Law-ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES & DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Environmental Studies & Disaster Management
Course Code: EVS 001 Credit Units: 03
Objective: At present a great number of environment issues, have grown in size and complexity day by day,
threatening the survival of mankind on earth.The objective of the course is to familiarize students of law with
the basic concepts in environmental studies and enlighten about the importance of the protection and
conservation of the environment and control of human activities which has an adverse effect on the
environmentand to sensitize them towards the issues of environmental management and to make students
aware about disaster management and its planning and emergencies.
Unit 1: Introduction to environmental studies

Multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies; components of environment –atmosphere, hydrosphere,
lithosphere and biosphere; Scope and importance; Concept of sustainability and sustainable development.
Unit 2: Ecosystems
What is an ecosystem? Structure and function of ecosystem; Energy flow in anecosystem: food chain, food
web and ecological succession. Case studies of thefollowing ecosystems:a) Forest ecosystem (b) Grassland
ecosystem
c) Desert ecosystemd) Aquatic ecosystems (ponds, streams, lakes, rivers, oceans, estuaries)
Unit 3: Natural Resources: Renewable and Non-renewable Resources

Land Resources and land use change; Land degradation, soil erosion and desertification. Deforestation:
Causes and impacts due to mining, dam building on environment, forests, biodiversity and tribal populations.
Water: Use and over-exploitation of surface and ground water, floods, droughts, conflicts over water
(international & inter-state).Heating of earth and circulation of air; air mass formation and precipitation.
Energy resources: Renewable and non-renewable energy sources, use of alternate energy sources, growing
energy needs, case studies.
Unit 4: Biodiversity and Conservation

Levels of biological diversity :genetic, species and ecosystem diversity; Biogeography zones of India;
Biodiversity patterns and global biodiversity hot spots. India as a mega-biodiversity nation; Endangered and
endemic species of India.Threats to biodiversity: habitat loss, poaching of wildlife, man-wildlife conflicts,
biological invasions; Conservation of biodiversity: In-situ and Ex-situ conservation of biodiversity. Ecosystem
and biodiversity services: Ecological, economic, social, ethical, aesthetic and Informational value.
Unit 5: Environmental Pollution

Environmental pollution: types, causes, effects and controls; Air, water, soil, chemical and noise pollution.
Nuclear hazards and human health risks.Solid waste management: Control measures of urban and industrial
waste. Pollution case studies
Unit 6: Environmental Policies & Practices

Climate change, global warming, ozone layer depletion, acid rain and impacts on human communities and
agriculture.Environment Laws : Environment Protection Act; Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act;
Water (Prevention and control of Pollution) Act; Wildlife Protection Act; Forest Conservation Act;
International agreements; Montreal and Kyoto protocols and conservation on Biological Diversity (CBD). The
Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).Nature reserves, tribal population and rights, and human, wildlife
conflicts in Indian context.
Unit 7: Disaster Management

Bomb threat; Earthquake; Explosion; Hazardous material spill/release; Campus shooting; Terrorist incidence;
Financial emergency: (a) A sudden health emergency, (b) unexpected loss of income, (c) Death in the family
or other family emergency, (d) Rent in arrears and risk of eviction and (e) Natural disaster.
Unit 8: Human Communities and the Environment
Human population and growth: Impacts on environment, human health and welfares; Carbon foot-print;
Resettlement and rehabilitation of project affected persons; case studies.
Disaster management: floods, earthquakes, cyclones and landslides. Environmental movements: Chipko,
Silent valley, Bishnios of Rajasthan.
Environmental ethics: Role of Indian and other religions and cultures inenvironmental
conservation.Environmental communication and public awareness, case studies (e.g., CNGvehicles in Delhi).
Unit 9: Field work

