UNIT – I

Introduction to Environmental Studies and Ecosystem

Multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies – Scope and importance – Concept of sustainability
and sustainable development. Ecosystem – Structure and function of ecosystem – food chains, food
webs and ecological succession – forest ecosystem – grassland ecosystem – desert ecosystem –
aquatic ecosystems.

Multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies

1. DEFINITION, SCOPE AND IMPORTANCE
DEFINITION
Environment
Environment is defined as, “the sum of total of all the living and non-living things around us
influencing one another”.

Environmental Chemistry
Environmental Chemistry is the study of chemical and biochemical processes occurring in nature.
It deals with the study of origin, transport, reaction, effects and fates of various chemical species in
the environment.

Environmental Science
Environmental Science is the study of the environment, its biotic (i.e., biological) and abiotic
(i.e., non-biological) components and their interrelationship.

Scope of environmental studies

Environmental studies discipline has multiple and multilevel scopes. This study is important and
necessary not only for children but also for everyone. The scopes are summarized as follows:
1. The study creates awareness among the people to know about various renewable and
nonrenewable resources of the region. The endowment or potential, patterns of utilization and
the balance of various resources available for future use in the state of a country are analysed
in the study.
2. It provides the knowledge about ecological systems and cause and effect relationships.
3. It provides necessary information about biodiversity richness and the potential dangers to the
species of plants, animals and microorganisms in the environment.
4. The study enables one to understand the causes and consequences due to natural and main
induced disasters (flood, earthquake, landslide, cyclones etc.,) and pollutions and measures to
minimize the effects.
5. It enables one to evaluate alternative responses to environmental issues before deciding an
alternative course of action.
6. The study enables environmentally literate citizens (by knowing the environmental acts, rights,
rules, legislations, etc.) to make appropriate judgments and decisions for the protection and
improvement of the earth.
7. The study exposes the problems of over population, health, hygiene, etc. and the role of arts,
science and technology in eliminating/ minimizing the evils from the society.
8. The study tries to identify and develop appropriate and indigenous eco-friendly skills and
technologies to various environmental issues.
9. It teaches the citizens the need for sustainable utilization of resources as these resources are
inherited from our ancestors to the younger generating without deteriorating their quality.
10. The study enables theoretical knowledge into practice and the multiple uses of environment.
Importance of environmental study
Environmental study is based upon a comprehensive view of various environmental systems.
It aims to make the citizens competent to do scientific work and to find out practical solutions to
current environmental problems. The citizens acquire the ability to analyze the environmental
parameters like the aquatic, terrestrial and atmospheric systems and their interactions with the
biosphere and anthrosphere.
Importance
• World population is increasing at an alarming rate especially in developing countries.
• The natural resources endowment in the earth is limited.
• The methods and techniques of exploiting natural resources are advanced.
• The resources are over-exploited and there is no foresight of leaving the resources to the future
generations.
• The unplanned exploitation of natural resources lead to pollution of all types and at all levels.
• The pollution and degraded environment seriously affect the health of all living things on earth ,
including man.
• The people should take a combined responsibility for the deteriorating environment and begin
to take appropriate actions to space the earth.
• Education and training are needed to save the biodiversity and species extinction.
• The urban area, coupled with industries, is major sources of pollution.
• The number and area extinct under protected area should be increased so that the wild life is
protected at least in these sites.
• The study enables the people to understand the complexities of the environment and need for
the people to adapt appropriate activities and pursue sustainable development, which are
harmonious with the environment.
• The study motivates students to get involved in community action, and to participate in various
environmental and management projects.
• It is a high time to reorient educational systems and curricula towards these needs.
• Environmental studies take a multidisciplinary approach to the study of human interactions with
the natural environment. It integrates different approaches of the humanities , social sciences,
biological sciences and physical sciences and applies these approaches to investigate
environmental concerns.
• Environmental study is a key instrument for bringing about the changes in the knowledge,
values, behaviors and lifestyles required to achieve sustainability and stability within and
among countries.
Environmental studies deals with every issue that affects an organism. It is essentially a
multidisciplinary approach that brings about an appreciation of our natural world and human impacts
on its integrity. It is an applied science as it seeks practical answers to making human civilization
sustainable on the earth's finite resources. Its components include
1. Biology
2. Geology
3. Chemistry
4. Physics
5. Engineering
6. Sociology
7. Health
8. Anthropology
9. Economics
10. Statistics
11. Philosophy
2. PUBLIC AWARENESS
Environmental Pollution or problems cannot be solved by mere laws. Public participation is
an important aspect which serves the environmental Protection.
 Public awareness of environmental Is at infant stage
 30-40% of public of developing country are aware of environmental. Problems but they do
not bother about it.
 Ignorance and incomplete knowledge has lead to misconceptions
 Development and improvement in std. of living has lead to serious environmental disasters
 Debate on environmental Issues are treated as anti-developmental

Reasons for environmental Ignorance:

 science, technology and economics failed to integrate the knowledge on environmental
Aspects in curriculum
 the decision makers do not process environmental Angle of decision making
 consideration of economic growth, poverty eradication has lead to environmental Degradation
 only few developmental activities are made considering the environmental Aspects.

Need For Public Awareness:

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held at Reo de Janeiro in
1992 (popularly known as ‘Earth Summit’) and world summit on sustainable development at
Johannesburg in 2002, have highlighted the key issues of global environmental concern. They have
attracted the attention of people. Any government at its own cannot achieve the goals of clear
environment until the public participate in action. Public participation is possible only when the
public is aware about the ecological and environmental issues. Eg. Ban- the littering of polythene.

Methods to propagate environmental Awareness:

1. Among students through education – introducing environmental studies in the curriculum.
2. Among public through mass media- environmental programmmes through TV, radio etc.
3. Among decision makers, planners, leaders etc.

Role of NGOs
1. Advise the government in interacting with ground level people
2. Organize public meetings to create environmental awareness
Eg. Recent report of ‘centre for science and environment’ on permissible limits of pesticides
in cola drinks.
Public awareness is needed in the area
1. study of natural resources-conservation and management
2. ecology and biodiversity – conservation
3. environmental Pollution and prevention
4. social issues related to development and environment
5. human population and environment.

Development
A true development does not mean a high standard of living with all benefits and an increase
in the GNP(Gross National Product) of few countries. But it brings benefits to all, not only for the
present generation, but also for the future generation.
From unsustainable to sustainable development
Definition
According to Norwegian Prime Minister and Director of World Health Organization(WHO),
G.H. Brundtland, sustainable development is defined as , “ meeting the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
Is it true sustainable development?
Few developed countries have reached the greatest heights of scientific and technological
development. But the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat at have been badly
polluted.
Our natural resources are just dwindling due to over exploitation.
True sustainable development
True sustainable development aims at optimum use of natural resources with high degree of
reusability, minimum wastage, least generation of toxic by products and maximum productivity.

World summit (Agenda) on sustainable development

The discussion on sustainable development was held in 1992 in the UN conference on
environment and development (UNCED), also known as the earth summit held at Rio de janerio,
brazil. Several documents were created for UNCED, which brought out the fact the environment and
development were closely connected and there was a need to “ care for the earth”. The Rio
declaration also states that “ a new and equitable global partnership through the creation of new
levels of cooperation among states”.
Out of its 5 significant agreements Agenda-21 proposes a global programme of action on
sustainable development in social, economic and environmental context for the 21st century.

Dimensions of sustainable development

Sustainable development is multi dimensional concept aiming at benefits derived from the
interactions between society, economy and environment.

Aspects (or) aim of sustainable development

(a) Inter – generational equity: it states that we should hand over a safe, healthy and resourceful
environment to our future generations.
(b) Intra – generational equity: it states that the technological development of rich countries
should support the economic growth of the poor countries and help in narrowing the wealth
gap and lead to sustainability.

Concept (or) Approaches (or) significance for sustainable development

To build up the sustainable development, the following approaches (or) methods are
proposed.
1. Developing appropriate technology: It is the one, which is locally adaptable, eco-friendly,
resource-efficient and culturally suitable. It uses local labours, less resources, and produces
minimum waste.
2. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (3-R) approach: It insists optimum use of natural resources, using it
again and again instead of throwing it on the waste land or water and recycling the material
into further products. It reduces pressure on our natural resources and reduces waste
generation and pollution.
3. Providing environmental education and awareness: By providing environmental education
and awareness, the thinking and attitude of people towards our earth and the environment can
be changed.
 4. Consumption of renewable resource: In order to attain sustainability, it is very important to
consume the natural resources in such a way that the consumption should not exceed
regeneration capacity.
5. Conservation of non renewable resources: Non-renewable resources should be conserved by
recycling and reusing.
6. Population control: By controlling population growth we can make sustainable development.

Concept of an Ecosystem
Living organisms cannot be isolated from their non-living environment because the later
provides materials and energy for the survival of the farmer.
Ecology
The word ecology literally means the study of living organisms.
Definition
The ecology is defined as the study of organisms in their natural home interacting with their
surroundings.

Ecosystems
Ecosystem is derived from two words, namely ‘eco’ and ‘system’. ‘Eco’ refers to environment
and ‘system’ refers to a complex co-ordinated unit. The term Ecosystem is proposed by ‘Arthur
Tansley’.
Definition
An ecosystem is defined as a natural functional ecological unit comprising of living
organisms and their non-living environment that interact to form a stable self supporting system.
Eg.: Pond, lake, desert, grassland, forest, etc.

Biome (Small ecosystems)

On Earth there are many sets of ecosystems which are exposed to same climatic conditions and
having dominant species with similar life cycle, climatic adoptions and physical structure. This set of
ecosystem is called a biome.

Structure (or) Components of an Ecosystem

The structure of any ecosystem is formed of two components, namely
1. Abiotic or non-living components or physical components
2. Biotic or Living components

Abiotic Components:
Abiotic components enter the body of living directly or indirectly take part in
metabolic activities and return to environment. E.g: Water, Soil, Air, light, temperature, minerals,
climate, etc.
Abiotic components are as follows,
 Lithosphere
 Hydrosphere
 Atmosphere
Lithosphere
The soil and rock component of the earth is called as lithosphere.
Functions of Lithosphere
 It is a home for human beings and wildlife.
 It is a storehouse of minerals and organic matters.
Hydrosphere
 The aqueous envelope of the earth (i.e., 75% of the earth surface) is called hydrosphere.
 It comprises Oceans, lakes, streams, rivers and water vapour.
 About 97% of earth’s water is too salty and not fit for drinking.
 Only 3% is available as fresh water.
Functions of Hydrosphere
 It is used for drinking purpose and also supports the aquatic life
 It is also used for irrigation, power production, industries and transport.
Atmosphere
The cover of air, that envelope the earth is known as the atmosphere.
 It extends up to above 700 km from the earth surface.
 It is essential for all living organisms.
 It comprises 78% of nitrogen, 21% of oxygen and 1% of other gases.
Structure of Atmosphere
 Earth's atmosphere can be divided into five main layers.
From lowest to highest, these layers are:
o Troposphere: 0 to 12 km (0 to 7 miles)-lower portion
o Stratosphere: 12 to 50 km (7 to 31 miles)-ozone layer-Temperature (-2°C to -56°C)
o Mesosphere: 50 to 80 km (31 to 50 miles)- Temperature drops to (-95°C)
o Thermosphere: 80 to 700 km (50 to 440 miles)- Temperature raises up to 1200°C
o Exosphere: >700 km (>440 miles)- Temperature very high due to solar radiation.
Functions of Atmosphere
 It maintains the heat balance on the earth by absorbing the IR radiations.
 The gaseous constituents play an important role in sustaining life on earth.

Biotic components:
Biosphere
The biological environment, where the living organisms live and interact with physical
environment (soil, water and air) is called biosphere.
The biotic components include all living organisms present in the environmental system. From
nutrition point of view, the biotic components can be grouped into two basic components.
i) Autotrophic components: It includes all green plants.
ii) Heterotrophic components: It includes non-green plants and all animals which take food from
autotrophs.

Functions of Biosphere
 Plants through photosynthesis produce oxygen in the atmosphere.
 Animals inhale oxygen during respiration and give out carbon dioxide, which is again utilized
by plants during photosynthesis.

Functions of Ecosystems
The function of an ecosystem is to allow flow of energy and cycling of nutrients.
 The primary function is manufacture of starch (Photosynthesis).
 The secondary function is distributing energy in the form of food to all consumers.
 The tertiary function is decomposing dead systems. i.e. initiate cycling process.
 Green plants
Herbivores
Carnivores
Nutrients Parasites

Scavengers

Saprobes
Decomposers

Transformers

Abiotic Components Biotic Components

Classification of biotic components

The biotic factors of an ecosystem are classified into three main groups, namely
 Producers
 Consumers
 Reducers (or) Decomposers
Producer : All the green plants are producers. They are the main source of
food for all animals. E.g.: plants, trees and shrubs
Consumer : Consumers are organisms which eat other organisms.
i) Primary – They directly depend on the plants for their food. E.g.: elephants, deer etc.
ii) Secondary – They directly depend on the herbivores for their food. E.g.: snakes, birds.
iii) Tertiary – They depend on the primary carnivores for their food. Lions, tigers etc
Reducers / Decomposers:
 These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, bacteria
 The enzymes digest the dead organisms and the debris into smaller bits or molecules.
 After taking energy, the reducers release to the environment as chemicals to be used again
by the producers.

Energy flow in ecosystem

Energy is defined as the capacity to do work. For living organisms, it is the basic force
responsible for running all the metabolic activities.
The transfer of energy from producer level to top consumer level is called energy flow.
The flow of energy in an ecosystem is unidirectional.
It flows from producer level to consumer level and never in the reverse direction.
The process of energy flow involves transfer of energy from autotrophs to various components
of heterotrophs and help in maintaining biodiversity.
The main source of energy in the ecosystem is sunlight.
Sunlight
CO2 + 2H2O CH2O + O2 + H2O

About 80% of energy is lost during flow of energy from one trophic level to the next one.
 Sun Producer Herbivores Carnivores Top carnivores Decomposers
The conservation of solar energy is governed by law of thermodynamics.
First law of Thermodynamics
It states that the amount of energy in the universe is constant. It may change from one form to
another but it can neither be created nor destroyed.
 Light energy can be neither created nor destroyed. It may be transformed into another
type of energy such as chemical energy or heat energy.
Second law of Thermodynamics
It states that non random energy (mechanical, chemical, radiant energy) cannot be changed
without some degradation into heat energy.
 About 90 to 99% of the solar energy is lost by reflection.
 Plants utilize only 0.02% of the energy reaching earth.
 The light energy is converted into chemical energy in the form of sugar by
photosynthesis.

Food Chains
- The Sequence of eating and being eaten in an ecosystem is called food chain.
- The biotic factors of the ecosystem are linked together by food.
Producer Herbivorous Carnivores

A typical food chain can be scan in a grassland ecosystem.

Grass Grasshopper Frog Snake Hawk

Organic & Inorganic salts

Decomposers Dead bodies

Food chain
Types of food chain
Grazing food chain
Plants Goat Man Lion Hawk

Organic & Inorganic salts

Decomposers Dead bodies

Predator food chain

Green plants Mouse Snake Hawk

Organic & Inorganic salts

Decomposers Dead bodies

Parasitic chain
 The plants and animals of the grazing food chain are infected by parasite.
 The parasites derive their energy from their host.
 Thus the parasitic chain with in the grazing food chain is formed.
Detritus food chain
 This chain is found in grassland and forest ecosystems.
Dead organic materials Detritivores CO2 + H2O

Food web
In an ecosystem the various food chain are interconnected with each other to form a network
called food web.
The food relationship between various organisms is being depicted by linking all the
possible prey and predators of different food level.
In an ecosystem linking of feeding habit relations will provide a food web.
The energy flow in food web is,
Grass Insects Fishes Birds Tigers
Grass Insects Birds Tigers
Grass Deer Tigers
Grass Cattles Tigers
Grass Rats Snakes Eagles Tigers
E.g.: Grass may be eaten by insects, rats, deer’s, etc. These may be eaten by Carnivores
(Snake, Tiger).
Producers 10 Consumers 20 Consumers 30 Consumers
Deer Fox

Plants Rabbit Lion

Rat Cat

Ecological pyramids
The graphical representation of the number, biomass and energy of various energy levels is
called ecological pyramid.
The energy biomass and number of organisms gradually decreases from the producer level to
the consumer level.
The total mass of herbivores in an ecosystem will generally be less than the total mass of
plants. Similarly the total mass of carnivores will be less than the total mass of herbivores.
In any ecological pyramid the producer forms the base and the successive levels form the tires
which can make the apex.

Types of ecological pyramids:

There are three types of ecological pyramids, namely.
a) Pyramid of numbers
b) Pyramid of biomass
c) Pyramid of energy

Pyramid of numbers
 It represents the number of individual organisms present in each tropic level.
Eg. Grassland ecosystem
Pyramid of biomass
 It represents the total amount of biomass present in each tropic level.
Eg. Forest ecosystem

Pyramid of energy
 It represents the amount of energy present in each tropic level.
 FOREST ECOSYSTEM (TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEM)
Introduction
 It is a natural ecosystem consisting of dense growth of trees and wild animals.
 A forest ecosystem is the one in which a tall and dense trees grow that support many animals
and birds.
 It receiving moderate to high rainfall. The forest occupies nearly 40% of the world's land area.

Types of forest ecosystem

Depending upon the climate conditions, forests can be classified into the following types.
 Tropical rain forests.
 Tropical deciduous forests.
 Tropical scrub forests.
 Temperate rain forests.
 Temperate deciduous forests.

Features of different types of Forests

Tropical rain forests:
 They are found near the equator.
 They are characterized by high temperature.
 They have broad leaf trees like teak and sandal and the animals like lion, tiger and monkey.

Tropical deciduous forests:

 They are found little away from the equator.
 They are characterized by a warm climate and rain is only during monsoon.
 They have different types of deciduous trees like maple, oak and hickary and animals like
deer, fox, rabbit and rat.

Tropical scrub forests:

 These are characterised by a dry climate for longer time.
 They have small deciduous trees, shrubs and animals like deer, fox, etc.,
Temperate rain forests:
 They are found in temperate areas with adequate rainfall.
  They are characterized by coniferous trees like pines, firs, red wood etc., and animals like
squirrels, fox, cats, bear etc.,

Temperate deciduous forests:

 They are found in areas with moderate temperatures.
 They have major trees including broad leaf deciduous trees like oak, hickory and animals like
deer, fox, bear, etc.,

Characteristics of forest ecosystems

 Forests are characterised by warm temperature and adequate rainfall, which make the
generation of number of ponds, lakes etc.,
 The forest maintains climate and rainfall.
 The forest support many wild animals and protect biodiversity.
 The soil is rich in organic matter and nutrients, which support the growth of trees.
 Penetration of light is so poor; the conversion of organic matter into nutrients is very fast.

