P.Dr.V.V.P.Inst.of Tech.& Engg.

(Polytechnic), Loni
Department of Chemical Engineering

E- Learning Program on

CH- 1

Ecosystem
Marks - 12
 Content
• Introduction - Ecosystem
• Structure of Ecosystem, Biotic and Abiotic
component (जैविक आणि अजैविक घटक).
• Food Chain(अन्न साखळी) and Food Web (परस्परावलंबी अन्नसाखळींची एक
प्रणाली.)
• Terrestrial(जमिनीवर राहणारा) Ecosystem and Aquatic
(जलचर )Ecosystem
• Carbon, Nitrogen, Sulphur, Phosphorus Cycle.
• Global Warming(जागतिक तापमानवाढ) – Causes, Effects, Green
house effects, Ozone Depletion(ओझोन कमी होणे).
 Ecosystem
• An ecosystem is a large community of living organisms
(plants, animals and microbes-सूक्ष्मजीव) in a particular area.
• The living and physical components are linked together
through nutrient cycles and energy flows.
• Ecosystems are of any size, but usually they are in
particular places.
• Interaction between a Biotic component with Abiotic
components to produce a stable system or unit which is
known as Ecosystem.
• In short, ecosystem is a biological community of
interacting organisms and their physical environment.
 Types of the Ecosystem
• The different types of the ecosystem include:
1.Terrestrial ecosystem
a. Forest(वन) ecosystem
b. Grassland(गवताळ प्रदेश) ecosystem
c. Desert(वाळवंट) ecosystem
d. Tundra(अत्यंत थंड प्रदेश) ecosystem
2. Aquatic ecosystem
a. Freshwater(गोडे पाणी ) ecosystem
b. Marine(सागरी) ecosystem
 Structure of Ecosystem
• Ecosystem has two major components in
structure,
1. Abiotic Components.
Ex – Temperature, Air, Moisture, Light etc.

2. Biotic Components.
Ex – Producer, Consumer, Decomposer.
 Abiotic Components
• Non- living components are present in the
atmosphere / environment.
• Such as temperature, air, light, moisture etc.
which is known as an abiotic components.
• Abiotic components are the inorganic and organic
component present in the air, water and soil.
• Either they are remain in the abiotic phase or they
are absorbed by plants and convert biotic phase.
• The biotic organism after their death and decay
they are returned back to the nature.
 Biotic components
• Living components present in the atmosphere such as producers, consumers, decomposers
etc. which is known as an biotic components.
1.Producers –
Procedures includes all the autotrophic organism, which can prepare their own
food using the Carbon dioxide, Water, sunrays and minerals from the atmosphere.
*Autotrophic organism - An organism that manufactures its own food from inorganic
substances, such as carbon dioxide and ammonia. Most autotrophs, such as green plants,
certain algae, and photosynthetic bacteria, use light for energy.
2.Consumer –
Consumer includes all heterotrophic organism, which can’t prepare there own
food but depends on the producers.
*Heterotrophic organism is an organism that cannot produce its own food, instead taking
nutrition from other sources of organic carbon, mainly plant or animal matter.
3.Decomposers -
Decomposers are heterotrophic organisms like fungi and bacteria which
breakdown complex organic micro-molecules of dead organism.
A decomposer is an organism that decomposes, or breaks down, organic material
such as the remains of dead organisms. Decomposers include bacteria and fungi.
 Food Chain

• A series of organisms each dependent on the next as a source of food.

• The definition of a food chain is a system where a small animal is the food
for a larger animal which, in turn, is the food for an even larger animal.
• Food chain, in ecology, the sequence of transfers of matter and energy in the
form of food from organism to organism.
• An example of food chain is a fly being eaten by a frog and then the frog is
eaten by a larger animal.
• A food chain also represents a series of events and consumption in which
food and energy are consumed from one organism in an ecosystem to
another.
• Food chains show how energy is passed from the sun to producers, from
producers to consumers, and from consumers to decomposes such as fungi.
• A food chain is a diagram that shows us how animals are linked by what they
eat; in food webs we represent the links between animals who eat or are
eaten by more than one kind of animal.
 Importance of Food Chain
• Food chains describe the feeding relationship between the
organisms of an ecosystem.
• The flow of energy from one species to another at various biotic
levels forms a food chain.
• The successive levels in the food chains of a community are
called as trophic levels.
• Various trophic levels in a food chain include producers, primary
consumers, secondary consumers and tertiary consumers.
*Food chain helps in studying feeding relationships between
organisms.
*Food chain also helps us to know how much energy we gain by
consuming which food.
*Food chain helps us to know energy flow from one trophic level
to another trophic level.
 Food Web

• A system of interlocking and interdependent food chains.

