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UNIT 1 FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS OF

THE ENVIRONMENT
Structure
1 .I Introduction

1.2 Objectives

1.3 Environment
1.3.1 Meaning
I.3.2 Classification of Environment

1.4 Various Coniponents of the Environment

1.4.1 Lithosphere
1.4.2 Hydrosphere
1.4.3 Atmosphere
1.4.4 Biosphere
1.5 Ecological Hierarchy
1.6 Let Us Sum Up
I .7 Answers to Check Your Progress
1.8 Glossary

1.1 INTRODUCTION
Envil-onment and Development are inseparable. In 2004, the Nobel Peace Prize was
awarded to Wangari Maatliai, a Kenyan environmentalist who had linked the critical
issue of environment to development and peace around the world. Maathai had observed
that the environment has been exposed to many human activities that are devastating
to the environment and societies such as widespread destruction of ecosystem.
'Environment' is the surroundings in which we live; and 'development' is what we
attempt to do to improve our lot within the surroundings. One cannot think of
development without its positive as well as negative impacts on the environmtnt.
Environmental studies have therefore become an illdispensable subject for discussion
at the local and global levels. Since the environment provides life-support goods and
services with no discretion based on gender, class, caste, region or religion, the entire
society sees the common future here. This has led to increased participation of the
specialists ofdifferent subjects (such as the humanities and social sciences, engineering,
agriculture, forestry, public health, law, politics and economics) in the environmental
studies. Thus, cnvironmental studies have become an integrated subject. It has
tremendous potential to provide a communication bridge between all the subjects,
which we study at school and college levels. It not only links the natural and social
sciences together but sciences and society as well.
Despite being a self-sustaining system, the environment, which provides air, water,
food and power to us is being constantly degraded through population pressure, pollution
and poor management. The effects of human activities on the environment and its
consequences will be discussed in unit three of this block. In this'unit we shall learn
about the basic structure of our environment.
Technology and
Environmental Education 1.2 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you should be able to:
define Environment;
explain the various terms used in environmental studies;
8 explain the structure and importance of the various components of the
environment;and
8 explain the ecological hierarchy. ,

1.3 ENVIRONMENT
Every society in the world is committed to improving the understanding, protection,
and enhancement of ecological systems and human communities through better design,
planning, management, and policy making. The study ofthe environment is a field that
has crossed the boundaries oftraditional disciplines and has challenged Governments,
NGOs and individuals to look at the relationship between humans and their environment
from a variety of perspectives.

1.3.1 Meaning
The term environment comes from tlie French word "environmer" which
means 'surroundings'. Everything, which surrounds us whether, living or a non-living
is a component of our environment. It includes the air we breathe, the water we use
for our needs, the soil we cultivate, the flora and the fauna we enjoy. Broadly, it is
defined as "the sum of all external conditions affecting the life, developments and
survival of an organism". The external conditions include both physical and
biological. By physical conditions (also called physical environment) we mean non-
living attributes like air, water, soil, climate, heat, light, noise, housing, radiations, and
debris, whereas the biological factors (also called biological environment) include all
types of flora, fauna and the micro-organisms. The physical and the biological
environments are interdependent. For example, deforestation leads to decline in wildlife
population (biological environment) as well as increase in atmospheric temperature
(physical environment).
In the human environment social conditions like customs, religion, habit, and
occupation are also included since they affect tlie living conditions.

1.3.2 Classification of Environment

Broadly speaking environment is oftwo types:

a) Physical or natural environment; and

b) Cultural or social environment
Physical environment is the product of nature where there is no direct or indirect
effect of human activity. Rocks, minerals, temperature, humidity, wind, rain, and other
related non-living elements are example of physical environment.
Cultural environment is man-made like railways, population density, cultural
background of the people, the level of technological development and factors like
personal, domestic, religious, educational, means of traisport, market facilities, economic
conditions, and policies of the government.
 Fundamental Concepts
Check Your Progress of the Environment

Notes : a) Write your answcrs in the space given below.

b) Compare your answer with those given at the end of the Unit.

