Environmental Studies

Unit-1

By- Dr. Namira Arif

Environmental Science
 Topic covered
• Multidisciplinary nature of environmental
studies.
• Components of environment
(Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, Lithosphere,
Biosphere)
• Scope and Importance
• Concept of sustainability and sustainable
development
• Brief History of Environmentalism
Multidisciplinary nature of
Environmental studies
• Environmental studies deals with every issue
that affects an organism. It is essentially a
multidisciplinary approach that brings about an
appreciation of our natural world and human
impacts on its integrity.
• It is an applied science as its seeks practical
answers to making human civilization
sustainable on the earth’s finite resources.
• Its components include biology, geology,
chemistry, physics, engineering, sociology,
health, anthropology, economics, statistics,
computers and philosophy
 Components of Environment
• The environment consists of various
segments such as;
• Atmosphere
• Hydrosphere
• Lithosphere
• Biosphere.
 Atmosphere
• The atmosphere is the protective blanket of gases which
is surrounding the earth. It protects the earth from the
hostile environment of outer space.
• Constituents of atmosphere are gases, water vapour and
aerosols.
• Pure dry air on an average constitutes 78% nitrogen and
21% oxygen by volume. Remaining 1% accounts for
other gases.
• The main constituents which are of great importance for
the earth’s climatic conditions are dust particles, carbon
dioxide and ozone. The total mass of the atmosphere is
about 5 x 1015 tonnes.
• It acts as a source for CO2 for plant photosynthesis and
O2 for respiration
• The atmosphere transports water from ocean to land.
• Of the total mass of atmosphere about 99% is within a
height of 30km from the earth’s surface.
• On the basis of variation in temperature with increasing
altitude, the atmosphere has been divided into the five
distinct zones.
• These zones are troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere,
thermosphere/ionosphere and exosphere.
• Troposphere - The troposphere is the layer of the Earth's
atmosphere where all human activity takes place.
• Stratosphere - The ozone layer lies within the
stratosphere and absorbs ultraviolet radiation from the
Sun.
• Mesosphere (Coldest layer)- Studying the mesosphere is
essential to understanding long-term changes in the
Earth's atmosphere and how these changes affect
climate. Since the mesosphere is responsive to small
changes in atmospheric chemistry and composition, it
could provide clues for scientists, such as how added
greenhouse gases may contribute to a change in
temperature or water composition in the atmosphere.
• Ionosphere - The ionosphere is a layer of plasma formed
by the ionization of atomic oxygen and nitrogen by
highly energetic ultraviolet and x-ray solar radiation.
The Ionosphere extends from the middle of the
mesosphere up to the magnetosphere. This layer cycles
daily as the daytime exposure to solar radiation causes
the ionization of the atoms that can extend down as far
as the mesosphere.
• However, these upper atmospheric layers are still mostly
neutral, with only one in a million particles becoming
charged daily. At night, the ionosphere mostly collapses
as the Sun's radiation ceases to interact with the atoms in
the thermosphere. There are still small amounts of
charged atoms caused by cosmic radiation.