• Visit to an area to document environmental assets; river/forest/flora/fauna, etc.
• Visit to a local polluted site – Urban/Rural/Industrial/Agricultural.
• Study of common plants, insects, birds and basic principles of identification.
• Study of simple ecosystems-pond, river, Delhi Ridge, etc.
Text Books:
1. Verma, SnehLata Environmental Problems: Awareness and Attitude; 2007; : Academic
Excellence Publishers & Distributors; Delhi
ReferenceBooks:
1. Saxena, Karunesh and Nityesh Bhatt (ed.) Environment Management Practices: An Indian
Outlook; 2007; Himanshu Publications, Delhi
2. Rosencranz, Armin and Shyam Divan Environmental Law and Policy in India:Cases, Materials
and Statutes 2001; Oxford University Press, new Delhi
3. Uberoi, N.K. Environmental Management; 2004; Excel Books, Delhi
4. Kumar, Mukul, MitraPrasenjitSarkar et al (eds.) Environmental Change and its Impact ; 2006;
Classique Books, Kolkata
5. Chatterjee, SanjoyEncyclopaedia of Ecology; 2006; Anmol Publications, New Delhi
6. Bhatt, S. International Environmental Law; 2007; A.P.H Publishing Corporation, New Delhi
Suggested Readings:
1. Carson, R. 2002. Silent Spring.Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
2. Gadgil, M., &Guha, R.1993. This Fissured Land: An Ecological History of India.Univ. of California Press.
3. Gleeson,B. and Low, N. (eds.) 1999. Global Ethics and Environment, London, Routledge.
4. Gleick, P.H. 1993. Water in Crisis. Pacific Institute for Studies in Dev.,Environment& Security. Stockholm
Env.Institute, Oxford Univ. Press.
5. Groom, Martha J. Gary K. Meffe, and Carl Ronald carroll. Principles of Conservation Biology.Sunderland:
Sinauer Associates, 2006.
6. Grumbine, R. Edward, and Pandit, M.K. 2013. Threats from India’s Himalaya dams. Science, 339: 36-37.
7. McCully, P.1996. Rivers no more: the environmental effects of dams(pp. 29-64). Zed Books.
8. McNeil, John R. 2000. Something New Under the Sun: An Environmental History of the Twentieth
Century.
9. Odum, E.P., Odum, h.T. & Andrews, J.1971. Fundamentals of Ecology.Philadelphia: Saunders.
10. Pepper, I.L., Gerba, C.P. &Brusseau, M.L. 2011. Environmental and Pollution Science.Academic Press.
11. Rao, M.N. &Datta, A.K. 1987. Waste Water Treatement.Oxford and IBH Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd.
12. Raven, P.H., Hassenzahl, D.M. & Berg, L.R. 2012. Environment.8th edition.John Wiley & Sons.
13. Rosencranz, A., Divan, S., & Noble, M.L. 2001. Environmental law and policy in India.Tripathi 1992.
14. Sengupta, R. 2003.Ecology and economics: An approach to sustainable development. OUP.
15. Singh, J.S., Singh, S.P. and Gupta, S.R. 2014. Ecology, Environmental Science and Conservation.S.
Chand Publishing, New Delhi.
16. Sodhi, N.S., Gibson, L. & Raven, P.H. (eds). 2013. Conservation Biology: Voices from the Tropics. John
Wiley & Sons.
17. Thapar, V. 1998. Land of the Tiger: A Natural History of the Indian Subcontinent.
18.Warren, C.E. 1971. Biology and Water Pollution Control.WB Saunders.
19.Wilson, E.O. 2006. The Creation: An appeal to save life on earth. New York: Norton.
20.World Commission on environment and Development. 1987. Our Common Future. Oxford University
Press.
21. www.nacwc.nic.in
22.www.opcw.org

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Environmental Studies & Disaster Management

Course Code: EVS 001 Credit Units: 03

Unit 1: Introduction to environmental studies

Unit 3: Natural Resources: Renewable and Non-renewable Resources

Unit 4: Biodiversity and Conservation

Unit 5: Environmental Pollution

Unit 6: Environmental Policies & Practices

Unit 7: Disaster Management

Unit 9: Field work

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