1) Group the followings as natural and man-made environment.

a) Wild-life b) Revolution in communication
b) Landing of man on the moon d) Solar energy
e) Timber f) Living space g) Housing
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VARIOUS COMPONENTS OF THE

ENVIRONMENT
From the definition and classification of environment, you must have understood that
environment is not a single unit but rather it is the combination ofdifferent interdependent
components. Broadly classified, the environment consists of four components, namely:
i) Lithosphere
ii) Hydrosphere
iii) Atmosphere and
iv) Biosphere
Often we are asked by children why plants grow cir don't grow in one or the other
place. They also ask us the reasons for the difference in types of plants that grow in
different places. Let us discuss the structure and function ofthe components of earth,
which will be helpful in understanding and explaining these phenomena. It will make
our understanding of the environment easier.

1.4 Lithosphere
Lithosphere is the mantle of rocks constituting the upper part of the earth. The
uppermost part of the earth is called the crust. The rocks constituting the crust are
relatively less dense. These rocks are converted to comparatively loose material called
soil through the process of weathering. The term weathering refers to disintegration
and decay of rocks under the elements of the weather such as temperature, humidity,
and rainfall. Thus the texture of soil at a particular place is largely governed by the
nature of the parent rock (rocks are made of different kinds of minerals) and the
existing climate of that area. Since these two parameters (rock and climate) are not
uniform, variations in the soil texture are observed from one place to another. For
Technology and example weathering of granite, basalt and their metamorphic rocks provide soil with
Environmental Education
considerable proportion ofquartz grains mixed with fine particles. Similarly. soils formed
by weathering of shale and slate rocks results in fine textured soils.
Lithosphere is a very important c o ~ n p o ~ ~ofe nthe
t environment because it provides soil
texture. Plants depend for their nutrients, water supply, and anchorage upon the soil.
Soil is therefore any part of the earth's crust in which plant root are anchored. Thus
soil is the most significant part ofthe lithosphere. However, soil is not merely a group
of loose mineral particles. It also has a biological system of the living organisms as
weil as some other components. Its components are divided into the following six
categories:

i) Mineral matter: Rocks are complex aggregate of minerals. Though more than
2000 types of minerals are known, almost 99% of the earth's crust is made up of
only 10- 12 types of minerals. Nearly 58% of the mass of the terrestrial rocks is
constituted by feldspars, 16% by pyroxenes, 13% by quartz and about 4% by
mica. Apart from these, calcium carbonate is also a common soil component.
The common elements found in the earth's crust and their percentage is given in
Table 1.1.
Table 1.1: Common Elements Found in the Earth Crust.
S.No. Element Percentage S.No. Element Percentage

1 Oxygen 49.25 8. Magnesium 2.1 1

2. Silicon 26.03 9. Hydrogen 0.97
3. Aluminum 7.28 s 10. Titanium 0.41
4. Iron 4.12 11 Chlorine 0.20
5. Calcium 3.18 12. Carbon 0.19
6. Sodium 2.33 13. Others 1.OO

7. Potassium
1 2.33

Soil organic matter or humus: It is carbon-based material derived from living

ii)
organisms i.e. plants, animals and micro-organism growing above and below the
ground. It consists of polysaccharides, amino sugars, nucleotides, organic sulphur
and phosphorus compounds .The productivity of soil is determined primarily by
the amount of these matters available in the soil. Higher the organic amount
higher is the productivity. Generally it col~stitutesless than 5% ofthe soil, but it
varies over a wide range. For example: peats and mucks may contain as much
as 95% organic matter. Any soil containing more than 20% organic matter is .
classified as organic.
Functions of organic matter: It provides food for micro-organisms (which
are another living constituents of the soil),'takes part in chemical reaction such as
ion exchange, governs the physical properties of soil and some times contributes
in weathering of mineral matters.
lii) Soil water: There are spaces in between the mineral particles (pore space) as
well as between aggregatesof soil. These spaces are occupied by water, which
mainly comes from dew, rain, snow, hail, irrigation etc. This water is termed as
soil water. It is a very important constituent of the soil since it is essential for the
 sustenance and growth of the plants. It is held in the soil by adhesion (attraction Fundamental Concepts
of the Environment
of water molecules to soil particle) and cohesion (attraction of water molecules
to each other). The amount of water retained by the soil depends upon the size
and shape of ihe mineral particles and the number of pore spaces between them.
Thus different types of soils (e.g. sand, silt, clay, Loam) have different water ,
holding capacity. Sand has coarse texture with large particles and can hold
water only loosely due to bigger pore spaces. The water in such soils generally
runs down rapidly reaching the deeper layers. Thus sandy soils are well drained.
Clay soils, with high proportion of colloidal fractions as humus can retain more
water. Silt like clay is able to retain more water. Loam, which is a mixture of
sand and silt and/or clay, is supposed to be best soil for plants' growth as such
soils are very fertile being rich in nutrients, have proper aeration and hold fairly
large amount of water.

