This document discusses environmental science topics including the definition, scope, and multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies. It outlines key components of the environment and national organizations involved. The document emphasizes creating public awareness of environmental issues and discusses methods to do so, including through educational institutions, media, and celebrations of environmental days. National wetlands and their importance are highlighted, along with India's designation of wetlands under the Ramsar Convention.

1. Topic: Introduction, Definition and Multidisciplinary
nature of Environmental Sciences, Scope of EVS,
Components of Environment,National Organisations,
Awareness among Public, Conventions.
Dr. Prasanth B, Associate Professor,
Nirmala College of Pharmacy, Muvattupuzha

2. • Importance of Environmental studies
1. Understand our surroundings.
2. Scientific thinking is developed.-degradation.
3. Overcome these factors.
• . Save plants and animals from extinction.
• . Overuse of agrochemicals-deterioration.
• 4.Age of science and technology-ecotechnology:
blending of traditional knowledge and modern technology.
• 5.Conserve fast depleting resources.
• 6.Draw attention towards population explosion,
degradation of natural resources, environmental
pollution and methods of solving those problems.
• 7.Understand and solve problems-soil erosion,water
crisis, natural disasters.

3. • Objectives
1. Aware of our surroundings.
2. Realisation of social responsibilities-only resp. For degradn.
3. Develop scientific attitude-EVS related to other sciences.
4. Constructive thinking- good citizen
5. Love of nature.
6. Improvement in quality of life, environment.
7. Efficient by educating ourselves.
8. Prevention of pollution.
9. Protection from natural disasters.
10. Sense of conservation of natural resources-Judicious use

4. Methods to create awareness
By creating awareness- work together-to improve environment-
which is basis of our life.
National and International Environmental organisation
Govt and Non-govt-educate the people.
Main Aim of Env. studies
. Over exploitation of resources by developed countries.
. Increasing population.
NO IMMEDIATESOLUTION.
RESULTS OF ENV. DEGRADATION-FLOODS,DROUGHT,
EARTHQUAKES,POLLUTION,ACID RAIN,DEPLETION OF OZONE
LAYER,GLOBAL WARMING,MELTING OF POLAR ICE CAPS AND
GLACIERS,EXTINCTION OF SPECIES,DEFORESTERATION.

5. • Try to lead the students towards positive action to improve
the environment.
1. Analyse the factors responsible for degradation.
2. Students will inturn create awareness in public.
3. Will not take actions-which further deteriorate environment.
Eg: use minimum natural resources.
4. Go to society-make movement by organising the people
against env. Degr.-will compell the govts to take necessary
steps.
5.Hep to prevent and decrease the unnecessary consumerism
and use of natural resources.
Future generations-take a sigh of relief on the earth.
Present generation-feel sorry for their mistakes.

6. • Environment literally means “surroundings.”
• Sum total of external materials, both living
and non-living, events and forces of nature
which influence an organism without
becoming its intrinsic component.
• Douglass and Holland:
Term env. “ Is used to describe in the aggregate,
all the external forces,influences and
conditions,which affect the life,
nature,behavour and growth,development
and maturity of living organisms.”

7. • Env. Sciences: scientific study of the env.
System and the status of its inherent or
induced changes on organisms. It induces not
only the study of physical and biological
characters of the environment but also the
social and cultural factors and the impact of
man on environment.

8. • Components of Environment
1. Physical or Abiotic Components
a.Climatic factors:
Light, Temp.,
Rainfall,Humidity, Atm.gases,wind
b.Topographic factors:
Ht.from sea level,
direction of mountains and valleys., slope of
hills, exposure to sunlight, distance from
equator, sea.

9. • C. Edaphic or soil factors:
Fertility,Colour,Quality, Organic matter,
2.Biological Components:
Vegetn.,animals, Microorganisms-Bacteria,
Fungi, Actinomycetes.
3. Social components:
Population, Social system, social changes,
relationships, urbanisation
4.Cultural components
Political, economic,moral values-life, religion, industries.

