1 Comparison of species richness and species evenness

Individuals per species

Species
Community 1 Community 2

Dog 10 05

Frog 10 05

Elephant 10 05

Lion 10 05

Horse 10 30

Total individuals 50 50

Total number of species 05 05

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 Community Ecology
Spatial and temporal comparisons of communities provide information about the things that
cause differences in species composition and abundance patterns. A spatial comparison refers
to comparing similar communities that occur in different locations. This allows an ecologist
to test if there are differences in climate, landscape features, geology, or habitats that occur
with different species composition. The species richness and evenness of communities change
with time. A temporal comparison refers to comparing the same community at different times.
Change may occur following disturbance events, or change may occur due to stochasticity in
assemblages.

A common method for comparing the species richness and abundance between communities
involves plotting the relative abundance of each species against rank. ‘Rank’ is defined by the
order of species from the most to the least abundant. The abundance of the most common
species appears on the extreme left and the rarest species on the extreme right along the x-axis.
Thus, the most abundant species is plotted first along the x-axis, with the corresponding
value on the y-axis being the value of relative abundance. This process is continued until all
species are plotted. The resulting graph is called a rank-abundance plot (or Whittaker plot).
It is a graphical plot of numbers of individuals per species against the rank of species in the
community.
The rank-abundance plot visually depicts both species richness and species evenness. Species
richness can be viewed as the number of different species on the graph i.e. how many species
are ranked. Species evenness is reflected in the slope of the curve. A steep slope indicates
low evenness as the high-ranking species have much higher abundances than the low-ranking
species. A shallow slope indicates high evenness of different species is similar. A rank-abun-
dance plot can be drawn for the number of individuals in a community, biomass of individuals,
ground area covered by plants and other variables all plotted against rank abundance.

1
Relative abundance

0.1

Forest community 1

0.01
Forest community 2
Diversity indices are a
mathematical measure
of the number of species
(species richness) in an 0.001
area and the relative 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55
abundance of individuals
Abundance rank
among those species
(species evenness). Figure 4.1 Rank-abundance curves for the two forest communities. In the rank-abundance plot, the
Rank-abundance plots abundance of each species is plotted on a logarithmic scale against the species’ rank, in order from the
are graphical representa- most abundant to least abundant species. The x-axis represents the abundance rank. The most abundant
tions of numbers of species is given rank 1, the second most abundant is 2 and so on. The y-axis represents the relative
individuals per species abundance. Relative abundance is expressed on a log10 axis. In this plot, richness and evenness of two
against rank of species in forest communities are plotted. The forest community 1 (black line) has a higher species richness (length
the community. of curve) and evenness (slope of curve) than the forest community 2 (grey line).

99
Community Ecology

4.1.3 Diversity index

A diversity index is a mathematical measure of species diversity in a community. It is a measure
of the number of species in an area and the relative abundance of individuals among those
species. That is, it takes into account the number of species present (species richness) as well
as the abundance of each species (species evenness). A variety of indices have been used to
estimate species diversity. We can divide them into two broad categories: dominance indices
and information statistic indices. Dominance indices are more influenced by the abundance of
common or dominant species. A widely used dominance index is Simpson’s diversity index.
Information statistic indices are more influenced by the numbers of rare species. Most com-
monly used information statistic index is the Shannon diversity index.

Simpson’s diversity index

Simpson’s diversity index is a simple mathematical measure that characterizes species diver-
sity in a community. The term Simpson’s diversity index can actually refer to any one of two
closely related indices – Simpson’s index and Simpson’s index of diversity.
Simpson’s index (D) is a measure of the species diversity of an ecosystem based on the con-
cept of dominance. It measures the probability that two individuals randomly selected from
a sample will belong to the same species. It is actually a measurement of dominance. There
are two versions of the formula for calculating D.
2
ænö
D= å P = å çè N ÷ø
2
i

where, Pi = the relative abundance of each species (n/N).

n = total number of individuals of a particular species in the sample.
N = total number of individuals of all species present in the sample.

For a finite community, D =

å n (n - 1)
N (N - 1)

D is a measure of dominance, so as D increases, diversity (in the sense of evenness) decreases.

The value of D ranges between 0 and 1. With this index, 0 represents an infinite diversity and
1, no diversity. That is, the bigger the value of D, the lower the diversity.
Simpson’s index is usually reported as its complement 1-D called Simpson’s index of diversity. The
value of this index also ranges between 0 and 1, but now, the greater the value, the greater
the sample diversity. In this case, the index represents the probability that two individuals
randomly selected from a sample will belong to different species.
To understand Simpson’s diversity index, let us take an example of a forest community which
has five different tree species. The numbers of trees of each tree species are given below.

Species Mango Ashok Cashew Coconut Amaltas

n 02 08 01 01 03

In this example, we can find the value of Simpson’s index.

Species Mango Ashok Cashew Coconut Amaltas Total

n 02 08 01 01 03 N = 15

n (n – 1) 02 56 0 0 06 64

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Community Ecology

Pielou’s evenness index

Pielou’s evenness index (J’) is a diversity index, which quantifies how equal the community
is numerically i.e. evenness of community. It is the ratio of observed diversity (H’) to the
maximum possible diversity of a community with the same species richness (H’max). For any
information statistic index, the maximum diversity of a community (H’max) is found when all
species are equally abundant.

H'
J' =
H'max

The observed diversity (H’) is derived from the Shannon diversity index. H’max is the maximum
possible value of H’. The values lie between 0 and 1.

Box 4.1 Quantifying species richness : Species accumulation curves

A species accumulation curve (or collector’s curve) is used to estimate the number of different
species (i.e. species richness) in a particular area. It is a graph which records the cumulative
number of species in a particular area observed or collected during the survey.
During the process of data collection, additional species are added to the pool of all previously
observed or collected species. Let us take example to understand this. Suppose, we have to
measure the total number of different tree species in an area. For this, we first delineate the
area where the estimate of species richness is to be made. After that, a number of smaller sam-
ple areas (plots) within the large delineated area are to be selected, and a survey is conducted
within the sample areas (plots).
In the following table, a list of tree species identified in ten sample areas (plots), each of 20 × 20
meters in size. The samples are presented from left to right in the order they have been collected.
Using this data we can construct an accumulation curve for this site. The number of unique
tree species surveyed in the first plot is 5 (first sample). The number of different tree species
in the second plot is 6 (second sample). The number of unique tree species in these combined
samples is 8, as the two samples have 3 species in common. We can continue this process until
all samples (N = 10) are included.

Table 4.2 Tree species surveyed on ten 20 × 20 meters sample plots

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

A F I F J G F M A Q
B A G A I B I A O B
C G B G G H G N B R
D B D B K E B B P S
E H E E H L C D E
E K D
8
D
9 H
9
11 and so on

Number of different species

We plot the total number of different tree species encountered as a function of the number of
samples taken. The result would be a species accumulation curve. It records the total number
of species revealed during the survey, as additional sample units are added to the pool of all
previously collected samples. The curve will rise somewhat rapidly at first, as the more abun-

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 Community Ecology
within habitat. The minimum size of habitat needed to maintain differences in interior and
edge environments.
The alternative explanation came from MacArthur and Wilson that species richness increases with
area due to decreasing extinction rates. On larger areas, extinction rates are lower because a
greater area generally contains a wider array of resources and habitats. For this reason, large
islands can support more individuals of each species as well as meet the needs of a wider
variety of species. The lower rate of extinction on larger areas results in a higher number of
species as compared to smaller areas.

4.1.5 Disturbance and species diversity

A disturbance, in an ecological sense, is an event, such as a storm, fire, flood, drought,
overgrazing, or human activity that changes a community by removing organisms from it or
altering resource availability. It influences species coexistence and the maintenance of bio-
diversity. Disturbance events are characterized by their frequency and intensity. Intensity is
measured by the proportion of total biomass, or population of a species, that the disturbance
kills or eliminates. It is influenced by the magnitude of the physical force involved, such as the
strength of the wind or the amount of energy released during a fire. Frequency is the mean
number of disturbances that occur within a particular time interval.
Diversity is significantly affected by disturbance. Species diversity has been found low at
low intensities or frequencies of disturbance because of competitive exclusion. In such case,
competitively dominant species exclude competitively inferior species. Similarly, at high inten-
sities or frequencies of disturbance, species diversity has been found low, because only good
colonizers or highly tolerant species can persist. Both theoretically and experimentally it has
been demonstrated that species diversity is higher at intermediate intensities or frequencies
of disturbance due to a mix of good colonizer and good competitor species. At an intermediate
intensities or frequencies of disturbance, colonization can occur, but competitive exclusion is
held to a minimum and thus, diversity is at a maximum. This is referred to as the intermediate
disturbance hypothesis, proposed independently by Michael Huston and by Joseph Connell.

Both good colonizer and good

competitive species coexist
b
Species diversity

a Dominance of
highly competitive
species
Dominance of good
colonizers or disturbance
tolerant species
c

Low High

Intensity or frequency of disturbance

Figure 4.4 The intermediate disturbance hypothesis. a. Species diversity is low at low intensities or
frequencies of disturbance because of competitive exclusion; b. species diversity is higher at intermediate
intensities or frequencies of disturbance due to a combination of good colonizers as well as good competi-
tive species; c. species diversity is low at high intensities or frequencies of disturbance because only good
colonizers or disturbance tolerant species can survive.

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Community Ecology

4.2 Community interactions

Species present within ecological communities interact with each other resulting in a complex
web of relationships. These interactions are often diffuse, involving a number of species and
one species may be influenced by interactions with many different species and also indirect
interactions. Food webs illustrate an important indirect interactions among species within
the community. As we know in nature, food chains are not isolated. Most ecosystem contain
several interconnected food chains which forms a food web. Food web represents the feeding
relationship and species interactions in an ecosystem. Food chain is different from food web.
Food chain is a linear sequence of feeding relationship, whereas food web is the complex
relation between different food chain.

Top predator, P
P
Not subject to predation

Omnivore, C1: feeds on more than one trophic level

C1 C2
Intermediate species,
Carnivore, C2
H and C
function as both
predators and prey
H1 H2 Herbivores, H1 and H2

Basal species, A
A
Feed on no other species

Figure 4.5 A hypothetical food web. Each circle represents a species, and the arrows from the consumed
to the consumer are termed links. The species in the webs are distinguished by whether they are basal
species, intermediate species, or top predators.

The distribution of species and links is called the topology of the food web. The complexity of
food web can vary greatly and we can express the complexity by measuring two most impor-
tant parameters – connectance and linkage density. Connectance is a measure of the number
of feeding or trophic links between species. Food webs of different communities differ is in
their degree of connectance. The connectance in a food web is the ratio of actual number of
observed unidirectional links and the total number of possible unidirectional links.

Actual number of unidirectional links

Connectance =
in the absence
Possible number of unidirectional links
of cannibalism

A food web consisting of S species, there will be S (S-1)/2 possible unidirectional links (the
link between any two species is in only one direction), excluding cannibalism (if cannibalism
2
is allowed then S ). Suppose, in a simple food web, there are four species and three links.
Hence, the number of possible links is 4 (4 – 1)/2 i.e. 6 and the connectance is 3/6 or 0.5. A
fundamental feature of any food web is the number of links in the pathways that run from basal
species to top predators. The average number of links per species is called linkage density. It
is a ratio of links and the number of species in the food web. The linkage density in a food web
provides one measure of community complexity. The relation between food web connectance

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 Community Ecology
and food web stability has been extensively studied on a wide variety of ecosystems, using
empirical and theoretical approaches. The outcomes of these studies gave a scattered picture:
some found a positive relation between connectance and stability, others found a negative
relation, and some found no relation.

Example,
P
What is the value of connectance for this food web in
the absence of cannibalism?

C1 C2 Number of species (or nodes) = S = 8

Actual number of trophic links = L = 12

Possible number of trophic links = S (S-1)/2 = 28

H1 H2 H3
Linkage density = L/S = 12/8 = 1.5

Connectance (without cannibalism) = 12/28 = 0.42

A1 A2

Food webs describe the relationships among species in an ecosystem, but the relationships
vary in their importance to energy flow and dynamics of species populations. Based on differ-
ent ways in which species influence one another, Robert Paine proposed three types of food
webs. Connectedness webs (or topological food webs) emphasize feeding relationships among
species. Energy flow webs quantify energy flow from one species to another. Functional webs
(or interaction food webs) represent the influence of one species on the growth rate of other
species’ populations.

4.3 Community: Functional classification

Species within a community can be classified into functional groups. By aggregating species
into a smaller number of functional groups, researchers can explore the processes controlling
community structure in more general terms.
The grouping of species into trophic levels is a functional classification. Trophic levels include
primary producers and consumers. Thus, plants are grouped together as producers, all her-
bivores together form primary consumer and so on. The trophic structure of a community is
determined by the feeding relationships between organisms. It defines groups of species that
derive their energy in a similar manner. With the exception of most primary producers, many
species acquire energy from more than one trophic level, making it difficult to unambiguously
assign species to a particular trophic level. While trophic levels are a useful abstraction, and
have played a prominent role in the development of ecological theory, the problem of assign-
ing real species to a particular trophic level can limit the concept’s operational utility. The
structure of food chains suggests that the productivity and abundance of populations at any
given trophic level are controlled (limited) by the productivity and abundance of populations in
the trophic level below them. This phenomenon is called bottom-up control. Plant population
densities control the abundance of herbivore populations, which in turn control the densities
of carnivore populations in the next trophic level. However, top-down control also occurs in
which predator populations control the abundance of prey species.

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Community Ecology

Box 4.2 Species diversity and ecosystem function

Does the loss of species impair ecosystem functions? By ‘ecosystem function’ we mean the activities,
processes, or properties of ecosystems that are influenced by its biota. A diverse array of hypotheses
has been proposed to link ecosystem function with species diversity.
The rivet hypothesis (Paul and Ann Ehrlich,1981) suggests that every species plays a role in
ecosystem function and that all species have an equal and additive effect on function; hence, all
species matter. Losing a species in an ecosystem is analogous to losing a rivet from an airplane.
The redundancy hypothesis (Brian Walker, 1992) predicts that species that play the same roles
in a community can compensate for each other if some are lost under particular conditions.
The species are said to be redundant because they could simply be eliminated or replaced by
others with no loss in function. In this scenario, the loss of a species does not affect ecosystem
functions unless the species is of critical importance.
The keystone hypothesis predicts that ecosystem functions plummet as soon as a key or important
member of the community is removed. Keystone species influences the community structure and
functions disproportionately to their numbers. Thus, as species richness declines even slightly
from its natural levels, community services are reduced immediately.
The idiosyncratic hypothesis addresses the possibility that ecosystem function changes as the
number of species increases or decreases, but that the direction of change is not predictable.
Changing the number of species influences ecosystem processes, but no obvious pattern is
evident; hence, the role of biodiversity is unpredictable.

Rivet hypothesis Redundancy hypothesis

Community services

Community services

Natural level Natural level

Species richness Species richness

Keystone hypothesis Idiosyncratic hypothesis

Community services
Community services

Natural level Natural level

Species richness Species richness

Figure 4.6 Graphical representations of the possible relationships between species diversity (richness)
and ecosystem functions (or community services). The two solid dots represent the endpoints of a
continuum of species richness. The first dot is at the origin, where there are no species and no com-
munity services. The second dot represents natural levels of species richness. In understanding these
different hypotheses, we start at the far right-hand side of the figures, where there are natural levels of
species richness, and we move toward the left, losing species and seeing what happens to community
services. (Modified from Naeem et al., 2002.)

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 Community Ecology

4.5 Plant communities

The form and structure of terrestrial communities are defined primarily by their vegetation.
Plants commonly provide most of the biomass and the physical structure of communities. The
massive contribution that plants make in determining the character of a community is not
just a measure of their role as the primary producers, it is also a result of their slowness to
decompose. Animal bodies decompose much more quickly. Ecologists often classify and name
terrestrial communities based on the dominant plant growth forms and their associated physical
structure: forests, woodlands, shrublands or grassland communities. A ‘plant community’ is
an association of plant species within a designated geographical unit. A wide variety of biotic
and abiotic factors such as soil type, topography, climate and human disturbance controls the
abundance and biomass of plant species in ecological communities over time. Typical plant
communities range from forests and woodlands dominated by trees, to heaths dominated by
shrubs and grasslands dominated by grasses.
The assessment of community characters from their outer appearance is called physiognomy.
It is a combination of the external appearance of vegetation, its vertical structure, and the
growth forms of the dominant taxa. The general appearance of vegetation can be determined
by the features such as height, canopy cover, shape, life forms, leaf traits and phenology of
dominant species. On the basis of appearance, it may be described as a grassland, forest
etc. The physiognomy of a community can be described in a number of ways, each assessing
somewhat different aspects.

Life-forms
The form and structure of terrestrial plant communities are determined by the nature of the
vegetation. Vegetation may be classified according to life form (or growth form). A life-form is
characterized by the adaptation to certain ecological conditions. Its study is an important part
of vegetation description. The most widely used vascular plant life-form classification system
was formulated by Danish biogeographer C. Raunkiaer (called Raunkiaer’s system). This sys-
tem identifies life-forms based on a single criterion, that is, the location of perennating buds
(shoot apical meristems) with respect to ground level. The location of buds is indicative of
the degree of protection they are afforded from adverse climatic conditions. Using this single
criterion, five major life-forms are recognized: phanerophytes, chamaephytes, hemicrypto-
phytes, cryptophytes (or hidden plants) and therophytes. Cryptophytes are further subdivided
into geophytes, helophytes and hydrophytes.
For example, in trees, buds are borne well above the ground in the air (>0.5 m), fully exposed
to the wind, cold and drought; Raunkiaer categorized them under phanerophytes. By contrast,
in many perennial herbs, buds are borne above ground but are protected from drought and
cold in the dense mass of old leaves and shoots are categorized under chamaephytes. In
hemicryptophytes, buds are present at the soil surface (i.e. at ground level) and in the soil
(i.e. below ground level) in cryptophytes. Cryptophytes include geophytes (have stems that die
back during unfavourable seasons, with the plant surviving as a bulb, rhizome, tuber or root
bud), helophytes (plants in which surviving buds are buried in water-saturated soil, or below
water-level) and hydrophytes (fully aquatic plants in which surviving buds are submerged, or
buried in soil beneath water). A final major category is therophytes, which consists of annual
plants that depend wholly on dormant seeds to carry their populations through seasons of
drought and cold.