iv) Soil atmosphere: It occupies the pore space between the soil particles, which
are not occupied by water. About 35% ofthe volume of a typical soil consists of
air filled pores. 'The important point to be noted in the soil atmosphere is the
percentage of oxygen and carbon dioxide. These are different from those in the
atmosphere because tlie decay of organic matter in the soil consumes oxygen
and produces carbon dioxide. As a result, the concentration of oxygen in
co~nparisonto the atmosphere decreases in the soil and carbon dioxide increases.
This process also increases the amount of carbon dioxide in ground water making
it more acidic because carbon dioxide is soluble in water and the resulting solution
is an acid called carbonic acid. So the increase of carbon dioxide causes
disintegration of the carbonate minerals particularly calcium carbonate (CaCO,)
and the metal becomes free and available as a nutrient to the plant.

v) Biological system: Apart from the above mentioned constitueiits of the soil
biological systems are also present. Each soil has a distinctive flora as well as
fauna of bacteria, fungi, algae, protozoa, molluses, anthropods etc. Biologically
the soil is "the weathered superficial layer ofthe earth's crust in which the living
organisms grow and also release the products oftheir activities, die and decay".
The role of biological system is very important as they play the role in
biogeochemical cycle, which we will discuss, in the next unit.

vi) Micronutrients and macronutrients: Dissolved salts essential to life are termed
as nutrients. These nutrients are also called biological salts. They may be divided
into two groups, the macronutrients and the micronutrients.The macronutrients
include elements and their compounds needed in relatively large quantities, for
example carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, potassium, calcium, phosphorous
and magnesium. The atmosphere and water are the source of carbon, hydrogen
and oxygen. The other essential macronutrients are obtained from the soil.
Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (NPK) are commonly added t o soil as
fertilizers.

The micronutrients include those elements and their compounds, which are necessary
for the operation of the living system but are required only in minute quantities. If
present in high quantity, pose toxic effect. At least ten micronutrients are known to be
necessary for plant production. They are iron, manganese, cobalt, zinc, molybdenum,
boron, sodium, chlorine, vanadium and cobalt. The source of these minerals is the
weathering of the rocks. Most of these micronutrients serve as components of essential
enzymes. Some of them such as chlorine, manganese, iron, zinc and vanadium take
part in photosynthesis.
Te.-hnology and Soil Profile
Elf ironm mental Education
As you know weathering of rocks is the primary stage of the soil formation. Now
suppose at a particular place the parent rock is weathering over a period of time.
There develops layer of the soil one over the other in progressive state of maturity.
Thus the composition of one layer will be different from the other layer. The vertical
arrangement ofthese layers is called soil profile, which is a very important method to
identify and describe the soil. Ageneralized and simplified soil profile has four major
divisions arrayed in descending order from the surface of the soil: 0, A, B, and C
horizons, with two sub-divisions ofA(see Fig. 1 . I).

Loose organic matter

Partially decomposed organic matter
Maximum organic matter
Klaxirarum leaching; minimum clay
organic matter

Maximum accumulation of Silicate

or oxide clays

Broken up/partially changed

parent minerals

Fig. 1.1 :A n idealized soil profile.

Their predominant characteristics are:

0 : Primarily dead organic litter. Most soil organisms are found in this layer.

A, : A layer rich in humus, consisting of partly decomposed organic material mixed

with mineral soil.

A, : A region of extensive leaching of minerals from the soil. Plant roots are
concentrated here because minerals are dissolved in water in this layer.
B : A region of little organic material whose chemical composition resembles that
of underlying rocks. Ciay minerals and oxides of aluminium and iron leached
out of the overlying A, horizon are sometimes deposited here.
C : Primarily weakly weathered material, similar to the parent rock. Calcium and
magnesium carbonates accumulate in this layer.
Thus, it is clear that as we go down the amount of organic content decreases. So
the topsoil or horizon "0" is of maximum biological activity. Hence, it is of
considerable importance for the vegetation cover and agricultural crops. So the
topsoil should be conserved. But unfortunately reckless deforestation over the years
has led to considerable loss of topsoil. Its consequences we will read as soil
pollution in Unit - 3.
 Fundamental Concepts
Check Your Progress of the Environment

Notes : a) Write your answers in the space given below.

b) your answers with those given at the end of the Unit.

2) Which are the most abundant elements and the most abundant minerals
present in the earth's crust?
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3) Which one of the following type of soil has least water holding capacity?
a) Sandy
b) Clay .,

c) Laom

4) Mention any reason why it is essential to conserve the topsoil.

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1.4.2 Hydrosphere
The hydrosphere is that part ofthe earth where water is available either in the liquid or
in the solid form. It includes the surface as well as the underground water and covers
three fourth of the total area of the earth. This is a very important part of the earth's
life support module, since it provides water and also functions as an air purifier,
temperature moderator (because latent heat of water is very high), and waste
assimilator. Apart from this its excellent solvent nature is also a great contributor for
the sustenance of life. The worldwide distribution of water is given in table 1.2 below.
Table 1.2: Worldwide distribution of water.
Source Amount in Km3

World ocean 1.3 x lo9

Fresh water lake 1.3 x 10'
,,'

Saline water and inland sea 1.0 x loS

RiversISurface water 1.3 x 10'
Soil moisture 6.7 x lo4
Ground water to depth of 4000 m 8.4 x lo6
Ice - caps and Glaciers 2.9 x 10'
Technology and It is obvious from the given data that the major portion (about 97%) of the available
Environmental Education
water is unfit for human consumption and other use because of high salinity. Of the
remaining three per cent, two per cent is locked in the polar caps and one per cent is
available as fresh water.

This distribution of water is almost fixed due to hydrological cycle. Hydrological cycle
is a process by which available water circulates between the land, ocean, and the
atmosphere by the process of evaporation, transpiration, precipitation, run off and
ground water movement. The cycle of water is shown in Fig. 1.2 below. T b s circulation
of the water of the hydrosphere is responsible for the weather are the landmass. The
annual evaporation of 3.5 x I O5 Kmf from the oceans and of 7.0 x lo4Km3from land
areas results in an annual precipitation of 3.2 x lo5 Km3 over the world oceans and
1.0 x lo5Km' over land area. The rain falling on the continents is partly absorbed by
earth surface to become ground water and partly flown into the streams, which finally
returns to the sea.

t
C
Runoff 1

Fig. 1.2: A Systematic diagram of hydrological cycle.

Only the groundwater and the surface water are in direct use of man. Both the ground
water and the surface water together constitute less than one per cent of the total
available water. Even this water is not present in its pure form. It is of different
characteristics partly due to anthropogenic activities and partly due to natural processes.
Groundwater depends upon the quality of the soil through which it passes from the
surface to deeper layers of the earth. Although in the process of infiltration through
the ground, the water gets rid of most of the micro-organisms originally present in the
surface water but during the process it dissolves a much of salts present in different
soil profiles. This enhances the salinity of the ground water and deteriorates its quality.
On the other hand the surface water contains a much of organic matter and mineral
nutrients, which was originally present at the topsoil. Apart from this, the surface
water is also contaminated with runoff from agricultural fields containing pesticides,
fertilizers and soil particles, waste chemicals from industries and sewage from cities
and rural areas leading to deterioration in the water quality called water pollution,
which we shall discuss in Unit 3 of this course.
 Fundamental Concepts
1.4.3 Atmosphere of the Environment
Atmosphere is the mixture of the gases that envelops the earth's water and landmass
up to a height of several kilometers. It is held close to the earth because of earth's
gravitational pull. The share of its major components are 78.05% nitrogen, 20.95%
oxygen, 0.94% argon and, 0.03% carbon dioxide. Hydrogen, nitrous oxides and ozone
are also present in very small amounts. This composition is consistent upto an altitude
of 90 kms. above the surface. But the water vapour Content of the atmosphere ranges
from more than 5% in the tropics to less than 0.001% in polar region.
In addition to its function as a medium, its oxygen and carbon dioxide chemically
affect all forms of life through photosynthesis and respiration. Thus it is the atmosphere,
which makes the life possible on the earth. The concentration of these gases in the
atmosphere varies with organic and industrial activities leading to the contamination of
air known as Atmospheric pollution.
Atmosphere: Based on temperature pattern, vertically earth's atmosphere can be
roughly divided in five major zones as depicted in the Fig. 1.3.