10. • 5. Psychological components
Life realities,self concepts, levels of desires,life
space,neighbours,goals of life, env.of work
place, work satisfaction.
Interrelationship between Env. Components.
At any moment under natural conditions:
Life of org. Affected by sum total of all env.
factors,not by any individual factor.
Interrelated- Inc. In temp., decr. In humidity

11. Multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies
Area of study is large, as org. Is affected by living or non living
substances, force or change.
All subjects contributed for understanding the environment:
Eg:Physics, Chemistry,biology, geography,climatology or
metereology, geology, economics, engineering,statistics,
computer science,philosophy,law, management.
EVS considered: as an applied science: tries to find solutions.
Eg: how to sustain human civilisation ,by lim. Earth resources.
how to make agriculture sustainable.
how to manage water resources.
how to prevent and control pollution.
how to obtain sustainable economic growth.

12. • Scope of EVS
Every industry: maintain minimum quality of environment.
1. Health Services: clean drinking water, test quality of food.
2. Pollution Control: find factors pollute environment.
soaps, phenyl, cosmetics, electronic appliances,kitchen gas.
3. Agriculture and forestry: harmful:chemicals, fertilizers.
Alternatives: organic farming, vermiculture, biodegradable
pesticides.
Env. Experts needed in forestry programs.
Forests directly related to global environment.
Healthy env. And Healthy economy: minimum of 33 %
Decreased to 11 % in India, 2 % in Punjab.
4. Optimum landuse and fertility: help in conservation of land.
Factors resp. For soil erosion, dec. In fertility.

13. • Eg: shortage of org. Matter.
• imbalanced and overuse of chem. Fertilizers.
• improper use of irrigation water.
• Remedy: 1. Soil conservation in watershed areas of rivers by
afforestration and reforesteration.
• Increase soil capacity to absorb water.
• Decrease flood and droughts.
• Increase in underground water.
• 5.Quality control of products and their
commercialisation
• Quality of pdts. Tested-so that donot deteriorate
environment.
• Various trademark used for commercialisation: ISO and ISI.

14. • 6. Meteorology
• Make predictions-studying atmosphere and oceans.
• Identify what type of effect by various pollutants.
• Eg: Thinning of ozone layer.
• Increase in conc. Of pollutant gases-global warming, acid rain.
• 7.Biogeography
• Vegetation and animal life depends on local conditions
• Climate, soil quality, rainfall, temperature,distance from sea
and equator.
• Pollution will affect the climatic conditions, experts find the
causes and guide administrative bodies to take control
measures.

15. 8. Computer and Statistics
• Various data collected by computers.
• Analysed by computer and records and stored.
Eg: Conc. Of atmos. Gases.
Conc. Of pollutants.
Weather predn. After analysing data by various instruments.
Monsoon predictions.
9. Env. And Social studies.
Social customs and culture affect-thought and action.
Eg:Old tradn.: worshipping of trees, animals and rivers.
Conservation of dense forests, wild life and clean rivers.
Due to industrialisation, western culture-led to-deforestearation,
rivers dried, wildlife at brink of extinction.

16. • Economics and Development
Knowledge through which: raise our living std. Through using
optimum money and resources.
Only limited resources but consumption at faster rate.
At brink of extinction: so many species.
Environmental experts compelled the world nations
a. Sustainable development: sustainable use of resources without
degradation of environment.
b.Environmental economics: great role in planning and
implementation of developmental projects.

17. • 11. Emerging New Fields of Environmental
studies.
So many specialised fields are emerging: provide a gretare scope
to students of this field.
a. Environmental Protection.
b. Environmental management.
c. Environmental laws.
d. Environmental engineering.
Wherever new policies or developmental projects are planned or
implemented
Environmental experts included.

18. • Need for Public Awareness
15 th and 16th century calamities –awareness abt dangers of env.
Pollution.
Unchecked extent: 1/3 rd of earth is now safe for life.
For 80 % world population: water-either scarce or contaminated.
Burdened with increasing population: crossed 6 billion mark in 1999.
Earths resources: eaten away by 20 % of worlds populn.
“BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE EARTH”
India’s greatest pollutant: ever expanding population.
. Eaten out forests.
. Degraded our land.
. Polluted our water systems.
. Sterilisation at the time of birth of second child.

