Q1. What is meant by environment?

Enumerate and discuss its

various components.
Answer: Environment is the sum total of water, air and land and the inter-
relationships that exist among them and with the human beings, other living
organisms and property.
Environment includes all the physical and biological surroundings and their
interactions. Thus, in order to study environment one needs knowledge inputs from
various disciplines.

Q2. Define natural resources. How will you classify natural

resources? Explain major reasons of the resource depletion.
Ans.: Anything required by us for living and provided by nature is known as a
natural resource. Natural resources can be classified into two categories:
Renewable Resources: These are inexhaustible and can be regenerated
within a given span of time.
Non-renewable resources: These cannot be regenerated. It is very important
to protect and conserve our natural resources and use them in a judicious
manner so that we dont exhaust the non-renewable resources and dont
consume the renewable resources of a rate that exceeds their regeneration.

Ever since humans have come into existence, they have depended profoundly on
resources, be them renewable or non renewable. With growing civilization the
demands for raw material like wood, coal, minerals etc increased to a great extent
resulting in large scale logging, mining, road-building and clearing of forests. Thus
excessive use of these resources has together led to their over- exploitation, leading
to their rapid degradation.

Q3. Write short notes on:

Causes and effects of deforestation:
Shifting cultivation There are an estimated 300 million people living as
shifting cultivators who practice slash and burn agriculture and are
supposed to clear more than 5 lakhs of forests for shifting cultivation
annually. In India, we have this practice in North-East and to some extent
in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and M.P which contribute to nearly half of the
forest clearing annually.
Fuel requirements Increasing demands for fuel wood by the growing
population in India alone has been raised up to 300-500 million tons in
 2001 as compared to just 65 million tons during independence, thereby
increasing the pressure on forests.
Raw materials for industrial use Wood for making boxes, furniture,
railway-sleepers, plywood, match-boxes, pulp for paper industry etc.
have exerted tremendous pressure on forests. Plywood is in great demand
for packing tea for Tea industry of Assam while fir tree wood is exploited
greatly for packing apples in J&K.
Development projects - Massive destruction of forests occur for various
development projects like hydroelectric projects, big dams, road
construction, mining etc.
Growing food needs - In developing countries this is the main reason for
deforestation to meet the demands of rapidly growing population to
create permanent agricultural lands including settlements.
Over - exploitation of fuel wood and overgrazing - The poor in the
tropics mainly rely on wood as a source of fuel leading to loss of forests.
The cleared forests are turned into grazing lands where overgrazing leads
to further degradation of the lands.

Effects of mining on environment: Mining has had very bad effects on our
environment. The effects caused by mining are:
DE vegetation and defacing of landscape: The topsoil as well as the
vegetation is removed from the mining area to get access to the deposit.
While large scale deforestation or DE vegetation leads to several
ecological losses the landscape also gets badly affected. The huge
quantities of debris and tailings along with big scars and disruptions spoil
the aesthetic value of the region and make it prone to soil erosion.
Subsidence of land: This is mainly associated with underground mining.
Subsidence of mining areas often results in tilting of buildings, cracks in
houses, buckling of roads, bending of rail tracks and leaking of gas from
cracked pipe-lines leading to serious disasters.
Groundwater contamination: Mining disturbs the natural hydrological
processes and also pollutes the groundwater. Sulphur, usually present as
an impurity in many ores is known to get converted into sulphuric acid
through microbial action, thereby making the water acidic. Some heavy
metals also get leached into the groundwater and contaminate it posing
health hazards.
Surface water pollution: The acid mine drainage often contaminates the
nearby streams and lakes. The acidic water is detrimental to many forms
of aquatic life. Sometimes radioactive substances like uranium also
 contaminate the water bodies through mine wastes and kill aquatic
animals. Heavy metal pollution of water bodies near the mining areas is a
common feature creating health hazards.
Air pollution: In order to separate and purify the metal from other
impurities in the ore, smelting is done which emits enormous quantities
of air pollutants damaging the vegetation nearby and has serious
environmental health impacts. The suspended particulate matter (SPM),
SOx, soot, arsenic particles, cadmium lead etc. shoot up in the
atmosphere near the smelters and the public suffers from several health
problems.
Occupational Health Hazards: Most of the miners suffer from various
respiratory and skin diseases due to constant exposure to the suspended
particulate matter and toxic substances. Miners working in different types
of mines suffer from asbestosis, silicosis, fibrosis, black lung disease etc.

Dams-benefits and problems:

Benefits of Dams
River valley projects with big dams have usually been considered to play a
key role in the development process due to their multiple uses. India has the
distinction of having the largest number of river-valley projects. These dams
are often regarded as a symbol of national development. The tribes living in
the area pin big hopes on these projects as they aim at providing
employment and raising their standard and quality of life. The dams have
tremendous potential for economic upliftment and growth. They can help in
checking flood and famines, generate electricity and reduce water and power
shortage, provide irrigation water to lower areas, provide drinking water in
remote areas a and promote navigation, fishery etc.

Problems of Dams
The upstream problems include the following:
1. Displacement of tribal people
2. Loss of forests, flora and fauna
3. Changes in fisheries, the spawning grounds
4. Siltation and sedimentation of reservoirs
5. Loss of non-forest land
6. Stagnation and water logging near reservoir
7. Breeding of vectors and spread of vector-borne diseases like malaria
8. Reservoir induced seismicity (RIS)
 9. Growth of weeds.
10.Microclimatic changes.

The downstream impacts include the following:

1. Water logging and salinity due to over irrigation
2. Micro-climatic changes
3. Reduced water flow and deposition in river
4. Flash floods
5. Salt water intrusion at river mouth
6. Loss of land fertility along the river since the sediments carrying
nutrients get deposited in the reservoir
7. Outbreak of vector-borne diseases like malaria

Q4) I CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF DEFORESTATION

II EFFECTS OF MINING ON ENVIRONMENT

III DAMS-BENEFITS AND PROBLEMS

IV ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATIONS OF NON-CONVENTIONAL

SOURCES OF ENERGY.

ANS. I)

CAUSES:

1. SHIFTING CULTIVATION :
There are an estimated 300 million people living as shifting cultivators who
practice slash and burn agriculture and are supposed to clear more than 5
lakh ha of forests for shifting cultivation annually. In india, we have this
practice in north-east and to some extent in Andhra Pradesh, bihar and mp
which contribute to nearly half of the forest clearing annually.

2. FUEL REQUIREMENTS :
Increasing demands for fuel wood by the growing population in India alone has shooted up to 300-500
million tons in 2001 as compared to just 65 million tons during independence , thereby increasing the
pressure on forests.
 3. RAW MATERIALS FOR INDUSTRIAL USE :
Wood for making boxes, furniture, railway-sleepers, plywood, match-boxes, pulp for paper industry etc.
have exerted tremendous pressure on forests. Plywood is in great demand for packing tea for Tea industry
of Assam while fir tree wood is exploited greatly for packing apples in J&K.

4. DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS :
Massive destruction of forests occur for various development projects like hydroelectric projects, big dams,
road constriction, mining etc.

5. GROWING FOOD NEEDS :

In developing countries this is the main reason for deforestation to meet the demands of rapidly growing
population to create permanent agricultural lands including settlements.

6. OVER - EXPLOITATION OF FUEL WOOD AND OVERGRAZING :

The poor in the tropics mainly rely on wood as a source of fuel leading to loss of forests. The cleared
forests are turned into grazing lands where overgrazing leads to further degradation of the lands.

EEFECTS:

Deforestation has far reaching consequences which may be are as follows:

1. It threatens the existence of many wild life species due to destruction of their
natural habitat.
2. Biodiversity is lost and along with that genetic diversity is eroded.
3. Hydrological cycle gets affected, thereby influencing rainfall.
4. Problems of soil erosion and loss of soil fertility increase.
5. In hilly areas it often leads to landslides.

II)Mining operations for extracting minerals and fossil fuels like coal often
involves vast forest areas. Mining from shallow deposits is done by surface
mining while that from deep
deposit is done by sub-surface mining. More than 80,000 ha of land of the
country is presently under the stress of mining activities. Mining and its associated
activities require removal of vegetation along with underlying soil mantle and
overlying rock masses. This results in defacing the topography and destruction of
the landscape in the area.
Large scale deforestation has been reported in Mussorie and Dehradun valley due
to indiscriminate mining of various minerals over a length of about 40 Km. The
forested area has declined at an average rate of 33% and the increase in non-forest
area due to mining activities has resulted in relatively unstable zones leading to
landslides.
III) BENEFITS
Big dams and river valley projects have multi purpose uses and have been
referred to as Temples of modern India.
India has the distinction of having the largestnumber of river-valley projects.
These dams are often regarded as a symbol of national development.
The tribals living in the areapin big hopes on these projects as they aim at
providing employment and raising their standard and quality of life.
The dams have tremendous potential for economic upliftment and growth.
They can help in checking flood and famines, generate electricity and reduce
water and power shortage, provide irrigation water to lower areas, provide drinking
water in remote areas and
promote navigation, fishery etc.

PROBLEMS
these dams are also responsible for the destruction of vast areas of forests.
ecological problems including deforestation and
socio economic problems related to tribal or native people associated with
them.
For building big dams, large scale devastation of forests takes place which
breaks the natural ecological balance of the region.
Floods,droughts and landslides become more prevalent in such areas.
we are going to lose these species even before knowing them. These species
could be having marvelous economic or medicinal value and deforestation
results in loss of
this storehouse of species which have evolved over millions of years in a single
stroke.

IV) RENEWABLE AND NON-RENEWABLE ENERGYSOURCES:

A source of energy is one that can provide adequate amount of energy in a usable
form over a long period of time.
These sources can be of two types:
(1) Renewable Resources which can be generatedcontinuously in nature and are
inexhaustible e.g. wood,solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy,
hydropower,biomass energy, bio-fuels, geo-thermal energy and hydrogen. They are
also known as non-conventional
sources of energy and they can be used again and again in an endless manner.
(2) Non- renewable Resources which have accumulated innature over a long span
of time and cannot be quickly replenished when exhausted e.g. coal, petroleum,
natural gas and nuclear fuels like uranium and thorium.

SOLAR ENERGY :Sun is the ultimate source of energy, directly or indirectly for
all other forms of energy. The nuclear fusion reactions occurring inside the sun
release enormous quantities of energy in the form of heat and light. Traditionally,
we have been using solar energy for drying clothes and food-grains, preservation
of eatables and for obtaining salt from sea-water. Now we have several techniques
for harnessing solar energy.
(1) By solar heat collectors. Passive solar heat collectors are natural materials like
stones, bricks etc. or material like glass which absorb heat during the day time and
release itslowly at night.The active solar collectors pump a heat absorbing medium
(air or water) through a small collector which is normally placed on the top of the
building. Solar water heater and
solar cooker are examples of passive heat collectors.
(2) By solar cells which convert solar energy directly into electricity using solar
cells.
The solar cells are also known as photovoltaic cells or PV cells. Solar cells are
made of thin wafers of semi conductor materials like silicon and gallium. When
solar radiations
fall on them, a potential difference is produced which produces electricity. Silicon
can be obtained from silica or sand, which is abundantly available and inexpensive.
By using gallium arsenide, cadmium sulphide or boron, efficiency of the PV cells
can be improved. A group of solar cells joined together in a definite pattern form a
solarpanel which can harness a large amount of solar energy and can produce
electricity enough to run street-light,
irrigation water pump etc A solar pump run by electricity produced by solar cells.
Solar cells are widely used in calculators, electronic watches, for street lighting,
traffic signals, operating water pumps etc. They are also used in artificial satellites
for electricity
generation. Solar cells are also used for running radio and television. They are
more in use in remote areas whereconventional electricity supply is a problem.

WIND ENERGY :The high speed winds have a lot of energy in them as kinetic
energy due to their motion. The driving force of the winds is the sun. The wind
energy is harnessed by making use of wind mills. The blades of the wind mill keep
on rotating continuously due to the force of the striking wind. The rotational
motion of the blades drive a number of machines like water pumps, flour mills and
electric generators. A large number of wind
mills are installed in clusters called wind farms, which feed power to the utility
grid and produce a large amount of electricity. These farms are ideally located in
coastal regions, open grasslands or hilly regions, particularly mountain passes and
ridges where the
winds are strong and steady. The minimum wind speed required for satisfactory
working of a wind generator is 15 km/hr. The wind power potential of our country
is estimated to be about 20,000 MW, while at present we are generating about 1020
MW. The largest wind farm of our country is near Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu
generating 380 MW electricity.
Wind energy is very useful as it does not cause any air pollution. After the initial
installation cost, the wind energy is very cheap. It is believed that by the middle of
the century wind power would supply more than 10% of worlds electricity.

HYDROPOWER :The water flowing in a river is collected by constructing a big

dam where the water is stored and allowed to fall from a height. The blades of the
turbine located at the bottom of the dam move with the fast moving water which in
turn rotate
the generator and produces electricity. We can also construct mini or micro hydel
power plants on the rivers in hilly regions for harnessing the hydro energy on a
small scale, but the minimum height of the water falls should be 10 metres. The
hydropower potential of India is estimated to be about 4 x 10 11 KW-hours. Till
now we have utilized only a little more than 11 % of this potential. Hydropower
does not cause any pollution, it is renewable and normally the hydro power
projects are multi-purpose projects helping in controlling floods, used for
irrigation, navigation etc. However, big dams are often associated with a number of
environmental impacts which have already been discussed in the previous chapter.

TIDAL ENERGY :Ocean tides produced by gravitational forces of sun and moon
contain enormous amounts of energy. The high tide and low tide refer to the
rise and fall of water in the oceans. A difference of several meters is required
between the height of high and low tide to spin the turbines. The tidal energy can
be harnessed by constructing a tidal barrage. During high tide, the sea-water flows
into the reservoir of the barrage and turns 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 flows out into the sea and again turns
the turbines. There are only a few sites in the world where tidal energy can be
suitably harnessed. The bay of Fundy Canada having 17-18 m high tides has a
potential of 5,000 MW of power generation. The tidal mill at La Rance, France is
one of the first modern tidal
power mill. In India Gulf of Cambay, Gulf of Kutch and the Sunder bans deltas are
the tidal power sites.

OCEAN THERMAL ENERGY (OTE) :The energy available due to the

difference in temperature of water at the surface of the ocean and at deeper levels
is called Ocean thermal energy. A difference of 200C or more is required between
surface water and deeper water of ocean for operating OTEC (Ocean Thermal
Energy Conversion) power plants. The warm surface water of ocean is used to boil
a liquid like ammonia. The high pressure
vapours of the liquid formed by boiling are then used to turn the turbine of a
generator and produce electricity. The colder water from the deeper oceans is
pumped to cool and condense the vapors into liquid. Thus the process keeps on
going continuously for 24 hours a day.

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY :The energy harnessed from the hot rocks present
inside the earth is called geothermal energy. High temperature, high pressure steam
fields exist below the earths surface in many places. This heat comes from the
fission of radioactive material naturally present in the rocks. In some places, the
steam or the hot water comes out of the ground naturally through cracks in the
form of natural geysers as in Manikaran, Kullu and Sohana, Haryana. Sometimes
the steam or boiling water underneath the earth do not find any place to come out.
We can artificially drill a hole up to the hot rocks and by putting a pipe in it make
the steam or hot water gush out through the pipe at high pressure which turns the
turbine of a generator to produce electricty. In USA and New Zealand, there are
several geothermal plants working successfully.

BIOMASS ENERGY :Biomass is the organic matter produced by the plants or

animals which include wood, crop residues, cattle dung, manure, sewage,
agricultural wastes etc. Biomass energy is of the following types :
a) Energy Plantations :Solar energy is trapped by green plants through
photosynthesis and converted into biomass energy. Fast growing trees like
cottonwood, poplar and Leucaena, non-woody herbaceous grasses, crop plants like
sugarcane, sweet sorghum and sugar beet, aquatic weeds like water hyacinth and
sea-weeds and carbohydrate rich potato, cereal etc. Are some of the important
energy plantations. They may produce energy either by burning
directly or by getting converted into burnable gas or may be converted into fuels
by fermentation.
b) Petro-crops :Certain latex-containing plants like Euphorbias and oil palms are
rich in hydrocarbons and can yield an oil like substance under high temperature
and pressure. This oily material may be burned in diesel engines directly or may be
refined to form gasoline. These plants are popularly known as petro-crops.
c) Agricultural and Urban Waste biomass :Crop residues,bagasse (sugarcane
residues), coconut shells, peanut hulls, cotton stalks etc. are some of the common
agricultural
wastes which produce energy by burning. Animal dung, fishery and poultry waste
and even human refuse are examples of biomass energy. In Brazil 30 % of
electricity is obtained from burning bagasse. In rural India, animal dung cakes are
burnt to produce heat. About 80 % of rural heat energy requirements are met by
burning agricultural wastes, wood and animal dung cakes. In rural areas these
forms of waste biomass are burned in open furnaces called Chulhas which usually
produce smoke and are not so efficient (efficiency is <8 %). Now improved
Chulhas with tall chimney have been designed which have high efficiency
and are smokeless. The burning of plant residues or animal wastes cause air
pollution and produce a lot of ash as waste residue. The burning of dung destroys
essential nutrients like N and P. It is therefore, more useful to convert the biomass
into biogas or bio fuels.

Q-5What is ecosystem?With the help of suitable model explain

the flow of energy in ecosystem?
Ans-5 In simple words, ecosystem may be defined as any unit
which includes all the living organisms(i.e. biotic communities)
in a given area interacting with the physical environment(e.g.
water, air, soil etc) by means of food chains and chemical
cycles resulting in energy flow, biotic diversity and material
cycling within the system.

the base of an ecosystem, primary producers are actively converting solar energy
into stored chemical energy. Photosynthesis is the process of converting solar
energy, water, and carbon dioxide into carbohydrates and oxygen. The process
occurs in two steps: first light energy is absorbed by chlorophyll to split a molecule
of water releasing hydrogen and oxygen. The second step uses the energy to
convert carbon dioxide to carbohydrates. The carbohydrate (C6H12O6) can be
converted into starch and stored by the plant. Carbohydrate can be combined with
other sugar molecules to make cellulose, the basic structural material of a plant.

Oddly enough, of all the solar radiation striking a plant, only about 1 percent is
used in photosynthesis. The rate of photosynthesis is dependent on several things,
especially the amount of light received ... up to a point. As solar radiation increases
the rate of photosynthesis increases. For many plants there is an upper limit to the
rate of photosynthesis. In some plants as incident solar radiation increases the rate
of photosynthesis levels off, or may decrease. The increasing solar energy load
causes the plant to be too hot and the need to cool the plant increases. As a result,
transpiration takes over as the dominate plant process. Transpiration, the loss of
water from plants, acts to cool the plant by releasing latent energy. Adequate
supplies of water, carbon dioxide and the availability of nutrients in the soil affect
photosynthesis.

Respiration

While photosynthesis builds stored chemical energy in a plant, respiration is the

process of "burning" stored chemical energy, basically through oxidation, for
maintaining plant metabolism. During plant respiration, carbohydrates combine
with oxygen and is reduced to carbon dioxide, water, and heat.

While photosynthesis operates only during day when sunshine is available,

respiration goes on both night and day. Plant growth occurs so long as
photosynthesis exceeds respiration.

QUES-6 Explain the types characterstic features and functions of forest

ecosystem?

Ans-6 The forest ecosystem covers the flora, fauna and ground conditions with in
the parameters of a forest. From the climatic conditions to the members and
relationships in the food chain, the forest ecosystem is dependant on the major
resources available. In the forest ecosystem the proportion of flora, including the
varieties of trees, grasses, fungi and flowers will effect the way in which fauna
exist.