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Community Ecology
Table 4.3 Raunkiaer life-form classification system based on location of the perennating bud

Life form Location of perennating bud Plant types

Phanerophyte >0.5 m Trees and tall shrubs

Chamaephyte Above the ground but < 0.25 m Small shrubs and herbs

Hemicryptophyte At soil surface (at ground level) Prostrate shrubs or herbaceous plants

Cryptophyte In the soil (below ground level) Bulb forming herbs (e.g. Allium, Solanum)

Therophyte Seed Annuals (e.g. Brassica)

> 0.5 m

< 0.25 m

Seed

Phanerophyte Chamaephyte Hemicryptophyte Cryptophyte Therophyte

Stratification
The life form of plants emphasizes height. A plant community conveys differences in the
heights, or stratification, of the components. Trees are generally taller than shrubs, which are
usually taller than herbs, and the latter taller than mosses and lichens. Tropical forests are
characterized typically by a marked vertical stratification. Stratification results in the upper
strata, or canopy, receiving a larger proportion of solar energy, and in instances of particularly
dense foliage, little sunlight reaches the ground, reducing photosynthesis and plant growth
at that level. Stratification is also seen in the underground plant parts, that is the root and
the rhizome systems. Root systems of different plant species tap moisture and nutrients from
different soil depths. This enables them to avoid competition and too much exploitation of a
particular soil layer.
Aquatic ecosystems also exhibit marked stratification. In lake ecosystems, light penetration,
temperature and availability of oxygen vary with depth. For example, in terms of availability
of light, a water body is divided into two layers: an upper lighted zone which is dominated
by phytoplankton and where maximum photosynthesis occurs, and a lower layer in which
Sociability refers to decomposition is most active.
the nature of grouping
of individual plants,
that is, whether they
Vitality and Vigour
grow singly, in patches, Vitality is related to the condition of a plant and its capacity to complete its life cycle, while
in colonies or evenly
the vigour refers to the health or development within a certain stage. A number of criteria
intermixed. Sociability
may be used in determining the vigour of plants such as the rate and total amount of growth
expresses the degree
of association between especially in height; rapidity of growth renewal in spring or following mowing or grazing; area
species. of foliage, color and turgidity of leaves and stems; degree of damage caused by diseases or

112

An ecotone is a zone of
relatively rapid change
between two commu-
nities. An ecocline, in
contrast, is defined as
a gradation from one
community to another
when there is no sharp
boundary between the
two. Alternatively, we
can say, It represents a
more gradual gradient
of change between two
communities.
Ecotone
Grassland Forest
Community Ecology
insects; time of appearance and number and height of flower stalks; rate of growth and extent
of root system, appearance and development of new stems and leaves.
Periodicity
It refers to the seasonal changes in the community. Periodicity is a strongly fixed character
in plants. Different species of plants have different periods of seed germination, vegetative
growth, flowering and fruiting, leaf fall, seed and fruit dispersal. A study of the date and time
of these events is termed as phenology. It is the calendar of events in the life history of a
plant. The phenology of different species present in a community may differ from each other
significantly. It is these phenological changes which give a definite look to a community. The
appearance of the community as a whole at different seasons is called aspection.
4.6 Community gradient and boundaries
The composition of biotic communities changes along environmental gradients. It is often
difficult to determine where one community ends and the next begins. Many communities
grade continuously into each other with no sharp boundaries. For example, if two forests,
pine forest and spruce forest are nearby, one cannot see the boundaries between them. There
are, however, instances where clear, sharp boundaries between the communities or ecosys-
tems are seen, especially where the physical environment changes abruptly- for example, at
the transition between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The transition zone of vegetation
separating two different types of communities (e.g. between forest and grassland) is called
ecotone. ‘An ecotone is the zone of transition between adjacent ecological systems having a
set of characteristics uniquely defined by space and time scales and by the strength of the
interactions between the systems’.
It is a region where the influence of two different patterns of environment works together and
hence the vegetation of ecotones is highly specialized. An ecotone may be narrow or wide. It
has condition intermediate to adjacent ecosystems. A general characteristic of ecotone is that
it has sufficiently greater number of species and high diversity as compared to the neighboring
communities. The phenomenon of increased species diversity at the boundary (edge) is called
the edge effect and is essentially due to the wider range of suitable environmental conditions.
It was first defined by Odum (1958) as the tendency for increased population density and
species richness at the junction zone between two communities. It is influenced by the area of
transition zone (length and width) and by the degree of contrast between adjoining communities.
In general, the greater the contrast between adjoining communities, the greater the diversity
of species. Therefore, a border between forest and grassland should support more species than
would a border between a young and a mature forest. Environmental conditions at edge enable
certain species to colonize for reproduction or survival. Species that occur primarily or most
abundantly at the edge for the purposes of reproduction or survival is known as edge species.
Grassland ecosystem Transition zone (Ecotone) Forest ecosystem
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Community Ecology
The theory of island
biogeography states that
the number of species of
a given taxon (insects,
birds, or mammals)
present on an island or
within a patch represents
a dynamic equilibrium
between the rate of
immigration of new
colonizing species of that
taxon and the rate of
extinction of previously
established species.
Figure 4.7 The equilib-
rium number of species
on an island represents a
balance between the immi-
gration of new species and
the extinction of species
already there. According
to the theory of island
biogeography, immigration
rate declines with increas-
ing species richness while
extinction rate increases.
114
4.7 Equilibrium theory of island biogeography
Biogeography is the study of the geographical distribution of species and the reason for their
pattern of distribution. Ecologists Robert MacArthur and E.O. Wilson, proposed the equilibri-
um theory of island biogeography. According to this theory, the level of species diversity on
habitat islands arises as a balance between the processes of colonization (immigration) and
extinction of species. By ‘islands’ we mean not only oceanic islands, but also habitat islands on
land, such as the peaks of mountains and isolated springs in the desert. Any isolated habitat,
totally separated from others of its kind, can be considered as an island. The oceanic islands
can be formed in two basic ways: by the disappearance of a connecting land from the main-
land (either the sea rises and floods an area in between or if joining land is eroded or sinks)
or by land rising from the sea (usually form by volcanic activity on the ocean floor gradually
building up igneous material until it reaches above sea level).
Oceanic island Green patch in the desert
The number of species found on an island, according to MacArthur and Wilson, was due to two
contrasting processes of immigration and extinction. The theory proposes that the number
of species on any island is determined by a balance between the rate at which new species
colonize it (i.e. the rate of immigration of species from the mainland to the island) and the
rate at which populations of established species become extinct (i.e. the rate of extinction of
species on the island). The rate at which species might become extinct on the island would
be related to the number that has become residents. When an island is nearly empty, the
extinction rate is necessarily low because few species are available to become extinct. As
more species inhabit an island, extinction rates on the island increase because of the greater
likelihood of competitive exclusion. At the same time, as the number of species on the island
increases, the immigration rate of new species decreases. Hence, the rate at which additional
species will establish populations will be high when the island is relatively empty, and the rate
at which resident populations go extinct will be high when the island is relatively full. Over
time, the countervailing forces of extinction and immigration result in an equilibrium level of
species richness. At equilibrium species richness of an island, immigration balances extinction
Immigration of Extinction of
new species existing species
Rate of
change in
number of
species
Equilibrium
number of species
Number of species present
 Community Ecology
Figure 4.8 Immigration and richness remains roughly constant in terms of the number of species in the community,
rates are distance related. but not the identity of the species involved. Two physical features of the island further affect
Islands near a mainland
immigration and extinction rates: its size and its distance from the mainland. The ‘mainland’
have a higher immigra-
tion rate than do islands
is that place where new immigrant species originally inhabited.
distant from a mainland.
Island 1: Large
Extinction rates relate to Island 2: Far
Island 2: Small
area and are higher on
small islands than on large
Island 1: Near
ones.

Mainland Mainland

Size of islands: Same Size of islands: Different

Distance: Different Distance: Same

Effect of size: It is well established that the number of species on islands decreases as island
area decreases. Small islands have higher extinction rates, as they generally contain fewer
resources and less diverse habitats for colonizing species. Larger islands reduces the prob-
ability of extinction, as they contain larger habitat areas and more resources for colonizing
species. The lower rate of extinction on larger islands results in a higher equilibrium number
of species as compared to smaller islands.

Effect of distance: The expected number of species on an island is affected not only by the area
of the island, but also by the distance of the island from the source of species i.e. mainland.
Islands that are more isolated are less likely to receive immigrants than islands that are less
isolated. The greater the distance between the island and the mainland, the less the likelihood
that many immigrants will successfully complete the journey. The result is a decrease in the
equilibrium number of species. Thus, for two islands of equal size, an island close to mainland
generally has a higher immigration rate than one farther away.

A. B.
nd
la
is

Rate of immigration

Ne
l
al

ar
Rate of extinction

Sm

nd isl
an
la d
is
e
rg
La Far
isla
nd

Small island Large island Far island Near island

Number of species present Number of species present

Figure 4.9 A. Effect of island size: Large islands have a larger equilibrium number of species than small
islands because extinction rates lower on large islands. B. Effect of distance from mainland: Near islands
tend to have larger equilibrium numbers of species than far islands because immigration rates to near
islands are higher. If the island is close to the mainland, it will be easy for species to reach species will
arrive quickly, so the emigration rate will be very high. If the island far from mainland, then fewer species
will reach it and the rate of immigration will be much lower.

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 Community Ecology
Stable
equilibrium
K1 point
a12 K2
Stable Unstable
equilibrium equilibrium
point point

K1
K2 a12

Stable
equilibrium
N2 N2
point

N1 K1 K2 N1 K2 K1
a21 a21

Scenario 3: Stable coexistence Scenario 4: Unstable coexistence

Competition can go either way

If a line is drawn between the two carrying capacities (K1 and K2), the position of equilibrium
point either above or below that line differentiates stable from and unstable coexistence.

Effects of relative competitive ability on the outcome of competition between two species

Effect of species 2 on species 1

Effect of species 1 on species 2 Weak 12K2 < K1 Strong 12K2 > K1

Weak 21K1 < K2 Coexistence Species 2 always wins

Strong 21K1 > K2 Species 1 always wins Winner depends on initial conditions

Dynamics of the predator-prey system

Lotka-Volterra model also explores predator-prey dynamics and tells us about the changes in
prey and predator population with time. This model comprises a pair of differential equations
(one for the prey population and another for the predator population) that describe preda-
tor-prey dynamics in their simplest case (one predator population, one prey population). The
Lotka-Volterra equations take a few assumptions under consideration:

Box 4.5 Interpreting graph

Let us understand how we can interpret the outcome of competition on the graph with com-
bined isoclines for species 1 and 2. On the graph shown here, the diagonal lines are called zero
isoclines. Values of N1 and N2 that fall below the zero isoclines, population growth is positive.
For values of N1 and N2 above the zero isoclines, population growth is negative. Arrows are used
to represent the direction of population change for any point. For the zero isoclines of species
1, the arrows are parallel to the x-axis. For species 2, the arrows are parallel to the y-axis.
Now, when you are considering any point on the graph that represents the combined values of
y species 1 and 2, two arrows must be plotted to represent the direction of change for both popu-
K1 lations. Let us understand this by considering point A on the graph. The black arrow represents
a12
B
the change in species 1, and the grey arrow shows the corresponding change in species 2. The
K2
future (predicted) values of N1 and N2 will therefore lie in the direction of the arrow. Therefore,
the next point representing the combined values of N1 and N2 must lie somewhere between the
N2 A two arrows and is represented by the dashed arrow. Now, you find out the future values of N1
x
N1 K1 K2 and N2 with respect to point B on the graph.
a21

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Community Ecology
Odum (1959) defined
the ecological niche as
‘the position or status
of an organism within
its community and
ecosystem resulting from
the organism's structural
adaptations, physiological
responses, and specific
behavior (inherited and/
or learned).’ He empha-
sized that ‘the ecological
niche of an organism
depends not only on
where it lives but also
on what it does.’ The
place an organism lives,
or where one would go
to find it, is its habitat.
For Odum the habitat is
the organism's ‘address,’
whereas the niche is its
‘profession.’
132
Predator zero Prey – Prey – Prey + Prey +
isocline Pred + Pred – Pred – Pred +
Prey – Prey –
Predator – Predator +
Population size
Prey zero
N2 isocline Predator
Prey + Prey + Prey
Predator – Predator +
Time
N1
A. Combined isoclines B. Coupled oscillations
Figure 4.14 A. When prey and predator isoclines are combined, coupled oscillations result. When the zero
isoclines are combined, the arrows can also be combined, and these joint arrows progress in anticlock-
wise circles. A minus sign indicates population decline, and a plus sign indicates population increase. This
trajectory shows the cyclic nature of the predator-prey interaction. B. By plotting the changes in size for
both the predator and prey populations through time, we can see that the two populations continuously
cycle out of phase with each other, and the density of predators lags behind that of prey. Adapted from
Begon, et al., 1996.
4.10 Ecological niche
All living organisms have a range of environmental conditions under which they can survive,
grow, reproduce and function. This range of environmental conditions is not the same for all
organisms. A set of environmental conditions and resources under which a species can survive,
grow, reproduce and function define the ecological niche.
The term ‘niche’ was used for the first time by Grinnell is frequently misunderstood and mis-
used. It is often used loosely to describe the sort of place in which an organism lives. Strictly,
however, the place in which a particular organism lives is its habitat. Niche is different from
habitat. It is not simply a place where an organism lives. It is the sum total of all the ecological
requisites and activities of a species. It includes not only the physical space occupied by an
organism but also its functional role in the community (its trophic position) and its position in
environmental gradients of temperature, moisture, pH, soil, and other conditions of existence.
These three aspects of the niche can be conveniently designated as the spatial niche, the
trophic niche and the n-dimensional hypervolume niche.
Grinnell used the term niche in the sense of the microhabitat to describe the ultimate distri-
butional unit, within which each species is held by its structural and instinctive limitations.
Hence, his version of the concept is now called a spatial (or habitat) niche. Charles Elton
used the term niche in the sense of the ‘functional status of an organism in its community.’
Because Elton emphasized the trophic position of an organism, his version of the concept is
designated as a trophic niche. The concept of the n-dimensional hypervolume niche was first
described by American ecologist Hutchinson (1957). He defined a niche as a multidimensional
space called an n-dimensional hypervolume, where n is the number of dimensions that make
up the niche within which an organism can survive, grow and reproduce. In other words, the
n dimensions correspond to independent environmental variables that affect the survival of
that organism. Temperature, for instance, limits the growth and survival of all organisms, but
 Community Ecology
different organisms tolerate different ranges of temperature. This range is one dimension of
an organism’s ecological niche. An organism’s environment cannot be defined by only one
or two environmental variables i.e. one or two dimensions. But there are many such dimen-
sions that determine the organism’s position in the environmental gradient, an n-dimensional
hypervolume. Clearly, the real niche of a species must be multidimensional. Hence, each
organism has an activity space, a range of environmental conditions and resource qualities
within which it can live.

11

Env. variable 2 (pH)

2
5°C 40°C
Env. variable 1 (Temp)

Figure 4.15 Graph showing the 2-dimensional position of an organism in the environmental gra-
dient considering two independent environmental variables (defining two dimensions) – temp and
pH. Organisms survive, grow, and reproduce only within certain limits. This graph shows the tem-
perature range (one dimension) and the organism’s pH range (second dimension). According to the
n-dimensional hypervolume niche concept, all independent variables relevant to the organism’s life must be included,
resulting in an n-dimensional hypervolume.

Fundamental niche and realized niche

Usually, a species has a larger ecological niche in the absence of competitors and predators
than it has in their presence. In other words, there are certain combinations of conditions and
resources that can allow a species to maintain a viable population, but only if it is not being
adversely affected by enemies. This led Hutchinson to distinguish between the fundamental
and the realized niche.

Fundamental niche of species A

Realized niche of species A
Maximum theoretical hyper-
Actual smaller hyper-
volume which a species can
volume which a species
occupy in the absence of
occupies due to interactions
other species.
with other species
Niche axis 2

Niche axis 2

Species A Species A
In the absence of In the presence
other species of other species

Niche axis 1 Niche axis 1

Figure 4.16 The fundamental niche of a species describes all possible combinations of resources and
conditions under which a species can grow, survive and reproduce. The realized niche describes the more
limited set of resources and conditions under which a species can grow, survive and reproduce in the
presence of competitors and predators.

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Community Ecology
The fundamental niche (sometimes referred to as the physiological niche or pre-interactive
niche) is the maximum theoretical inhabited hypervolume which a species can occupy in the
absence of interactions with other species. In other words, it is the full range of environmental
variables and resources that a species can possibly tolerate and use in the absence of compet-
itors and predators i.e. free from any sort of interference from other species. The fundamental
niche is thus a hypothetical, idealized niche in which the organism encounters no interactions
with other species and in which its physical environment is optimal.
‘The fundamental niche is the ecological niche in the absence of interactions with other species,
whereas the realized niche is that the portion of the fundamental niche that a species actually
occupies as a result of interactions with other species.’

High tide High tide

Upper Realized niche
intertidal of Chthamalus
zone in the presence
of Semibalanus
Fundamental
Lower niche of
intertidal Chthamalus
Semibalanus
zone
balanoides

Low tide Low tide

Figure 4.17 Fundamental and realized niche of barnacles. Chthamalus stellatus and Semibalanus bal-
anoides are two species of barnacles that grow in the intertidal zone of the rocky shores. Semibalanus and
Chthamalus compete. Chthamalus occurs in the upper intertidal zone and Semibalanus was restricted to
the lower intertidal zone. In the absence of Semibalanus, the potential distribution of Chthamalus extends
over the entire intertidal zone (upper and lower intertidal zone). Hence, the entire intertidal zone we can
consider as the fundamental niche of Chthamalus. But in the presence of Semibalanus, it occupies only
the upper intertidal zone. Semibalanus outcompetes and excludes Chthamalus from the lower zones. So,
for Chthamalus upper intertidal zone is the realized niche.

Box 4.6 Niche paradox

The niche concept has been defined in several different ways and remains one of the most
confusing topics in ecology. Grinnell described the niche as a place that a species occupies in
the environment. Elton’s view of the niche differed from Grinnell’s in that it focused on the func-
tional status of a species in its community. However, Hutchinson defined the niche of a species
as the sum of all the physical and biological variables required to survive, reproduce and grow.
According to Hutchinson’s niche concept, the realized niche is the part of the fundamental niche
occupied by a species in the presence of negative interspecific interactions (such as predation,
competition and parasitism). Thus, because of negative interspecific interactions, the realized
niche of a species is often smaller than its fundamental niche. But many ecologists have an
opinion that positive interactions are largely ignored until recently in describing the size of
the realized niche. Positive interaction occurs when the presence of one species enhances the
growth, survival, or reproduction of the interacting partner. A series of studies have highlighted
that the realized niche can be larger than the fundamental niche if there are positive interac-
tions between interacting species (Bruno et al., 2003).