Structural components of forest ecosystem

Abiotic components:
soil, sun light, temperature etc
Biotic components:
forest trees, shrubs and animals
Producer : All the green plants of forest are producers. They are the main
source of food for all animals. E.g.: trees and shrubs
Consumer : There are number of consumers in an old dense forest.
i) Primary – They directly depend on the plants for their food. E.g.: elephants, deer etc.
ii) Secondary – They directly depend on the herbivores for their food. E.g.: snakes, birds.
iii) Tertiary – They depend on the primary carnivores for their food. Lions, tigers etc
Decomposers : These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, bacteria

Functional components of forest ecosystem

Lion, Tiger

Kite

Jackal Wildcat Snake

Owl

Goat Rabbit Mouse

Green plants
 GRASSLAND ECOSYSTEM
Introduction
 Grassland occupies about 20% of earth’s surface.
 Dominated by grass. Few shrubs and trees are also found.
 Rainfall average but erratic.
 Overgrazing leads to desertification.
Types
Three types – depending on the climate
1. Tropical grass lands – found near the boarders of tropical rain forests. Eg. Savannas in
Africa. Animals – Zebra, giraffes etc. – fires are common in dry seasons – termite
mounds produce methane – leads to fire – high in photosynthesis – deliberate burning
leads to release of high CO2 – global warming.
2. Temperate grasslands – flat and gentle slopes of hills. Very cold winter and very hot
summer - dry summer fires do not allow shrubs and trees to grow – soil is quite fertile –
cleaned for agriculture.
3. Polar grasslands – found in arctic polar region – organism – arctic wolf, fox, etc. – A
thick layer of ice remains frozen under the soil surface throughout the year – known as
permafrost – summer insects and birds appear.
Characteristic features
 Grassland ecosystem is a plain land occupied by grasses.
 Soil is very rich in nutrients and organic matter.
 Since it has tall grass, it is ideal place for grazing animals.
 It is characterized by low or uneven rainfall.
Structural Components
Abiotic components:
Soil, pH, nutrients, soil moisture, temp, climatic conditions, etc.
Biotic components:
Grass, caterpillar, butterfly, worms, insects, birds, etc.
Producer : All the green plants are producers. They are the main source of
food for all animals. E.g.: Grasses, forbs and shrubs
Consumer : Consumers are organisms which eat other organisms.
i) Primary – They directly depend on the plants for their food. E.g.: Cows, sheep etc.
ii) Secondary – They directly depend on the herbivores for their food. E.g.: snakes, birds.
iii) Tertiary – They depend on the primary carnivores for their food. Hawks, Eagles etc
Decomposers : These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, bacteria
Functional Components
Hawk

Snake

Frog

Shrew

Cricket

Grasshopper

Marsh grass Cattail

 DESERT ECOSYSTEM
Introduction
 Desert occupies about 35% of our world's land area.
 It is characterised by less than 25 cm rainfall.
 The atmosphere is dry and hence it is a poor insulator.

Types
• Tropical desert-Found in Africa & India-Windblown and sand dunes are common -Sahara
and Rajasthan –Thar
• Temperate desert-Found in South California- Majave-Very Hot summer& Very cold winter
• Cold desert- Found in China- Gobi desert – Cold winters & Warm summers.

Characteristics
 Air is dry
 Climate is hot
 Annual rainfall is less than 25 cm
 Vegetation is poor
 Soil is very poor in nutrients and organic matters.

Structural Components
Abiotic components:
rainfall, temp, sunlight, water, etc.
Biotic components:
shrubs, mice, reptiles, etc.
Producer :
In deserts mostly Succulent (e.g., cacti) plants are found available.
They have water inside them to stay alive.
They have waxy layer on the outside to protect them from the sun.
E.g.: Shrubs, bushes, some grasses and few trees.
Consumer :
These animals dig holes in the ground to live in.
They come out at night to find food.
Most of the animals can extract water from the seeds they eat.
E.g.: Squirrels, mice, foxes, ꞏ rabbits, deer and reptiles.
Decomposers : These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, bacteria

Functional Components
Hawk

Kit fox

Snake

Tarantulas Scorpions Lizard Rodent Kangaroo Rats

Insects

(Cacti, Creosote Bushes, Thorn Acacias, Rabbit Brush, Annual Flowers, Ocotillo, Sage Brush)
 AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM
Introduction
 The aquatic ecosystem deals with water bodies.
 The major types of organisms found in aquatic environments are determined by the water's
salinity.
 Deals with water bodies and biotic communities present in them
 Classified as Fresh water (Ponds, Streams, lakes, rivers) and Salt water (Oceans, Estuaries).

FRESH WATER ECOSYSTEM

(POND ECOSYSTEM)
Introduction
 A pond is a fresh water aquatic ecosystem, where water is stagnant.
 It receives enough water during rainy season.
 It contains several types of algae, aquatic plants, insects, fishes and birds.

Characteristic features
 Pond is temporary, only seasonal.
 It is a stagnant fresh water body
 Ponds get polluted easily due to limited amount of water

Structural Components
Abiotic components:
Sunlight, water dissolved minerals, O2, CO2 etc.
Biotic components:
 Top layer – shallow, warm, prone to anthropogenic activities – Littoral zone
 Second layer – enough sunlight, high primary productivity – Limnetic zone
 Third layer – very poor or no sunlight – Profundal zone
Producer :
These include green photosynthetic organisms.
These are microscopic aquatic plants, which freely float on the surface of water.
E.g.: Phytoplankton- Algae, floating plants like anabaena, cosmarium, woljia,
Consumer :
These are microscopic animals which freely float on the surface of water.
They feed on zooplankton.
Zooplanktons are found along with phytoplankton.
E.g.: Large fish like game fish.
Decomposers : These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, Enzymes

Functional Components
Carnivorous
Benthus
Phytoplankton feeder Omnivorous Bottom feeder Zooplankton feeder

Zooplankton Macrophytes feeder

Phytoplankton Macrophytes
 MARINE (OCEANS) ECOSYSTEM
Introduction
 Gigantic reservoirs of water covering >70% of earth surface
 2,50,000 species, huge variety of sea products, drugs etc.
 Provide Fe, Mg, oils, natural gas, minerals, dissolved solids, sand etc.
 Major sinks of carbon di oxide
 Regulate biochemical cycles.

Zones of oceans
The oceans have two major life zones.
Coastal zone – warm, nutrient rich, shallow – high sunlight – high primary productivity.
Open sea – away from continental shelf – vertically divided in to 3 zones.
1. Euphotic zone – abundant sunlight – high photosynthetic activity
2. Bathyal zone – dim sunlight – geologically active
3. Abyssal zone – dark zone – world’s largest ecological unit.

Characteristic features
 It occupies a large surface area with saline water.
 Since ship, submarines can sail in ocean; commercial activities may be carried out.
 It is rich in biodiversity.
 It moderates the temperature of the earth.

Structural Components
Abiotic components:
Soil, pH, nutrients, temp, climatic conditions, NaCl, K, Ca, etc.
Biotic components:
Producer : All the phytoplankton are producers. E.g.: Sea weeds, diatoms, etc
Consumer : Consumers are heterotrophic macro consumers.
i) Primary – They directly depend on producers. E.g.: Fish, moiluscus, etc.
ii) Secondary – They directly depend on the herbivores for their food. E.g.: Herring sahd.
iii) Tertiary – They depend on the primary carnivores for their food. Cod, Haddock, etc
Decomposers : These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, bacteria

Functional Component
Whales
Sharks Marlin
Tuna
Squid
Latern fish Ocean sunfish
Copepods
Dinoflagellates Diatoms
 ESTUARINE ECOSYSTEM
Introduction
 Estuarine is a coastal area where river meet ocean
 strongly affected by tidal actions
 very rich in nutrients
 very rich in biodiversity also
 organisms are highly tolerant
 many species are endemic
 high food productivity
 Protected from pollution.

Characteristics
 Estuaries are transition zones, which are strongly affected by tides of the sea.
 Water characteristics are periodically changed.
 The living organisms in estuarine ecosystems have wide tolerance.
 Salinity remains highest during the summer and lowest during the winter.

Structural Components
Abiotic components:
pH, nutrients, Dissolved oxygen, temp, climatic conditions, etc.
Biotic components:
Phytoplankton, fishes, snails, insects, birds, etc.
Producer : They produce food. E.g.: Marsh grasses, sea weeds, etc
Consumer : Consumers are heterotrophic macro consumers.
i) Primary – They directly depend on producers.
ii) Secondary – They directly depend on the herbivores for their food.
iii) Tertiary – They depend on the primary carnivores for their food.
Decomposers: These are micro-organisms which attack dead bodies. E.g.: fungi, bacteria, enzymes

Functional Components:
Striped Bass
Blue Crab
Croaker Menhaden
Clam
Copepods

Dinoflagellates Widgeon grass

 UNIT- II
Natural Resources : Land resources - land degradation – soil erosion and desertification – causes
and impacts due to mining, dam building on environment – use and over-exploitation of surface and
ground water – floods, droughts – conflicts over water – energy resources – Renewable and non-
renewable energy sources – use of alternate energy sources, growing energy needs.

LAND RESOURCE
 Land is critically important national resource which supports all living organisms including
plants and animals.
 The soil profile of land determines its ability to serve socio-economic needs.
 It has been estimated that more than 5000 million tonnees of top soil is eroded annually along
with 5 million tones of nutrients.
 About 1/3 of this is lost in sea while the rest in reservoirs and rivers leading to flood.
 About 38% of the area in India suffers from moderate to high degree of water based erosion.
 The per capita availability of land in the country has declined from 1.37 hectare in 1901 to
0.33 hectare in 2000.
 All these lands cannot be utilized for agricultural purpose. Some land would be required for
other activities (to maintain urban area).
 Effective steps have to be taken for preventing diversion of land suitable for sustainable
farming to non-farm uses.
 Simultaneously, degraded lands and waste lands have to be improved by ecological
restoration.
 The Department of Land Resources was setup in April 1999 by ministry of Rural
Development to act as nodal agency for land resource management.

Land degradation
 Land degradation is defined as the reduction or loss of the biological or economic
productivity and complexity of rainfed cropland, irrigated cropland, or range, pasture, forest
or woodlands resulting from natural processes, land uses or other human activities.
 Land degradation is due to the activities of human hands which loses all the fertility and
quality of soil. This is very dangerous to nature which causes further disasters.
Causes
Listed below are few causes of land degradation
 Soil pollution
 Soil Erosion
 Overgrazing
 Extraction of minerals at a repeated stage
 Drought
Control measures
Listed below are few control measures of land degradation
 Afforestation and proper management of grazing land.
 Control on mining activities.
 Sheltering belts are planted for plants.

Soil Erosion
 “Soil erosion is the natural process in which the topsoil of a field is carried away by physical
sources such as wind and water.”
  In this process, the soil particles are loosened or washed away in the valleys, oceans, rivers,
streams or far away lands. This has been worsening due to human activities such as
agriculture and deforestation.
 Soil erosion is a continuous process that occurs either slowly or at an alarming rate. It results
in a continuous loss of topsoil, ecological degradation, soil collapse, etc.
Causes
Following are the important causes of soil erosion:
Rainfall and Flooding
 Higher intensity of rainstorm is the main cause of soil erosion. Four types of soil erosion are
caused by rainfall:
 Rill erosion
 Gully erosion
 Sheet erosion
 Splash erosion
 The raindrops disperse the soil, which is then washed away into the nearby streams and rivers.
Regions with very heavy and frequent rainfall face a large amount of soil loss. The flowing
water during floods also erodes a lot of soil by creating potholes, rock-cut basins, etc.
Agriculture
 The farming practices are the major cause of soil erosion. The agricultural activities disturb
the ground. The trees are cleared and the land is ploughed to sow new seeds. Since most of
the crops are grown during the spring season, the land lies fallow during winters. Most of the
soil is eroded during winters.
 Also, the tyres of tractors make grooves on the land, making a natural pathway for water. Fine
soil particles are eroded by wind.
Grazing
 The grazing animals feed on the grasses and remove the vegetation from the land. Their
hooves churn up the soil. They also pull out plants by their roots. This loosens the soil and
makes it more prone to erosion.
Logging and Mining
 A large number of trees are cut down to carry out the logging process. Trees hold the soil
firmly. The canopy of the trees protects the soil from heavy rainfall. The leaf litter that
protects the soil from erosion is also lost during logging.
 Mining activities also disturb the land and leave the soil more prone to erosion.
Construction
 The construction of roads and buildings exposes the soil to erosion. The forests and grasslands
are cleared for construction purposes, which exposes the soil making it vulnerable to erosion.
Rivers and Streams
 The flowing rivers and streams carry away the soil particles leading to a V-shaped erosion
activity.
Heavy Winds
 During dry weather or in the semi-arid regions, the minute soil particles are carried away by
the wind to faraway lands. This degrades the soil and results in desertification.

Effects of Soil Erosion

The major effects of soil erosion include:
Loss of Arable Land
 Soil erosion removes the top fertile layer of the soil. This layer is rich in the essential nutrients
required by the plants and the soil. The degraded soil does not support crop production and
leads to low crop productivity.
Clogging of Waterways
 The agricultural soil contains pesticides, insecticides, fertilizers, and several other chemicals.
This pollutes the water bodies where the soil flows.
 The sediments accumulate in the water and raise the water levels resulting in flooding.
Air Pollution
 The dust particles merge in the air, resulting in air pollution. Some of the toxic substances
such as pesticides and petroleum can be extremely hazardous when inhaled. The dust plumes
from the arid and semi-arid regions cause widespread pollution when the winds move.
Desertification
 Soil erosion is a major factor for desertification. It transforms the habitable regions into
deserts. Deforestation and destructive use of land worsens the situation. This also leads to loss
of biodiversity, degradation of the soil, and alteration in the ecosystem.
Destruction of Infrastructure
 The accumulation of soil sediments in dams and along the banks can reduce their efficiency.
Thus, it affects infrastructural projects such as dams, embankments, and drainage.

Soil Erosion Prevention

Soil erosion is a serious environmental issue. Steps should be taken to curb this problem. Following
are some of the methods of soil erosion prevention:
1. Plant trees on barren lands to limit erosion of soil.
2. Add mulch and rocks to prevent the plants and grass underneath to prevent soil erosion.
3. Mulch matting can be used to reduce erosion on the slopes.
4. Put a series of fibre logs to prevent any water or soil from washing away.
5. A wall at the base of the slope can help in preventing the soil from eroding.
6. Every household should have a proper drainage system so that water flows down into proper
water collecting systems.
Key Points of Soil Erosion
 It is the natural process of wearing away of the topsoil, but human activities have accelerated
the process.
 It is usually caused due to the removal of vegetation, or any activity that renders the ground
dry.
 Farming, grazing, mining, construction and recreational activities are some of the causes of
soil erosion.
 The effects of soil erosion are not just land degradation. It has led to a drastic increase in
pollution and sedimentation in rivers that clogs the water bodies resulting in a decline in the
population of aquatic organisms.
 Degraded lands lose the water holding capacity resulting in floods.
The health of the soil is of utmost importance to the farmers and the population that depends upon
agriculture for food and employment. There are several challenges to resist soil erosion, but there are
solutions to prevent it as well.

Desertification – Degradation of Fertile Land

 Desertification is the degradation process by which a fertile land changes itself into a desert
by losing its flora and fauna, this can be caused by drought, deforestation, climate change,
human activities or improper agriculture.
 Desertification is a process of degradation of the land.
 It occurs because of man-made activities and climate change.
 Desertification takes place when a particular type of biome converts into a desert biome.
Causes
1. Overgrazing
2. Deforestation
3. Farming Practices
4. Urbanization and other types of land development
5. Climate Change
6. Stripping the land of resources
7. Natural Disasters
Impacts
1. Farming becomes difficult or even impossible in the area
2. Flooding chances are more
3. Hunger – because of no farming
4. Poor quality of water
5. Overpopulation
6. Poverty as a result of the above
Steps To Reduce Desertification
Given below are the steps which may help in reducing Desertification:
 Focus on Water management. Rainwater harvest must be done, water that can be reused must
not be left out as waste
 Reforestation and tree regeneration
 Buttressing the soil through the use of sand fences, shelter belts, woodlots and windbreaks
 Better and hyper-fertilization of soil through planting
 The residue from pruned trees can be used to provide mulching for fields thus increasing soil
water retention and reducing evaporation

Mining
Mining is a process of removing ores from area which is very much below the ground level.
 Mining is done for the extraction of several minerals of metals like Fe, Mn, Au, Ag, etc.
 The minerals are especially found in thick forests.
Mining can be carried out in two ways
1. Surface mining
2. Underground mining or sub-surface mining

Surface mining
 Surface mining, including strip mining, open-pit mining and mountain top removal mining, is
a broad category of mining in which soil and rock overlying the mineral deposit are removed.
The important effects of surface mining are,
 It destroys landscapes, forests and wildlife habitats
 Soil erosion and destruction of agricultural land.
 When rain washes the loosened top soil into streams, sediments pollute waterways.
 flood
 affects the water table
 It causes dust and noise pollution

Underground mining or sub-surface mining

 Sub-surface mining consists of digging tunnels or shafts into the earth to reach buried ore
deposits.
 Ore, for processing, and waste rock, for disposal, are brought to the surface through the
tunnels and shafts.
  It includes,
Open-pit mining: In open-pit mining machines dig holes and remove the ores. E.g: Iron,
copper, limestone, sand stone, marble, etc.,
Dredging: In dredging, chained buckets and draglines are used, which scrap up the minerals
from under-water mineral deposit.
Strip mining: In strip mining, the ore is stripped off by using bulldozers, stripping wheels.

The important effects of underground mining are,

 It causes huge amounts of waste earth and rock to be brought to the surface – waste that
often becomes toxic when it comes into contact with air and water.
 It causes subsidence as mines collapse and the land above it starts to sink. This causes
serious damage to buildings.
 It lowers the water table, changing the flow of groundwater and streams.
 Coal mining produces also greenhouse gas emissions.

Environmental damage
The Environmental damage, caused by mining activities, is as follows,
De-vegetation and defacing of landscape
Ground water contamination
Surface water pollution
Air pollution
Subsidence of land.

Effects of over exploitation of Mineral resources

Rapid depletion of mineral deposits.
Over exploitation of mineral resources leads to wastage and dissemination of mineral
deposits.
Over exploitation of mineral resources causes environmental pollution.
Over exploitation needs heavy energy requirement

Management of Mineral resources

 The efficient use and protection of mineral resources
 Modernization of the mining industries.
 Search for new deposit.
 Re-use and Re-cycling of the metals.
 Environmental impacts can be minimized by adopting eco-friendly mining technology.
 The low-grade ores can be better utilized by using microbial-leaching techniques.

Case study: Quarrying Thorium and Uranium in Kanyakumari district

Indian Rare Earths Corporation is quarrying sands, which is enriched with Uranium and Thorium,
near the sea shore in Manali, Kanyakumari District. It leads to the loss of many coconut plantation
and sea shore beauty.

Dam Building on Environment

 Dams are built across the river in order to store water for irrigation, hydroelectric power
generation and flood control.
 Most of the dams are built to serve for more than one purpose called “Multi purpose dams”.
 These dams are called as the Temples of Modern India said by the country’s first Prime
Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.
Benefits of constructing dams
 River valley projects with big dams are considered to play a key role in the development of a
country.
 India has large number of river valley projects
  These dams are regarded as symbol of national development.
 provides large scale employment of tribal people and increase the std. of living of them
 contribute for economic uplift and growth
 help in checking flood
 generate electricity
 reduce power and water shortage
 provide irrigation water
 provide drinking water to remote areas
 promote navigation and fishery.

Environmental problems:
The environmental problems can be at upstream as well as downstream Level.
Upstream problems
 Displacement of tribal people
 Loss of flora and fauna
 siltation and sedimentation near reservoir
 stagnation and water logging near reservoir
 growth of aquatic weeds
 micro climatic changes
 Reservoir Induced Seismicity (RIS) causes earthquakes
 Loss of non-forest land
 breeding of disease vectors
Downstream problems
 Water logging and salinity due to over irrigation
 micro climatic changes
 salt water intrusion at river mouth
 reduced water flow and silt deposition in rivers
 loss of fertility due to sediment deposits
 outbreak of vector born diseases.

Uses of water- Different Types

The water is used mainly for two types of uses.
Consumptive water use
 Here water is completely utilized and it is not reused.
 E.g., water used in industry, agriculture, and domestic application
Non – Consumptive water use
 Here water is not completely utilized and it is reused.
 E.g., Hydropower plant.
Other important uses of water
 Water is mainly used for domestic purposes like drinking, cooking, bathing and washing etc.
 Water is also used for commercial purposes like hotels, theatres, educational institutions,
offices, etc.
 It is used for irrigation, like agriculture. Almost 60-70% of the fresh water is used for
irrigation.
 20-30% of the total fresh water is used for so many industrial operations like refineries, iron
and steel, paper and pulp industries.
 Water is very essential for the subsistence of all the living organisms.
 Water also plays a key role in sculpting the earth’s surface moderating climate and diluting
pollutants.
Over utilization of surface and ground water:
 Over utilization of water leads to rapid depletion of water resources, ground subsidence,
lowering of water table and water logging.
Effects of over utilization of surface and ground water:
Reasons: Economic development, rapid industrial growth and population explosion
The use of ground water and surface water rates which are higher than that of recharge ultimately
leads to
o Water scarcity
o Water logging
o Salination
o Alkalization
o Water pollution or contamination
 creates declining of water levels
 crops failure and reduction in agricultural production
 over pumping of ground water create drought, famine and food shortage
 over pumping of ground water sea water intrusion in coastal aquifers
 land subsidence may due to over pumping of ground water
 river pollution due to industrial activities and dumping of waste into rivers, which in turn
force to utilize the ground water, ultimately leads to over pumping.