Mesosphere (50.85 km)

10 200 300 500 1000 2000

Temperature (K)

Fig. 1.3 : Temperature profile of the atmosphere

i) Troposphere: The zone immediately above the earth's surface is known as

troposphere. It extents up to a height of 20 Km above the equator and about 8
Km over the poles. The temperature in this zone decreases with height being as
low as - 60°C at its upper extreme. The troposphere contains 75% of the mass
of the atmosphere and more than nine-tenths of its water vapour, dust and smoke.
Most ofthe anthropogenic activities take place in this layer. It is the most turbulent
part of the atmosphere.

ii) Stratosphere: The layer next to troposphere is called stratosphere. It is about

30 Kms. in thickness. In this zone the temperature rises with height. The
temperature in this zone rises from - 60°C to about 0°C in its upper layers. The
rise in temperature in this region is due to the f~rmationof ozone. Because of the
very low temperature, there are no clouds, dust or water vapor. There is also no
convection hence the mixing is very slow. Because of the slow mixing in the
I
stratosphere the residence times of molecules or particles are quite long. If the
pollutants can somehow reach or are injected into the stratosphere, they pose
long-term global threat compared to their impact in the troposphere. Ozone layer
\
depletion is one of its consequences. In Unit-3, we will discuss it in detail.
15
Technology and iii) Mesosphere: Above the stratosphere is mesosphere. This region of th
Environmental Education atmosphere is characterized by cold temperature. In this region the ternperatu~,
decreases with height due to low levels of ultraviolet absorbing gases. The
mesosphere extends roughly to 80 Km and the temperature drops to about -
95°C to a level of some 80-90 Km above the earth's surface.
iv) Ionosphere or Thermosphere: It is extended up to a height of 600 km.
Absorption of solar radiation causes an increase in temperature with height in
the ionosphere. This layer is called ionosphere because it contains electrical by
charged ions such as O,', 0'' N O ' etc.
v) Exosphere: Exosphere is the upper most layer of the earth's atmosphere. The
upper limit of this layer is uncertain as the exosphere acts as a transitional layer
between the earth's atmosphere and the space. The outer part of the exosphere
is called magnetosphere.
All the layers of the atmosphere are of vital importance to the environment becausc
together they form the total blanket of air to the biosphere.

Check Your Progress

Notes : a) Write your answers in the space given below.
b) Compare your answers with those given at the end of the Unit.

5) Give a reason for a decrease in mesosphere's temperature?

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6) Mention two major components of the atmosphere that make human life
possible.
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7) Why water vapor content is higher in the tropics but much lower at the
Polar Regions?,
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1.4.4 Biosphere
It is that part of the earth which overlies the atmosphere where natural life is possible.
It denotes the realm of living organisms and their interactions with the physical
environment i.e. lithosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere. Both the biosphere and
the physical environment are influenced by each other considerably. For example, the
oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere depend entirely on the plant kingdom
through the process of respiration and photosynthesis. Similarly, the biological world is
intimately related with the energy flows in the environment and water chemistry.
 ..

Fundamental Concepts
In order to get a clear understanding of the biosphere it will be useful to learn about
of the Environment
organizational hierarchy (also called ecological hierarchy) because it is placed at the
top of this hierarchy. Let us first try to understand the ecological hierarchy.

1.5 ECOLOGICAL HIERARCHY

By going through the sections above, you must have become familiar with the basic
components of the environment. Now let us discuss how these components make
the environment operative. To fully understand the environmental operations at the
ground level, it is useful to think in terms of levels of ecological hierarchy. The
ecological hierarchy is similar to geographical or political hierarchy. Hierarchy is
defined as an arrangement of graded series of compartments. You can understand
the hierarchy system by comparing the two columns of Fig. 1.4 given below
representing two different hierarchies. One is for geographical hierarchy and other
is for ecological hierarchy.