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 Community Ecology
Figure 4.18 Schematic Ecologist uses the concept of niche to characterize species in terms of their similarity in resource
representation of the use. An important measure of this includes niche overlap. The sharing of niche space by two
concept of niche overlap.
or more species is called niche overlap. It occurs when two species use the same resources or
It occurs when members
other environmental variables. It is an index of similarity between the resource utilization of two
of two different species
use the same resources. species. The degree and type of niche overlap can be used to assess interspecific competition.
Usually, niches overlap Overlap is complete when two organisms have identical niches. Usually, niches overlap only
occurs partially, with partially, with some resources being shared and others being used exclusively by each species.
some resources being
shared and others
being used exclusively
by each species.
Niche axis 2

Niche axis 2

Niche axis 2
Fundamental Fundamental
niche of niche of
species A species B
Species A Species B

Niche axis 1 Niche axis 1 Niche axis 1

Niche width (also called niche breadth or niche size) describes the extent of the realized niche
occupied by an organism. This area is defined by suitable environmental condition and available
resources appropriate to that species as well as interspecific interactions. Some organisms
have smaller niches than others. It is a comparative feature. We can only say that a given
organism has a niche that is narrower or broader than that of some other organismic unit.
Effects of interspecific competition on niche breadth are complex and under different conditions
may actually favour either niche contraction or niche expansion.

Species X Species Y

Resource
utilization Niche overlap
A portion of resource that
is used by both the species

Niche dimension
Niche breadth of X

Niche breadth of Y

Scientists use the niche width of species to classify them broadly as generalists or specialists.
Generalist species have broad niches. They can live in many different places, eat a variety of
foods, and often tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions. Flies, cockroaches, mice,
rats and humans are generalist species. These species usually exploit more food types, occupy
diverse habitats and build up larger populations. In contrast, specialist species occupy narrow
niches. They may be able to live in only one type of habitat, use one or a few types of food, or
tolerate a narrow range of climatic and other environmental conditions. This makes specialists
more prone to extinction when environmental conditions change.
Organisms that occupy the same or similar niches in different geographical regions are called
ecological equivalents. The idea of ‘ecological equivalents’ was first stressed by Grinnell in
1924. Species that occupy same equivalent niches and occur in widely separated regions are
generally taxonomically much different. A grassland community develops wherever there is a
grassland climate but the species of grasses (the producer) and grazers (herbivores) may be
quite different especially where regions are widely separated.

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Community Ecology
the environment similar in both places. Apart from the above two criteria, resources should
be limiting and there must be interspecific competition for resources. Finally, differences must
have evolved in situ and heritable.

1
G. fuliginosa
50

Los Hermanos
islands
25

Allopatric
0
Individuals in each size class (%)

Beak depth (mm)

2
G. fortis
50
Daphne major
islands
25

Allopatric
0
Beak depth (mm)
G. fuliginosa

50 San Cristobal
G. fortis
islands

25
Sympatric

0
7 9 11 13 15
Beak depth (mm)

Figure 4.25 Character displacement in Darwin’s finches. These two species of finches (genus Geospiza)
have beaks of similar size when allopatric, but different size when sympatric. The first two graphs show
beak sizes in allopatric population of G. fuliginosa and G. fortis. The third graph shows beak sizes in sym-
patric population, where two species occur together. Due to character displacement individuals of the two
species differ more if they are sampled from a place where both species are present i.e. sympatric than do
individuals sampled from places where only one of the species is present i.e. allopatric (from Lack, 1947).

4.12 Ecological succession

Ecological succession is a universal process of natural change in the community structure (spe-
cies composition and species abundance) on an ecological time scale i.e. temporal change in
the community’s structure (specifically, changes in species dominance). Ecological communities
consist of living organisms; hence, they are not static entities. They are dynamic and undergo
continuous structural and functional changes. An important characteristic of all communities
is that their structure constantly changes in response to the changing environmental condi-
tions. The nature of change is parallel with the changes in the physical environment. Hence,
most ecological succession displays a gradual and fairly predictable change in the community
structure in a given area. These changes finally lead to a community that is in near equilibrium
with the environment and that is called a climax community. Climax community marks the

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 Community Ecology
endpoint of succession. The whole sequence of communities that replace one another in the
successional process is termed sere (from the word series). It is the series of successional
stages at a particular site advancing towards its climax community. The temporary successional
community in a sere is called seral stages. The initial seral stage is termed the pioneer stage
and its community as the pioneer community. In many cases more than one seral stage evolves
until a climax community (final endpoint of the succession) is attained. Each seral stage is a
snapshot of a continuum that is changing over time, but each has its characteristic species
composition. Eventually, succession slows as the community reaches a steady equilibrium with
the environment i.e. climax stage.

Bare rock Pioneer community Seral stage Climax community

Ecological time scale

The ecological succession can be broadly classified into two kinds on the basis of the nature of
habitat from which primary succession starts – hydrarch and xerarch. Succession initiated with
the establishment of pioneer communities in an aquatic body is termed hydrarch succession.
The series of aquatic communities appears in aquatic bodies leading to climax community is
termed hydrosere. Succession initiated with the establishment of pioneer communities in dry
land and on the rock is termed xerarch succession and the whole sequence of communities
that replace one another leading to climax community are called xerosere. Two common
situations in xerosere are lithosere (development of communities on fresh rock surface) and
psammosere (development of communities on sand).

Pattern of succession
Ecological succession may be viewed as the development of a community from its inception
(the ‘pioneer’ stage), through a series of recognizable intermediate seral stages, each almost
equivalent to a community in its own right, to a climax. It is regarded as a process resulting
in the greater stability of the community, and the climax community is considered the most
stable community that can exist in that particular environment. While ecologists today recognize
that successional processes are less predictable than those proposed by Clements in the 1920s,
several of his predicted patterns are generally considered to hold true for successional process.
Eugene Odum, an ecosystem ecologist, described several predictable differences between early
and late-successional stages. For example, during succession, the early-successional species
(often referred to as pioneer species) are usually characterized by high growth rates, smaller
size, high degree of dispersal, and high rates of per capita population growth. In contrast, the
late-successional species generally have lower rates of dispersal and colonization, slower per
capita growth rates, and they are larger and longer-lived. Similarly, Fakhri Bazzaz characterized
early and late successional systems based on the physiology of plants associated with these
stages. Early successional plants tend to have high rates of photosynthesis and respiration,
high rates of resource uptake and high light compensation points, whereas late-successional

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Community Ecology
plants often have opposite characteristics. In the table 4.5, we have described the trends of
changes during the early and late stages of succession with respect to community structure,
life history, nutrient cycling, selection pressure, overall homeostasis and community energetics.

Table 4.5 Trends of changes in early and late-successional stages

Attribute Early Late

Community structure

Total organic matter Small Large

Inorganic nutrients Extrabiotic Intrabiotic

Species richness Low High

Species evenness Low High

Biochemical diversity Low High

Stratification and spatial heterogeneity Poorly organized Well-organized

Life history

Niche specialization Broad Narrow

Size of organism Small Large

Life cycles Short, simple Long, complex

Nutrient cycling

Mineral cycles Open Closed

Nutrient exchange rate between organisms and Rapid Slow

environment

Role of detritus in nutrient regeneration Unimportant Important

Selection pressure

Growth form r-selection K-selection

Production Quantity Quality

Overall homeostasis

Internal symbiosis Undeveloped Developed

Nutrient conservation Poor Good

Stability (resistance to external perturbations) Poor Good

Entropy High Low

Information Low High

Community energetics

Gross production/community respiration (P/R ratio) Greater or less than 1 Approaches 1

Gross production/standing crop biomass (P/B ratio) High Low

Biomass supported/unit energy flow (B/E ratio) Low High

Net community production (yield) High Low

If a nutrient cycle is
Food chains Linear, Weblike,
closed, nutrients are
predominantly predominantly
returned to a nutrient grazing detritus
pool and tightly recycled
within a system. Source: Odum EP (1969), The strategy of ecosystem development, Science.

144
Chapter 5
Biodiversity

Biodiversity, short for biological diversity, refers to the sum total of all the variety and vari-
ability of life in a defined area. In contrast to the more specific term species diversity, the
term biodiversity was coined to emphasize the many complex kinds of variations that exist
within and among organisms at different levels of the organization. It refers to the totality of
genes, species and ecosystems of a region. United Nations Earth Summit defined biological
diversity as:
‘Biological diversity means the variability among living organisms from all sources including,
inter alia (among other things), terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the
ecological complexes of which they are a part; this includes diversity within species, between
species and of ecosystems.’
Convention on Biological Diversity, 1992

5.1 Levels of biodiversity

Biodiversity includes three hierarchical levels: Genetic, species and ecosystem diversity.

Genetic diversity
Genetic diversity refers to the variation in the genetic composition of individuals within or
among species. Genetic diversity enables the population to adapt to its environment and re-
spond to natural selection. The amount of genetic variation is the basis of speciation. Genetic
diversity occurs at several levels of organization, such as among higher taxonomic categories
such as kingdoms, phyla and families, among species and among populations. Most genetic
diversity can be observed between organisms of two kingdoms (such as plants versus ani-
mals), between phyla (such as arthropods versus chordates), between classes (such as birds
versus reptiles) and so on.

Species diversity
According to the biological species concept, species are groups of actually or potentially inter-
breeding natural populations, which are reproductively isolated from other such groups. Species
diversity refers to the variety of species within a region i.e. species richness. However, in the
broad sense, species diversity includes species richness as well as species evenness. We can
include taxonomic (or phylogenetic) diversity also under species diversity. Taxonomic diversity

153
Biodiversity
describes the genetic relationship between different groups of species. A more taxonomically
diverse community is therefore considered genetically more diverse compared to the less taxo-
nomically diverse community.

Ecosystem diversity
Ecosystems include all the species, plus all the abiotic factors characteristic of a region. For
example, a desert ecosystem has soil, temperature, rainfall patterns, and solar radiation that
affect not only what species occur there, but also the morphology, behaviour and the interactions
among those species. Ecosystem diversity describes the number of niches, trophic levels and
various ecological processes that sustain energy flow, food webs and the recycling of nutrients.

5.2 Gradients and Magnitude of biodiversity

Gradients of biodiversity
Biodiversity varies with changes in latitude or altitude. As we move from the poles to the equator,
the biodiversity increases, and vice versa. The increase in species richness or biodiversity that
occurs from the poles to the tropics often referred to as the latitudinal gradient in species
diversity, is one of the most widely recognized patterns in ecology.
In general, species diversity decreases as we move away from the equator towards the poles.
With very few exceptions, tropics (latitudinal range of 23.5° N to 23.5° S) harbour more
species than temperate or polar areas. For example, Colombia located near the equator has
nearly 1,400 species of birds while New York at 41° N has about 105 species and Greenland at
71° N only about 56 species. India, with much of its land area in the tropical latitudes, has
more than 1,200 species of birds. The tropical Amazon rainforest in South America has the
greatest biodiversity on the earth – it is home to more than 40,000 species of plants.
Several hypothesis has been proposed to explain the latitudinal gradients of species richness.
Among them following hypotheses are predominantly addressed.

Climatic hypothesis: This hypothesis states that the climate is responsible for latitudinal gra-
dient in biodiversity. Two reasons are mainly considered in this hypothesis. 1. Few species
may able to physiologically tolerate conditions at higher latitudes. 2. Lesser climate stability
at higher latitudes may increase the extinction rate.

Evolutionary history hypothesis: Tropical communities are generally older than temperate or
polar communities. Over the course of evolutionary time, species diversity may increase in
a tropical community as more speciation events occur. It has been calculated that speciation
has occurred about five times more in the tropics as near the poles.

Species-energy hypothesis: This hypothesis suggests that the amount of available energy limits
North pole: 90° N
the richness of the system. Thus, increased solar energy at low latitudes causes increased
net primary productivity. The higher the net primary productivity the more individuals can be
supported, and the more species there will be in an area.
Equator 0°

Biotic hypotheses: According to this hypothesis ecological species interactions such as com-
petition, predation, mutualism, and parasitism are stronger in the tropics and these interac-

South pole: 90° S tions promote species coexistence and specialization of species, leading to greater speciation
in the tropics.

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Biodiversity

5.3 Uses of biodiversity

At the ecosystem level, biodiversity provides the conditions to drive the processes that sustain
the global economy – and our survival as a species. The benefits and services provided by
ecosystems include:

Ecosystem services
Biodiversity is essential for the maintenance of ecosystem services and their sustainable
utilization. These services include maintenance of gaseous composition of the atmosphere,
climate control by forests and oceanic systems, natural pest control, pollination of plants by
insects and birds, formation and protection of soil, conservation and purification of water and
nutrient cycling etc.

Prevention and mitigation of natural disasters

Forests and grasslands protect landscapes against erosion, nutrient loss, and landslides through
the binding action of roots. Ecosystems bordering regularly flooding rivers (floodplain forests
and wetlands) help to absorb excess water and thus, reduce the damage caused by floods.

Source of economically important products

Food: About 150 crops feed most of the human population at present, but just 12 of them provide
about 80% of food energy (with wheat, rice, maize and potato alone providing about 60%).
Also, about 30 mammalian and bird species are used extensively, but just 15 of them account
for over 90 percent of global livestock production. Biodiversity increases the range of food
products suitable for human consumption. Wild biodiversity provides a wide variety of important
foodstuffs, including fruits, meats, nuts, mushrooms, honey, spices and flavourings. These
wild foods are especially important when agricultural supplies fail. Indeed, wild biodiversity
guards against the failure of even the most advanced agricultural systems. For example, the
productivity of many of the developed world’s agricultural crops is maintained through the
regular assimilation of new genes from wild relatives of these crops. These wild genes offer
resistance to the pests and diseases that pose an ever-evolving threat to harvests.
Medicines: Biodiversity is also a rich source of substances with therapeutic properties like
morphine (used as an analgesic), quinine (used for the treatment of malaria) and taxol (an
anticancer drug). A significant proportion of drugs are derived, directly or indirectly, from
biological sources. Moreover, only a small proportion of the total diversity of organisms has
been thoroughly investigated for potential sources of new drugs.
Industrial materials: A wide range of industrial materials are derived directly from biological
resources. These include building materials, fibers, dyes, resins, gums, adhesives, rubber and
oil. There is enormous potential of obtaining economically important materials from a wider
diversity of organisms.

Aesthetic and cultural benefits

Biodiversity has also great aesthetic value. Aesthetic aspects include ecotourism, bird–watching,
wildlife, pet keeping, gardening etc. The beauty of nature is something many people are
enthralled by. There is something within the natural environment which people really connect
to, and gives them an immense sense of satisfaction when they experience nature. For some,
there are cultural or spiritual meanings attached to the landscape, whereas for others it is
simply the aesthetic quality of the natural environment which they enjoy so much.

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Biodiversity

Rare species
Species that are
IUCN Red List of threatened species
geographically specific, The IUCN Red List of threatened species is the world’s most comprehensive inventory of the
or habitat specific, or global conservation status of plant and animal species. It uses a set of criteria to evaluate the
have naturally small extinction risk of thousands of species and subspecies. These criteria are relevant to all species
populations. Rarity can and all regions of the world. It is based on an objective system for assessing the risk of extinction
be described on the basis of a species based on past, present and projected threats. Species assessments are conducted
of three separate charac-
following a standardized process using the rigorous IUCN Red List categories and criteria, ensur-
teristics:
ing the highest standards of scientific documentation, information management, expert review,
1. Geographic range.
and justification. There are eight IUCN Red List categories based on criteria linked to population
Some species are rare
trend, size and structure and geographic range. Species listed as critically endangered, endan-
because they are found
only in a small gered or vulnerable are collectively described as threatened.
geographic area.
2. Habitat specificity.
Species that occur only Threatened species
in specific, uncommon Threatened species are categorized into – critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable
types of habitat such as
There are five quantitative criteria that are used to determine whether a taxon is threatened
caves or desert springs.
or not, and if threatened, which category of threat it belongs in. These criteria are:
3. Local population size.
Some species occur at • Population size reduction (in 10 years or 3 generations)
low population densities • Geographic range
wherever they are found.
• Population size (only in terms of mature individuals)
• Small or restricted population
• Probability of extinction.

Most of the criteria also include subcriteria that must be used to justify more specifically the
listing of a taxon under a particular category. Each species should be evaluated against all
the criteria. Even though some criteria will be inappropriate for certain species. The relevant
factor is whether any one criterion is met or all are met. Because it will never be clear in ad-
vance which criteria are appropriate for a particular species, each species should be evaluated
against all the criteria.

Criteria

Population
A
reduction
Threatened categories Risk
Restricted
B
geographic range Critically Endangered, CR Extremely high risk extinction

Small population Quantitative

C Endangered, EN Very high risk of extinction
size and decline threshold

Very small or Vulnerable, VU High risk of extinction

D
restricted population

Quantitative
E
analysis

Each species should be evaluated against all the criteria. Even though some criteria will be
inappropriate for certain species. The relevant factor is whether any one criterion is met or
all are met. Because it will never be clear in advance which criteria are appropriate for a par-
ticular species, each species should be evaluated against all the criteria.

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Biodiversity
Table 5.2 Numbers of threatened species by major groups of organisms (1996–2021)

Estimated number of Number of species evaluated by 2021 Number of threatened species by 2021
described species (IUCN Red List version 2021-1) (IUCN Red List version 2021-1)*

Vertebrates

Mammals 6,513 5,940 1,323

Birds 11,158 11,158 1,481

Reptiles 11,341 8,492 1,458

Amphibians 8,309 7,212 2,442

Fishes 35,797 22,005 3,210

Subtotal 73,118 54,807 9,914

Invertebrates

Insects 1,053,578 10,865 1,926

Molluscs 81,719 8,881 2,305

Crustaceans 80,122 3,189 743

Corals 2,175 864 237

Arachnids 110,615 393 218

Velvet worms 227 11 09

Horseshoe crabs 04 04 02

Others 151,801 844 148

Subtotal 1,480,241 25,051 5,588

Plants

Mosses 21,925 282 165

Ferns and Allies 11,800 678 266

Gymnosperms 1,113 1,016 403

Flowering plants 369,000 52,077 20,883

Green algae 11,616 16 0

Red algae 7,291 58 09

Subtotal 422,745 54,127 21,726

Fungi and Protists

Lichens 17,000 57 50

Mushrooms 120,000 368 196

Brown algae 4,317 15 06

Subtotal 141,317 440 252

Total 2,117,421 134,425 37,480

*
Threatened species are those listed as Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN) or Vulnerable (VU).

Changes in number of threatened species from year to year should not be directly interpreted as trends in the status of biodiversity.
The figures displayed above reflect increased assessment efforts by IUCN and its Partners over time, rather than genuine
changes in numbers of threatened species. For a clearer view of genuine trends in the status of biodiversity please refer to the
IUCN Red List Index.

