CHAPTER 1

OUR ENVIRONMENTAL
PROBLEMS
Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary academic field
that integrates physics, biology, and geography to the study of the
environment, and the solution of environmental problems.
Goals of studying environmental
science
•The three main goals of environmental science are:

•To learn how the natural world works,

•To understand how humans interact with the

environment,

• To find ways to deal with environmental problems and

live more sustainably.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS
ENVIRONMENTA
L PROBLEMS
PROBLEM 1
RESOURCE DEPLETION
Resource depletion

It occurs when the renewable and non-renewable natural

resources become scarce because they are consumed faster than
they can recover. The term resource depletion is commonly
associated with water usage, fossil fuel consumption, trees and
fishing. All of these resources have been depleted primarily
because of human activities.
Resource depletion-Causes and examples
Actions like Deforestation remove more than enough
trees from their environments that topsoil can be
eroded, making the area unsuitable for plants and
animals. Another example of how resource depletion
occurs is through overfishing, limiting the species’
ability to repopulate each year because the population
is reduced due to unsustainable fishing practices.
Examples of resource depletion include deforestation,
soil degradation, and overfishing. Deforestation is
when we cut down trees faster than they can grow back.
This happens because of logging and land clearing for
agriculture, ranching, mining, and oil prospecting.
PROBLEM 2
LOSS OF
BIODIVERS
ITY
 LOSS OF BIODIVERSITYBI Loss of biodiversity or biodiversity loss
means the extinction of species worldwide and loss of different animal and plant species
from a particular geographic location or region. ODIVERSITY
A decline in biodiversity within a species, an ecosystem, a certain geographic area, or the entire Earth is
known as a loss of biodiversity. Biodiversity means a variety of living organisms found within a geographic
region. So, loss in biodiversity means a gradual decline in the variety of species, genetic variability, and the
biological components in the surrounding environment. This loss shows a descending impact on the functions
of the ecosystem.
Some of the major threats to biodiversity are population increase, deforestation, over exploitation of natural
resources, etc. Loss of biodiversity may cause decline in plant production in an area, lowered resistance to
environmental perturbations, and so on.
What Are the Causes of Loss of Biodiversity?

1.Increase in Population:
2.Deforestation:
3.Over Exploitation of Natural
Resources:
4.Loss of Habitat:
5.Invasive Alien Species:
6.Climate Change and Global
Warming:
7.Pollution:
8.Natural Calamities: