Environmental Studies

 The term Environment means surroundings is considered as a

composite term for conditions in which organism live and this consists
of air, water, food and sunlight which are the basic requirements of all
living beings and plant life to carry on their life functions.
 1.Environment refers to the sum total of conditions which surround
human being at a given point in space and time.
 2. Environment is the sum of all social, economical, biological,
physical or chemical factors which constitute the surroundings of
man.
 Environment is the representative of physical components of the earth
where in man is the important factor influencing his environment.
 Segments of Environment
 Atmosphere: the cover of air, that envelopes the earth as known as the
atmosphere. Atmosphere is the protective thick gaseous mantle,
surrounding the earth which sustains life on earth. It extends to a height of
about 1600 Kms from the earth’s surface. The atmosphere is a reservoir of
several elements essential to life and it serves many purposes and
functions. It contains life saving gases like oxygen for human beings and
animals and carbon dioxide for plants to perform the process of
photosynthesis. Air is compressible (unlike water) and can be squeezed
into a much smaller space. It is elastic and has weight and also exerts
pressure held to the earth by gravitational attraction. The atmosphere
envelope is densest at sea level and thins rapidly upward.
 Structure of atmosphere
 Troposphere: The lowest layer of atmosphere in which living
organisms operate is called troposphere. It is the region of strong
air movements and cloud formations. It is the most common
layer in pollution control because this is the layer in which most
living things exist.
 Stratosphere: it is the air mass extending from the uppermost
level of the troposphere about 50 kms from the surface of the
earth. Ozone present there forms an ozone layer called as
ozonosphere.
 Structure of atmosphere
 Hydrosphere: It covers more than 75% of the earth’s surface either as ocean (salt
water) or as fresh water. It includes sea, rivers, oceans, lakes, ponds, streams etc. It
contains 35 parts per thousand of dissolved salt.
 Lithosphere: It means mantle of rocks constituting the earth’s crust. The earth is a
cold spherical solid planet of solar system which spins on its axis and revolves
round the sun at a certain constant distance.
 Biosphere: It indicates domain of living organisms and their interactions with
environment i.e the atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere. The planet earth
along with its living organisms and environment (air, land and water) which
sustains life is known as biosphere.
 Importance
 Since the emergence of life, several species of organisms have evolved,
flourished and died leaving only- their fossils to record their place in history.
 Environmental studies is inseparably associated with agriculture, fisheries,
public health, space research and nuclear radiation etc.
 Need for public Awareness
 Public participation is possible only when the public is aware about the
environmental issues or problems related to environment. Public has to be
educated about the fact that if we are polluting own environment we are
actually harming ourselves. This is because we are a small part of complex
network of environment where each component is interrelated to each other. If
we want to manage planet earth environment, we have to make all human
beings environmentally conscious.
 Natural Resources
 Resource means a source of supply or support generally held in reserve. A
natural resource is the stock that can be drawn from nature i.e., air, water,
minerals, land, vegetation, animals, solar energy and raw materials for
supporting life.
 Renewable resources:
 Resources that have the inherent capacity to reappear themselves by
quacking recycling, reproduction and replacement within a reasonable
time and maintain themselves.
 Non renewable resources
 Resources that lack the ability for recycling and replacement are called
non renewable resources e.g., fossil fuels like coal, petroleum and
minerals.
 Forest Resources
 Water is the essence of the earth and planets are essence of water. India
has forest cover area of only 19.4%. Forest area( government owned
land area kept for forestry purposes( accounts for 23% of the total
geographical area and forest cover only 19%.
 Diverse functions of forests as follows
 1. Productive function
 2. Regulative function
 3. Protective function
 4. Uses and over exploitation
 Natural Resources
 Renewable sources: Resources that have the inherent capacity to reappear or replenish themselves by
quick recycling, reproduction and replacement within a reasonable time and maintain themselves as soil, water and
living organisms.
 Non Renewable sources: Resources that lack the ability for recycling and replacement are called non
renewable resources as fossil fuels, coal, petroleum etc.
 Forest Resources:
 Water Resources
 Mining
 Deforestation
 Floods
 Droughts
Mineral Resources
 Minerals are the natural substances mined from the earth. It includes
all inorganic and organic substances derived from the earth.
 A number of minerals as iron, copper, aluminium, coal, petrol etc.
are essential for our industries. Man has been using minerals since
the dawn of civilization. Iron and steels are used for the
manufacturing of machinery, houses, automobiles, rail tracks etc.
Copper, lead, manganese and zinc are now used for many purposes.
 Conservation of mineral resources
 1. Minimizing waste and developing technologies to recover the
resources from waste.