164

Conservation biology is
the science of maintain-
ing the Earth’s biological
diversity. Conservation
biology, said to be a
‘mission-oriented crisis
discipline’, is a multidis-
ciplinary science that has
developed to address the
loss of biological diver-
sity. Conservation biology
has two central goals:
1. to evaluate human
impacts on biological di-
versity and 2. to develop
practical approaches to
prevent the extinction of
species.
Biodiversity
5.7 Conservation of biodiversity
Biodiversity is a source of significant economic, aesthetic, health and cultural benefits which
form the foundation for sustainable development. However, there is a general scientific con-
sensus that the world is rapidly becoming less biologically diverse in terms of genes, species
and ecosystems. The reason for this is clearly anthropogenic. The scale of human impact on
biological diversity has been increasing exponentially primarily because of world-wide patterns
of consumption, production, trade; agricultural, industrial and settlement development; and
human population growth.
Neither the economic nor the ecosystem value of biodiversity is as yet well understood. In
particular, there is insufficient knowledge of the interdependence of species within ecosystems
and the impact of the extinction of one species on others. Hence, reducing the rate of biodi-
versity loss and conserving still existing biodiversity as the basis of sustainable development
remains a major global challenge.
Conservation is the protection, preservation, management or restoration of wildlife and natural
resources such as forests and water. Through the conservation of biodiversity, the survival
of many species and habitats which are threatened due to human activities can be ensured.
‘Conservation of biodiversity is an active management of the biosphere to ensure the survival
of the maximum diversity of species and the maintenance of genetic variability within spe-
cies. It includes the maintenance of biosphere function e.g. nutrient cycling and ecosystem
function. The term also includes the concept of sustainable resource use so that the environ-
ment may yield the greatest sustainable benefit to current generations while maintaining its
potential to meet the needs and aspirations of future generations. Conservation of species
and biological processes must be simultaneous with conservation of abiotic resources or it is
unlikely to succeed.’
Adapted from IUCN and UNEP, 1992.
Ex-situ and in-situ conservation
Conservation is the planned management of natural resources, to retain the balance in nature
and retain diversity. Conservation efforts can be grouped into the following two categories:
in-situ conservation (maintenance of biodiversity in natural habitat) and ex-situ conservation
(conservation of biodiversity outside natural habitat).
In-situ (‘on-site’) conservation includes conservation of habitats and ecosystems where or-
ganisms naturally occur i.e. on-site conservation. The conservation of organisms in Biosphere
Reserves (terrestrial and marine), National parks, Wildlife sanctuaries, Sacred groves, Biodi-
versity hotspots are all examples of in-situ conservation.
Ex-situ (‘off site’) conservation is a set of conservation strategies involving the transfer of a
target species away from its native habitat to a place of safety, such as a zoological garden,
botanical garden or seed bank. Its primary objective is to support conservation by ensuring
the survival of threatened species and the maintenance of associated genetic diversity. To do
so, ex-situ institutions preserve the genetic or reproductive material of a target species or take
care of the living target species for the purpose of reintroduction. Thus, there is a fundamental
difference between these two strategies: ex-situ conservation involves the sampling, transfer,
and storage of target taxa from the target area, whereas in-situ conservation involves the
designation, management, and monitoring of target taxa where they are encountered.
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 Biodiversity
Table 5.3 List of designated biosphere reserves in India

S.No. Name of the Biosphere Date of Location in the State/Union Territory

Reserve and total designation
geographical area (Km2)

1. Nilgiri (5520) 01.08.1986 Part of Wayanad, Nagarhole, Bandipur and Mudumalai, Nilambur,
Silent Valley and Siruvani hills in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.

2. Nanda Devi (5860.69) 18.01.1988 Part of Chamoli, Pithoragarh and Almora districts in Uttarakhand.

3. Nokrek (820) 01.09.1988 Part of East, West and South Garo Hill districts in Meghalaya.

4. Manas (2837) 14.03.1989 Part of Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Nalbari, Kamrup and
Darrang districts in Assam.

5. Sunderban (9630) 29.03.1989 Part of delta of Ganges and Brahmaputra river system in West Ben-
gal.

6. Gulf of Mannar (10500) 18.02.1989 India part of Gulf of Mannar extending from Rameswaram island in
the North to Kanyakumari in the South of Tamil Nadu.

7. Great Nicobar (885) 06.01.1989 Southern most island of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

8. Similipal (4374) 21.06.1994 Part of Mayurbhanj district in Orissa.

9. Dibru-Saikhova (765) 28.07.1997 Part of Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts in Assam.

10. Dehang-Dibang (5111.5) 02.09.1998 Part of Upper Siang, West Siang and Dibang Valley districts in
Arunachal Pradesh.

11. Pachmarhi (4981.72) 03.03.1999 Part of Betul, Hoshangabad and Chhindwara districts in Madhya
Pradesh.

12. Khangchendzonga (2619.92) 07.02.2000 Part of North and West districts in Sikkim.

13. Agasthyamalai (3500.36) 12.11.2001 Part of Thirunelveli and Kanyakumari districts in Tamil Nadu and
Thiruvanthapuram, Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts in Kerala.

14. Achanakmar-Amarkantak 30.03.2005 Part of Anuppur and Dindori districts of Madhya Pradesh and
(3,835.51) Bilaspur district of Chattisgarh.

15. Kachchh (12,454) 29.01.2008 Part of Kachchh, Rajkot, Surendranagar and Patan districts in
Gujarat.

16. Cold Desert (7,770) 28.08.2009 Pin Valley National Park and surroundings; Chandratal & Sarchu;
and Kibber Wildlife sanctuary in Himachal Pradesh.

17. Seshachalam (4755.997) 20.09.2010 Seshachalam hill ranges in Eastern Ghats encompassing part of
Chittoor and Kadapa districts in Andhra Pradesh.

18. Panna (2998.98) 25.08.2011 Part of Panna and Chhattarpur districts in Madhya Pradesh.

Source: Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change: List of Designated Biosphere Reserves, Annual Report 2013-14.

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Biodiversity
National Board for
Wildlife
National Board for
Wildlife (NBWL) is
a statutory Board
constituted on 22nd
September 2003 under
the Wild Life (Protection)
Act, 1972. The NBWL is
chaired by the Hon’ble
Prime Minister. Primary
function of the Board is
to promote the conserva-
tion and development of
wildlife and forests. It is
a very important body
because it serves as
apex body to review all
wildlife-related matters
and approve projects
in and around national
parks and sanctuaries.
172
Sacred groves
Sacred groves comprise of patches of forests of varying sizes that are protected by local
communities because of their religious beliefs and traditional rituals that run through several
generations. The degree of sanctity of the sacred forests varies from one grove to another.
People believe that any kind of disturbance will offend the local deity (devata), causing dis-
eases, natural calamities or failure of crops. For example, the Garo and the Khasi tribes of
North-Eastern India completely prohibit any human interference in the sacred groves.
5.9 Biodiversity conservation: International and National efforts
Biodiversity is a wealth to which no value can be put. In the final analysis, the very survival
of the human race is dependent on conservation of biodiversity. It is evident that this invalu-
able resource is being destroyed at an alarming rate due to several reasons. Measures are
being taken up at national and international levels to address this issue. The Earth Summit
produced a plan of action on a number of issues (Agenda 21) including conservation of biodi-
versity during the 21st century.
International conservation strategies
Conserving biodiversity is not an issue confined to any one country or community. It is a cru-
cial global concern. Several international treaties and agreements are in place in the attempt
to strengthen international participation and commitment towards conserving biodiversity.
Some of these are:
Convention on Biological diversity
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), known informally as the Biodiversity Convention,
is a multilateral treaty. The notion of an international convention on biological diversity was
conceived at a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) by Ad Hoc Working Group of
Experts on Biological Diversity in November 1988. The Convention was opened for signature
at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro on 5 June 1992 and entered into force on 29 December
1993. It has three main objectives:
• The conservation of biological diversity.
• The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity.
• The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.
CITES
CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora),
also known as the Washington Convention, is an international agreement to protect endangered
plants and animals. It was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting
of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The convention
was opened for signature in 1973 and CITES entered into force on 1 July 1975. Its aim is to
ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the
survival of the species in the wild, and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than
35,000 species of animals and plants. India became a party to CITES in 1976.
Biodiversity

References
Bascompte J and Sole RV (1996), Habitat fragmentation and extinction thresholds in spatially explicit
models. Journal of Animal Ecology, 65, 465–473.

Butchart SHM et al. (2010), Global biodiversity: Indicators of recent declines, Science, 328, 1164–1168.

Caughley G (1994), Directions in conservation biology. Journal of Animal Ecology, 63, 215-244.

Chapin FS et al. (2000), Consequences of changing biodiversity, Nature, 405, 234–242.

Chapin FS, Schulze ED and Mooney HA (1992), Biodiversity and ecosystem processes. Trends in
Ecology and Evolution, 7:107-108.

Convention on Biological Diversity (1992), United Nations.

Côté SD (2005), Extirpation of a large black bear population by introduced white-tailed deer.
Conservation Biology, 19: 1668–1671.

Dirzo R and Raven PH (2003), Global State of Biodiversity and Loss, Annual Review Environment
and Resources, 28, 137-167.

Fahrig L (1997), Relative effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on population extinction. Journal
of Wildlife Management, 61:603-610.

Gibbs WW (2001), On the termination of species. Scientific American, 285: 40-49.

Grenier MB, McDonald DB, Buskirk SW (2007), Rapid population growth of a critically endangered
carnivore. Science, 317: 779.

Higgs ES (1997), What is good ecological restoration? Conservation Biology, 11:338-348.

Huston M (1979), A general hypothesis of species diversity. American Naturalist, 133:81-101.

Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change: List of Designated Biosphere Reserves,
Annual Report 2013-14.

Primack RB (1993), Essentials of Conservation Biology, Sunderland, MA: Sinauer & Associates.

Raup DM (1994), The role of extinction in evolution. Proceedings National Academy Science USA,
91, 6758-6763.

WRI, IUCN and UNEP (1992), Global Biodiversity Strategy. Washington, DC.

180
Chapter 6
Pollution

Pollution is any undesirable change in the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of

the air, water and land that can harmfully affect the living organisms and the ecosystem as
a whole. Any substance introduced into the environment that adversely affects the physical,
chemical or biological properties of the environment that have a harmful effect on the ecosys-
tem as a whole is termed as pollutant. There are three major types of environmental pollution:
air pollution, water pollution and soil pollution.

6.1 Air pollution

Air pollution may be defined as any atmospheric condition in which substances are present at
concentrations above their normal permissible levels to produce a measurable effect on man,
animals, vegetation or materials. Substances mean any natural or anthropogenic (man-made)
chemical compounds capable of being airborne. They may exist in the atmosphere as gases,
liquid drops or solid particles.
According to Air (prevention and control) act, 1981, an air pollutant is any solid, liquid or
gaseous substance (including noise) present in the atmosphere in such concentration as may
be or tend to be injurious to human being or other living creatures or plants or property or
environment.

6.1.1 Composition of air

Air is a heterogenous mixture of different gases that makes the atmosphere. Atmosphere is
the gaseous mass or envelope surrounding the earth and retained by the earth’s gravitational
field. The troposphere is the lowest portion of earth’s atmosphere. It contains approximately
80% of the atmosphere’s mass. By volume, standard dry air contains 78.08% nitrogen, 20.9%
oxygen, 0.9% argon, 0.040% carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other gases. There are
two common ways by which one can represent the composition of air – percentage of gas
by volume or percentage of the gas by mass. It is important to note that, the composition of
different gases (in dry air) by mass is a fixed one whereas the percentage composition of the
gases by volume or mass in wet air (i.e. air containing moisture) is dependent on humidity
or the moisture in the air.

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Pollution
Table 6.1 Composition of clean, dry air (expressed in volume)

Constituent Percent by volume In ppm

Nitrogen 78.084 780840

Oxygen 20.94 209440

Argon 0.93 9340

Carbon dioxide 0.040 419 (Year 2021)

6.1.2 Sources of air pollution

There are two main sources of air pollution:

Natural sources – such as wind-blown dust, wildfires and volcanoes

Man-made (or anthropogenic) sources

Man-made sources can be mobile or stationary in nature.

Mobile sources: These sources account for most of the air pollution and the primary mobile
source of air pollution is the automobile.
Stationary sources: Air pollution sources that do not move from one location to another. It
can be either point source or area source.
Point sources include pollution from power plants, oil refineries, emit large amounts of pollution
from a single location.
Area sources include emissions from many smaller stationary sources present in an industrial,
commercial and residential area.

6.1.3 Types of air pollutants

Air pollutant can be of natural origin or man-made. It can be classified on the following basis:
• the physical state of the pollutant
• the basis of origin
• the occurrence and nature of the threat

Classification based on the physical state of the pollutant

According to the physical state of pollutant, pollutants may be gaseous and particulate in nature.
Gaseous pollutants include carbon dioxide, oxides of sulfur (SOx), oxides of nitrogen (NOx),
carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chlorofluorocarbons, ammonia and
other gases.
Particulate matters are tiny solid or liquid particles suspended in air.

Classification based on origin

Air pollutants can also be classified as either primary or secondary, based on origin.

Primary air pollutants are substances which are directly emitted into the atmosphere from
natural and anthropogenic sources, such as sulfur dioxide from a volcanic eruption and the
carbon monoxide gas from motor vehicles.

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 Pollution
The Clean Air Act is a Secondary air pollutants are not emitted directly. Rather, they form in the air when primary
United States federal law pollutants react or interact in the atmosphere. Example of a secondary pollutant includes ozone,
designed to control air
which is formed when hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen combine in the presence of sunlight.
pollution on a national
level. It is administered
by the US environmental
Based on the occurrence and nature of the threat
protection agency (EPA). Based on the occurrence and nature of the threat, air pollutants are classified into two
classes – Criteria air pollutants and toxic air pollutants. These air pollutants have diverse
chemical and physical properties.

Criteria air pollutants, as designated under the US Clean Air Act of 1971, include pollutants
that are ubiquitous and are known or strongly suspected to be harmful to public health and
the environment. Currently, six pollutants are designated as criteria air pollutants. These are
tropospheric ground-level ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, particu-
late matter (PM10 and PM2.5) and lead. For each of these pollutants, a primary health-based
national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) under the ‘clean air act’ has been established,
which specifies the ‘safe’ level of the pollutant that can be present in the air.

Toxic air pollutants (also known as hazardous air pollutants or air toxics) are those pollut-
ants that are not widespread but known or suspected to cause cancer or other serious health
effects, such as reproductive or birth defects, or adverse environmental effects. Toxic air
pollutants include a diverse set of pollutants and come from multiple sources. Examples of
toxic air pollutants include benzene (which is found in gasoline), perchloroethylene (which is
emitted from some dry-cleaning facilities) and methylene chloride (which is used as a solvent
and paint stripper by a number of industries). Other listed air toxics include dioxin, asbestos,
toluene and metals such as cadmium, mercury and chromium. About 70% of the pollutants
classified as hazardous air pollutants fall into the category of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
Any chemical compound based on carbon with a vapor pressure greater than 2 mm of mercury
at 25°C are called VOCs. However, according to EPA, VOCs means any compound of carbon,
excluding carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, carbonic acid, metallic carbides or carbonates and
ammonium carbonate, which participates in atmospheric photochemical reactions. VOCs are
numerous, varied and ubiquitous. They include both man-made (anthropogenic VOCs, AVOCs)
and naturally (biogenic VOCs, BVOCs) occurring chemical compounds. Based on the chemi-
cal nature, VOCs can be non-methane VOCs (NMVOCs), oxygenic VOCs (OVOCs) and others.

6.1.4 Criteria air pollutants

Criteria air pollutants are those air pollutants for which ambient air standards have
been defined to protect human health and welfare. Six pollutants are designated as cri-
teria air pollutants. These are carbon monoxide, lead, oxides of nitrogen, ground-level
ozone, particulate matter and oxides of sulfur. These are the pollutants regulated by us-
ing two sets of criteria for pollutant standards. The first set of standard, also known as
primary standard, is to protect human health. A second set of standard, also known as
secondary standard, aims to protect environment and property.

Carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odourless and tasteless gas and the most abundant among
the criteria pollutants. It is produced as a result of incomplete combustion of carbonaceous

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Pollution
Table 6.2 National ambient air quality standards in India

Pollutant Time weighted Concentration in ambient air

average
Industrial, residential, Ecologically sensitive area
rural and other areas (notified by central government)

Annual 50 20
SO2 (μg/m3)
24 hours 80 80

Annual 40 30
NO2 (μg/m3)
24 hours 80 80

Annual 60 60
PM10 (μg/m3)
24 hours 100 100

Annual 40 40
PM2.5 (μg/m3)
24 hours 60 60

8 hours 100 100

O3 (μg/m3)
1 hour 180 180

Annual 0.50 0.50

Pb (μg/m3)
24 hours 1.0 1.0

8 hours 2 2
CO (mg/m3)
1 hour 4 4

Annual 100 100

NH3 (μg/m3)
24 hours 400 400

Benzene Annual 5 5
3
Benzo(a)Pyrene (ng/m ) Annual 1 1

As (ng/m3) Annual 6 6
3
Ni (ng/m ) Annual 20 20

Source: NAAQS, Central Pollution Control Board notification in the Gazette of India, 2009.

Box 6.1 Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)

The CPCB of India is a statutory organization under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Cli-
mate Change. It was established in 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution)
Act, 1974. Later, CPCB is also entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention
and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. The board is led by its chairman, who is nominated by the
central government. The main functions of the CPCB are:
• To advise the central government on any matter concerning the improvement of the quality of
the air and the prevention, control and abatement of air pollution.
• To plan and cause to be executed a nation-wide programme for the prevention, control and
abatement of air pollution.
• To provide technical assistance and guidance to the State Pollution Control Board.
• To carry out and sponsor investigations and research related to prevention, control and abate-
ment of air pollution.
• To collect, compile and publish technical and statistical data related to air pollution; and
• To lay down an annual standards for the quality of air.

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 Pollution

WHO air quality guidelines

World Health Organization (WHO) work on environmental health provides the basis for global
standards in environmental quality. The ‘WHO air quality guidelines’ provide an assessment
of the health effects of air pollution and thresholds for health-harmful pollution levels. The
guidelines are intended for worldwide use. On the other hand, air quality standards are set by
each country to protect public health. Therefore, national standards will vary according to the
approach adopted for balancing health risks, technological feasibility, economic considerations
and various other political and social factors.

Table 6.3 WHO air quality standards

Pollutants Time weighted average Standard limits (μg/m3)

Annual mean 10
PM2.5
24 hours mean 25

Annual mean 20
PM10
24 hours mean 50

Ozone 8 hours mean 100

Annual mean 40
Nitrogen dioxide
1 hour mean 200

24 hours mean 20
Sulphur dioxide
10 minute mean 500

Source: WHO air quality guidelines – global update, 2005.