• Food web is a network of interconnected food chains.
• It comprises of all the food chains within a single ecosystem.
• It helps in understanding that plants lay the foundation of all
the food chains. 
• There are unique interactions and relationships which are
involved in the transportation of energy.
• The energy, once produced and captured, is distributed
throughout the various living organisms.
• This transfer of energy is termed as the food web.
• Food webs we represent the links between animals who eat
or are eaten by more than one kind of animal.
 Importance of Food Web
• Significance. Food webs are important tools in understanding that plants
are the foundation of all ecosystems and food chains, sustaining life by
providing nourishment and oxygen needed for survival and reproduction.
• Food web is an important ecological concept.
• Basically, food web represents feeding relationships within a community.
• It also implies the transfer of food energy from its source in plants
through herbivores (animal gets its energy from eating plants and only
plants) to carnivores(an animals that feeds on other animals).
• Normally, food webs consist of a number of food chains meshed
together.
• Each food chain is a descriptive diagram including a series of arrows,
each pointing from one species to another, representing the flow of food
energy from one feeding group of organisms to another.
 Types of Ecosystem
• There are two types of ecosystem:
1.Terrestrial Ecosystem
2.Aquatic Ecosystem
• Terrestrial Ecosystems
Terrestrial ecosystems are exclusively land-based
ecosystems. There are different types of terrestrial
ecosystems distributed around various geological zones.
They are as follows:
Forest Ecosystems
Grassland Ecosystems
Tundra Ecosystems
Desert Ecosystem
Forest Ecosystem
A forest ecosystem consists of several plants, animals and
microorganisms that live in coordination with the abiotic factors of the
environment. Forests help in maintaining the temperature of the earth
and are the major carbon sink.

Grassland Ecosystem
In a grassland ecosystem, the vegetation is dominated by
grasses and herbs. Temperate grasslands, savanna grasslands are some
of the examples of grassland ecosystems.

Tundra Ecosystem
Tundra ecosystems are devoid of trees and are found in cold
climate or where rainfall is scarce. These are covered with snow for most
of the year. The ecosystem in the Arctic or mountain tops is tundra type.

Desert Ecosystem
Deserts are found throughout the world. These are regions with
very little rainfall. The days are hot and the nights are cold.
 Aquatic Ecosystem
• Aquatic ecosystems are ecosystems present in a body of water.

• These can be further divided into two types, namely:

1.Freshwater Ecosystem
2.Marine Ecosystem

• Freshwater Ecosystem
The freshwater ecosystem is an aquatic ecosystem that includes
lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, and wetlands. These have no salt content in
contrast with the marine ecosystem.

• Marine Ecosystem
The marine ecosystem includes seas and oceans. These have a larger
salt content and greater biodiversity in comparison to the freshwater
ecosystem.
 Ecosystem Cycle (Ecological Cycles)
• Cycle – a series of events that are regularly repeated in the same order.
• Ecological Cycles:
• Ecological cycles are the various self-regulating processes that recycle the earth’s
limited resources – water, carbon, nitrogen, and other elements - that are
essential to sustain life.
• Also ecological cycle maintain the ecosystem health and productivity for now
and the future.
• Example of Ecological Cycle -
1.Carbon Cycle.
2. Nitrogen Cycle.
3.Sulphur Cycle.
4.Phosphorus Cycle.
These cycles are called biogeochemical cycles, because they include a
variety of biological, geological, and chemical processes.
The water, carbon, Sulphur, phosphorus, and nitrogen cycles are most
important because living things need these materials in their bodies to survive.
 Carbon Cycle.