19. . Complete bann on felling of trees for 10 to 20 years:
maintain dwindling forests.
.Tree plantation is an integral part of school and college
education.
Alternatives on disposal of dead by burning and dumping into
rivers.
Above measures were suggested by Khushwant Singh in
Hindustan times in his Saturday column.
.Prevention of env. Degradation become part of our lives.
.Individually reduce wastage of natural resources.
.Close watch of neighbourhood-inform govt. Authorities on
source of pollution.

20. • Methods to create awareness
. TV, Radio strongly influence public opinion.Join NGOs
and support conservation.
.Newspapers, magazines, various articles and posters.
.Through lectures, seminars, paintings, and slogans.
.Holding exhibition, street plays, debates, poster
comptn. Folk dances, public meetings.
.Environmental days celeberated enthusiastically.
.Students can motivate people of their home.
.Join eco clubs.
.Local activities-planting of trees

21. • Strictly ban use of speakers, pressure horns, noisy music
programmes, fire crackers. Duty of people to inform admin.
Authorities abt these activities.
• . Honour the persons in public meetings.environmentalists.
• Students encouraged to make careers in the field.
• Children-teach abt.ancient traditions and relegious
ceremonies-to motivate conservation.
• Leave bad habits-smoking, urination and defeacation at public
places, spitting, tobacco chewing, throwing solid wastes on
streets or roads.

22. National Environmental Institutions
Govt. As well as non-govt. (NGOs)
Agencies and Prog. Engaged in env. studies and env. Protection.
Non govt. Voluntary organisations : good jobs.
Organisations associated with Ministry of Environment , Forest and
climate change.(Dr. Harsh Vardhan)
“World wetlands Day 2019”
Wetlands (National wetland atlas: 4.7%) essential for water and food
and security
eg: High altitude wetlands of Himalayas
Floodplains of mighty rivers of Ganges and Brahmaputra.
Lagoons and mangroove marshes on the coastline and reefs.
Imp.:”Kidneys of landscape”-receive flows of water and waste from
upstream sources.

23. • Help stabilize water supplies
• Clense polluted waters
• Protect shorelines
• Recharge ground water aquifers.
• Combating impacts of climate change.
• Natural sponge-absobing and storing excess rainfall and
reduce flooding.
• During dry season, release the stored water, delay onset
of droughts.
• Reducing impacts of extreme weather condns floods,
droughts and cyclones.
• Threats: landfill, drainage, discharge of domestic and
industrial effluents, slid wastes, hydrological
alteration.over exploitation of natural resources.
• 35% wasteland lost since 1970.

24. Extensive foodchain and biological diversity in wetlands
make them “biological supermarkets.” or “liquid
assets.”
2nd February of each year celebrated as World wetland
Day to mark the date of adoption of
“ Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.”-held at
Ramsar, Iran in 1971- Intergovernmental treaty that
provides framework for national action and
international cooperation for conservation and wise
use of wetlands and their resources.
170 contracting parties-designated 2339 Ramsar sites-
252 million hectar-worlds largest protected area.

25. India designated 26 wetlands-became part in
1982-under 9 designation area.
• endorsed by contracting parties, “the
maintanence of ecological character, achieved
through the implementation of ecosysytem
approaches, within the context of sustainable
development.”
• 2019 Theme: wetland and climatic change.
• National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic
Ecosystem(NPCA scheme).

27. • Andhra Pradesh. Kolleru Lake.
• Assam. Deepor Beel.
• Himachal Pradesh. Chandertal Wetland. Pong
Dam Lake. ...
• Jammu & Kashmir. Hokera Wetland. Surinsar-
Mansar Lakes. ...
• Kerala. Ashtamudi Wetland. ...
• Madhya Pradesh. Bhoj Wetland.
• Manipur. Loktak Lake (Montreux Record)
• Odisha. Bhitarkanika Mangroves.