Air Quality Index

The air quality index (AQI) is an index for reporting daily air quality. It tells you how clean
or polluted your air is. Index ranges from 0 to 500. The higher the value, the greater the
level of air pollution and the greater the health concern. Thus, it is a tool to describe the air
quality status to the people in terms, which are easy to understand. It transforms complex
air quality data of various pollutants into a number (index value), nomenclature and color.
Different countries have their own air quality indices, corresponding to different national air
quality standards.
In India, there are six air quality indices categories, namely good, satisfactory, moderately
polluted, poor, very poor and severe. The existing air quality indices consider eight pollutants
(particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, ammonia, sulphur dioxide and
lead) for which short-term (up to 24 hourly averaging period) NAAQS are prescribed.
Based on the measured ambient concentrations, corresponding standards and likely health
impact, a sub-index is calculated for each of these pollutants. The worst sub-index reflects
overall air quality indices. Associated likely health impacts for different air quality indices cat-
egories and pollutants have also been suggested, with primary inputs from the medical expert
members of the group. The air quality indices values and corresponding ambient concentra-
tions (health breakpoints) as well as associated likely health impacts for the identified eight
pollutants are given in table 6.4.

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Pollution
Indoor air quality (IAQ)
refers to the quality of
the air inside buildings as
represented by concen-
trations of pollutants and
thermal (temperature
and relative humidity)
conditions that affect the
health and performance
of occupants.
192
AQI Remark Possible health impacts
0-50 Good Minimal impact
51-100 Satisfactory Minor breathing discomfort to sensitive people
101-200 Moderate Breathing discomfort to the people with lungs, asthma and
heart diseases
201-300 Poor Breathing discomfort to most people on prolonged exposure
301-400 Very poor Respiratory illness to the people on prolonged exposure
401-500 Severe Affects healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing
lung and heart diseases
National Air Quality Monitoring Programme
Air quality monitoring is the collection and measurement of samples of ambient air pollutants to
evaluate the status of the atmosphere as compared to clean air standards or historical informa-
tion. It is used to control the operation of a process or emissions control device performance.
CPCB is executing a nation-wide programme of ambient air quality monitoring known as Na-
tional Air Quality Monitoring Programme (NAMP). Under NAMP, four air pollutants - SO2, NO2,
PM10 and PM2.5 have been identified for regular monitoring at different locations. The moni-
toring of meteorological parameters such as wind speed and wind direction, relative humidity
and temperature were also integrated with the monitoring of air quality. The monitoring of
pollutants is carried out for 24 hours (4 hourly sampling for gaseous pollutants and 8 hourly
sampling for particulate matters) with a frequency of twice a week, to have one hundred and
four (104) observations in a year.
The objectives of the NAMP are:
• To determine status and trends of ambient air quality;
• To ascertain whether the prescribed ambient air quality standards are violated;
• To identify non-attainment cities;
• To obtain the knowledge and understanding necessary for developing preventive and
corrective measures;
• To understand the natural cleansing process undergoing in the environment through
pollution dilution, dispersion, wind based movement, dry deposition, precipitation and
chemical transformation of pollutants generated.
6.1.7 Indoor air pollution
Indoor air pollution refers to the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of air in the
indoor environment within a home, building, institution or commercial facility. Different condi-
tions are responsible for indoor air pollution in the rural areas and the urban areas.
In the developing countries, it is the rural areas that face the greatest threat from indoor pollu-
tion. This is mainly due to use of traditional fuels such as firewood, charcoal and cow dung for
cooking and heating. Burning such fuels produces large amount of smoke and other air pollutants.
 Pollution
Table 6.4 AQI category, Pollutants and Health breakpoints

AQI category (Conc. range) PM10 PM2.5 NO2 O3 CO SO2 NH3 Pb

Good (0-50) 0-50 0-30 0-40 0-50 0-1.0 0-40 0-200 0-0.5

Satisfactory (51-100) 51-100 31-60 41-80 51-100 1.1-2.0 41-80 201-400 0.5-1.0

Moderately polluted (101-200) 101-250 61-90 81-180 101-168 2.1-10 81-380 401-800 1.1-2.0

Poor (201-300) 251-350 91-120 181-280 169-208 10-17 381-800 801-1200 2.1-3.0

Very poor (301-400) 351-430 121-250 281-400 209-748 17-34 801-1600 1200-1800 3.1-3.5

Severe (401-500) 430+ 250+ 400+ 748+ 34+ 1600+ 1800+ 3.5+

• CO in mg/m3 and other pollutants in μg/m3;

• 24-hours average values for PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, NH3 and Pb and 8-hours average values for CO and O3.

In urban areas, exposure to indoor air pollution has increased due to a variety of reasons,
including the construction of more tightly sealed buildings, reduced ventilation, the use of
synthetic materials for building and furnishing and the use of chemical products, pesticides
and household care products. Common indoor air pollutants include:
• Biological contaminants
It includes pollen from plants, mite, hair from pets, fungi, parasites and bacteria.
• Carbon dioxide
• Carbon monoxide
• Dust
• Tobacco smoke
• Fine particulate matter
• Lead
• Nitrogen oxides
• Pesticides
• Radon: Radon is a colorless, odorless radioactive gas that is formed in soil due to natural
breakdown of Uranium and is emitted naturally by the soil. Radon is the leading cause
Infiltration is the term of lung cancer among non-smokers. Due to modern houses having poor ventilation, it is
used to describe the
confined inside the house.
natural air exchange that
occurs between a build- • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs ): The main indoor sources for VOCs are perfumes, hair
ing and its environment sprays, furniture polish, glues, air fresheners, moth repellents, wood preservatives and
when doors and windows many other products used in the house.
are closed.

Natural ventilation is the 6.1.8 Acid rain

air exchange that occurs
when windows or doors Acid rain or acid deposition is a broad term refers to any form of precipitation (rain, snow,
are purposely opened to fog, hail or even dust) containing higher than normal amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids.
increase air circulation, Forms of acid deposition may be wet deposition or dry deposition. In the case of wet deposi-
while forced ventilation
tion, the sulfuric and nitric acids formed in the atmosphere fall to the ground mixed with rain.
occurs when mechanical
However, acidic particles can also deposit from the atmosphere in the absence of moisture as
air handling system in-
duces air exchange using dry deposition. The term acid rain is used most often, but acid precipitation is more accurate
fans or blowers. since it can also reach the ground as dry particles in dust and smoke.

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Pollution
Acidity and alkalinity are measured using a pH scale for which 7.0 is neutral. The lower a sub-
stance’s pH (less than 7), the more acidic it is; the higher a substance’s pH (greater than 7),
the more alkaline it is. Normal rainwater is slightly acidic (pH of about 5.6) in nature because
carbon dioxide dissolves into it forming weak carbonic acid. When the pH of the rainwater
drops below 5.6 (between 4.2 and 4.4), it is called acid rain.

CO2 (g) + H2O (l) H2CO3 (aq)

H2CO3 (aq) H+ (aq) + HCO3– (aq)

The acidity of rainwater increases through the introduction of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides
into the atmosphere from both natural sources, such as volcanic eruption and man-made sources
primarily from fossil fuel combustion. These gases react in the atmosphere with water, oxygen
and other chemicals to form various acidic compounds such as sulfuric acid and nitric acid.

2SO2 (g) + O2 (g) + 2H2O (l) 2H2SO4 (aq)

4NO2 (g) + O2 (g) + 2H2O (l) 4HNO3 (aq)

Acid rain causes acidification of soil and water bodies such as lakes and streams. Some types
of plants and animals are able to tolerate acidic waters. Others, however, are acid-sensitive
and will be lost as the pH declines.
Acidification of soil due to acid rain increases the exchange between hydrogen ion and nutrient
cations like potassium, magnesium and calcium in the soil. These cations are liberated into
soil and can be rapidly leached out in soil solution along with sulphate. Acid induced leaching
leads to nutrient deficiency in the affected soils.
Acidic rainwater can also leach aluminum from soil clay particles. The more acid that is intro-
duced to the ecosystem, the more aluminum is released. That aluminum may be harmful to
plants as well as animals. In addition, acid rain accelerates the decay of building materials.
The acidic particles corrode metal and cause paint and stone to deteriorate more quickly. One
very famous example is the discoloration of Taj Mahal in India. The air around the city of Agra,
where the Taj Mahal is located, contains fairly high levels of sulfur and nitrogen oxides. It is
mainly due to a large number of industries and power plants around the area.

CaCO3 + H2SO4 CaSO4 + H2O + CO2

The resulting acid rain reacts with marble, CaCO3 of Taj Mahal causing damage to this wonder-
ful monument. As a result, the monument is being slowly disfigured and the marble is getting
discolored and lustreless.

6.1.9 Control of air pollution

Air pollution control includes the use of materials, processes, or practices that reduce or
eliminate the creation of pollutants or wastes. A control strategy related to air quality is a set
of specific techniques and measures identified and implemented to achieve reductions in air
pollution to attain an air quality standard or goal. The goal for all control strategies is to achieve
real and measurable air emission reductions.

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 Pollution

Control strategy
The air pollution control strategies assumes that a source of a specific pollutant can be reduced
to a target value to meet a regulation. Control strategy cannot be applied to an uncontrollable
source, such as a volcanic eruption, nor can it be expected to control a source completely
i.e. reduce emissions to zero. Control of any air pollutant source also requires a complete
knowledge of the contaminant and the source. Control strategy for a particular air pollutant
involves the following three steps:

1. Determine priority pollutants

It is the first step of control strategy. The pollutants of concern for a specific location
should be based on health effects and the severity of the air quality problem in that area.

2. Source control
Measures to control sources of pollution include:

Pollution prevention approaches

Pollution prevention approaches are required to reduce, eliminate or prevent pollution at
its source. It may include
• substitution of raw materials,
• process change and
• modification of existing equipment

Pollution control equipments

In many situations, sufficient control over emissions cannot be obtained by pollution pre-
vention approaches such as fuel or process change. In cases, the levels of the pollutants
of concern in the exhaust gases or process stream must be reduced to allowable values
before they are released to the atmosphere. It involves the use of pollution control equip-
ments to remove pollutants from the gas stream before releasing it to the environment.
If a pollutant is removed from the carrying gas stream, disposal of the collected material
is also very important. If the collected material is truly inert, it may be disposed of in a
sanitary landfill. If it is reactive and toxic then strict laws governing its disposal apply.

3. Compliance and enforcement programs

These programs help owners or operators of pollutant sources to understand the re-
quirements, as well as the actions that environmental authorities can take if the sources
don’t comply.
A gaseous substance is
called a vapour below its
Pollution control equipments are generally classified into two types: control devices for particu-
critical temperature, and
late matters and control devices for gaseous pollutants. Key characteristics of pollution control
a gas above its critical
devices depend on corrosiveness, inflammability, toxicity and reactivity for gaseous pollutants
temperature. For example,
the critical temperature and size range, particle shape, agglomeration tendencies, corrosiveness, abrasiveness, hygro-
for CO2 is 31.1°C. Below scopic tendencies and stickiness for particulate matters.
this temperature CO2 is
a ‘vapour’ and can be For particulate matters

liquefied by pressure. Cyclones

Above this temperature
Particle-laden gases are forced to change direction. The inertia of the particle causes them to
CO2 is a ‘gas’ and cannot
be liquefied by pressure separate from the gas stream.
alone.

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Pollution

Wet scrubbers
Liquid droplets (water) collect the particles by impaction, interception and diffusion. The droplets
and their particles are then separated from the gas stream.

Electrostatic precipitators
Electrical forces are used to move the particles out of the gas stream onto collection plates.

Filters
A porous fabric removes particulates from the gas stream. The porous dust cake that forms on
the fabric then actually does the filtration.

For gaseous pollutants

Contact and surface condensers

The vapor is cooled and condensed to a liquid.

Wet scrubbers
The gas or vapor is collected in a liquid.

Thermal incinerator
An organic gas or vapor is oxidized by heating it to a high temperature and holding it at that
temperature for a sufficient time period.

Catalytic incinerator
It is another category of oxidation systems that is similar to typical thermal oxidizers, but the
catalytic oxidizers use a catalyst to promote the oxidation.

Automobile emission controls

Vehicles are the principal cause of India’s urban air pollution problems. Vehicular emissions
are caused by both combustion and evaporation. To the extent that fossil fuels continue to be
used, there are three general approaches that can be used to reduce emissions from combus-
tion of fossil fuel.

Precombustion controls to reduce the emission potential of the fuel itself (for example, using
fuels with less sulfur or nitrogen content).

Combustion controls to reduce emissions by improving the combustion process itself.

Postcombustion controls to capture emissions after they have been formed but before they
are released to the air.

Most of the control of automobile emissions occur at the exhaust system. The approach most
favored by automobile manufacturers to achieve the emission standards has been the catalytic
converter (for CO, HCs and NOx). A catalytic converter is able to oxidize hydrocarbons and
carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide, while reducing NOx to N2 all in the same catalyst bed. For
pre-combustion controls, a number of alternatives to gasoline (petrol) are being investigated as
possible fuels for the future. These include ethanol, biodisel, CNG, LPG, hydrogen and electricity.

Ethanol, also known as grain alcohol, has long been used as an oxygenate to reduce CO emis-
sions, in which case the gasoline/ethanol mixture is usually referred to as gasohol. Ethanol
can be blended with gasoline with a range of mixture ratios. The two mixtures common in
the United States are E10 (10 percent ethanol, 90 percent gasoline, by volume) and E85 (85
percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline).

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Biodiesel can be created from vegetable oils, animal fats or recycled restaurant greases. It
is a biodegradable, domestic, renewable energy fuel that has the potential to help reduce
the need for petroleum-based transportation fuels as well as helping farmers by providing a
market for excess soybean oil. As a renewable fuel whose production requires little or no fos-
sil fuel, its net CO2 emissions are only about one-fourth that of standard diesel. The oxygen
in biodiesel enables more complete combustion to take place, and the fewer sulfur content
reduces sulfate emissions.
Biodiesel can be blended with conventional diesel in mixture strength, with the most common
blend B2 (2 percent biodiesel, 98 percent standard diesel) being popular because of its supe-
rior lubricity compared to ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuels. Other common blends are B5 and B20.
Conventional engines can run on B20 without any modifications, but higher concentrations may
require certain engine modifications to avoid maintenance or operational problems. Biodiesel is
produced using a process called transesterification in which the unwanted glycerol in vegetable
oil or fat is removed by chemical reactions involving an alcohol, such as methanol or ethanol
and a catalyst. The catalyst is usually sodium or potassium hydroxide.

CNG (compressed natural gas) is made by compressing natural gas which is mainly composed
of methane. CNG combustion produces fewer undesirable gases than petrol, diesel and LPG.
CNG is often confused with LNG (liquefied natural gas). While both are stored forms of natu-
ral gas (predominantly methane), the key difference is that CNG is gas that is stored at high
pressure, while LNG is stored at very low temperature, becoming liquid in the process. CNG is
a very clean fuel resulting in very low emissions of reactive hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide,
particulates and toxics.

LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) is the most popular cooking fuel. It is a mixture of gases, lique-
fied by compression, consisting of primarily propane or primarily butane or mixture of propane
and butane. It is obtained either from crude oil or from natural gas. Crude oil, recovered from
underground oil deposits, is a mixture of heavy hydrocarbons. In a petroleum refinery, this oil
is heated and turned into a mixture of gases and liquids. The mixture of gases become liquid
when kept under pressure. When pressure is released, they again turn into gaseous forms as
happens when the valve in the gas is released. LPG is volatile and highly inflammable. Since
the hydrocarbons do not have any smell a small quantity of powerful odorant, ethanethiol, is
added so that leaks can be detected easily.

Box 6.2 Bharat stage emission standards

Fuel quality plays a very important role in meeting the stringent emission regulation. Bharat
stage emission standards (BSES) are emission standards adopted by the Government of India
to regulate the output of air pollutants from internal combustion engines and spark-ignition
engines. The standards and the timeline for implementation are set by the CPCB under the
MoEFCC. The Bharat stage emission standard is based on European emission standards. It was
first introduced in year 2000 (Euro-I and Euro-II equivalent norms). Progressively stringent
norms have been rolled out since then. Since October 2010, Bharat stage III (Euro-III equiva-
lent) norms have been enforced across the country. In 13 major cities, Bharat stage IV (Euro-IV
equivalent) emission norms have been in place since April 2010 and it is enforced for whole
country from April 2017. In 2016, the Indian government announced that the country would
skip the Bharat stage V (Euro-V equivalent) emission norms altogether and adopt Bharat stage
VI (Euro-VI equivalent) norms by 2020.

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6.1.10 Noise pollution

Noise is defined as unwanted sound which causes undesirable physiological and psychologi-
cal effects in an individual. The word ‘noise’ descends from the Latin word ‘nausea,’ meaning
seasickness, or, more generally, any similar sensation of disgust, annoyance or discomfort.
Sound with frequency between 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz are called audible sound. Frequencies
below the range of human audibility are called infrasound, and those above it are referred to
as ultrasound. Decibel (abbreviated dB) is a unit for measuring intensity of sound. A sound
of minimal audibility is assigned the value of 0 dB. The maximum decibel level that a human
ear can endure without experiencing damage is 120 dB.

Sources of noise pollution

The sources of noise pollution are divided into two categories– Natural sources and man-made
sources.

The natural sources include thunderstorms, tornado, cyclone, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes,
landslides, sounds produced by animals and rapidly falling water.

The man-made sources include transport system, industrial activities, fireworks, construction
activities, commercial activities and others.

Effect of noise pollution

Noise pollution affects both health and behavior. Noise can cause annoyance and aggression,
hypertension, high-stress levels, tinnitus, hearing loss, sleep disturbances and other harmful
effects. High noise levels can also contribute to cardiovascular effects.

Standards and guidelines of ambient noise level in India

Due to the increasing ambient noise levels in public places from various sources, inter-alia,
industrial activity, construction activity, generator sets, loudspeakers, public address systems,
music systems, vehicular horns and other mechanical devices have deleterious effects on human
health and the psychological well being of the people, Indian government has taken necessary
provision to regulate and control noise producing and generating sources with the objective
of maintaining the ambient air quality standards in respect of noise. Under the Environment
(Protection) Act, 1986, the central government has made the ‘Noise Pollution (Regulation and
Control) Rules, 2000’ for the regulation and control of noise producing and generating sources.

Table 6.5 Ambient air quality standards in respect of noise

Limits in dB(A) Leq*

Area code Category of area/zone
Day time Night time

A Industrial area 75 70

B Commercial area 65 55

C Residential area 55 45

D Silence zone 50 40

Source: ‘Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000; ministry of environment forests and
climate change’.