• The carbon cycle is the process in which carbon travels from

the atmosphere into organisms and the Earth and then back
into the atmosphere.
• Plants take carbon dioxide from the air and use it to make
food.
• Animals then eat the food and carbon is stored in their
bodies or released as CO2 through respiration.
• The series of processes by which carbon compounds are inter-
converted in the environment, involving the incorporation of
carbon dioxide into living tissue by photosynthesis and its
return to the atmosphere through respiration, the decay of
dead organisms, and the burning of fossil fuels.
 Carbon Cycle Steps
• This is the long-term carbon cycle.
• So, carbon takes up various forms:
Glucose in plants, carbon dioxide in the air and
hydrocarbons like coal.
• Carbon Cycle Steps are-
1.Photosynthesis. Plants pull in carbon dioxide out of the air
through photosynthesis.
2.Decomposition.
3.Respiration.
4.Combustion.
 Nitrogen Cycle
• Nitrogen Cycle is a biogeochemical process through which
nitrogen is converted into many forms, consecutively passing
from the atmosphere to the soil to organism and back into
the atmosphere.
• It involves several processes such as nitrogen fixation,
nitrification, denitrification and decay.
• Nitrogen is a very important component for all life in the
environment.
• It is an important part of many cells and processes such as
amino acids, proteins and even our DNA.
• It is also needed to make chlorophyll in plants, which is used
in photosynthesis to make their food.
 Nitrogen cycle steps
• The nitrogen cycle contains several stages:
• Nitrogen fixation.
Atmospheric nitrogen occurs primarily in an
inert form (N2) that few organisms can use; therefore it
must be converted to an organic – or fixed – form in a
process called nitrogen fixation.
• Nitrification.
• Assimilation.
• Ammonification.
• Denitrification.
 Sulphur Cycle.
• Sulphur is important for the functioning of
proteins and enzymes in plants, and in animals
that depend upon plants for sulphur.
• Plants absorb sulphur when it is dissolved in water.
• Animals consume these plants, so that they take
up enough sulphur to maintain their health.
• The sulfur cycle is the collection of processes by
which sulfur moves between rocks, waterways and
living systems.
 Importance of Sulphur Cycle
• Sulphur is important for the functioning of
proteins and enzymes in plants, and in animals
that depend upon plants for sulphur.
• Plants absorb sulphur when it is dissolved in
water.
• Animals consume these plants, so that they
take up enough sulphur to maintain their
health.
 Sulphur Cycle Steps
• Steps of the sulfur cycle are:
• Mineralization of organic sulfur into inorganic
forms, such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S), elemental
sulfur, as well as sulfide minerals.
• Oxidation of hydrogen sulfide, sulfide, and
elemental sulfur (S) to sulfate (SO42−).
• Reduction of sulfate to sulfide.
• Incorporation of sulfide into organic compounds
(including metal-containing derivatives).
 Phosphorus cycle
• The phosphorus cycle is the process by which phosphorus
moves through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere.
• Phosphorus is essential for plant and animal growth, as well
as the health of microbes inhabiting the soil, but is gradually
depleted from the soil over time.
• The main biological function of phosphorus is that it is
required for the formation of nucleotides, which comprise
DNA and RNA molecules.
• The phosphorus cycle is an extremely slow process, as various
weather conditions (e.g., rain and erosion) help to wash the
phosphorus found in rocks into the soil.
• In the soil, the organic matter (e.g., plants and fungi) absorb
the phosphorus to be used for various biological processes.
 Phosphorus Cycle Steps

• The phosphorus cycle is a slow process, which

involves five key steps, as shown in the
diagram below and described as follows:
• Steps -
1.Weathering
2.Absorption by Plants and Animals
3.Return to the Environment via Decomposition
 Phosphorus Cycle Steps
• Weathering
Since the main source of phosphorus is found in rocks, the first step of
the phosphorus cycle involves the extraction of phosphorus from the rocks by
weathering.
Weather events, such as rain and other sources of erosion, result in
phosphorus being washed into the soil.
• Absorption by Plants and Animals
Once in the soil, plants, fungi, and microorganisms are able to absorb
phosphorus and grow.
In addition, phosphorus can also be washed into the local water systems.
Plants can also directly absorb phosphorus from the water and grow.
In addition to plants, animals also obtain phosphorus from drinking water
and eating plants.
• Return to the Environment via Decomposition
When plants and animals die, decomposition results in the return of
phosphorus back to the environment via the water or soil.
Plants and animals in these environments can then use this phosphorus,
and step 2 of the cycle is repeated.
 Global warming
(जागतिक तापमानवाढ)