Flood:
 Over flow of water, whenever the water in flow is greater than the carrying capacity of the
channels flood occurs.
Causes:
Heavy rainfall, snow melt, sudden release of water from dams.
Prolonged down pour leading to overflowing of rivers and lakes
Reduction in carrying capacity due to obstructions or sediments etc.
Deforestation, overgrazing, mining increases water run off
Removal of dense forests from hilly regions
Effects:
Submerges the flooded area
Loss of soil fertility due to soil erosion
Extinction of civilization at costal area
Flood management:
 Dams and reservoirs can be constructed
 Embankments and proper channel management
 Flood way should not be encroached
 Forecasting or flood warning
 Decrease of run off by infiltration through afforestation or rain water harvesting etc.

Drought:
 Unpredictable delay in climatic condition occurring due to monsoon rain failure.
Types:
Meteorological:
 In order of month or year, actual moisture supply at a given place consistently falls below
critical level.
Hydrological:
 Deficiency in surface and subsurface water supplies
Agricultural:
 Inadequate soil moisture to meet the need of a particular crop at particular time or
susceptibility of crops during different stages in its development
Socioeconomic:
 Reduction in the availability of food and social securing of people
Causes:
Deforestation and lesser rainfalls coupled with cutting of trees for timber leads to
desertification.
Over drafting of ground water, subsidence of soil, drying of wetlands
Pollution of soil with solid waste, industrial effluents etc makes land useless and dry
Population explosion in man and livestock leads to enhanced requirement of timber, fuel
wood, grazing
Shifting cultivation
Effects:
Increase of water in stream pond
Ground water table get declined
Loss of agricultural crops
Loss of biodiversity
Government spent a lot of money as drought relief fund
Control measures
Rain water harvesting
Watershed management
Prevent deforestation
Encourage afforestation

Conflicts over Water

 Water is essential for our existence and is fast becoming a scare resource.
 Freshwater is considered to be the most environmental issue of this century.
 Nearly 1.2 billion people do not have access to safe drinking water.
 Due to increase in population and decrease in water resources conflicts over water starts
Conflicts over the water around world was classified as,
 Control of water resources
 Military food resources
 Political resources
 Terrorism
 Military targets
 Development disputes

Causes:
 Conflicts through use
1. Shipping traffic in international water.
2. India and Pakistan fight over the rights to water from the Indus.
3. Sharing of Cauvery water between Karnataka and Tamilnadu.
 Construction of power stations
 Construction of Dams.
 Conflicts through pollution-Rhine river, Europe
 Distributional conflict-relative storage
  Euphrates, Nile, Ganges - plataneous in upper basin, reduced in lower basin due to extensive
use.
 Anatolian dam project by turkey Farakka dam in India
 Distributional conflict: Absolute shortage. Colorado and Rio Grande, Jordan

Conflicts management:
 Enact laws to check practices to control water pollution
 Sharing river solved by interlinking river
 Power must be given to national water authority and river basin authority and river s-basin
authority for equitable distribution of basin water-demand for nationalization of water needs
Local Managers
 In India, even today, there are several villages where water management is done by the local
managers and not by irrigation department.
Types of Local Managers
Neerkatti
 In South India, a neerkatti manages the traditional tanks very efficiently.
 They give preference to the tail end fields and decide percapita allocation of water based on
the stock of available water in the tank and irrigation needs.
Havaldars
 In Maharastra, a havaldar manages and resolve conflicts by overseeing the water channels
from main canal to the distributor canals.
Churpun
 In Ladakh, a churpun is empowered over allocation of available water.

Case Study: The Cauvery water Dispute

The Cauvery river water is an important conflict between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Tamil Nadu, occupying the downstream region of the river, wants water use regulated in the
upstream.
The upstream state Karnataka refuses to do so.
The river water is almost fully utilized and both the states have increasing demands for
agriculture and industry.
The Consumption of water is more in Tamilnadu than Karnataka, catchment area is more
rocky.
The Cauvery water Dispute Tribunal was set up on 2nd June 1990, which directed Karnataka
to ensure that 205 TMCF of water was made available in Mettur dam every year.
The above problem may be reduced by proper selection of crop varieties, optimum use of
water, better rationing, proper sharing patterns.

Energy Resources
 Life is unthinkable without energy resources.
 All the developmental activities in the world are directly or indirectly dependent upon energy.
 Both energy production and energy utilization are the indicators of a country's progress.

Energy
Energy may be defined as, "any property, which can be converted into work." (or)
Energy is defined as, "the capacity to do work."
Sources of energy
Primary
Renewable energy-resources which can be generated continuously in nature and are in
exhaustible and can be used again endlessly. wood, Tidal, Solar, wind, hydropower, biomass, biofuel,
geothermal, hydrogen
Non – renewable energy- Resources which have accumulated in nature over a long
span of time and cannot be quickly replenished when exhausted. coal, petroleum, natural gas
Secondary-petrol, electrical energy, coal burning.

Classification of Energy resources

Based on continual utility, natural resources can be classified into two types.
Renewable energy resources.
Non-renewable energy resources.

Renewable energy resources (or) Non-conventional energy resources

Renewable energy resources are natural resources which can be regenerated continuously and
are inexhaustible. They can be used again and again in an endless manner.
E.g.: Wood, solar energy, wind energy, hydropower, tidal energy, etc.,
Types of Renewable energy
The renewable energy is classified into the following types.
 Solar energy
 Wind energy
 Hydropower energy
 Tidal energy
 Geo-thermal energy
 Biomass energy

i) Solar energy
 The energy that we get directly from the sun is called Solar energy.
 The nuclear fusion reactions occurring inside the sun release enormous amount of energy in
the form of heat and light. Several techniques are available for collecting, converting and
using solar energy.
E.g: Solar cells, Solar battery, Solar heat collectors, etc..

Solar cells (or) photo voltaic cell (or) PV cells

 Solar cells consist of a p-type semiconductor (such as Si doped with B) and n-type
semiconductor (such as Si doped with P).
 They are in close contact with each other.
 When the solar rays fall on the top layer of p-type semiconductor, the electrons from the
valence band get promoted to the conduction band and cross the p-n junction into n-type
semiconductor.
 There by potential difference between two layers is created, which causes flow of electrons
(i.e., an electric current).
Uses
It is used in calculators, electronic watches, street lights, water pumps to run radios and TVs.

Significance of solar energy

 Solar cells are noise and pollution free.
 Solar water heaters, cookers, require neither fuel nor attention while cooking food.
 Solar cells can be used in remote and isolated areas, forests, hilly regions.

ii) Wind energy

 Moving air is called wind.
 Energy recovered from the force of the wind is called wind energy.
 The energy possessed by wind is because of its high speed.
 The wind energy is harnessed by making use of wind mills.

Wind mills
 The strike of blowing wind on the blades of the wind mill makes it rotating continuously.
 The rotational motion of the blade drives a number of machines like water pump, flour mills
and electric generators.

Significance of wind energy

 The generation period of wind energy is low and power generation starts from
commissioning.
 It is recommended to broaden the nation's energy options for new energy sources.
 It is made available easily in many off-shore, on-shore and remote areas.
iii) Tidal energy (or) Tidal power
 Ocean tides, produced by gravitational forces of sun and moon, contain enormous amount of
energy.
 The ‘high tide’ and 'low tide' refer to the rise and fall of water in the oceans.
 The tidal energy can be harnessed by constructing a tidal barrage.
 During high tide, the sea-water is allowed to flow into the reservoir of the barrage and rotates
the turbine, which in turn produces electricity by rotating the generators.
 During low tide, when the sea level is low, the sea water stored in the barrage reservoir is
allowed to flow into the sea and again rotates the turbine.

Significance of tidal energy

 Tidal power plants do not require large areas of valuable lands as they are on the bays or
estuaries.
 As the sea water is inexhaustible, it is completely independent of the uncertainty of
precipitation (rainfall).
 It is pollution-free energy source, as it does not use any fuel and also does not produce any
wastes.

iv) Ocean thermal energy

 Energy available due to the difference in water temperature.
 The surface of the tropical ocean and at deeper level is called OTE.
 A difference of 20°C or more is required for operating OTE power plants.
Significance of OTE
 OTE is continuous, renewable and pollution free.
 The use of cold deep water, as the chiller fluid in air-conditioning, has also been proposed.
 Electric power generated by OTE can be used to produce hydrogen.

v) Geothermal energy
 Energy harassed from the hot rocks inside earth. E.g. natural geysers in Manikaran, kully,
Sohana
Significance of geothermal energy
 The power generation level is higher for geothermal than for solar and wind energies.
 Geothermal power plants can be brought on line more quickly than most other energy sources.
 GTE is effectively and efficiently used for direct uses such as hot water bath, resorts,
aquaculture, and greenhouses.

vi) Biomass / Bio-energy

 Organic matter produced by plants or animals, used as sources of energy.
 Most of the biomass is burned directly for heating, cooling and industrial purposes.
E.g.: Wood, Crop residues, Seeds, etc.
Biomass energies are of any one of the following types.
Biofuels: Biofuels are the fuels, obtained by the fermentation of biomass. E.g: Ethanol,
methanol and gasohol.
Biogas: Biogas is a mixture of gases. Such as methane.
Hydrogen Fuel: Hydrogen can be produced by thermal dissociation or photolysis or
electrolysis of water.

Significance of bio-energy
 The cost of obtaining bio-energy through bio-gas plant is less than the cost of obtaining
energy from fossil fuels.
 Biomass consumes more CO2 than is released during combustion of biomass.
 It provides a stored form of energy and in many cases in a form suitable for vehicle
propulsion.

Merits of renewable energy resources

Unlimited supply.
Provides energy security.
Fits into sustainable development concept.
Reliable and the devices are modular in size.
Decentralized energy production.

Non-renewable energy resources (or) Conventional energy sources

Non-renewable energy resources are natural resources, which cannot be regenerated once they
are exhausted. They cannot be used again.
E.g: Coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear fuels.
i) Coal
 Coal is a solid fossil fuel formed in several stages as buried remains of land plants that lived
300-400 million year ago were subjected to intense heat and pressure over millions of years.
Various stages of coal
The various stages of coal during the coalification of wood is,

Wood Peat Lignite Bituminous coal Anthracite

 The carbon content of Anthracite is 90% and its calorific value is 8700 k.cal.
 The carbon content of bituminous, lignite and peat are 80, 70 and 60% respectively.
 lndia has about 5% of worlds coal.
 Indian coal is not good because of poor heat capacity.
Disdvantages of using coal
When coal is burnt it produces CO2, causes global warming.
Since coal contains impurities like S and N, it produces toxic gases during burning.

ii) Natural gas

 Natural gas is found above the oil in oil well. It is a mixture of 50-90% methane and small
amount of other hydrocarbons.
 Its calorific value ranges from 12,000-14,000 k.cal/m3
Dry gas: If the natural gas contains lower hydrocarbons like methane and ethane, it is called dry
gas.
Wet gas: If the natural gas contains higher hydrocarbons like propane, butane along with methane it
is called wet gas.
 Occurance
 Like petroleum oil, natural gas is also formed by the decomposition of dead animals and
plants, that were buried under lake and ocean, at high temperature and pressure for million of
years.

Uses of Alternate Energy Sources

The importance of solar energy can be emphasized particularly in view of the fact that fossil
fuels and other conventional sources are not free from environmental implications.
Energy sources which have least pollution, safety and security snags and are universally
available have the best enhance of large scale utilization in future.
Hydro-electric power generation is expected to upset the ecological balance existing on earth.
Besides space heating, hydro power plants critically pollute the aquatic and terrestrial biota.
Radioactive pollutants released from nuclear power plants are chronically hazardous. The
commissioning of boiling water power reactors (BWRS) has resulted in the critical
accumulation of large number of long lived radio nuclides in water.
The dangerous radio waste cannot be buried in land without the risk of polluting soil and
underground water. Nor the waste can be dumped into the rivers without poisoning aquatic
life and human beings as well.
The burning of coal, oil, wood, dung cakes and petroleum products has well debated
environmental problems. The smoke so produced causes respiratory and digestive problems
leading to lungs, stomach and eye diseases.
The disposal of fly ash requires large ash ponds and may pose a severe problem considering
the limited availability of land. Thus the non-conventional sources of energy are needed.
Objectives
 To provide more energy to meet the requirements of increasing population.
 To reduce environmental pollution and
 To reduce safety and security risks associated with the use of nuclear energy.

Case Study: Hydrogen-fuel cell car

General motor company of China discovered the experimental cars, which run on electric motors
fueled by hydrogen and oxygen. This car produces no emission, only water droplets and water vapour
come out of the exhaust pipe.

Growing Energy Needs

 Energy consumption of a nation is usually considered as an index of its development, because
almost all the development activities are directly or indirectly dependent upon energy.
 Power generation and energy consumption are crucial to economic development as economy of
any nation depends upon availability of energy resources.
 There are wide disparities in per capita energy use of developed and the developing nations. With
increased speed of development in the developing nations energy needs are also increasing.
 The very original form of energy technology probably was the fire, which produced heat
and the early man used it for cooking and heating purposes.
 Wind and hydropower has also been used. Invention of steam engineers replaced the
burning of wood by coal and coal was further replaced by oil.
 The oil producing has started twisting arms of the developed as well as developing
countries by dictating the prices of oil and other petroleum products.
 Energy resources are primarily divided into two categories viz. renewable and non-
renewable sources.
 Renewable energy resources must be preferred over the non-renewable resources.
 It is inevitable truth that now there is an urgent need of thinking in terms of alternative
sources of energy, which are also termed as non-conventional energy sources which include:
1. Solar energy needs equipments such as solar heat collectors, solar cells, solar cooker,
solar water heater, solar furnace and solar power plants.
2. Wind energy
3. Hydropower, Tidal energy, ocean thermal energy, geothermal energy, biomass, biogas,
biofuels etc.
 The non renewable energy sources include coal, petroleum, natural gas, nuclear energy.
 UNIT-III
Biodiversity and Conservation
Genetic, species and ecosystem diversity – biodiversity patterns and global biodiversity hot spots –
India as a mega-biodiversity nation – endangered and endemic species of India – habitat loss,
poaching of wildlife, man-wildlife conflicts, biological invasions – conservation of biodiversity –
nature reserves, tribal populations and rights.

BIODIVERSITY
Introduction
 Biodiversity is the abbreviated word for “biological diversity” (bio-life or living
organisms, diversity-variety). Thus biodiversity is the total variety of life on our planet, the
total number of races, varieties and species.
 The sum of total of various types of microbes, plants and animals (producers, consumers
and decomposers) in a system.
 Biomes can be considered life zones, environment with similar climatic, topographic and
soil conditions and roughly comparable biological communities (Eg. Grassland, forest).
 The biomes shelter an astounding variety of living organisms (from driest desert to
dripping rain forest, from highest mountain to deepest ocean trenches, life occurs in a
marvelous spectrum of size, shape, colour and inter relationship).
 The variety of living organisms, the biodiversity, makes the world beautiful.
 The concept of biodiversity may be analyzed in 3 different levels. They are ecosystem
diversity, species diversity and genetic diversity.
Definition
Biological diversity Or Biodiversity is the totality of genes, species and ecosystems of a region.

Importance of Biodiversity
Biodiversity plays a major role in maintaining the ecological balance of the ecosystem. It
refers to the number of different species belonging to a particular region. In biodiversity, each species
has a major role to play in the ecosystem.
Ecological Role of Biodiversity
 Apart from providing ecological balance to the environment, each species of biodiversity has a
major function to play in the ecosystem. They play a major role in the production and
decomposition of organic wastes, fixing atmospheric gases, and regulation of water and nutrients
throughout the ecosystem. The stability of the ecosystem increases with the diversity of the
species.
Economical Role of Biodiversity
 Biodiversity acts as a source of energy and has a major role in providing raw materials for
industrial products such as oils, lubricants, perfumes, dyes, paper, waxes, rubber, etc.
 The importance of plant species for various medicinal use has been known for ages. According to
reports, more than 70 % of the anti-cancer drugs are derived from plants in the tropical
rainforests.
Scientific Role of Biodiversity
 Each species of the ecosystem contributes to providing enough evidence as to how life evolved on
this planet and the role of each species in maintaining the sustainability of the ecosystem.
Three types / Levels/ Components of Biodiversity
Biodiversity can be categorized into three main types:
 Genetic Diversity (Diversity within species)
 Species Diversity (Diversity between species)
 Ecosystem Diversity (Diversity between ecosystem)

Genetic Diversity
 Every individual of a particular species differs from each other in its genetic makeup. This
genetic variability among the members of any plant or animal species is known as genetic
diversity. When two individuals are closely related, they share more genetic information and
hence, are more similar.
Species Diversity
 Species diversity can be defined as the variety of species within a particular region or habitat.
This type of diversity can be found in both the natural ecosystem and agricultural ecosystem.
 There are more than 85,000 flowering plant species in tropical North and South America,
tropical and subtropical Asia has more than 50,000 flowering plants whereas, there are only
35,000 flowering plant species in tropical and subtropical Africa. But, Europe has around
11,300 vascular plants. Also, other areas, such as salt flats or a polluted stream, have fewer
species.
Ecosystem Diversity
 There is a large diversity of different ecosystems that have distinctive species. This ecosystem
varies with each other as per their habitats and the difference in their species. This ecosystem
diversity can be found within a specific geographical region or a country or a state. This type
of diversity also includes forests, grasslands, deserts, and mountains.

Value of Biodiversity
Biosphere is a life supporting system to the human race. Each species in the biosphere has its
own significance.
It is the combination of different organisms that enables the biosphere to sustain human race.
Biodiversity is vital for a healthy biosphere.
Biodiversity is must for the stability and proper functioning of the biosphere.
Besides these biodiversity is so important due to having consumptive use values, productive
use values, social values, ethical values and aesthetic values.
Consumptive use values:
We benefit from other organism in many ways. Even insignificant organisms can play
irreplaceable roles in ecological systems or the source of genes or drugs that someday become
indispensable.
Food: Many wild plant species could make important contributions to human food suppliers either
as they are or as a source of material to improve domestic crops. About 80,000 edible plants could
be used by human.
Drugs and medicine: Living organisms provides many useful drugs and medicines. The United
Nations Development Programme derived from developing world plants, animals and microbes to
be more than $30 billion per year.
Eg. For natural medicinal products
Penicillin – fungus is the source
Antibiotic Quinine – chincona bark
Malaria treatment Morphine - poppy bark – Analgesic.
Twenty years before, once the drugs were not introduced, childhood leukemia was fatal.
Now the remission rate for childhood leukemia is 99%.
Fuel: Fire woods are directly consumed by villagers, tribals. The fossil fuels like Coal, Petroleum and
natural gas are also the products of fossilized biodiversity.

Ecological values:
 Human life is inextricably linked to ecological services provided by other organisms.
 Soil formation, waste disposal, air and water purification, solar energy absorption, nutrient
cycling and food production all depend on biodiversity.
 In many environments, high diversity may help biological communities to withstand
environmental stress better and to recover more quickly than those with fewer species.

Aesthetic values:
 The beautiful nature of plants and animals insist us to protect the biodiversity.
 The most important aesthetic value of biodiversity is eco-tourism.
Eco - tourism:
People from far place spend a lot of time to visit the beautiful areas, where they can enjoy the
nature.

Option values:
 The option values are the potentials of biodiversity that the presently unknown and need to be
known.
 The optional value of biodiversity suggests that any species may be proved to be a valuable
species after someday.

Social values:
 Social value of the biodiversity refers to the manner in which the bio resources are used to the
society.
 It is associated with social life, religion and spiritual aspects of the people. E.g. Holy plants
(Tulsi), Holy animals (Cow, Snake).
Ethical values:
 It is our ethical duty to conserve the wildlife for utilization of coming generations.
 It is considered to have great value on religions and cultural basis. E.g. River Ganga, Tulsi,
Vengai.