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Note
1. Day time shall mean from 6.00 a.m. to 10.00 p.m.
2. Night time shall mean from 10.00 p.m. to 6.00 a.m.
3. Silence zone is defined as an area comprising not less than 100 metres around hospitals,
educational institutions and courts. The silence zones are zones which are declared as
such by the competent authority.
4. Mixed categories of areas may be declared as one of the four above mentioned categories
by the competent authority.
* dB(A) Leq denotes the time weighted average of the level of sound in decibels on scale A which is
relatable to human hearing. A decibel is a unit in which noise is measured.
In dB(A) Leq, ‘A’ denotes the frequency weighting in the measurement of noise and corresponds to
frequency response characteristics of the human ear.
‘Leq’ is an energy mean of the noise level over a specified period.

Box 6.3 Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 an Act of the Parliament of India to
control and prevent air pollution in India. It was amended in 1987. The Act was enacted to im-
plement the decisions taken at the United Nations Conference on Human Environment held at
Stockholm in June 1972, in which India participated.

The objective of this Act is to provide for the prevention, control and abatement of air pollution,
for the establishment, with a view to carrying out the aforesaid purposes, of Boards, for con-
ferring on and assigning to such Boards powers and functions relating thereto and for matters
connected therewith.

Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 is an Act of the Parliament of India. It came into force on
19 November 1986 with the objective of providing for the protection and improvement of the
environment. The Act was last amended in 1991. The Act is an ‘umbrella’ legislation designed
to provide a framework for central government to coordinate the activities of various central
and state authorities established under previous laws, such as the Water Act and the Air Act.
It empowers the Central Government to establish authorities charged with the mandate
of preventing environmental pollution in all its forms and to tackle specific environmental
problems that are peculiar to different parts of the country.

6.2 Water pollution

Water pollution is the contamination or changes in the physical, biological and chemical prop-
erties of natural surface and groundwater which makes water unsuitable for beneficial use.

‘Water pollution is the presence of any foreign substance (organic, inorganic, radiological or
biological) in water which tends to degrade the quality so as to constitute a hazard, or impairs
the usefulness of water.’
USPHS Drinking Water Standards.

Water pollution can be surface water pollution and groundwater pollution. The surface water
pollution can be further divided into freshwater pollution and marine water pollution. The most

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obvious type of water pollution affects surface waters. Water stored underground in aquifers
is known as groundwater.

Water pollution can come from a number of different sources. The sources of water pollution
may be: point sources and non-point sources.
A point source is a single identifiable localized source of water pollution. Point sources of water
pollution include municipal sewage treatment plant discharges and industrial plant discharges.
A great deal of water pollution happens not from one single source but from many different
scattered sources. This is called non-point source. Non-point source is diffuse source (not a
single discrete source). Non-point source pollution is caused by rainwater moving over and
through the ground, it picks up and carries natural and human-made pollutants, depositing
them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters and groundwater.

Non-point source pollution can include:

• Excess fertilizers, herbicides and insecticides from agricultural lands and residential areas.
• Oil, grease and toxic chemicals from urban runoff.
• Sediment from construction sites, crop and forest lands and others.
• Pathogens and nutrients from livestock and pet wastes.
• Atmospheric deposition.

6.2.1 Causes of water pollution

The causative agents of water pollution may be natural and man-made. Some of the major
causative agents of freshwater pollution are:

Industrial discharges
Pollutants coming from chemical and industrial processes are the major causes of water pol-
lution. When factories and manufacturers pour their inorganic and organic wastes directly into
streams and rivers, the water becomes poisonous and oxygen levels are depleted causing
many aquatic organisms to die. The heated water from the industries also causes thermal
pollution. This kills aquatic animals and plants by reducing the oxygen content of the water.

Disposal of sewage
Sewage is the biggest polluter of surface and groundwater sources. The terms ‘wastewater’
and ‘sewage’ are regularly used interchangeably, however there are differences between both.
In fact, ‘sewage’ is considered a subset of wastewater. Sewage (or domestic wastewater or
municipal wastewater) is the term used for wastewater that often contain domestic wastes
that often contains feces. Sewage is mainly biodegradable waste. It includes mainly human
excreta released from domestic and public toilets.

Surface run-off
Surface run-off includes run-off from farmland and mines as well as urban run-off. Run-off water
from farmland and mines. Agricultural runoff water contains pesticides, fertilizers and organic
wastes. The flow of fertilizer rich water into streams and lakes gives rise to eutrophication.
Excess of pesticides in water also adversely affect the aquatic life. Intensive cultivation also
causes fertilizers and pesticides to seep into the groundwater, through the process of leaching.

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6.2.2 Types of water pollutants

The substances which are responsible for causing water pollution are called water pollutants.
Pollutants have been classified into physical, chemical and biological nature. There are eight
basic categories: organic waste, infectious agents, plant nutrients, synthetic organic chemicals,
inorganic chemicals, sediments, radioactive pollution and thermal pollution.

Classification of water pollutants

Occurrence Nature
Physical Temperature
Total dissolved solids
Total suspended solids
Suspended and floating matters

Chemical Inorganic materials

Heavy metals like arsenic, mercury.
Inorganic nutrients such as nitrate, phosphate
Mineral acids
Radioactive materials

Organic materials
Oxygen demanding wastes
Synthetic organic compounds such as synthetic pesticides, synthetic detergents

Biological Pathogenic organisms (e.g. fecal coliform, E. coli)

Nuisance organisms (e.g. mollusca, algae and ascellus)

Thermal pollution

Thermal pollution (or calefaction) is a rise in temperature (above the normal range) of water
body. It occurs as a result of the entry of heated water from industries and power generation
plants. Various processes involved in generating thermal pollution are
• Water for cooling condensers
• Feeding boilers for steam generation
• Auxiliary plant cooling
• Ash handling
• Gas washing, etc.

The immediate effect of an increase in temperature is a decrease in the oxygen concentration.

A temperature rise of 10°C will double the rate of many chemical reactions and so the decay
of the organic matter, rusting of iron, and the solubility rate of salts are also accelerated by
calefaction. All organisms have a range of temperature tolerance beyond which they either
die or move to more congenital conditions downstream.

6.2.3 Indicators of water pollution

There are two main ways of measuring the quality of water. One way is to measure the
concentrations of different chemicals that it contains. If the chemicals are dangerous or the
concentrations are too high, we can regard the water as polluted. Measurements like this are

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known as chemical indicators of water quality. Another way to measure water quality involves
examining the fish, insects and other invertebrates that the water will support. If many dif-
ferent types of creatures can live in a river, the quality is likely to be very good; if the river
supports no or less aquatic life, the quality is obviously much poorer. Measurements like this
are called biological indicators of water quality.

6.2.4 Groundwater pollution

Water from rainfall and melting of snow return to the atmosphere by evaporation or transpi-
ration, or seep into the ground to become part of the subsurface or underground water. As
water percolates down through cracks and pores of soil and rock, it passes through a region
called the unsaturated zone, which is characterized by the presence of both air and water in
the spaces between soil particles. Water in the unsaturated zone, called vadose water, is es-
sentially unavailable for human use. In the saturated zone, all spaces between soil particles are
filled with water. Water in the saturated zone is called groundwater, and the upper boundary
of the saturated zone is called the water table.
Groundwater contamination can come from a number of natural and human-made sources.
These can include:

Improper hazardous waste disposal

Improper use and disposal of pesticides and misuse of fertilizers and pesticides can cause
groundwater pollution. Overuse of fertilizers can allow nitrates from fertilizer to seep into the
water table. In sensitive groundwater areas, rainfall seepage can cause fertilizer and pesticides
to migrate and contaminate an aquifer.

Leachate from landfills

If landfills are not properly constructed, liquid from decomposition of materials, or leachate,
can leak out of the landfill into an aquifer. Leachate can contain high levels of bacteria, haz-
ardous chemicals, metals, and ammonia. Runoff water from landfills after rains can also carry
pollution to groundwater recharge areas and hence into groundwater.

Septic systems

Septic systems can be a source of groundwater pollution if too many systems are located in
an area, if a system is overloaded or not working properly, or if a system is improperly used
for disposal of chemicals or other materials. If a septic system is not working properly, it can
contaminate groundwater with bacteria, viruses, and hazardous cleaning materials or household
chemicals.

Saline intrusion

In coastal areas, too much demand on potable groundwater can create induced recharge from
ocean waters, resulting in saline intrusion into groundwater supplies. This can also happen in
times of severe drought.

Animal wastes

Animal wastes are sources of bacteria and nitrates. They can contaminate groundwater if too
many animals are located in too small lot, or if the lot has improper drainage.

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6.2.5 Water quality indicators

In general, water quality refers to the physical, chemical, biological, radiological, and other
characteristics of water resources, affecting their usefulness for a particular use. The pa-
rameters for water quality are determined by the intended use such as human consumption,
agricultural, domestic and industrial use.

Physical indicators
Temperature
Water temperature is a physical property expressing how hot or cold water is. The tempera-
ture of surface water is influenced by latitude, altitude, season, time of day, air circulation,
cloud cover and the flow and depth of the water body. Temperature influences several other
parameters and can alter the physical and chemical properties of water such as metabolic
rates of animals, dissolved oxygen concentrations, conductivity and salinity

Conductivity
Conductivity, or specific conductance, is a measure of the ability of water to conduct an electric
current. It is sensitive to variations in dissolved solids, mostly mineral salts. The degree to
which these dissociate into ions, the amount of electrical charge on each ion, ion mobility and
the temperature of the solution all have an influence on conductivity. The more ions that are
present, the higher the conductivity of water.

Salinity
Salinity is a measure of the amount of salts in the water. Salinity is a strong contributor to
conductivity. Saline water conducts electricity more readily than freshwater, so electrical con-
ductivity is routinely used to measure salinity. As salinity increases, it may become toxic to
native freshwater organisms.

Total suspended solids

Total suspended solids are particles that are larger than 2 microns. Anything smaller than 2
microns is considered a dissolved solid. Total solids include both total suspended solids, the
portion of total solids retained by a filter and total dissolved solids, the portion that passes
through a filter. Most suspended solids are made up of inorganic materials.

Total dissolved solids

Total dissolved solids (TDS) combine the sum of all particles that are smaller than 2 microns.
Total dissolved solids comprise inorganic salts and some small amounts of organic matter that
are dissolved in water. Total dissolved solids are measured in mg/L. The concentration of TDS
is an important indicator of the usefulness of water for various applications. Drinking water,
for example, has a recommended maximum contaminant level of TDS is 500 mg/L.

Turbidity

Turbidity is a measure of the amount of suspended particles in the water. Turbidity is an optical
determination of water clarity. The turbidity of water is based on the amount of light scattered
by particles in a given sample of water.

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Odor and color of water

Water odor is usually the result of labile, volatile organic compounds and may be produced by
phytoplankton and aquatic plants or decaying organic matter. Industrial and human wastes
can also create odors, either directly or as a result of stimulating biological activity. Usually,
the presence of an odor suggests higher than normal biological activity.

Hardness

The hardness of natural waters depends mainly on the presence of dissolved calcium and
magnesium salts. The total content of these salts is known as general hardness, which can be
further divided into carbonate hardness (determined by concentrations of calcium and magne-
sium hydrocarbonates) and non-carbonate hardness (determined by calcium and magnesium
salts of strong acids).

Chemical indicators
pH

The pH is an important variable in water quality assessment as it influences many biological

and chemical processes within a water body. pH is an indicator of acidity or alkalinity. Neutral
water has a pH of 7. If pH is less than 7, water is acidic and if more than 7, it is basic. The
pH of most natural waters is between 6.0 and 8.5. pH determines solubility and biological
availability of chemicals in water.
Acidity and alkalinity are the base- and acid-neutralizing capacities of water. Although alkalinity
and pH are closely related, there are distinct differences. The alkalinity of water or a solution
is the quantitative capacity of that solution to buffer or neutralize an acid. In other words,
alkalinity is a measurement of water’s ability to resist changes in pH. If a body of water has a
high alkalinity, it can limit pH changes due to acid rain, pollution or other factors.

Dissolved oxygen

Dissolved oxygen (DO) refers to the level of free, non-compound oxygen (i.e. oxygen that is
not bonded to any other element) present in water. It is an important parameter in assessing
water quality because of its influence on the organisms living within the water body.
Sources of dissolved oxygen in water is either air or photosynthetic activity of algae and plants.
The actual amount of dissolved oxygen (in mg/L) will vary depending on temperature, pressure
and salinity. First, the solubility of oxygen decreases as temperature increases. Second,
dissolved oxygen decreases exponentially as salt levels increase. Third, dissolved oxygen
will increase as pressure increases. In freshwaters dissolved oxygen at sea level ranges from
15 mg/L at 0°C to 8 mg/L at 25°C. Concentrations in unpolluted waters are usually close to,
but less than, 10 mg/L.

Biochemical oxygen demand

The amount of dissolved oxygen (DO) used up by aerobic microorganisms to decompose (oxidize)
the biodegradable organic matters present in a sample of water is termed biochemical oxygen
demand or biological oxygen demand (BOD). It is an indirect measure of the concentration of
the total biodegradable organic matter. The greater the amount of organic matter present, the
greater the amount of oxygen utilized. Since aerobic microorganisms oxidize organic matters,
the amount of oxygen used is proportional to their number and metabolic rate.

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Pesticides are com-
pounds used to control
pests. Any organism
that interferes in some
way with human welfare
or activities is a pest. It
can be weeds, insects,
rodents, bacteria, fungi,
nematodes etc.
Pesticides are grouped
by their target organ-
isms—that is, by the
pests they are supposed
to eliminate. Insecticides
kill insects, herbicides
kill plants, fungicides kill
fungi and rodenticides
kill rodents, such as rats
and mice.
Insecticides, the largest
category of pesticides,
are usually classified
into groups based on
chemical structure. Three
of the most important
groups of insecticides are
the chlorinated hydrocar-
bons, organophosphates,
and carbamates.
Pollution
BOD test evaluates the dissolved oxygen used up by aerobic microorganisms over a 5-days
period at 20°C. BOD concentration of wastewater is expressed in mg/L. BOD of clean freshwater
is 2 mg/L, whereas value exceeding 5 mg/L indicates contamination. When BOD levels are high,
there is a decline in DO levels. It is an approximate measure of the amount of biochemically
degradable organic matter present in a water sample. Oxygen-demanding wastes are usually
biodegradable organic substances contained in municipal wastewaters or in effluents from
certain industries, such as food processing and paper production. In addition, the oxidation
of certain inorganic compounds may also contribute to the oxygen demand.
Chemical oxygen demand
Chemical oxygen demand (COD) is used as a measure of oxygen requirement of a sample
that is susceptible to oxidation by a strong chemical oxidant. Under controlled conditions of
time and temperature, a chemical oxidizing agent (potassium permanganate or dichromate)
is added to the sample of water, and the amount needed to oxidize the reducing materials
present is measured. The difference between the amount of oxidizing agent at the beginning
of the test and that remaining at the end of the test is used to calculate the COD. The test for
COD is nonspecific in that it does not identify the oxidizable material or differentiate between
the organic and inorganic material present. Similarly, it does not indicate the total organic
carbon present since some organic compounds are not oxidized by the chemical oxidizing
agent, whereas some inorganic compounds are oxidized. The concentrations of COD observed
in surface waters range from 20 mg/L O2 or less in unpolluted waters.
Heavy metals
The accumulation of heavy metals is a quality indicator. The presence of heavy metals causes
many problems to living organisms. Especially high levels of arsenic, cadmium, nickel, mer-
cury, etc. are very dangerous to freshwater ecosystems as well as for human if the water is
being used as drinking water.
In India, the states of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Manipur and
Chhattisgarh are reported to be most affected by arsenic contamination of groundwater
above the permissible level. WHO’s provisional guideline value for arsenic in drinking water is
0.01 mg/l (10 μg/l) (Source: Guidelines for drinking water quality, 4th edition, WHO, 2011).
Permissible limit of arsenic in India in absence of an alternative source is 0.05 mg/l (50 μg/l).
(Source: Indian Standards for Drinking Water, 2004).
Nutrients
Nutrients are chemicals, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, calcium, potassium, iron, man-
ganese, boron and cobalt that are essential to the growth of plants. These nutrients occur
naturally in water bodies. In terms of water quality, nutrients can be considered as pollutants
when their concentrations are sufficient to allow excessive growth of aquatic plants, particu-
larly algae. Nutrient enrichment can lead to algal bloom which eventually die and decompose.
Their decomposition removes oxygen from the water, potentially leading to levels of dissolved
oxygen that are insufficient to sustain normal life forms.
Pesticides
The presence of pesticide is an indicator of water quality. The most well-known organochlo-
rine pesticide is DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) which has been widely used to control
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Pollution
insects they are quite soluble in lipids, which means they easily accumulate in fatty tissue.
The accumulation of organochlorine pesticides in fatty tissue means that organisms at suc-
cessively higher trophic levels in a food chain are consuming food that has successively higher
concentrations of pesticide. At the top of the food chain, body concentrations of these pesti-
cides are the highest, and it is there that organochlorine toxicity has been most recognizable.
Birds, for example, are high on the food chain and it was the adverse effect of DDT on their
reproductive success that focused attention on this particular pesticide. DDT interferes with
calcium metabolism in birds, resulting in eggs with shells that are too thin to support the
weight of the parent.

Surfactants

Surfactant (surface active agent) is a substance which lowers the surface tension of the me-
dium in which it is dissolved, and/or the interfacial tension with other phases. Surfactants are
usually organic compounds that are amphiphilic.

Biological indicators
The presence of pathogenic organisms in aquatic bodies also acts as an indicator of water
quality. It is not practical to test for diverse pathogens in every water sample collected.
Instead, the presence of pathogens is determined with indirect evidence by testing for an
‘indicator’ organism such as coliform bacteria. Coliform bacteria are defined as rod-shaped
Gram-negative bacteria.
Water pollution caused by fecal contamination is a serious problem. Total coliform bacteria,
fecal coliform bacteria and E. coli are all considered indicators of water contaminated with
fecal matter. The total coliforms bacteria include fecal coliform bacteria such as E. coli as well
as other types of coliform bacteria.
Fecal coliforms are present specifically in the gut and feces of warm-blooded animals. Because
the origins of fecal coliforms are more specific than the origins of the more general total coli-
form group of bacteria, fecal coliforms are considered a more accurate indication of animal or
human waste than the total coliforms. E. coli is the major species in the fecal coliform group.
Consequently, E. coli is considered to be the species of coliform bacteria that is the best indi-
cator of fecal pollution and the possible presence of pathogens.

6.2.6 Water quality standards

Water is used for various purposes such as drinking, agriculture, industry and domestic use.
Water quality standard develops the parameters which do not cause any hazard to human or
impose limitations on use of water, according to the purpose of water usage. Accordingly, there
are various water quality standards for different uses such as drinking, agriculture, industry
and domestic use. In the setting of standards, agencies make political and scientific decisions
about how the water will be used. Water quality standards are enforceable by law. The goals
of water quality standards are to protect public health and the environment, and to maintain a
standard of water quality consistent with its designated uses. It provides the ‘teeth’ for water
quality legislation and also the yardstick by which performance may be evaluated.

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Water quality standard in India

Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) which comes under Ministry of Environment and
Forest, Government of India, has categorized the surface water into five classes: A, B, C,
D and E - depending upon its designated best use. The following classifications have been
adopted in India–
Class A Drinking water source without conventional treatment but after disinfection.
Class B Outdoor bathing (organized).
Class C Drinking water source after conventional treatment and disinfection.
Class D Fish culture and wildlife propagation.
Class E Irrigation, industrial cooling or controlled waste disposal.

The tolerance limits of parameters are specified as per classified use of water depending on
various uses of water.

Surface water quality criteria for different uses

(Specified by CPCB, 1979 and the Bureau of Indian Standards, 1982)

Class A
Criteria

1. Total Coliforms Organism MPN/100 ml shall be 50 or less

If MPN (most probable number) count is noticed to be more than fifty then regular Tests should be
carried out. The criteria would be satisfied if during a period of time not more than 5% of the samples
show greater than 200 MPN/100 ml and not more than 20% of samples show more than 50 MPN/100 ml.

2. pH: between 6.5 and 8.5

3. Dissolved Oxygen: 6 mg/l or more
4. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (5 days at 20°C): 2 mg/l or less
Note: There shall be no visible discharge of domestic and industrial wastes into class A.

Class B
Criteria
1. Total Coliforms Organism MPN/100 ml shall be 500 or less
If MPN count is noticed to be more than 500 MPN/100 ml then regular tests should be carried out.
The criteria would be satisfied if during a period of time not more than 5% of the samples show
greater than 2000 MPN/100 ml and not more than 20% of samples show greater than 500 MPN/100 ml.

2. pH: between 6.5 and 8.5

3. Dissolved Oxygen: 5 mg/l or more

4. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (5 days at 20°C): 3 mg/l or less

Note: All domestic and industrial wastewater discharge upstream of bathing places shall be so regu-
lated that the stream standards are maintained and that there is no visible floating matter including
oils at the bathing places.

Class C
Criteria
1. Total Coliforms Organism MPN/100 ml shall be 5000 or less.
If MPN count is noticed to be more than 5000 MPN/100 ml then regular tests should be carried out.
The criteria would be satisfied if during a period of time not more than 5% of the samples show greater
than 20,000 MPN/100 ml and not more than 20% of samples show greater than 5000 MPN/100 ml.

2. pH: between 6 and 9

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Pollution
Contaminated water can
lead to both waterborne
and water-contact dis-
eases. Waterborne dis-
eases are those acquired
by ingestion of con-
taminated drinking water,
but also from washing
hands, food or utensils
with contaminated water.
Water-contact diseases
do not even require an
individual to ingest the
water. Schistosomiasis
is the most common
water-contact disease in
the world. It is spread by
free-swimming larva in
the water, called cercaria,
that attach themselves
to human skin, penetrate
it, and enter the blood-
stream.
208
3. Dissolved Oxygen: 4 mg/l or more
4. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (5 days at 20°C): 3 mg/l or less
Note: All domestic and industrial wastewater discharge into class C waters shall necessarily be treated
to ensure maintenance of stream standards and the discharge points shall be kept sufficiently away
from the abstraction points.
Class D
Criteria
1. pH: between 6.5 and 8.5
2. Dissolved Oxygen: 4 mg/l or more
3. Free Ammonia (as N): 1.2 mg/l or less
Class E
Criteria
1. pH: between 6 and 8.5
2. Electrical Conductivity at 25°C micro mhos/cm (max): 2250
3. Sodium absorption Ratio (max): 26
4. Boron (max): 2 mg/l
6.2.7 Effects of water pollution
The effects of water pollution are not only devastating to human but also to animals. Polluted
water destroys aquatic life and reduces its reproductive ability. Polluted water is unsuitable
for drinking, recreation, agriculture and industry. It diminishes the aesthetic quality of lakes
and rivers.
Death of aquatic animals
The main problem caused by water pollution is that it kills organisms that depend on these
water bodies. Dead fish, crabs, birds, dolphins and many other animals often wind up on
beaches, killed by pollutants in their habitat (living environment).
Disruption of food-chains
Pollution disrupts the natural food chain as well. Pollutants such as lead and cadmium are
eaten by tiny animals. Later, these animals are consumed by fish and shellfish and the food
chain continues to be disrupted at all higher levels.
Health impact and diseases
Health impacts originating from water pollution can be divided into two main categories:
biological agents that may affect man following ingestion of water or contact with water and
chemical pollutants (both organic and inorganic) resulting from discharges of industrial wastes.
The most common health risk associated with drinking-water is contamination by sewage, or
by fecal matters. Fecal pollution may introduce a variety of pathogens.
Evidence that chemicals can be harmful to health is based on the results of toxicological studies,
occupational exposure and acute poisoning. The health risk due to toxic chemicals differs from
that caused by biological contaminants. Many inorganic (such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium,
cyanide, fluoride, lead, mercury, nitrate and selenium) and organic chemicals (such as aldrin
and dieldrin, benzene, benzo(a)pyrene, chlordane, chloroform) have been identified as water
pollutants. Many of them are pharmacologically active, carcinogens and mutagenic.
 Pollution
Consumption of polluted water is a major cause of ill health in India. Polluted water causes
some of the deadly diseases like cholera, dysentery, diarrhea, tuberculosis, jaundice, etc.
About 80 percent of stomach diseases in India are caused by polluted water.

Minamata disease: Minamata disease is methylmercury poisoning that occurred in humans who
ingested fish and shellfish contaminated by methylmercury discharged in wastewater from a
chemical plant. It was in May 1956, that Minamata disease was first officially discovered in
Minamata City, Japan. The marine products in Minamata Bay displayed high levels of Hg con-
tamination (5.61 to 35.7 ppm). It is a neurological disease and typical symptoms in human are
as follows: sensory disturbances, ataxia, dysarthria, constriction of the visual field, auditory
disturbances and tremor were also seen. Further, the fetus was poisoned by methylmercury
when their mothers ingested contaminated marine life.

Itai-Itai disease: The term ‘itai-itai disease’ was coined due to the severe pains victims felt in
the spine and joints. It was caused by cadmium poisoning in the drinking water. This disease
was first noticed in the Junzu River basin region in Toyama Prefecture in central Japan around
the 1930s.

Blue baby syndrome: An illness that begins when large amounts of nitrates in water are ingested
by an infant (first 6 months of life) and converted to nitrite by the digestive system. The nitrite
then reacts with oxyhemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying blood protein) to form methemoglobin.
Because methemoglobin is unable to transport oxygen, the condition produces symptoms of
cyanosis. If a large enough amount of methemoglobin is formed in the blood, body tissues
may be deprived of oxygen, causing the infant to develop a blue coloration of their mucous
membranes.

Eutrophication

Eutrophication is a process whereby water bodies, such as lakes, ponds, receive excess inorganic
nutrients (mainly nitrogen and phosphorus-containing compounds) that stimulate excessive
plant and algal growth. The enrichment is often increased by human activities, such as agri-
culture activities. Over time, lakes then become eutrophic due to an increase in the amount of
inorganic nutrients. Eutrophication is mainly caused by an increase in nitrate and phosphate
levels and has a negative influence on water life. This is because, due to the enrichment, aquatic
photosynthetic organisms like algae grow extensively. A rapid increase in the population of
algae in an aquatic system is called an algal bloom. Excessive algal growth eventually leads to
death and decomposition of algae which reduce dissolved oxygen in the water. Depending on
the degree of eutrophication, subsequent negative environmental effects such as anoxia and
severe reductions in aquatic animal populations may occur. A good indicator of the degree of
eutrophication is the oxygen content of deep water during summer. In a relatively unproductive
lake, oxygen content varies little with depth and there is ample oxygen at the bottom of the
lake. In contrast, oxygen content diminishes rapidly with depth in eutrophic lakes.

6.2.8 Control of water pollution

Water pollution is the man-made damage or the man-induced alteration of the chemical,
physical, biological, and radiological integrity of water. Two basic mechanisms can be used to
curb pollution, direct regulations and economic considerations. Direct regulations can include:

1. Setting of standards,
2. Prescription of appropriate technologies,

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 Pollution
depending on the source; thus, it is difficult to precisely characterize wastewater. Wastewater
treatment is used to remove contaminants before they are released into the water bodies.

Treatment processes
Waste materials in wastewater can be classified into three major categories: industrial wastes,
domestic or municipal wastes and agricultural wastes. Each of these waste materials has its
own characteristics, and thus treatment methods vary. The waste treatment methods include
physical, chemical and biological treatments.

Physical treatment: Physical treatment includes screening, flocculation, sedimentation and

filtration, which are usually used for the removal of insoluble suspended and floating materials.

Chemical treatment: Chemical treatment includes chemical oxidations and chemical precipitation.

Biological treatment: Biological treatment includes the aerobic and anaerobic treatment of
wastewater by a mixed culture of microorganisms.

Alternatively, treatment processes can be categorized as primary, secondary (or biological)

and tertiary treatments.

Effluent Removal of floating

particles by skimming

Primary Secondary Tertiary

Pre-treatment Effluent
treatment treatment treatment

Pre-treatment stage
is used to remove any
bulky materials that Primary Secondary Tertiary
can be easily collected.
This stage of sewage sludge sludge sludge
treatment often includes
the physical processes
of screening and grit
removal.

Sludge treatment and disposal

Figure 6.2 Schematic diagram of standard wastewater treatment processes.

Primary treatment
Primary treatment includes physical and chemical processes, such as skimming and sedimenta-
tion, to remove particles too large to pass through simple screening devices. This often takes
place in sedimentation tanks. Primary treatment typically decreases 25 to 40 percent of the
BOD and removes about 60 percent of the suspended solids.

Secondary treatment
Secondary treatment (or biological treatment) involves biological processes to lower BOD.
It involves the microbial oxidation of organic wastes in controlled conditions. The secondary
treatment removes about 90 percent of the BOD. There are two commonly used approaches,
both of which take advantage of the ability of microorganisms to convert organic wastes into
stabilized, low-energy compounds. In the first approach, suspended growth treatment, the
microorganisms are suspended in and move with the water. In contrast, the microorganisms

211
Pollution
in attached growth treatment processes are fixed on a stationary surface, and the water flows
past the microorganisms. The secondary biological treatment may be achieved aerobically or
anaerobically in a number of ways. The most widely used aerobic processes are trickling fil-
ters and activated sludge processes. The anaerobic processes (digestion, filtration and sludge
blankets) are used both in the treatment of specific wastewaters and in sludge conditioning.

Trickling filters: The basic principle of aerobic trickle filters is that a microbial population is
allowed to develop as a biofilm on an inert support material within a biological reactor. Waste-
water is continuously sprayed over the surface of the support material which percolates through
the filter bed, where it is biodegraded by the microbial population. Aeration is achieved by
exploiting the difference in temperature between the inside and the outside of the reactor,
resulting in a countercurrent of air. High microbial activity within the reactor causes a rise in
temperature, and warm air rises and allows fresh air to enter at the bottom of the reactor.

Activated sludge: Activated sludge processes include a well agitated and aerated continuous
flow reactor and a settling tank. This is a two step process, involving biological treatment and
secondary settlement. Biological treatment is performed in an aeration tank containing a di-
verse range of microorganisms. To maintain aerobic conditions, air or oxygen is pumped into
the tank and the mixture is kept thoroughly agitated. Secondary settlement occurs when the
treated effluent (mixed liquor) from the aeration tank passes into a secondary settlement tank.
In settlement tank, solids mostly bacterial masses are separated from the liquid by subsidence.

Oxidation pond: Oxidation pond (also known as waste stabilization ponds or lagoons) is one of
the biological systems which are used for the secondary treatment of wastewater. It involves
natural purification and stabilization of wastewaters. Oxidation ponds are large, shallow ponds,
typically 1-2 m deep where BOD reduction of a wastewater takes place by supporting algal-
bacterial growth. It acts as a shallow waste treatment reactor where raw or partially treated
sewage is decomposed by microorganisms. These ponds are effective, low-cost and simple
technology for the treatment of wastewater before it is discharged to an aquatic ecosystem.
The conditions are similar to a eutrophic lake. The ponds can be designed to maintain aerobic
conditions. The performance of pond depends on climatological conditions like light, tem-
perature, wind and also the wastewater quality. Oxidation ponds are also used to augment
secondary treatment, in which case they are often called polishing ponds.

Tertiary treatment

A typical wastewater treatment process includes the primary and secondary treatment, de-
pending on the degree of purification. Any treatment after secondary treatment is defined as
tertiary treatment. This treatment is sometimes called as the advanced treatment and consists
of removing the organic load left after secondary treatment, especially removes nutrients such
as nitrogen and phosphorus, refractory organics and heavy metals left after secondary treat-
ment. This treatment includes physical, chemical as well as biological treatments. Nitrogen-
containing organic compounds are first oxidized biologically to ammonium ions which are
further oxidized to nitrite and nitrate by genera nitrosomonas and nitrobacter, respectively.
The second phase is anaerobic denitrification which releases nitrogen gas. A number of bac-
teria can act as denitrifiers such as Pseudomonas, Alcaligenes, Arthrobacter. Phosphorus in
wastewater exists in many forms but all of it ends up as orthophosphate. Removing phosphate
is most often accomplished by adding a coagulant, usually alum or lime. Phosphate removal
from wastewater by biological means involves assimilation or storage.

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Pollution

6.2.10 Bioaccumulation, bioconcentration and biomagnification

Bioaccumulation, bioconcentration and biomagnification are distinct phenomena.

Bioaccumulation is the intake and accumulation of a chemical in an organism by all routes

of exposure including transport across respiratory surfaces, dermal absorption and dietary
absorption.

Bioconcentration is the intake and accumulation of a chemical in an organism only through

its respiratory and dermal surfaces.

Biomagnification is the bioaccumulation of chemicals in organisms in increasingly higher

concentrations at successive trophic levels. It occurs when the chemical is entered into the
food chain. It occurs because the biomass at any given trophic level is produced from a much
larger biomass ingested from the level below. Consumers at higher trophic levels ingest a
significant biomass present at lower levels, along with the fat soluble pollutants stored in their
tissues. Biomagnification occurs in both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. An infamous case
of biological magnification that harmed top-level carnivores involved DDT, a chemical used
to control insects such as mosquitoes and agricultural pests. One of the first signs that DDT
was a serious environmental problem was a decline in the populations of ospreys and eagles,
birds that feed at the top of food webs. The accumulation of DDT in the tissues of these birds
interfered with the deposition of calcium in their eggshells. When these birds tried to incubate
their eggs, the weight of the parents broke the shells of affected eggs, resulting in catastrophic
declines in reproduction rates.

6.3 Soil pollution

Soil pollution, also commonly known as soil contamination, is a condition that occurs when
soil loses its structure, biological and chemical properties due to the use of various man-made
chemicals and other natural changes in the soil environment.
Occurrence of soil pollution is correlated with the degree of industrialization and intensities
of chemical usage. Various human activities are causing soil pollution. These activities are:

Deposition of oxides of sulfur and nitrogen

The oxides of sulfur and nitrogen, chlorides, fluorides, etc., emitted into the atmosphere due
to combustion of fossil fuel from vehicles and various industries come down as dry or wet
deposition (acid rain) onto the soil and lower the soil pH.

Use of pesticides
Various pesticides (such as DDT, BHC, malathion and aldrin) used in agricultural practices cause
soil pollution. These pesticides are used for unwanted weeds, harmful insects, pathogenic fungi
in agricultural practices affect biological and chemical properties of soil. These substances
pollute the soil depending on their volatility, biodegradability, persistence, leaching, chemical
reactivity and adsorption on the soil particles.

Release of sewage matters and use of chemical fertilizers

Sewage matter is commonly used as fertilizer or deposited as waste on the soil. Decomposition of
sewage may release various toxic heavy metals that cause an increase in heavy metal toxicity.

214
 Chapter 7
Climate Change

Climate is the long-term pattern of weather in a locality, region or even over the entire globe.
It is the statistics of weather, usually over a 30-year interval. It is measured by assessing the
patterns of variation in temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, precipitation and
other meteorological variables in a given region over long periods of time.

‘Climate in a narrow sense is usually defined as the average weather, or more rigorously, as
the statistical description in terms of the mean and variability of relevant quantities over a
period of time ranging from months to thousands or millions of years. The classical period for
averaging these variables is 30 years, as defined by the World Meteorological Organization. The
relevant quantities are most often surface variables such as temperature, precipitation and wind.
Climate in a wider sense is the state, including a statistical description, of the climate system.’

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 2001

The terms climate and weather have different meanings. Weather is the short-term properties
(such as temperature, pressure, moisture) of atmospheric conditions for a specific place and
time. Weather shows both temporal and spatial variations.

7.1 Climate change

Climate change is a large-scale, long-term shift in the planet’s weather patterns. According
to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),
‘Climate change refers to a change in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g. by using
Climate science is a
statistical tests) by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties, and that persists
process of collective
learning that relies on for an extended period, typically decades or longer. Climate change may be due to natural in-
the careful gathering and ternal processes or external forcings such as modulations of the solar cycles, volcanic eruptions
analyses of data, the and persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the atmosphere or in land use.’
formulation of hypoth-
eses, the development The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines climate change
of models to study key as, ‘a change of climate that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters
processes and make the composition of the global atmosphere and that is in addition to natural climate variability
predictions, and the
observed over comparable time periods’.
combined use of observa-
tions and models to test The UNFCCC thus, makes a distinction between climate change attributable to human activities
scientific understanding. altering the atmospheric composition, and climate variability attributable to natural causes.

231
Climate Change

Climate change and Global warming

Global warming causes climate change, so the two terms are very much related. Global warming
is the term used to describe the increase in the earth’s average temperature. Climate change
refers not only to global changes in temperature but also to changes in wind, precipitation, the
length of seasons as well as the strength and frequency of extreme weather events like droughts
and floods. Another difference between the two terms is that global warming is a worldwide
phenomena while climate change can be seen at global, regional or even more local scales.

Climate change: Evidence

Climate change is one of the defining issues of our time. It is now more certain than ever,
based on many lines of evidence.

