General Studies : Environment and Ecology Notes and Question

Environment and Ecology Notes and Question

What is Environment !

The set of land, water, air, plants and animals found on the earth which surround us is collectively called the environment.

According to the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, environment includes the physical and biological conditions surrounding an organism and its interaction with them.

There are 03 components of environment –

(1) Physical or abiotic land, air, water etc.
(2) Biotic plants, animals and micro-organisms
(3) Cultural man-made activities.

The environment is a structure made up of many components. It is a combination of all the biotic and abiotic components, which affect the living beings from all sides. Environment can be understood at macro and micro level. Along with this, variations in the environment are also found at regional and global level.

Sustainable Development

‘Sustainable development’ is a concept of development under which the needs of the future are taken into consideration along with the needs of the present.

Sustainable Development Goals were first proposed in the Rio + 20 conference in the year 2012.
The United Nations has set 17 SDG’s, which are targeted to be achieved by the year 2030.
India is ranked 112th in this list in the year 2023. (Top Three Countries – Finland, Sweden, Denmark..)
NITI Aayog SDG India Index

Objective to make equitable use, conservation and proper management of natural resources of the earth. It is a matter of inter-generational sensitivity in the context of the use of natural resources.

It is worth noting that this term was explained in the year 1987 by the WCED (World Commission on Environment and Development) in its report “Our Common Future”. According to the report ‘Our Common Future’ (Brundtland Report, 1987) by WCED, sustainable development means such development which enhances the ability of future generations to meet their needs. It was fully supported in the Agenda-21 Rio Declaration at the Earth Summit held in the year 1992.

Conservation of biological diversity, prevention and control of pollution and reduction of poverty are all essential for sustainable development.
Nature has its own beauty and limitations. Therefore, we should first try to understand nature and then formulate our development policies.

Therefore, maintaining a desired balance between economic development and environmental protection is sustainable development. The essential conditions of sustainable development are based on the availability of information.

Earth Summit 1992, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in 1992 during the Rio Earth Summit, This conference was held to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Stockholm Conferenc 1972.

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) was established. GEF serves as the financial mechanism for the CBD, UNFCCC, UNCCD, etc. GEF provides Least Developed Countries.
It helps the implementation of their National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs).
It is worth noting that the COP-7 meeting was held in Marrakech in 2001.
The Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF) was established on the basis of the instructions received from this meeting.
‘Agenda-21’ is a global action plan for sustainable development. It emphasizes on ending ecological destruction and economic inequality.

Rio + 5

In the year 1992, world leaders gathered in the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Exactly 5 years later, between 23-27 June 1997, the United Nations General Assembly organized a special meeting in New York, which is known as Rio +5 or Earth Summit +5. This meeting was called to evaluate the steps taken towards implementing Agenda-21.

Rio + 20

Rio 2012, Rio+20 or Earth Summit 2012 is the short name of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. This conference was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in June 2012.

This conference was organized to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro in the year 1992 and the 10th anniversary of the World Sustainable Development Conference held in Johannesburg in the year 2002.
The title of the declaration of the Rio+20 conference held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2012 was ‘The Future We Want’. In this draft, aspects like population control, poverty eradication, sustainable development, social equality etc. were considered.
In 2012, the United Nations Sustainable Development Conference (Rio 20) was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. At this conference, action was called for from governments etc. to support countries interested in green economy. As a result of direct voting by the United Nations on this demand, Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PACGE) was created.

Carbon Cycle, Water Cycle

Atmosphere

78% Nitrogen, 20% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide

Various organizations and institutions

NEERI (National Environmental Engineering Research Institute), Nagpur, 1958 as Central Public Health Engineering Research Institute for research and development in the field of water supply, sewerage plan, prevention of related diseases and industrial pollution.

- It has five regional laboratories in Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai.
- NEERI works under the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India.
- NEAA (National Environment Appellate Authority) take action against forest and water related.
- It was established under the Environment Appellate Authority Act, 1997

WMO (World Meteorological Organization) 1950, Geneva for behavior of the Earth’s atmosphere.