The Mega diversity Countries

Most of the world’s biodiversity are near the equator especially tropical rain forest and coral
reefs. Of the entire world’s species, only 10-15% lives in North America and Europe.
The Malaysian Peninsula, for instance, has at least 8000 species of flowing plants, while
Britain, with an area twice as large, has only 1400 species. South America has 200 000 species
of plants.
Areas isolated by water, desert or mountain can also have high conc. of unique species and
biodiversity. New Zealand, South Africa and California are all mid-latitude area isolated by
barriers that prevent mixing up of biological communities from other region and produce rich,
unusual collection of species.

Biodiversity Hotspots:
 The hotspots are the geographic areas which possess high endemic species.
 A British Ecologist, Norman Myers (1988) proposed the concept of hotspot.
 Hotspot refers to region where the species diversity is rich and endemism is rich and the rate
of deforestation is high.
  Biodiversity is not evenly distributed among the world countries.
 The Mega diverse nations include Brazil, Columbia, Mexico, Peru, Indonesia, India,
Malaysia, Equador, Madagascar, and Australia.
 Barely a dozen countries lying partly or entirely in the tropics account for 60-70% of the
world’s biodiversity. They are Hawai Islands, Columbian Chaco, Queensland Australia,
Eastern Madagascar, etc.

India as a Mega diverse Nation:

India is one of the richest nations of biological diversity. Due to certain environmental
changes occur at the region of long coastline and at the edges of the forest.
India also possesses Islands like the Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep with their own
endemic species and mountain ranges like the Himalayas and Western & Eastern Ghats. All
these factors help to make India as Mega diverse ranges.
Eastern Himalayas
 Geographically this area comprises Nepal, Bhutan and neighboring states of Northern India.
 There are 35,000 plant species found in the Himalayas, of which 30% are endemic.
 The Eastern Himalayas are also rich in wild plants of economic value.
 E.g.: Rice, banana, citrus, ginger, chilli, jute and sugarcane.
 The taxol yielding plant is also sparsely distributed in the region.
 63% mammals are from Eastern Himalayas, and
 60% of the Indian Birds are from North East.
 Huge wealth of fungi, insects, mammals, birds have been found in this region.
Western ghats
 The area comprises Maharastra, Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Kerela.
 Nearly 1500 endemic, dicotyledone plant species are found from Western Ghats.
 62% amphibians and SO% lizards are endemic in Western Ghats.
 It is reported that only 6.8% of the original forests are existing today while the rest has been
deforested or degraded.
 Some common plants: Ternstroemia, Japonica, Rhododendron and Hypericum.
 Some common animals: Blue bird, lizard, hawk.

Endangered and Endemic Species

According to International Union of Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red
list the species are classified into various types.
Extinct species: A species is said to be extinct, when it is no longer found in the world.
Endangered species: A species is said to be endangered, when its number has been reduced to a
critical level. Unless it is protected and conserved, it is in immediate danger of extinction.
Vulnerable species: A species is said to be vulnerable, when its population is facing continuous
decline due to habitat destruction or over exploitation. Such a species is still abundant.
Rare species: A species is said to be rare, when it is localized within restricted area (or) they are
thinly scattered over a more extensive area. Such species are not endangered or vulnerable.

Endangered species
A species is said to be endangered, when its number has been reduced to a critical level. Unless
it is protected and conserved, it is in immediate danger of extinction.
 In India 450 plant species have been identified as endangered species.
 About 100 mammals (Indian Wolf, Red Fox, Desert Cat, Tiger, etc), 25 reptiles (Tortoise,
Python, etc), 3 amphibians, 3 fishes, 50 insects, Primates (Capped and Golden Monkey) and
150 birds (Peacock, Pelican, Indian bustard, etc) are estimated to be endangered species.
  But India's biodiversity is threatened due to habitat destruction, degradation and over
exploitation of resources.
Factors affecting endangered species:
Pollution: Humans dispose their waste products on nature. So, the land, river, and air get polluted
severely. These pollutants enter our environment and travel through the food chain and accumulate in
the tissues of the living things, finally leads to death.
Over - exploitation: Over - exploitation of the natural resources and poaching of wild animals also
leads to extinct of wild animals.
Climate change: Climate change is brought about by the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere. Climate change threatens organisms and ecosystems, which cannot accommodate the
change of environmental conditions.
Remedial Measures:
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species 1975 (CITES),
o This treaty lists some 900 species that cannot be commercially trade.
o It restricts International trade of 2900 other species, because they are endangered.

Endemic species
The species, which are found only in a particular region, are known as endemic species.
 In India of 47,000 species and 7000 plants are endemic.
 Nearly 62% of our endemic species are found available in Himalayas and Western Ghats.
1. Fauna
 Animals present in a particular region or period.
 Examples for endemic fauna species Monitor lizards (varanus), reticulated python, etc.
2. Flora
 Plants present in a particular region or period.
 It also refers to friendly bacteria which help to protect.
 Human body against invasion by pathogens.
 Examples for endemic flora species Sapria himalayana, Ovaria lurida, etc.
Factors affecting endemic species:
There are number of factors, which affect amphibians (frogs) at various points in their life cycle.
 Habitat loss and fragmentation, because of draining and filling of inland, wetlands.
 Pollution also plays an important role.

Threats to biodiversity / Causes of Extinction

India has uniquely rich diversity of plant and animal life. Expanding human population resulted in
the expanding needs of man.
A majority of biologist believe that a mass extinction is underway.
Every year, between 17,000 and 1, 00,000 species vanish from our planet and about 1/5 of all
living species could disappear within 30 years.
There are a number of causes which are known to cause extinction of biodiversity.

Causes for loss of Biodiversity / Various Threats to Indian Biodiversity

Due to,
Habitat loss
 Deforestation activities (cutting trees for timber, removal of medicinal plants)
 Production of hybrid seeds requires wild plants as raw material, farmers prefer hybrid reeds,
many plant species become extinct
 Increase in the production of pharmaceutical companies made several numbers of
medicinal plants and species on the verge of extinction.
  Removal of forest-cover for road laying and also due to soil erosion.
 Illegal trade of wild life.
 Destruction of wetlands.
 Habitat fragmentation reduces biodiversity.
 Population explosion, construction of dam, discharge of industrial effluents use of
pesticides.
 Developmental activities.

Poaching (Over harvesting) of wild life

 Poaching means killing of animals (or) commercial hunting.
 It leads to loss of animal biodiversity.
 It is two types. Subsistence poaching (Killing animals to provide enough food), Commercial
poaching (Killing animals to sell their products).
Factors Influencing Poaching:
 Due to poaching, illegal trade and smuggling activities most of our valuable fauna are under
threat organized crime has moved into illegal wild life smuggling because of huge profit Eg.
Tiger, Deer – for hides, Rhinoceros – for horns, Elephant – for ivory tusk, Sea Horse, Star
turtle – sold to foreign market.
 Extinction, the elimination of species, is a normal process of the natural world. Species die
put and are replaced by others as part of evolutionary change.
 Human population:
Increased human population in our country has led to pressure on forest resources, which
ultimately causes degradation of wildlife habitats.
 Human caused reduction:
The climate change caused by our release of green house gases in the atm. could have
catastrophic effects. Human disturbance of natural habitat is the largest single cause of loss of
biological diversity. Woodlands and grasslands are converted now use about 10% of the world’s
land surface for crop production and about twice the amount for pasture and grasslands.
 Hunting:
Over harvesting is responsible for depletion or extinction of many species. Eg. The American
passenger pigeon was the world’s most abundant bird. In spite of this vast population, market
hunting and habitat destruction caused the entire population to crash within 20 years.
 Fragmentation;
Habitat fragmentation reduces the biodiversity because many animals like bears and large
cats require large territories to subsist. Some forest birds reproduce only in deep forest or habitat
far from human settlement. A large island for example, can support more individuals of given
species and therefore less likely to suffer extinct ion due to genetic problems and natural
catastrophes.
 Commercial products:
Smuggling of fuels, hides, horns and folk medicines also affect the biodiversity in an quick
manner.
Remedy measures:
 Illegal hunting and trade of animals and animal products should be stopped immediately.
 We should not purchase fur coat, purse or bag or items made of crocodile skin or python skin.
 Biodiversity laws should be strengthened.
Human - Wildlife Conflicts
Human - wildlife conflicts arise, when wildlife starts causing immense damage and danger to the
man. Under some condition it is very difficult for the forest department compromise the affected
villagers and to gain the village support for wildlife conservation.
Examples for human - wildlife conflicts,
 In Sambalpur, Orissa, 195 humans were killed in the last 5 years by elephants. In retaliation,
the villager have killed 98 elephants and badly injured 30 elephants.
 In the border of Kote - Chamarajanagar, Mysore, several elephants were killed because of the
massive damage done by the elephants to the farmer's cotton and sugarcane crops.
 The agonized villagers sometimes hide explosives in the sugarcane fields, which explode
when the elephants enter into their fields.
 It has been reported that a man - eating tiger killed 16 Nepalese people and one 4 - years old
child inside the Royal Chitwan National Park, Kathmandu. Now the park has become a zone
of terror for the locals.
 Very recently, two men were killed by leopards in Powai, Mumbai.
 A total of 14 persons were killed during 19 attacks by the leopards in Sanjay Gandhi National
Park, Mumbai.
Factors influencing (or causes) man - animal conflicts
 Shrinking of forest cover compels wildlife to move outside the forest and attack the fields and
humans.
 Human encroachment into the forest area induces a conflict between man and the wildlife.
 Injured animals have a tendency to attack man. Usually the female wildlife attacks the human
if she feels that her newborn cubs are in danger. Earlier, forest departments used to cultivate
sugarcane paddy, coconut trees, in the sanctuaries. When the favourite food of elephants (i.e.,
bamboo leaves) were not available, they feed them to the elephants. But, now due to lack of
such practices the wild animals move out of the forest for search food.
 Often the villagers put electric wiring around their crop fields. The elephants get injured,
suffer in pain and start violence.
 Garbage near human settlements or food crops near forest areas attracts wild animals.
Remedial measures (or) Conservation of biodiversity
 Adequate crop and cattle compensation schemes must be started.
 Solar powered fencing must be provided along with electric current proof trenches to prevent
the animal from entering into the fields.
 Cropping pattern should be changed near the forest borders.
 Adequate food and water should be made available for the wild animals within forest zones.
 The development and constructional work in and around forest region must be stopped.

Biological invasions
 Biological invasions have captured the attention of the scientific community since the eighties
decade.
 They are considered one of the most serious threats for global biodiversity.
 Many human activities can help to the intentional and accidental spreads of species (for
example agriculture, aquaculture, recreation, transport) breaking the natural barriers of
dispersion.
 Although the natural distribution of species can change with time, those activities can greatly
increase the speed and spatial scale of movement of species around the world.
 Invasive species can act as “ecosystem engineers”; the environmental changes that cause can
have strong effects on the community structure.
  Control and prevention of biological invasions are the main factors to consider for the
conservation of the environment in general.
 But not every introduced species is considered invasive. A species is considered as introduced
or not native when it spreads directly or indirectly outside its natural range for any human
activity, whereas a species is considered invasive when it is dispersed widely, colonizing and
invading the natural ecosystem, becoming very abundant and causing harm to the ecosystem,
its goods and services.

Process of invasion
Vilches et al, 2010 described the invasion process as a series of stages that species must face to
overcome the natural barriers of distribution.
1. Transport.
2. Establishment or naturalization.
3. Dispersion.
4. Human perception.
To detect invasions the date, history, habitat and their ecological attributes should be considered in
order to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of the vector. For that purpose there are six
categories or types of vectors.
1. Ships.
2. Aquaculture.
3. Bio-control.
4. Escape of transported species for the following purposes: ornamentation, agriculture or
research.
5. Channels.
6. Vector combination.

Impact
Pereyra et al (2007) recognized many direct and indirect effects of bioinvaders.
 Direct effects: The deepest change that introduced species produce is on the habitat, since it
can affect the entire ecosystem. Other examples include parasitism, predation, or competition
with the native species.
 Indirect effects: An introduced species can affect the interaction between other species on the
ecosystem, sharing dams, hosts and parasites.

Evaluation
The problem of bioinvasions has regional importance and the degree of impact can be evaluated in a
standard and objective manner through simplified protocols developed by specialists, for example the
Invasive Species Environmental Impact Assessment (ISEIA) (Vanderhoeven, S. & Branquart, 2010).
This protocol is composed of compatible sections with the stages of the invasion process: potential
spread; colonization of natural habitats; impacts on native species and ecosystems. By combining
biological history, impacts on neighboring areas and ecological profiles of alien species, the protocol
allows to classify species on one of the following three categories of risk:
 Category A: (blacklist) includes species with high environmental risks.
 Category B: (watch list or alert) includes species with moderate environmental risk based on
existing knowledge.
 Category C: includes other non-native species, which are not considered a threat to
biodiversity and native ecosystems.
Vilches et al (2010) argue that detecting species introduced at an early stage of the invasion process is
the only way to eradicate the problem. It is at this moment when population growth and economic
risks are lower. Once the species has settled it is virtually impossible to eradicate it from the
environment. The only possibility it is to try to control it, restrict its development and stop its
dispersion, with a very high economic cost.

Conservation of Biodiversity

 Biodiversity is one of the important tools for sustainable development.

 The enormous value of biodiversity due to their commercial, medical, genetic, aesthetic and
ecological importance emphasizes the need to conserve biodiversity.
Conservation is defined as, the management of biosphere so that it will yield the greatest
sustainable benefit to present generation while maintaining its potential to meet the needs of future
generation.

Factors affecting biodiversity

 Biodiversity is generally disturbed by human activities such as construction of dams in forest
areas, release of industrial wastes, using pesticides and insecticides in the crop fields,
urbanization, etc.
 Poaching of wild animals, over exploitation of natural resources, degradation of habitats,
affect biodiversity.
 The marine ecosystems are also disturbed due to oil spills and discharge of effluents.
 The climatic factors like global warming, ozone depletion, acid rain also affect the
biodiversity.

Advantages (or) need of biodiversity Conservation

 It provides immediate benefits to the society such as recreation and tourism.
 Drugs, herbs, food and other important raw materials can be derived from plants and animals.
 It also preserves the genetic diversity of plants and animals.
 Ensures the sustainable utilization life supporting systems on earth. It leads to conservation of
essential ecological diversity and life supporting systems.
 Since the biodiversity loss results in ecological and environmental deterioration, it is essential
to conserve the biodiversity.

Strategies / Types of Conservation of Wild life

In general biodiversity is generally disturbed by human activities. To solve the problems, it is
essential to protect our bio diversity by two ways.
1. In-situ (or) On-site conservation
2. Ex-situ conservation
In-situ conservation:
 Conservation of species in its natural habitat, in place where the species normally occurs.
 The strategy involves establishing small or large protected areas.
 Today in world, there are 9800 protected areas and 1500 national parks.
Methods:
1. Nature or biosphere reserves
 Biosphere reserves are multipurpose protected areas.
 Preserving genetic diversity in various natural biomes and unique biological
communities.
 Protecting wild populations, traditional life style of tribal’s and domesticated
plant and animal genetic resources.
 It protects endangered species.
  It serves as site of recreation.
 It gives long term survival of evolving ecosystem.
 Tourism and explosive activities are not allowed.
 E.g. (Manas-Assam), (Nanda Devi- Uttar Pradesh), (Gulf of Mannar-
TamilNadu), etc.
2. National parks
 They are areas maintained by government and reserved for betterment of wildlife
 Cultivation, Grazing, Forestry and Habitat manipulation are not allowed.
 The first National park of India was Jim Corbett National park (1936).
 It is used for eco tourism, without affecting the environment.
 It is used to protect, propagate and develop the wildlife (flora and fauna).
 E.g. (Kaziranga-Assam-One horned Rhino), (Gir National Park-Gujarat-Indian
Lion), etc.
3. Sanctuaries
 They are tracts of land with or without lake where wild animals can take refuge
without being hunted.
 Collection of forest products, Harvesting of timber, Private ownership of land,
tilling of land are allowed.
 They provide protection and optimum living conditions to wild animals only.
 Killing, Hunting, Shooting, and Capturing of wildlife is prohibited.
 E.g. (Mudumalai-TamilNadu-Tiger, Elephant, Leopard), (Vedanthangal-
TamilNadu –Water birds), (Periyar-Kerala-Elephants, Bison), etc.
Advantages (or) merits of In-situ Conservation
 It is very cheap and convenient method.
 The species gets adjusted to the natural disasters like drought, floods, and forest fires.

Disadvantages (or) Demerits (or) limitations of In-situ Conservation

A large surface area of the earth is required to preserve the biodiversity.
Maintenance of the habitats is not proper, due to shortage of staff and pollution.

Ex- situ conservation:

 Ex- situ conservation involves protection of fauna and flora outside the natural habitats.
 It involves maintenance and breeding of endangered plant and animal species under
partially or wholly controlled conditions in zoos, gardens, seed banks and laboratories.
 The crucial issue for conservation is to identify those species which are more at risk of
extinction.
Methods:
1. long term captive breeding
2. shortage term propagation and release
3. animal translocation and re introductions
4. seed bank
5. reproductive technology
(i) embryo transfer technology
(ii) cloning

Advantages (or) merits of Ex-situ Conservation

 Survival of endangered species is increasing due to special care and attention.
 In captive breeding, animals are assured food, water, shelter and also security and hence
longer life span.
  It is carried out in cases of endangered species, which do not have any chances of survival
in the world.

Disadvantages (or) Demerits (or) limitations of Ex-situ Conservation

It is expensive method.
The freedom of wildlife is lost.
The animals cannot survive in natural environment.
It can be adopted only for few selected species.

Tribals and Issue of Land Rights

Context
 Recent Supreme court order to evict lakhs of tribal who failed to prove that they are forest
dwellers.
 Draft amendment to the existing Indian Forest Act, 1927 that proposes far-reaching powers to
the state vis-a-vis the forest dwellers.
Background
 Supreme Court recently issued an order asking the states to evict lakhs of tribal whose claims
as forest dwellers have been rejected under the Forest Rights Act of 2006
 The order was the result of a petition filed by Wildlife First, along with the Nature
Conservation Society and Tiger Research and Conservation Trust. They are NGOs active in
the sphere of wildlife conservation.
 The court stayed its own order later and decided to examine whether due process was
followed by the gram sabhas and the States under the Forest Rights Act before the claims
were rejected.
 However, this approach to conservation has put the lives of tribal and conservation efforts in
limbo Proposed amendments to the Indian Forest Act, 1927.
 The amendments shift the focus of forest-related issues from mere transportation or taxation
of forest produce and widen its scope to include “conservation, enrichment and sustainable
management of forest resources” and “provision of ecosystem services in perpetuity ”.
 The amendment also aims to “address the concerns related to climate change and international
commitments.”
 It also aims to “strengthen and support the forest-based traditional knowledge with peoples’
participation.
 The amendment also introduces a new category of forests called production forest which will
be used as a source for timber, pulpwood, etc.
 Strict regulations have been proposed to curb construction of sheds and other structures,
fragmentation of land for cultivation or any other purpose, and burning any fire in such
manner as to endanger or damage such forest land.
 Regulations also aim to grant patta or occupancy rights only in accordance with the
recognition, restoration and vesting of Forest Rights, under “The Scheduled Tribes and Other
Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006.
 The amendment increases the role of states by stating that if the state government, after
consultation with the central government, feels that the rights under The Forest Rights Act
will hamper conservation efforts, then the state “may commute such rights by paying such
persons a sum of money in lieu thereof, or grant of land, or in such other manner as it thinks
fit, to maintain the social organisation of the forest-dwelling communities or alternatively set
out some other forest tract of sufficient extent, and in a locality reasonably convenient, for the
purpose of such forest dwellers”.
Land Issues for Tribals
 Present problem has been made more complicated by the fact that many tribal who have been
living in the forest for generations do not have the necessary paperwork to prove that they
have been living there.
 The rejection of claims has also been arbitrary without proper research or background check.
 There has been a theory in prevalence since the passage of the Forest Rights Act that such
legislations accelerate deforestation.
 However, empirical data, including research by Tata Institution of Social Sciences have
shown that community participation boost conservation efforts. Research also shows that an
exclusionary approach to conservation makes conservation efforts unsustainable
 Amendments to the colonial era Indian Forest Act is also drawing a lot of criticism.
 It empowers the forest officials to use firearms and cause injury to prevent any “violation”.
 It also makes statements made to any forest officer admissible as evidence in a court of law.
This is a provision that is used only in extreme cases like terrorism. Its use in forest
administration where forest officers already enjoy wide powers is problematic. There is a
huge scope for misuse.
 The amendments also empower the officer to seize property in relation to any case.
 The forest department will also have the right to impose a cess on forest produce, which is
over and above the tax imposed by state governments. This is in contravention to FRA, which
says that minor forest produce used by forest dwellers cannot be taxed.
 The Forest Rights Act had democratised the issue of Forest, land, ownership of forest
produce, etc. and considerable devolution of powers to the gram sabhas had also taken place.
Many provisions of these amendments might reverse this situation.
 There is also concern that inviting private parties to maintain forests might give them a
perverse incentive to invest in timber cultivation which might adversely affect the fragile
ecological balance of the forest area.

