Introduction to

Environmental Science

Chapter: 01
Dr. M. Khabir Uddin
Professor
Department of Environmental Sciences
Jahangirnagar University, Course No.: ENV. 107
Savar, Dhaka-1342
Email: khabir88@yahoo.com,
khabir88@juinv.edu
 Chapter: 01

Meaning of the Environment

The term “environment” according to Alan Gilpin (1976) is

“The region, surroundings or circumstances

in which anything exists; everything external to the
organisms.”
 The effective environment is everything external to the
organism which effects the fulfillment of that organism.

 The environment of the human being includes: the abiotic

factors of land, water, atmosphere, climates, sound, odors,
and tastes; the basic factors of animals, plants, bacteria and
viruses and the social factor of aesthetics.
 Chapter: 01

Meaning of the Environment (Contd..)

According to the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act (1971),

the environment is defined as follows:

 Air, land and water

 Plant and animal life, including
 The social, economic and cultural conditions that influence
the life of man or community
 Any building, structure, machine or device or thing made by
man
 Any solid, liquid, gas, odor, heat, sound, vibration or radiation
resulting directly or indirectly from the activities of man, or
 Any part of combination of the foregoing and the inter
relationships between any two or more of them
 Chapter: 01

Types of Environment

There are two types of environment.

1. Natural or physical environment, and

2. Anthropogenic environment
 The natural environment refers to non-cultural and non-
social environment before the advent of man on earth. It is
all environment apart from man and all the things created
before man.

 Anthropogenic environment environment is the environment

modified by man, culture, technological and population
density determine the degree of modification of the natural
environment. That is people of high technology will modify
the environment than those of low level of technology.
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Classification of Environment
 Chapter: 01

Environmental Science

 In the past 25 – 30 years, there was the public and

academic interest in environmental problems.

 This increasing interest has resulted or led to the

birth of a new discipline called Environmental
Science.

 Actually, the contents or composition of this

discipline are not new as such, since they are
drawn from the existing area of science such as
physics, chemistry, biology and geosciences.
 Chapter: 01

Environmental Science (Contd..)

In a broadest sense Environmental science is

“The Science of the complex interactions that occur among the

terrestrial, atmospheric, aquatic, living, and anthropological
environments.”

 It includes all the disciplines, such as chemistry, biology,

ecology, sociology and government that affect or describe these
interactions.

 Environmental science can be defined as, “the study of the

earth, air, water and living environment, and the effects of
technology thereon.”

 Traditionally, environmental science has been divided among

the study of the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the geosphere,
and biosphere.
 Chapter: 01

What is New in Environmental

Science?
What is really new about environmental science is its view points.
The view points can be seen in three ways:

1. In environmental science, the orientation is towards global

problems
2. Its conception of the earth as a set of interlocking and
interacting system
3. Its interest in man as part of this system

These are the three ways in which environmental science is

different from the present science like physics, chemistry
and biology.
 Chapter: 01

Why Environmental Science is

important?

 We depend on our environment. People can live only in an

environment with certain kinds of characteristics and within
certain ranges of availability of resources.

 Because modern science and technology gives us the power to

affect the environment, we have to understand how the
environment works, so that we can live within its constraints.

 We enjoy our environment. To keep it enjoyable, we must

understand it from scientific viewpoint.
 Chapter: 01

Why Environmental Science is

important? (Contd..)
 People have always been fascinated with nature, which is in its
broadest view, our environment. As long as people have written,
they have asked three questions about ourselves and nature
such as:

1) What is the nature like when it is undisturbed by people?

2) What are the effects of people on nature?
3) What are the effects of nature on people?

 Environmental science is our modern way of seeking answers to

these questions.

 Our environment improves the quality of living. A healthy

environment can help us live longer and more fulfilling lives.
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Components of the Environment

Primary Secondary Tertiary Air Water Land/

Soil
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Environmental science has been divided among

the study of:

1) The Atmosphere,
2) The Hydrosphere,
3) The Geosphere,
4) The Biosphere and
5) The Anthrosphere
 Chapter: 01
Air, water, earth, life, and technology are
strongly interconnected as shown in following:

Source : Environmental chemistry,, Stanley E. Manahan,

Seventh Edition
Figure : Illustration of the close relationships among the air, water, and earth environments with each other and
with living systems, as well as the tie-in with technology (the anthrosphere).
 Chapter: 01

Table: Interchange of Materials among

the Possible Spheres of the
Environment
 Chapter: 01
Atmosphere
 It is the thin layer of gases that cover Earth’s surface.

