Environmental Studies: Commerce Semester II

• The module covers an introduction to the environment and environmental issues for first-year commerce students in Semester II (2024-25).

Environment Definition

• The environment encompasses the surroundings where living organisms exist, interacting with physical, chemical, and biological elements.
• The environment is dynamic, including natural components (air, water, soil, plants, animals) and human-made components (cities, industries, infrastructure.)
• The natural environment is constantly changing, threatened by deforestation, pollution, resource overexploitation, and urbanization from human activities.
• These disruptions lead to climate change biodiversity loss, soil erosion, water scarcity, and pollution.
• The natural environment includes the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere.
• The human-made environment is created by human activities, including buildings, transportation systems and social structures.
• The environment is defined as the sum of external conditions affecting organisms or communities and as the total of interacting land, water, and air with living organisms.

Components of the Environment

• The environment's components are interconnected and classified into physical, biological, and cultural environments.
• The physical environment includes abiotic elements like the lithosphere (land), hydrosphere (water), and atmosphere (air).
• The biological environment comprises living organisms like flora, fauna, and microorganisms.
• The cultural environment represents human-made aspects influenced by natural systems, including society, economy, and politics.

Environmental Spheres

• The environment consists of lithosphere (solid rock/soil), hydrosphere (liquid water) and atmosphere (gaseous air).
• The biosphere includes the zone where these three overlap and where life exists.
• The lithosphere is the Earth's outermost crust layer, containing rocks soil sediments and minerals, with geological features like mountains and valleys.
• Mount Everest is the highest point on the lithosphere (29,029 feet/8.9 km above sea level), and the Mariana Trench is the deepest (35,814 feet/10.9 km below sea level).
• The hydrosphere includes water in solid (ice, glaciers), liquid (water bodies), and gaseous (water vapor) forms.
• Oceans and seas contain 97% of the Earth's total water content, while freshwater resources constitute the remaining 3% found in glaciers, rivers, and lakes.
• The hydrosphere maintains climate, meteorological and chemical functions.
• The atmosphere is a thin layer of gas surrounding Earth where water vapor content, air density, and pressure decrease with altitude.
• Nitrogen is the most abundant gas (78%), followed by oxygen (21%), argon (nearly 1%), and carbon dioxide (0.04%).
• The biosphere is self-regulating region where life exists, sustained by biotic and abiotic component interactions.

Natural Environment

• The natural environment includes all living and non-living things that occur naturally such as ecosystems, landscapes, air, water, and climate.
• It includes physical surroundings and ecosystems without human intervention, shaped by natural forces and long-term environmental processes.
• The environment is vital for climate regulation, water cycles and biodiversity.

Ecosystem

• Ecosystems provide air and water purification climate regulation, nutrient cycling, and habitat for biodiversity.
• An ecosystem includes living and non-living components interacting to form a stable community.
• The structural aspect refers to the elements that compose the ecosystem including individuals, communities, plants, animals, and non-living factors.
• The ecosystem functions through the flow of energy from the sun to producers and consumers, along with nutrient cycling.

Biodiversity

• Biodiversity means the diversity of life within a region, vital for the environment and human wellbeing.
• Earth’s biodiversity evolved over 3,000 million years and forms the basis for the survival of humans and species.
• Global biodiversity studied at genetic, species and ecosystem levels.
• Biodiversity ensures essential resources like air, water, and food and boosts environmental change resistance.

Importance of Natural Environment

• The natural environment sustains life and ecosystem services.
• It supplies essential resources like food, water, air, and materials
• Is key for climate regulation via carbon dioxide absorption and temperature control
• Is essential for biodiversity and ecological balance providing pollination and nutrient cycling.
• It promotes human health by ensuring clean air and water and recreational value via tourism and outdoor resources.
• Environmental degradation arises from anthropogenic activities that deplete resources faster than replacement, leading to biodiversity loss, soil degradation, water scarcity, and climate change.
• Rapid urbanization and infrastructure development have led to tree cutting and river pollution, impacting ecosystems.
• Natural resources are substances that occur naturally in a relatively unmodified form and are valuable for human survival, development, and economic activities.
• Resources become valuable materials when humans utilize and value them, requiring knowledge and skill to transform them into useful forms.