Thermosphere (Warmest layer)- In the thermosphere,

molecules of oxygen and nitrogen are bombarded by
radiation and energetic particles from the Sun, causing
the molecules to split into their component atoms and
creating heat. The thermosphere increases in
temperature with altitude because the atomic oxygen
and nitrogen cannot radiate the heat from this
absorption.
Hydrosphere
• A hydrosphere is the total amount of water on a planet.
It includes water that is on the surface of the planet,
underground, and in the air. A planet's hydrosphere can
be liquid, vapor, or ice.
• On Earth, liquid water exists on the surface in the form
of oceans, lakes and rivers. It also exists below ground-as
groundwater, in wells and aquifers.
• Water vapor is most visible as clouds and fog. The
frozen part of Earth's hydrosphere is made of ice:
glaciers, ice caps and icebergs
• World Water Day held on 22 March every year since
1993.
Water availability on earth
 Water availability and India
• India extracts most groundwater in the world, more than
the 2nd and 3rd largest extractors (China and the United
States) together.
• Only 8% of the extracted groundwater in India is used
for drinking.
• 80% goes to irrigation
• Remaining 12% goes to industrial uses.
• The Composite Water Management Index by NITI
Aayog has sounded a note of caution about the water
crisis in India, with more than 600 million people facing
acute water shortages.
– It is also projected the country’s water demand to be
twice the available supply by 2030.
Recently, the Union Minister of Jal Shakti released
the Dynamic Ground Water Resource Assessment
Report for the entire country for the year 2022.
– The total annual ground water recharge is 437.60
Billion Cubic Meters (BCM) and the annual ground
water extraction is 239.16 BCM.
• Assessment indicates an increase in ground water
recharge.
• By comparison, an assessment in 2020 found that
the annual groundwater recharge was 436
bcm and extraction 245 bcm.
– Groundwater Recharge is a (hydrologic)
process where the water from the surface of the
earth seeps downwards and gets collected in
aquifers. So, the process is also known as deep
drainage or deep percolation.
– The 2022 assessment suggests that groundwater
extraction is the lowest since 2004, when it was 231
bcm.
– Further, out of the total 7089 assessment units in the
country, 1006 units have been categorized as ‘Over-
exploited’.
– About 87% of total annual groundwater
extraction i.e., 208.49 bcm is for irrigation use. Only
30.69 bcm is for Domestic & Industrial use, which is
about 13 % of the total extraction.
 Current Government Initiatives
Related to Water Management
• National Water Policy, 2012
• Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
• Jal Shakti Abhiyan- Catch the Rain Campaign
• Atal Bhujal Yojana
• Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme
• Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban
Transformation (AMRUT)
Lithosphere
• The lithosphere includes the brittle upper portion of the
mantle and the crust, the outermost layers of Earth’s
structure.
• It is bounded by the atmosphere above and the
asthenosphere (another part of the upper mantle) below.
• There are two types of lithosphere:
oceanic lithosphere and continental lithosphere.
Oceanic lithosphere is associated with oceanic crust, and
is slightly denser than continental lithosphere.
• Tectonic activity describes the interaction of the huge
slabs of lithosphere called tectonic plates.
• The lithosphere is divided into tectonic plates including
the North American, Caribbean, South American, Scotia,
Antarctic, Eurasian, Arabian, African, Indian, Philippine,
Australian, Pacific, Juan de Fuca, Cocos, and Nazca.
Biosphere
• The biosphere refers to the realm of living organisms
and their interactions with the environment (VIZ:
atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere).
• Plants, animals and microorganisms which live in a
definite zone along with physical factors such as soil,
water and air constitute an ecosystem.
• These inter relationships manifest as natural cycles
(hydrologic cycle, oxygen cycle, nitrogen cycle,
phosphorous cycle and sulphur cycle).
 Scope of Environmental studies
• Environmental studies discipline has multiple and
multilevel scopes. This study is important and necessary
for each person. The scopes are summarized as follows:
• The study creates awareness among the people to know
about various renewable and nonrenewable resources of
the region. The endowment or potential, patterns of
utilization and the balance of various resources available
for future use in the state of a country are analysed in the
study.
• It provides the knowledge about ecological systems and
cause and effect relationships.
• It provides necessary information about
biodiversity richness and the potential dangers to
the species of plants, animals and microorganisms
in the environment.
• The study enables one to understand the causes
and consequences due to natural and main
induced disasters (flood, earthquake, landslide,
cyclones etc.,) and pollutions and measures to
minimised the effects.
• It enables one to evaluate alternative responses to
environmental issues before deciding an
alternative course of action.
• The study enables environmentally literate
citizens (by knowing the environmental acts,
rights, rules, legislations, etc.) to make
appropriate judgments and decisions for the
protection.
• The study exposes the problems of over
population, health, hygiene, etc. and the role of
arts, science and technology.
• It teaches the citizens the need for sustainable
utilization of resources as these resources are
inherited from our ancestors to the younger
generating without deteriorating their quality.
• The study enables theoretical knowledge into
practice and the multiple uses of environment.
Importance of environmental
studies
• Environmental study is based upon a
comprehensive view of various environmental
systems. It aims to make the citizens competent
to do scientific work and to find out practical
solutions to current environmental problems.
• The citizens acquire the ability to analyze the
environmental parameters like: the aquatic,
terrestrial and atmospheric systems and their
interactions with the biosphere and
anthrosphere.
• The study enables the people to understand the
complexities of the environment and need for the
people to adapt appropriate activities and pursue
sustainable development, which are harmonious
with the environment.
• The study motivates students to get involved in
community action, and to participate in various
environmental and management projects.
• It is a high time to reorient educational systems
and curricula towards these needs.
• Environmental studies take a multidisciplinary
approach to the study of human interactions
with the natural environment.
• It integrates different approaches of the
humanities , social sciences, biological sciences
and physical sciences and applies these
approaches to investigate environmental
concerns.
• Environmental study is a key instrument for
bringing about the changes in the knowledge,
values, behaviors and lifestyles required to
achieve sustainability and stability within and
among countries.
• Environmental pollution cannot be prevented by laws alone.
Public participation is equally important with regards to
environmental protection.
Environmental Education (EE) is a process of learning by giving
an 2 overall perspective of knowledge and awareness of the
environment. It sensitizes the society about environmental
issues and challenges interested individuals to develop skills
and expertise, thereby providing appropriate solutions. Climate
change, loss of biodiversity, declining fisheries, ozone layer
depletion, illegal trade of endangered species, destruction of
habitats, land degradation, depleting ground water supplies,
introduction of alien species, environmental pollution, solid
waste disposal, storm water and sewage disposal pose a serious
threat to ecosystems in forest, rural, urban and marine
ecosystems. Both formal and informal education on the
environment will give the interested individual the knowledge,
values, skills and tools needed to face the environmental
challenges on a local and global level.
 Concept of sustainability and
sustainable development
• Environment and economy are interdependent and need
each other. Hence, development that ignores its
repercussions on the environment will destroy the
environment that sustains life forms.