Land Rights of Scheduled Tribes – Recent Update

In July 2019, Ministry of Tribal Affairs through a press release mentioned Constitutional and legal
provisions for tribals that have been put in place so far:
1. The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights)
Act, 2006 (FRA)
2. Gram Sabha to ensure that the rights taken in its assembly are complying with the interests of
wild animals, forest and the biodiversity, concerning tribals.
3. Right to fair compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and
Resettlement Act, 2013 (RFCTLARR Act, 2013)
4. National Level Monitoring Committee for Rehabilitation and Resettlement under
RFCTLARR Act 2013 to review and monitor the implementation of rehabilitation and
resettlement schemes and plans
5. No acquisition of land shall be made in the Scheduled Areas (The RFCTLARR Act
says, where such acquisition does take place, it shall be done only as a demonstrable last
resort.)
6. The procedure and manner of rehabilitation and resettlement are laid down under The
RFCTLARR Act, 2013
7. The Scheduled castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989
 UNIT – IV
Environmental Pollution: Environmental pollution types – causes, effects and control of pollution –
air, water, soil and noise pollution – nuclear hazards and human health risks – solid waste
management – control measures of urban and industrial waste.

POLLUTION
Environmental pollution may be defines as, “the unfavorable alteration of our surroundings”.
It changes the quality of air, water and land which interferes with the health of humans and other life
on earth.
Pollution is of different kinds depending on the nature of pollutant generated from different sources.
E.g.,: Industry, automobiles, thermal power plants, etc.

Classification of pollution
The different kinds of pollution that affects the environment are,
Air pollution
Water pollution
Soil pollution
Marine pollution
Noise pollution
Thermal pollution and
Nuclear hazards

Air pollution
Definition:
Air pollution may be defined as “the imbalance in quality of air so as to cause adverse effects
on the living organisms existing on earth”.
The contamination of air with dust, smoke and harmful gases is called air pollution.

Composition of Atmospheric Air

During several billion years of chemical and biological evolution, the composition of the
earth’s atmosphere has varied. Today, about 99% of the volume of air we inhale consists of two
gases: Nitrogen and Oxygen.
Constituents %
Nitrogen 78
Oxygen 21
Argon (Ar) <1
CO2 0.037
O3, He, NH3 Trace amount
Water vapour Remaining

Sources of Air pollution

There are two major sources of air pollution as follows:
1. Natural sources : Such as volcanic eruptions, deflation of sand and dust, forest or wild fires of
natural vegetation., etc,.
2. Man-made sources (Anthropogenic Activities) : Such as industries, factories, urban centers,
air craft, nuclear experiments, automobiles, agriculture, power plants, etc,.

Classification of Air pollutants

A. Based on actual form of pollutants present in the environment, they are classified as
i) Primary air pollutants
ii) Secondary air pollutants
i) Primary air pollutants :
Primary air pollutants are those emitted directly in the atmosphere in harmful form. E.g., CO,
NO, SO2, etc.
 Indoor Air pollutants: Indoor air pollutants are primary air pollutants. The most
important indoor air pollutant is radon gas.
Sources (Causes) of indoor air pollutants
Radon gas is emitted from the building materials like bricks, concrete, tiles etc., which are
derived from soil containing radium.
It is also present in natural gas and ground water and is emitted indoors while using them.
ii) Secondary air pollutants :
Some of the primary air pollutants may react with one another or with the basic components
of air to form new pollutants. They are called as secondary air pollutants.
moist
E.g., NO / NO2 (HNO3 / NO3) etc.

B. Based on natural disposal

i) Biodegradable
ii) Non-biodegradable
 Biodegradable pollutants that is rendered harmless by natural processes and so causes no
permanent harm. E.g., Domestic wastes, Banana peels, Hamburger buns, urine, blood, etc.
 Non-biodegradable pollutants that accumulates in the environment and so causes permanent
harm. E.g., Plastics, glass, polythene bags, etc.

C. Based on Origin
 Natural pollutants: Such as volcanic eruptions, deflation of sand and dust, forest or wild fires
of natural vegetation., etc,.
Man-made pollutants (Anthropogenic Activities) : Such as industries, factories, urban centers, air
craft, nuclear experiments, automobiles, agriculture, power plants, etc,.

Effects
On plants
Causes Chlorosis
Reducing growth rate.
Leaves damage
Bleaching or killing plant tissue.
Reducing growth rate
Reduces crops yield

On material
Deteriorate fabrics
Fade dyes
Corrode metals
Damage buildings
Reduce visibility

On humans
Respiratory diseases
Headache, Giddiness
Eye, Nose, Throat irritation
Reduced mental activity
Lung irritation
Lung damage
Affects oxygen carrying capacity of the blood
Cancer
Death
On Environment
Be a part of acid rain
Contribute to photochemical and sulfurous smog
Depletion of ozone layer
Global warming
Greenhouse effect
Reduce visibility by absorption of sunlight
Illumination problems

Control measures
 Regulations
 Monitoring
 Use of natural gas
 Reducing the use of fossil fuels
 Improving the quality of vehicular fuel
 Reducing the usage of products emits CFC.
 Ban the CFC production Use of renewable energy
 Catalytic decomposition
 Incineration, Absorption, Adsorption & Condensation
 Wet scrubbers
 Dry scrubbers
 Electrostatic precipitators
 Filters
 Dust collectors

Water Pollution
Definitions:
“The contamination of water with soluble sewage and industrial waste is called water
pollution.”
“Water pollution may be defined as alteration in physical, chemical and biological properties
of water which may cause harmful effects on human and aquatic life.”

Introduction:
 Water is most important natural resource.
 It is vital for the maintenance of all forms of life and vegetations.
 We depend on water for irrigation, industry, domestic needs, drinking purpose, for sanitation
and disposal of waste.
 Our water bodies are ponds, lakes, sea, rivers, oceans which have become polluted due to
industrial development and urbanization.

Sources of Water Pollution

There are two main sources of water pollution as follows:
1. Natural sources (Non-point): Of water pollutants include soil erosion, volcanic eruption,
land-slides, coastal and cliff erosion, floods, decomposition of plants and animals.
2. Man-induced sources (Point): Of water pollutants include industrial development,
urbanization, agricultural sources, cultural sources kumbha fair at Allahabad is an
example of cultural sources of water pollution.
The main sources of water pollution are-
i) Sewage and other waste in cities
ii) Industrial effluents and waste products
iii) Agricultural discharge, chemical fertilizers used, and
iv) Thermal power plants and nuclear plants waste.
Types of Water pollution
Water pollution may be divided on the basis of sources and storages of water such as:
Surface water pollution
Lake water pollution
Ground water pollution
Sea water pollution and
River water pollution
Water pollution is also classified on the basis of sources of water pollution e.g.,
Sewage water pollution
Domestic water pollution
Industrial waste water pollution, and
Solid waste water pollution.

Effects of Water pollution

Each type of water pollution affects the physical and biological components of various aquatic
systems in different degrees and its ultimate effect on man remains quite drastic in medical, aesthetic
and economical sense. The well known ecological effects of water pollution are as follows:
Industrial effluents
o Water is discharged from after having been used in production processes. This waste
water may contain acids, alkalis, salts, poisons, oils and in some cases harmful
bacteria.
Mining and Agricultural Wastes
o Mines, especially gold and coal mines, are responsible for large quantities of acid
water. Agricultural pesticides, fertilisers and herbicides may wash into rivers and
stagnant water bodies.
Sewage Disposal and Domestic Wastes
o Sewage as well as domestic and farm wastes were often allowed to pollute rivers and
dams.
A number of waterborne diseases are produced by the pathogens present in polluted water,
affecting humans and animals alike.
Pollution affects the chemistry of water. The pollutants, including toxic chemicals, can alter
the acidity, conductivity and temperature of water.
Polluted municipal water supplies are found to pose a threat to the health of people using
them.
As per the records, about 14000 people perish or incur various communicable diseases due to
the consumption of contaminated drinking water.
The concentration of bacteria and viruses in polluted water causes increase in solids
suspended in the water body, which, in turn, leads to health problems.
Marine life becomes deteriorated due to water pollution. Lethal killing of fish and aquatic
plants in rivers, oceans and seas is an aftereffect of water contamination only.
Diseases affecting the heart, poor circulation of blood and the nervous system and ailments
like skin lesion, cholera and diarrhea are often linked to the harmful effects of water pollution.
Carcinogenic pollutants found in polluted water might cause cancer.
Alteration in the chromosomal makeup of the future generation is foreseen, as a result of
water pollution.
Discharges from power stations reduce the availability of oxygen in the water body, in which
they are dumped.
The flora and fauna of rivers, sea and oceans is adversely affected by water pollution.
Eutrophication is a natural process observed in lakes and tanks where rich growth of micro-
organisms consumes much of dissolved oxygen, depriving other organisms. It is generally
 found at bottom layers of deep lakes. Addition of excessive plant nutrients increases
Eutrophication and is harmful to fish and other aquatic life.
Foam formation in waters by soaps, detergents and alkalies.
Impairment of taste and unpleasant odours in water.
Turbidity which makes water unfit for drinking and industrial purpose.
Inorganic nitrates and phosphates stimulate excessive plant growth in lake and reservoirs.

Control Measures
The following measures can be used to stop water pollution:
 Every intelligent people should be wise enough not to pollute water in any way.
 By research and legislation the pollution of water bodies, even though not entirely
prevented, must be effectively controlled.
 Water hyacinth can purify water polluted by biological and chemical wastes.
 Strict legislation should be enacted over industries to treat waste water before being
discharge into rivers or series.
 Domestic and industrial wastes should be destroyed by constructing composite pit.
 Hot water should be cooled suitably before adding to river water.
 Oxidation ponds can be used in removing low level of radioactive wastes.
 Very specific and less stable chemicals should be used in manufacture of insecticides to
reduce water pollution.
 lay down standard for
 drinking water
 disposal of waste water into water course/sewer/land
 monitoring
 treatment
 domestic treatment
screening
sedimentation
filtration, pH adjustment
disinfection
 waste water treatment
preliminary treatment
primary treatment
secondary treatment
advanced treatment

Land Pollution / Soil Pollution

Introduction
 Soil is very important environmental component for human, animals and plants.
 It is the basic medium for food, vegetation and natural resources.
 Soil pollution is mainly due to chemicals in herbicides (weed killers) and pesticides (poisons
which kill insects and other invertebrate pests).
 Litter is waste material dumped in public places such as streets, parks, picnic areas, at bus
stops and near shops.
Definitions
“The contamination of soil with excess of chemicals, fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides is
known as soil pollution.”
“The decrease in the quality of soils either due to human activities or natural sources or by
both is known as soil pollution or soil degradation.”
Sources of Soil Pollution
The major sources of soil pollution are accelerated rate of soil erosion, soil eruption,
deforestation, excessive use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticide and herbicides, polluted
waste water from industries, urban areas, forest fires, a few micro-organisms, dumpling of urban and
industrial wastes, water-logging and related capillary process, leaching processes, drought, etc.
The air and water pollutants are also responsible for the soil degradation. The sources are
divided into five categories.
i) Physical sources, e.g., soils erosion, volcanic eruption.
ii) Biological sources, e.g., the micro-organisms, bacteria and protozoa.
iii) Air-born sources, e.g., thermal power plants, industry and factory waste products.
iv) Biocides sources, e.g., chemical fertilizers destroy micro-organisms, organic phosphate
compounds.
v) Urban and industrial sources – urban wastes degrade the soil properties, urban sewage
pollute the soil.

Effects of Soil Pollution

Tonnes and tonnes of domestic wastes are dumped every day. Since people do not follow
proper methods for the disposal of such wastes, it leaves the places look dirty and makes them
unhealthy.
Soil pollution indirectly affects the respiratory system of human beings. Breathing in polluted
dust or particle can result in a number of health problems related to the respiratory system.
Skin problems are often diagnosed due to land pollution. It is said that the improper disposal
of household wastes leads to allergic reactions on the skin.
Soil pollution has been found as one of the leading causes for birth defects. Pregnant women
living in unhealthy and dirty environment can incur breathing problems and a number of
diseases, which may affect the health of the baby as well.
Soil pollution has serious effect on wildlife. Flora, which provides food and shelter to
wildlife, are destroyed.
Soil pollution often disrupts the balance of Nature, causing human fatalities.

Control Measures
The following measures can be used to control Soil Pollution:
 Anti-litter campaigns can educate people against littering
 Organic waste can be dumped in places far from residential areas
 Inorganic materials such as metals, glass and plastic, but also paper, can be reclaimed and
recycled.
 Use of pesticides should be minimized.
 To restrict the use of D.D.T.
 Use of fertilizers should be judicious.
 Cropping techniques should be improved to prevent growth of weeds.
 Special pits should be selected for dumping wastes.
 Controlled grazing and forest management.
 Wind breaks and wind shield in areas exposed to wind erosion
 Planning of soil binding grasses along banks and slopes prone to rapid erosion.

Noise Pollution
Noise is defined as 'unwanted sounds' being 'dumped' into atmosphere to disturb the unwilling
ears. It effects our physiological and mental health. They city noise is often sufficient to deafen
people gradually, at least partially with advancing age.
The amount of noise pollution is synonymous to the standard of living of a particular country.
This form of pollution is caused when a particular sound reaches an unfavorably high intensity and in
turn causes adverse effects on our daily mechanisms. The intensity of noise is measured in decibels
and the scale by which it is measured is logarithmic. This implies that a 10 decibel increase in noise
results in the doubling of loudness. While noises above 45 decibels can disturb a person’s sleep,
noises above 120 decibels can cause hearing impairment.
“The state of discomfort and restlessness caused to all living beings by unwanted high
intensity sound is known as noise pollution.”

Sources of Noise Pollution

Natural sources: Cloud thunder, high intensity rainfall, storm and hail storm and heavy
rainfall.
Anthropogenic sources: High intensity sound from industrial machines, supersonic aero
planes, bomb blasts, exploding of crackers, blaring radios and loudspeakers, slogans shouting
and city crowd, traffic noise etc.
Traffic noise is the main source of noise pollution caused in urban areas. With the ever-
increasing number of vehicles on road, the sound caused by the cars and exhaust system of
autos, trucks, buses and motorcycles is the chief reason for noise pollution.
With the low flying military aircrafts soaring over the national parks, wasteland and other
vacant areas, the level of noise pollution has drastically increased in these previously
unaffected zones.
People living beside railway stations put up with a lot of noise from locomotive engines,
horns and whistles and switching and shunting operation in rail yards. This is one of the major
sources of noise pollution.
To meet the demands of the basic necessity of living, the construction of buildings, highways
and city streets causes a lot of noise. Pneumatic hammers, air compressors, bulldozers,
loaders, dump trucks and pavement breakers are the major sources of noise pollution in
construction sites.
Though not a prime reason, industrial noise adds to the noise pollution. Machinery, motors
and compressors used in the industries create a lot of noise which adds to the already
detrimental state of noise pollution.
Plumbing, boilers, generators, air conditioners and fans create a lot of noise in the buildings
and add to the prevailing noise pollution.
Household equipments, such as vacuum cleaners, mixers and some kitchen appliances are
noisemakers of the house. Though they do not cause too much of problem, their effect cannot
be neglected.

Effects of Noise Pollution

 It interferes with human communication
 Prolonged exposure leads to deafen our ears or permanent loss of hearing.
 It causes anxiety, reaction of stress and tension, may produce fright and even heart failure to
heart patients.
 Its long exposure can cause hormonal imbalance leading to adverse disorders like increased
heart beat, constriction of blood vessels, increase in cholesterol level, high blood pressure and
hypertension and production of gastro intestinal problems like peptic ulcers.
 It can impair development of nervous system of unborn babies leading to abnormal behaviour
in life.
 Too much of noise disturbs the rhythms of working, thereby affecting the concentration
required for doing a work. Noise of traffic or the loud speakers or different types of horns
divert the attention, thus causing harm in the working standard.
 Fatigue caused is another effect of noise. Due to lack of concentration, people need to devote
more time to complete their task, which leads to tiredness and fatigue.
  Sometimes, being surrounded by too much of noise, people can be victims of certain diseases
like blood pressure, mental illness, etc.
 Noise pollution indirectly affects the vegetation. Plants require cool & peaceful environment
to grow. Noise pollution causes poor quality of crops.
 Animals are susceptible to noise pollution as well. It damages the nervous system of the
animals.
 Noise indirectly weakens the edifice of buildings, bridges and monuments. It creates waves,
which can be very dangerous and harmful and put the building in danger condition.

Control Measures
It depends upon three factors:
 To reduce the source of noise.
 To put checks in path of its transmission.
 To safeguard the receive of the noise. For this to happen vehicular traffic should be
diverted away from dwelling sites. Proper designing of machines can reduce loss due to
noise. Acoustic furnishing (absorbing techniques) should be extensively employed. There
should be legal enforcement of restrictions on noise pollution.

Radioactive pollution / Nuclear Hazards

Introduction
 When a radioactive element becomes unstable and begins to decay in order to regain
molecular stability, the process is known as radioactivity.
 There are three types of radiation: alpha rays, beta rays and gamma rays.
 While alpha radiation can be blocked by a piece of paper as well as human skin, beta particles
can penetrate through the skin but can be blocked by a piece of glass or metal. Gamma rays,
in turn, penetrate through the human skin and damage cells on its way.
 They can be only blocked by a massive piece of concrete.
Definitions
“The physical pollution of air, water and soil by radio materials is called as Radioactive pollution”.
“Although nuclear energy is said to be a clean form of energy because it does not release pollutants
such as carbon dioxide, the waste resulted from a nuclear reaction leads to a form of pollution known
as radioactive pollution”.
Sources of Radioactive Pollution
Natural sources
Radioactive pollution is space, which emit cosmic rays.
Soil, rocks, air, water, food, radioactive radon-222 also contain one or more radioactive
substances.
Man-made sources
Medical X-rays
Radio isotopes
Nuclear test
Nuclear installations
Nuclear reactor
Mining and refining of plutonium and thorium
Pollution can also come from transportation in which radioactive materials are used and
uranium mining which releases radioactive matter during the process itself.

Effects and Three Types of Radioactive Pollution

The three types of radioactive pollution range from mild to severe in their effects.
Alpha matter is the lowest level. It is easily blocked. Should it be the form of radioactive
pollution,
 protection against it is not needed as it can be blocked by the skin alone.
Beta matter is the next level of radioactive pollution. It can penetrate the skin, so protection is
needed. Some glass and metal can protect from beta radioactive matter.
The highest and most dangerous level is gamma matter. Gamma matter cannot be blocked. It
may be possible to block it through a very large layer of concrete, but it is highly dangerous
and any exposure would lead to serious health effects and possibly death.