Classification of Resources

• Resources are classified based on origin as biotic (derived from living organisms) and Abiotic (derived from non-living elements).
• Resources based on renewability are classified as renewable (regenerate naturally) and non-renewable (exist in fixed quantities).
• Resources based on availability are classified as inexhaustible (abundant) and exhaustible (finite).
• Resources based on the stage of development are classified as potential (found but unutilized) and developed (surveyed, measured, and used).
• Resources can be stock, available but unusable and reserves, which are profitably usable with current technology.
• Based on distribution, they are ubiquitous (found everywhere) or localized (found in specific regions) and based on ownership, they are individual, community, national or international.

Significance of Natural Resources

• Natural resources fulfill human needs worldwide by providing air, water, food, and materials.
• They act as raw materials for industries and are essential for power, transport, and manufacturing.
• Natural resources underpin trade and stimulate economic opportunities and development.
• The natural environment is where people settle provides recreation, and influences population distribution.

Problems with Natural Resources in India

• India faces challenges like overexploitation, pollution, unequal access and climate change.
• Overexploitation arises from growing population industrialization and agricultural expansion.
• Environmental degradation stems from resource overuse causing climate change and biodiversity loss.
• The unequal resource distribution leads to conflicts, poverty, and migration.
• Pollution from industries, agriculture, and urbanization degrades the quality of natural resources.
• Climate change disrupts resource availability and livelihood.
• Unsustainable practices deplete resources disregarding long term effects.
• Legal and Policy challenges weaken resource management due to poor enforcement and corruption.

Climate Change

• Climate change refers to long-term changes in temperature and weather patterns, primarily caused by human activities since the 1800s.
• The Earth's average temperature has increased by 1.2°C since the late 1800s.
• It is caused by deforestation, burning fossil fuels, industrial and agricultural activities, plus overconsumption.
• Climate change may force 216 million people to migrate and cut down crop yields.

Climate Change Effects

• Climate change results in rising temperatures and more frequent and intense storms.
• It leads to extreme weather events such as heatwaves, droughts, and flooding.
• It melts ice caps which causes rising sea levels and threatens coastal communities.
• Oceans becoming more acidic which harms marine life
• Temperature and rainfall changes reduce agricultural production.
• Climate Change poses threat to health via increased and extreme weather.
• Climate Change socio-economic affect by disproportionately affecting low-income communities.

Solutions and Measures to Tackle Climate Change

• The measures include reducing greenhouse gas emissions through renewable energy, improving energy efficiency and carbon capture technologies.
• Encourage sustainable transportation using electric vehicles, public transport, cycling and alternative of fuel use
• Implement sustainable agriculture and land use practices like regenerative farming and agroforestry.
• Protect and restore ecosystems through afforestation and conservation of wetlands reducing food waste
• Encourage and protect biodiversity.
• Build climate-resilient infrastructure, including green roofs and flood-resistant structures, and sustainable investments.

Global Warming

• Global warming is the long-term increase in Earth's average temperature caused by increased concentrations of greenhouse gases, both naturally and anthropogenically.
• Natural causes of global warming include volcanoes, water vapor, melting permafrost, forest fires, and ocean currents.
• Human-made causes of global warming include the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, vehicle use, industrial development agricultural practices, land use changes and improper waste management.

Effect of Global Warming

• The major effects include rising global temperatures, melting of ice and glaciers and rising sea levels.
• Ocean acidification, impacts on agriculture, ecosystem threats, and disease spread
• Climate change leads to social and economic effects.