The fauna in a forest ecosystem will include the minute and the massive. The forest
ecosystem offers shelter and living conditions to insects, birds, arachnids and
mammals, from the tiny bush mouse to the largest primate or predator.
In the forest ecosystem the smallest creatures and plants are still important to the
structure of the environment. From the smallest gnat to the largest predator, the
relationship between the food chain is vital to the balance of the ecosystem. In the
way that grass feeds cattle so too do smaller creatures become food for larger. Even
the plants of the forest will become fodder for larger herbivores or small creatures.
The forest ecosystem is balanced by the resources available. The number of trees,
fungi, grass or flowers will be, maintained by the number of animals or insects
using them for their lifestyle or food sources. If the number of predators in the
forest ecosystem should alter, then the food chain would be unbalanced right down
to the fundamental level. Even a slight alteration in the forest ecosystem, due to
floods or drought or human intervention, can lead to the destruction of the forest
ecosystem itself.
Various socio-economic functions are ascribed to forests, based on the
differentiated needs of the human population. Apart from the defined forest
functions human welfare benefits from the diverse environmental effects of forests.
The capacity of an ecosystem to sustain a specific function depends on the
characteristics of its individual dynamics.
Sustainable forest management concepts must take into account the compatibility
between forest function and ecosystem characteristics. Incompatibility causes
either dysfunction and ecosystem degradation or the need of corrective
management interventions which may exceed tolerable economic limits. A detailed
understanding of the destabilising and stabilising processes intrinsic to the
ecosystem is necessary, for their regulatory interactions, and their responses to
exogenous disturbances and perturbations, which emerge from forest management
and environmental conditions.
The study of mechanisms involved in the dynamics of forest ecosystems and their
sub-systems, the evaluation of these mechanisms in the light of forest ecosystem
diversity, forest function and forest management, would help forestry to
successfully cope with the obstacles arising from nature, changing environments
and socio-economic forces.

QUES-7 Write short notes on-

ECOLOGYICAL PYRAMIDS- An ecological pyramid (or trophic pyramid)
is a graphical representation designed to show the biomass or productivity at
eachtrophic level in a given ecosystem. Biomass pyramids show the
abundance or biomass of organisms at each trophic level,
whileproductivity pyramids show the production or turnover in biomass.
Ecological pyramids begin with producers on the bottom (such as plants)
and proceed through the various trophic levels (such as herbivores that eat
plants, then carnivores that eat herbivores, then carnivores that eat those
carnivores, and so on). The highest level is the top of the food chain. In
Ecological Pyramid the arrangements from below is producers then primary
consumers then secondary consumers and on the top is decomposers.
 ECOLOGICAL SUCCESION- Ecological succession, a fundamental
concept in ecology, refers to more or less predictable and orderly changes in
the composition or structure of an ecological community. Succession may be
initiated either by formation of new, unoccupied habitat (e.g., a lava flow or
a severe landslide) or by some form of disturbance (e.g. fire,
severe windthrow, logging) of an existing community. Succession that
begins in areas where no soil is initially present is called primary succession,
whereas succession that begins in areas where soil is already present is
called secondary succession.
The trajectory of ecological change can be influenced by site conditions, by the
interactions of the species present, and by more stochastic factors such as
availability of colonists or seeds, or weather conditions at the time of disturbance.
Some of these factors contribute to predictability of successional dynamics; others
add more probabilistic elements. In general, communities in early succession will
be dominated by fast-growing, well-dispersed species (opportunist, fugitive, or r-
selected life-histories). As succession proceeds, these species will tend to be
replaced by more competitive (k-selected) species.
FOOD CHAIN AND FOOD WEB-

CHARACTERISTICS OF FOOD CHAIN

1. A food chain involves a nutritive interaction between the living organisms

(biotic components) of an ecosystem. In a food chain, there occurs repeated
eating i.e. each group eats the other and is subsequently eaten by some other
group of organisms.

2. A food chain is always straight and proceeds in a progressive straight

line.

3. In a food chain, there is unidirectional flow of energy from sun to

producers and subsequently to series of different types of consumers.

4. Usually there occur 4 or 5 trophic levels in the food chain.

5. Generally 80-90% of energy is lost as heat at each transfer in accordance

with second law of thermodynamics.

In nature, generally two types of food chains are

distinguished namely, grazing food chain and detritus food chain.

A. Grazing food chain

The common examples of the grazing food chain are those of grassland
ecosystem starting from grasses-herbivorescarnivores (primary, secondary,
tertiary) and aquatic ecosystems starting from phytoplanktons -zooplanktons
small fishes large fishes. In grazing food chain (e.g. grassland
ecosystem), green plants (producers) constitute the first step. The plant
biomass, in turn, is eaten by the herbivores (e.g.insects, rats and mice,
grazing cattle) which are subsequently consumed by a variety of carnivores.
The grazing food chains are directly dependent on an influx of solar
radiations. Green plants, with the help of solar radiations, manufacture food
(plant biomass) by the process of photosynthesis. These are longer food
chains and these always end at decomposer level. From energy point of
view, these grazing type of food chains are very important.

B. Detritus food chain

Unlike grazing food chains, the detritus food chains depend upon the dead
organic matter either in the form of fallen leaves or dead animal bodies.
Hence, these are not directly dependent on solar energy. The starting point,
in a detritus food chain, is the dead bodies of animals or fallen leaves etc.
commonly termed as detritus. This dead organic matter is first eaten by
decomposers e.g. bacteria, fungi and protozoans etc. These decomposing
organisms have saprotrophic mode of feeding and are designated as primary
consumers in this type of chain. These are also termed as detritivores
(detritus eating). The detritivores, in turn, are eaten by their predators like
insect larvae, nematodes etc. The main function of the detritivores is to
release the inorganic elements into the ecosystem by decomposing the dead
organic matter. The recycling of inorganic elements in ecosystem help in
keeping them fit. As compared to grazing food chains, the detritus food
chains are generally shorter.

Food web is a network of food chains which become inter-connected at

various trophic levels so as to form a number of feeding connections
amongst different organisms of a biotic community. Unlike food chains,
 food webs are never straight. Interlocking pattern in a food web is promoted
by the fact that a single living organism may participate at different tropic
levels in different food chains. For instance, in grassland ecosystem, the
grass may be eaten by the grazing cattle. In the absence of grazing cattle in
the biotic community, grass may be eaten by a rabbit or in the absence of
both, rat or mouse may consume the grass. Similarly, rat or mouse may be
eaten by predatory birds or snakes. Snakes may also be eaten by predatory
birds. To sum up, alternatives are available in nature which result in sort of
interlocking pattern or the food web. Thus, in food webs any given 1. Unlike
food chains,

1.Food webs are never straight.

2. Food web is formed by interlinking of food chains.

3. A food web provides alternative pathways of food availability. For

example, if a particular species of producer is destroyed by a disease in the
ecosystem, the herbivores of that area can feed on other species of
producers. Similarly, secondary consumers e.g. predatory birds may feed on
rats or mice in the event of decrease population of rabbits in that area on
which they also commonly feed.

Q8. What is meant by biodiversity? Explain the three levels of

biodiversity and point out the major threats of biodiversity
depiction.
Ans8. Biodiversity is the variation of life forms with given ecosystem, biome or for
the entire earth. Biodiversity is often used as a measure of the health of biological
systems. The biodiversity found on earth today consists of many millions of
distinct biological specie, which is the product of nearly 3.5 billion years of
evolution.

Biodiversity can have many interpretation and its and it is most commonly used to
replace the more clearly defined and long established terms, species diversity and
species richness, biologists most often define biodiversity as the totality of genes,
species and ecosystem of a region. An advantage of this definition is that it seems
to describe most circumstances and present a unified view of the traditional three
levels at which biological variety has been identified:

1. Genetic Diversity
2. Species Diversity
3. Ecosystem diversity

Genetic diversity, the level of biodiversity, refers to the total number of genetic
characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species. It is distinguished from genetic
variability, which describes the tendency of genetic characteristics to vary. The
academic field of population genetics includes several hypotheses and theories
regarding genetic diversity. The neutral theory of evolution proposes that diversity
is the result of the accumulation of neutral substitutions. Diversifying selection is
the hypothesis that two subpopulations of a species live in different environments
that select for different alleles at a particular locus. This may occur, for instance, if
a species has a large range relative to the mobility of individuals within it.
Frequency-dependent selection is the hypothesis that as alleles become more
common, they become more vulnerable. This is often invoked in host-pathogen
interactions, where a high frequency of a defensive allele among the host means
that it is more likely that a pathogen will spread if it is able to overcome that allele.

Species diversity is an index that incorporates the number of species in an area and
also their relative abundance. It is a more comprehensive value than species
richness. It is concerned with the variety of species within a region. It is measured
at the species level. For example big cats, (Pantheratigris) lion (Pantheraleopersica)
and snow leopard (Pantherauncia) All these belong to same genera panthera but all
have different species. Similarly, Potato, Tomato and Brinjal belong to
Solanumgenera but have different genera for example Solanumtuberosumis named
for potato, Solanummelangenafor brinjal and solanumlycopersiconfor tomato.

Ecosystem diversity: It is concerned with the different types of ecosystems and

habitats such as terrestrial,aquatic and wetlands on the earth. Terrestrial includes
forest, grassland, alpine and desert ecosystems. Aquatic includes freshwater and
marine ecosystem. Wetland includes mangroves and estuarine ecosystems.
Ecosystem diversity is difficult to measure since the boundaries of the
communities are elusive.
Threats to biodiversity are a significant issue. There is hardly any area on the earth
which is not facing ecological catastrophes. There are about 1.6 million species
known to inhabit on the earth. One third of the species are likely to extinct in the
next few years. Rich-species diversity is slowly being lost forever. The tropical
forest is shrinking at the rate of 0.8 per cent each year.

1. Over Population: One of the main threat to biodiversity is the population on

earth as the population grows, people encroach more land as a result of which
habitat become segmented and
degraded.
2. Climatic Change: Climate is changing in terms of global warming which results
in threat to biodiversity.
3. Pollution: Pollution alters the natural habitat as a result of which water pollution
is dangerous to biotic components of coastal ecosystems.
4. Introduction of Exotic Species: Introduction of exotic species has a negative
effect on biodiversity. Native species are subjected to competition for food and
space due to
introduction of exotic species.
5.Habitat Loss: Rich biodiversity of India is under severe threat owing to habitat
destruction. Tropical Asia had wild life habitat loss of 6,15,095 sq.km. Out of
30,17,009 sq.km in 1986. This loss of wild life habitat is about 80 per cent.
Similarly India has lost half of its forests, 70 per cent of water bodies get polluted
and degraded most of its coasts. Under such alarming situation lot of species have
lost due to habitat destruction.
The loss of habitat of the species are due to human activities like grazing of
ground, mining, industries, drainage, dam building, highways construction and
agriculture etc. The greatest destruction of biological communities has occurred
during the last 150 years during which the human population has enhanced from 1
billion in 1850 to nearly 6.5 billion in 2000. Such a tremendous increase of human
population will naturally threaten the habitats of earths biodiversity. Some species
require large areas of land or water in which to nest, forage, migrate and mate.
They also require large area for searching shelter and food as well. But due to
human encroachment on the natural habitats, land is constantly converted into
farms, cattle grazing areas, mines, housing developments, golf
courses, office building and shopping malls etc. Scientists have discovered that
decreasing the size of natural habitats results in increasing the chances of species
extinction. Smaller sized habitats are like islands which are isolated from other
similar habitats. As a result, species living in these habitats compete with each
other and with humans for the limited resources present there. Since their
populations are so small, they have fewer parterners with whom to have offsprings
and hence diminishing the genetic diversity of their populations. There is one good
example of habitat loss in India, several rare butterfly species are facing extinction
with the
uncannily swift habitat destruction of the Western Ghats. There are about 370
butterfly species present in the Ghats, but now upto 70 species are at the brink of
extinction.

Q9. Explain the consumptive, productive, ethical, aesthetic,

social and optional value of biodiversity.
Values of biodiversity can be divided into direct and indirect values.

Direct values

The direct value include food resources like grains, vegetables, fruits which are
obtained from plant resources and meat, fish, egg, milk and milk products from
animal resources. These also include other values like medicine, fuel, timber, fiber,
wool, wax, resin, rubber, silk and decorative items.

The direct values are of two types (i) Consumptive use value and (ii) Productive
use value.

Consumptive use value: These are the direct use values where the biodiversity
products can be harvested and consumed directly. Example: Food, fuel and drugs.
These goods are consumed locally and do no figure in national and international
market.

(a) Food:

(i) Plants: The most fundamental value of biological resources particularly

plants is providing food. Basically three crops i.e. wheat, maize and rice
constitute more than two third of the food requirement all over the world.

(ii) Fish: Through the development of aquaculture, techniques, fish and fish
products have become the largest source of protein in the world.
 (b) Fuel: Since ages forests have provided wood which is used as a fuel.
Moreover fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, natural gas are also product of
biodiversity which are directly consumed by humans.

(c) Drugs and medicines: The traditional medical practice like ayurveda
utilizes plants or their extracts directly. In allopathy, the pharmaceutical
industry is much more dependent on natural products. Many drugs are
derived from plants like

(i) Quinine: The famous anti malaria drug is obtained from cinchona tree.

(ii) Penicillin: A famous antibiotic is derived from pencillium, a fungus.

(iii) Tetracycline: It is obtained from bacterium.

(iv) Recentlyvinblastin and vincristine, two anti cancer drugs have been
obtained from catharanthus plant which has anti cancer alkaloids.

Productive use values: These are the direct use values where the product is
commercially sold in national and international market. Many industries are
dependent upon these values. Example- Textile, leather, silk, paper and pulp
industry etc. Although there is an international ban on trade of products from
endangered species like tusks of elephants, wool from sheep, fur of many animals
etc. These are traded in market and fetch a booming business.

Indirect values

Biodiversity provides indirect benefits to human beings which support the

existence of biological life and other benefits which are difficult to quantify. These
include social and cultural values, ethical values, aesthetic values, option values
and environment service values.

Social and cultural value: Many plants and animals are considered holy and sacred
in India and are worshipped like Tulsi, peepal, cow, snake etc. In Indian society
great cultural value is given to forest and as such tiger, peacock and lotus are
named as the national animal, bird and flower respectively.

Ethical: These values are related to conservation of biodiversity where ethical issue
of all life forms must be preserved is laid down. There is an existence value
which is attached to each species because biodiversity is valuable for the survival
of human race. Moreover all species have a moral right to exist independent of our
need for them.

Aesthetic value: There is a great aesthetic value which is attached to biodiversity.

Natural landscapes at undisturbed places are a delight to watch and also provide
opportunities for recreational activities like bird watching, photography etc. It
promotes eco-tourism which further generates revenue by designing of zoological,
botanical gardens, national parks, wild life conservation etc.

Option values: These values include the unexplored or unknown potentials of

biodiversity.

Environment service values: The most important benefit of biodiversity is

maintenance of environment services which includes

(i) Carbon dioxide fixation through photosynthesis.

(ii) Maintaining of essential nutrients by carbon (C), oxygen (O), Nitrogen (N),
Sulphur (S), Phosphorus (P) cycles.

(iii) Maintaining water cycle and recharging of ground water.

(iv) Soil formation and protection from erosion.

(v) Regulating climate by recycling moisture into the atmosphere.

(vi) Detoxification and decomposition of waste.

Q.10 Write short notes on

i. Hotspots of biodiversity

A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeography region with a significant reservoir of

biodiversity that is under threat from humans. The concept of biodiversity hotspots
was originated by Norman Myers in two articles in The Environmentalist To
qualify as a biodiversity hotspot on Myers 2000 edition of the hotspot-map, a
region must meet two strict criteria: it must contain at least 0.5% or 1,500 species
of vascular plants as endemics, and it has to have lost at least 70% of its primary
vegetation. Around the world, at least 25 areas qualify under this definition, with
nine others possible candidates. These sites support nearly 60% of the world's
plant, bird, mammal, reptile, and amphibian species, with a very high share of
endemic species.

Biodiversity hotspots are areas that are unusually rich in species, most of which are
endemic, and are under a constant threat of being overexploited. Among the 18 hot
spots in the world, two are found in India. These are two distinct areas: the Eastern
Himalayas and the Western Ghats and are also depicted
in the National forest vegetation map of India. Together these 18 sites contain
approximately 49 955 endemic plant species, or 20% of the worlds recorded plants
species, in only 746 400 sq km or 0.5% of the earths land surface.

ii. Bio-geographical classification of India

Bio-geographical regions in India are classified as follows:

Trans-Himalayas: An extension of the Tibetan plateau, harboring high-

altitude Cold desert in Laddakh (J&K) and LahaulSpiti (H.P) comprising 5.7
% of the countries Landmass.

Himalayas: The entire mountain chain running from north-western to

northeastern India, comprising a diverse range of biotic provinces and
biomes, 7.2 % of the countrys landmass.

Desert: The extremely arid area west of the Aravalli hill range, comprising
both the salty desert of Gujarat and the sand desert of Rajasthan. 6.9% of the
countrys landmass.

Semi-arid: The zone between the desert and the Deccan plateau, including
the Aravalli hill range. 15.6 % of the countrys landmass.

Western Ghats: The hill ranges and plains running along the western
coastline, south of the Tapti river, covering an extremely diverse range of
biotic provinces and biomes. 5.8% of the countrys landmass.

Deccan peninsula: The largest of the zones, covering much of the southern
and south-central plateau with predominantly deciduous vegetation. 4.3 % of
the countrys landmass.
 Gangetic plain: Defined by the Ganges river system, these plains are
relatively homogenous. 11% of the countrys landmass.

North-east India. The plains and non-Himalayan hill ranges of northeastern

India, with a wide variation of vegetation.5.2% of the countrys landmass.

Islands: The Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal, with a
highly diverse set of biomes. 0.03% of the countrys landmass. Coasts. A
large coastline distributed both to the west and east, with distinct differences
between the two; Lakshadeep islands are included in this with the percent
area being negligible.

Apart from the biogeographic classifications described above ecosystems can also
be demarcated
on the basis of purely geographical or geological features like mountains, islands,
valleys, plateau, oceans; on the basis of vegetative cover like forests, grasslands,
mangroves and deserts; on the basis of climatic conditions like arid and semi-arid
areas, permanently snow-bound areas, high rainfall areas; on the basis of soil
characteristic and other such criteria. In some descriptions the biomes/ecosystems
Are clubbed together into very general habitat classifications. The main natural
habitat types are:
Forests
Grasslands
Wetlands
Mangroves
Coral reefs
Deserts

iii. In-situ and Ex-situ conservation.

The methods for conservation of biodiversity can be broadly classified as follows:

1. In situ Conservation: This type of conservation is most appropriate way

tomaintain the wild plants and animals species in their naturalhabitats. Following
are the natural habitats set aside for in situconservation:
a. National parks
b. Wildlife sanctuaries
c. Biosphere reserves
d. These several wet lands, mangroves and coral reefs have also been identified for
conservation
e. By introducing plant and animals species back into agricultural, horticultural and
animal husbandry practices so that they are cultivated and again used by the
farmers.
Large genetic diversity of crop plants has been maintained by the farmers by
saving seeds for next planting season by a wide variety of indigenously developed
practices. Tubers, rhizomes, seeds and bulbs were stored traditionally by the
farmers and still cultivate several traditional varieties of crop plants in their fields
and keep native species of cattle which are better adapted to disease, drought and
adverse conditions.

2. Ex-Situ Conservation:
Ex situ conservation method involves the cultivation of rare plants and rearing of
threatened animal species in botanical and zoological gardens and reserve them in
the form of seeds in
seed bank or some other suitable materials by means of tissue culture techniques.
Botanical and zoological gardens are the secondary repositories of the wild plants
and animal species there
are number of plants and animals species which have become more or less extinct
in the wild, but they are being conserved in gardens and zoos as shown below:

a. Zoological parks: There are about 5,00,000 mammals, birds, amphibians and
reptiles in zoos throughout the world. Thus zoos have made dramatic contributions
to the conservation of
Biodiversity.
b. Aquaria: The role of aquaria is of immense importance for fresh water species.
c. Botanical gardens: The world has about 1,500 botanical gardens and contains
about 35,000 plant species. Thus they contribute dominating role in the
conservation of species.
d. Seed Banks: A gene or seed bank is a facility where valuable plant material
likely to become irretrievably lost in the wild or in cultivations can be preserved in
a viable condition.
e. Tissue Culture: Tissue culture technique becomes important under the following
conditions.

(i) If a specific genetic type is to be conserved and maintained.

(ii) If the seed progeny is variable.
(iii) If plants have recalcitrant seeds.
(iv) If the seeds are altogether lacking such as those of
Sugar cane and banana.
It is now possible to preserve animal cells, spermatozoa, ovarian and embryonic
tissues under extremely low temperature. They are used for the livestock breeding
programs. Although both ex situ and in situ conservation strategies are not
emphasizing on forest tree and micro organisms but they should be given equal
importance as measures in biodiversity conservation.

Q 11- Define water pollution? Discuss its major sources and effects.