• Definition: “Sustainable development is development

that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs.”
• The concept of sustainable development was
emphasized by the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development (UNCED), which
defined it as:
• ‘Development that meets the need of the present
generation without compromising the ability of the
future generation to meet their own needs’.
• This most widely accepted definition of Sustainable
Development was given by the Brundtland Commission
in its report Our Common Future (1987).
• Sustainable development (SD) calls for concerted efforts
towards building an inclusive, sustainable and resilient
future for people and planet.
• To achieve sustainable development, the
following needs to be done;
• (i) limiting the human population to a level
within the carrying capacity of the environment.
• beyond the carrying capacity of the earth and
deviates from sustainable development
• (ii) technological progress should be input
efficient and not input consuming
• (iii) renewable resources should be extracted on
a sustainable basis
• (iv) for non-renewable resources rate of depletion
should not exceed the rate of creation of
renewable substitutes and
• (v) inefficiencies arising from pollution should be
corrected.
• There are 17 goals and 169 targets specific targets to be
achieved by 2030. Reaching the goals requires action on all
fronts – governments, businesses, civil society and people
everywhere all have a role to play.
• SDGs are not legally binding.
• To bring sustainable development in the mainstream
United Nations (UN) launched the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development and SDGs.
• NITI Aayog has released the second edition of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) India Index
(SDG Index 2.0).
([Link]
• The index documents the progress made by India’s
States and UTs towards achieving the 2030 SDG targets.
• Three core elements of sustainable development are;
• Economic growth, social inclusion and environmental
protection. It is crucial to harmonize them.
• Sustainable economic growth, achieving sustainable
livelihood, living in harmony with nature and
appropriate technology are important for sustainable
development.
 Brief History of
Environmentalism
7 Major Environmental Movements in India
(Separate file attached)

• Bishnoi Movement.
• Chipko Movement.
• Save Silent Valley Movement.
• Jungle Bachao Andholan.
• Appiko Movement.
• Narmada Bachao Andholan (NBA)
• Tehri Dam Conflict.