On humans
Causes skin burns, loss of teeth, vomiting anemia
Permanent blindness
Skin cancer
Blood cancer
Brain damage
Lung tumours
Bone cancer

On aquatic life
Damage the food chain and cause disease in marine life.

Control measures
There is no mechanism to cure after affects of radioactive pollution so in this case prevention
is better than cure.
 Radiation exposure protection
 Radiation contamination protection
 Controlled area
 Disposal of radioactive waste
 Regular monitoring of radioactive work out should be taken care of and safety measures have
to be strengthened.

Nuclear Hazards and Human Health risks

The health effects due to radiation are dependent on the level of dose, kind of radiation,
duration of exposure and types of cells irradiated.
 Radiation effects can be somatic or genetic.
 Somatic affects the function of cells and organs.
 It causes damages to cell membranes,
 mitochondria and cell nuclei resulting in abnormal cell functions,
 cell division,
 growth and death.
 Genetic affects the future generations.
 Radiations can cause mutations,
 which are changes in genetic make up of cells.
 These effects are mainly due to the damages to DNA molecules.
 People suffer from blood cancer and bone cancer if exposed to doses around 100 to 1000
roentgens. Instantaneous deaths on exposure in the event if disasters are many.
 SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
Introduction
 Solid waste management is a polite term for garbage management.
 As long as humans have been living in settled communities, solid waste, or garbage, has been
an issue, and modern societies generate far more solid waste than early humans ever did.
 Daily life in industrialized nations can generate several pounds of solid waste per consumer,
not only directly in the home, but indirectly in factories that manufacture goods purchased by
consumers.
 Solid waste management is a system for handling all of this garbage; municipal waste
collection is solid waste management, as are recycling programs, dumps, and incinerators.

Types and sources of solid wastes

Depending upon the nature, solid wastes can be broadly classified into three ypes
1. Urban (or) municipal wastes.
2. Industrial wastes.
3. Hazardous wastes.

URBAN (OR) MUNICIPAL WASTES

Introduction
 Environmental conditions have worsened gradually with domestic and urban waste causing
that now threatens human existence.
 Urban waste is increasing with increasing movement of people from villages to towns.
 Main reasons for this increase in urban waste is changing pattern of life with urbanization.

Definition of Urban Waste

Urban waste means waste generated by any activity of urban or per -urban areas that means
waste not only constitute of household waste but also urban waste of commercial establishments,
street sweeping, green areas and industry.

Causes / Sources of urban (municipal) wastes

Urban or municipal waste include the following wastes
(a). Domestic wastes: it contains a variety of materials thrown out from the homes.
Examples: food waste, cloth, waste paper, glass bottles, polythene bags, waste metals, etc.,
(b). Commercial wastes; it includes the wastes coming out from the shops, markets, hotels, offices,
institutions, etc.,
Examples: waste paper, packing material, cans, bottle, polyhtene bags, etc.,
(c). Construction wastes: it includes the wastes of construction materials.
Examples: wood, concrete, debris etc.,
(d). Biomedical wastes: it includes mostly the waste organic materials.
Examples: anatomical wastes, infectious wastes etc.,

Type and characteristics of urban (municipal) wastes

(i) Bio- degradable wastes: The urban solid waste materials, that can be degraded by micro
organisms are called biodegradable wastes.
Examples : food, vegetables, tea leaves, egg shells, dry leaves, etc.,
(ii) Non-biodegradable wastes: The urban solid waste materials that cannot be degraded by micro
organisms are called non- biodegradable wastes.
Examples : polythene bags, scrap metals, glass bottles, etc.,
Effects of urban wastes
Due to improper of municipal solid wastes on the road side and their immediate surroundings,
biodegradable materials undergo decomposition. This produces foul smell and breeds various
types of insects, which spoil the land value.
Toxic substances may percolate into the ground and contaminate the ground water.
Volatile organic compounds and dioxins in air-emissions increasing cancer incidence.
Psychological stress for those living near incinerators or land disposal facilities.
Drain-clogging due to uncollected wastes leading to stagnant waters and hence mosquito
breeding.

INDUSTRIAL WASTE
Introduction
 Industrial waste includes waste produced by the activities of industries, mines, mills, etc. and
includes both liquid and solid waste products.
 Waste products from certain industries do not have any potential hazardous nature hence can
be disposed normally after minimal treatment procedures.
 Whereas, waste products from certain other industries like atomic stations, are potentially
highly dangerous to living organisms, including humans, hence should be treated according to
recommended procedures very carefully before disposal.
 Certain industries also generate dangerous gaseous waste products and care should be taken to
treat these gaseous waste molecules before releasing into the environment.

Definition of industrial waste

Industrial waste is the pollutant produced by industries and mines. It causes pollution of
several kinds – air, land, water and noise. It constitutes many chemicals, toxic substances, scraps
which are harmful to the environment.

Source and characteristics of industrial wastes

The main sources of industrial wastes are chemical industries, metal and mineral processing
industries. Examples,
(i) Nuclear power plants: it generates radioactive wastes.
(ii) Thermal power plants: it produces fly ash in large quantities.
(iii)Chemical industries: it produces large quantities of hazardous and toxic materials.
(iv) Other industries: other industries produce, packing materials, rubbish, organic wastes, acids,
alkalis, scrap metals, rubber, plastic, paper, glass, wood, oils, paints, dyes, etc.,

Effects of Industrial waste

Industrial solid wastes are the sources of toxic metals and hazardous wastes, which affect the
soil characteristics and productivity of soils when they are dumped on the soil.
Burning of some industrial wastes (or) domestic wastes (like cans, pesticides, plastics,
radioactive materials, batteries) produce furans, dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls, which
are harmful to human beings.
Allergy may be due to inhalation of dust containing cotton wastes or fungus or other
contaminants in the waste dust.
Skin contact: Chemicals that cause dermatitis usually do so through direct contact with skin.
Some chemicals like corrosive acids can damage the skin by a single contact while others,
like organic solvent, may cause damage by repeated exposure.
Inhalation: Inhalation is the most common source of workplace exposure to chemicals and
the most difficult to control. Air pollutants can directly damage respiratory tract or gets
 absorbed through lung and cause system/systemic effects. An adult male will breathe about 10
cubic meters of air during a normal working day.
Ingestion: Ground water and sub soil water contamination from leachates from refuse dumps
and poorly managed landfill sites can result in ingestion of toxic chemicals by population
groups who live far away from the factory sites and decades after the garbage has been
dumped.

Control measures of Urban and Industrial Wastes / Process of Solid waste

management
Solid waste management strategy includes:
 the waste generation,
 mode of collection,
 transportation,
 storage,
 segregation of wastes and
 disposal techniques (Land fills, Incineration and Composting).

Steps involved in solid waste management

Two important steps of solid waste management is

I. Reduce, Reuse and Recycle (3R)

Reduce, reuse and recycle, before destruction and safe storage of wastes.
(a) Reduce the usage of raw materials
If the usage of raw materials are reduced, the generation of waste also gets reduced.
(b) Reuse of waste materials
(i) The refillable containers, which are discarded after use, can be reused.
(ii) Rubber rings can be made from the discarded cycle tubes, which reduces the waste
generation during manufacturing of rubber bands.
(c) Recycling of materials
Recycling is the reprocessing of the discarded materials into new useful products.
Examples:
(a) Old aluminium cans and glass bottles are melted and recast into new cans and bottles.
(b) Preparation of cellulose insulation from paper.
(c) Preparation of fuel pellets from kitchen waste.
(d) Preparation of automobiles and construction materials from steel cans.
The above process saves money, energy, raw materials, and reduces pollution.

II. Discarding wastes

For discarding solid wastes the following methods can be adopted.

Methods of disposal of solid waste

Landfill,
Incineration,
Composting

(A) Landfill:
 Solid wastes are placed in sanitary landfill system in alternate layers of 80cm thick refuse,
covered with selected earth fill of 20 cm thickness.
 After two or three years, solid waste volume shrinks by 25-30% and the land is used for parks,
roads and small buildings.
 The most common and method of waste disposal is dumping in sanitary landfills which is
invariably employed in Indian cities.
  Landfill structure is built either into the ground or on the ground into which the waste is
dumped.
 The method involves spreading the solid waste on the ground, compacting it and then
covering it with soil at suitable intervals.

Advantages
It is simple and economical.
Segregation not required.
Landfilled areas can be reclaimed and used for other purposes.
Converts low-lying, marshy waste-land into useful areas.
Natural resources are returned to soil and recycled.

Disadvantages
A large area is required.
Since land is available away from town, transportation cost is heavy.
Bad odours, if landfills are not properly managed.
The land filled areas will be the sources of mosquitoes and hence insecticides and
pesticides are to be applied at regular intervals.
Causes fire hazard due to the formation of methane in wet weather.

(B) Incineration:
 It is a hygienic way of disposing solid waste.
 It is more suitable if the waste contains more hazardous material and organic content.
 It is a thermal process and is very effective for detoxification of all combustible pathogens.
 It is an expensive technology compared to land fill and composting because incinerators are
costly.
 In this method the municipal solid wastes are burnt in a furnace called incinerator.
 The combustible substances such as rubbish, garbage, dead organisms and the
noncombustible matter such as glass, porcelain, metals are separated before feeding to
incinerators.
 The noncombustible materials can be left out for recycling and reuse.
 The left out ashes and clinkers from the incinerators may be accounted for only about 10 to
20% which need further disposal either by sanatory landfill or by some other means.
 The heat produced in the incinerators during the burning of refuse is used in the form of steam
power for generation of electricity throughout turbines.
 The municipal solid waste is generally wet but has a very high calorific value so it has to be
dried up first before burning.
 The waste is dried in preheater from where it is taken into large incinerating furnace called
destructors which can incinerate about 100 to 150 tonnes per hour.
 The temperature normally maintained in a combustion chamber is about 7000C and may be
increased to about 10000C when electricity is to be generated.

Advantages
The residue is only 20-25% of original weight, the clinker can be used after treatment.
It requires very little space.
Cost of transportation is not high as incinerators located within city limits.
Safest from hygienic point of view.
An incinerator plant of 300 tonnes per day capacity can generate 3MW of power.
Disadvantages
Its capital and operating cost is high.
Needs skilled personnel.
Formation of smoke, dust and ashes needs further disposal, due to which air pollution may be
caused.

(C ) Composting:
 It is another popular method practiced in many cities in our country. In this method, bulk
organic waste is converted into fertilizing manure by biological action.
 The separated compostable waste is dumped in underground earthern trenches in layers of 1.5
m and is finally covered with earth of about20 cm and left over for decomposition.
 Sometimes certain microorganisms such as actinomycetes are introduced for active
decomposition.
 Within 2 to 3 days biological action starts, the organic matters are being destroyed by
actinomycetes and lot of heat is liberated increasing the temperature of the compost by about
750C and finally the refuse is converted to powdery brown coloured odourless mass known as
humus and has a fertilizing value which can be used for agricultural field.
 The compost contains lot of nitrogen essential for plant growth apart from phosphates and
other minerals.
 World Health Organisation (WHO) has set up a compost plant in New Delhi in 1981 with a
capacity to handle 90 to 100 tonnes of waste every day.
 The prepared compost supplied to nurseries, kitchen gardens and horticulture department. The
composting technology is widely employed in developing countries.

Advantages
When the manure is added to soil, it increases the water retention and ion-exchange capacity
of soil.
A number of industrial solid wastes can also be treated by this method.
It can (manure) be sold thereby reducing the cost of disposing of wastes.
Recycling occurs.

Disadvantages
The non-consumables have to be disposed separately.
Use of compost has not yet caught up with farmers and hence no assured market.
 UNIT – V
Environmental Policies: Climate change – global warming – ozone layer depletion – acid rain and
impacts on human communities and agriculture. Environment Protection Act – Wildlife Protection
Act – Forest Conservation Act – Montreal and Kyoto protocols and convention on Biological
Diversity.

Climate Change
Definition
The periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about due to the changes in the
atmosphere as well as the interactions between the atmosphere and various other geological,
chemical, biological and geographical factors within the Earth’s system is called Climate change.

Factors Affecting Climate Change

Natural Factors – affect the climate over a period of thousands to millions of years. Such as –
1. Continental Drift – have formed millions of years ago when the landmass began to drift
apart due to plate displacement. This impacts climate change due to the change in the
landmass’s physical features and position and the change in water bodies’ position like the
change in the follow of ocean currents and winds.
2. Volcanism – Volcanic eruption emits gasses and dust particles that lasts for a longer period
causing a partial block of the Sun rays thus leading to cooling of weathers and influencing
weather patterns.
3. Changes in Earth’s Orbit – A slight change in the Earth’s orbit has an impact on the
sunlight’s seasonal distribution reaching earth’s surface across the world. There are three
types of orbital variations – variations in Earth’s eccentricity, variations in the tilt angle of the
Earth’s axis of rotation and precession of Earth’s axis. These together can cause Milankovitch
cycles, which have a huge impact on climate and are well-known for their connection to the
glacial and interglacial periods.

Anthropogenic Factors – is mainly a human-caused increase in global surface temperature. Such as –

 Greenhouse Gasses – these absorb heat radiation from the sun resulting in an increase in
Global Temperature. GHGs mostly do not absorb solar radiation but absorb most of the
infrared emitted by the Earth’s surface. Read more on Greenhouse Gasses on the given link.
Global warming begins with the greenhouse effect, which is caused by the interaction
between incoming radiation from the sun and the atmosphere of Earth.
 Atmospheric Aerosols – these can scatter and absorb solar and infrared radiation. Solar
radiation scatters and cools the planet whereas aerosols on absorbing solar radiation increase
the temperature of the air instead of allowing the sunlight to be absorbed by the Earth’s
surface. Aerosols have a direct affect on climate change on absorption and reflection of solar
radiation. Indirectly it can affect by modifying clouds formation and properties. It can even be
transported thousands of kilometres away through winds and circulations in the atmosphere.
 Shift in land-use pattern – Most of the forests and land covers are replaced by agricultural
cropping, land grazing, or for Industrial or commercial usage. The clearing of forest cover
increases solar energy absorption and the amount of moisture evaporated into the
atmosphere.
 The lower the albedo (reflectivity of an object in space), the more of the Sun’s radiation gets
absorbed by the planet and the temperatures will rise. If the albedo is higher and the Earth is
more reflective, more of the radiation is returned to space, leading to the cooling of the planet.
Potential Effects of climate change in India
 Extreme Heat: India is already experiencing a warming climate. Unusual and unprecedented
spells of hot weather are expected to occur far more frequently and cover much larger areas.
Under 4°C warming, the west coast and southern India are projected to shift to new, high-
temperature climatic regimes with significant impacts on agriculture.
 Changing Rainfall Patterns: A decline in monsoon rainfall since the 1950s has already been
observed. A 2°C rise in the world’s average temperatures will make India’s summer monsoon
highly unpredictable. At 4°C warming, an extremely wet monsoon that currently has a chance
of occurring only once in 100 years is projected to occur every 10 years by the end of the
century. Dry years are expected to be drier and wet years wetter.
 Droughts: Evidence indicates that parts of South Asia have become drier since the 1970s
with an increase in the number of droughts. Droughts have major consequences. In 1987 and
2002-2003, droughts affected more than half of India’s crop area and led to a huge fall in crop
production. Droughts are expected to be more frequent in some areas, especially in north-
western India, Jharkhand, Orissa, and Chhattisgarh. Crop yields are expected to fall
significantly because of extreme heat by the 2040s.
 Groundwater: Even without climate change, 15% of India’s groundwater resources are
overexploited. Falling water tables can be expected to reduce further on account of increasing
demand for water from a growing population, more affluent lifestyles, as well as from the
services sector and industry.
 Glacier Melt: Most Himalayan glaciers have been retreating over the past century. At 2.5°C
warming, melting glaciers and the loss of snow cover over the Himalayas are expected to
threaten the stability and reliability of northern India’s primarily glacier-fed rivers. Alterations
in the flows of the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra rivers could significantly impact
irrigation, affecting the amount of food that can be produced in their basins as well as the
livelihoods of millions of people
 Sea level rise: With India close to the equator, the sub-continent would see much higher rises
in sea levels than higher latitudes. Sea-level rise and storm surges would lead to saltwater
intrusion in the coastal areas, impacting agriculture, degrading groundwater quality,
contaminating drinking water, and possibly causing a rise in diarrhea cases and cholera
outbreaks, as the cholera bacterium survives longer in saline water. Kolkata and Mumbai,
both densely populated cities, are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of sea-level rise,
tropical cyclones, and riverine flooding.
 Apart from this food and energy security are also major concerns. Water scarcity, health
hazards among the masses, and migration and political conflicts are expected to grow.

India’s response to Climate Change

 National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC): outlines existing and future policies
and programs addressing climate mitigation and adaptation. The Action Plan identifies eight
core “national missions” running through to 2017: Solar Energy; Enhanced Energy
Efficiency; Sustainable Habitat; Water; Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem; Green India;
Sustainable Agriculture; and Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change. Most of these
missions have strong adaptation imperatives.
 National Clean Energy Fund: The Government of India created the National Clean Energy
Fund (NCEF) in 2010 for financing and promoting clean energy initiatives and funding
research in the area of clean energy in the country. The corpus of the fund is built by levying a
cess of INR 50 (subsequently increased to INR 100 in 2014) per tonne of coal produced
domestically or imported.
  Paris Agreement: Under the Paris Agreement, India has made three commitments. India’s
greenhouse gas emission intensity of its GDP will be reduced by 33-35% below 2005 levels
by 2030. Alongside, 40% of India’s power capacity would be based on non-fossil fuel
sources. At the same time, India will create an additional ‘carbon sink’ of 2.5 to 3 billion
tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.
 International Solar Alliance: ISA was launched at the United Nations Climate Change
Conference in Paris on 30 November 2015 by India and France, in the presence of Mr. Ban Ki
Moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations.
 Bharat Stage (BS) Emission Norms: Emissions from vehicles are one of the top contributors
to air pollution, which led the government at the time to introduce the BS 2000 (Bharat Stage
1) vehicle emission norms from April 2000, followed by BS-II in 2005. BS-III was
implemented nationwide in 2010. However, in 2016, the government decided to meet the
global best practices and leapfrog to BS-VI norms by skipping BS V altogether.

Global Warming / Green House Effect / Atmospheric Effect / CO2 Problem

Introduction
The Global warming is a process by which thermal radiation from a planetary surface is
absorbed by atmospheric greenhouse gases, and is re-radiated in all directions. Since part of this re-
radiation is back towards the surface, energy is transferred to the surface and the lower atmosphere.
As a result, the temperature there is higher than it would be if direct heating by solar radiation were
the only warming mechanism.
Definitions
The raise of earth’s surface temperature due to intense green house effect is called global
warming.
(or)
The green house effect may be defined as “The progressive warming up of the earth’s surface
due to blanketing effect of man-made CO2 in the atmosphere”.
(or)
Green house effect is ‘The phenomenon due to which the earth retains heat’.
Global warming / Greenhouse gases
The four major greenhouse gases, which cause adverse effects, are:
nitrous oxide,
carbon dioxide, 9–26%
methane, 4–9%
chlorofluorocarbon, 3–7%
The major non-gas contributor to the Earth's greenhouse effect. Clouds also absorb and emit
infrared radiation and thus have an effect on radiative properties of the atmosphere.
Global warming – Causes
Global warming has a variety of causes.
One of the largest factors contributing to global warming is the general problem of
overpopulation and its many effects.

The greater numbers of people consume more items which take more energy to make, they
drive more cars, and create larger amounts of garbage. These factors all increase the global
warming problem.

Many different gases can increase the planet's temperature. The number of different products
and human activities that contribute to global warming are so numerous that finding solutions
to the problem is very difficult.

Using a refrigerator releases dangerous gases, turning on the lights requires energy from a
power plant, and driving to work causes gas emissions from the car. Countless other normal
activities lead to global warming.

Though having an atmosphere is important, the greenhouse effect may be making it

excessively thick. The levels of gases covering the Earth have soared with industrialization,
and developed countries now produce about 75% of greenhouse gases.