Actions to combat Global Warming

• Support of renewable energy, tree planting initiatives, reducing energy consumption etc.
• Embrace of sustainable consumption and education that promote collective engagement.

Kyoto Protocol

• The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty that has legally binding target to reduce emissions.
• Adopted in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997 and enforced since 2005, it commits industrialized countries to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
• The protocol involves three mechanisms to emission reduction: clean development mechanisms, carbon emission trading and joint implementation.
• India is supporting the “polluter pays '' concept for extending commitments.

Achievements of the Kyoto Protocol

• Establishment of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects to increase investments in renewable energy technologies.
• The protocol addressed international climate change

List of Greenhouse Gases

• Carbon dioxide
• Methane
• Nitrous Oxide
• Hydrofluorocarbons
• Perfluorocarbons
• Sulfur Hexafluoride

Threats to Biodiversity

• Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms, involving species, ecosystem, and genetic variety.
• Deforestation for agriculture and logging damage biodiversity and mining and livestock grazing degrading the environment.
• Human-wildlife conflict is harmful to both species while extraction of forest produce reduces biodiversity
• Encroachment, pollution hydropower projects can cause damage to aquatic and forest ecosystems
• As well as climate change which drastically varies rainfall.
• In the effects of such, loss of speices diiversity, disruption of ecosystem services are reduced.
• Protected reserve areas are one way to help endangered species.

Waste management

• Waste is unwanted and unusable materials including domestic municipal, and industrial wastes that can be solid, liquid or gas.
• Waste management manages waste from inception to disposal, minimizing harm to health and the environment.
• It does this through streamlined processes such as recycling, reusing, composting, and incineration to protect natural resources and minimize pollution.

Significance of Waste Management

• Waste management protects the environment and conserves resources through optimization.
• It has economic benefits and promotes public health and is a advocate for sustainability.
• The key in doing so if through reduction, reuse and recycling and encouraging green economy.

Waste management strategies

• Waste management strategies cover entire life cycle from creation to disposal and recovery.
• It can be performed by reduction, reuse, recycle, composting and producing things like energy.
• There are 5 categories of waste management; refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and recycle

Circular economy

• Is a sustainable method that aims to design waste out of usage.
• It minimizes greenhouse gases and unsustainable use of earth's ressources.
• A zero-waste includes a model where most of all municipal solid waste is recycled and safety managed.
• it includes, Resourse efficiency, closed-loop systems, systems thinking all as key features to the practice.
• Waste generation costs will reduce through use of the scheme and better environmantal practice.
• As well as conserving materials and resources when using this scheme.

Innovating methods of waste management

• Smart waste bins: Using AI to identify recycables by seperation.
• Waste level sensors: Technology to find fill levels in receptacles to optimize the use of collection.
• AI Recycling Robots: Robots to identify recyclable materials, increasing efficency in plants.
• AI is used to reduce the need of human workers.
• Pneumatic waste pipes in cities.
• Solar-Power trash compactors used to save energy and be more efficent than tradional containers.
• Having E-waste kiosks set up for recycling machines.
• Making more Recycling apps to improve recycling rates.
• AI technology to help better manage waste.
• Have sustainable planning in urban areas to assist waste management.

NGOs in Waste Management

• They play a crucial role; involvement brings community engagements and is innovative.
• All of this is to create a cleaner enviroment and promote sustainable living to improve conditions.
• They promote awareness about waste to improve skill development and tech.
• They work to advocate through the grassroots and influencment to get more change.

Waste Warriors

• They have a social and environmantal impact, empowering workers at the forfront.
• As well as reduce polution.
• They then support the use of more economy to further advance change.
• NGOs then partner with municipalitys and governments to develop ideas and implement systems to improve.
• Lets Do It Foundation, Waste Warriors are some key groups in this field that help achieve greatness.

Startups in waste management

• startups play a transformative role to reduce the gloabal waste crisis.
• Waste collection and segragation: Smart waste bins and collectin centers are being set up.