• Global warming is an increase in the overall temperature of

the earth's atmosphere.
• It's generally attributed to the greenhouse effect caused by
increased levels of carbon dioxide and other gases.
• Global Warming.
This term refers to the general increase in the earth's
average temperature caused by the presence of greenhouse
gases in the atmosphere, which causes changes in climate
patterns across the globe.
• Global warming is the temperature of Earth's surface, oceans
and atmosphere going up over tens of years. Average
temperatures today are about 1 °C (1.8 °F) higher than before
the Industrial Revolution, which started around 1750.
 Causes of Global Worming
• Global warming is caused by increased concentrations of greenhouse
gases in the atmosphere, mainly from human activities such as –
• The main greenhouse gases are:
• Carbon dioxide (CO2)
• Methane(CH4)
• Nitrous oxide (N2O)
• Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
• Sulphur dioxide (SO2)
• Sources of Green House Gases –
1. Burning of coal, oil and natural gases in the industry.
2. Burning of fossil fuel at power stations.
3. Use of diesel, petrol, for vehicles, railways, aircraft etc.
4. Burning of fire wood and deforestation.
5. Farming release large amount of methane.
 Causes of Global Worming
• The various causes of global warming are-
• 1. Human activity.
• 2. Burning fossil fuels.
• 3. Deforestation.
• 4. Agriculture & Farming Activity.
 Causes of Global Warming
1.Human activity-
• Various human activities lead to global warming are –
1.Travel & Transportation.
2. Industrialization.
3. Deforestation.
4. Livestock Production.
5. Factory Farming.
6. Consumerism.(increasing consumption of goods and services products) .
7. Overuse of Electricity.
8. Overfishing.
9. Use of Aerosols.(a substance enclosed under pressure and released as a fine spray by
means of a propellant gas.)
10. Inability to Change.
 Human activity

• since the industrial revolution has increased the

amount of green house gases in the atmosphere.
• Greenhouse gases trap heat and make the planet
warmer.
• Human activities are responsible for almost all of
the increase in greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere over the last many years.
• The largest source of green house gas emissions
from human activities in atmosphere is from
burning fossil fuels for electricity, heat, and
transportation.
 Causes of Global Worming
2. Burning fossil fuels –
• When we burn fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas to create
electricity or power our cars, we release CO2 pollution into the
atmosphere.
• When fossil fuels are burned, they release carbon dioxide and
other greenhouse gases, which in turn trap heat in our
atmosphere, making them the primary contributors to global
warming and climate change.
• The burning of fossil fuel gives out harmful compounds like
sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. These substances will rise
extremely high into the atmosphere, wherever they combine
and react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form a lot
of acidic pollutants, called air pollution and they are harmful to
the environment.
 Causes of Global Worming
3. Deforestation
• The action of clearing a wide area of trees.
• Plants and trees play an important role in regulating the
climate because they absorb carbon dioxide from the air and
release oxygen back into the environment.
• The loss of trees and other vegetation can cause climate
change, degradation of land, soil erosion, fewer crops,
flooding (the covering or submerging of normally dry land
with a large amount of water), increased greenhouse gases
in the atmosphere.
• Direct causes of deforestation are agricultural expansion,
wood extraction (e.g. wood harvest for domestic fuel or
charcoal), and infrastructure expansion such as road building
and urbanization.
 Causes of Global Worming
4. Agriculture & Farming –