The most common gas is carbon dioxide, accounting for about 50% of all greenhouse
gases. Other gases, including methane, CFCs, nitrogen oxides, and ozone, also contribute to
forming the greenhouse layer.
Because these gases are produced by so many important and common processes, limiting their
production to prevent global warming will be difficult. As population increases and Third
World countries begin to use greater amounts of energy, the problem may expand rather than
contract.
Over the last century, the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Has increase by 25%, the
level of nitrous oxide by 19% and the level of methane by 100%. These 3 major global
warming gases are released into the atm. by burning of fossil fuels, industrialization, mining,
deforestation, exhaust from increasing automobiles and other anthropogenic activities.

Effects / Consequences

Increase evaporation of surface water – influence climate change

Leads to declining biodiversity
Melting of mountain glaciers and polar ice, which cause rise in sea level
Change the climate and rainfall – reduction in food production
The biological productivity of ocean also decreased due to warming of earth’s surface
With more carbon dioxide in the air, the plants will grow bigger with increase in yield and
resulting in the soils getting poor quality.
Drought and floods will become more common, while rising temperature will increase
domestic water demand.
The waterborne diseases, infections diseases carried by mosquitoes and other diseases are
increases due to floods and droughts.
If proper precautions are not taken, the concentration of green house gases may double in the
atmosphere with in next 50 years, and will makes the average global temp. is more than 50°C.
Measures to check Global warming
1. CO2 emission can be cut by reducing the use of fossil fuels.
2. Implement energy conservation measures.
3. Utilize renewable resources such as wind, solar and hydropower.
4. Plant more plants.
5. Shift from coal to natural gas.
6. Adopt sustainable agriculture.
7. Stabilize population growth.
8. Efficiently remove CO2 from smoke stacks.
9. Remove atmospheric CO2 by utilizing photosynthetic algae.

Control measures
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is an arrangement under the Kyoto protocol
allowing industrialized countries with a green house gas reduction commitment to invest
in projects that reduce emissions in developing countries. It aims to develop sustainable
development in all countries by reducing CO2 and HFC emissions.
 The CDM allows net green house gas emissions to be reduced at a much lower global cost
by financing emissions reduction projects in developing countries, where costs are lower
than in industrialized countries.

OZONE DEPLETION
Introduction
Ozone is a bluish gas that is formed by three atoms of oxygen. Ozone (O3) is found
throughout the atmosphere, but most highly concentrated in the stratosphere at a height of about 27 to
30 km, where it is known as the “Ozone layer”.
Destruction of the stratospheric ozone layer which shields the earth from ultraviolet radiation
harmful to life. This destruction of ozone is caused by the breakdown of certain chlorine and/or
bromine containing compounds (chlorofluorocarbons or halons), which break down when they reach
the stratosphere and then catalytically destroy ozone molecules. This is known as ozone depletion.

Importance of ozone layer

Without the ozone layer, life on the earth’s
surface would not be possible. It protects us from the
damaging ultraviolet radiation of the sun. In particular
it filters out UV-B radiation.
Recent evidence has shown that certain parts of
the ozone layer are becoming thinner and ozone
‘holes’ have developed. The consequence of any
thinning of the ozone layer is that more UV-B
radiation reaches the earth’s surface. UV-B radiation
affects DNA molecules, causing damage to the outer
surface of plants and animals. In humans it causes skin
cancer, and eye disease.

Formation of Ozone
Ozone is formed in the stratosphere by photochemical reaction, viz.,
O2 + hυ O• + O•
The atomic oxygen rapidly reacts with molecular oxygen to form ozone.
O• + O2 + M O3 + M
where, M = third body such as nitrogen.
Ozone thus formed distributes itself in the stratosphere and absorbs harmful UV radiations.
Causes of ozone depletion
The production and emission of CFCs, chlorofluorocarbons, is by far the leading cause of
ozone depletion. CFCs came to be used in refrigerators, home insulation, plastic foam, and
throwaway food containers. Chlorofluorocarbons release chlorine which breaks ozone into oxygen.
The following reactions will then occurs,
CF2Cl2 + hυ Cl + CF2Cl
CF2Cl + O2 CF2O + ClO
Cl + O3 ClO + O2
ClO + O• Cl + O2
Each chlorine atom is capable of attacking several ozone molecules. So that a long chain
process is involved. A 1% loss of ozone results in a 2% increase in UV rays reaching the earth’s
surface.
Methyl bromide used during packaging of fruits to prevent bacterial action flows out into the
atmosphere as soon as the packing is opened. This cause heavy damage to ozone.
High altitude aircrafts and chemicals emitted by industrial plants and automobiles.

Ozone depleting substances

The ozone depleting substances essentially consists of chlorine or bromine atoms which are
extremely reactive while they are in the free state. The following gases are accumulated in the
atmosphere and are found to be instruments in ozone depletion.
Chlorofluorocarbons
Hydro chlorofluorocarbons
Bromofluorocarbons
Halogen compounds
Sulphurdioxide

Mechanism
It includes,
 Natural process
 Anthropogenic process
Natural Process:
Atmospheric oxygen absorbs ultraviolet radiation shorter than 240nm and photodissociates
into two oxygen atoms. These unite with other O2 molecules to form ozone. During the
process surplus energy of nascent O3 is often transferred to the nearby molecules as kinetic
energy which slightly raises the surrounding atmospheric temperature. It leads to depletion in
ozone.

Natural process of ozone depletion involves the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into NOx
due to solar activity. An estimate shows that level of NOx rises from 30-60°C at the end of 11
year cycle in the middle latitude of southern hemisphere. It is then transported to polar regions
of the stratosphere and depletes ozone layer through photochemical reaction.

Dynamic equilibrium existing between the production and decomposition of ozone

molecules constitutes one of the most important mechanism.

Gamma radiation used in food preservation plants, commercial UV lamps used for
sterilization, high voltage electric equipment, dermatological phototherapy equipments and
even in photocopying machines.

Ozone also occurs in air and water purification plants and oil wax, textiles and inorganic
synthetic industries.
Anthropogenic Process
The supersonic air crafts fly at ozonospheric cruising altitudes because of low air resistance
which is essential to maintain speed of the supersonic. Their exhaust gases directly provide water
vapours and NOx into stratosphere, it leads to ozone depletion.
Nuclear explosions produce large quantities of NOx which directly enter into stratosphere. It
causes depletion in ozone.
NO + O3 → NO2 + O2
NO2 + O3 → NO3 + O2
H2O hυ OH + H
H + O3 → OH + O2
Chlorofluorocarbons, is by far the leading cause of ozone depletion. CFCs came to be used in
refrigerators, home insulation, plastic foam, and throwaway food containers. Chlorofluorocarbons
release chlorine which breaks ozone into oxygen.
Cl• + O3 → Cl-O + O2
Cl-O + O• → Cl + O2

Effect / Impact / Consequences

As the ozone layer gets deteriorated the harmful UV rays will reach the ground and cause various
adverse effects.
Effect on human health
The UV rays damage genetic material in the skin cells which cause skin cancer.

For the fair skinned people life -long exposure to the high level radiation of UV rays increases
the risk of non melanine skin cancer.

Prolonged human exposure to UV rays may leads to slow blindness called actinic keratitis.
Enhanced level of UV ray could lead to more people suffering from cataracts.

Human exposure to UV rays can suppress the immune responses in humans and animals. It
also reduces human resistivity leading to a number of diseases such as cancer, allergies and
smoke other infectious diseases.

Effect on Aquatic Systems

UV rays directly affect the aquatic forms such as phytoplankton, fish, larval crabs.
The phytoplankton consumes large amount of CO2.
Decrease in population of phytoplankton could have more amount of CO2 in the atmosphere
which contributes to the global warming.

Effect on Materials
Degradation of paints, plastics and other polymeric material will result in economic loss
due to effects of UV radiation.

Effects on Climate
The ozone depleting chemicals can contribute to the global warming i.e., increasing the
average temperature of the earth’s surface.

Measurement of Ozone (Dobson unit)

The amount of atmospheric ozone is measured by ‘Dobson spectrometer’ and is expressed in
Dobson units (DU).1 DU is equivalent to a 0.01 mm thickness of pure ozone at the density it posses if
it is brought to the ground level (1 atm) pressure.
 In temperate latitude its concentration is 350 DU.
 In tropics its concentration is 250 DU.
 In subpolar region its concentration is 450 DU.
Control Measures
 Replacing CFCs by other materials which are less damaging.
 Use of gases such as methyl bromide which is a crop fumigant also be controlled.
 Encourage growth of plants that produce oxygen, discourage deforestation
 Manufacturing and using of ozone depleting chemicals should be stopped.

Acid rain / Acid Deposition / Acid Precipitation

Introduction
The term acid rain was first used by Robert Angus in 1872. “Literally it means the presence of
excessive acids in rain waters”. Acid rain is infact cocktail of mainly H2SO4 and HNO3 where the
ratio of these two may vary depending upon the relative quantities of oxides of sulphur and nitrogen
emitted. H2SO4 is the major contributor (60-70%) to acid precipitation, HNO3 ranks second (30-40%)
and HCl third.
"Acid rain" is a popular term referring to the deposition of wet (rain, snow, sleet, fog,
cloudwater, and dew) and dry (acidifying particles and gases) acidic components. A more accurate
term is “acid deposition”.

Theory of acid rain

Normally while rain travels through the air, it dissolves floating chemicals and washes down
particles that are suspended in air. At the start of its journey raindrops are neutral (pH =7). In clean
air, rain picks up materials that occur naturally such as dust, pollen, some CO2 and other chemicals
produced by lightening or volcanic activities. These substances make rain slightly acidic (pH = 6),
which is not dangerous. However, when rain falls through polluted air, it comes across chemicals
such as gaseous oxides of sulphur (SOx), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), mists of acids such as
hydrochloric and phosphoric acid, released from automobile exhausts industrial plants, electric power
plants etc.
These substances dissolve in falling rain making it more acidic than normal with pH range
between 5.6 -3.5. In some case, it's pH gets lowered to the extent of 2. This leads to acid rain. The
term acid rain is used here to describe all types of precipitation, namely, rain, snow, fog and dew
more acidic than normal.
In the natural processes of volcanic eruptions, forest fires and bacterial decomposition of
organic oxides of sulphur and nitrogen, production and reductions of gases naturally tend to an
equilibrium. Power plants, smelting plants, industrial plants, burning of coal and automobile
exhausts, release additional sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and acidic soot, causing pollution.
Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide interact with water vapours in presence of sunlight to form
sulphuric acid and nitric acid mist.

The formed sulphuric acid and nitric acid remain as vapour at high temperatures. These begin
to condense as the temperature falls and mix with rain or snow, on the way down to the Earth and
make rain sufficiently acidic.
Effects of acid rain
SOx, NOx mixed with water as acid rain causes plant, animal and material damage. Some of
the significant ill effects of acid rain are:

Agriculture / Vegetation
 Acid rain is very harmful to agriculture, plants, and animals. It washes away all nutrients
which are required for the growth and survival of plants.
 Acid rain affects agriculture by the way how it alters the composition of the soil.
 In addition, it makes the soil acidic and aids the release of aluminium and copper ions which
are harmful to plants.

Aquatic life
When pH is less than 4.5, calcium metabolism in fresh water fish will be affected, leading to
poor health. As a result, diversity and population of some fish species will be reduced.

Material damage
 Metallic surfaces exposed to acid rain are easily corroded.
 Textile fabrics, paper and leather products lose their material strength or disintegrate by acid
rain.
 Acid rain also causes the corrosion of water pipes. Which further results in leaching of
heavy metals such as iron, lead and copper into drinking water.
 Building materials such as limestone, marble, dolomite, mortar and slate are weakened on
reaction with acid rains because of the formation of soluble compounds.
 Thus, acid rain is dangerous for historical monuments.
Real-Life Examples
 Taj Mahal, one of the 7 wonders of the world, is largely affected by acid rain. The city
of Agra has many industries which emit the oxides of sulphur and nitrogen in the
atmosphere. People continue to use low-quality coal and firewood as a domestic fuel,
adding to this problem. Acid rain has the following reaction with the marble (calcium
carbonate):

 Statue of Liberty which is made of copper has also been damaged by the cumulative
action of acid rain & oxidation for over 30 years and is, therefore, becoming green.

Humans
 Skin problem
 Skin cancer
 Respiratory issues

Prevention of Acid Rain

 The only precaution that we can take against acid rain is having a check at the emission of
oxides of nitrogen and sulphur.
 We have so far seen the details of acid rain and its harmful effect on animals, plants and the
monuments.
 Being responsible citizens, one should be aware of the harmful effects they cause and of the
industries which give out nitrogen and sulphur compound wastes unethically.
ENVIRONMENT (PROTECTION) ACT, 1986 (EPA)
 The Environment (Protection) Act was enacted in the year 1986.
 It was enacted with the main objective to provide the protection and improvement of the
environment and for matters connected therewith.
 India’s original Constitution did not contain any provision for the protection of the natural
environment. However, the Fundamental Duties, which were added by the 42nd Amendment
to the Constitution, prescribed the protection of the environment including forests, lakes,
rivers and wildlife as a duty of the citizens of the country.
 This amendment also added new Directive Principles of State Policy, one of which was
Article 48A, which directed the State to protect and improve the environment and to
safeguard forests and wildlife.
 These developments were a result of the United Nations Conference on Human Environment,
held in Stockholm in 1972. First, the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 was enacted. Then, the
Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 was passed, followed by the Air
(Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981. Then in 1986, the EPA was passed by the
Parliament, in the wake of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, which occurred on Dec 2, 1984

Aims and Objectives of the EPA

The chief aims and objectives of the Environment Protection Act, 1986 are listed below.
1. Implementing the decisions made at the United Nations Conference on Human Environment
held in Stockholm.
2. Creation of a government authority to regulate industry that can issue direct orders including
closure orders.
3. Coordinating activities of different agencies that are operating under the existing laws.
4. Enacting regular laws for the protection of the environment.
5. Imposing punishments and penalties on those who endanger the environment, safety and
health. For each failure or contravention, the punishment includes a prison term of up to five
years or a fine of up to Rs. 1 lakh, or both. This can also be extended for up to seven years in
cases.
6. Engaging in the sustainable development of the environment.
7. Attaining protection of the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Main Provisions of Environment Protection Act

The EPA empowers the Centre to “take all such measures as it deems necessary” in the domain of
environmental protection.
 Under the law, it can coordinate and execute nationwide programmes and plans to further
environmental protection.
 It can mandate environmental quality standards, particularly those concerning the emission or
discharge of environmental pollutants.
 This law can impose restrictions on the location of industries.
 The law gives the government the power of entry for examination, testing of equipment and
other purposes and power to analyse the sample of air, water, soil or any other substance from
any place.
 The EPA explicitly bars the discharge of environmental pollutants in excess of prescribed
regulatory standards.
 There is also in place a specific provision for handling hazardous substances, which is
prohibited unless in compliance with regulatory requirements.
 The Act empowers any person, apart from authorised government officers, to file a complaint
in a court regarding any contravention of the provisions of the Act.
WILDLIFE PROTECTION ACT, 1972
 The Indian Parliament enacted the Wildlife (Protection) Act in 1972, which provides for the
safeguard and protection of the wildlife (flora and fauna) in the country.
 This Act provides for the protection of the country’s wild animals, birds, and plant species, in
order to ensure environmental and ecological security. Among other things, the Act lays down
restrictions on hunting many animal species. The Act was last amended in the year 2006. An
Amendment bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 2013 and referred to a Standing
Committee, but it was withdrawn in 2015.

Constitutional Provisions for the Wildlife Act

 Article 48A of the Constitution of India directs the State to protect and improve the
environment and safeguard wildlife and forests. This article was added to the Constitution by
the 42nd Amendment in 1976.
 Article 51A imposes certain fundamental duties for the people of India. One of them is to
protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife and
to have compassion for living creatures.

History of wildlife protection legislation in India

 The first such law was passed by the British Indian Government in 1887 called the Wild Birds
Protection Act, 1887. The law sought to prohibit the possession and sale of specified wild
birds that were either killed or captured during a breeding session.
 A second law was enacted in 1912 called the Wild Birds and Animals Protection Act. This
was amended in 1935 when the Wild Birds and Animals Protection (Amendment) Act 1935
was passed.
 During the British Raj, wildlife protection was not accorded a priority. It was only in 1960
that the issue of protection of wildlife and the prevention of certain species from becoming
extinct came into the fore.

Need for the Wildlife Protection Act

Wildlife is a part of ‘forests’ and this was a state subject until the Parliament passed this law in 1972.
Now it is Concurrent List. Reasons for a nationwide law in the domain of environment particularly
wildlife include the following:
1. India is a treasure-trove of varied flora and fauna. Many species were seeing a rapid decline in
numbers. For instance, it was mentioned by Edward Pritchard Gee (A naturalist), that at the
turn of the 20th century, India was home to close to 40000 tigers. But, a census in 1972
showed this number drastically reduced to about 1827.
2. A drastic decrease in the flora and fauna can cause ecological imbalance, which affects many
aspects of climate and the ecosystem.
3. The most recent Act passed during the British era in this regard was the Wild Birds and
Animals Protection, 1935. This needed to be upgraded as the punishments awarded to
poachers and traders of wildlife products were disproportionate to the huge financial benefits
that accrue to them.
4. There were only five national parks in India prior to the enactment of this Act.

Salient Features of Wildlife Protection Act

This Act provides for the protection of a listed species of animals, birds, and plants, and also for the
establishment of a network of ecologically-important protected areas in the country.
 The Act provides for the formation of wildlife advisory boards, wildlife wardens, specifies
their powers and duties, etc.
  It helped India become a party to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
o CITES is a multilateral treaty with the objective of protecting endangered animals and
plants.
o It is also known as the Washington Convention and was adopted as a result of a
meeting of IUCN members.
 For the first time, a comprehensive list of the endangered wildlife of the country was
prepared.
 The Act prohibited the hunting of endangered species.
 Scheduled animals are prohibited from being traded as per the Act’s provisions.
 The Act provides for licenses for the sale, transfer, and possession of some wildlife species.
 It provides for the establishment of wildlife sanctuaries, national parks, etc.
 Its provisions paved the way for the formation of the Central Zoo Authority. This is the
central body responsible for the oversight of zoos in India. It was established in 1992.
 The Act created six schedules which gave varying degrees of protection to classes of flora
and fauna.
o Schedule I and Schedule II (Part II) get absolute protection, and offences under these
schedules attract the maximum penalties.
o The schedules also include species that may be hunted.
 The National Board for Wildlife was constituted as a statutory organization under the
provisions of this Act.
o This is an advisory board that offers advice to the central government on issues of
wildlife conservation in India.
o It is also the apex body to review and approve all matters related to wildlife, projects
of national parks, sanctuaries, etc.
o The chief function of the Board is to promote the conservation and development of
wildlife and forests.
o It is chaired by the Prime Minister.
 The Act also provided for the establishment of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
o It is a statutory body of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change with
an overall supervisory and coordination part, performing capacities as given in the
Act.
o Its mandate is to strengthen tiger conservation in India.
o It gives statutory authority to Project Tiger which was launched in 1973 and has put
the endangered tiger on a guaranteed path of revival by protecting it from extinction.

Protected Areas under the Wildlife Protection Act

There are five types of protected areas as provided under the Act. They are described below.
1. Sanctuaries: “Sanctuary is a place of refuge where injured, abandoned, and abused wildlife is
allowed to live in peace in their natural environment without any human intervention.”
1. They are naturally-occurring areas where endangered species are protected from poaching,
hunting, and predation.
2. Here, animals are not bred for commercial exploitation.
3. The species are protected from any sort of disturbance.
4. Animals are not allowed to be captured or killed inside the sanctuaries.
5. A wildlife sanctuary is declared by the State government by a Notification. Boundaries can be
altered by a Resolution of the State Legislature.
 6. Human activities such as timber harvesting, collecting minor forest products, and private
ownership rights are permitted as long as they do not interfere with the animals’ well-
being. Limited human activity is permitted.
7. They are open to the general public. But people are not allowed unescorted. There are
restrictions as to who can enter and/or reside within the limits of the sanctuary. Only public
servants (and his/her family), persons who own immovable property inside, etc. are allowed.
People using the highways which pass through sanctuaries are also allowed inside.
8. Boundaries of sanctuaries are not generally fixed and defined.
9. Biologists and researchers are permitted inside so that they can study the area and its
inhabitants.
10. The Chief Wildlife Warden (who is the authority to control, manage and maintain all
sanctuaries) may grant permission to persons for entry or residence in the sanctuary for the
study of wildlife, scientific research, photography, the transaction of any lawful business with
persons residing inside, and tourism.
11. Sanctuaries can be upgraded to the status of a ‘National Park’.
12. Examples: Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary (Rann of Kutch, Gujarat); Vedanthangal Bird
Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu (oldest bird sanctuary in India); Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary
(Karnataka).