 The atmosphere is a critical system that helps to regulate Earth's

climate.

 In addition to its role as a reservoir of gases, the atmosphere

moderates Earth’s temperature, absorbs energy and damaging
UV radiation from sun, transports energy away from equatorial
regions and serves as a pathway for vapor-phase movement of
water in the hydrological cycle.

 The atmosphere is composed of nitrogen (N)Oxygen (O), argon

(Ar), water vapor (H2O), Carbon Dioxide (CO2), and a number of
trace gases [Ozone (O3), Helium (He), Methane (CH4), Krypton (Kr),
Hydrogen (H)]

 Chemical reactions maintain the ratios of major constituents of

the atmosphere to each other.
 Chapter: 01

Composition of the Atmosphere

Name of Gas Composition by Volume
Nitrogen (N2) 78.08%
Oxygen (O2) 20.95%
Argon (Ar) 0.93%
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) 0.03%
Neon (Ne) 0.001%
Helium (He) 0.0005%
Krypton (Kr) 0.0001%
Xenon (Xe) 0.00009%
Hydrogen (H2) 0.00005%
Methane (CH4) 0.00002%
Nitrous oxide (N2O) 0.00005%
 Chapter: 01

Major regions
of the
atmosphere (not
to scale).
Due to ozone layer
temperature decreasing is
disrupted at stratosphere.
Ozone layer absorbs
radiation specially UV and it
releases heat to its
surroundings. When a body
absorbs radiation then it
releases heat. It follows the
general rule of radiation.
 Chapter: 01

Hydrosphere

 It contains Earth’s water.

 Over 97% of Earth’s water in oceans, and most of the

remaining fresh water is in the form of ice.

 Therefore, only a relatively small percentage of the total

water on Earth is actually involved with terrestrial,
atmosphere, and biological processes.

 Exclusive of seawater, the water that circulates through

environmental processes and cycles occurs in the
atmosphere, underground as groundwater, and as surface
water in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, and reservoirs.
 Chapter: 01

Geosphere
 It consists of the solid earth, including soil, which supports
most plant life.

 The part of the geosphere that is directly involved with

environmental processes through contact with atmosphere,
the hydrosphere, and living things is the solid lithosphere.

Lithosphere
 It varies from 50 to 100 km in thickness.

 The most important part of it in solar as interactions with the

other spheres of the environment are concerned is its thin
outer skin composed largely of lighter silicate-based minerals
and called the crust.
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Biosphere
 All living entities on Earth compose the biosphere.

 Living organisms and the aspects of the environment

pertaining directly to them are called biotic (living
organism), and other portions of the environment are
abiotic (non-living)

 To a large extent, the strong interactions among

living organisms and the various spheres of the
abiotic environment are best described by cycles of
matter that involve biological, chemical, and
geological processes and phenomena. Such cycles
are called biogeochemical cycles.
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Anthrosphere
 The anthrosphere may be defined as that part of the
environment made or modified by humans and used for their
activities.

 During the last 200 years, humankind, has engaged in a number

of activities that are altering the atmosphere profoundly. Human
influences are so strong that it is useful to raise a fifth sphere of
the environment, the anthrosphere.

 The effects of human activities and anthrosphere on the

atmosphere are summarized below:

 Industrial activities, which emit a variety of atmospheric pollutants

including SO2, particulate matter, photochemically reactive
hydrocarbons (HC), CFC, toxic heavy metals.

 Burning of large quantities of fossil fuels, which can introduce CO2,

CO, SO2, NOx, HC, Particulates soot, polycyclic aromatic HC, and fly
ash.
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Anthrosphere (Contd..)

 Transportation practices which produce CO2, CO, NOx, smog, HC

and polycyclic aromatic HC.

 Alteration of land surfaces, including deforestation.

 Burning of biomass and vegetation, including tropical and

subtropical forests and savanna grasses, which produces
atmospheric CO2, CO, NOx and Particulates soot, polycyclic
aromatic HC.

 Agricultural practices which produce CH4, N2O, fertilizers,

pesticides are produced
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References

1) Manahan, Stanley E. 2000 “Environmental

Chemistry”, Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton: CRC
Press LLC, New York. 7th Edition

2) Cecilia Medupin, Introduction to Environmental

Science, School of Science & Technology,
National Open University of Nigeria

3) Miller, G. T, 2004 “Environmental Sciences”,

Thomson Asia Pte. Ltd., Singapore. 10th Edition

4) http://en.wikipedia.org