• Agriculture is essential in sustaining human life, the practices associated

certain impacts on the environment.
• The most notable of these effects includes climate change, deforestation,
pollution, and general environmental degradation.
• Agriculture is one of the main sources of emitted methane and nitrous oxide.
• Animals, particularly livestock like sheep and cattle, produce methane, a
greenhouse gas.
• When livestock are at a large scale, the amount of methane produced is a big
contributor to global warming.
• Some fertilizers that farmers use also release nitrous oxide, which is another
greenhouse gas.
• Farming produce large quantities of waste and greenhouse gases, polluting
our land, air, water and contributing to climate change.
 Effect of Global Warming
• One of the most immediate and obvious effects of
global warming is the increase in temperatures around
the world.
• The average global temperature has increased by
about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit (0.8 degrees Celsius)
over the past 100 years.
• Increase in temperature on the earth’s surface will
cause more evaporation of surface water.
• Receding many glaciers, melting of ice caps.
• A rise in sea level will cause flooding of low laying
areas along coastal area.
 Effect of Global Warming
• The effects of global warming or climate damage include important
and long-lasting changes to the natural environment, to ecosystems
and human societies.
• It caused directly or indirectly by human emissions of
greenhouse gases.
• It also includes the economic and social changes .
• Human caused climate change is one of the danger to sustainability.
• Many physical impacts of global warming are already visible,
including extreme weather events, glacier retreat, changes in the
timing of seasonal events (e.g., earlier flowering of plants),
sea level rise.
• The future impact of global warming depends on the extent to which
nations implement prevention efforts and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions.
 Climate change impact
• The most important climate change impacts
are:
1. Rising Sea Levels.
2. Melting Ice.
3. Changing Ecosystem.
4. Reduced food security..
 Climate change impact
• The most important climate change impacts are:
1. Rising Sea Levels
Climate change impacts rising sea levels. Average sea level
around the world rise about 8 inches (20 cm) in the past 100
years; climate scientists expect it to rise more and more rapidly in
the next 100 years as part of climate change impacts.
• Coastal cities such as New York are already increased number of
flooding events and by 2050 many such cities may require
seawalls to survive.
• The causes of global sea level rise can be roughly split into three
categories:
1) Thermal expansion of sea water as it warms up,
2) Melting of land ice and
3) Changes in the amount of water stored on land.
 Climate change impact
2. Melting Ice
• Greenland ice cap and/or the Antarctic ice shelf collapses, sea levels could rise by
as much as 20 ft (6 m).
3. Changing Ecosystem –
• Impacts of climate change on ecosystems reduce their ability to improve water
quality and regulate water flows.
• Rapid changes to ecosystems may cause the displacement or loss of many species
(a group of living organisms-प्रजाती).
• Timing of critical biological events is shifting, affecting species and habitats (natural
environment).
4. Reduced food security –
• One of the most striking impacts of rising temperatures is felt in global agriculture.
• Climate change can disrupt (problem) food availability, reduce access to food, and
affect food quality.
• For example, projected increases in temperatures, changes in precipitation
patterns, changes in extreme weather events, and reductions in water availability
may all result in reduced agricultural productivity.
 Green house effects
• The greenhouse effect is a natural process that warms
the Earth's surface.
• When the Sun's energy reaches the Earth's atmosphere,
some of it is reflected back to space and the rest is
absorbed and re-radiated by greenhouse gases.
• The greenhouse effect is a process that occurs when
gases in Earth's atmosphere trap the Sun's heat.
• This process makes Earth much warmer than it would be
without an atmosphere.
• The greenhouse effect is the process by which radiation
from a planet's atmosphere warms the planet's surface
to a temperature.
 Green house effects
• Radioactively active gases (i.e.,
greenhouse gases) in a planet's atmosphere
radiate energy in all directions.
• Part of this radiation is directed towards the
surface, warming it.
• The intensity of the downward radiation – that
is, the strength of the greenhouse effect – will
depend on the atmosphere's temperature and
on the amount of greenhouse gases that the
atmosphere contains.
 Green house effects
• Greenhouse Gases -
• There are several different types of greenhouse gases.
• The major ones are carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide.
• These gas molecules all are made of three or more atoms.
• The atoms are held together loosely enough that they
vibrate when they absorb heat.
• Eventually, the vibrating molecules release the radiation, which will likely be
absorbed by another greenhouse gas molecule.
• This process keeps heat near the Earth’s surface.
• Most of the gas in the atmosphere is nitrogen and oxygen – both of which are
molecules made of two atoms.
• The atoms in these molecules are bound together tightly and unable to
vibrate, so they cannot absorb heat and contribute to the greenhouse effect.
Green house effects
 Importance of Greenhouse Effect
• The greenhouse effect is important, because it contributes to the
survival of life on Earth.
• Without the greenhouse effect, the temperature of the planet
would be similar to conditions experienced on the moon.
• Besides CO2 there are other greenhouse gases.
• These include water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone.
• Without any greenhouse gases, Earth would be an icy wasteland.
• Greenhouse gases keep our planet livable by holding onto some of
Earth’s heat energy so that it doesn’t all escape into space.
• This heat trapping is known as the greenhouse effect.
 Effects of Green-House Gases
• Some of the most positive effects of greenhouse gases include the
following:
• 1. The greenhouse effect helps to maintain a certain temperature level on
Earth’s surface, making it habitable for the living beings (humans, animals,
plants and other organisms).
• Thanks to the greenhouse gases, the earth is warm enough to sustain life.
• Otherwise, the heat would have escaped (leave) the atmosphere, making
earth’s surface cooler.
• 2.The greenhouse gases help block the harmful solar radiation from
reaching planet’s surface.
• These gases work like a filter and bounce back most of the unwanted and
damaging energy into space.
• 3.Ozone, which is one of the crucial greenhouse gases, absorbs the
harmful ultra-violet (UV) rays of the sun.
• If there is no any Ozone layer in our atmosphere, the UV rays could reach
the surface directly and affect the life on earth on a massive scale.
• 4.The greenhouse effect has allowed the planet to maintain its water level
on the surface.
 Ozone Depletion.
• Depletion - Reduction in number or quantity.
• Reduction in the concentration of ozone in the ozone layer.
• Ozone layer (stratospheric ozone) is a high concentration of ozone
molecules about 30 to 50 km altitude (stratosphere).
• The main function of the ozone layer is to absorb the Sun's ultraviolet
radiation, hence protecting the Earth from its harmful effects.
• Ozone is a gas in the atmosphere that protects everything living on the
Earth from harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays from the Sun.
• Without the layer of ozone in the atmosphere, it would be very
difficult for anything to survive on the surface.
• Plants cannot live and grow in heavy ultraviolet radiation.
• The ozone layer acts as a shield to absorb the UV rays, and keep them
from doing damage at the Earth's surface.
 Ozone depletion
• Ozone depletion is a major environmental problem
because it increases the amount of ultraviolet (UV)
radiation that reaches Earth's surface, which increases the
rate of skin cancer, eye problem, genetic and immune
system damage.
• UV radiation also affects terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems,
altering growth, food chains and biochemical cycles.
• The main cause of ozone depletion and the ozone hole is
manufactured chemicals, especially manufactured
halocarbon refrigerants, solvents, propellants and foam-
blowing agents (chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), HCFCs,
halons), referred to as ozone-depleting substances (ODS).
 Causes for Ozone Layer Depletion