Geographical hierarchy Ecological hierarchy

(a) (b)
World Biosphere
Continents BiogeographicRegion
Nations Biomes and Regions
State Landscape
District Ecosystem
TownNil lage Biotic community
Population (Human) Population (species)
individual Organism

Fig. 1.4

As you can see in column (a) of Fig. 1.4, in the geographical hierarchy the world is
placed at the top. Within the world there are continents and within continents there are
countries and so on. Similarly in ecological hierarchy we show biosphere at the top
and within the biosphere we have biogeographic regions, within biogeographic regions
there are biomes. Within a biome there are landscapes, which in turn are composed of
many ecosystems. And finally it also descend down to a level ofan individual organism.
So in order to understand the biosphere we need to learn the various terms used in
ecological hierarchy. Let us learn these terms

i) Population: It is a group of the same interbreeding organisms that live together

in a given area. For example population of Zebra in a forest.

ii) Biotic community: It includes every individual of the population living and
interactingin a given area. Ecological community includes only the living organisms
e.g. all plants, all animals and all the microorganisms.

iii) Ecosystem: The ecosystem is the whole complex of organisms and the physical
environment they inhibit. A term parallel to ecosystem, often used in German and
Russian literature, is Biogeocoenosis. The term biogeocoenosis means "life and
Technology nnd earth functioning together". At this level in ecological hierarchy the abiotic system
Environmental Education figures and makes the community self-regulating.We shall discuss ecosystem in
detailed in the next unit.

iv) Landscape: Groups of ecosystems along with human artifacts make landscape.
The landscape is categorized in three categories:
a Fabricated;
a Domesticated; and
a Natural.
Fabricated Landscape: It is also called developed sites. It includes cities,
'industrial areas, and transport corridors such as roads, railways, and airport.
From the standpoint of energy use, the fabricated environment is a fuel-powered
system. Fuel ower red means the source of energy is fossil fuel like coal, oil and
natural gas. The fabricated landscape actually covers a small area of our total
landscape, but they are energy intensive. So they require much energy and create
so much waste, heat and pollution. They have enormous impact on the other two
types of landscape.
Domesticated Landscape: It is also called cultivated site. It includes agricultural
land such as the farms, managed woodlands and forests, artificial lakes and
ponds etc. From the energy point of view this part of our landscape is called
"subsidized solar-powered system". The sun provides the basic energy but the
, source is augmented by human-controlled work energy in the form of human
labour, machines, fertilizers, and so on, much of which is derived from fuels.
Natural landscape: It is also called,Natural site. These types of landscapes are
characterized by the term "self-maintaining". It operates without any energetic
or economic control of humans. It includes the natural forests, rivers, mountains
etc. From the standpoint of energy, these are "basic solar-powered system". It
is dependent on sunlight and other natural forces, such as rainfall, water flow,
and winds, which are indirect forms of solar energy.

v) Biomes: To be able to understand Biomes well, we must understand two related

ecological terms called succession and climax. Succession means turn over of
species. A typical species always tries to be in equilibrium with the prevailing
environmental conditions. But the environment keeps on changing with time for
the following reasons:

a) Variation in climatic and physiographic factors, and

b) The activities of the species of the communities themselves (as a result of

their growth, dispersal, reproduction, death, and decay).
The environmental changes bring about apparent changes in the dominants of
the existing community. As a result sooner or later the dominant species is replaced
by another community at the same place (remember the famous incident of
extinction ofthe dominant dinosaurs. They were extinct because they were unable
to cope with the climatic changes). This process continues and successive
communities develop one after another over the same area, until the terminal
final community again becomes more or less stable for a longer period of time
and it maintains itself in equilibrium with the climate of the area. This final
community is called climax community and the stage as climax stage. Thus
climax may be defined as the end point of the successional sequence, or sere; a
 community that has reached a steady state tinder a particular set of environmental Fundamental Concepts
of the Environment
conditions.
Now let us define biomes with the co~~cept
of succession and climax.
The term "biome" was put forward by Clements and Shelford (1939). According
to them under similar climatic conditions, there may be parallel development of
more than one community some reaching the climax stage, other under different
stages of development. This complexity of several communities in any area,
represented by an assemblage of different kinds of plants and animais sharing a
common climate is called a biome. Since similar climatic conditions prevail over
a large region of the earth biome is a bigger unit than landscape. Biomes are
distinguished from each other on the basis oftemperature, amount of rainfall and
solar radiation. The major land biomes are:
Tundra: A treeless region in the north with an arctic climate, where
underlying layer of soil is permanently frozen.
Taiga: The northernmost forest below the Tundra across Europe, Asia and
Northern America.
Temperate deciduous forest: The eastern US, England and central
Europe, containing trees which shed their leaves perennially.
Tropical: Region of high temperature and ample rainfall.
Grassland: Also called Savanna, receiving less rain and deciduous forest.
Desert: The most arid regions with hot days and cold nights.
Aquatic biomes are either marine, referring to oceans and other salt water
bodies, or freshwater, such as lakes and rivers.