A11-Water pollution has been seriously affecting the life of humans, plants as well
as animals. The eco-system of rivers, streams, lakes, seas and oceans is also getting
deteriorated due to the contamination of water, through various sources. This
condition also leads to the outbreak of numerous diseases, majority of them being
lethal and contagious. However, before going about finding a solution to the
problem, we need to look into its underlying causes. In the following lines, we
have provided information on the causes and harmful effects of water pollution. Go
through them and then decide on your course of action.

Sources Of Water Pollution

Dumping of industrial wastes, containing heavy metals, harmful chemicals,
by-products, organic toxins and oils, into the nearby source of water is one
of the visible causes of water pollution.
Another cause for the contamination of water is the improper disposal of
human and animal wastes.

Effluents from factories, refineries, injection wells and sewage treatment

plants are dumped into urban water supplies, leading to water pollution.
 A number of pollutants, both harmful and poisonous, enter the groundwater
systems through rain water.

The residue of agricultural practices, including fertilizers and pesticides, are

some of the major sources of water pollution.

Untreated pollutants are drained into the nearest water body, such as stream,
lake or harbor, causing water pollution.

Another major source of water pollution comprises of organic farm wastes.

When farm land, treated with pesticides and fertilizers, is irrigated, the
excess nitrogen and poisons get mixed into the water supply, thereby
contaminating it.

Pathogens, sediments and chemical pollutants are other sources of water

pollution.

The corporeal wastes produced by humans and farmed organisms pollute

rivers, lakes, oceans and other surface waters.

Harmful Effects Of Water Pollution

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.

Q12- What is solid waste? Explain the sources and effects of

solid waste.
A12-Solid or semi-solid, non-soluble material (including gases
and liquids in containers) such asagricultural refuse, demolition waste, industrial
waste, mining residues, municipal garbage, and sewage sludge.

Sources

Solid waste comes from various sources. The following are estimated percentages
for New York City. Municipal solid waste (residential, institutional, commercial,
and industrial): 55 to 60 percent by weight; construction and demolition waste: 15
to 20 percent (hazardous materials such as asbestos should be separated); sewage
sludge: 1 to 2 percent; medical waste (including potentially infectious material): 1
to 2 percent; and harbor debris: less than 1 percent. Dredge spoil can make up to 15
to 20 percent of the waste in a coastal city with a harbor. Other forms of waste that
can vary by location include agricultural waste, mining waste, and hazardous
waste.

Waste streams differ in the following attributes: (1) physical (e.g., compactibility,
density); (2) combustion (temperature, residual ash percentage, heat content in
BTUs); (3) chemical composition percentage of nitrogen, carbon, oxygen,
chlorine; and concentrations of toxic polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and
metals; (4) potential for recycling various components; and (5) ease of separation.

A comprehensive waste management program must combine a variety of social,

transportation, and treatment technologies. Social issues involve the acceptability
of particular programs such as mandatory recycling. Components, in order of
desirability, include prevention of wastes at the source; reuse, recycling, or
composting; energy recovery; and putting in a landfill only those materials not
amenable to other strategies. The plan should consider impacts on air quality, water
quality, traffic, noise, odor, socioeconomic effects, and community acceptance.

Developing and evaluating a comprehensive waste management system requires

confidence that existing health standards are adequately protective, that all
components are maintained and operated according to specifications, and that
monitoring and enforcement will work.

Effects

The solid waste that can create such a problem falls into nine categories. There is
garbage, which is your rotten banana peel or other food-related waste that can
decompose. Then there's the stuff that doesn't decay, like glass and metals. Ashes
from manufacturing operations and large debris like trees, as well as chemicals
from industrial, mining and agricultural ventures, are thrown into the mix. As
unpleasant as it is, dead animals and sewage are among the types of waste that
those in the disposal business concern themselves with. Looking at the types of
waste, it's easy to see the negative side effects associated with not discarding it in a
responsible manner.

When solid waste, from food remnants to chemical by-products from

manufacturing, isn't discarded properly it can have far-reaching consequences for
the environment and its natural vegetation and inhabitants, as well as for public
health. Usually proper solid waste management practices are in place, but
particularly in low-income areas or developing countries, those standards aren't
always practiced or, in some cases, are non-existent.

Q13- Write short notes on

1- Disaster management

Disaster is a sudden, calamitous event bringing great damage, loss, and destruction
and devastation to life and property. The damage caused by disasters is
immeasurable and varies with the geographical location, climate and the type of the
earth surface/degree of vulnerability. This influences the mental, socio-economic,
political and cultural state of the affected area. Generally, disaster has the following
effects in the concerned areas,
1. It completely disrupts the normal day to day life
2. It negatively influences the emergency systems
3. Normal needs and processes like food, shelter, health, etc. are affected and
deteriorate depending on the intensity
and severity of the disaster.
It may also be termed as a serious disruption of the functioning of society, causing
widespread human, material or environmental losses which exceed the ability of
the affected society to cope using its own resources.
Thus, a disaster may have the following main features:-
o Unpredictability
o Unfamiliarity
o Speed
o Urgency
 o Uncertainty
o Threat

Disaster management is a process or strategy that is implemented when any

type of catastrophic event takes place. Sometimes referred to as disaster
recovery management, the process may be initiated when anything threatens
to disrupt normal operations or puts the lives of human beings at risk.
Governments on all levels as well as many businesses create some sort
of disaster plan that make it possible to overcome the catastrophe and return
to normal function as quickly as possible.
One of the essential elements of disaster management involves defining the
types of catastrophes that could possibly disrupt the day to day operation of
a city, town, business, or country. Identifying those potential disasters
makes it possible to create contingency plans, assemble supplies, and create
procedures that can be initiated when and if a given disaster does come to
pass. A truly comprehensive disaster management plan will encompass a
wide range of possibilities that can easily be adapted in the event
one disaster sets off a chain reaction of other types of disasters in its wake.

b) Air pollution Control devices

The following items are commonly used as pollution control devices by industry or
transportation devices. They can either destroy contaminants or remove them from
an exhaust stream before it is emitted into the atmosphere.

Particulate control
Mechanical collectors (dust cyclones, multicyclones)

Electrostatic precipitators An electrostatic precipitator (ESP), or

electrostatic air cleaner is a particulate collection device that removes
particles from a flowing gas (such as air) using the force of an induced
electrostatic charge. Electrostatic precipitators are highly efficient filtration
devices that minimally impede the flow of gases through the device, and can
easily remove fine particulate matter such as dust and smoke from the air
stream.
Baghouses Designed to handle heavy dust loads, a dust collector
consists of a blower, dust filter, a filter-cleaning system, and a dust
 receptacle or dust removal system (distinguished from air cleaners which
utilize disposable filters to remove the dust).

Particulate scrubbersWet scrubber is a form of pollution control

technology. The term describes a variety of devices that use pollutants from
a furnace flue gas or from other gas streams. In a wet scrubber, the polluted
gas stream is brought into contact with the scrubbing liquid, by spraying it
with the liquid, by forcing it through a pool of liquid, or by some other
contact method, so as to remove the pollutants.

c) SOURCES AND EFFECTS OF RADIOACTIVE POLLUTION

Radioactive elements are those, which emit invisible radiations of their own
accord. This is called radioactivity. Some typical examples of radioactive elements
are uranium, thorium, plutonium, polonium etc.
Radiations emitted by radioactive elements consists of
Alpha particles (a-particles)
Beta-particles (b-particles)
Gamma rays (g-rays)
Radioactive materials emit high-energy radiation, which on exposure can be
harmful. The radiations are emitted,
During the processing of radioactive materials.
During the disposal of nuclear waste. Safe disposal of the nuclear wastes is a
big problem.
By the radiation leakage from the nuclear reactors, and other processes using
radioactive isotopes.
Exposure to radiations may,
Destroy the cell membrane.
Damage the enzymes, genes and chromosomes leading to the genetic
defects.
Cause diseases such as cancer and leukemia.
In nuclear power stations the release of radioactivity into atmosphere is strictly
controlled but disasters occur occasionally (Chernobyl in the erstwhile
Russia in 1986 and Three-mile Island in U.S.A. in 1979), seriously affecting
 the health safety of a large segment of population around the nuclear power
station.
Waste products from nuclear power stations etc. are becoming a serious problem.
They should be put where the radiation can do no harm. Unfortunately, there is no
way of stopping a radioactive nucleus from emitting radiation.
Nuclear energy has some advantages over fossil fuel such as coal and oil. The
burning of coal and oil can cause air pollution. Nuclear reactors do not add
pollutants to the air like fossil fuels. Also, a greater amount of energy can be
produced from a very small amount of nuclear fuel.
Nuclear power plants do require huge amounts of water to cool their reactors.
If this hot water is dumped into rivers or oceans, thermal pollution may
result. The heat can have a harmful effect on aquatic life. To protect the
environment, the water must be cooled before it is released. Large cooling
towers are built for this purpose. Accidental escape of radioactive material
from a nuclear power plant is another environmental problem. The radiation
could harm and kill plant and animal life. Overheating of the core radiation
could harm and kill plant and animal life. Overheating of the core
containing the nuclear fuel could result in the release of wastes into the air.
However, many mechanical safeguards are used to prevent over heating.

14. What is watershed? Critically discuss the objectives and practices of watershed
management.

The main process in a watershed is the hydrologic cycle which summarizes the
movement of water among surface water, air, land, and ground water. This process
governs the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of water ecosystems
in a watershed.
QUES-15 How do you define pollution as per Water (Prevention and Control of
Pollution) Act 1974? What are the salient features of the Act?

ANSWER-It provides for maintaining and restoring the wholesomeness of water

by preventing and controlling its pollution. According to this act1974 pollution is
defined as such contamination of water, or such alteration of the physical, chemical
or biological properties of water, or such discharge as is likely to cause a nuisance
or render the water harmful or injurious to public health and safety or harmful for
any other use or to aquatic plants and other organisms or animal life
.
The definition of water pollution has thus encompassed the entire probable agents
in water that may cause any harm or have a potential to harm any kind of life in
any way.
The salient features and provisions of the Act are summed up as follows:
I) it provides for maintenance and restoration of quality of all types of surface and
ground water.
ii) It provides for the establishment of Central and State Boards for pollution
control.
iii) It confers them with powers and functions to control pollution.

16. Write Short notes on

(i). Ozone layer depletion

Ozone depletion describes two distinct, but related observations: a slow, steady
decline of about 4 percent per decade in the total volume of ozone in Earth's
stratosphere (the ozone layer) since the late 1970s, and a much larger, but seasonal,
decrease in stratospheric ozone over Earth's polar regions during the same period.
The latter phenomenon is commonly referred to as the ozone hole. In addition to
this well-known stratospheric ozone depletion, there are also troposphere ozone
depletion events, which occur near the surface in Polar Regions during spring.

The detailed mechanism by which the polar ozone holes form is different from that
for the mid-latitude thinning, but the most important process in both trends is
catalytic destruction of ozone by atomic chlorine and bromine. The main source of
these halogen atoms in the stratosphere is photo dissociation of chlorofluorocarbon
(CFC) compounds, commonly called Freons, and of bromo fluorocarbon
compounds known as halons. These compounds are transported into the
stratosphere after being emitted at the surface. Both ozone depletion mechanisms
strengthened as emissions of CFCs and halons increased.

CFCs and other contributory substances are commonly referred to as ozone-

depleting substances (ODS). Since the ozone layer prevents most harmful UVB
wavelengths (270315 nm) of ultraviolet light (UV light) from passing through the
Earth's atmosphere, observed and projected decreases in ozone have generated
worldwide concern leading to adoption of the Montreal Protocol that bans the
production of CFCs and halons as well as related ozone depleting chemicals such
as carbon tetrachloride and trichloroethane. It is suspected that a variety of
biological consequences such as increases in skin cancer, cataracts, damage to
plants, and reduction of plankton populations in the ocean's photic zone may result
from the increased UV exposure due to ozone depletion.

(ii). Human rights

Human rights are "basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled."
Proponents of the concept usually assert that all humans are endowed with certain
entitlements merely by reason of being human. Human rights are thus conceived in
a Universalist and egalitarian fashion. Such entitlements can exist as shared norms
of actual human moralities, as justified moral norms or natural rights supported by
strong reasons, or as legal rights either at a national level or within international
law. However, there is no consensus as to precise nature of what in particular
should or should not be regarded as a human right in any of the preceding senses,
and the abstract concept of human rights has been a subject of intense
philosophical debate and criticism.

The modern conception of human rights developed in the aftermath of the Second
World War, in part as a response to the Holocaust, culminating in the signing of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly
in 1948. However, while the phrase "human rights" is relatively modern the
intellectual foundations of the modern concept can be traced through the history of
philosophy and the concepts of natural lawrights and liberties as far back as the
city states of Classical Greece and the development of Roman Law. The true
forerunner of human rights discourse was the enlightenment concept of natural
rights developed by figures such as John Locke and Immanuel Kant and through
the political realm in the in the United States Bill of Rights and the Declaration of
the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are
endowed with reason and conscience` and should act towards one another in a
spirit of brotherhood

(iii). Rain water harvesting

Rainwater harvesting is the gathering, or accumulating and storing, of rainwater.

[1]
Rainwater harvesting has been used to provide drinking water, water for
livestock, water for irrigation or to refill aquifers in a process called
groundwater recharge. Rainwater collected from the roofs of houses, tents and
local institutions, or from specially prepared areas of ground, can make an
important contribution to drinking water. In some cases, rainwater may be the
only available, or economical, water source. Rainwater systems are simple to
construct from inexpensive local materials, and are potentially successful in
most habitable locations. Roof rainwater can be of good quality and may not
require treatment before consumption. However some rooftop materials may
produce rainwater that is harmful to human health. Household rainfall
catchment systems are appropriate in areas with an average rainfall greater than
200mm per year, and no other accessible water sources (Skinner and Cotton,
1992).

There are a number of types of systems to harvest rainwater ranging from very
simple to the complex industrial systems. Generally, rainwater is either
harvested from the ground or from a roof. The rate at which water can be
collected from either system is dependent on the plan area of the system, its
efficiency, and the intensity of rainfall.

Q16-What is environmental science?How would environment awareness help to

protect our environment?

ANS-As today population and pollution is increasing day by day so this is

harming our environment so we need to know how to prevent it so
environmental studies gives us this information.
 We study environmental study because it gives us the information about the
natural resources like plants, trees as today human beings are wasting these
resources without thinking about future .This subject gives us the
information about ecology that is wild life as today there population is
decreasing day by day. Human activities like hunting etc are the main factors
for this decreasing. By this subject we can know about different steps to
control pollution like less use of paper bags, less wastage of water, less use
of paper etc.Forests are one of the most important natural resources on this
earth. They act as a life for human beings, wild life. Forests are home to wild
life. Commercial uses of forests are like paper, oxygen, construction.
Water is very important for everybody plants, animals ,human beings etc.But
today nobody is thinking about this important
resource water is being wasted everywhere About 97% of the earths surface is
covered with water
Renewable resources should be used at a larger scale as they can be used again
and again like wind energy, solar energy etc.

We can aware general public by putting banners, by organizing rallies, by

organizing debates, by teaching students in school and colleges.

Q17: - what are the alternative sources of energy? Describe any

2 of them?
An: - The term "alternative" presupposes a set of undesirable energy technologies
against which "alternative energies" are opposed. As such, the list of energy
technologies excluded is an indicator of what problems that the alternative
technologies are intended to address. Controversies regarding dominant sources of
energy and their alternatives have a long history. The nature of what was a
regarded alternative energy source has changed considerably, and today because of
the variety of energy choices and differing goals of their advocates, defining some
energy types as "alternative" is highly controversial.

In general, alternative energy is that which is produced without the undesired

consequences of the burning of fossil fuels, such as high carbon dioxide emissions,
the major contributing factor of global warming according to the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Sometimes, the less comprehensive
meaning of "alternative energy" also excludes nuclear energy.

Example:-Coal as an alternative to wood , Alcohol as alternative to fossil fuels ,

Coal gasification as alternative to expensive petroleum , Renewable energy as
alternative to non-renewable energy.

Explanation:-

1) Petroleum as an alternative to whale oil

Whale oil was the dominant form of lubrication and fuel for lamps in the early 19th
century, but by midcentury and the depletion of the whale stocks, whale oil prices
were skyrocketing and could not compete with the newly discovered source of
cheap petroleum from Pennsylvania in 1859.

2) Alcohol as alternative to fossil fuels

Main article: Ethanol fuel

In 1917, Alexander Graham Bell advocated ethanol from corn and other foodstuffs
as an alternative to coal and oil, stating that the world was in measurable distance
of depleting these fuels. For Bell, the problem requiring an alternative was lack of
renewability of orthodox energy sources[14].Since the 1970s, Brazil has had an
ethanol fuel program which has allowed the country to become the world's second
largest producer of ethanol (after the United States) and the world's largest
exporter.[15] Brazils ethanol fuel program uses modern equipment and cheap
sugar cane as feedstock, and the residual cane-waste (bagasse) is used to process
heat and power.[16] There are no longer light vehicles in Brazil running on pure
gasoline. By the end of 2008 there were 35,000 filling stations throughout Brazil
with at least one ethanol pump.

Cellulosic ethanol can be produced from a diverse array of feed stocks, and
involves the use of the whole crop. This new approach should increase yields and
reduce the carbon footprint because the amount of energy-intensive fertilizers and
fungicides will remain the same, for a higher output of usable material.[18][19] As
of 2008, there are nine commercial cellulosic ethanol plants which are either
operating, or under construction, in the United States.

Q18: - discuss productive, consumptive and protective function

of forest . What are the major causes of deforestation and its
after types?
An: - Global wood harvest is about 3 billion m3 and has been rather stable in the
last 15 years (FAO, 2006a). Undoubtedly, the amount of wood removed is higher,
as illegally wood removal is not recorded. About 60% of removals are industrial
round wood; the rest is wood fuel (including fuel wood and charcoal). The most
wood removal in Africa and substantial proportions in Asia and South America are
non-commercial wood fuels. Recently, commercial biomass for bioenergy received
a boost because of the high oil prices and the government policies initiated to
promote renewable energy sources.

Although accounting for only 5% of global forest cover, forest plantations were
estimated in 2000 to supply about 35% of global round wood harvest and this
percentage is expected to increase (FAO, 2006a). Thus, there is a trend towards
concentrating the harvest on a smaller forest area. Meeting societys needs for
timber through intensive management of a smaller forest area creates opportunities
for enhanced forest protection and conservation in other areas, thus contributing to
climate change mitigation. With rather stable harvested volumes, the manufacture
of forest products has increased as a result of improved processing efficiency.
Consumption of forest products is increasing globally, particularly in Asia.
In Asia there is a large use of forest products. And this causes various harmful
effects to the environment.

In many parts of the world, agricultural growth has contributed to natural habitat
loss, Particularly in forest areas and in grassland. This has generally happened
through Extension of agriculture systems into frontier zones particularly with
clearing of Forests and natural vegetation for increasing food production. The
expansion of Agriculture into frontier areas and conversion to monoculture farming
systems further Reduces or erodes biodiversity of flora and fauna in the habitat
landscapes . For example, the conversion of forests to monoculture pastures and
introduction of homogenous livestocks have been wide spread in America and in
parts of Africa, resulting in significant decline of biodiversity. These trends are tied
up with the adverse effect on natural resources such as, soil erosion, soil fertility
depletion, and water depletion resulting in deterioration of productivity.
Nevertheless, in some regions of Kerala, there were community-based ecosystems
like mangrove ecosystems, which are special ecosystems with an association of
trees, shrubs, vines and epiphytes with ability to withstand regular flooding. In
back waters of Cochin these have been gradually transformed into highly
productive systems based on rice during winter monsoon, and prawn and fish
during southwest monsoon through intercropping with coconut, cocoa, pepper,
vine, other spices and garden vegetables. Rice,
fish and prawn continue to be produced during alternate period of solar year. It has
achieved conservation of mangrove, the water for production of fish, prawn and
rice. In addition, new species of plants and animals are added to the diversity of
the area. This has resulted in breeding important material through induced
resistance, such as salinity tolerant varieties in rice. Such wise ecological
management has insured food, shelter and schools for a state with the highest
population density and highest rate of literacy in India. Unfortunately, the recent
developments are taking its toll and the ill-advised development plans may
permanently ruin such systems. Deforestation or loss of habitat has following
primary implications 1. Loss of wild species 2.Removal of vegetation affecting
breeding areas and reducing shelter and sources of food. This may also change
species composition in the area 3. Fragmentation of habitats with patches of intact
and degraded lands that may harm the ecosystem, change nutrient supply and m
microclimatic regimes and species composition.
4. Reduction in the rate of forest regeneration
In addition, deforestation adds to the social costs to society because it results in:
1. Disruption of ecosystem functions such as, water supply/ filtration provisions,
cycling of nutrients and benefits of beneficial insects, flora, fauna that are vital for
the life.
2. Loss of diversity of natural species and their products that can adversely affect
the
supply of valuable natural non-timber products such as, medicines, honey, fibres,
fodder, fuel, food etc.