• Sunspots
• Stratospheric winds
• Volcanic eruptions
• CFCs
• Halons
• Carbon Tetrachloride
• Methyl chloroform
• Methyl bromide
• HCFCs
• Human behavior
 Causes for Ozone Layer Depletion
• Sunspots
• Sunspots can have serious negative effects on the ozone layer since sunspots
usually come along with an increase in UV-B radiation which in turn can
change the ozone concentrations in the atmosphere.
• Stratospheric winds
• Another natural cause for the depletion of the ozone layer are stratospheric
winds. Stratospheric winds lead to an increase of nitrogen oxides in the
atmosphere, which in turn amplifies the depletion of the ozone layer.
• Volcanic eruptions
• Volcanic eruptions can play an indirect role in the ozone layer destruction
process.
• CFCs
• CFCs (Chlorofluorocarbons) had been widely used for refrigerating purposes
in the past. The use of CFCs has declined substantially since it has been
discovered that CFCs harm the ozone layer.
 Causes for Ozone Layer Depletion
• Halons
• Halons contribute to the ozone layer depletion since they contain
bromine which has the potential to destroy the ozone in the stratosphere.
• Halons are more harmful than CFCs to the ozone layer, CFCs are much
more used than Halons. Thus, the overall impact of CFCs on the depletion
of the ozone layer is bigger than the impact of Halons.
• Carbon Tetrachloride
• Carbon tetrachloride also contributes to the ozone layer depletion since it
contains chlorines which can harm the ozone layer.
• Methyl chloroform
• Methyl chloroform is used for a variety of industrial processes. It is mainly
used for solvents to clean electronic and metal parts.
• Ultraviolet radiation breaks up the substance into chlorine, which in turn
can harm the ozone layer.
 Causes for Ozone Layer Depletion

• Methyl bromide
• Methyl bromide is usually used as a fumigant in order to control pests in
shipping and agriculture.
• Methyl bromide is a serious ozone-depleting substance which is classified as
Class I ozone-depleting substance.
• HCFCs
• HCFCs (hydrochlorofluorocarbons) are another source for the ozone layer
depletion problem. Although they have only a weak impact on the depletion
of the ozone layer, HCFCs are still quite harmful to the environmental system
since they are strong greenhouse gases.
• HCFCs are currently replaced by HFCs since they do not contain chlorine and
are therefore considered less damaging to the environmental system.
• Human behavior
• We contribute to ozone depletion through our daily life behavior. For
example, by using our cars, we emit greenhouse gases that are also harmful
to the ozone layer.
 Ozone depletion
• Ozone layer depletion is a serious threat to humanity as
well as to the whole environmental system.
• The ozone layer protects us from harmful UVB radiation
which can cause cancer and several other serious
health conditions.
• It can also adversely affect the growth of plants and
thus also crop yields.
• Although there are some natural causes for ozone
depletion like sunspots or volcanic eruptions, the main
part of the issue is made from human behavior.
Images of Ozone depletion
 Effects of Ozone Depletion

• Increased level of UV radiation

• Carcinoma (Carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer.)
• Melanoma (type of skin cancer)
• Effects on human health
• Increased vitamin D production
• Change in biogeochemical cycles
• Effects on marine life
• Effects on animals
• Effects on plants
• Effects on crops
• Environmental impact
• Economic impact
 Solutions to the Ozone Depletion Problem

• Switch from car to public transport

• Limit transportation networks
• Renewable energies
• Stop deforestation
• Recycle and reuse
• Avoid the excessive use of fertilizers
• Avoid the use of pesticides
• Reduce CFCs
• Reduce nitrous oxides
• Government regulations
• Education
 Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the ecosystem?
The ecosystem is the community of living organisms in conjunction
with non-living components of their environment, interacting as a system.
2. What are the different types of ecosystems?
• The different types of the ecosystem include:
Terrestrial ecosystem
Forest ecosystem
Grassland ecosystem
Desert ecosystem
Tundra ecosystem
Freshwater ecosystem
Marine ecosystem
3. Which ecosystem do we live in?
We live in a terrestrial ecosystem. This is the ecosystem where
organisms live and develop in the soil and in the air that surrounds a
specific terrestrial space.
4. What is the structure of the ecosystem?
The structure of the ecosystem includes the organisms and physical features of
the environment, including the amount and distribution of nutrients in a particular habitat.
It also provides information regarding the climatic conditions of that area.
5. Which is the largest ecosystem in the world?
The largest ecosystem in the world is the aquatic ecosystem. It comprises the
freshwater and marine ecosystem. It constitutes 70% of the surface of the earth.
6. What is the major function of an ecosystem?
The ecosystem is the functional unit of the environment system. The abiotic
components provide the matrix for the synthesis of organic components. This process
involves the exchange of energy.
7. What makes a good ecosystem?
A good ecosystem consists of native plants and animal species interacting with
each other and the environment. A healthy ecosystem has an energy source and the
decomposers that breakdown dead plants and animal matter, returning essential nutrients
to the soil.
8. What all include the non-living things in an ecosystem?
The non-living things in an ecosystem include air, wind, water, rocks, soil,
temperature and sunlight. These are known as the abiotic factors of an ecosystem.