Global temperature rise: The planet’s average surface temperature has risen about 2.12°F
(1.18°C) since the late nineteenth century, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide
and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere.

Sea level rise: Global sea level rose about 8 inches (20 cm) in the last century. The pace of
global sea level rise doubled from 1.7 mm per year throughout most of the twentieth century
to 3.4 mm per year since 1993 (Climate Change: Global Sea Level, NOAA).

Shrinking ice sheets: The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have decreased in mass. Data
What are climate from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment show Greenland lost an average of
models? 279 billion tons ice per year between year 1993 and 2019, while Antarctica lost about 148
For several decades,
billion tons of ice per year.
scientists have used the
world’s most advanced Declining Arctic sea ice: Both the extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice has declined rapidly
computers to simulate over the last several decades. Arctic ice refers to the area of the Arctic ocean covered in ice.
the Earth’s climate.
Arctic sea ice reaches its minimum each September. September Arctic sea ice is now declining
These models are based
on a series of mathemat- at a rate of 13.3 percent per decade, relative to the 1981 to 2010 average.
ical equations repre-
Glacial retreat: Higher temperatures and less snowfall have been causing many glaciers world-
senting the basic laws
wide to retreat (i.e. ice melts or ablates more quickly than snowfall can accumulate and form
of physics—laws that
govern the behaviour of new glacial ice). Glaciers are retreating almost everywhere around the world — including in
the atmosphere, the Alps, Himalayas, Andes and Rockies.
the oceans, the land
surface and other parts Ocean acidification: Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the acidity of surface
of the climate system, as ocean waters has increased by about 30 percent. This increase is the result of humans emitting
well as the interactions more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and hence more being absorbed into the oceans.
among different parts
of the system. Climate
models are important Box 7.1 Scientific consensus
tools for understanding
past, present, and future ‘Climate change is real. There will always be uncertainty in understanding a system as complex
climate change. as the world’s climate. However, there is now strong evidence that significant global warming
Climate models are is occurring. The evidence comes from direct measurements of rising surface air temperatures
tested against observa- and subsurface ocean temperatures and from phenomena such as increases in average global
tions so that scientists sea levels, retreating glaciers, and changes to many physical and biological systems. It is likely
can see if the models
that most of the warming in recent decades can be attributed to human activities’.
correctly simulate what
actually happened in the Joint science academies’ statement: Global response to climate change (2005)
recent or distant past.

232
 Climate Change

IPCC 7.2 Greenhouse effect

The Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change The earth receives energy from the sun in the form of solar radiation. Various gases in the
(IPCC) is the interna- atmosphere absorb incoming solar radiation. The ability of atmospheric gases to absorb radia-
tional body for assessing tion varies with the wavelength. All of the incoming solar radiation with wavelengths less than
the science related to
0.3 μm is absorbed by oxygen and ozone. This absorption occurs mainly in the stratosphere.
climate change. The IPCC
was set up in 1988 by Most of the solar radiation passes through the atmosphere without being absorbed. A large
the World Meteorological fraction of this radiation is absorbed by land and oceans. This absorbed energy is then re-
Organization (WMO) and radiated upward from the earth’s surface in the form of longwave infrared radiation.
United Nations Environ-
ment Programme (UNEP)
to provide policymakers
Some solar radiation
with regular assessments Sun Absorbed energy is
is reflected by the
of the scientific basis Earth’s surface and re-radiated from the
of climate change, its atmosphere. Earth’s surface in the
form of longwave
impacts and future risks,
infrared radiation.
and options for adapta- Most solar Some of the longwave
tion and mitigation. The radiation is infrared radiation
absorbed by the passes through the
IPCC produces reports
Earth’s surface atmosphere but most
that support the United and atmosphere are absorbed and
Atmosphere
Nations Framework and warms it. radiate back by
Convention on Climate greenhouse gases.
Change (UNFCCC), which
is the main international
treaty on climate change. Earth

Figure 7.1 Incoming shortwave solar radiations (ultraviolet, visible and a limited portion of infrared en-
ergy) from the sun drive the earth’s climate system. Some of this incoming radiation is reflected by the
atmosphere and the earth’s surface whereas some is absorbed by the atmosphere and the earth’s surface.
The heat generated by this absorption is emitted as longwave infrared radiation. Some of which radiates
out into space but most of the earth’s emitted longwave infrared radiation is absorbed by greenhouse
gases present in the atmosphere, which heats the lower atmosphere.

Most of these longwave infrared radiation (greater than 4 μm) re-radiated by the earth’s surface
is absorbed by atmospheric gases, most importantly water vapour (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2),
nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4). Radiatively active gases that absorb wavelengths
longer than 4 μm are called greenhouse gases. This absorption heats the atmosphere, which
in turn, radiates energy back to the earth. Thus, the greenhouse gases act as a thermal blanket
around the earth, raising the earth’s temperature. This effect is known as greenhouse effect.

Step 1: Solar radiation enters the earth’s atmosphere – Some of this incoming radiation is
reflected by the atmosphere and the earth’s surface.

Step 2: The rest of the incoming radiation is absorbed by the land and oceans, heating the earth.

Step 3: The heat generated due to absorption is emitted as longwave infrared radiation.

Step 4: Some of the emitted radiation radiates out into space but most of the earth’s emitted
longwave radiation is absorbed by greenhouse gases present in the atmosphere.

Step 5: This keeps the earth warm enough to sustain life.

233
 Climate Change
CF2Cl2 + h Cl + CF2Cl

The chlorine freed in the reaction acts as a catalyst in the ozone removal process. A single
chlorine atom may break down thousands of ozone molecules before it returns to the tropo-
sphere. After chlorine is released from CFC, it reacts with ozone to form chlorine monoxide
(ClO) which reacts with NO2 to form chlorine nitrate.

Cl + O3 ClO + O2

Another key feature of catalytic cycles is the formation of reservoir species via holding cycles.
Active Cl is held as reservoir species.

Cl + H2 HCl + H

ClO + NO2 ClONO2

ClO reacts with NO2 to form chlorine nitrate (ClONO2). Compounds such as HCl and ClONO2
hold chlorine in an inactive form and are collectively called reservoirs. These reservoirs are of
great importance to the chemistry of the stratosphere as they act to divert potential catalytic
species from active to inactive forms, but they remain available to release the active catalysts
again. ClONO2 formed is destroyed mainly by photolysis in the presence of sunlight or via
reaction with O atoms, leading to regeneration of active Cl species.

ClONO2 + h Cl + NO3

Antarctic ozone hole

Damage to the ozone layer started in approximately 1980, and was initially observed in the
polar regions. The largest decreases in total ozone of 60-70% – known as the ozone hole –
occurred in spring over Antarctica (September-November). Since the beginning of the 1990s,
a similar phenomenon has been observed in the Arctic, with decreases of 30-40% in the ozone
layer in spring (February-March) although there is considerable year-to-year variability in the
Arctic stratosphere.

0
Change in ozone (%)

–2

–4

In 1994, the United –6

Nations General Assem-

bly voted to designate –8
September 16 as ‘World 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998

Ozone Day’, to com-

memorate the signing of Figure 7.8 Percentage change in total ozone averaged over 60°S to 60°N. Effects associated with the
the Montreal Protocol on seasonal cycle (1 year), solar cycle (12 years) and the quasi-biennial oscillation (2 years) have been filtered
that date in 1987. out. The decrease in 1992-1993 is caused by the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991 (Source: WMO, 1999).

251
Climate Change
The ozone layer above the Antarctic has been particularly impacted by pollution. The Antarc-
tic ozone hole is limited in space and time, occurring at the time of year when the sun first
appears above the horizon after the long polar night. The ozone hole begins to develop in
August, is fully developed by early October and has normally broken up by early December.
Strictly speaking the use of the word ‘hole’ to describe what happens to ozone in the Antarctic
is an exaggeration. There is undoubtedly a massive depletion of ozone rather than removal of
ozone altogether. The exact location and size of the hole vary with meteorological conditions.
In the Antarctic winter a unique atmospheric condition known as the polar vortex forms. The
polar vortex blocks warmer mid-latitude air from mixing with the air above the pole, creat-
ing extremely cold polar air temperatures. Stratospheric temperatures may fall below –90°C,
which is cold enough to form polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) even though the air is very
dry. In this cold vortex, polar stratospheric ice crystal clouds form. This unique atmospheric
condition eventually allows the chlorine to be released from chlorine nitrate. The ice crystals
that make-up polar clouds provide the reaction surfaces for reactions such as

ClONO2 (g) + HCl (ice) Cl2 (g) + HNO3 (ice)

ClONO2 (g) + H2O (ice) HOCl (g) + HNO3 (ice)

HOCl (g) + HCl (ice) Cl2 (g) + H2O (ice)

The normally inactive reservoir for Cl and ClO is converted into molecular chlorine. When the
sun rises in the spring it triggers the depletion chemistry.

Cl2 + h Cl + Cl

Cl + O3 ClO + O2

The freed chlorine causes destruction of ozone. Ozone densities drop rapidly, only to recover
when the polar vortex breaks up, mixing warmer air in and releasing the ozone-depleted air
to move away from the polar region. When the sun returns in September, the temperatures
begin to rise, the winds weaken and typically this drives the vortex to break down by November.
In more recent times, there have been discoveries of ozone depletion in the Arctic that occur
by similar mechanisms as the ones described here. The Arctic equivalent does not tend to be
as dramatic owing to the fact the Arctic stratosphere does not get as cold as the Antarctic,
mainly owing to a less well-formed vortex, largely owing to northern hemisphere topography.

Effect of ozone depletion

Since the ozone layer absorbs a great quantity of the harmful ultraviolet radiation present in
sunlight, the amount of harmful ultraviolet radiation reaching the ground will increase if the
ozone layer is depleted. It was recognized that the unprecedented and substantial increases
in UV radiation due to depletion of the ozone layer, would lead to major environmental ef-
fects including:

• Increased skin cancers and cataracts.

• Reduced growth and yield of crops.
• Threats to the productivity and biodiversity of natural ecosystems.
• Degradation of materials used in clothing and construction. Synthetic polymers, naturally
occurring biopolymers, as well as some other materials of commercial interest are adversely
affected by UVB radiation.

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 Climate Change

Montreal Protocol
Through the 1970s and the 1980s, the international community became increasingly concerned
that ODS would harm the ozone layer. In 1985, the Vienna Convention for the protection of
the ozone layer formalized international cooperation on this issue. This cooperation resulted
in the signing of the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer in 1987.
The Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer is a landmark international
agreement designed to protect the stratospheric ozone layer. The treaty was signed in Septem-
ber 1987 and became effective in 1989. The Montreal Protocol stipulates that the production
and consumption of compounds that deplete ozone in the stratosphere—chlorofluorocarbons
(CFCs), halons, carbon tetrachloride and methyl chloroform—are to be phased out by year 2000.

Amendments to the Montreal Protocol

The London Amendment (1990): The amendment to the Montreal Protocol agreed by the
Second Meeting of the Parties (London, 1990).

The Copenhagen Amendment (1992): The amendment to the Montreal Protocol agreed by the
Fourth Meeting of the Parties (Copenhagen, 1992).

The Montreal Amendment (1997): The amendment to the Montreal Protocol agreed by the
Ninth Meeting of the Parties (Montreal, 1997).

The Beijing Amendment (1999): The amendment to the Montreal Protocol agreed by the
Eleventh Meeting of the Parties (Beijing, 1999).

The Kigali Amendment (2016)

Kigali agreement is the amendment of the Montreal Protocol. In the 28th meeting of the Parties
to the Montreal Protocol, negotiators from 197 nations have signed a historic agreement to
amend the Montreal Protocol in Kigali, a capital city of a tiny African country, Rwanda on 15th
October 2016. As per the agreement, these countries are expected to reduce the manufacture
and use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by roughly 80-85% from their respective baselines,
till 2045. This phase down is expected to arrest the global average temperature rise up to
0.5°C by 2100.
The final deal divided the world economies into three groups, each with a target phase down
date. The richest countries, including the United States and those in the European Union, will
reduce the production and consumption of HFCs from 2019. Much of the rest of the world,
including China, Brazil and all of Africa, will freeze the use of HFCs by 2024. A small group
of the world’s hottest countries such as Bahrain, India, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates have the most lenient schedule and will
freeze HFCs use by 2028.
Environmental experts note that the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on substances
that deplete the ozone layer could be the single largest real contribution the world has made so
far towards keeping the global temperature rise ‘well below’ 2°C, a target agreed at the Paris
climate conference last year; this amendment is a huge step forward to achieving that target.

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Climate Change

Box 7.4 Treaty and Article

Treaty means an international agreement concluded between sovereign states and international
organizations in written form and governed by international law. A treaty may also be known
as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, pact or accord, among other terms. A state
party to a treaty is a country that has ratified or acceded to that particular treaty, and is therefore
legally bound by the provisions in the instrument.

Declaration is a document stating agreed upon standards but which is not legally binding. Con-
ventions are stronger than declarations because they are legally binding for governments that
have signed them.

Article is an international legal instruments generally include a Preamble (stating the reasons for
and underlying understandings of the drafters and adopters of the instrument) and a series of
‘articles’, which lay out the obligations of those States choosing to be bound by it and procedural
matters involving the treaty. The term ‘provision’ is often used as an alternative when referring
to the content of particular articles. The term ‘charter’ is used for particularly formal and solemn
instruments, such as the treaty founding an international organization like the United Nations.

7.9 Environmental Laws in India

A global consciousness for the protection of the environment prompted the Indian Govern-
ment to enact the 42nd Amendment (1976) in the Constitution. The said amendment added
Article 48A to the Directive Principles of State Policy. It declares, ‘the state shall endeavor to
protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country’.
The constitutional provisions are backed by a number of laws – acts, rules and notifications.

Forest and Biodiversity

Indian Forest Act, 1927

Enacted to ‘consolidate the law related to forest, the transit of forest produce, and the duty
leviable on timber and other forest produce’.

Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

An act to provide the protection of birds and animals and for all matters that are connected
to it whether it be their habitat or the waterhole or the forests that sustain them. This act has
been last amended in 2006.

Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980

The Department of
Environment was An act to provide for the protection of and the conservation of the forests. This act has been
established in India amended in 1988.
in 1980 to ensure a
healthy environment for Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 1991
the country. This later Puts regulations on various activities, including construction and gives protection to the back-
became the Ministry of
waters and estuaries. This notification was notified under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
Environment and Forests
in 1985. Now it is Biological Diversity Act, 2002
known as ‘Ministry of
An act to provide for the conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of its components
Environment, Forest and
Climate Change and fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the use of biological resources and
(MoEFCC)’. knowledge associated with it.

254
 Index
Anaerobic treatment 213 Bioaccumulation 214
A Anammox 46 Bioaccumulation indicators 223
Abiotic 25 Bioaugmentation 220
Animal wastes 202
Abiotic control 51 Biocapacity 260
Antarctic ozone hole 251
Abyssal zone 55 Biochemical oxygen demand 204
Aphotic zone 53
Abyssopelagic zone 54 Bioconcentration 214
Aposematic coloration 119
Acceptance hypothesis 159 Biodiesel 197
Apparent competition 123
Acclimation 15 Biodiversity 153, 165
Aquatic ecosystem 52
Acclimatization 14 Biodiversity crisis 160
Arctic tundra 67
Acid deposition 188, 193 Biodiversity hotspots 166
Area sources 182
Acid formers 213 Biodiversity indicator 223
Arithmetic growth 80
Acid precipitation 193 Biogeochemical cycle 43
Arms race coevolution 121
Acid rain 188, 193 Biogeocoenosis 23
Arthrobacter 212
Activated sludge 212 Biogeographic zones 177
Article 254
Adamsia palliata 117 Biogeography 114, 177
Artificial ecosystem 52
Adaptation 14, 243 Bioindicator 222
Aspection 113
Aerobic treatment sludge 213 Biological agents 208
Assimilation 39
Aerosol 186 Biological diversity 153
Assimilation efficiency 39
Afforestation 64 Biological diversity act 175, 254
Associate mangroves 57
Age pyramid 78 Biological indicators 206, 202, 222
Atmosphere 6, 43, 181
Age structure 78 Biological invasion 159
Attached growth treatment 212
Aggregation 147 Biological nitrogen fixation 45
Autecology 24
Agroforestry 65 Biological population 74
Autochthonous 27
Air 6, 181 Biological species concept 20, 153
Autochthonous production 27
Air (prevention and control of pollution) act 255 Biological treatment 211, 217
Autogenic succession 146
Air act 199 Biomagnification 214
Automobile emission controls 196
Air pollution 181 Biomass 26
Autotrophic respiration 26
Air quality index 191 Biome distribution 67
Autotrophic succession 146
Air quality monitoring 192 Biome types 67
Autotrophs 25
Air quality standards 189 Bio-medical waste rules 255
Chemoautotrophs 25
Alcaligenes 212 Biomes 66
Photoautotrophs 25
Algal bloom 205, 209 Biopiracy 175
Autumn overturn 60
Allee effect 86 Bioprospecting 174
Allelopathy 122
Allen’s rule 17
B Bioreactors 221
Bioremediation 220
Allochthonous 27 Background extinction rate 160
Bioremediation strategies 220
Allochthonous production 27 Bad ozone 184
Biosparging 220
Allogenic succession 146 Barrier reefs 57
Biosphere 24, 43
Allometric constant 18 Batesian mimicry 119
Biosphere reserves 169
Allometric relationship 18 Bathyal zone 55
Biostimulation 220
Allopatric 141 Bathypelagic zone 54
Biotic 25
Alluvium 3 Batteries rules 256
Biotic control 51
Alpha diversity 98 Beijing amendment 253
Biotic hypotheses 154
Alpine tundra 68 Benthic zone 58
Biotic potential 80
Altitudinal variation 155 Benthos zone 58
Biotic province 177
Amensalism 122 Bergmann’s rule 17
Biotic resistance hypothesis 159
Ammonia-oxidizers 46 Beta diversity 98
Bioventing 220
Ammonification 46 Bharat stage emission standards 197

263
 Fundamentals of
Ecology and Environment
This book has been conceptualized to promote understanding of ecology's basic
principles and concepts rather than memorization of details. Sincere efforts have been
made to support textual explanations with the help of flow charts, figures and tables to
make learning easy and convincing. We have also focused on improving and updating
the artwork in the text. This book has been written primarily for readers beginning their
study of ecological sciences at the college level, but the book will also serve as a source
of information for those whose study is more advanced and for those engaged in the
practice of ecological science as a profession.

An easy-to-follow study guide

Focuses on fundamentals and principles with expanded coverage of critical topics.
Contains clear and simple illustrations. The readers do not need a strong background
in biology or other sciences to understand what is written in this book.
Enables the reader to grasp the subject quickly and easily.
Offers a structured approach to learning.

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