Q19 :- write a short note on water conflict in india ? impact

minerals extraction on enviourment ?
An : - all thought our earth is covered by 70% of water then also there are water
conflicts . it is all because of not well and planned way of using the water.
The Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal Dispute
The issue of sharing the Ravi-Beas waters and SYL issue
between Punjab and Haryana is being discussed time and again
and the case is in the Supreme Court. The Eradi Tribunal (1985)
based the allocation of water on the basis of the time-inflow data
of 20 years (1960-80), according to which 17.17 MAF (million
acre feet) water was available. However, now it is argued by
Punjab that in the last 17 years there has been consistent decline
reducing the quantity to 14.34 MAF. The Supreme Court on
January 15, 2002 directed Punjab to complete and commission the
SYL within a year, failing which the center was told to complete
it. However, two years have passed, but neither the SYL has been
16
completed nor the conflict over sharing of Ravi-Beas water is
resolved.
The conflict is that Punjab being the riparian state for Beas,
Ravi and Satluj stakes its claim, Haryana has faced acute shortage
of water after it became a state in 1966 and has been trying to help
it out by signing an MOU (Memorandum of understanding) with
UP, Rajasthan and Delhi for allocation of Yamuna waters. The
Yamuna basin covers the state of Haryana while the Indus basin
covers Punjab.
The conflict revolving around sharing of river water needs to be
talked with greater understanding and objectivity.

For centuries it has been known that mining produces a range of harmful side-
effects - and that they can be ameliorated. The first European textbook on mines
and quarries, written by Georgius Agricola in 1550, considered the case against
mineral extraction and concluded:

The strongest argument of the detractors is that the fields are devastated by mining
operations, for which reason formerly Italians were warned by law that no one
should dig the earth for metals and so injure their very fertile fields, their
vineyards, and their olive groves... And when the woods and groves are felled, then
are exterminated the beasts and birds, very many of which furnish a pleasant and
agreeable food for man. Further, when the ores are washed, the water which has
been used poisons the brooks and streams, and either destroys the fish or drives
them away... Thus it is said, it is clear to all that there is greater detriment from
mining than the value of the metals which the mining produces (Agricola 1912
edn.).

Whilst mining continues, the environmental side-effects are wholly undesirable.

But when working has ceased, beneficial side effects arise. Agricola knew this:

Moreover, as the miners dig almost exclusively in mountains otherwise

unproductive, and in valleys invested in gloom, they do either slight damage to the
fields or none at all. Lastly, where woods and glades are cut down, they may be
sown with grain after they have been cleared from the roots of shrubs and trees.
These new fields soon produce rich crops, so that they repair the losses which the
inhabitants suffer from increased cost of timber (Agricola 1912 edn. 14).

There are three crucial points:

Mineral operations cause great environmental harm.

When finished, mining can leave land in a pitiful condition.

Mining can create valuable new land characteristics.

To save Europe and America's mineral industries from extinction, operators must
learn:

tominimise environmental harm while working proceeds

to create post-quarrying landscapes which are self-evidently as good as the pre-
quarrying landscapes

to achieve these goals by imaginative planning and design, rather than exorbitant
expenditure

Q 20}.What is ecologicalsuccession?Explain the causes,types and process of

succession.
The occurrence of relatively definite sequence of communities over a period of
time in the same area resulting in establishment of final complex
community is called ecological succession or biotic succession.

CAUSES OF ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION

1. Initiating causes. These can be divided into two categories:-

(a) Biotic factors. These are the interactions among the organisms in a community.
These influence the structure,composition and function of a community.
(b) Physiographic factors. These include the physical and chemical factors of the
environment e.g. erosion and deposits, hails and storms, wind, fire etc.caused by
lightening or volcanic activity which influence the nature
and composition of community.
2. Continuing causes (ecesis). These include migration, establishment,
aggregation, competition, reaction etc.These result in changes leading to
successive waves of populations of organisms.
3. Stabilising causes. These result in stabilisation of the
community.

BASIC TYPES OF SUCCESSION

On the basis of different aspects, succession is of following
types: -
1. Primary succession.
The one that begins on the primitive substratum e.g. a bare rock or pure sand or
static water or where conditions are inhospitable for organisms to live is known as
primary succession. The first group of organisms establishing there
are known as the pioneers or primary community or primary colonisers.
2. Secondary succession.
The one that begins at a surface which earlier had living matter, but because of
external or internal disturbances it got lost either completely or partially is called
secondary succession. Such successions are comparatively more
rapid.
3. Autogenic succession (auto self ; genic to generate).After the succession has
begun (whether primary or secondary), it is the community itself, in most cases,
which modifies its own environment (due to its reactions with the
environment) and thus causing its own replacement by new communities. This type
of succession is called autogenic
succession.
4. Allogenic succession.
In certain situations, the replacement of existing community is caused by the
external agencies (may be abiotic e.g. rainfall, drought, temperature extremes,
erosion, leaching or biotic e.g. grazing, browsing, pathogens). Such type of
succession is called allogenic succession.

PROCESS OF SUCCESSION
Primary autotrophic succession, in fact, is completed through a number of
sequential steps. These are
1. Nudation. The first step is the creation of bare area through any of the natural
agencies such as wind, erosion, landslide, volcanic eruptions, floods, drought,
storm, frost, fire, epidemic, human activities etc.
2. Invasion and dispersal. The first settlers on the bare area invade the said area
through abiotic mode (wind, water) or biotic mode (along with the bodies of other
animals). This transfer of seeds, spores or other propagules of the first
settler species to the bare area is called migration.
3. Establishment or ecesis. The species which get invaded to
the bare area must grow, establish and reproduce for successful succession. This
depends largely on the characteristics of subtratum; climatic and other
environmental factors of the area. Those species which are adjusted to this
situation ultimately get established. As a result of ecesis, individuals of the species
become established in the area.
4. Aggregation. After ecesis, the individuals of the species increase in number by
reproduction and they get close to each other. This process is called aggregation.
5. Competition and coaction. Initially, many species invade the bare area
simultaneously. However, those which find environment favourable ultimately
establish and get aggregated at the limited available area. This results in
interspecificas well as intraspecific competition mainly for space and nutrition.
Various kinds of interspecific and intraspecific interactions affect the individuals of
species in various ways- called coaction. The species which are
unable to compete are ultimately discarded. Survival of the species is governed by
a combination of factors like high reproductive ability, wide ecological amplitudes,
small seed size and large number of seeds per plant as well as
allelopathic properties of plants.
6. Reaction. The living organisms reciprocally influence and get influenced by the
environment. This is known as reaction. As a result of reaction, changes takes
place in soil, water, light conditions, temperature etc. of the area.
Thus, the environment of the area gets modified, becoming unsuitable for the
existing community which in course of time gets replaced by another community
(seral community). This process goes on and the various
developing communities in the given area are called seral communities or
developmental stages.
7. Stabilization (climax). This is the terminal stage of the process of succession.
The final community becomes more or less stabilized for a longer period of time
and it can maintain itself in perfect equilibrium with climatic and
edaphic conditions of the area. This final community is called climax community
and the stage as climax stage.

Q 21}.Define ecosystem.Explain the

types,characteristicfeature,structure and functions of aquatic
ecosystem.
Ecosystem may be defined as any unit which includes all the living
organisms(i.e. biotic communities) in a given area interacting with the
physical environment(e.g. water, air, soil etc) by means of food chains and
chemical cycles resulting in energy flow, biotic diversity and material
cycling within the system.
AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM
These include fresh water and marine ecosystems. Fresh water ecosystems are
of further three types: -
1. Lentic (Standing water) e.g. ponds, lakes.
2. Lotic (running water) e.g. rivers, streams.
3. Wetlands e.g. marshes, swamps and bogs.
Marine ecosystems include
1. Open Ocean (pelagic)
2. Upwelling regions
3. Coastal ecosystems e.g. estuaries, welands, coral reefs,
mangrooves.
I. POND ECOSYSTEM
Main components of pond ecosystem have been described at length earlier in this
unit. Zonation of the pond ecosystem is similar to that of lake ecosystem with the
exception that ponds are shallow water bodies while lakes are deep water bodies.
Various zones are explained below in lake ecosystem: -
II. LAKE ECOSYSTEM
Lakes are large natural standing water bodies formed when precipitation, land-
runoff and flowing water fills the depressions in the earth. Lakes consist of four
distinct zones which provide a variety of habitats and ecological niches for
different types of organisms. These zones are: -
(a) Littoral zone. It includes the shore and the shallow water zone. It contains a
variety of free floating producers, rooted plants and fauna e.g. frogs, snails, snakes
etc. This region is rich in nutrients and adequate sunlight is available.
(b) Limnetic zone. This zone includes open water zone of the surface layer which
receives enough sunlight for photosynthesis and therefore harbours variety of
phytoplanktons; Besides, plant-eating zooplankton and fish
are also abudant in this zone.
(c) Profundal zone. It is deep, open water zone. Fishes adapted to cold and darker
water are found in this region.
(d) Benthic zone. It is the bottom of the lake. The organisms abundantly found in
this zone include decomposers,detritus feeding clams and worm-like insect larvae.
Decomposers act on dead organic matter to recycle inorganic substances for their
availability to the producers. In the lake, eutrophication takes place due to input of
nutrients from the surrounding areas. Most lakes are subject to
cultural eutrophication due to addition of nitrates and phosphates, sewage and
industrial wastes.
A. Abiotic component. Inorganic and organic substances found dissolved in water
and in the mud in shore region as well as at the bottom of the sea constitute abiotic
component. Climatic factor is its another component that
includes temperature, pH, availability of sunlight etc.
B. Biotic component. It comprises the following:
(a) Producers. Variety of free-floating phytoplanktons, rooted plants, submerged
plants etc are the producers. They are predominant in littoral and limnetic zone.
(b) Consumers. These are of many types: -
(i) Primary consumers. There are the herbivores e.g. zooplankton which feed on
producers,
(ii) Secondary consumers. These feed on primary consumers and include insect
larvae, small and large fish. Sometimes, large fishes feed on small fish and thus
occupy the position of tertiary consumers.
(iii) Decomposers. Some species of bacteria and fungi, detritus feeding clams etc
are the decomposers found in benthic zone of lake. They act on dead organic
matter.
III. OPEN SEAS
These include the waters beyond the depth of about 200 meters from the shore.
Major oceans of the world cover approximately 70% of the earth surface. Each
ocean represents a very large and stable ecosystem. Physical features like
temperature, pressure and dissolved oxygen content vary greatly with the depth of
the ocean.
The open sea has three regions: -
1. Photic region
2. Aphotic region

3. Abyssal region
Photic region contains phytoplanktons and zooplanktons.Nektonsare found both in
photic and aphotic zones. The abyssal region is inhabited by predators. The benthic
fauna is comprised mainly of consumers, scavengers and
decomposers.
Biotic components of ocean ecosystem are
(a) Producers. These trap radiant energy of the sun with the help of photosynthetic
pigments and convert solar energy into chemical energy. Producers are mainly
phytoplanktons e.g. diatoms, dinoflagellates and algae (green, brown and
red).
(b) Consumers. These are heterotrophic macroconsumers.
These are: -
(i) Primary consumers. e.g. crustaceans, molluscs, fish etc that feed on producers.
(ii) Secondary consumers. These are carnivores e.g. fishes such as Herring. Shad,
Macherelthat feed on herbivores.
(iii) Tertiary consumers. These are other carnivorous fishes which feed on
secondary consumers e.g. Haddock, Cod etc.
(iv) Decomposers. Bacteria and fungi are the micro-organisms that feed on dead
organic matter of producers and macroconsumers.
IV. ESTUARIES
Mouths of rivers or coastal bays are commonly known as estuaries. Estuary waters
are very fertile. It is so because in this region minerals as well as oxygen,
carbondioxide and light areavailable in plenty. The estuary water is less saline
because of more wave action and rapid circulation of nutrients. Estuaries therefore
have more species diversity than the fresh water up the river or adjoining sea
region.Biotic component of estuaries include planktons (producers), nektons (e.g.
bony fishes) and benthic organisms (e.g. rooted plants, clams, snails, prawns,
crabs, skates and rays).

Phytoplanktons and rooted plants are the producers. These are, in turn, eaten up
by zooplankton which are subsequently consumed by secondary consumers like
small and large fish. Clams, bacteria and fungi are the decomposers present in
benthic region and feeding on dead organic matter.

Q 22}.What is food chain and food web?Explain with the help

of suitable examples.
In any given ecosystem, all the living organisms (plants and animals) are linked in
a systematic chain with respect to their mode of manufacturing food/feeding habits
(Fig. 3.2). For instance, in a grassland ecosystem, the entire stock of green plants
(herbs, shrubs and trees) manufacture food (producers) by utilizing the radiant
energy of the sun by the process of photosynthesis. These autotrophs are eaten up
by plant eaters i.e. herbivores which, in turn, constitute the food of firstlevel
(primary) carnivores. The primary carnivores are subsequently eaten up by
middle (secondary) and top level(tertiary) carnivores. Here, one finds that
beginning With the producers, onward to herbivores, first level carnivores, middle
level carnivores and top level carnivores, all organisms are interlinked in a definite
sequence. This sequential inter-linking oforganisms involving the transfer of
food energy from theproducers, through a series of organisms with repeated
eatingand being eaten is referred to as the food chain. It is important to mention
that food chain is always straight and proceeds in a progressive straight line.

Food web is a network of food chains which become inter-connected at

various trophic levels so as to form a number of feeding connections amongst
different organisms of a biotic community. Unlike food chains, food webs are
never straight.Interlocking pattern in a food web is promoted by the fact that
asingle living organism may participate at different trophic levels in
different food chains. For instance, in grassland ecosystem, the grass may be eaten
by the grazing cattle. In the absence of grazing cattle in the biotic community,
grass may be eaten by a rabbit or in the absence of both, rat or mouse may
consume the grass. Similarly, rat or mouse may be eaten by predatory birds or
snakes. Snakes may also be eaten by predatory birds. To sum up, alternatives are
available in nature which result in a sort of interlocking pattern or the food web.
Thus, in food webs any given species may operate simultaneously at more than one
trophic level.

23. Differentiate between:-

In-situ and Ex-situ

In situ is protecting a endangered animal on site, or in its habitat, ex situ is when an

endangered species is out of its habitat and is being conserved.

In-situ conservation means "on-site conservation". It is the process of protecting an

endangered plant or animal species in its natural habitat, either by protecting or
cleaning up the habitat itself, or by defending the species from predators.

Ex-situ conservation means literally, "off-site conservation". It is the process of

protecting an endangered species of plant or animal by removing part of the
population from a threatened habitat and placing it in a new location, which may
be a wild area or within the care of humans.

Ex situ conservation is frequently perceived as a static process, but genetic change

can occur (Wood and Lenne, 1997). Cold storage of accessions is stable, with little,
if any, genetic change occurring (Roberts, 1975). However, stored seed is not
viable indefinitely and must be regenerated. To produce fresh seed true to its
parental genetic composition and as genetically diverse as possible, a population is
planted and seed is produced using controlled pollination where necessary. During
this process, genetic change can occur because of both genetic drift and selection
in the regeneration environment, a phenomenon commonly referred to as "genetic
shift." Population genetic models establish clear guidelines for maintaining
maximum diversity during regeneration (Crossa, 1989). Similar models (Crossa et
al., 1993, 1994) also guide collection methods. It is important to note that a
population conserved ex situ can never be more diverse than the genetic material
originally collected in the field. However, in the early years of ex situ conservation,
the emphasis of collection focused on phenotypic diversity--conserving varieties,
and perhaps less critically, genetic diversity within them. As knowledge of the
molecular genetics of individuals and populations has grown, the goals and
methods of ex situ conservation of cross-pollinated plant species have shifted
subtly to focus on capturing and maintaining maximum allelic diversity within
varieties and populations (Wang et al., 2004).
In situ, or on-farm, conservation allows crops to evolve dynamically with farmers'
needs and the changing environment. However, it is relatively risky, as crops may
be lost to a host of environmental and economic influences. Increasingly, studies
use interdisciplinary approaches to understand the complex socioeconomic,
agronomic, and genetic decisions involved in farmers' seed management Though
few studies have compared the effects of in situ and ex situ conservation, Parzies et
al. (2000) found a decline in genetic diversity within barley accessions related to
length of ex situ storage and regeneration, while Soleri and Smith (1995) found
phenotypic differences between varieties of Hopi maize conserved in situ and ex
situ.

National Parks and Sanctuaries

A sanctuary is a "place of safety." A wildlife sanctuary is a place where wildlife can
live, or pause during migration, and be protected from most human-created
disturbances.

By definition, a National Park is a tract of land managed by the National Park

Service (US Department of the Interior). Many national parks are also wildlife
sanctuaries in that they protect wildlife and their habitat. As mandated by the
Congressional Act that formed the National Park Service, National parks must also
allow for visitors to access the land and the wildlife, but other wildlife sanctuaries
do not necessarily imply easy access for people. Other federal, state, local, or
private groups can set aside and manage "sanctuaries" also. Marshes are commonly
set aside as wildlife sanctuaries because they provide important habitat for
numerous species and are not easily accessible by people anyway.

More than anything the difference between a sanctuary and a national park is a
question of what agency manages the land and exactly how the land is used:
national parks are managed by the National Park Service, and "sanctuaries," a
much broader and non-specific term, may be included within parks or other lands
(or not) and can be managed by any kind of agency or private institution.

NATIONAL PARK: A national park is a reserve of land, usually, but not always
declared and owned by a national government, protected from most human
development and pollution. National parks are protected areas of IUCN
category II. WILDLIFE SANCTUARY: A Wildlife Sanctuary is a reservation
where animals or birds are sheltered for breeding purposes and may not be
hunted or trapped A National Park can be, but is not always a Wildlife
Sanctuary and is government owned and operated. A Wildlife Sanctuary can be
privately owned.
National park is for conservation of a particular animal or bird. E.g. Jim Corbett
national park for tiger
Sanctuary is for conserving many animals in general

24 How is biodiversity valuable for human beings? Explain in

brief.
India is one of the Mega diversity nations out of 12 countries in the world which
are rich in biodiversity. It has valuable gene pool upon which the foundation of
modern agriculture, horticulture, silviculture, pisciculture, poultry, piggery and
dairy is built. The country has 45,000 wild species of plants and over 81,251 wild
species of animals have so far beenrecorded.
India is located between 8-30N and 60-97.5E longitude/latitude with
geographical area of 32,87, 591 sq. km. It is lying at the junction of Afro-tropical,
Euro-Asian and the Indo-
Malayan bio geographic realms. India occupies a significant position in the world.
The country is rich in biodiversity with endemic flora and fauna. Richness in
biodiversity of India is mainly due to its favourable environmental conditions.
Climatic conditions vary from the humid tropical Western Ghats to the hot deserts
of Rajasthan, from the cold deserts of Ladakh and the icy mountains of Himalayas
to the warm costs of peninsular India.

The flora and fauna information is not yet complete. Many species present in the
country needs more identification and discovery. The Western Ghats in peninsular
India and southern states are rich in species diversity. There are about 17,000 sp.
Of flowering plants out of which 4,050 species are present in Western Ghats of
Kerala.