UNEP (United Nations Environment Program) 1972, Nairobi (Kenya)

Green Peace International, 1971 headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Acts Related to Environmental Protection

The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 is known as ‘Umbrella Legislation’, with the objective of implementing the decisions of the United Nations First Human Environment Conference held in Stockholm in the year 1972.

- It is worth noting that after the Bhopal gas tragedy, the Government of India passed the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 under Article 253 of the Constitution.
- The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) is the statutory committee constituted under the “Rules for the Manufacture, Use/Import/Export and Storage of Hazardous Micro Organisms/Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells (Rules, 1989)” framed under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010

Important facts related to environment –

Natural vegetation is a true index of climate and climate change caused by increasing amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is also causing changes in natural vegetation.
‘Ecomark’ certificate is given to those Indian products that are friendly towards the environment. This certificate is being given by the Bureau of Indian Standards since the year 1991.
‘Green Development’ book written by W.M. Adams published in the year 1990. ‘Civilization and Climate’ book written by Ellsworth Huntington in the year 1915. ‘Silent Spring’ book related to environmental science written by Rachel Carson in 1962.
The inventor of natural farming is Masanobu Fukuoka. He was a Japanese farmer and philosopher.
Australia launched the Green Army with the aim of employing 15000 youth aged 17-24 years for environmental protection.
Palachimada is a small village located in Palakkad district of the South Indian state of Kerala. The Coca-Cola company has set up its unit here, which has caused heavy damage to the environment due to large-scale exploitation of the water of this area.
Vegetables were grown through greenhouse agriculture in Punjab under an agreement signed in 2001 between Markfed (Marketing Federation) of Punjab and Sayag of Israel.
5 June (World Environment Day), The first World Environment Day was celebrated in the year 1974. It is worth mentioning that the Stockholm International Summit was held in the year 1972.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will host World Environment Day 2024 with a focus on land restoration, desertification and drought resilience.

Ecology

Ecology is a branch of biology that studies the interactions between living communities and their environment.

The word ecology was first used by Reiter in 1865.
Ernest Haeckel used the word ecology as Oikologie and explained it in detail. According to Ernst Haeckel (1869), “The study of organic and inorganic environment and mutual relations of living beings is called ecology or ecology.”
According to Eugene Odum (1963), ‘Ecology is the study of the structure and process of nature.’

The concept of ‘eco-system’ was first proposed by A.G. Tansley in 1935.

According to A.G. Tansley, ecosystem is a special type of physical system, which is composed of abiotic and biotic components. According to them, ecosystem is an open system. These vary in size. Changes keep taking place in the ecosystem according to its size.

The concept of ecosystem was called Biocoenosis by Karl Mobius and Microcosm by Forbes.

Ecosystem is known as a functional unit of nature. An ecosystem can be as small as a drop of water in a reservoir. It is called a micro ecosystem. On the other hand, an ecosystem can be as big as an ocean. Our earth itself is a huge ecosystem.

Biosphere is a thin layer made up of soil, rocks, water and air, which is the largest ecosystem spread around the earth in the form of a sphere, with which living organisms are related and this sphere nourishes the organisms. Thus, biosphere is a basic global system, which has two components, biotic and abiotic.

An ecosystem is an open system. Because there is continuous input and output of energy and substances in it. It is noteworthy that these activities do not take place in a closed system. Ecosystems are natural resources, that is, it has its own productivity.

It is noteworthy that the ecosystem is a natural unit, which includes all the living organisms of a particular area, i.e. plants, animals and micro-organisms, which interact with their abiotic environment to form a complete biological unit.
It is composed of three basic components – (1) energy component, (2) biological (biome) component and (3) abiotic or physical component
It is noteworthy that the number of organisms of the same species is called their population (जनसंख्या). The population of two or more species together forms a community (समुदाय). Many communities together form an ecosystem (पारिस्थितिक तंत्र) and one or more ecosystems can be found in a certain land area or landscape.

