Lecture 2: Fundamentals of Environment PDF

CSU1429 – Climate Crisis: Issues, Impacts and Adaptations Lecture 2 Topics to be covered today Fundamentals of environment Environment and Development are inseparable.  In 2004, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Wangari Maatliai, a Kenyan environmentalist who had linked the crit...

CSU1429 – Climate Crisis: Issues, Impacts and Adaptations Lecture 2 Topics to be covered today Fundamentals of environment Environment and Development are inseparable.  In 2004, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Wangari Maatliai, a Kenyan environmentalist who had linked the critical issue of environment to development and peace around the world.  Maathai had observed that the environment has been exposed to many human activities that are devastating to the environment and societies such as widespread Wangari Maatliai destruction of ecosystem. What does environment mean?  The term “environ” is defined as “to surround” or “to enclose”. The scope of the environment varies — from the tiniest, “micro” scale to the largest, global scale.  If you mean physical environment, then it is defined as the surrounding conditions and elements with which a living thing interacts with.  However, apart from the physical, there are other types of elements that make up an environment. They are the chemical and biological attributes.  Thus, an environment contains all biotic and abiotic factors that have a role in the survival, evolution, and development of the organism occupying it. Types of Environments The environment differs from one perspective to another. Let’s take a look at the following ways to group or classify environments.  Internal and external An internal environment would be the internal milieu of a multicellular organism. Maintaining the internal environment of an organism through homeostasis is crucial to the organism’s survival. An external environment refers to the environment outside of the organism. Natural and Built Eternal environments may be natural or built. A natural environment is a type of environment found in nature. It includes all naturally occurring things, both living and nonliving. It, therefore, involves the complex relationships of weather, climate, living species, and natural resources. Built environments, unlike natural environments, are made by humans, such as agricultural conversions or urban settings. With the current breadth of human interventions and conversions, many natural environments have acquired some degree or level of being “built”. Classification based on components Based on the components, the environment may also be classified into (1) Aquatic environment (marine, such as oceans and seas, and freshwaters, such as lakes and rivers), (2) Terrestrial environment (land), and (3) Atmospheric environment (air). Aquatic environment  Marine environments are the largest known environments, they are characterized by the presence of water with great salt content. On the other hand, freshwater environments have less salt content.  Marine environments represent about 97% of the water on Earth. Organisms within marine environments communicate with each other and with their physical surrounding.  These environments are of great importance to humans because it is an important source of nutrition and resources. Marine pollution, acidification, and warming are threats to the marine environment as a result of human activities. Terrestrial environments  Terrestrial environments are environments found on land only. It represents the land of islands and continents and organisms living on them.  Unlike aquatic or marine environments, terrestrial environments are not abundant in water; therefore, the presence of water in terrestrial environments is important.  Due to the relatively lower availability of water, the temperature of terrestrial environments fluctuates daily and seasonally. There are six terrestrial ecosystems: taiga, rainforests, temperate forests, tundra, deserts, and grassland. Atmospheric environment  The atmospheric environment refers to the atmospheric component of an environment.  The atmosphere (air) is a part of the Earth that has a huge impact on the thriving and survival of many organisms.  Solar radiation, air components, climate, and air pollution are just some of the physicochemical attributes that can define an environment. Biosphere  The biotic components represent all living things on Earth, such as bacteria, protists, algae, fungi, plants, and animals. Life existed on Earth for more than 3.7 billion years. It is generally characterized by metabolism, growth, organization, adaptation, response, and reproduction. It includes all living organisms in the environment.  Biomes are ecological communities of different organisms that are able to adapt to the environmental conditions and climate in a certain geographic area; therefore, biomes are large environments characterized by biotic and abiotic factors such as light, temperature, precipitation, and other factors.  Energy flows between biotic and abiotic parts of the environment in cycles within the system of the ecosystem.  Consequently, all components of the ecosystem are integrated with each other in harmony.  Thank you Dr. Ritesh Banerjee School of Biological and Environmental Sciences Shoolini University Village Bajhol, Solan (H.P) +91 8585896326 [email protected]