25 With the suitable examples explain how poaching and

human-wildlife conflicts are responsible for biodiversity
depletion?
Ans.- There is a great conflict between local communities and the wildlife
protecting bodies. The protection of wildlife areas is an indirect conflict with the
economic interests of local communities. The rural communities have not only lost
their wildlife resources, but they also bear the full costs of crop damages caused by
migrating wildlife. With rising rural populations and increased poverty the
situation has deteriorated in the recent years. Hunting, harvesting and illegal
encroachment are the only available means of securing income. Local populations
are not directly involved in these activities, but their alienation
From wildlife resources, forces them to oppose the exploitation of these resources
by others
Wildlife is totally related with the forest. Forests are one of the most important
natural resources on this earth. Covering the earth like a green blanket these forests
not only produce innumerable material goods, but also provide several
environmental services which are essential for life.
First example- humans have depended heavily on Forests for food, medicine,
shelter, wood and fuel. With growing Civilization the demands for raw material
like timber, pulp materials as lumbar, plywood and hardwood, particle board and
chipboard. One sixth of the wood harvest is converted into pulp and used for paper
industry. So due to these reasons the wildlife is greatly affected and so responsible
for biodiversity depletion.
Second example-Many forest lands are used for Mining, agriculture, grazing, and
recreation and for development so due to these reasons
Of dams.
26 Discuss the salient features of the hot-spots of Eastern
Himalayas and the Western Ghats.
Ans- EASTERN HIMALYAS-These areas are rich in biodiversity due to warm and
wet climatic conditions. Forests in foothills contain Archicarps, Shore, and
Dipterocarpus.
Lower slopes in eastern Himalayas. Tropical semievergreenforests consisting of
Michelia, Champaca,Dysoxylum, Canarium, Litser, Mangier, Castanopsisand
Terminalia.Sub tropical hill forests are present in patches and contain Quercus,
Bhoebe, Schimaand Castanopsis. Moist temperate forests are present between the
altitudesof 1800 - 3000 m and contain Magnolia, Schimaand MachilusDry
temperate forests are found in Sikkim and
contain coniferous trees having species of Picea, Tsuga,Larixand Abies. Moist
alpine scrubs are present above3000 meter. They are rich in orchids and have 600
species
WESTERN GHATS-Tropical moist deciduous forests contain species of Dalbergia,
Terminalia, Pterocarpus etc. Tropical semi-evergreen forest are present in a narrow
north-south strip of ghat. It includes species of Trewia,Hopea, Langerstroemia,
Xylia, Dalbergia, Holoptelia,Ficusand Adina etc. Tropical wet evergreen forests are
present in Karnataka and Kerala. They contain species of Cullenia, Dysoxylum,
Dipterocarpus, Calophyllum, Toona,
Persea, Canes and Canariumetc.Montane wet temperate.

27 India is a mega biodiversity region. Justify it.

ANS- The country is rich in biodiversity with endemic flora and fauna. Richness in
biodiversity of India is mainly due to its favourable environmental conditions.
Climatic conditions vary from the humid tropical Western Ghats to the hot deserts
of Rajasthan, from the cold deserts of Ladakh and the icy mountains of Himalayas
to the warm costs of peninsular India.
Some important characteristic of Indias biodiversity are as
follows:-
1. The country has 497 wild life sancturies, 89 national parks, 27 tiger reserves, 13
biosphere reserves, 6 wetlands and 5 world heritage site.
2. The country has two major realms namely Palaeoarctic and the Indo-Malayan
and three biomes namely the tropical humid forests, the tropical deciduous forests
and the warm semidesertss.
3. 5. The country is very rich in faunal wealth too. It has 81,251animal species out
of which about 75 percent are insects, 4912 vertebrates and 15996 are
invertebrates.

28 Write a note on bio-geographical classification of India.

BIOGEOGRAPHICAL CLASSIFICATION OF INDIA
The study of biota with regard to their origin, environmental interrelationships and
distribution is called Biogeography. There are about ten bio geographical areas in
India with respect to faunal diversity which are as follows:-

TransHimalaya:- It extends upto 186,200 sq. km. In the cold and arid
regions of Ladakh and LahulSpiti. It has alpine vegetation. The faunal
community includes wild sheep, goats, yak, tibetan ass, gazelle antelope,
snow leopard, tibetan wolf, marbled cat, pika and marmot. Avifauna includes
black-necked crane. It has two protected areas.
Himalaya:- It covers about 236,300 sq.km. in Himalayas. Faunal diversity
includes muntjue, sambar, wild bear, huskdeer, serow, koklas, pheasants,
goral, snow leopard, brownbear and snowcock, Sikkim Stag have become
extinct while tahr, markhor and western tragopan are under extinction. It has
56 protected areas.
Desert (Kutch and Thar):- It covers about 225,00 sq.km. area. These
ecosystems are very fragile in nature because of erodeness. The faunal
diversity includes sand grouse 103 species, bustard, desert cat, desert fox,
wild ass etc. Here, 89 sq.kmofarea is protected.
Semiarid:- It covers about 508,000 sq.km. Endemic species of this area is
lion of Gir. It has 52 protected areas having a tiger reserve in Sariska and
Ranthambhor.
Western Ghats:- It covers about 159,000 sq. km. It consists of 4000 plants
species, out of which 1800 species are endemic. Here amphibian species are
endemic. Travancore tortoise and Crane turtle are under threat. It has 44
protected areas.
 Deccan Penninsula:- It covers about 1,421,000 sq.km. The faunal diversity
includes gairsambar, sloth bear, tiger, leopard, chital, chowsingha, wild bear,
barasingha, wild buffalo, and wild elephants. It has about 115 protected
areas.
Gangetic Plains:- It covers about 359,400 sq.km. The faunal diversity
includes elephants, barasingha, blackbuck, rhino, gazzela, bengalflorican,
crocodile and turtle. It has 25 protected areas.
Marine Coast:- It includes mangrove vegetation and the faunal diversity
includes dugong, hump-back, inshore dolphin, marine and estuarine turtles,
estuarine and salt water crocodile and tiger.
North East:- It covers about 1880 sq.km. It containsswamps, grasslands and
fringe forests where the faunal diversity includes elephant, rhino, buffalo,
swamp deer, hog deer, pygmy hog and hispid hare. It has 17 protected
areas.
Indian Islands:- It covers about 708 Sq.km. It contains 2200 species of
higher plants out of which 200 are endemic. The avifauna contains about
225 species out of which 112 species are endemic. It has 100 protected
areas.

BIOGEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS WITH RESPECT TO

FLORAL DIVERSITY
Botanical survey of India (BSI) has divided India into following phytogeographical
regions:-

North Western Himalayas:-It ranges from central region, in the foot hills of
the north western Himalaya. It is present in the sub tropical dry evergreen
pine forests. It includes species of Olea, Punia, Acacia and Astaciaetc. In the
lower altitudes. It includes pines, quercus, and rhododendron. Moist
temperate zone forest includes Abies,Quercus, Cedrus, Piceaand Acer.
Coniferous forest includes Pinus, Taxus, Betula, Piceaand Tsuga. Dry
temperate forest contains pines, cedrus, acer, fraxims, quercus, celtis and
Olea. In sub-alpine zone Pinus, Abies,Picea, Taxus, Betulaand rosaceous
plants are the dominant floral community. In moist alpine scrubs, Betula,
Rhododendron, Loniceraand Berberisare the mainspecies. Juniperus,
Lonicera, Artemisia are the main floralcommunity in dry alpine scrubs.
 Eastern Himalaya:- These areas are rich in biodiversitydue to warm and wet
climatic conditions. Forests in foothills contain Artocarpus, Shorea, and
Dipterocarpus. Lower slopes in eastern
HimalayasTropicalsemievergreenforests consisting of Michelia, Champaca,
Dysoxylum, Canarium, Litser, Mangifera, CastanopsisTerminalia. Sub
tropical hill forests are present in patchesand contain Quercus, Bhoebe,
Schima and CastanopsisMoist temperate forests are present between the
altitudesof 1800 - 3000 m and contain Magnolia, SchimaandMachilusDry
temperate forests are found in Sikkim andcontain coniferous trees having
species of Picea, Tsuga, Larixand Abies. Moist alpine scrubs are present
above3000 meter. They are rich in orchids and have 600 species
Western Arid Regions:- It has four types of habitatconditions (i)
Sandunes(ii) Rocky (iii) Saline depressionsand (iv) Sandy plains and dunes
having very sparsevegetation. Sandy plains contain trees of Acacia,
Prosopisand bushy plants like Aerva, Colligonum, Capparis,
CrotalariaRocksinclude Gymnosporia, Zizyphus, Cassia, Calotropis,
Indigofera, Phoenix, bushes of Euphorbia andGrewia, Prosopis, Acacia etc.
Saline depressions includeSalvadoraand Tamarix.
Gangetic plains:- It covers east Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Bengal.
Tropical moist deciduous forests are moist in nature and contain
Shorearobusta, Adina, Kydia,Litsea, Syzygiumand Mallotusetc. Tropical dry
deciduous forests are larger in area and include species of Anogeissus,
Terminalia, Acacia and Aegleetc. Tall grases like Themeda, Saccharum,
Narenga. Cymbopogon,Apluda, Dicanthium, Desmostachya, Vetiveriaand
chloris etc. are also present in them.
Eastern India:- It covers the plain regions of Arunachal Pradesh and six
eastern states. Tropical wet evergreen forests are present in east and south of
Assam. They contain species of Syzygium, Mesua, Artocarpus, Bambusa
and AgiullariaTropical semi-evergreen forests are present in the foothills of
Assam and include species of Dysoxylon,Terminal and Micheliaetc. Tropical
moist deciduous forests are present in Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura and
include species of Lagerstromia, Careya, Dilleniaand Toona. Subtropical
broad leaved hill forests are present in the hills of Assam and Meghalaya.
Subtropical pine forests are present in Meghalaya, Manipur and Nagaland
and include species of pine and orchids.
Deccan Plateau:- It covers eastern and western ghats and south of
vindhyachal mountains. It is trianglar in shape.Tropical thorn forests cover
the largest part and include species of Acacia, Butea, Anogeissusand
 Aizadirachtaetc. Tropical dry dciduous forests cover north, central and
southern part of plateau and include species of Diospyros,Cassia, Butea,
Adina, Aegle, Pterocarpus, DalbergiaandBambusa. Moist deciduous forests
cover eastern part of plateau in Andra Pradesh & Madhya Pradesh .P., M.P.
and Orissa and include species of Dalbergia, Ceiba, Grewia,Phyllanthus,
Bambusa, Shoreaand Bombaxetc.
Western Ghats: Tropical moist deciduous forests contain species of
Dalbergia, Terminalia, Pterocarpus etc. Tropical semi-evergreen forest are
present in a narrow north-south strip of ghat. It includes species of Trewia,
Hopea, Langerstroemia, Xylia, Dalbergia, Holoptelia, Ficusand Adina etc.
Tropical wet evergreen forests arepresent in Karnataka and Kerala. They
contain species ofCullenia, Dysoxylum, Dipterocarpus, Calophyllum, Toona,
Persea, Canes and Canariumetc. Montane wet temperateforests are present in
higher hills. They include species ofMichelia, Garciniaand Hydrocarpusetc.
Subtropicalbroad-leaved hill forests are present in Nilgiris and includeCeltis,
Meliosmaand Machilusetc. This area is prone to endemism.
Eastern Ghats: This area is less rich in biodiversity as compared to Western
Ghats. Tropical dry deciduous forests cover larger area. Moist deciduous
forests cover northern part of Orissa. They contain species of
Antidesms,Memecylon, Oleaand Mygristicaetc. Evergreen forests cover
Tamil Nadu and Carnatic region and include species of Trema, Vitex,
Dalbergia, Polyalthia, Wendlandiaand Memecylonetc.
Andaman and Nicobar Islands: It consists of tropical wet evergreen, semi-
evergreen and moist deciduous forests. They are rich in Pterocarpusand
Dipterocarpusspecies. The main tree species are Terminalia, Artocarpus,
Miliusa, Horsefieldia, Amoora, Hopeaand Syzygiumetc.

Ques.29.What are the major sources of thermal pollution? How

can it be controlled?
Ans. Thermal pollution can be defined as the presence of waste heat which can
causes undesirable change in the natural environment. Heat producing industries
i.e., thermal power plants, nuclear power plants, refineries, steel mills etc. are the
major sources of thermal pollution. Power plants utilize only 1/3 of the energy
provided by fossil fuels for their operations. Remaining 2/3 is lost in the form of
heat generally to cooling water. Cold water, generally, is drawn from some nearby
water-body passed through the plant and returned to the same water body with
temperature 10-16C higher than the initial temperature. Excess of heat reaching
such water bodies causes thermal pollution of water.
Certain methods can be employed to control thermal pollution:
i. Cooling ponds
ii. Spray ponds
iii. Cooling towers

Cooling ponds Water from condensers is stored in ponds where natural

evaporation cools water which can be re circulated or discharged in nearby water
body.
Spray towers the water from condensers is received in spray ponds. Here the
water is sprayed through nozzles where fine droplets are formed. Heat from these
fine droplets is dissipated to the atmosphere.
Cooling towersthese can be further divided into two parts:
a) Wet cooling tower In this type of towers, hot water is sprayed over
baffles. Cool air entering from sides takes away the heat and cools water.
This cool water can be recycled or discharged. Large amount of water is lost
through evaporation and in the vicinity of wet cooling tower extensive fog is
formed which is not good for environment and causes damage to vegetation.
b) Dry cooling tower In this tower, heated water flows in a system of pipes.
Air is passed over these hot pipes with fans. There is no water loss in this
method and installation and operation of dry cooling tower is many times
higher than wet cooling tower.

Ques.30. How industrial, domestic, agricultural and other wastes

affect the fertility of the soil? Discuss the measures to check it.
Ans. Industrial wastes contain organic and inorganic compounds some of which
are refractory and non-biodegradable. Industrial sludge may contain various salts,
toxic substances, metals like mercury, lead, cadmium, arsenic etc. Agrochemicals
released with the wastes of pesticide and fertilizer factories or during agricultural
practices reach the soil and pollute it. Sewage and industrial effluents which
pollute soil ultimately affect human health. Various types of chemicals like acids,
alkali, pesticides, insecticides, weedicides, fungicides, heavy metals etc. in the
industrial discharges affect soil fertility by causing changes in physical, chemical
characteristics and biological properties. Chemicals or their degradation products
from soil may percolate and contaminate ground-water resources.

Certain measures can be taken to control soil infertility.

1. Effluents should be properly treated before discharging them on the soil.
2. Solid wastes should be properly collected and disposed off by appropriate
method.
3. From wastes, recovery of useful products should be done.
4. Biodegradable organic waste should be used for generation of biogas.
5. Cattle dung is used for methane generation. Night-soil (human faeces) is
also used in the biogas plant to produce inflammable methane gas.

Ques.31.What is BOD? How is domestic discharge responsible

for increasing the BOD level into the stream?
Ans. BOD is biological oxygen demand. BOD is defined as the amount of D.O.
required to aerobically decompose biodegradable organic matter of a given volume
of water over a period of 5 days at 20C. More BOD values of any water sample
are associated with poor water quality.
Q33 Write a note on solid waste management practices.
Answer For wastes management we stress on three RsReduce, reuse and
recycle before destruction and safe storage of wastes.

1. Reduction in use of raw materials: Reduction in the use of raw materials will
correspondingly decrease the production of waste. Reduced demand for any
metallic
product will decrease the mining of their metal and less production of waste.
2. Reuse of waste materials: The refillable containers which are discarded after use
can be reused. Villagers make casseroles, silos from waste paper and other waste
materials. Making rubber rings from the discarded cycle tubes which are used by
the newspaper vendors, instead of rubber bands thereby decreasing the waste
generation during manufacturing of rubber
bands. Because of financial constraints poor people reuse their materials to the
maximum.
3. Recycling of materials: Recycling is the reprocessing of discarded materials into
new useful products.
i. Formation of some old type products e.g. old aluminium cans and glass bottles
are melted
and recast into new cans and bottles.
ii. Formation of new products: Preparation of cellulose insulation from paper,
preparation of
fuel pellets from kitchen waste. Preparation of automobiles and construction
materials from
steel cans.
The process of reducing, reusing and recycling saves money, energy, raw materials,
land space and also reduces pollution. Recycling of paper will reduce cutting of
trees for
making fresh paper. Reuse of metals will reduce mining and melting of ores for
recovery of metals from ores and prevent pollution.

For discarding wastes the following methods can be adopted:

1. Sanitary landfill: In a sanitary landfill, garbage is spread out in thin layers,

compacted and covered with clay or plastic foam.
In the modern landfills the bottom is covered with an impermeable linear, usually
several layers of clay, thick plastic and sand. The liner protects the ground water
from being
contaminated due to percolation of leachate. Leachate from bottom is pumped and
sent for treatment. When landfill is full it is covered with clay, sand, gravel and top
soil to prevent seepage of water. Several wells are drilled near the landfill site to
monitor if any leakage is contaminating ground water. Methane produced by
anaerobic decomposition is collected and burnt to produce electricity or heat.
Composting: Due to shortage of space for landfill in bigger cities, the
biodegradable yard waste (keep separate from the municipal waste) is allowed to
degrade/decompose in oxygen rich medium. A good quality nutrient rich
environmental friendly manure is formed which improves the soil conditions and
fertility.
Incineration: Incinerators are burning plants capable of burning a large amount of
materials at high temperature. The initial cost is very high. During incineration
high levels of dioxins, furans, lead and cadmium may be emitted with the fly ash of
incinerator. Dioxin level may reach many times more than in that environment. For
incineration of materials, it is better to remove batteries containing heavy metals
and plastic containing chlorine before burning the material. Removal of plastics
will reduce dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)

33. Write a note on solid waste management practices.

Waste management is the collection, transport, processing, recycling or disposal,
and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced
by human activity, and is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health,
the environment or aesthetics. Waste management is also carried out to
recover resources from it. Waste management can
involve solid, liquid, gaseous or radioactive substances, with different methods and
fields of expertise for each.

Waste management practices differ for developed and developing nations,

for urban and rural areas, and for residential and industrial producers. Management
for non-hazardous residential and institutional waste in metropolitan areas is
usually the responsibility of local government authorities, while management for
non-hazardous commercial and industrial waste is usually the responsibility of the
generator.

Following are the methods for waste management practices:

The waste hierarchy refers to the "3 Rs" reduce, reuse and recycle, which
classify waste management strategies according to their desirability in terms
of waste minimization. The waste hierarchy remains the cornerstone of most
waste minimization strategies. The aim of the waste hierarchy is to extract
the maximum practical benefits from products and to generate the minimum
amount of waste.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a strategy designed to promote
the integration of all costs associated with products throughout their life
cycle (including end-of-life disposal costs) into the market price of the
product. Extended producer responsibility is meant to impose accountability
over the entire lifecycle of products and packaging introduced to the market.
This means that firms which manufacture, import and/or sell products are
required to be responsible for the products after their useful life as well as
during manufacture.
The Polluter Pays Principle is a principle where the polluting party pays for
the impact caused to the environment. With respect to waste management,
this generally refers to the requirement for a waste generator to pay for
appropriate disposal of the waste.
Q34 Why do earthquake occur? Suggest the management plan
for mitigate the effects of earthquake.
Answer Earthquakes occur due to sudden movements of earths crust. The earths
crust have several tectonic plates of solid rock which slowly move along their
boundaries. When friction
prevents these plates from slipping, stress builds up and results in sudden fractures
which can occur along the boundaries of the plates or fault lines (planes of
weakness) within the plates. This causes earthquakes, (the violent, short-term
vibrations in the earth).

Damage to property and causalities can be prevented by constructing

building in the earthquake prone zones which can withstand tremors. The
structures can be heavily reinforced. Strategically placing weak spots in the
building that can absorb vibrations from the rest of the building. To have pads or
floats beneath the building on which it can shift harmlessly with ground motion.
Wooden houses are preferred in earthquake prone areas.

Q35 What is rainwater harvesting? What are the major

objectives for rainwater harvesting? Explain some
methodologies for harvesting the rainwater.

Answer Rainwater harvesting is a technique of increasing the recharge of

groundwater by capturing and storing rainwater by constructing special water-
harvesting structures like dug wells, percolation pits, lagoons, check dams etc.
Rainwater, wherever it falls, is captured and pollution of this water is prevented.

Rainwater harvesting has the following objectives:

i) to reduce run off loss
ii) to avoid flooding of roads
iii) to meet the increasing demands of water
iv) to raise the water table by recharging ground water
v) to reduce groundwater contamination
vi) to supplement groundwater supplies during lean season.

Rainwater can be mainly harvested by any one of the following methods:

i. by storing in tanks or reservoir above or below ground.
ii. by constructing pits, dug-wells, lagoons, trench or checkdams
on small rivulets
iii. by recharging the groundwater.

Q36 Discuss the salient features of the

i Wildlife (protection) Act, 1972
ii Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
iii Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

Answer 1. Wildlife(protection) Act, 1972

The major activities and provisions in the act can be summed up as follows:
i) It defines the wild-life related terminology.
ii) It provides for the appointment of wildlife advisory Board, Wildlife warden,
their powers, duties etc.
iii) Under the Act, comprehensive listing of endangered wild life species was done
for the first time and prohibition of hunting of the endangered species was
mentioned.
iv) Protection to some endangered plants like Beddome cycad, Blue Vanda, Ladies
Slipper Orchid, Pitcher plant etc. is also provided under the Act.
v) The Act provides for setting up of National Parks, wildlife sanctuaries etc.
vi) The Act provides for the constitution of Central Zoo Authority.
vii) There is provision for trade and commerce in some wildlife species with
license for sale, possession, transfer etc.
viii) The Act imposes a ban on the trade or commerce in scheduled animals.
ix) It provides for legal powers to officers and punishment to offenders.
x) It provides for captive breeding programme for endangered species.

2. Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

The salient features and provisions of the Act are summed up as follows:
i) It provides for maintenance and restoration of quality of all types of surface and
ground water.
ii) It provides for the establishment of Central and State Boards for pollution
control.
iii) It confers them with powers and functions to control pollution.

3. Environment (protection) Act, 1986

The most important functions of Central Govt. under this Act include:
a) To set the standards of quality of air, water or soil for various areas and
purposes.
b) The maximum permissible limits of concentration of various environmental
pollutants (including noise) for different areas.
c) The procedures and safeguards for the handling of hazardous substances.
d) The prohibition and restrictions on the handling of hazardous substances in
different areas.
e) The prohibition and restriction on the location of industries and to carry on
process and operations in different areas.
f) The procedures and safeguards for the prevention of accidents which may cause
environmental pollution and providing for remedial measures for such accidents.

37 Write short notes on

i Wasteland reclamation

Reclaiming lands that have been laid waste in an extraction or industrial process is
"wasteland reclamation." Strip-mining coal produces wastelands. Using chemicals
in an industrial process, then dumping the used chemicals either on the land or into
a stream creates wastelands. Or releasing chemicals into the air in an industrial
process can create waste lands. Sometimes, just running an industrial process,
particularly when there is no regulation of its wastes, can create wastelands. And
finally, nuclear accidents can create wastelands.

Ii Population explosion
Population explosion or overpopulation denotes a situation in which the
number of people living in a country rapidly exceeds its carrying or sustaining
capabilities. It is not just the quantity of people but the ratio of it in connection
with the natural or artificial resources at hand. Population explosion can occur
due to a number of reasons such as a step-up of birth rates, down slope of
mortality rates with the advent of modern medical sciences, a simultaneous
increase in immigration and decrease in emigration and so on. Although India
occupies only 2.4% of the world's total land area, Indian demography
comprises of nearly 1.12 billion people, which is roughly one-sixth of the
world's population and second largest in the world next to China. Visit the
websites compiled by www.bestindiansites.com to gain in-depth knowledge of
the demographics of India, population statistics, census, etc.

Iii Sustainable development

Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use that aims to meet human

needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not
only in the present, but also for future generations. The term was used by
the Brundtland Commission which coined what has become the most often-
quoted definition of sustainable development as development that "meets the
needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs."

Sustainable development ties together concern for the carrying

capacity of natural systems with the social challenges facing humanity. As
early as the 1970s "sustainability" was employed to describe an economy "in
equilibrium with basic ecological support systems."Ecologists have pointed
to The Limits to Growth, and presented the alternative of a steady state
economy in order to address environmental concerns.

iv. Acid Rain

Acid rain is rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, i.e.
elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). It can have harmful effects on
plants, aquatic animals, and infrastructure through the process of wet
deposition. Acid rain is caused by emissions of compounds
of ammonium, carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur which react with
the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids. Governments have
made efforts since the 1970s to reduce the production of sulphuric oxide into
naturally by the splitting of nitrogen compounds by the energy produced
by lightning strikes, or the release of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere
by volcano eruptions.

"Acid rain" is a popular term referring to the deposition of wet (rain, snow,
sleet, fog and cloud water, dew) and dry (acidifying particles and gases) acidic
components. A more accurate term is acid deposition. Distilled water,
once carbon dioxide is removed, has a neutral pH of 7. Liquids with a pH less
than 7 are acidic, and those with a pH greater than 7 are bases. Clean or
Q39 Whatrain
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a slightly causespH ofofabout
deforestation?
5.2, because carbon Briefly explain
dioxide
and effects
the water in the
of air react together to
deforestation onform carbonic acid, a weak acid (pH 5.6
environment.
in distilled water), but unpolluted rain also contains other chemicals.
Trees are one of the most important aspects of the planet we live in. Trees are
Q3838important
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the environment, animals, and studies?
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Social issues in relation to development and environment
Human population
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number of adverse effects of deforestation, such as:
Environmental studies is very important since it deals with the most mundane problems
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deforestation, for by the time the trees mature, the soil will be totally devoid of
essential nutrients. Ultimately, cultivation in this land will also become impossible,
resulting in the land becoming useless. Large tracts of land will be rendered
permanently impoverished due to soil erosion.

Disruption of the Water Cycle: Trees contribute in a large way in maintaining the
water cycle. They draw up water via their roots, which is then released into the
atmosphere. A large part of the water that circulates in the ecosystem of rainforests,
for instance, remains inside the plants. When these trees are cut down it results in
the climate getting drier in that area.

Loss of Biodiversity: The unique biodiversity of various geographical areas is

being lost on a scale that is quite unprecedented. Even though tropical rainforests
make up just 6 percent of the surface area of the Earth, about 80-90 percent of the
entire species of the world exist here. Due to massive deforestation, about 50 to
100 species of animals are being lost each day. The outcome of which is the
extinction of animals and plants on a massive scale.

Flooding and Drought: One of the vital functions of forests is to absorb and store
great amounts of water quickly when there are heavy rains. When forests are cut
down, this regulation of the flow of water is disrupted, which leads to alternating
periods of flood and then drought in the affected area.

Climate Change: It is well known that global warming is being caused largely due to
emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. However,
what is not known quite as well is that deforestation has a direction association with
carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Trees act as a major storage depot
for carbon, since they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which is then
used to produce carbohydrates, fats, and proteins that make up trees. When
deforestation occurs, many of the trees are burnt or they are allowed to rot, which
results in releasing the carbon that is stored in them as carbon dioxide. This, in turn,
leads to greater concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Cause of deforestation- The destruction of the forests is occurring due to various

reasons, one of the main reasons being the short term economic benefits. Given
below are some more common causes of deforestation:

Used for Urban and Construction Purposes: The cutting down of trees for lumber
that is used for building materials, furniture, and paper products. Forests are also
cleared in order to accommodate expanding urban areas.

To Grow Crops: Forests are also cut down in order to clear land for growing crops.
To Create Grazing Land: Forests are cut down in order create land for grazing
cattle.

Used for Fuel: Trees are cut down in developing countries to be used as firewood
or turned into charcoal, which are used for cooking and heating purposes.

Some of the other causes of deforestation are: clearing forests for oil and mining
exploitation; to make highways and roads; slash and burn farming techniques;
wildfires; and acid rain.

Q40 Discuss the benefits and impacts of construction of big

dams.
Benefits Of Large Dams

Water is essential for sustenance of all forms of life on earth. It is not evenly
distributed all over the world and even its availability at the same locations is not
uniform over the year. While the parts of the world, which are scarce in water, are
prone to drought, other parts of the world, which are abundant in water, face a
challenging job of optimally managing the available water resources. No doubt the
rivers are a great gift of nature and have been playing a significant role in evolution
of various civilizations, nonetheless on many occasions, rivers, at the time of
floods, have been playing havoc with the life and property of the people.
Management of river waters has been, therefore, one of the most prime issues under
consideration. Optimal management of river water resources demands that specific
plans should be evolved for various river basins which are found to be technically
feasible and economically viable after carrying out extensive surveys. Since the
advent of civilization, man has been constructing dams and reservoirs for storing
surplus river waters available during wet periods and for utilization of the same
during lean periods. The dams and reservoirs world over have been playing dual
role of harnessing the river waters for accelerating socio-economic growth and
mitigating the miseries of a large population of the world suffering from the
vagaries of floods and droughts. Dams and reservoirs contribute significantly in
fulfilling the following basic human needs: -
 WATER FOR DRINKING AND INDUSTRIAL USE
IRRIGATION
FLOOD CONTROL
HYDRO POWER GENERATION
INLAND NAVIGATION
RECREATION

Water for drinking and industrial use:

Due to large variations in hydrological cycle, dams and reservoirs are

required to be constructed to store water during periods of surplus water
availability and conserve the same for utilization during lean periods when
the water availability is scarce.
Properly designed and well-constructed dams play a great role in optimally
meeting the drinking water requirements of the people.
Water stored in reservoirs is also used vastly for meeting industrial needs.
Regulated flow of water from reservoirs help in diluting harmful dissolved
substances in river waters during lean periods by supplementing low inflows
and thus in maintaining and preserving quality of water within safe limits.

Irrigation:

Dams and reservoirs are constructed to store surplus waters during wet
periods, which can be used for irrigating arid lands. One of the major benefits
of dams and reservoirs is that water flows can be regulated as per agricultural
requirements of the various regions over the year.
Dams and reservoirs render unforgettable services to the mankind for
meeting irrigation requirements on a gigantic scale.
It is estimated that 80% of additional food production by the year 2025
would be available from the irrigation made possible by dams and reservoirs.
Dams and reservoirs are most needed for meeting irrigation requirements of
developing countries, large parts of which are arid zones.
There is a need for construction of more reservoir based projects despite
widespread measures developed to conserve water through other
 improvements in irrigation technology.

Flood Control:

Floods in the rivers have been many a time playing havoc with the life and
property of the people. Dams and reservoirs can be effectively used to control
floods by regulating river water flows downstream the dam.
The dams are designed, constructed and operated as per a specific plan for
routing floods through the basin without any damage to life and property of
the people.
The water conserved by means of dams and reservoirs at the time of floods
can be utilized for meeting irrigation and drinking water requirements and
hydro power generation.

Hydro power generation:

Energy plays a key role for socio-economic development of a country. Hydro

power provides a cheap, clean and renewable source of energy.
Hydro power is the most advanced and economically viable resource of
renewable energy.
Reservoir based hydroelectric projects provide much needed peaking power
to the grid.
Unlike thermal power stations, hydro power stations have fewer technical
constraints and the hydro machines are capable of quick start and taking
instantaneous load variations.
While large hydro potentials can be exploited through mega hydroelectric
projects for meeting power needs on regional or national basis, small hydro
potentials can be exploited through mini/micro hydel projects for meeting
local power needs of small areas. Besides hydro power generation, multi
purpose hydroelectric projects have the benefit of meeting irrigation and
drinking water requirements and controlling floods etc.

Inland navigation:

Enhanced inland navigation is a result of comprehensive basin planning and

development, utilizing dams, locks and reservoirs that are regulated to play a
vital role in realizing large economic benefits of national importance.
Recreation:

The reservoir made possible by constructing a dam presents a beautiful view

of a lake. In the areas where natural surface water is scarce or non-existent,
the reservoirs are a great source of recreation.
Alongwith other objectives, recreational benefits such as boating, swimming,
fishing etc linked with lakes are also given due consideration at the planning
stage to achieve all the benefits of an ideal multipurpose project.

While dams provide a yeoman service to the mankind, the following impacts of the
construction of dams are required to be handled carefully: -

Resettlement and Rehabilitation

Environment and forests
Sedimentary issues
Socio economic issues
Safety aspects

The above problems related to the construction of dams may be resolved

successfully in case the approach of management is objective, dynamic, progressive
and responsive to the needs of the hour.

41 How individual efforts are helpful for resource conservation?

Answer: - The individual efforts are like the less use of energy in different modes
like swathe-off the light unnecessarily and try to use the energy efficient appliances
of high grade which much less energy eater. And in present time the huge mass of
buildings are constructing. And just to give beautiful faade the contractors and
architect are using the very much glass outside and due this green house effect
increases and to reduce heating effect we keep installing the very heavy A.C. and it
increasing the global warming.

43 Give a brief account of non-conventional resources of

energy?
Answer: - The non-conventional resources are the resources which cant be re-use.
These kind of fuel or resources effect the environment more than the renewable
resources because the leave the harmful and difficult to extract the bi-product. And
in present time we need to preserve them for future generation. And we should
move the pollution free energy resources like SOLAR ENERGY, WIND
ENERGY AND HYDRO PAWER etc. Due to the use of these kind of resources
we can breathe in the pollution free environment and we not only preserve the other
valuable resources but also give the huge contribution to Environment.

44 What is ecosystem? Discuss the biotic and abiotic components of an ecosystem.

Ecosystem (Eco = environment and system = interacting and interdependent

complex) is an integrated system resulting from the interaction of living and non-
living factors of the environment. Ecosystem may be defined as any unit which
includes all the living organisms(i.e. biotic communities) in a given area interacting
with the physical environment(e.g. water, air, soil etc) by means of food chains and
chemical cycles resulting in energy flow, biotic diversity and material cycling
within the system.

Each ecosystem is characterized both by its inanimate properties like climate,

topography, geology and by its living organisms. These living organisms include
the photosynthetic organisms upon which all other organisms depend, the
herbivorous animals that feed upon them, the carnivores that eat the herbivores, and
the soil organisms which finally act upon the dead bodies of these animals and
plants and release the inorganic elements back to environment.

ABIOTIC COMPONENTS

These include the non-living physic-chemical factors of environment. These

components affect the distribution, structure, behavior and inter-relationship of
organisms. The basic inorganic substances like carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, water,
carbon dioxide, calcium, phosphorus etc. and their compounds constitute the main
abiotic component. These occur either in the form of compounds dissolved in water
in the soil or in a free state. These are recycled in a homeostatic ecosystem by the
action of micro-organisms like bacteria and fungi or by some other agents. The
climatic factors (light, temperature, humidity, wind, rainfall, water, atmospheric
gases) and edaphic factors (soil and substrate, topography, minerals, pH etc) are
also the part of the abiotic component.

(b) BIOTIC COMPONENTS

Producers, macro consumers and micro consumers or decomposers constitute the

biotic components of the ecosystem.

Producers

In an ecosystem, the producers are represented by phytoplanktons, algae, diatoms

and green plants. These are the autotrophic members of the ecosystem which
synthesize food in the form of complex organic compounds from simple inorganic
substances in the presence of sunlight.

Macroconsumers

The herbivores and the carnivores (primary, secondary and tertiary) are known as
macroconsumers. They directly or indirectly depend for food on the producers.

Microconsumers or decomposers:

The micro-organisms like bacteria and fungi which feed upon the dead decaying
plants and animals are known as microconsumers or decomposers.

45 What are food chains and food webs? Explain with the help of
examples.
FOOD CHAIN

In any given ecosystem, all the living organisms (plants and animals) are linked in a
systematic chain with respect to their mode of manufacturing food/feeding habits.
For instance, in a grassland ecosystem, the entire stock of green plants (herbs,
shrubs and trees) manufacture food (producers) by utilizing the radiant energy of
the sun by the process of photosynthesis. These autotrophs are eaten up by plant
eaters i.e. herbivores which, in turn, constitute the food of first level (primary)
carnivores. The primary carnivores are subsequently eaten up by middle
(secondary) and top level (tertiary) carnivores. Here, one finds that beginning with
the producers, onward to herbivores, first level carnivores, middle level carnivores
and top level carnivores, all organisms are interlinked in a definite sequence.

TYPES OF FOOD CHAIN

A. Grazing food chain

The common examples of the grazing food chain are those of grassland ecosystem
starting from grasses-herbivores-carnivores (primary, secondary, tertiary) and
aquatic ecosystems starting from phytoplanktons - zooplanktons small fishes
large fishes.

B. Detritus food chain

Unlike grazing food chains, the detritus food chains depend upon the dead organic
matter either in the form of fallen leaves or dead animal bodies. Hence, these are
not directly dependent on solar energy.

FOOD WEB

Food web is a network of food chains which become inter-connected at various

trophic levels so as to form a number of feeding connections amongst different
organisms of a biotic community. Unlike food chains, food webs are never straight.
Interlocking pattern in a food web is promoted by the fact that a single living
organism may participate at different trophic levels in different food chains.

EXAMPLES
Interrelationships in a food web can be cited by taking various examples.
(a) Terrestrial food web
The interlocking of various food chains in a terrestrial food web is depicted in Fig

There are five possible food chains that are inter-connected. These five food chains
are:-
(i) Grass - Rabbit Predatory birds
(ii) Grass Mouse or Rat Predatory birds
(iii) Grass Mouse or Rat Snake Predatory birds
(iv) Grass Grasshopper Lizard Predatory birds
(v) Grass Grasshopper Predatory birds

(b) Aquatic food web

depicts the interlocking of various food chains in a food web in pond ecosystem.
(c) Food web in a deciduous forest
The inter-relationships in a food web in deciduous forest ecosystem in Illinois are
depicted in Fig

This fig shows that there is an interlocking of a number of chains to form a food
web such as
(i) Nuts and fruits Squirrel Wolf
(ii) Nuts and fruits Deer Bear
(iii) Nuts and fruits Mice Wildcat
(iv) Nuts and fruits Squirrel Bear
(v) Leaves and twigs Insects Salamander Skunk Wolf
(vi) Leaves and twigs Insects Salamander Redfox Wolf
(vii) Leaves and twigs Insects Skunk Redfox - Wolf
(viii) Leaves and twigs Rabbit Redfox Wolf
(ix) Bark Insects Toads Shunk Wolf
(x) Bark Insects Toads Garter snakes
(xi) Bark Insects Toads Racoon
(xii) Blossoms Birds Racoon
(xiii) Blossoms Bees Bear
(xiv) Blossoms Birds Gray fox
In this food web, only larger species are shown. Small organisms like micro-
organisms and parasites as well as detritus feeders are omitted.
46 Discuss the models of energy flow in ecosystem.

ENERGY FLOW MODELS

There is unidirectional flow of energy in an ecosystem. From energetics point of

view, for an ecosystem, it is essential to understand-
(i) The efficiency of the producers in the absorption and then conversion of solar
energy into chemical form of energy,

(ii) The use of this converted chemical form of energy by the consumers,

(iii) The total assimilated energy in the form of food and its efficiency of
assimilation,

(iv) The loss of energy through respiration, heat, excretion etc. and finally,

(v) Gross net production.

For better understanding of energy flow concept in an ecosystem, there are two
types of energy flow models-
1. Single channel energy models/energy flow diagrams.
2. Y-shaped or 2-channel energy flow models/diagrams.
Single-channel energy flow models/diagrams
Single-channel energy flow models/diagrams are depicted in figures which clearly
reveal the principle of food chains and the working of both first and second laws of
thermodynamics.
Out of the total incoming solar radiations (118,872g/ cal/cm2/ yr), the gross
production by autotrophs
(Producers) is only 111 gcal/cm2/yr with an efficiency of energy capture of 0.1%
and 118,761gcal/cm2/yrremain unutilized (Fig. 3.11). At the level of autotrophs, 23
g cal/cm2/yr (21% of the converted energy) is consumed in metabolic reactions of
autotrophs for their growth, development and reproduction; 70 g cal/cm2/yr (79.5%
of net production) remain unutilized and 15 gcal/ cm2/ yr (17% of net autotrophic
production) are further consumed by herbivores that feed or graze on autotrophs.
Decomposition accounts for 3 g cal/ cm2/ yr (3.4% of net autotrophic production).
It may be worth mentioning that collectively the three components (herbivory, not-
utilized and decomposition) are equivalent to net production. These three
components when are added to consumed energy (respiration) account for gross
production at autotroph level. It is also important to note that much more energy is
actually available for herbivory than what is consumed by the autotrophs. However,
majority of this available energy i.e. 70% remains unutilized and goes waste as
heat.

Fig. 3.11 Energy flow diagram for a lake (Freshwater ecosystem) in g

cal/cm2/yr (modified from Lindeman, 1942)

Y-shaped energy flow models/diagrams

Similar energy flow models have been described by different workers for different
kinds of ecosystems.
For example, Teal (1957) prepared energy flow model of Root Spring in U.S.A.
Here, most of the energy rich material eaten by heterotrophs entered the system as
detritus (plant debris). Similarly, H.T Odum (1957) prepared energy flow model for
Silver Springs, Florida U.S.A. Here, most of the heterotrophs food in food chain
was produced by green autotrophic plants. It was E.P. Odum who in (1962) noted
this basic difference i.e. in one model, food chain begins with dead plant parts (Teal
model) and in other it begins with live plant parts (H.T. Odum model). Thus,
according to E.P. Odum, in nature there are present two basic food chains in any
system grazing food chain and detritus food chain.