Components of the ecosystem

The biological components in the ecosystem are divided into two major parts- (1) Autotrophic components and (2) Heterotrophic components

Ecosystems in nature can be divided into two major categories (1) Terrestrial (2) Aquatic systems.

Natural ecosystems can be converted into man-made ecosystems by human activities. For example, a large part of the grassland has been ploughed and converted into cropland. Humans have cut down a large part of natural forests and cultivated that land. Therefore, forests, lakes and grasslands are natural ecosystems, while paddy fields are man-made artificial ecosystems.
Aquatic ecosystem is spread over about 71 percent of the earth. Hence, this system is spread over the largest area of the world.The marine ecosystem is the most stable ecosystem. The marine ecosystem remains stable due to its chemical structure. Along with being saline, it is the most stable system due to the presence of dissolved oxygen, light and temperature.The ocean is the largest ecosystem in the world. About 97 percent of the hydrosphere present on the earth is sea water. The most prevalent salt in sea water is sodium chloride. The various seas found on the earth are interconnected. They are not divided as is seen between the terrestrial continents. There is a huge difference in the temperature of the poles and the equator.
There is a huge difference in the temperature of the poles and the equator. This gives rise to sea currents. Due to these sea currents, the water remains mixed in the entire sea. Due to this, stratification of temperatures does not occur (as happens in lakes) and there is no lack of oxygen in water. There are tides in the sea, due to which the water level keeps changing.
Stratification is found in the marine ecosystem, which is as follows – Oceanic Zone, Neritic Zone (Sea Level), Euphotic Zone, Bathyl Zone, Abyssal Water

In the ecosystem, there is a loss of energy as we move ahead from each trophic level, due to which the number of producers is more than that of consumers. In the ecosystem, the number of herbivores is more than that of carnivores.

Carrying Capacity and Ecological Function

Carrying capacity or population carrying capacity is defined as the maximum population of a species of organisms in the ecosystem of a geographical area, which can be supported by the resources of that ecosystem.
This ability to reproduce without any environmental hindrance is called biological potential; which is represented by the abbreviation ‘r’. But as the environmental resistance increases, the growth stops.
This growth occurs only up to a certain upper limit. This upper limit is called carrying capacity.

It is worth noting that the term ecological function can be used to describe not only the place occupied by an organism, but also its functional role in the community of organisms.

The primary source of energy in an ecological system is solar energy. In the biosphere ecosystem, the flow of energy is unidirectional. The flow of energy is from abiotic system to biotic system.

According to the first law of thermodynamics, energy can neither be created nor destroyed. It can be transformed from one form to another. According to the second law, when energy is transformed from one form to another, some amount of it is lost.
In 1942, Lindeman formulated the ten percent law of energy, according to which only 10 percent of the total energy in a food chain is transferred from one trophic level to the next trophic level.

The pyramid of energy in an ecosystem is always upright, never inverted, because when energy passes from a particular trophic level to the next trophic level, energy is lost as heat at each level. Pyramids of biomass in the ocean are often inverted, because the biomass of fish far exceeds that of phytoplankton.

Bioforestry and Biomagnification

The word Bioforestry or Bionomics is made up of the words Bio and nomics. The word Bio means life, while nomics is derived from the Greek word nomos which means law. Thus, the literal meaning of the word bionomics seems to be the rules of life. It is synonymous with ecology. Also, it emphasizes the values of natural systems, which affect human systems.

Biological magnification
It is worth noting that when some pollutants increase in concentration along the food chain and get accumulated in the tissues, this phenomenon is called biomagnification. Pollutants like DDT are non-biodegradable. It is a chemical that cannot be destroyed biologically. In the food chain, the concentration of DDT will be the lowest at the first level, higher at the second level and highest at the third level.

Since snake is a tertiary consumer in the grassland ecosystem, the concentration of DDT will be highest in snakes. It is usually accumulated in the fatty tissues of organisms. It is worth mentioning that DDT is an insecticide.