 2. Developing technologies to recycle metals.
 3. Research is being carried out to substitute some metals like gold,
silver, mercury, platinum etc. by man made products.
 4. Alternatives to fossil fuels need to be found.
 5. A databank on the availability and expenditure of mineral resources
should be maintained so that their use is regulated.
 Food Resources
 Plants and animals are the main sources of human food. The main
food resources include wheat, rice, maize, sweet, vegetables,
pulses sugar & fruits. A number of animal products as milk, ghee,
egg and meat also supplement the food requirement of world.
Rice, wheat, maize are the major diet of man. Due to climatic
conditions, only 40% of the total area of world can ever be used
for cultivation of crops. In India, the cropping pattern is
determined by natural factors like rainfall, climate and soil
conditions.
 World food problems
 1. Undernourishment: It is the lack of sufficient calories in available diet so that one has
little or no ability to move or work. Lack of energy and nutrients make them more susceptible
to infectious diseases.
 2. Malnourishment: It is the lack of specific constituents of food as proteins, vitamins or
certain essential elements. It is possible to have excess food and still suffer from
malnourishment due to nutritional imbalance caused by a lack of specific dietary constituents
or an inability to absorb or utilize essential nutrients from the food. Major problems are
Marasmus and Kwashiarkor.
 Hunger and child mortality
 Goiter: is caused by deficiency of iodine.
 Anaemia: is caused by lack of iron.
 Over nutrition: overweight, High B.P, Heart attack
 Soil Erosion
 Soil erosion is defined as the movement of soil components, especially
top surface soil from one place to another. It results in the loss of
fertility. It is of two types.
 (a)Geological erosion or natural erosion: It is caused by the gradual
removal of top soil by natural process which brings an equilibrium
between physical, biological activities and maintain a natural balance
between erosion and renewal.
 Accelerated erosion: It is caused by man made activities Increased
population pressure, deforestation, mining and construction lead to
accelerated erosion.
 Ecosystem
 An ecosystem is a community of organisms (plant, animals and other
living organisms) together with their environment, functioning as a
unit. It may be of different size. It may be a whole forest as well as
small pond. Different ecosystems are often separated by geographical
barriers like deserts, mountains or oceans.
 An ecosystem can be defined as any situation where there is
interaction between organisms and their environment.
 Ecosystem Structure and function
 The earth can be conceptualized as being composed of living and non
living material. The atmosphere (air), hydrosphere (water) and
lithosphere (soil) constitute non living components. The biosphere
contains all of the living things on the earth. Ecology is the study of
structure and function in nature, interactions between living things
and their non living environment.
 Biosphere: It may be divided into smaller ecological units each of
which is termed as an ecosystem. Biotic community along with its
habitat is an ecosystem.
 Components of an ecosystem
 Abiotic environment: non living environment such as air, water, soil and basic
compounds of environment. These non living substances enter the body of living
organism take part in metabolic activities and then return to the environment.
 Producers: which convert solar energy to chemical energy with the help of inorganic
substances as water and carbon di oxide and organic substances as enzymes. Producers
utilize energy from the sun and nutrients from abiotic environment (carbon di oxide
from the atmosphere, other nutrients from the soil or water)to develop by means of
photosynthesis. Examples of producers are green plants.
 Consumers: which are heterotrophic organisms chiefly animals. Consumers depends on
producers for their energy. Depending upon their food habits consumers may either be
herbivores (plant eaters) or carnivores (Flesh eaters).
 Types of consumers
 Primary consumers: these are the animals which feed on plants or
producers. They are herbivores as rabbit, deer, goat, cattle etc.
 Secondary consumers: the animals which feed on herbivores are
called primary carnivores as cat, fox & snake etc.
 Tertiaryconsumers: these are large carnivores which feed on
secondary consumers as wolf.
 Omnivores: these are the large carnivores which feed on tertiary
consumers and are not eaten up by any other animal as Lion & Tiger.
 Energy flow in Ecosystem
 The chemical energy of food is the main source of energy required by all living organisms.
This energy is transmitted to different trophic levels along the food chain. This energy flow
is based on two different laws of thermodynamics:
 First law of thermodynamics, that states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed, it
can only change from one form to another.
 Second law of thermodynamics, that states that as energy is transferred more and more of it
is wasted.
 The energy flow in the ecosystem is one of the major factors that support the survival of
such a great number of organisms. For almost all organisms on earth, the primary source of
energy is solar energy. It is amusing to find that we receive less than 50 per cent of the
sun’s effective radiation on earth. When we say effective radiation, we mean the radiation,
which can be used by plants to carry out photosynthesis.