47 What is biogeochemical cycling? Explain the water cycle

with the help of the diagram.
Ans 47- The water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle, describes the
continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. Since
the water cycle is truly a "cycle," there is no beginning or end. Water can change
states among liquid, vapor, and ice at various places in the water cycle. Although
the balance of water on Earth remains fairly constant over time, individual water
molecules can come and go.

The sun, which drives the water cycle, heats water in oceans and seas. Water
evaporates as water vapor into the air. Ice and snow can sublimate directly into
water vapor. Evapotranspiration is water transpired from plants and evaporated
from the soil. Rising air currents take the vapor up into the atmosphere where
cooler temperatures cause it to condense into clouds. Air currents move water vapor
around the globe; cloud particles collide, grow, and fall out of the sky as
precipitation. Some precipitation falls as snow or hail, and can accumulate as ice
caps and glaciers, which can store frozen water for thousands of years. Snow packs
can thaw and melt, and the melted water flows over land as snowmelt. Most water
falls back into the oceans or onto land as rain, where the water flows over the
ground as surface runoff. A portion of runoff enters rivers in valleys in the
landscape, with stream flow moving water towards the oceans. Runoff and
groundwater are stored as freshwater in lakes. Not all runoff flows into rivers, much
of it soaks into the ground as infiltration. Some water infiltrates deep into the
ground and replenishes aquifers, which store freshwater for long periods of time.
Some infiltration stays close to the land surface and can seep back into surface-
water bodies (and the ocean) as groundwater discharge. Some groundwater finds
openings in the land surface and comes out as freshwater springs. Over time, the
water returns to the ocean, where our water cycle started.
48 What is meant by ecological succession? Discuss the process
of succession with the help of hydrosere.
Ans 48- The occurrence of relatively definite sequence of communities over a
period of time in the same area resulting in establishment of final complex
community is called ecological succession or biotic succession.

Succession is a common English word derived from Latin meaning coming in

sequence. When we apply this word to ecosystem which progresses and leads to
evolve a rather stable community, it is called ecological succession.

PROCESS SUCCESSION WITH THE HELP OF HYDROSERE OR

HYDRARCH
Various stages in a hydrosere are well studied in all fresh water bodies e.g. ponds,
lakes etc. In a hydrosere successive changes take place in plants as well as animals.
However, the changes are more obvious in plants than in animals. Therefore, stages
are named according to dominant plant species. All fresh water bodies have a
continuous intake of soil particles and the organic matter from the surrounding land
through wind and water inflow. This results in gradual filling up of pond or lake.
The first to invade the water body are the phytoplanktons and the dependent
zooplanktons. The life span of these pioneer species of plants and animals is short.
They die out and thus adding to the increasing inputs of organic matter in the water
body. The margins of the water body get affected earlier. This process makes the
water body shallower. The process of accumulation of the organic matter at the
bottom of the water body continues resulting in sequential changes in the dominant
plants and the associated animals (seral communities/seral stages). At each stage,
the existing communities of plants and animals affect the climatic and edaphic
conditions of the area.

49 With the help of diagrams explain the different types of

ecological pyramids.
Ans 49-An ecological pyramid may be defined as a graphic representation of the
numbers or biomass or status of accumulated energy at different trophic levels in a
food chain in an ecosystem.
TYPES OF ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS
On the basis of ecological parameters, ecological pyramids
Are of three types:
(a) Pyramid of numbers

A pyramid of numbers is the graphic representation depicting the arrangement of

number of individuals of different trophic levels in a food chain in an ecosystem.

secondary carnivores LARGE FISH Bacteria,fungi

HYPERPARASITES

Primary Carnivores SMALL FISH lice and bugs

PARASITES

Herbivores ZOOPLANKTON Birds

HERBIVORES

Producers PHYTOPLANKTON oak tree

PRODUCERS

a. Upright b. Inverted

(b) Pyramid of biomass

BIRDS SECONDARY CARNIVORES LARGE FISHES

SNAKES PRIMARY CARNIVORES SMALL FISHES
RABBITS, HERBIVORES ZOOPLANKTON
RATS ETC
GRASSES PRODUCERS PHYTOPLANKTON
a. Upright b. Inverted

c) Pyramid of energy

Pyramid of energy is a graphic representation of amount of energy per unit area in

different trophic levels of a food chain.

CARNIVORES TERTIARY CONSUMERS

CARNIVORES SECONDARY CONSUMERS
HERBIVORES PRIMARY CONSUMERS
PRODUCERS
Q50- What is biodiversity? Explain genetic, species and
ecosystem diversity. Explain the consumptive and productive
value of biodiversity.
A50- Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms from all sources
including inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the
ecological complexes of which they are part.

Genetic diversity is concerned with the variation of genes within species.

Due to variation of genes, diversity in character occurs within the same
species and gives rise to varieties and races.eg-thereis various varieties of
gram, rice and mangoes.
Species diversity is concerned with the variety of species within a region.it
is measured at the species level.eg-big cat, lion and snow leopard. All these
belong to same genera panthera but all have different species.
Ecosystem diversity is concerned with the different types of ecosystems and
habitats such as terrestrial, aquatic and wetlands on the earth. Terrestrial
includes forest, grassland .alpine and desert ecosystems. Aquatic includes
freshwater and marine ecosystem. Wetland includes mangroves and
estuarine ecosystem
The consumptive value of biodiversity involves assessing the value of
resources directly, without passing through a market and the productive
value of biodiversity involves assessing the value of products that are
commercially harvested and marketed such as timber, fish etc.

Q51- What are hotspots of biodiversity? Discuss the salient

features of the hotspots found in India.
A51- Hotspots are those regions which are sensitive areas of biodiversity.
 The different hotspots of India are:-
1. Andaman and Nicobar Island:- In these island of India, flora
And fauna have become endangered due to tourist interference.
2. Aravalli Hills: - Due to mining activities and population
Pressure, habitat destruction has been taking place in these
Hills located in Rajasthan.
3. Bharatpur Lake and Wetland: - It is located in Rajasthan.
Siberian cranes come and stay in winters. Wide variety and
Species of birds are present in Bharatpurlake. It is threatened
Due to tourist invasion.
4. Chilka Lake: - It is located in Orissa and is rich in aquatic
Biodiversity but destructed due to exploitation for fish and ship
Farming.
5. Dal Lake:- It is located in Jammu and Kashmir. Although it
was covering about 58 sq.km. in 1856 but now it was merely
24 sq.km. Destruction of lake is occuring due to exploitation
of aquatic life and human enchroachment.
6. Doon Valley:- It is located in Uttranchal Pradesh. Here
massive deforestation occurs due to mining activities.
7. Gir Forest: It is located in Gujarat. It is the home for Asiatic
lions. It is threatened due to population pressure.
8. Himalayas :- It is located in India and Nepal. It is destructed
due to apple orchards, pine plantations, construction of dam
and population pressure.
9. Kodai Lake: It is located in Tamil Nadu. Lake is dying due to
destruction of aquatic life and massive tourist invasion.
10. Little Rann of Kutch: It is located in Gujarat. Here only
Wild Ass are present..
11. Loktak Lake:- It is located in Manipur. It is the only home for
Brow-Antlered Deer. Lake is threated with drying up.
117
12. Manas:- It is located in Assam. It is rich in wildlife diversity
and known as Gold-mine of India. It is threatened due to
hunting, poaching and population pressure.
13. Ooty Lake:- It is located in Tamil Nadu. The lake is drying
due to destruction of aquatic life, tourist invasion and dumping
of sewage.
14. PooyamKutty Valley:- It is located in Kerala. It is rich in
biodiversity but threatened due to construction of dam.
15. Palni Hills:- It is located in Tamil Nadu. It is threatened due to
population pressure and tourist invasion.
16. Pulikat Saltwater Lake:- It is located in Tamil Nadu.
Destruction of aquatic life is occurring due to siltation.
17. Narayan Sarovar:- It is located in Gujarat. It is destructed due
to mining activities.
18. North-Eastern Himalayas:- It is located in Indian
subcontinent. It is rich in biodiversity but threatened due to
population pressure.
19. Nilgiri Hills:- It is located in Tamil Nadu. Its destruction is
due to tea & coffee plantation, urbanisation and tourist
invasion.
20. Renuka Lake and Wetland:- It is located in Haryana.
Aquatic life is threatened due to tourist influx.
21. Silent Valley:- It is located in Kerala. Many of these species
are threatened due to the construction of dam.
22. Shivalik Hills:- It is located in Himachal Pradesh. Habitat
destruction is occurring due to mining activities.
23. Sariska:- It is located in Rajasthan. It is home for Tigers. It is
destructed due to mining activities.
24. Suderbans:- It is located in West Bengal. It is the home for
Tigers. It is threatrened due to erosion of coastal habitats.
25. Thar Desert:- It is located in Rajasthan. Its threatening is due
to desertification.
26. Western Ghats:- It is located in India. It is richest in

biodiversity. Its destruction is due to development activities

Q52- What are the major threats to biodiversity? Discuss the In-
situ and Ex-situ conservation efforts.
A52- Ans- Threats to biodiversity is a significant issue. There is hardly any area on
the earth which is not facing ecological Catastrophes. There are about 1.6 million
species known to inhabit on the earth. One third of the species are likely to extinct
in the Next few years. Rich-species diversity is slowly being lost forever. The
tropical forests are shrinking at the rate of 0.8 per cent each year. The main reasons
for threat to biodiversity are over population, climatic change, pollution,
Introduction ofExotic Species, Habitat Loss.
 1 In situ Conservation
This type of conservation is most appropriate way to maintain the wild plants and
animals species in their natural habitats. Following are the efforts in situ
conservation:
a. National parks
b. Wildlife sanctuaries
c. Biosphere reserves
d. These several wet lands, mangroves and coral reefs have also been identified for
conservation
e. By introducing plant and animals species back into agricultural, horticultural and
animal husbandry practices so that they are cultivated and again used by the
farmers.
Large genetic diversity of crop plants has been maintained by the farmers by
saving seeds for next planting season by a wide variety of indigenously developed
practices. Tubers, rhizomes, seeds and bulbs were stored traditionally by the
farmers and still cultivate several traditional varieties of crop plants in their fields
and keep native species of cattle which are better adapted to disease, drought and
adverse conditions.

2. Ex-Situ Conservation:
Ex situ conservation method involves the cultivation of rare plants and rearing of
threatened animal species in botanical and zoological gardens and reserves them in
the form of seeds in seed bank or some other suitable materials by means of tissue
culture techniques. Botanical and zoological gardens are the secondary repositories
of the wild plants and animal species There are number of plants and animals
species which have become more or less extinct in the wild, but they are being
conserved in gardens and zoos as shown below:
a. Zoological parks: There are about 5, 00,000 mammals, birds, amphibians and
reptiles in zoos throughout the world. Thus zoos have made dramatic contributions
to the conservation of
Biodiversity.
b. Aquaria: The role of aquaria is of immense importance for fresh water species.
c. Botanical gardens: The worlds has about 1,500 botanical gardens and contain
about 35,000 plant species. Thus they contribute dominating role in the
conservation of species.
d. Seed Banks: A gene or seed bank is a facility where valuable plant material
likely to become irretrievably lost in the wild or in cultivations can be preserved in
a viable condition.
e. Tissue Culture: Tissue culture techniques become important under the following
conditions.
(i) If a specific genetic type is to be conserved and maintained.
(ii) If the seed progeny is variable.
(iii) If plants have recalcitrant seeds.
(iv) If the seeds are altogether lacking such as those of Sugar cane and banana.
It is now possible to preserve animal cells, spermatozoa, ovarian and embryonic
tissues under extremely low temperature. They are used for the livestock breeding
programs.
Although both ex situ and in situ conservation strategies are not emphasizing on
forest tree and microorganisms but they should be given equal importance as
measures in biodiversity conservation.

Q53- Define air pollution? Discuss its sources and effects.

A53- It is an atmospheric condition in which substances (including the normal
constituents in excess) are present in concentrations which can cause undesirable
effects on man and his environment. These substances include gases, particulate
matter, radioactive substances etc.

Sources of air pollution

The sources of air pollution are natural and man-made(anthropogenic).
Natural Sources: The natural sources of air pollution are volcanic eruptions, forest
fires, sea salt sprays, biological decay, photochemical oxidation of terpenes,
marshes, extraterrestrial bodies, pollen grains of flowers, spores etc. Radioactive
minerals present in the earth crust are the sources of radioactivity in the
atmosphere.

Man-made Sources: Man made sources include thermal power plants, industrial
units, vehicular emissions, fossil fuel burning, agricultural activities etc. Thermal
power plants have become the major sources of generating electricity in India as
the nuclear power plants couldnt be installed as planned. The main pollutants
emitted are fly ash and SO2. Metallurgical plants also consume coal and produce
similar pollutants. Fertilizer plants, smelters, textile mills, tanneries, refineries,
chemical industries, paper and pulp mills are other sources of air pollution.

Effects of air pollution

Air pollution has adverse effects on living organisms and materials.
Effects on Human Health: Human respiratory system has a number of mechanisms
for protection from air pollution. Bigger particles (> 10 m) can be trapped by the
hairs and sticky mucus in the lining of the nose. Smaller particles can reach
tracheobronchial system and there get trapped in mucus. They are sent back to
throat by beating of hair like cilia from where they can be removed by spitting or
swallowing. Years of exposure to air pollutants (including cigarette smoke)
adversely affect these natural defenses and can result in lung cancer, asthma,
chronic bronchitis and emphysema (damage to air sacs leading to loss of lung
elasticity and acute shortness of breath). Suspended particulates can cause damage
to lung tissues and diseases like asthma, bronchitis and cancer especially when
they bring with them cancer causing or toxic pollutants attached on their surface.
Sulphur dioxide (SO2) causes constriction of respiratory passage and can cause
bronchitis like conditions. In the presence of suspended particulates, SO2 can form
acid sulphate particles, which can go deep into the lungs and affect severely.
Effects on Plants: Air pollutants affect plants by entering through stomata (leaf
pores through which gases diffuse), destroy chlorophyll and affect photosynthesis.
Pollutants also erode waxy coating of the leaves called cuticle. Cuticle prevents
excessive water loss and damage from diseases, pests, drought and frost. Damage
to leaf structure causes necrosis (dead areas of leaf), Chlorosis (loss or reduction of
chlorophyll causing yellowing of leaf) or epinasty (downward curling of leaf), and
abscission (dropping of leaves). Particulates deposited on leaves can for
incrustations and plug stomata. The damage can result in death of the plant.
Effects on aquatic life: Air pollutants mixing up with rain can cause high acidity
(lower pH) in fresh water lakes. This affects aquatic life especially fish. Some of
the freshwater lakes have experienced total fish death.
Effects on materials: Because of their corrosiveness, particulates can cause damage
to exposed surfaces. Presence of SO2 and moisture can accelerate corrosion of
metallic surfaces. SO2 can affect fabric, leather, paint, paper, marble and
limestone. Ozone in the atmosphere can cause cracking of rubber. Oxides of
nitrogen can also cause fading of acetate, cotton and rayon fibres.
Q54- What is thermal pollution? Discuss its causes and effects.
State the approaches to control it?
A54- Thermal pollution can be defined as presence of waste heat which can cause
undesirable changes in the natural environment
Causes of thermal pollution: Heat producing industries i.e., thermal power plants,
nuclear power plants, refineries, steel mills etc. are the major sources of thermal
pollution. Power plants utilize only 1/3 of the energy provided by fossil fuels for
their operations. Remaining 2/3 is lost in the form of heat generally to cooling
water. Cold water, generally, is drawn from some nearby water-body passed
through the plant and returned to the same water body with temperature 10-16C
higher than the initial temperature. Excess of heat reaching such water bodies
causes thermal pollution of water.
Effects of thermal pollution
i. The dissolved oxygen content of water is decreased as the solubility of oxygen in
water is decreased.
ii. High temperature becomes barrier for oxygen penetration in deep cold waters.
iii. Toxicity of pesticides, detergents, chemicals in the effluents increases with
increase in temperature.
iv. The composition of flora and fauna changes because the species sensitive to
increased temperature due to thermal shock will be replaced by temperature
tolerant species.
v. Metabolic activities of aquatic organisms increase requiring more oxygen.
vi. Heated water discharge near shores can disturb spawning and kill young fish.
vii. Fish migration is affected due to formation of various thermal zones.

Control of Thermal Pollution: The following methods can be employed for control
of thermal pollution:
(i) Cooling ponds, (ii) Spray Ponds, (iii) Cooling towers
1. Cooling Ponds: Water from condensers is stored in ponds where natural
evaporation cools water which can be recirculated or discharged in nearby water
body.

2. Spray Towers: The water from condensers is received in spray ponds. Here the
water is sprayed through nozzles where fine droplets are formed. Heat from these
fine droplets is dissipated to the atmosphere.
3. Cooling Towers:
(a) Wet cooling tower: Hot water is sprayed over baffles. Cool air entering from
sides takes away the
heat and cools water. This cool water can be recycled or discharged. Large amount
of water is
lost through evaporation and in the vicinity of wet cooling tower extensive fog is
formed which is not good for environment and causes damage to vegetation.
(b) Dry cooling tower: The heated water flows in a system of pipes. Air is passed
over these hot pipes with fans. There is no water loss in this method and
installation and operation of dry cooling tower is many times higher than wet
cooling tower.

Q55- Write short notes on

i Causes, effects and control of flood
Cause- due to heavy rains or sudden snow melt the quantity of water in streams
exceeds their capacity and water overflows the banks and causes inundation of the
surrounding land.
Effect-A flood generally doesnt damage property or cause causalities as compared
to other natural disasters. However, it causes a great economic loss as it causes
widespread contamination. Virtually anything the flood water touches gets
contaminated.
Control-With the building up of the flood control structures like building of flood
walls, deepening of river channels just transfers the problems downstream.
Building walls prevents spilling out the flood water over flood plains. Rather it
increases the velocity of water to affect the areas downstream with force.
To check floods, many people are of the opinion that money should be spent to
restore wetlands, replace ground cover on water-courses, build check-dams on
small streams, move buildings off the flood plains etc. Instead of raising buildings
on flood plains, it is suggested that floodplains should be used for wildlife habitat,
parks, recreational areas and other uses, which are not susceptible to flood damage.

ii Solid waste management practices

For wastes management we stress

on three RsReduce, reuse and recycle before destruction and
safe storage of wastes.
1. Reduction in use of raw materials: Reduction in the use of raw materials will
correspondingly decrease the production of waste. Reduced demand for any
metallic product will decrease the mining of their metal and less production of
waste.
2. Reuse of waste materials: The refillable containers which are discarded after use
can be reused. Villagers make casseroles, silos from waste paper and other waste
materials. Making rubber rings from the discarded cycle tubes which are used by
the newspaper vendors, instead of rubber bands thereby decreasing the waste
generation during manufacturing of rubber bands. Because of financial constraints
poor people reuse their materials to the maximum.
3. Recycling of materials: Recycling is the reprocessing of discarded materials into
new useful products.
i. Formation of some old type products e.g. old aluminium cans and glass bottles
are melted and recast into new cans and bottles.
ii. Formation of new products: Preparation of cellulose insulation from paper,
preparation of fuel pellets from kitchen waste. Preparation of automobiles and
construction materials from steel cans. The process of reducing, reusing and
recycling saves money, energy, raw materials, land space and also reduces
pollution. Recycling of paper will reduce cutting of trees for making fresh paper.
Reuse of metals will reduce mining and melting of ores for recovery of metals
from ores and prevent pollution.

iii Sources, effects and control measures of noise pollution

Sources of Noise Pollution: The main sources of noise are various modes of
transportation (like air, road, rail), industrial operations, construction activities and
celebrations (emotional and religious, elections etc) electric home appliances. High
levels of noise have been recorded in some of the cities of the world. Noise level of
105 dB have been recorded in Nanjing (China), while in Rome 90 dB, New York
88, Calcutta 85 dB, Mumbai 82 dB, Delhi 80 dB, Kathmandu 75 dB.
Effects of Noise: Noise causes the following effects:
i) Interferes with mans communication: In a noisy area communication is severely
affected.
ii) Hearing damage: Noise can cause temporary or permanent hearing loss. It
depends on intensity and duration of sound level. Auditory sensitivity is reduced
with noise level of over 90 dB in the midhigh frequency for more than a few
minutes.
iii) Physiological and Psychological changes: Continuous exposure to noise affects
the functioning of various systems of the body. It may result in hypertension,
insomnia (sleeplessness), changes in gastro-intestinal (digestive) activities, peptic
ulcers, blood pressure changes, behavioural changes, emotional changes etc.
Control of Noise Pollution
1. Reduction in sources of noise: Sources of noise pollution like heavy vehicles
and old vehicles may not be allowed to ply in the populated areas.
2. Noise making machines should be kept in containers with sound absorbing
media. The noise path will be interrupted and will not reach the workers.
3. Proper oiling will reduce noise from the machinery.
4. Use of sound absorbing silencers: Silencers can reduce noise by absorbing
sound. For this purpose various types of fibrous material could be used.
5. By planting more trees having broad leaves.
6. Through Law: Legislation can ensure that sound production is minimized at
various social functions. Unnecessary horn blowing should be restricted especially
in vehicle-congested areas.