Biogeochemical cycles and biological succession

The pattern of transformation of abiotic elements into biological phase in the ecosystem and return of these biological elements to their inorganic form is called biogeochemical cycle. In nature, biogeochemical cycles of elements like nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon etc. are found. These are mainly of two types, Gaseous cycle and Sedimentary cycle.

The transformation of a community in the physical environment over time is called ‘ecological succession’. For example, in grasslands, grass absorbs most of the rainwater before it reaches the roots of the plants. Also, due to reasons like fire etc., the land of grasslands becomes rocky and barren. Such land provides an ideal environment for the growth of lichens.

According to F. Clement, succession is a natural method under which a particular group gets displaced by another group at the same contained and fixed place. A scientist named Odum described succession as a sequential method. The correct order of biological succession is as follows – Nudatoion, Migration, Ecesis, Reaction, Stabilization.

The concept of ‘ecological transition’ was first used by John W. Bennett. He introduced this concept in his book “The Ecological Transition Cultural Anthropology and Human Adaptation” published in the year 1976.

The sequence of communities which change gradually in a particular place is called a sere.

Ecological Movement

Various movements have been launched from time to time by conscious people to keep the ecosystem in balance. One of the major movements among them is the Chipko Movement.

The ‘Chipko Movement’ was an important movement to stop the cutting of trees.

To stop deforestation, on March 26, 1974, women under the leadership of Gaura Devi stood clinging to the trees and did not allow the trees to be cut. This movement of the 70s became an example of plant conservation. The Narmada Bachao Andolan is a movement launched to stop the multipurpose dam project being built over the Narmada River. The Chipko Movement is a movement related to environmental protection in South India. This movement started in Karnataka.

Ecological footprint and Millennium Ecosystem Assessment

The use of various components of the ecosystem is essential for human life. The necessary amount of ecological components, which is required by man to run his lifestyle smoothly, is called ecological footprint. Under this, carbon emissions by man are also measured. An unwise lifestyle in which components of the ecosystem such as water, energy etc. are exploited more than required, increases the size of the footprint.

The long-term damage (in economic value) caused by the emission of one tonne in a given year is called the ‘social cost of carbon’.

Humans, communities and countries can adjust the size of their ecological footprint by formulating their policies in the context of sustainable development. Therefore, we can say that ecological footprint is a measure of human demand on the earth’s ecosystems.

It compares human demand with the ability of the earth’s ecosystem to reproduce. The unit of measurement of ecological footprint is Global Hectares. It is worth noting that the ecosystem provides various services to humans and nature. According to the World Development Report, 2010, the ‘Millennium Ecosystem Assessment’ describes the following five major categories of ecosystem services. These include nutrient cycling and crop pollination support services.

Ecosystem

Eucalyptus has been declared as an environmental enemy due to its excessive water absorption capacity. The water level of the soil at the place where it is planted goes down considerably. This plant is found in abundance in the Australian continent.
Standing water habitats come under lentic habitats, such as wetlands, ponds, lakes, reservoirs, etc. Habitats of flowing water are called lotic habitats, such as rivers.

The transition zone between two different communities is called ecotone.

Pycnocline shows the density gradient in a water body. Halocline shows the salinity gradient in a water body.

Thermocline shows the temperature change with depth in a water body.

Arnes Naess first used the term ‘deep ecology’ in the year 1973.

The term ecological niche was first introduced by Joseph Grinnell in 1917, which he called micro-habitats.

The Indian Wildlife Protection Act was implemented in 1972. The Environment (Protection) Act was implemented in 1986 to protect and improve the environment. * The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act was implemented in December 2006.

The Forest Conservation Act was implemented in 1980.

Sea upwelling is a phenomenon in which warm, nutrient-poor water present on the surface of the sea is replaced by dense, cold and nutrient-rich water by air currents.

Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZ) are areas declared under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. Eco-Sensitive Zones are notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Movement of vehicles for commercial purposes at night in Eco-Sensitive Zones is regulated and not prohibited. Thus, not all human activities except agriculture are prohibited, but some are prohibited and some are restricted.