Why is the energy flow in ecosystem important?
 The energy flow in the ecosystem is important to maintain an
ecological balance. The producers synthesise food by the process
of photosynthesis. A part of the energy is stored within the
plants. The remaining energy is utilised by the plants in their
growth and development. This stored energy is transferred to the
primary consumers when they feed on the producers. This
energy is further passed on to the secondary consumers when
they feed on the primary consumers, and so on.
 Ecological succession
 The process by which the structure of a biological community evolves
over time. Two different types of succession—primary and secondary—
have been distinguished. Primary succession occurs in essentially
lifeless areas—regions in which the soil is incapable of sustaining life as
a result of such factors as lava flows, newly formed sand dunes,
or rocks left from a retreating glacier. Secondary succession occurs in
areas where a community that previously existed has been removed; it is
typified by smaller-scale disturbances that do not eliminate all life
and nutrients from the environment.
First Law of Second Law of
Thermodynamics Thermodynamics
 The first law of thermodynamics  In the second law, it is stated
states that energy can neither be that during the transformation,
created nor destroyed. Here also, a portion of the energy is
the source of energy, i.e., Solar dissipated into the surroundings
energy, can neither be created nor
as heat energy.
destroyed. It can only be
transferred from one system to
another as from one form to
another form.
 Causes of succession
 Succession always starts on a bare area. Its area is classified as rock and water and may
be caused by a number of factors.
 Climatic causes: Plant cannot adjust with the long variations in the climate.
 Drought- drying and killing of weaker species.
 Snow – killing the previous vegetation.
 Physiographic causes:
 Erosion by water, wind and gravity.
 Deposition of soil.
 Biotic causes: Many biological or living agencies affect the vegetation.
 Man destroying natural vegetation.
 Animal overgrazing.
 Types of ecological succession
 Primary succession: it takes place in bare area where no community existed
before like rock surface, newly developed ponds.
 Secondary succession: It takes place in disturbed area where community existed
before like destructed forest area due to over exploitation, overgrazing, forest fire.
 Autogenic succession: "Auto-" meaning self or same, and "-genic"
meaning producing or causing. Therefore, Autogenic succession refers to
ecological succession driven by biotic factors within an ecosystem, which
consequently brings changes in the environment. For example, the plants
themselves cause succession to occur, leading to a gradual ecological
change in a particular spot of land, known as a progression of inhabiting
species.
 Food Chains
 Autotrophs convert solar energy into chemical energy stored in a food material. The
transfer of food energy from plant sources through a series of organisms forms what
is called food chain. At each transfer a large proportion, 80 to 90% of potential energy
is lost as heat.
 Food chains are of two types.
 Grazing food chain, which starts from a green plant base goes to grazing herbivores
and on to carnivores.
 Detritus food chain which goes from dead organic matter into microorganisms
 Significance of food chain: it helps to understand feeding relationship and the
interaction between organisms in any ecosystem.
 They also help us comprehend the energy flow mechanism and matter circulation in
ecosystem

 Ecological Pyramids
 The interaction of food chain phenomena and the size metabolism
relationship results in communities having a definite trophic structure.
Which is often characteristic of a particular type of ecosystem (Lake, forest
etc.). Trophic structure may be measured and described either in the form of
energy fixed per unit area at successive trophic levels. There are three types
of ecological pyramids.
 1. the pyramids of numbers in which no. of individual organisms is depicted.
 2. The pyramid of biomass based on the total dry weight, measures of the
total amount of living material.
 3. the pyramid of energy in which the rate of energy flow.
 Pyramid of numbers
 When plotted, the relationships among the number of producers, irrespective of
their taxonomic position, primary consumers(herbivores), secondary consumers
(carnivores 1) and tertiary consumers (carnivores 2) and so on. In any ecosystem
forms a pyramidal structure called pyramid of numbers.
 Pyramid of Biomass
 The difficulty faces in comparing disparate objects is removed to
large extent if biomass of a trophic level is considered in place of
numbers. We have the pyramid of biomass if we plot the biomass of
producers, herbivores, carnivores and so on. Thus we have pyramid
of biomass if we plot the biomass of producers, herbivores,
carnivores and so on. The types of pyramid of biomass are found. If
a large weight of producers support a smaller weight of consumers,
an upright pyramid results. If a small weight of producers support a
large weight of consumers, an inverted biomass pyramid results.
 Desert Ecosystem
 Extreme desert is the wasteland with practically no vegetation. Desert
includes arid regions which contain considerable vegetation adapted to
tolerate hot, dry climates. Hot deserts are characterized by high
temperature and low rainfall. Creating an enormous water deficit.