Q56) What is global warming? What are its causes and effects?
Discuss the measures to control it.
ANS.The troposphere traps heat by natural process due to the presence of some
gases. This effect is called Green House Effect as it is similar to the one observed
in the horticultural green house. The amount of heat trapped in the atmosphere
depends mostly on the concentrations of heat trapping or green house gases
and the length of time they stay in the atmosphere. The major green house gases
are carbon dioxide, ozone, methane, nitrous oxide, chlorofluorocarbons and water
vapours. The average global temperature is 150C. In the absence of green house
gases this temperature would have been 180C. Therefore, Green House Effect
contributes to the tune of 330C. Heat trapped by green house gases in the
atmosphere keeps the planet warm enough to allow us and other species to exist.
The predominant two green house gases i.e. water vapours are controlled by
hydrological cycle and carbon dioxide controlled mostly by the global carbon
cycle. While the levels of water vapour in the troposphere have relatively remained
fairly constant, the levels of carbon dioxide have increased other gases whose
levels have increased due to human activities are methane, nitrous oxide and
chlorofluorocarbons.

Deforestation has further resulted in elevated levels of carbon dioxide due to non-
removal of carbon dioxide by plants through photo synthesis. Warming or cooling
by more than 20C over past few decades may prove to be disastrous for earth eco-
system and humans as it would alter conditions faster than some species could
adapt or migrate. Some areas will become inhabitable because of drought or floods
following a rise in average sea level.

Greenhouse Gases
The phenomenon that worries environmental scientists is that increasing the
concentration of the trace gases in the air that absorb thermal infra-red light results
in the redirection of even more of the out going thermal infra-red energy and
thereby increases the average surface temperature beyond 150C. The phenomenon
is referred to as the enhanced green house effect to distinguish its effect from the
one that has been operating naturally for millennia. Green house gases present in
the troposphere result in the increase in the temperature of air and the earth. These
are :

Carbon dioxide
It contributes about 55% to global warming from greenhouse gases produced by
human activity. Industrial countriesaccount for about 76% of annual emissions.
The main sources arefossil fuel burning ( 67%), deforestation and other forms of
landclearing and burning (33%) CO2 stays in the atmosphere for about500 years.
CO2 concentration was 355 ppm in 1990 in theatmosphere and is increasing at the
rate of 1.5 ppm every year.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
These are believed to be responsible for 24% of the human contribution of green
house gases. They also deplete ozone in the stratosphere. The main sources are
leaking air conditioners and refrigerators, evaporation of industrial solvents,
production of plastic foams, and aerosols and propellants etc. CFCs take 10-15
years to reach the stratosphere and generally trap 1500 to 7000 times more heat per
molecule as CO2 while they are in the troposphere. This heating effect in the
troposphere may be partially offset by the cooling caused when CFCs deplete
ozone during their 65 to 110 years stay in the stratosphere. Atmospheric
concentration of CFC is 0.00225 ppm and is increasing at the rateof 0.5% annually.

Methane (CH4)
It accounts for 18% of the increase in green house gases, Methane is produced
when bacteria break down dead organic matter in moist places that lack oxygen
such as swamps, natural wetlands, rice paddies, landfills and digestive tracts of
cattle, sheep and termites. Production and use of oil and natural gas and incomplete
burning of organic material are also significant sources. CH4 stays in the
atmosphere for 7-10 years. Each methane molecule traps about 25 times as much
heat as a CO2 molecule. Atmospheric concentration of methane is 1.675 ppm and
is increasing at the rate of 1% annually.

Nitrous Oxide ( N2O)

It is responsible for 6% of the human input of green house gases. Besides trapping
heat in the troposphere it also depletes ozone in the stratosphere. It is released from
nylon products, from burning of biomass and nitrogen rich fuels (especially coal)
and from the break down of nitrogen fertilizers in soil, livestock wastes and nitrate
contaminated ground water. Its life span in the troposphere is 140-190 years and it
traps about 230 times as muchheat per molecule as CO2. The atmospheric
concentration of N2Ois 0.3% ppm and is increasing at the rate of 0.2 % annually.

Causes of greenhouse effect

The enhanced greenhouse effect will not only cause global warming but will also
affect various other climatic and natural processes.
(i) Global temperature increase
It is estimated that the Earths mean temperature will rise between 1.5 to 5.50C by
2050 if input of greenhouse gases continue to rise at the present rate. Even at the
lower value, earth would be warmer than it has been for 10,000 years.
(ii) Rise in Sea Level
With the increase in global temperature sea water will expand. Heating will melt
the polar ice sheets and glaciers resulting in further rise in sea level. Current
models indicate that an increase in the average atmospheric temperature of 30C
would raise the average global sea level by 0.2 1.5 meters over the next 50 100
years. One meter rise in sea level will inundate low lying areas of cities like
Shanghai, Cairo, Bangkok, Sydeny, Hamburg and Venice as well as agricultural
lowlands and deltas in Egypt, Bangladesh, India China and will affect rice
productivity. Thiswill disturb commercially important spawning grounds, and
would probably increase the frequency of storm damage to lagoons, estuaries and
coral reefs. In India, the Lakshadweep Islands with a maximum height of 4 meters
above the level may be vulnerable. Some of the most beautiful cities like Mumbai
may be saved by heavy investment on embankment to install inundation. Life of
millions of people will be affected, by the sea level rise who have built homes in
the deltas of the Ganges, the Nile, the Mekong, the Yangtze and the Mississippi
rivers.
(iii) Effects on Human Health
The global warming will result in change in temperatureand rainfall thereby
affecting the distribution of vectors of diseases like mosquitoes. The diseases like
malaria, filariasis, elephantiasis will increase. Areas which are free from diseases
like malaria and schistosomiasis may become the breeding grounds of such
diseases. Affected areas in this way may be Ethopia, Kenya and Indonesia. More
temperature and humidity will increase/aggravate respiratory and skin diseases.
(iv) Effects on Agriculture
Views on effect of global warming on agriculture differ. It can show positive or
negative effects on various types of crop in different regions of the world. Tropical
and subtropical regions will be more affected since the average temperature in
these region is already on the higher scale. Even a rise of 20C may be quite
harmful to crops. Soil moisture will decrease. Evapotranspiration will increase
which may drastically affect wheat and maize production. Increase in temperature
and humidity will increase pest growth like the growth of vectors of disease. Pest
will adopt to such changes better than the crops. To cope up with the changing
situation drought resistant, heat resistant and pest resistant varieties of crops have
to be developed.

Measures to check global warming

To slow down global warming the following steps will be important.
1. Cut current use of CFCs and fossil fuel.
2. Use energy more efficiently.
3. Shift to renewable energy resources.
4. Increase of nuclear power plants for electricity production.
5. Shift from coal to natural gas.
6. Trapping and use methane as a fuel.
7. Reduce beef production.
8. Adopt sustainable agriculture.
9. Slow population growth.
10. Efficiently remove CO2 from smoke stacks.
11. Plant more trees.
12. Remove atmospheric CO2 by photosynthetic algae.

Q.57 ) What do you mean by population explosion? What are

the major reasons of population explosion? What are its effects
on environment and other human aspects?
The greatest threat to worlds development is the problem of human population
explosion. It is the rise of population in a particular area which is very big problem
so named population.Over population of human beings in different geographical
regions has put a great stress on limited available natural resources.

REASONS FOR GROWTH OF HUMAN POPULATION

Two primary factors for the increase in human population are
1. Decrease in death rate, and
2. Increase in longevity.

The human population explosion is largely a result of decrease in death rate. The
data reveal that death rate decreased from 42.6 in 1901-1911 to 12.5 in 1971-1981.
There are number of factors that have contributed to the decline in death rate and
the consequent increase in human population. These factors are:

1. Control of diseases. Control of communicable diseases such as plague, cholera

etc. as well as decline in the incidence of dreaded diseases like tuberculosis,
malaria have reduced the death rate and increased the average human age.
2. Advancement in agriculture. Improved agricultural techniques as well as
development of high yielding, disease resistant varieties have increased food
production for the rising human population. Advancement in the techniques of
animal breeding have also increased food production of animal origin (milk, eggs
and meat). These means have resulted in generation of surplus food for emergency
situations thereby decreasing death rate.
3. Storage facilities. Better storage facilities have helped in making food available
to human population all the year round. Save grain campaigns launched by various
governments in different countries have minimized the loss of food by pests in
storage.
4. Better transport. Advancements in the modern transport system has helped to
carry food from the surplus regions to the scarcity regions. This eliminated
famines.
5. Spread of education. Governments efforts to provide education to all (young,
adult and old) by implementing various schemes and opening schools and colleges
even in villages have helped in removal of mis-beliefs.
6. Government efforts. Number of steps taken up by the government such as
introduction of public distribution system, checking of hoarding and smuggling of
grains, maintenance of reserve stocks etc. have ensured food supply to all.
7. Protection from natural risks. Advancement in science has led people to live
better and protected life. Living in houses in villages and cities with better
hygienic conditions has protected people from adverse changes in climatic
conditions, 227 diseases as well as from wild animals. This has decreased death
rate.
8. Improvements in medical facilities have also helped in reducing death rate.

EFFECTS OF POPULATION EXPLOSION

A. Socio-economic problems. Various socio-economic problems created by over
population are described below:
1. Food. Overpopulation has resulted in large families. These large families with
limited means are unable to provide balanced diet to their children. As a result, the
latter suffer from malnutrition and grow into less fit members of the
society.
2. Space. It is limited. To accommodate growing population more cities are
coming up. This has created pressure on agricultural land and forests. Clearing up
of forests for agriculture and habitation has further caused problems like soil
erosion and floods.
3. Employment, education and medical aid. Over population has resulted in
large scale unemployment, lowering of education standards, unability to afford
higher education to all children as well as unavailability of modern medical
facilities to all.
4. Essential goods and poverty. Over population leads to shortage of essential
goods thereby resulting in hike in their prices. Large families with single earning
hand often remain poor as with limited income, single earning hand can not
maintain standard of living, education of children, medical facilities for members
of the family etc.
B. Energy Crisis
Another consequence of overpopulation is that it has created greater demand for
energy such as fuel wood, fossil fuel and electricity.
C. Ecodegradation
Overpopulation causes ecodegradation e.g. pollution of air, water and land;
increase in urban slums as well as deforestation leading to soil erosion droughts
and floods.
58 Write short notes on the definition and objectives of the
following program.
i Sustainable development
Sustainable development is defined as "meeting the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This
definition was given by the Norwegian Prime Minister, G.H. Brundtland,
who was also the Director of World Health Organisation (WHO). Today
sustainable development has become a buzz word and hundreds of programmes
have been initiated in the name of sustainable development.

ii Rain water harvesting

Rainwater harvesting is a technique of increasing the recharge of groundwater by

capturing and storing rainwater by constructing special water-harvesting structures
like dug wells, percolation pits, lagoons, check dams etc. Rainwater, wherever it
falls, is captured and pollution of this water is prevented. Rainwater harvesting is
not only proving useful for poor and scanty rainfall regions but also for the rich
ones.
methods:
i. by storing in tanks or reservoir above or below ground.
ii. by constructing pits, dug-wells, lagoons, trench or checkdams
on small rivulets
iii. by recharging the groundwater.
Before adopting a rain-water harvesting system, the soil
characteristics, topography, rainfall pattern and climatic conditions
should be understood.

iii Watershed management

The watershed is defined as the land area from which water drains under gravity to
a common drainage channel. Thus watershed is a delineated area with a well-
defined topographic boundary and one water outlet. The watershed can range from
a few square kilometers to few thousand square kilometers in size. In the
watershed the hydrological conditions are such that water becomes concentrated
within a particular location like a river or a reservoir, by which the watershed is
drained. The watershed comprises complex interactions of soil, landform,
vegetation, land use activities and water. A watershed affects us as it is directly
involved in sustained food production, water supply for irrigation, power
generation, transportation as well as for influencing sedimentation and erosion,
vegetation growth, floods and droughts. Thus management of watersheds, treating
them as a basic functional unit, is extremely important.

iv) VALUE EDUCATION

Concept of value education is very extensive as it includes morals, religions etc. It
consists of all the component parts like individual, society, nation and universe etc.
Meaning of value is related to economic value, Philosophers like RudullahLotse in
nineteenth century attached more extensive meaning to value. It is in this broad
sense, we use the term value as literary value, democratic value, life value and
education value in our day to day speaking and writing.
Components of value education
1. Moral Education
2. Environmental Education
3. Population Education
4. Human rights and Duties
5. Health Education
6. Indian Culture
7. Physical Education
8. Yoga Education
9. History of Indian freedom movement
Education plays a vital role in increasing the capacity of the community for good
quality of life. Education also help in sensitizing ones awareness and for
motivating ones behaviour to suit rising needs and demands for survival, growth
and development. Its aim is to achieve the goals of progress and
prosperity. It can only erode ignorance. Education plays a vital role in increasing
the capacity of the family and community for a better quality of life.

59 Write short notes on

i Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
The act, a landmark in the history of wildlife legislation in our country, came into
existence in 1972 Wildlife was transferred from State list to concurrent list in 1976,
thus giving power to the Central Govt. to enact the legislation.
The Indian Board of Wildlife (IBWL) was created in 1952 in our country, which
after the enactment of the Wildlife (Protection)Act actively took up the task of
setting up wildlife National Parks and sanctuaries. The major activities and
provisions in the act can be summed up as follows:
i) It defines the wild-life related terminology.
ii) It provides for the appointment of wildlife advisory
Board, Wildlife warden, their powers, duties etc.
iii) Under the Act, comprehensive listing of endangered wild life species was done
for the first time and 209 prohibition of hunting of the endangered species was
mentioned.
iv) Protection to some endangered plants like Beddome cycad, Blue Vanda, Ladies
Slipper Orchid, Pitcher plant etc. is also provided under the Act.
v) The Act provides for setting up of National Parks, wildlife sanctuaries etc.
vi) The Act provides for the constitution of Central Zoo Authority.
vii) There is provision for trade and commerce in some wildlife species with
license for sale, possession, transfer etc.
viii) The Act imposes a ban on the trade or commerce in scheduled animals.
ix) It provides for legal powers to officers and punishment to offenders.
x) It provides for captive breeding programme for endangered species.

ii HIV/ AIDS

AIDS is not a single disease but a syndrome a set of which result AIDS from the
destruction of the bodys defenses by the HIV (Human Immuno-deficiency Virus).
AIDS comes from a virus HIV, but where this virus came
from is not known. AIDS was first recognised in the United States in 1981
However, it is clear that AIDS cases had occurred in many 243 parts of the world
before 1981. The evidence now suggests that AIDS epidemics began at roughly at
the same time in several parts of the world, including United States and Africa.
Acquired Immuno-deficiency Syndrome
AIDS is a fatal and dangerous disease which is caused by a virus called human
immuno-deficiency virus (HIV). This HIV virus destroys the white blood cells
present in our blood which protect us from infections. People infected with HIV
are easily affected by diseases like tuberculosis, diarrhea and pneumonia etc.
Repeated infection leads to death of a person. After entry of virus, multiplies and
takes 8-10 years to completely destroy the body immune system. During this
period the HIV virus spreads to other persons. HIV belongs to a family of viruses
known as retroviruses. HIV is classified under a subgroup of retroviruses called
lentiviruses.
60. Write short notes on
i Role of Information technology in Environment.
Information technology play a crucial role in the new operating environment.
Environmental problems are now considered global issues with trade implications.
Public and consumer environmental awareness is on the rise. Information
technology has made environmental information available at our
finger tips. Reversed logistic and green issues are increasingly being recognised in
the world trade. Manufactures are being asked to take back their used packaging
and products for reuse and recycling. 247 Environmental professions in the third
millennium will have to use the best tools available with the new age of
information technology. Environmental problems are complex and ever-changing.
They require careful and system solving strategies to ensure that solving one
problem will not create other problems.

ii Role of Information technology in Human Health.

Now computer is the strongest tool of information technology. Information

Technology made a great impact on every activity of mankind and plays a
dominating role in the functioning of life. It is not only restricted to scientific and
engineering applications but now in 80% of the work information technology is
being applied. In the present scenario thinking of progress
without the use of information technology is just like dreaming for winning the
race without the help of an expert in games. It provides friendly working, accuracy,
time saving and huge money etc.

iii Women and Child Welfare.

Women and child welfare is very much changed with the advancement of the
technology in agriculture. India is an agricultural country and most of the women
practice agriculture. The case study shows the marginalisation of rural woman in
agricultural production as a result of technology change. The changes in the rice
technology of agriculture were :
(1) A shift in type of seed from the traditional varieties to the short , early maturing
one produced by the international rice research institute.
(2) The spread of farm mechanisation in the land preparation and thrashing task.
(3) Changes in certain farm practices such as extensive use of fertilisers, pesticides,
weedicides and methods of direct seeding.
These technological changes displaced more women than men. Under the old
technology almost half of the labour working a lecture of land were women. The
fact is that displacement occurred in the absence of other job opportunities. In
these areas of land the worsening unemployment and displacement of women
in other villages and towns increased competition for the marginal jobs. The
collection and processing of left over grain symbolised of woman to the left over
employment opportunities of men. Women have the ability to convert waste into a
food resource for their families. The economic marginalisation of women
nevertheless has repercussions on the welfare of both women themselves and their
children. The family is the responsibility of women. The burden of restructuring
the budget and meeting cash shortages seems to fall on women. This case study
also illustrates ability of economically marginalised rural women to make
something out of nothing.

iv Health and Disease.

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not
merely an absence of disease, or infirmity. This definition recognizes three
dimensions of health physical, mental and social. Fourth dimension i.e. spiritual
health has also been suggested.
Physical health implies normal appearance, size, structure and function(s) of all
the parts of the individuals body.

A mentally healthy person is one who has following characteristics:

He can think for himself and can take his own decisions.
He neither underestimates nor overestimates his ability.
He is able to live in harmony with others. He understands emotional needs of
others, accepts criticism and is helpful, courteous and considerate in his dealings
with others.
He can face stresses and strains and also has the ability to solve the problems
rather than avoiding them by consuming drugs or alcohol. In other words, he has a
self-control.
He has moral and spiritual values too. 235
Both physical and mental health are interrelated. Any change in one affects the
other.
Social health may be defined as the sum total of all the programmes aimed at
protecting, maintaining and improving the health of the people.
DISEASE Any physical or functional change from the normal
state that causes discomfort, or disability, or impairs the health of a living organism
is termed as disease (des = away; aise = ease). Disease is caused by disease
agent(s).
Disease agents. Any substance or force which causes a disease by its excess or
deficiency or absence is termed as disease agent.
Types of disease agents.Disease agents are categorized into six main types
1. Physical agents. These include cold, heat, humidity, pressure, radiations, sound,
electricity etc.
2. Chemical agents. These are further of two types (a) Exogenous chemical
agents. These agents enter the body from outside by inhalation, ingestion or
inoculation e.g. gases, dust, particles, fumes, metals and allergens (spores and
pollens).
(b) Endogenous chemical agents. These are formed inside the body itself e.g.
enzymes, hormones, nitrogenous wastes like urea, uric acid etc.
3. Biological agents. These are also called pathogens (Gr. pathos = disease; genes
= producing). These include viruses, rickettsias, bacteria, fungi, protozoans,
helminths and arthropods.
4. Nutrient agents. Carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins, water are the
nutrient agents.
5. Mechanical agents. These comprise friction or other mechanical forces which
result in injury, sprain, dislocation, fracture. 236
6. Genetic disorders. These result in underdevelopment or total absence of certain
organs in the body. The above mentioned disease agents result in congenital and
acquired diseases. The latter may further be of two types
communicable diseases and non-communicable diseases.
Various diseases resulting from environmental pollution have been mentioned in
Unit-V.
Mental illness.It is the arrested or incomplete development of mind. Mental illness
is of three main types psychosis, neurosis and personality and character
disorders.