2. National Parks: “National Parks are the areas that are set by the government to conserve the
natural environment.”
1. A national park has more restrictions as compared to a wildlife sanctuary.
2. National parks can be declared by the State government by Notification. No
alteration of the boundaries of a national park shall be made except on a
resolution passed by the State Legislature.
3. The main objective of a national park is to protect the natural environment of
the area and biodiversity conservation.
4. The landscape, fauna, and flora are present in their natural state in national
parks.
5. Their boundaries are fixed and defined.
6. Here, no human activity is allowed.
7. Grazing of livestock and private tenurial rights are not permitted here.
8. Species mentioned in the Schedules of the Wildlife Act are not allowed to be
hunted or captured.
9. No person shall destroy, remove, or exploit any wildlife from a National Park
or destroy or damage the habitat of any wild animal or deprive any wild animal
of its habitat within a national park.
10. They cannot be downgraded to the status of a ‘sanctuary’.
11. Examples: Bandipur National Park in Karnataka; Hemis National Park in
Jammu & Kashmir; Kaziranga National Park in Assam.

3. Conservation Reserves: The State government may declare an area (particularly those adjacent to
sanctuaries or parks) as conservation reserves after consulting with local communities.

4. Community Reserves: The State government may declare any private or community land as a
community reserve after consultation with the local community or an individual who has volunteered
to conserve the wildlife.
5. Tiger Reserves: These areas are reserved for the protection and conservation of tigers in India.
They are declared on the recommendations of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

The amended Wildlife Act doesn’t allow any commercial exploitation of forest produce in both
wildlife sanctuaries and national parks, and local communities are allowed to collect forest
produce only for their bona fide requirements.

Schedules of the Wildlife Protection Act

There are six schedules provided in the Wildlife Protection Act. They are discussed in the table
below.
Schedule I Schedule II
 This Schedule covers endangered species.  Animals under this list are also
 These species need rigorous protection and accorded high protection.
therefore, the harshest penalties for violation  Their trade is prohibited.
of the law are under this Schedule.  They cannot be hunted except
 Species under this Schedule are prohibited to under threat to human life.
be hunted throughout India, except under  Examples: Kohinoor (insect),
threat to human life. Assamese Macaque, Bengal
 Absolute protection is accorded to species on Hanuman langur, Large Indian
this list. Civet, Indian Fox, Larger Kashmir
 The Trade of these animals is prohibited. Flying Squirrel, Kashmir Fox, etc.
 Examples: tiger, blackbuck, Himalayan
Brown Bear, Brow-Antlered Deer, Blue
whale, Common Dolphin, Cheetah, Clouded
Leopard, hornbills, Indian Gazelle, etc.

Schedule III & IV Schedule V

 This list is for species that are not  This schedule contains animals
endangered. that can be hunted.
 This includes protected species but the  Examples: mice, rat, common
penalty for any violation is less compared to crow, fruit bats, etc.
the first two schedules.
 Examples: hyena, Himalayan rat, porcupine,
flying fox, Malabar tree toad, etc.

Schedule VI
 This list contains plants that are forbidden from cultivation.
 Examples: pitcher plant, blue vanda, red vanda, kuth, etc.

FOREST CONSERVATION ACT, 1980

 The Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980 (FCA, 1980) is an act by the Parliament of India
which ensures conservation of forest and its resources.
 It was enacted by the Parliament of India in order to control the ongoing deforestation of the
forests of India. It came into force on October 25, 1980 containing five sections.
 Amid news reports mentioning future amendments to the FCA 1980 by the Environment
Ministry, the act and its provisions become important from the current affairs perspective.
Need for Forest Conservation Act, 1980
 Forests are an important resource that nature can bestow upon mankind. Therefore, it is the
duty of every citizen to preserve the ecosystems of forests. But due to rapid deforestation, the
cycle of nature is itself being disrupted. Therefore, the need to bring about a law to ensure the
preservation of forest was needed.
 One of the first legal drafts to protect forest tracts was the Indian Forest Act, 1865 replaced by
a 1927 version of the same act. However, it was more geared towards protecting the
commercial interests of the British Empire in India.
 The act gave authority to the British to restrict tribal activities by levying taxes on timber and
forest services. In other words, it mainly regulated the cutting of timber and flow of raw
materials rather than protecting forests.
 Upon independence, the President of India enforced the Forest (Conservation) Ordinance in
1980 which was later repealed by virtue of Section 5 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
Under the 1980 Act, the restriction was made on the use of the forests for non-forest purposes.

Objectives of the Forest Conservation Act 1980

The aim of the Forest is to preserve the forest ecosystem of India by fulfilling the following
objectives:
1. Protect the forest along with its flora, fauna and other diverse ecological components while
preserving the integrity and territory of the forests.
2. Arrest the loss of forest biodiversity
3. Prevent forest lands being converted into agricultural, grazing or for any other commercial
purposes and intentions.

Features of the Forest Conservation Act 1980

The Forest Conservation Act of 1980 come with the following features:
1. The Act restricts the state government and other authorities to take decisions first without
permission from the central government.
2. The Forest Conservation Act gives complete authority to the Central government to carry out
the objectives of the act.
3. The Act levies penalties in case of violations of the provisions of FCA.
4. The Forest Conservation Act will have an advisory committee which will help the Central
government with regard to forest conservation.

Important Sections of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980

Section 1: Title and scope
The law applies to the whole of India except for Jammu and Kashmir. However, when Article
370 was removed, it meant all laws at the central level became applicable. But only 37 laws apply to
Jammu and Kashmir at the moment and the Forest Conservation Act of 1980 is not one of them
Section 2: Restriction of forests being used for non-forest purposes.
The section lists restrictions where state authorities cannot make laws regarding forest without the
permissions of the Central Government. The emphasis is on ‘non forest purposes’ which means that
clearing forest land for the planting of:
1. Tea
2. Coffee
3. Spices
4. Rubber
5. Palms
 6. Oil-bearing
7. Medicinal plants
Section 3: Advisory committee
As per Section 3 of this Act, the Central government has the power to constitute an advisory
committee to advice on matters related to advising the central government on the preservation of
forests

Amendments to the Forest Conservation Act, 1980

In order to balance economic and ecological concerns regarding the Forest Conservation Act, 1980
several amendments were proposed by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change in March 2021. Some amendments were as follows:
1.The proposed new ‘section 1A’ created provision which exempts survey and exploration for
underground oil and natural gas. In other words, such activities will no longer be classified as a ‘non-
forest activity’ and will not require permission from the government,
However, there will be certain conditions laid by the Central Government to carry out such activities,
one of which being, survey and drilling activities will not be carried out within the proximity of
wildlife sanctuaries.
2. Land acquired for railway networks will not be applicable to FCA and be exempt. Of course,
certain guidelines will be laid down by the Central government, which will include planting trees to
compensate for the loss of forest lands.
3. Section 2 of the FCA requires government approval for leasing forest lands not owned by the
central government for any commercial purposes to private entities.
This clause has been deleted in the proposed amendment. This will enable state governments to lease
forest lands without the Central government’s approval.
4. A new explanation to Section 2 proposes to exempt plantation of native species of palm and oil-
bearing trees from the definition of “non-forest purpose”.
The government will only impose conditions for compensatory afforestation and payment of other
levies and compensations.
5. The proposed amendments to FCA add to the list of non-forestry purposes activities such as
building checkpoints, fence boundary, and communication infrastructure.
It may also add ecotourism facilities approved under the Forest Working Plan or Working Scheme
approved by the central government.

Montreal Protocol
Montreal Protocol Montreal Protocol is related to the regulation of
Related to ozone-depleting substances.

Montreal Protocol  Signed in 1987

Year  Came into force in 1989
 By the late 1970s, scientists were able to prove that chemical substances that were used in air
conditioners, refrigerators, and aerosol cans were causing damage to the ozone layer. In 1985,
a huge hole was discovered in the ozone layer over Antarctica. This hole allowed hazardous
levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation to reach the earth’s surface.
 The Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer was signed in 1985 under
which UN member countries recognized the importance of curbing damage to the ozone
layer. As per the Convention’s provisions, countries agreed to adopt the Montreal Protocol to
further the goals of the Vienna Convention.
What is the Ozone Layer?
1. It is a layer in the earth’s stratosphere that contains high levels of ozone.
2. This layer protects the earth from the Sun’s harmful UV radiation. It absorbs 97 – 99% of the
UV radiation from the Sun.
3. In the absence of the ozone layer, millions of people would be affected by skin diseases
including cancer and weakened immune systems.
4. UV radiation would also affect the environment adversely leading to decreased productivity.
5. Fauna on earth is also adversely affected by ozone layer depletion.
Ozone Layer Depletion
1. This refers to the thinning of the protective ozone layer in the atmosphere.
2. This happens when certain chemicals come into contact with ozone and destroy it.
3. Chemical compounds that cause ozone layer depletion are called Ozone Depleting
Substances (ODSs).
4. Examples of ODSs are chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs),
carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform, hydrobromofluorocarbons, halons, etc.
5. Chlorofluorocarbons are the most abundant ODSs.
6. The indiscriminate use of these chemicals causes ozone layer depletion.
7. These ODSs are also powerful greenhouse gases (GHGs) and have a long life as well.
8. There are a few natural causes also which cause ozone depletion such as volcanic eruptions,
sunspots, and stratospheric winds. However, these do not cause more than 1 – 2% of the
ozone depletion.

Montreal Protocol – Important Points

The Protocol was signed in 1987 and entered into force in January 1989. The protocol gives
provisions to reduce the production and consumption of ODSs to protect the ozone layer.
1. It phases down the use of ODSs in a stepwise, time-bound manner.
2. It gives different timetables for developing and developed countries.
3. All member parties have specific responsibilities related to the phasing out of various groups
of ozone-depleting substances, controlling ODS trade, reporting of data annually, controlling
export and import of ODs, etc.
4. Developing and developed countries have equal but differentiated responsibilities.
5. However, both groups of nations have time-bound, binding, and measurable commitments
under the protocol, making it effective.
6. Under the protocol, there is a provision for it to be amended and adjusted according to the
new scientific, economic, and technological advancements made.
7. The Protocol has undergone nine amendments or revisions.
8. The governance body for the protocol is the Meeting of the Parties. Technical support is given
by the Open-ended Working Group. Both meet once every year.
9. The Parties are aided by the Ozone Secretariat, which is based at the headquarters of the UN
Environment Programme (UNEP) at Nairobi.
10. It has been ratified by 197 Parties (196 member states of the UN plus the EU) making it the
first United Nations treaty to be ratified by every country in the world.
11. The Montreal Protocol’s provisions relate to the following:
o Article 2: Control measures
o Article 3: Calculation of control levels
o Article 4: Control of trade with non-Parties
o Article 5: Special situation of developing countries
o Article 7: Reporting of data
o Article 8: Non-compliance
 o Article 10: Technical assistance
o And, other topics
 The ODSs regulated by the Protocol are listed in:
o Annex A: CFCs, halons
o Annex B: other fully halogenated CFCs, carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform
o Annex C: HCFCs
o Annex E: Methyl bromide
o Annex F: HFCs
 Multilateral Fund: The Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol
was set up in 1991 to help developing countries to comply with the provision of the Protocol.
This is under Article 10 mentioned above.
o It provides financial and technical assistance to developing member countries whose
yearly per capita consumption and production of ODSs is less than 0.3 kg.
o The activities of the Fund are implemented by four bodies:
 UNEP
 UN Development Programme (UNDP)
 UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO)
 World Bank

Montreal Protocol – Successes

1. With universal ratification and a time-bound binding framework, the Montreal Protocol has
been largely successful in setting out to achieving its mission of reversing the damage done to
the ozone layer.
2. It has been considered the most successful international environmental action taken by
countries.
3. The Protocol has been successful in levelling off or decreasing the atmospheric concentrations
of the most important chlorofluorocarbons and related chlorinated hydrocarbons.
4. Although halon concentrations have gone up, their rate of increase has come down, and their
concentration is expected to decline by 2020.
5. The Protocol has successfully sent clear signals to the global market.
6. The full implementation of the Montreal Protocol is expected to help in the avoidance of over
280 million skin cancer incidents, almost 1.6 million deaths due to skin cancer, and millions
of cases of cataracts.
7. With the Protocol, the ozone layer is expected to recover by the year 2050.
8. Parties to the Protocol have been able to phase out 98% of ODSs compared to levels in 1990.
9. The Protocol is also helping fight climate change because most of the ODSs are also
greenhouse gases.
10. It is estimated that from 1990 to 2010, the protocol has helped reduce greenhouse gas
emissions by the equivalent of 135 gigatons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of 11 gigatons a
year.
11. The Kigali Amendment, an amendment to the Protocol, has helped reduce HFC emission and
decrease global temperature rise.

India and the Montreal Protocol

India became a signatory to the Montreal Protocol in 1992.
1. India is an Article 5 country and is entitled to assistance from the Multilateral Fund in its
efforts to phase out ODSs and switch over to non-ODS technologies.
 2. India mainly manufactured and utilized 7 of the 20 substances controlled under the Protocol.
These are CFC-11, CFC113, CFC-12, Halon-1301, Halon-1211, Carbon tetrachloride, Methyl
Bromide and Methyl Chloroform.
3. In India, the implementation of the Montreal Protocol comes within the ambit of the Ministry
of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change.
4. The Ministry has established an Ozone Cell to implement the Protocol.
5. As per the National Strategy for ODS Phaseout, the Ministry has notified the Ozone Depleting
Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules 2000.
o Rules prohibit the use of CFCs in manufacturing various products.
o They provide for the mandatory registration of ODS producers, sellers, importers, and
stockists.

Kyoto Protocol
 The Kyoto Protocol came into effect on 16 February 2005. This international treaty seeks to
implement the objectives of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC) to combat global warming by decreasing greenhouse gas concentrations
in the atmosphere.
The major greenhouse gases that are addressed are :
 Carbon dioxide (CO2)
 Methane (CH4)
 Nitrous oxide (N2O)
 Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
 Perfluorocarbons (PFCs)
 Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)
 In December 2012, after the first commitment period of the Protocol ended, participating
countries in the Kyoto Protocol met in Doha, Qatar to adopt an amendment to the original
Kyoto agreement. This was called the Doha Amendment which added new emission-
reduction targets for the second commitment period, 2012–2020, for these countries. In 2015,
at the sustainable development summit held in Paris, all UNFCCC participants signed yet
another pact, the Paris Climate Agreement, which effectively replaced the Kyoto Protocol.

Kyoto Protocol – Salient Features

 The UNFCCC was an international agreement held in 1992 in which member countries
agreed to reduce greenhouse gas concentrations in the earth’s atmosphere in order to prevent
devastating climate change. This was, however, not binding on the members, and no specific
targets were set.
 By 1995, the countries, understanding the need for a stricter demand on greenhouse reduction,
began negotiating on a protocol that was based on the UNFCCC but would be a standing
agreement in its own.
 The Kyoto Protocol extends the UNFCCC and makes members commit to a specific reduction
target. The text of the protocol was unanimously adopted on 11 December 1997. It entered
into force in February 2005. Currently, there are 192 parties to the protocol.
 The protocol gives specific target cuts in the emission levels of greenhouse gases of member
countries and makes it binding. However, only developed countries have binding targets
based on the (accurate) premise that they have had a historically larger share in the emission
of pollutants due to the antecedence of industrialisation in those countries compared to
developing economies. This is based on common but differentiated responsibility.
 These targets are between -8% and +10% of the countries’ 1990 emission levels.
  In order to make the ‘binding targets’ more acceptable, the protocol provides flexibility in
how countries meet the targets. Countries are allowed to partially compensate for the
emissions by increasing what are called ‘sinks’, i.e., forests. This is because forests reduce
carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
 Most nations have ratified the treaty. The USA is a notable exception to this. It takes the stand
that having binding targets only for developed countries and not polluting countries like China
and India is potentially harmful for its own economy. Canada withdrew from the Kyoto
Protocol in 2012.
 The targets are for the following greenhouse gases/gas groups: carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide,
methane, sulphur hexafluoride, hydrofluorocarbons and perfluorocarbons.
 The first commitment period for the agreement was from 2008 to 2012.
 Apart from national measures, the agreement has three mechanisms that are means to achieve
the Kyoto targets:
o International Emissions Trading
o Clean Development Mechanism
o Joint Implementation
 India is a non-Annex I country. India is exempt from the treaty’s framework. The Indian
government ratified the treaty in August 2002. Since the per capita emission rates are much
smaller for developing countries compared to the developed countries, India takes the stand
that the major responsibility of reducing emissions lies with the latter.

Kyoto Protocol – Monitoring Emission

The emission monitoring process has to be carried out by various countries and a proper track record
has to be maintained.
The emission monitoring is managed by the following process:
1. Registry systems – These are meant to track the transactions carried out by the parties as per
the Kyoto mechanisms.
2. Reporting- This is an important part of the process as the respective parties have to submit
their information related to annual emission inventories as per the guidelines in the protocol.
3. Compliance system – This ensures that the commitments are met by the parties and in case of
issue relating to this.
4. Adaptation- This part of the process facilitates the development and deployment of
technologies that can help increase resilience to the impacts of climate change. There is an
adaptation fund to provide financial assistance to parties which take up adaptation projects
and programmes.

United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD)

 The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) is a United Nations treaty
that is responsible for the conservation of Biological Diversity around the world.

What is the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD)?

The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, informally known as the Biodiversity
Convention, is a multilateral treaty opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio De Janeiro in
1992. It is a key document regarding sustainable development. It comes under the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP).
 196 countries are a party to the CBD.
 India is also a party to the Convention. India ratified it in 1994.
o The Biological Diversity Act, 2002 was enacted for giving effect to the provisions of
the Convention.
 o To implement the provisions of the Act, the government established the National
Biodiversity Authority (NBA) in 2003. The NBA is a statutory body.
 The convention is legally binding on its signatories.
 The Conference of Parties (COP) is the governing body of the convention. It consists of the
governments that have ratified the treaty.
 Its Secretariat is in Montreal, Canada.
 Only two member states of the United Nations are not Parties to the CBD, namely: the USA
and the Vatican.
 In the 1992 Earth Summit, two landmark binding agreements were signed, one of them being
the UNCBD. The other one was the Convention on Climate Change.
 More than 150 countries signed the document at the Summit, and since then, over 175 nations
have ratified the agreement.

Goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity

The goals of the Convention are listed below:
1. Conservation of Biological Diversity
2. Sustainable use of the components of the Biodiversity
3. Fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the genetic resources
 The idea of CBD is to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of
biological diversity. In order to implement that, the convention does the following:
1 Asserting intrinsic value of biodiversity

2 Affirming conservation of biodiversity as a common concern of

population

3 Taking responsibility to conserve biodiversity in the State and that the

state uses this biodiversity sustainably

4 Affirming the State to put the biological resources as the Sovereign

Rights of the State.

5 Taking a precautionary approach towards conservation of biodiversity

6 Highlighting the vital role of local communities and women

7 Supporting access to technologies for developing countries and searching

for provisions for new and additional financial resources to address the
biodiversity loss in the region
 All genetic resources, species and ecosystems are covered in the agreement. Traditional
conservation efforts are linked to the economic goal of using biological resources sustainably.
A set of principles are laid out for equitable and fair sharing of the benefits that arise out of
the use of genetic resources, specifically those destined for commercial use.
 It also covers the rapidly expanding field of biotechnology through its Cartagena Protocol on
Biosafety, addressing technology development and transfer, benefit-sharing and biosafety
issues.

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