 Producers: Shrubs, especially bushes, some grasses and few trees.
 Consumers: reptiles and insects.
 Decomposers: amount of dead organic matter. Some fungi & Bacteria.
 Biodiversity
 Biodiversity is the vast array of all the species of plants, animals, insects &
microorganisms inhabiting the earth. The human civilization depends
directly or indirectly upon his biodiversity for their very basic needs of
survival food, fuel, fertilizers, timber, liquor, rubber, leather, medicines and
several raw materials. The diversity is the condition for the long term
sustainability of the environment, continuity of life on earth and the
maintenance of its integrity.
 Genetic Diversity: It includes the genetic variations within species, both
among geographically separated populations and among individuals with
single population.
 Biodiversity
 Species Diversity: It includes full range of species from
microorganisms to giants and mammoth varieties of plants
and animals. e.g single celled viruses and bacteria etc. plants
animal and fungi.
 Ecosystem diversity: It studies variation in the biological
communities in which species live, exist and interact.
 Importance of Biodiversity
 Timber
 Fishery
 Food
 Medicinal Value
 Genetic value
 Tourism
 Poor and indigenous people
 Pollution control
 Environmental Pollution
 Pollutionis the effect of undesirable changes in our surroundings that
have harmful effects on plants, animals and human beings.
 Environmental pollution is any discharge of material or energy into water,
land or air that causes or may cause short term or long term detriment to
the earth’s ecological balance or that lowers the quality of life.

 Pollutants include solid, liquid or gaseous substances present in greater

than natural abundance produced due to human activity which have a
detrimental effect on our environment.
 Water Pollution
 Water pollution is the introduction into fresh or ocean waters of chemical physical or
biological material that degrades the quality of water and affects the organisms living
in it. This process ranges from simple addition of dissolved or suspended solids to
discharge of most insidious and persistent toxic pollutants as chemical compounds.
 As entire land area is covered upto 2/3rd of the area with water. So is the case with
human body in which 30% of total blood is composed of water. The actions and life
of human body is dependent on water. Pure water is most important for human
beings.
 Pollution is a change in physical chemical and biological properties of any
substances which is harmful for man and other living organisms. Hence minerals,
carbonic and a carbonic elements, gases get dissolved in water in excess to a certain
ratio then that water is called polluted water.
 Water Pollution
 According to World Health Organization 1966,
 Foreign materials either from natural and other sources and contaminated with
water supplies and may be harmful to life because of their toxicity, reduction of
normal oxygen level of water, unsuitable effects and spread of epidemics.
 Water Pollution is a natural or induced change in the quality of water which
render it unsuitable or dangerous as regards fod, human and animal health,
agriculture & fishing.
 Water pollution is degradation of various sources and collections of water in its
physical, chemical and biological properties through various human activities.
Water polluted in this manner is harmful and unsuitable for human community,
other organisms and food products.
 Soil Pollution
 Soil is made up of interrelated activities of climatic conditions, soil and other physical
factors and is having a composition of various mineral ions and decomposed biotic
elements. It is basic component of environment through which the basic needs of food
clothing and shelter is satisfied by man.
 Soil pollution is caused by the presence of human made chemicals or other alternation
in the natural soil environment. It is typically caused by industrial activity, agricultural
chemicals or improper disposal of waste.
 Soil is a mixture of mineral elements, carbonic substances, gases, water etc. in a fixed
proportion. When this proportion gets disturbed due to human activity ar same
elements get mixed in it which destroys its composition or quality then soil gets
polluted and its natural qualities get destroyed. This mismanagement is called soil
pollution.
 Noise Pollution
 Noise pollution is also the result of our physical and industrial development. Some of
sources of noise pollution are cars, bus, jet aeroplanes, tractors, engine, generator,
loudspeaker, T.V, machines of industries siren etc.
 Effect of Noise pollution on human health
 Diminishing hearing capacity and mental tension
 Due to high level of noise the capacity of man diminishes as noise effect ears to large
extent
 Due to noise pollution heart, mind and liver of man and other organisms suffers having
loss.
 Various psychological defects like madness, less amount of sleep, nervous breakdown
etc. are caused in man due to noise pollution
 Radio Active Pollution
 It is most dangerous of all environmental pollutions. This pollution also pollutes
atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere. It is also known as nuclear pollution.
Usually the pollution caused by actions and reactions of radio active elements is
known as nuclear pollution. Any nuclear blasts releases protons, electrons,
neutrons, alpha rays, beta rays and gamma rays which environment of that
particular area and also of surrounding area.