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is the national standards institution of India. The organized process of setting standards in India for industrial development, consumer protection and daily life began in January 1947 with the establishment of ‘Indian Standards Institution’ (ISI). Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) came into existence on 1 April 1987 by the Parliamentary Act, 1986, which took over the employees, assets and liabilities and functions of Indian Standard Institution (ISI) and came into existence with expanded scope and more powers. The objective of this institution is to standardize, mark and give quality certificates to goods.

The purpose is to promote harmonious development of activities related to these functions and ancillary matters. At present, at the national level, the Bureau of Indian Standards has issued more than 14000 licenses for various types of products. ISI mark is the main standard mark provided by the Bureau of Indian Standards. It is mostly applied on most items of common consumption including all processed food products such as electrical equipment, cement, iron pipes etc. ‘AGMARK’ is a quality certification mark issued not by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) but by the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection (DMI) of the Government of India. The Directorate of Marketing and Inspection grades and marks food products. This department was established in the year 1935 as an attached office of the Department of Agricultural Cooperation and Farmers Welfare under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is the implementing body of the Chemical Weapon Convention. It came into force in 1997. Currently, OPCW has 193 member countries, which are committed to free the world from chemical weapons. It monitors the chemical industry to prevent the emergence of new weapons. It provides assistance and protection to States (parties) against the threat of chemical weapons.

Biodiversity

The presence of different species categories in an environment is known as biodiversity.

Species in the environment are organized into many communities and these communities are found in an ecosystem. Biodiversity is measured on this basis. Biodiversity is divided into categories called alpha (α) beta (β) and gamma (γ). This division was done by Whittaker in the year 1960.

Among the mathematical indices of measuring biodiversity, the alpha index represents the mean species diversity in a community/residential area at the local level. The beta index is the ratio of local and regional diversity, while the gamma index represents the overall diversity of a landscape.

The diversity of living organisms (plants and animals) present in an ecosystem is defined as biodiversity. Initially, the term biodiversity was first coined as Biological Diversity by Raymond F. Dassmann in his book ‘A Different kind of country’ in 1968.

Later, the term biodiversity was changed from the English word Biological Diversity to Biodiversity and was first used by W.G. Rosen.

Biodiversity maintains the ecosystem by performing various functions at various levels such as genetic, species, community and ecosystem level.

Biodiversity Day is celebrated on 22 May by the United Nations. The United Nations declared 2011-20 as the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity through resolution number 65/161 in December 2010.

India’s first National Center for Marine Biodiversity (N.C.M.B.) is located in Jamnagar, Gujarat state. The objective of this center is to protect the biodiversity located in the coastal area. It is India’s first research institute to be formed with the partnership of public and private sector (PPP). It is worth noting that Jamnagar is located near India’s only Marine National Park (which is located in the Gulf of Kutch).

The 14th COP-14 conference of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) concluded in New Delhi on 13 September 2019. In the conference, member countries set the goal of land degradation neutrality by 2030.

Biodiversity gradient

Biodiversity is not found to be the same in every region. It depends on many factors like climate, soil, temperature, humidity etc. of that region. Biodiversity is found to be less at some places and more at others.

Most biodiversity is found in tropical rain forests. This region is spread between 10°N and 10°S latitudes. In these regions, optimum conditions are found for the development and growth of plants and animals, because here there is high rainfall and temperature throughout the year. For this reason, they are also called optimum biome.

Biodiversity is not evenly distributed on the earth. Biodiversity increases from the poles towards the equator. This means that biodiversity is less at the poles and more at the equator.

Biodiversity is generally higher in lower latitudes than in higher latitudes. The tropical region where biodiversity is highest is also located in lower latitudes. In mountainous regions, biodiversity is generally higher in lower elevations (valleys) than in higher elevations (peaks). For example, abundant bio-diversity is found in Silent Valley in Kerala. It is located in Palakkad district of Kerala.

Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change
Ozone Layer Depletion
Forests and Wildlife
Sanctuaries/Biosphere Reserves
Alternative Energy
Pollution
Water Conservation
Miscellaneous