vi) Biogeographic region: The major continents and oceans are the Biogeographic
regions each with its own special flora and fauna.
vii) Biosphere: It is a widely used term for the earth's entire ecosystem functioning
together. The term ecosphere is often used synonymously for biosphere. But
according to some authors Biosphere is all the life on the earth (i.e. all the
communities)and Ecosphere means all the life and interacting non-living materials
(i.e. all the ecosystems). Since all the levels in the ecological hierarchy involve
life and biological process, we can conclude that biosphere is that portion of
the earth in which organisms can live i.e. the biologically inhabitable soil, water
and air.
Check Your Progress
Notes : a) Write your answers in the space given below.
b) Compare your answers with those given at the end of the Unit.

8) Why is ecosystem so important in ecological hierarchy.

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Techrlology and
Environmental Education 9) Mention two important characteristics of fabricated landscape.
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10) Define biosphere.
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1.6 LET US SUM UP

In this unit we have learnt about the definition, importance and types ofenvironments.
We have also learnt about the basic segments of the environment i.e. lithosphere,
hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere. Soil formation is one of the greatest
contributions of the lithosphere. We also realized that although three fourths of the
earth is covered by water only one percent of the total water is fit for human
consumption. The amount water in various water bodies is almost constant due to
hydrological cycle. Atmosphere has a fixed composition of gases present in it and any
excess change in this composition is likely to cause air pollution. We also read
ecological hierarchy where various terms often used in environmental studies have
been made clear.

ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

1) Natural : Solar Radiation, Wild-life, Timber, and Living Space.
Man-made: Landing of man on the moon, Housing, and Revolution in
Communication.
2) Oxygen
3) Sandysoil
4) Micronutrient Macronutrient
- Sodium - Nitrogen

- Iron - Hydrogen
- Zinc - Phophorus-
- Magnesium
5) Because with increase in height the distance from the ozone layer increases.
6) Carbon dioxide and Oxygen.
7) Because evaporation is directly proportional to temperature. At the equator the
temperature is higher so there is moreevaporation. So amount of water vapor is
higher.
8) Because ecosystem contains both the living and non-living constituents of the
environment.
9) It is dependent on fuel energy resources and it creates more waste.
10) Biosphere is that portion of the earth in which organisms can live
 Fundamental Concepts
1.8 GLOSSARY of the Environment

Biodegradable : Capable of decomposing under natural conditions by

bacterial activities.
Biotic Community : A naturally occurring assemblage of plants and animals that
live in the same environment and are mutually sustaining
and interdependent.
Clay : A fine-grained component of soil, formed by weathering of
granitic rock.
Clay Soil : Soil material containing more than 40 percent clay, less
than 45 percent sand, and less than 40 percent silt.
Granite Rock : It is a type of igneous rock, which is usually light in colour,
coarse to medium size grain and contains quartz, feldspar,
mica and iron oxide as the principal minerals.
Cation : A part of dissociated molecule carrying a positive electrical
charge.
Landscape : The traits, patterns, and structure of a specific geographic
area, including its biological composition, its physical
environment, and its anthropogenic or social patterns. An
area where interacting ecosystems are grouped and
repeated in similar form.
Leaching : The process by which soluble constituents are dissolved
and filtered through the soil by a percolating fluid.
Loam : Soil that is a mixture of coarse sand particles, fine silt, clay
particles and organic matter.
Polysaccharides : A long-chain carbohydrate, such as starch, cellulose etc.