 Sources of Radio active Pollution
 Radio active effects are caused by natural as well as human activities. Various
natural elements like thorium, uranium, radium etc. cause radio active pollution,
Nuclear bombs, test explosion, nuclear power plants etc. are some of the human
activities which cause radio active pollution.
 Chemical Pollution
 When any undesirable poisonous elements damages the physical, chemical and
biological qualities of natural elements like land water, air etc. called poisonous
pollution. This pollution can take any form i.e. solid, liquid and gas and creates
problem for living organisms on the earth. Because of increased which has lead
to increased use of pesticides to control the insects, pests and fertilizers to
increase the fertility of soil. This increased use of pesticides and chemical
fertilizers is contributing a lot to the poisonous chemical pollution. Chemicals
like DDT etc. are also sprinkle on crops, plants and trees. These chemicals
contribute to pollution in two ways.
 They pollute the soil by getting mixed with it.
 They also cause harm to the life of organisms by getting attached on the final
agricultural products.
 Marine Pollution
 Marine pollution is the undesirable and harmful change in the marine
environment including valleys etc. by human activities. These activities
include disposal of waste in marine environment, unbalanced energy etc.
Following are the undesirable changes which have occurred in marine
environment:
 Harmful effects on resources related with life.
 Adverse effect on human health
 Interruption in marine activities which include fishery industries also.
 Degradation of quality of marine water
 Sources of Marine Pollution
 Un Environment protection council in 1962 has named the following elements as a source
of marine pollution:
 Sewage
 Petrochemical industries
 Radioactive waste
 Processing of food and bewerages
 Metal Industry
 Chemical Industry
 Pulp paper industry
 Thermal industry
 Disposal of waste, rubbish by tourists
 Polluted water and others
 Biodiversity
 What is Biodiversity Conservation?
 Biodiversity conservation is the protection and management of biodiversity to obtain
resources for sustainable development.
 Biodiversity conservation has three main objectives:
 To preserve the diversity of species.
 Sustainable utilization of species and ecosystem.
 To maintain life-supporting systems and essential ecological processes.
 Biodiversity refers to the variability of life on earth. It can be conserved in the
following ways:
 In-situ Conservation
 Ex-situ Conservation
 In-situ Conservation
 In-situ conservation of biodiversity is the conservation of species within their natural
habitat. In this method, the natural ecosystem is maintained and protected.
 The in-situ conservation has several advantages. Following are the important
advantages of in-situ conservation:
 It is a cost-effective and convenient method of conserving biodiversity.
 A large number of living organisms can be conserved simultaneously.
 Since the organisms are in a natural ecosystem, they can evolve better and can easily
adjust to different environmental conditions.
 Certain protected areas where in-situ conservation takes place include national
parks, wildlife sanctuaries and biosphere reserves.
 In-situ Conservation
 National Parks
 These are small reserves maintained by the government. Its boundaries are well
demarcated and human activities such as grazing, forestry, habitat and cultivation are
prohibited. For eg., Kanha National Park, and Bandipur National Park.
 Wildlife Sanctuaries
 These are the regions where only wild animals are found. Human activities such as timber
harvesting, cultivation, collection of woods and other forest products are allowed here as
long as they do not interfere with the conservation project. Also, tourists visit these places
for recreation.
 Biosphere Reserves
 Biosphere reserves are multi-purpose protected areas where the wildlife, traditional
lifestyle of the inhabitants and domesticated plants and animals are protected. Tourist and
research activities are permitted here.
 Ex-situ Conservation
 Ex-situconservation of biodiversity involves the breeding and maintenance
of endangered species in artificial ecosystems such as zoos, nurseries,
botanical gardens, gene banks, etc. There is less competition for food, water
and space among the organisms.
 Ex-situ conservation has the following advantages:
 The animals are provided with a longer time and breeding activity.
 The species bred in captivity can be reintroduced in the wild.
 Genetic techniques can be used for the preservation of endangered species.
 Strategies for Biodiversity Conservation
 Allthe varieties of food, timber plants, livestock, microbes and agricultural
animals should be conserved.
 Allthe economically important organisms should be identified and
conserved.
 Unique ecosystems should be preserved first.
 The resources should be utilized efficiently.
 Poaching and hunting of wild animals should be prevented.
 The reserves and protected areas should be developed carefully.
Strategies for Biodiversity Conservation
 The levels of pollutants should be reduced in the environment.
 Deforestation should be strictly prohibited.
 Environmental laws should be followed strictly.
 The useful and endangered species of plants and animals should be
conserved in their nature as well as artificial habitats.
 Publicawareness should be created regarding biodiversity
conservation and its importance.